Send us your decor dilemmas

Getting tired of your blah beige space but don't know how or where to start? Can't figure out how to incorporate that had-to-have-it purchase into to your decor? Stumped about how to carve out space to work and play in your tiny condo?

Yourhome has partnered with Toronto-based interior decorator Laura M. Stein to help solve your decorating dilemmas!

But, to get started, we need to hear from you! So email away to questions@lauramstein.com.

It's home show weekend - and we've got a deal for you!

The Toronto Fall Home Show is on this weekend (Sept. 30 - Oct. 3), and the Toronto Star will be taking to the stages on Friday, Oct. 1, to share some of our best tips.

Colin and Justin (did you catch their video home tour?) will be presenting Friday night at 7 p.m. in the casalife StyleLab, and signing autographs at 6 p.m. at the Star booth, number 1206.

Also at the Star booth will be editors ready to take your questions one-on-one, including gardening expert Mark Cullen, from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., Ellen Moorhouse, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., and Vicky Sanderson, from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

You can take advantage of our 2-for-1 ticket deal, valid only for Oct. 1, using the promo code star.

Weekend roundup

While we may spend much of our day staring at screens, it turns out the view from our window is still a major factor when we're deciding where to live. In fact, a whopping 90 per cent of Yourhomers say the views influence their decisions when they're looking for a new place to live.

Five per cent say looking out over the lake, skyline or into a neighbour's wall doesn't make a difference in their home hunt, while the remaining five per cent say they don't know.

This week, in light of my own bash, I've been reflecting on timelines for housewarming parties. I'm wondering if there's an expiration date for toasting your new space, and if so, how long do you have? I gave myself a one-month deadline - with a few days wiggle room so it could be on a weekend, of course - while others have told me three months, six months or a year. What do you think? Weigh in on the front page poll.

And, for some more weekend reading, be sure to check out:

- Colin and Justin show a little restraint

- Dorm design 101

- Couple shows how to balance family life and high style

- Site profile: Studio on Richmond

- Condo critic

Weekend roundup

Yourhomers aren't quite ready to pull an Ellen Page and fertilize their plants with human urine, according to last week's poll. The majority, or two-thirds of readers who voted, said they wouldn't pee on their plants, while the remaining third said they'd be willing to give it a shot. Read the full story.

This week, I'm turning my attention from caring for the landscape to admiring it, and am wondering if the view out your window influences your decision when you're scouting a new home or neighbourhood? Can you cope with a view of a brick wall or is some greenery a must? Read the full story, then let me know in the front page poll.

And, for some more weekend reading be sure to check out:

- Colin and Justin are doing a 60-minute makeover

- Property Virgins casting call

- Tales of a renovation gone horribly wrong

- Outdoor entertaining goes informal

- Tips for sprucing up a student space

Weekend roundup

Last week, I confessed to being a little bit creeped out by garden gnomes and it turns out that many Yourhomers are also disturbed, or at least not fans of, the little guys.

The majority, 62 per cent, say they wouldn't put one in their outdoor space, while the remaining 38 per cent are happy to provide homes for some of the 26,000 garden gnomes sold in Canada on eBay last year. Read the full story.

Continuing on in our garden theme, this week we're tackling another kind of weird garden trend: using human urine as fertilizer. Would you give this a try (or do you already)? Let me know in the front page poll.

And, for some more weekend reading, check out:

- Colin and Justin let the sun shine in

- Cool cork applications for the home

- Kimberly Seldon's tips for California style

- 5 tips for rookie designers

- Growing pineapples in Toronto

- Water feature essentials

Weekend roundup

Turns out Yourhomers are a cleaner than average lot, at least when it comes to their laundry habits!

Nearly half, 44 per cent, wash their linens weekly, while 22 per cent opt for a bi-weekly routine. Just under a quarter, 22 per cent, wash their sheets once a month. The remaining 11 per cent answered "other."

This compares to results from a Sunlight survey that found more than a third - 36 per cent - of Canadian women admit to going a month without changing their sheets. (And be sure to check out the other, rather disturbing, laundry facts from the survey).

This week, I'm thinking about - well, really more haunted by - garden gnomes. Despite loving Amelie, I still kind of get the heebie jeebies from the little guys. And, I must confess I'm a little shocked that 26,000 (yep, that's THOUSAND) of them were sold on eBay in Canada last year! So, I want to know, where do you stand on gnomes? Would you put them in your space? Read the story, then let me know in the front page poll.

