Indigo Holiday Preview
I recently went to the Indigo Books & Music preview of their holiday 2011 product collection. I've always loved Indigo for their books but their recent foray into decor and lifestyle products has me really excited.
All of the seasonal products quickly got me into the holiday mood. Christmas stockings, warm fuzzy slippers, hot chocolate kits, and tea kettle cozies...
...and cute things to adorn your tabletops or put on your tree...
Indigo really is a destination now to find the perfect gift for everyone on your list. There's something for the gents (like these fab soft goods from Red Canoe)...
and the ladies...
and of course, something for the kidlets too! Those moose frames are way too adorable.
These products are in stores now. Time to knock some things off my shopping list!
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Style At Home Photo Shoot - The Photography
When Style At Home comes to shoot your home, you can expect there to be a bit of temporary chaos. That chaos mostly comes in the form of the photographer, his assistant, the camera, the viewing monitor, the lighting, the power cords, and the rest of the gear that moves from room to room to room.
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| Chaos! |
But as much as things are out of place in the background, things are pure magic in front of the lens. It was so inspiring to watch Angus Fergusson and his assistant Will Fournier do what they do. I have taken so many photos of my home that it was hard for me to imagine how differently Angus could photograph it. How would he compose his shots? Would they look anything like what I had photographed? What details of our home would he find interesting enough to focus his lens on?
Two things struck me about how Angus worked. The first is the range or how much of the room was in the photos. As bloggers, I think we tend to think "big picture" - show the whole room and all the details, the quintessential Before and After shot. Magazine photography is a bit different. Its about conveying the sense of a room in a few well-composed shots. Ann-Marie Favot (the Design Editor on the shoot) told me they typically end up with only 2-3 photos per room! And those photos can be a mix... a close-up of a singular detail; a broad room shot; a photo of a vignette. It was great to see Angus focus on details in my house that I found ordinary or not-so photoworthy, but with the right lighting and composition, they became lovely, ethereal, almost romantic.
The second thing I noticed was positioning. Up the stairs, standing in a closet - Angus would put himself and his camera where necessary to get the best shot. I can't say I put in that same amount of effort for the photos I put on the blog!
Which is how I sometimes end up with what Angus calls "blog style" photos - photos taken from a standing position, aimed downward. Take a look at your own blog - do you have many photos like that? Yeah, I'm guilty of it. See:
These photos would look much better if I had crouched down, positioned myself level with the object and focused in what was really interesting instead of just standing and 'taking the shot'. Change things up, put a little more effort into it. That's a tip for you!
And here are a few more of Angus' tips on how to take better photos for your blog:
- Use daylight to your advantage. Shoot photos in early morning or early evening when the light is soft
- If you HAVE to get the shot (like for a birthday cake blowing), use the flash!
- Northern light is complementary. Southern light can be harsh and bright. Be aware of the shadows
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| Hard shadows - bad! |
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| Soft shadows - better! |
- Use a tripod! A tripod helps you get in-focus, sharp photos but it also helps gets the camera into physically limiting spaces. For some of the photos, if Angus couldn't stand in the spot necessary to take the photo, he would use the tripod and trip the shutter remotely. You can do the same using the timer feature on your camera.
- If you don't have a tripod, minimize "shaking" and out of focus photos by tightening up your body - bend your knees slightly and keep your elbows in to your body when holding the camera
I'm really excited to see the photos when the magazine comes out (no date set yet) - I didn't peek at all the shots so I could be surprised too :) It was such a fabulous and enlightening experience and I want to say thank you to the entire Style At Home team for making one of my dreams come true!
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| L to R: Will Fournier, me, Angus Fergusson. Ann-Marie Favot (seated). |
P.S. The fun didn't end there... Style At Home Editor-In-Chief Erin McLaughlin came by on Tuesday to film a video tour of our place for a future segment on CityLine. I'll let you know when that airs too.
Style At Home Photo Shoot - The Styling
I know many of you are eager to hear the nitty gritty details of the Style At Home photo shoot and I'm just as eager to share them with you. Today, I'll be talking about the Styling.
As I mentioned before, our shoot came as a result of the right person seeing the right tweet. Isn't it crazy how social media works?? After a few months and emails back and forth with Ann-Marie Favot (the Design Editor for the shoot), the date for the shoot was finally set. HandyMan and I had a bit of time to get last minute projects done and do a big cleanup. Many things were tucked away in the basement (which wasn't being photographed) and we put the rooms together pretty much how you see them on the blog.
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| The Style At Home crew arrives! |
Ann-Marie did arrive with a gorgeous variety of flowers but aside from a few vases and a fruit bowl, she brought little else. One thing she did bring though was a keen eye and deft touch. Take a look at some of these spaces she has styled:
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| Photo by Edward Pond |
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| Photo by Virginia MacDonald |
An all-white interior?! That's so crazy, so beautiful! I knew we would be in good hands but to watch Ann-Marie work was nothing short of amazing. She picked the perfect flowers - whimsical billy buttons that worked with the yellows in our kitchen, fluffy chrysanthemums for the bedroom - and the most complementary vase shapes. I have always had a problem figuring out what to put on my dining table. Know I know - I'll just use the same Mokara orchids Ann-Marie used!!
