Summer is on its way - are you ready?

Here's a clever way to add flexibility to your outdoor seating scheme. Hampton Bay’s new Westbury set ($699 from Home Depot - shown below) has adjustable arms, so it can be configured as a love seat or couch. For even more flexibility, Westbury’s adjustable table ($249) has four moving panels that transform it from a basic coffee/conversation table into a low-profile dining table. There’s also a  holder in the centre that can serve as an ice bucket, making it perfect for sipping summer wine while nibbling snacks and chatting.

If space for a table is teeny tiny, or if you want to add affordable extra seating to create conversational settings in the backyard, choose a colourful three-piece bistro set, also from HD ($80).This one's also perfect for a postage-sized balcony. Are you listening, condo-dwellers?

When the sun goes down, count on  solar lights to cast a soft, eco-friendly glow.

Keep watching this space over the next few weeks for more decor/entertaining and recipe ideas. Because summer will come - I promise - and you do want to be ready, don't you?

 

 

 

Linen Chest - the new kid in town

This week's Hot Home Products column in the Toronto Star features the Linen Chest, a Canadian success story that began when Sylvia Leibner opened a small store in Montreal in 1961. Today, a second generation of Leibners oversee a network of over 20 stores. The chain has expanded throughout Quebec and into New Brunswick and, last year, opened Leaside and Vaughan locations. Two new stores, one in the Stockyards and one at Richmond and John Streets, will open within the next few months. They also offer online shopping. Check out the pics below for an idea of what's on offer. I have a feeling readers will be hearing more about these folks in the future. Stay tuned.

Very pretty pictures

Photographers Angela Read and Michael La Fond are the focus (get it?) of this week’s Hot Home Products column in the Toronto Star. The couple has just launched a website that sells gallery-wrapped canvases of their pictures. Here are a few below, from places flung as far away as Georgian Bay and Italy, where the duo (who are also partners in life) love to visit. Scroll down to the bottom of this entry for a few of their tips on how to hang photographic art. Keep an eye on this space, as I'll be featuring more photographers over the next few weeks.   

Michael La Fond

                                                                                                                                                            

Michael La Fond

Angela Read

 

Michael La Fond

 

TIPS FOR HANGING PHOTGRAPHIC ART

When hanging multiple prints, Michael likes odd numbers of grouping.  

Angela suggests grouping pics by theme or subject.

The two agree that size does matter — a large expanse of wall can handle a single large print, while a hallway in a pint-sized condo might do better with three small prints hung in a  row

 

Busy design weekend - the IDS and beyond

The big news this weekend in design/décor is the Interior Design Show. Worth noting too, though, is the Toronto Offsite Design Festival, also happening this weekend. Actually, it’s been happening since Jan. 19, when it kicked off in The Junction a week of some 40 exhibitions and events across Toronto. Reinvented for the third year in a row, it remains — as far as I can tell —  a way to take advantage of the buzz created by the IDS, and to publicize a souped-up "what’s on in the arts in TO” guide. I say that in a  good way; there are lots of great things to see in the city right now and if more people thought about design more often, we might just have a more civilized, more livable city. Others may feel differently, of course.

Under the offsite festival umbrella are such exhibits as The Happy Show, created by Stefan Sagmeister (until March 3 at the Design Exchange). It’s supposed to reflect the designer’s attempt to increase his happiness using meditation, cognitive therapy, and mood-altering pharmaceuticals. (Please resist here your natural impulse here to add wisecracking editorial – Editor.)  

Jeff Goodman's lovely, lovely glass

The website also notes that you can see Jeff Goodman’s supremely beautiful glass until Feb. 27 at the Ontario Crafts Council Gallery.That will be worth catching, imho. If I wasn’t broke, I’d buy a few pieces of this lovely glass, made by a lovely man, who once graciously invited me into his studio, where I  made a glass paperweight. So very sad when he died last year.

 

 

 

  

I also like the sound of Snip, mostly because I’ve always admired Miriam Grenville’s kooky-pretty-clever work with paper. This time, see a series of patterns at the Hair Lounge until Feb. 18.

