Project Springdale is complete and it’s time to reveal some Before & After shots. Like I said many times before, it’s so rewarding to see your design coming together, seeing what a difference it makes in my clients life. The kitchen was in much need of a renovation as the previous homeowners had retrofitted the original kitchen in a somewhat “creative” way. It was outdated and in lack of both storage and counter surface. The oak doors were dated and the client was looking for a new fresh white kitchen while still maintaining wood and warmth. To keep with the clients budget, we decided ..read more

I’ve meant to share this before and after shot for quite some time now, and then life came in between and I never got around to it. Well solstice happened the other night and our days are now turning longer and brighter as we go, so what better time than to share this spring / summer inspired kitchen of mine. This space had quite a transformation, I hope you will be able to appreciate what the new design has done by viewing these before and after photos. The original layout was not working for the homeowners, the island was much too small, the sink and cabinetry behind the half wall divid ..read more

When I embarked on my first IKEA kitchen design, it was a true struggle. For the past 10 years I have have been working closely with custom mill work companies and have therefore been very spoiled with superb finishes and customizable cabinet sizes. For a designer, being able to customize cabinets to your liking is a true advantage. Working with IKEA’s limited choices of styles, sizes and finishes is challenging, however it forces your creative brain to step up a game. I would like to guide you with 10 steps on how to achieve your own designer’s kitchen using IKEA kitchen cabinetry. Because do ..read more

In the last few years there has been a trend to move away from traditionally planned enclosed kitchen with a separate dining room, to a open concept / dining / living space. Now I often hear the question, is this functional and is this for me? In order to decide if open concept living is for you, I want to suggest that you do some thinking and read the scenarios I have presented below. These in combination with careful planning will help you come up with a layout that is perfect for your family and you. Is an open concept kitchen / dining / living for me? – Open concept kitchen will often have ..read more

I’m currently working with a close friend of mine, turning her newly purchased house into something fabulous. The main objective is to renovate the kitchen which, of course, I’m excited to do. Contractors are going in this week to start demo, cabinets have been ordered and we are ready to start this new reno adventure together. Helping clients step by step through a renovation process is very rewarding. Noticing how they appreciate all the hard work that you put into the project, making sure its running smoothly and as uncomplicated as possible is even better. This will be my friend ..read more

You are about to renovate the kitchen and there are so many decisions to be made. How should the kitchen look and feel? What materials do I want to use? What are my priorities and why am I doing this renovation? Can I do it on my own or do I need a designer? Which contractor should I hire? What cabinets should I use? For some people, renovate the kitchen can be quite overwhelming. In this blog post I want to give you a guideline how to prepare for your kitchen renovation and where to start the process. This, to make the process feel less intimidating and push you into believing that you can do ..read more

It’s time to reveal the Before and After shots of this little gem of a kitchen. This East York bungalow had a pretty impressive transformation and the pictures can speak for them selfs. The original kitchen had absolutely no functionality or aesthetic. One of the homeowners is a professional chef and he had a really hard time preforming his art in this space as you can imagine. We opened up the space by closing off the entrance to the basement. Instead we opened up the existing window and made it into a new exterior backdoor with a raised patio for summer hang and BBQ. The original space was n ..read more

ELLE Decoration Swedish Design Award happen tonight. and here are some of the winners Kitchen of the year: Kvänum kök in Sweden with their line INTRO. Bathroom of the year: Swoon side honey, Fredrik Wallner, Swoon     Chair of the year:  Madonna by David Ericsson at Garnäs “simple but with unexpected details, perfect proportions and choice of materials – a future classic” Wall paper of the year: Nagano Grey by Marlin Karstensson, Mimou   Furniture of the year: Daybed Sinnerlig, Ilse Crawford for IKEA Lamp of the year: Stick, Hüseyin Turgut, Lightwork   The p ..read more

Last week I posted a picture of this Danish designed kitchen on my Instagram account and I promised to share the rest of the kitchen here on my blog. Well it took some time but here it is, finally! This stunning kitchen is located in Christianshavn in Copenhagen and designed by the Danish Kitchen company Garde Hvalsoe. The homeowner is the world renowned chef René Redzepi. I can only imagine designing a kitchen for someone like René, someone who really has a passion for cooking and knows exactly what they want. René wanted a long kitchen counter along the window for cleanup and cooking. The to ..read more

Hello January, hello 2016!   Here is a delicious 1920s Swedish home for you to get all excited about! This is the home of Karin Ward Creative Director at linum ab. She has done a fantastic job designing and decorating her home. I love the “walk-up closet” in the attic. I also really love the glassed in Sauna in the master bathroom… why don’t we have saunas in our bathrooms in Canada, we have cold winters too… if not colder! Photos by: Jonas Ingerstedt for Elle Interior Sweden   The post 1920’s Swedish home appeared first on linnea lions ..read more