The Basement: Demolition Done!

Progress has been made in the basement folks and its no thanks to us. We hired a contractor, Rob Pahl of Basement Spaces, to do the dirty work and take the space from demolition to finished drywall. We would have done the work ourselves but we're (a) a bit preoccupied with our day jobs and planning the next BlogPodium, (b) working on a super-secret project I can't tell you about yet, and (c) slow and tired and wanted the basement done at least before Chloe moves out of the house - which is questionable had we done all the work ourselves ;) No worries, we'll still be getting in there and doing all the tilework, painting, trimwork, cabinetry, and finishing details.

Rob came highly recommended to us - by HandyMan's ex-girlfriend. Its slightly amusing how many of HandyMan's ex-girlfriends have got in contact with me via this blog. More than one, several, they come out of the woodwork, I tell you! But we did our due diligence too and got quotes from other contractors, asked lots of questions, and checked references. As you can imagine, we're pretty "particular" clients (you've seen the architectural drawings, right?) and really expect a high level of detail and quality work. And so far, Basement Spaces has delivered.

In two short days, they did this...

 and this...

 this too...

 and this. Good bye beloved sunflowers!

Hooray! Luckily, there were no big surprises. No leaks, no mold, only a few little crawlies. Even the elevated floor area turned out to be just a platform with nothing noteworthy underneath.

Clean up happens this week and next with old electrical lines tidied up, some plumbing changes, and then sprayfoam insulation. Things are moving!

Around the house

Don't forget to enter the Veet prize pack giveaway here

A Girl's Room: Country Charm

While renovations go on in the basement, I'm still pondering which direction to go in with Chloe's new bedroom. Though HandyMan isn't that fond of this Coronata wallpaper, I can't seem to get it out of my head. The instant I saw it, I knew I wanted to pair it with the 3 little piggies painting I picked up at Furnishings On Consignment eons ago. The piggies were meant to live in this room!

But black wallpaper in a child's room is a tricky thing. To keep it from being too heavy, I would paint the remaining three walls white. The room needs colour though so picking up on the hints of green in the painting, I'd put a fun stripey green rug on the floor and sweet botanicals in crisp white frames on the walls. Floral fabrics big, small, and graphic amp up the country feel. And how about the folksy quality of the "H is for Happiness" print? It gives the necessary hit of black to keep the room more modern country and less Laura Ingalls. The ever-popular Moravian Star is the perfect fixture for this little's girl's room. I can already picture Chloe reading in bed, looking up at it. Its like the mini-me version of our bedroom chandelier.



What do you think? Would you use black in a child's room?



***



On a totally unrelated note, the annual Apartment Therapy Homies are out and we've been nominated! Thank you SO much to those who've already cast a vote our way. If you'd like to vote for us too, you can do that here. And even if you don't want to vote, check out the list of nominations. Its a great way to find some new blog reads!

Basement Floor Plan

Before I show you the framing that has been completed in the basement I thought it might be a better idea to show the floor plan, so you know what you are looking at. Framing is hard to photograph.

Deciding on the floor plan has been the hardest part of the basement reno so far. Luckily we did have time to ponder that until it felt just right. We have so many requirements of our limited space and need to be efficient with every square inch.

Here are our requirements for the basement:

-3-piece bathroom

-Family room to house the TV, with room for guests to sleep

-Storage for large items (winter tires, golf clubs, luggage, Christmas decorations etc)

-Laundry room

-Furnace area

-Storage, storage, storage

We used floorplanner.com to create all our different options.

Here is our final basement layout.

Coming down the stairs and turn left into the large family room with 2 windows. Under the stairs will be built in storage as well as along the far left wall. There will likely also be built in storage around the TV.

The laundry and furnace room are together in one large room with a window and exterior door. On the other side at the bottom of the stairs is a small 3-piece bathroom with a storage room off of it.

We had many, many versions of the floor plan. Where we started was a way off from where we finished. We were stuck for awhile with something that just didn't feel right. We just keep trying to think of every possible option until we got to where we knew it was right.

We did make one compromise, not having a window in the bathroom. That one change allowed us to meet all our other criteria and not have any wasted space. Of course all of this is a rough guide and we may make some tweaks along the way as we finish the space.

Basement Floor Plan

Before I show you the framing that has been completed in the basement I thought it might be a better idea to show the floor plan, so you know what you are looking at. Framing is hard to photograph.

Deciding on the floor plan has been the hardest part of the basement reno so far. Luckily we did have time to ponder that until it felt just right. We have so many requirements of our limited space and need to be efficient with every square inch.

Here are our requirements for the basement:

-3-piece bathroom

-Family room to house the TV, with room for guests to sleep

-Storage for large items (winter tires, golf clubs, luggage, Christmas decorations etc)

-Laundry room

-Furnace area

-Storage, storage, storage

We used floorplanner.com to create all our different options.

Here is our final basement layout.

Coming down the stairs and turn left into the large family room with 2 windows. Under the stairs will be built in storage as well as along the far left wall. There will likely also be built in storage around the TV.

The laundry and furnace room are together in one large room with a window and exterior door. On the other side at the bottom of the stairs is a small 3-piece bathroom with a storage room off of it.