See the full list of events on the festival’s site 

My date book is jammy-packed for the next few days, but I will try to get down to the IDS trade-day to get a glimpse of Philippe Malouin.

Speaking of dishy, Philippe Malouin designed the lovely waxed concrete bowls below

 

 

His impressive CV includes a stint with designer Tom Dixon and a recent nod from Wallpaper magazine for a carpet hand- made from looped galvanized steel wire into an arresting geometric shape. The geometric motif shows up again in his "windows" - light fixtures designed like shutters and which mimic natural light, for which W Hotel lauded the Canadian-born designer.

BTW, For the full list of Wallpaper awards, click here 

 If you go, keep in mind that the OneXOne’s children’s charity is auctioning chairs customized by such designers as moimoidesign, WeKillYou, Monnet Design, Oeuffice, Doublenaut, Burton Kramer, and Marian Bantjes. Take a peak, and make an offer if you can. 

 

Mad for mid century modern?

Janine Morrison has a theory about the enduring appeal of mid-century modern, which is the subject of a delicious new book by Judith Miller called Mid Century Modern (reviewed in my Hot Home Product column in the New in Homes section of the Saturday Toronto Star). As the owner of Tonic Living, which sells contemporary fabrics and custom-makes window treatments, pillows, and futon covers, Morrison was thrilled to come across a stash of vintage fabric when she started her business on E-Bay in 2000.

"It became so wildly popular around the world,” says Morrison, “but one sad day we came to the end of it.” At that point, Morrison began sourcing new fabrics that had the same aesthetic vibe. Since then, the biz has ground by leaps and bounds, and Morrison is in the process of opening a new, larger operation. Stay tuned for news on that.

Why was she so drawn to mid-century design? “It has a simplicity that is just so appealing. It references a simpler time but also an emergent time, where everything was exciting and modern. Whether we even remember the era from our own youth, we sense that it was a time of innovation and social shackles being released. There was such beauty in that,” she says. You can find out more about Tonic Living in the next issue of ReStyle, which appears quarterly with the Toronto Star. In the meantime, here’s a list of places in Toronto that offer mid-century décor.

Atomic Design 965 Queen St West 416.912.2358

Owner Lawrence Blairs loves Scandinavian art glass, modernist studio jewellery, abstract sculpture, and post modern Italian design. The store is also home to an extensive reference library on twentieth century design and decorative art.

Bungalow  273 Augusta Avenue 416.598.0204

Kensington was into mid-century modern a couple of decades before it gained widespread cool. It’s still home to the much-loved Bungalow where you’ll find vintage clothing, retro furniture, home and fashion accessories.

Design Within Reach  435 King St. West 416.977.4003

If you are falling in love with modern design, Design Within Reach is a shrine at which you must worship. Take note that “within reach" means things not found elsewhere and things in stock, not necessarily within reach of your puny décor budget. But even if you don’t have $5,700 for an Eames Lounge and Ottoman, go to this store if you want to see best in class. Worried about snooty salespeople who will sniff you out as a neophyte and treat you accordingly? Not an issue. The staff is terrific, love to share their knowledge and won’t blush even if you ask a dumb question. I speak from experience.

Ethel - 20th Century Living  327 Queen St. East 416.778.6608

Self-described as the spot where Mad Men meets your best friend’s basement, this Corktown store seems to be a fave the bloggers who responded when I asked for top spots in Toronto for mid-century modern.

EQ3 222 King Street East  416.815.2002  and 3-51 Hanna Avenue. 416.533.9090

This Winnipeg-based company specializes in modern design. On top of their own product range of furniture, which can be custom finished, they offer brands such as  Herman Miller, Stelton, Vitra, and Alessi. Also has a great selection of Marimekko yard fabric and accessories at the Hanna Street location.Pssst. Check out the lovely and affordable glass and plate ware.

Machine Age Modern 1000 Queen St E 416.461.3588

For a sneak peak of the extensive offering, check out their inventory blog.

StyleGarage 938 Queen Street West 416.534.4343

StyleGarage offers made-to-order upholstery, storage, dining, and accents.

