Swiss retreat

My skis are on, my boots are tight, and my goggles aren't fogging up. Can I come over? Can I stay forever?

I am in awe of this cabin in Switzerland. The views are spectacularly breath taking. (I am at a loss for words) A well placed abode, I must say.

Via Black*Eiffel

Bishop Bevy

Remember when I wanted to find a new cocktail? Well here is one I came across from ModCottage. I don't think I can order it when I'm out, but it does sound yummy, especially since it's still cold here! Spiced anything sounds soooo good right now!

Image from ModCottage

Finger Indulgences

I posted some work from Alexandra Schleicher, a Toronto based Jeweller in my coral post last week. Here are more from this talented Canadian, only this time its strictly a hand game.

I wonder where Alexandra gets her inspiration? Each piece seems so different. One for every mood maybe? If that was the case, I would have to wear them all at the same time! Tacky?

One question about big rings though:

Should you wear them with bright nail polish or natural nail polish? Can you wear them with no nail polish and short nails?

Globelier....

I was sure I wanted a chandelier in my bedroom... I was almost certain what exact chandelier I wanted. But then I came across this Globe Pendant from West Elm, and it has me second guessing....
It is so completely opposite of what I wanted but I surprisingly love it. What do you think of this light?

Shelving Made

Maire Claire Maison

What a coincidence! I made these exact shelves yesterday at work! And to my surprise Desire to Inspire posted about them yesterday as well! Crazy hey?


While the shelves I made won't be put to quite as beautiful use as these ones (they are being used for equipment storage in a sea can) I did take note of how sleek they are... both in appearance and in easy of assembly. 10 minutes and they were up!

House and Home

Rich[ardson] Bedrooms

Sarah Richardson is a well known (almost famous?) Canadian designer and stylist who has had several shows (Room Service and Design Inc.) and has her own line of furniture. Her latest project is inviting HGTV viewers into her newly purchased house and watch her renovate the whole thing, while pregnant! The show is called Sarah's House.

I haven't watched many episodes, but I did catch a bit of one focusing on her master bedroom. The room was so simple and elegant, I had to share.

Before:

After:

While browsing for the Master bedroom before and after photos I found some images of her new guest room, even more inspirational ! (I especially love it because of the Black, White, and Green - the colour pallet I wanted for my bedroom...) Maybe Sarah will want to redecorate her guest room in the near future and donate all her 'old' items to me!

I can't believe how much light there is in this basement room! It's like it isn't even below ground!
And this is how it looked before!!

All images from HGTV

Do Ban.Do

Check out these lovely bandeaux from ban.do.

There are many more on their website, seriously, so many different designs, more than I even imagined existed! The two girls behind this (Jen and Jamie) are exceptionally creative - they sound pretty quirky and fun too!

Oh those wonderful Swedes!

So my heritage is 25% Swedish. I can't speak the language and I have never been there, but I some days I feel very Swedish, especially when it comes to this room makeover from Colorama!!

Before:

After:

Below is the desk you can just barely see in the bottom left hand corner of the room. I love the creativity that went into making this desk. It is two pieces of glass with wallpaper glued between them! So smart!

Via Apartment Therapy

Easy Eco Mondays - Rabit Food

Try out more vegetarian meals.

Eating meat (or animal based products) has a larger carbon footprint than eating plant based food. (I'll give you stats tomorrow) However, most North Americans meals center around meat. For me, there is usually one meat product in each of my lunch and dinner. I choose meat to keep my protein intake up because it is easy to cook, even though I know there are high protein meat alternatives out there! I tried cooking lentils a couple times before with the results were dismal at best. If only I knew how to cook protein rich vegetable based foods! And I am sure I am not the only one to lament about this! So what to do? Well, the answer is at my finger tips!

Many of the recipe websites (All Recipes, Cooks.com, Recipe Zaar, and Epicurious) out there contain a large number of vegetarian recipes, or meatless section, as well there are websites dedicated solely to vegetarian cooking.

Here are 5 vegetarian websites with many positive reviews:

• VegWeb
• GoVeg
• Savvy Vegetarian
• VegCooking
• The Vegetarian Journal

Don't these dishes look yummy?

