ORC Spring '23 - Week 8 Farewell Fugly and Hello …Fabulous! I am so excited to share this final One Room Challenge update with you even though it’s a full 3 weeks later than anticipated!! Treating myself as the client in my own renovation was an effective reminder of what it’s like to live through the installation phase of a project. During the last few weeks, I was both excited as final selections started to arrive and dismayed when additional work and alterations were required. We had the option of either meeting the original deadline or meeting the stringent standards we expect from our fi ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 7 We all know the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” but sometimes it doesn’t speak the truth! I can almost hear your thoughts: "Seriously? It's week 7 of the 8-week One Room Challenge, and this is all you've got to show us?" Despite this lackluster photo, let me assure you that we're not out on the patio sipping cocktails while the deadline looms over us. Nope, not at all! We're knee-deep in the One Room Challenge, frantically juggling the remainder of our checklist as we transform this workspace from fugly to fabulous for me and my assistant. An ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 6 Have you every felt you were in the midst of a tornado and your brain was bursting with lists, to-do’s and a million decisions to be made – and pronto at that!! Well, welcome to week 6 of the One Room Challenge. We are in high gear here at our fugly (soon to be fabulous) home office. Implementation is well under way and just a quickly as things are being checked off the list, new surprises are being added! How does that happen you ask? As a well experienced designer, I can tell you that the ‘unexpected’ is part of our ‘expected’ and there are always some ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 5 Hello Week 5 !! It’s hard to believe we are at the mid-point of the One Room Challenge in our Fugly-to Fabulous French Country Modern Office Makeover. Things are ticking along and this week we are moving from the nitty gritty (trade week) to the exciting and pretty - The Design Presentation! This is always a high point in the interior design process as we get to show our clients how the actual selections and elements translate in their ‘home-sweet-home’. This is all about bringing the vision we worked on in the Design strategy session, to life! Mid-clean ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 4 Guess who's back? That's right, I've returned from my incredible European adventure! Now, before you envision me strolling through fields of vibrant tulips with a glass of fine wine in hand, let me set the record straight. My trip wasn't all picturesque landscapes and relaxation. No, I had a little thing called the One Room Challenge on my mind throughout. Last week, we took a big leap forward by finalizing the Design Concept for my fugly-to-fabulous French Country Modern style home office. But that was just the beginning! This week, it's time to assemble ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 3 Alright, people, it's time for an update on the One Room Challenge - Week 3! For those of you who don't know, the ORC is like a design boot camp where you have to (I mean get to) transform an entire space in just eight weeks. It's like a real-life version of those HGTV shows, but with less staged drama and more actual insanity. So, here I am, still in Europe, trying to find inspiration while also freaking out about all the things that need to get done for my own workspace makeover. Thank goodness for my Design Assistant Charlene, who is keeping me from h ..read more

Spring '23 - One Room Challenge Week 1 Are you ready to hear a juicy confession? My home office is capital “F” Fugly! It's the place where I spend most of my day, yet I haven't given it any love or attention. It wasn’t until I hired my Design Assistant Charlene a couple of months ago that it felt like it should be a priority. It was barely functioning for one person, so how could it work for two on those days when we were together? There is no way this desk could work for two people. I decided the only way to approach this was to treat myself like a client and run my office renovation through ..read more

I don’t need to tell you how busy families are these days. It’s not uncommon to spend your day in a wild rush of work, sports, activities and homework, desperately trying to fit in a decent meal where possible. The purported reason for these built ins is to improve traffic flow and usability, but the real purpose is to minimize the time you spend yelling at your kids when they are underfoot, can’t find their sh*t and you need to be saved from losing your mommy-of-the-year award. I’ve broken them into common daily activities for quick reference. Consider this your life raft if your sanity needs ..read more

Creating a beautiful, cohesive home can be challenging – especially when you aren’t 100 per cent certain how to define your style. Whether you are hiring a professional Interior Designer or planning to DIY, it’s important to narrow down what you like before beginning. These days, styles are often blended because hey, why not create a space that makes you happy? Between Pinterest, Instagram and the University of Google, there is a prolific amount of design and style advice to help you out, but it can be a little overwhelming to sift through it all. To help you out, we’ve outlined 9 of the most ..read more

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