Miller's book is chock full of pics of the best of mid century modern design

 

Did I miss any great spots that you love? I’m sure I did,so let me know and I’ll add them. Also heard (on Machine Age Modern's blog) that Modern Furniture in Canada 1920 to 1970 by Virginia Wright is a great overview of the era from a Canadian perspective. I’ve got my eye out for a copy and will add my own mini review when I find it.

Related articles

Eames poster art print Mid Century Modern by WeaversofSouthsea

Sculpting with light, or overdoing the Yuletide cheer. You decide.

Over the holidays, I unleashed my inner hippie (never far from the surface, I might add) to create a mood light with an umbra Fotofall  stand and  Sylvania’s  new Mosiac strips on which I clipped the strip.

Up to ten strips can be joined to create up to 20 feet and special connectors can be used to negotiate corners. Strips can also be cut with scissors at pre-marked spots. A remote lets the user choose from 15 colours, including white.Personally, I don't go much for flashing, blinking lights. If I want that, I'll go to Vegas.But I do like being able to change the colour to suit moods and decor.

A kit, which comes with four two-foot strips, sells for about $50 at Home Depot. Well, what do you think?  Pure genius? Or probably drunk?

 

 

 

I want flowers for Christmas

A few quick floral tips from the lovely and talented Bruno Duarte of Fresh Floral Creations. 

If you haven’t visited his little jewel box shop on Danforth, you should. It may just be the Platonic Ideal or a floral shop.

If you can't get down there, you can at least drink a few drops from the font of his floral wisdom. Here it is:

Line vases with a leaf to cover stems; Duarte likes dark brown Thai leaves.

Keep topping up water, but don’t add powders — they’re mostly sugar and can cause bacteria that contributes to rot.

Work with a maximum of three colours.

Stay away from too much glitter (however tempting it may be).

On a dinner table, the height of an arrangement should never be taller than the length of your elbow to your hand.  If you’re table is long, consider three several smaller arrangements.

For something different and striking, cut Amaryllis, and hang them upside down. Gather the stems loosely but firmly with a floral wire and fill the stems, which are hollow, with water. Suspend from a hanging light fixture. (And if you can’t figure out how to do that, call Duarte – Editor)

Want to switch it up for New Year’s Eve? Go with white, says Duarte. “You will have been bombarded with red and other colours. White will be fresh and clean, just like the new year.”

Related articles

Lovely Lisi.....

An afternoon of cooking with Kenwood

This week’s Hot Home column in the Saturday Toronto Star is all about test driving the Kenwood Cooking Chef with Sandra Bellomo, the company’s North American training and demonstration manager. Here are the recipes we made. They’re written for those lucky enough to own this $2,000 machine, but a competent home chef could easily adapt. Look at the post below for a separate gallery of shots from our afternoon of cooking.

Drunken Snowman Cocktail

Ingredients

• 2 scoops vanilla ice-cream
• 1 cup ice
• 3 oz. vanilla vodka
• 3 oz. Bailey’s Original
• 3 oz. Peppermint Schnapps

Combine ice-cream, ice and spirits and blend for 2 minutes. Serve in glasses rimmed with crushed candy cane.

 

Rim cocktail glasses with crushed candy cane for a festive touch

Chestnut Soup

Ingredients

• 15-20 chestnuts, preferably fresh, pre-boiled and peeled
• 2-3 shallots
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• ½ cup water
• Sea salt
• Fresh black pepper

Using the chopping blade on the food processor, finely mince garlic and shallots. Set aside. Insert the Stirring attachment. Warm up the bowl and season with olive oil. Keep temperature between 70º and 80ºC.

After 3 minutes, add the shallots and garlic, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Adjust temperature to 110 ºC. Set timer for 24 minutes.

Add chestnuts and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook for 2 minutes, then add 1 cup of stock and cook for 1 minute. Add the remaining cup of stock.

Note: It’s normal for induction heat to lose temperature when a cool liquid is added. During the next 4 minutes, the temperature will increase to between 99˚ and 108ºC. The best temperature for cooking soup is 100º and 105ºC. Use the splash guard to contain heat.

After 12 minutes, add water.

Chestnuts will soften as the soup cooks and mixes. When cooking is complete, pour soup into blender. Add heavy cream, and salt and pepper to taste. Blend for 2 minutes.