Saturdays are for...

Lattes!

Spice up your coffe on Saturday with a little steamed milk and some creative barista designs....

Rohit seth

rooracer (Flickr)

EliseLovesPrada (Flickr)

A little reward for being so good all week!

Keep It positive....

Doesn't this time of year just make you feel like this?

Photography by Cleo Sullivan

I know I should be upbeat, positive and just plain happy. I have just spent all this time with family and friends, the indulgences of my taste buds are still lingering on my lips , and Santa's gifts are still gleaming new... but with new years resolutions on the brink of breaking, holiday decorations coming down, bills coming in, and cold winter temperatures, it is hard to be Ms. Optimistic! Luckily, I have been though a January before and know that its brighter from here on out! (and I am not just talking about the hours of sunlight each day!)

Wrap me in Hulse

I received a sewing machine for Christmas (yes it is exactly what I wanted!) and so I have been scoping out fabrics. My grandma once told me "You get to know how important good fabric is when you have to sow clothing for three girls." I'm not sure I will ever be able to get to my grandma's level of expertise, but I have found that ever since getting the sowing machine I have been obsessing with fabrics, and designs.

So today I was ecstatic when I stumbled upon Clarissa Hulse fabric! While one of the best-known textile designers in the UK, all of her fabrics are new to me, and I love them all!





I love how bright and fresh the designs are, yet still reflecting nature quite accurately!

Coral Inspiration

Check out these beautiful coral inspired jewellery pieces. As long as they don't come in coral the colour I love them! (I have heard rumours that the colour coral is coming back....noooooo!)

The beautiful bracelet and necklace are from Nervous System....

These are from Esty seller LemonGrove

Via I'll Seen, I'll Said

These pieces are by Canadian (Toronto based) jeweller Alexandrea Schleicher...

Find these on her website here

Back to the Real World

So I am back from my fabulous trip down to warm and sunny California, as well as back from my holiday break with the family. It is now back to reality and back to the daily grind. But for some reason this year, I am embracing being back and having things be routine. I love having time again to browse my regular haunts and scoping out the 2009 posts so far. Some are recapping 2008, some are making 2009 resolutions, some are talking about 2009 trends, and others are just writing like it is just another day.

I am torn as to what topics I want to navigate through during these first new year posts since all of the above mentioned posts are wonderful and valid. I am a planner and a future thinker, so making goals and predictions comes naturally to me. I am also analytical and like to review the past. But recently I have been trying to stay focused on the present. So really, I want to tie everything into one, because just like my decor style, my thoughts and emotions are eclectic and sometimes almost random.

So I hope you enjoy this eclectic smattering of New Yearesque posts.....

Three things I wanted to write about while on vacation:

1) There has been some crazy weather this season!! Before the holidays Las Vegas even got snow! Back at home in Vancouver, they have received tons of snow since Dec 13th... more than a couple feet in total! Many many planes were delayed and work was cancelled due to poor commuting conditions! And the snow was not confined to only Vancouver, Toronto had a some back to back storms as well... This all adds up to it being a white Canadian Christmas from Coast to Coast for the first time since 1971!!

Photograph by Cleo Sullivan

2) Does anyone know of any light refreshing drinks for 2009? I want to find some not too sweet, not too strong sipping cocktails for the new year. Finally I might be able to avoid being that one person at the table who goes... um, ahh, let me see... before finally going with a glass of their house wine!

Photography by Victoria Granof

3) I just want to dress up. Lately I have had this unrelenting desire to go over the top with everything. I want bright fun jewellery, elegant gowns, and big and romantic hair! Unfortunately my cravings are not so practical, especially now with the recession. I wonder however, can I bring some luxury into my life for little to nothing?

Photography by Richard Phibbs

Hot Hot Sun

I have been totally MIA lately... Enjoying the holidays to say the least! I hope you are all having a good holiday break!
I am currently in California where I am trying to soak up some sun... lucky for all of you, I will be home in a few days with lighter posts... literally, no more wanting to cozy up near the fire place... its all about light and colour here, and I am going to go with it!
Until then dears...

Both images from Living Etc.