We had many, many versions of the floor plan. Where we started was a way off from where we finished. We were stuck for awhile with something that just didn't feel right. We just keep trying to think of every possible option until we got to where we knew it was right.

We did make one compromise, not having a window in the bathroom. That one change allowed us to meet all our other criteria and not have any wasted space. Of course all of this is a rough guide and we may make some tweaks along the way as we finish the space.

Giveaway: Veet $100 Prize Pack

I know it's not quite Spring yet, but with the warmer then normal winter we've been experiencing this season you know it's only a matter of time before we need to pack away our tights so we can bare our legs, and to prep us for skin baring season Veet is offering you lucky WALLPAPER readers an awesome prize pack to get you ready for Spring!

Veet wants to kick off the month of warmer weather and shorter skirts with a special giveaway just for you awesome readers.  In honour of the season best known for rebirth and renewal, “Veet puts the Spring back in your step” with a giveaway valued at approximately $100 of Veet product for one of you lucky readers.

Here is what's up for grabs:

Featured in the prize pack is Veet’s new EasyWax Electrical Roll-On Kit, the latest must-have item in beauty technology. The product offers a simple and innovative at-home solution for hair removal, complete with salon quality wax that warms up and dispenses directly from the device and is gentle enough to use even on the most sensitive of skin.

The prize pack will also include some of Veet's best selling  beauty products such as Veet High Precision Facial Wax, Veet Hydro’Restor Hair Removal Cream, Veet Ready-to-Use Wax strips for Face & Bikini, and Veet EasyGrip Ready-to-Use Wax Strips.

To Enter: 
You must be a follower of WALLPAPER and leave a comment telling me how you get ready for Spring?

For additional entries:

Tweet about this giveaway 


Contest Closes: Thursday March, 8 2012 at 11:59 pm, central time.
Contest open to Canadian residents only.


Other Info: I will select the winner using random.org and announce the winner on Friday March 9, 2012...Good luck!!

The Basement: The Before

And the basement renovation has begun! C'mon, take a tour and see what we're working with...

BlogTalk: Personal Brand

I’ve got branding on the brain lately. What IS my brand? What do I stand for? What do I offer my readers that no one else can? I’m guessing many of you have the same questions about your own brand.

I attended the Building A Personal Brand seminar at Alt Summit featuring Camille Styles, Jasmine Star, and Cassandra Lavalle which was jam packed with great tips on how to build your brand. Here’s a few that stuck with me:

• Find a niche and establish yourself as an expert 


• Write a brief 4-word brand statement. Measure your projects, plans, and collaborations up against this statement to see if they fit with your brand 


• Be creative. With your personal brand, you are the content. Make your message high-quality & compelling 


• People choose bloggers, not blogs…Readers want to connect with you as a person, not what you do. 


• Figure out what your assets and liabilities are. Work with people who can fill your weaknesses 


• Create a good brand by aligning with others who can make you look good 


• When you collaborate, you are aligning yourself with that brand. 


• Sponsors on your site are a reflection of your personal brand. They should be in line with your aesthetic, ethics, and goals


• Allow for evolution and growth but stick to your core characteristics 

My big takeaway was that your brand is about YOU – not about the things you do, the places you go, the way you decorate your house. If I could wrap up all those messages in one, it would be this:

I’m on my way to doing just that. This was a good start. How about you? Do you know your brand? What makes you you?

A Girl's Room: The Pink Sophisticate

Vanessa and I took a trip to the Primavera trade showroom last week to take a look at some wallpapers I'd been eyeing. It was so fun (geeky design fun). I could spend hours poring over wallpaper books - the colours, the pattern, the sheen! I took home a stack of samples and have been mulling over which one we'll use for Chloe's bedroom. There are so many looks you can achieve with wallpaper so I've put together some moodboards to help me decide.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7

First up is Grove Garden from Osborne & Little. I really loved the gold parts of the leaves which reflect depending on how you're looking at them. Since we're planning to wallpaper only one wall, its nice to use a layered, detailed wallpaper like this one to make it really interesting. Pairing the minty green with a range of pink accents, from a pale pinky-coral to a deep fuchsia, creates a look sure to satisfy those pink lovers. Its so easy to fall in the "pink trap" and plaster a little girl's room in basic shades that are saccharine sweet, but the inclusion of bolder pinks gives this look some longevity. I could see Chloe enjoying this room well into her teens.



What do you think? Too adult or just grown up enough?



More looks to come!

House Tour: The Doctor's Closet

images via

On CityLine

Okay, so that wasn't too bad (though I don't I will ever enjoy seeing myself on TV). Here's a link to the CityLine video and instructions on the CityLine site on how to make a costume closet. I'm not sure if folks outside Canada can watch the video but hopefully you can. 

We were fortunate to have a few different segments throughout the show - a living room tour (at 13:20), a dining room tour (at 18:09), and my in studio DIY segment (19:28). I've been told our house looked better on the show that it did in my blog photos. I have to agree - its a wonder what professional lighting can do ;)

Thank you Style At Home and CityLine for this wonderful opportunity!