Cranberry Relish

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1 date
• 1 orange
• 1 small piece of ginger (optional)
• 2 Tbsp of agave syrup

Using the citrus press, extract juice from the orange. Reserve. If you use ginger, grate it. Add the chopping blade to the food processor and add the cranberries, date, orange juice, (ginger if using) and agave syrup. Pulse until just incorporated.

Chocolate Mousse

 Ingredients

• 4 tsp butter
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 7 egg whites
• 6.5 ounces dark chocolate

Melt the butter and chocolate in bowl,keeping the temperature between 60º and 70ºC.  This should take under 6 minutes. Pour into bowl and set aside. Attach the Power Whisk to clean bowl, and add the sugar and egg whites. Whisk on max speed until it forms stiff peaks. Using the fold function, gradually add the melted chocolate and butter. Don’t mix too hard or you’ll knock the air out of the mixture. Pour into small glasses or chocolate dessert cups. Chill for 4 hours.

 Cranberry Apple & Walnut Risotto

Ingredients

• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 2.5 cups vegetable stock
• 2.5 white wine
• ½ white onion
• 2-3 gloves garlic
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• ½ cup walnuts
• 2 apples (Sandra likes Golden Delicious or McIntosh)
• 2 green onions
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• ½ tsp chili powder
• Sea salt
• Fresh black pepper
• Olive oil

Using the Mini Chopper Mill, chop the walnut coarsely.

Peel apples and pulse in food processor into medium sized pieces.  Set aside. Thinly slice the green onions in food processor and set aside. Chop garlic and half an onion.

 Add the Flexi Beater to bowl. Warm up bowl and season with a drizzle of olive oil. Set the temperature between 70º and 80ºC.

After 3 minutes, add onion and garlic. Let cook for 3 to 4 minutes.

Add rice and cook for one minute before adding wine.

Increase the temperature to 120ºC. Adjust the timer for 24 minutes, and set the machine to stir.

When liquid is absorbed, add in one cup at a time of the vegetable stock. Use the splash guard to retain heat.

When the timer gets to 17 minutes, add cranberries and walnuts, and set mixing speed to 1. At 14 minutes, add apple. In the last 5 minutes, add butter, Parmesan, green onions, chili powder, sea salt and black pepper.

Love having all the appliances function from one hub

 

 

Related articles

Recipe: Cranberry-gingersnap ice cream pie

Kenwood Cooking Chef now available in the U.S.

REPOST: Artichoke and Parmesan Soup from Patricia Wells

One cup, many views

Consumers are favouring simple to use one-cup coffee makers over more conventional makers, such as this vacuum model from Bodum

My faithful readers (that would be my kids, my husband and Bill Chow, who helps run the bench on my son’s hockey team and may just be my biggest fan), know how I feel about one-cup coffee makers. I think the plastic pods are wasteful (yes, yes, I know you can recycle some of them, but really, reduce comes before recycle, remember?), that they make dreadful tea** and that the beverage doesn’t stay hot for as long as conventional coffee makers. Which is why, btw, I sometimes heat the milk and or the cup when I test single serve makers.

 

The hordes, however, appear not to be with me on this one, as one-cup coffee makers, last time I checked, were the fastest growing segment of the coffee appliance category. I have to admit  too, that when the Man of the House (MOTH) took the pretty little Tassimo we tested to the staff room at his school, it was a smash hit. Teachers loved having fresh, hot coffee without a trip off the grounds, and MOTH said many were delighted by the discs that gave them a “latte”.

In fairness, I must also add that there are now companies
selling compostable single-serve coffee. Take Oakville-based Reunion Island. It boasts other sustainable practices — harvesting only from farms certified as green and fair, investing in local economic development in countries like Nicaragua and Tanzania, and partnering with organizations like Coffee Kids. Coffee is roasted at a local facility powered entirely by renewable Bullfrog Power. They also have some great recipes for cooking with coffee — Espresso Bourbon Caramel Sauce, anyone?