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| Figuring out the flowers... |
I was struck by how simple and effective her styling was. She made it look so easy and natural. I admit there was some of my own styling I wasn't happy with - the books in the home office always looked messy to me, no matter how much I fiddled with them, and I placed some objects on the radiator in the dining room thinking she would switch them out with something "better". But she didn't - and those things I fretted about made it into photos as is! I guess the rule is, if you don't want it photographed, don't put it out!
So while I can't share the actual photos with you, I can share these styling tips from Ann-Marie:
- Create triangles with your displays - something tall, something mid-height, and something small
- Objects look better together in odd numbers. Put things in 3's.
- Take the book jackets off your books. You might find a nice solid coloured cover beneath.
- Trays, little boxes, flowers are easy to decorate with. Use little boxes on books.
- Cushions can make a room!
- Less is more. Don't overcrowd displays.
- Its okay if not everything matches. Differences create highlights.
- Mix the old and new, the good with the cheap. Patina is interesting.
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| Something on screen looks good! |
Angus and Ann-Marie have really helped me see (and appreciate) my house in a new light. Next post, I'll share some of Angus' tips on how to take better photos for your blog.
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Sarah's House 4: First Impressions & The Kitchen
On this week’s episodes of Sarah’s House 4, we saw Sarah and
Tommy transform the Front Hallway (beige area), Mudroom, and Powder Room (orange area) and then the
Kitchen (grey area). And I won’t hesitate to say I LOVED the rooms and thought this is the
signature Sarah & Tommy style I've been waiting for!
THE FRONT HALLWAY, MUDROOM & POWDER ROOM
Sarah planned to spend $6,500 of her $100,000 builder
upgrades in the entry spaces. She started with the large 200 sq ft front
hallway which needed to make a big impact. That couldn’t be done with the
standard builder finish of ceramic tile from the front door all the way back to
the kitchen. Instead, Sarah upgraded to a highly veined Cippolino marble from CIOT in the entry, hardwood in the rest of the hallway, and slate in
the mudroom and powder room.
From the cream, grey and beige in the marble, an energetic
palette of yellow and brown fabrics was used on two benches, an armchair and
toss pillow. An Ikea rug was used too - I love the mix of high and low! Because of the abundant space, a large scale sideboard with
storage was used in place of a console and tall sconces from Elte that projected out from
the wall were added overhead.
Designing tips:
- Natural stone tiles can have lots of variation in colour. See if you can order extra tiles and return what you don’t use. That way, you can use only the tiles that look similar.
- Enhance the feeling of grandeur by using taller baseboards and crown moulding
- Save money by getting the standard stair railings but painting them in a classic finish – white risers and spindles, and stained treads and handrail
- Use paint to accentuate and draw the eye. Sarah painted the ends of the entry in a dark Elephant grey (SR58) and the sides increamy Bubbles (SR5) from her paint line.
- When rooms or spaces connect to one another, tie them in with complementary colours, materials, and furnishings
In the powder room, Sarah used this fanciful A-Twitter wallpaper for dramatic impact. Paired with an ornate shell mirror, a large
pedestal sink, vintage shelf, and 1940’s brass fixture, this “salad” as Tommy
called it, works because it’s small doses in a room you spend only a bit of
time in.
With the wallpaper as a jumping off point, Sarah put a bold
orangey red on the adjoining mudroom wall. To balance the colour, Sarah installed
tongue & groove paneling 48” up the bottom half of the wall. This provided
extra durability against scuff marks and structural support for hooks for bags
and coats.
Overall, these colourful entry spaces welcome you into the
home and set the tone for the rest of the house. Upgrades totaled $5958 which I
think was well spent for this grand house.
THE KITCHEN
Kitchens and bathrooms sell homes and Sarah aimed to make
this kitchen a showpiece by allocating a sizable $15,000 in upgrades for this
room. To spend this money wisely, Sarah did a lot of planning, planning, and
more planning. Before construction, Sarah made changes to the floor plan and
flipped the kitchen and family room to create a larger kitchen and improve flow
of the entire ground floor.
Next step was a visit to the cabinet manufacturer where she
explored options for adding crown molding, glass doors, architectural detail,
and paint to the cabinets. Speaking of paint, Sarah eschewed the predictable
white cabinets and went for a light grey Shoreline (SR43) on the perimetercabinets and dark grey Herringbone (SR73) on the island. She paired this with
the builder’s standard charcoal granite but upgraded for a honed finish to give
the counters the look of expensive soapstone.
To personalize the space, Sarah added unique details like:
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Large scale carriage lights over the island
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Fish scale mosaic tiles from Saltillo for the
backsplash
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Painting vintage pieces (dining table and
chairs, etageres from foc!) to unify them with the cabinetry and add character
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Foregoing the builder’s handles and buying more
stylish chrome knobs and handles elsewhere
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Putting a bar fridge, raised seating area, and
bar sink in the island (at an upgrade cost of $2ooo!) to really make this a
kitchen for entertaining
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Running the hardwood into the kitchen for
consistency and to add warmth to the cool space
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Installing full height blinds which make it look
like the windows are as talls as the cabinets