Reunion Island has teamed with Bunn, whose first made-for-home coffee maker works with pods. You can buy both the coffee and the maker at the website. That sounds a lot better. But I’m still not drinking the tea.

So it’s not news that lots of folks like these one-cups. What is news is that it manufacturers are now trying to differentiate themselves by creating signature blends — sometimes in partnership with brands with lots of heft.

Tassimo, for example, is promoting exclusive Tim Horton’s coffee disks. They’ve also launched a sweet holiday contest — inviting Canadians to nominate a “Tim” (or Tina, or Tom or Uncle Ted) they would like to reunite with for the holidays. Nice. Check it out on Facebook 

Nespresso has a sexy new machine, called the U, which has a lovely, tiny footprint and is super-easy to use. As per usual, it’s small and cute, but my complaints still stand (see above). New flavours from Nespresso include Hawaii Kona, which is grown on the side of volcanoes on Hawaii. In coffee geek terms, it’s fruity, subtle, nutty and silky. I’m not generally a fan of flavoured coffees, but I do make the odd exception – especially at this time of year, when I might mix it with hot chocolate for a sweet treat. So I did enjoy  Nespresso's naturally flavoured Coconut, Hazelnut and Macadamia nut. Very nicely flavoured.

Speaking of sexy, Nespresso just nabbed Penelope Cruz as the face of its marketing campaign in North America. Watch for her in an ad campaign that launches nationally in Canada on Dec. 3rd.

 

 

 

Penelope Cruz and I agree to disagree on one-cup coffee makers.

 

 

My fave way to make just once cup of coffee? A French press, preferably from Bodum.

** If you love tea, you need to visit the House of Tea, preferably in person. If that won’t work, check it out online 

Related articles

Coffee culture perks up retailers' bottom lines

Art for Craft’s Sake

Quick - if navy is the new midnight blue, what does artisanal mean? That’s a trick question — artisanal can mean whatever. Heck, I’ve squirted Srirachi hot-sauce into ketchup and called it “an artisanal blend of tomato and pepper”.

So I know, folks, that the term can tart everything from stationery with pictures of birds on it to the “limited edition” of a new line from a hip retailer, “richly inspired” by raw talent in a far-flung, picturesque spot, but mass made in China.

If you want the real thing, from Africa, for example, you have to go to Snob, a jewel box of a store tucked away in a tiny corner at 388 Carlaw, between Dundas and Gerrard. 

It's tempting to take one of everything at Snob

Right now, there are amazing textiles (ethereal threads of wool and silk washed into felt, heavy cotton fabrics with detailed stitching – both geometric and organic in design — in earthy browns, yellow and pumpkin tones - I’d use it on bedding, lampshades, headboards, soft ottomans.

 

 Also, elaborately carved poles on stands; in another life, they held up tents in a desert. Highly beaded and elongated wooden figures. And a curiosity cabinet, with artifacts such as hair picks made from ancient destructible woods. In fact, this store is a bit like the museum. Plan to stay a while.

Of all of the gorgeousness, the most beautiful thing there for me are the handmade Egyptian pendant Zenza lamps, with hammered patterns that create shadow webs on the nearest wall — to very, very pretty effect.

I know because I have one hanging in a hallway at home. Every time I look at it, I stop and marvel at the craft-work and the effect it has on light.

Recently at Snob, I saw for the first time the slim cylindrical pieces from Zenza. If I had a high ceiling and a lot of money, I’d buy 20 of them. The choice of models will only expand, given that Snob owner Denise Zidel (or, as her intimate friends like to call her, La Snob Dynamo) is now the national distributor for these pieces. Go and visit the store. In the meantime, check out the pics below.

Love the new textiles at Snob

 

The Zenza lamps I love, love love.

 

BTW,  a little birdie told me to look out for news from Snob early in the new year.

Around town, the shortest route to local talent is probably through the One of a Kind Show, which is the Platonic Ideal of Artisanal. One of the few home shows that’s worth the price of admission.Check out my Pinterest board for a sneak peak.

This holiday season, World Vision is selling scarves and jewelry to support their education and development projects. The Haitian hand-beaded necklace is attractive, with thin bands of strong colour.You need to order by Dec. 10th to get them for Christmas.