And, for some more weekend reading, check out:

- Colin and Justin go green, and brown, this week

- Steal a small-screen worthy look for your space

- Bold hues are hot, hot, hot

- Creating biodiversity in your backyard

- Homeowners see red over taxes

- Robin's Nest: A grande dame gets an overhaul

Weekend roundup

Things that go bump in the night would be enough for most Yourhomers to reconsider their living situation!

More than half, 53 per cent, of those who answered last week's poll said they wouldn't live in a haunted house.

One-fifth of Yourhomers said they could handle a home with a few lingering spirits, while 13 per cent said they don't believe in the paranormal.

The remaining 13 per cent said they don't know whether they'd be able to live with unusual happenings - I know that when I posed the question on Twitter, some followers said they'd be able to deal with benevolent spirits, but none of that horror-movie style spooky stuff. (Read the full story).

Personally, I think weird noises, things moving around behind my back or the odd apparition would be just too much for me, and my overactive imagination, to handle! Read more about living in haunted houses here.

For this week's poll, we're changing gears and thinking about laundry habits. I had a chat with the folks from Sunlight earlier this week and found out, via a survey they conducted, that more than a third - 36 per cent - of Canadian women admit to going a month without changing their sheets!

I always thought that once a week was fairly standard, so I'm curious to hear just how often you wash your sheets. Check out the other (rather disturbing) laundry facts from the survey, then let me know in the front page poll.

For some more weekend reading, be sure to check out: 

- Colin and Justin go black, white and red all over

- Bring the indoors out for glam summer entertaining

- Keep cool with windowcoverings

- 7 rules to a dream-worthy garden

- Which GTA neighbourhood offers the best bang for your buck?

(SHUTTERSTOCK PHOTO ILLUSTRATION)

Weekend roundup

There may be a few aspiring (or accomplished) home reality television stars among Yourhomers, as according to last week's poll roughly a third of our readers have applied to casting calls. The remaining 70 per cent are more comfortable handling their moves and renovations without the cameras running. And be sure to check out our tips for getting cast.

This week, once again inspired by an article I was working on, I'm wondering whether readers would be willing to live in a haunted house? Read the story, share your thoughts in the comments and let me know in the front page poll.

Personally, I started off thinking I would be cool with any inherited spirits, so long as they were friendly. Then, after researching Paranormal Home Inspection, I spent a few nights hearing all manner of strange noises. While they are all easily explained away as roving raccoons, cranky neighbourhood cats and the regular creaks of an older home, it has showed me that maybe I'm not as tough as I thought!

For some more, less spooky, weekend reading, be sure to check out:

- Colin and Justin create a masculine pad for a media exec

- Natural swimming pools

- Garden tips so you can spend more time on the greens

- Curly versus flat parsley

- Small developer makes an impact on the downtown east side

- What they got: A look at recent real estate transactions in the GTA

Weekend roundup

More than a third of Yourhomers were showing off their patriotic pride this week!

Whether it's through a liberal sprinkling of red and white, a collection of maple leafs or showcasing the work of Canuck designers about 40 per cent of readers, according to the latest poll, decorate their home for Canada Day. The remaining 60 per cent skip the July 1 decor. And, because it's never to early to start planning for next year, be sure to check out some of our chic Canadiana finds.

This week, with an inbox full of casting calls, I'm wondering how many of you have applied to be on a home reality television show? Read about one family's experience and check out our tips for getting cast, then let me know in the front page poll.

And, for a little more weekend reading, check out:

- Colin and Justin's tips for maxing out your hallway decor

- Four $100 projects to spruce up your home over the long weekend

- Gardening tips to help you spend more time in the hammock

- Our knife-buying guide

- Home tour with comic/actor/screenwriter/producer Monica Parker

Weekend roundup

Yourhomers are quite the tidy bunch! According to last week's poll more than half of you (58 per cent) make your beds every single day, while an additional 16 per cent strive to do so. The remaining quarter instead opt for the lived in look. Read the full story.

This week, I'm turning my attention to the holiday! For me, Canada Day always means BBQs, cottages and ice cream - even when I'm stuck in the city. Check out our entertaining must-haves to help you get ready for your mid-week break, or extra long-weekend.

And, while I like to think I'm as patriotic as the next gal, I've never been one to break out the red and white goodies for July 1. (Though, next time the Olympics roll around, I'll certainly be trying my hand at this project.) In lieu of peppering the house with tiny maple leafs (though that's certainly good too!), I think it's more fun to showcase chic Canadian designs for our nation's birthday, so I'm looking very much forward to sharing some stylish finds with you in tomorrow's Shop like a Pro!

In the meantime, please let me know in the front page poll whether you haul out the red and white vignettes or hang your favourite Mountie memorabilia for Canada Day.

And, be sure to check out some of our great weekend reads:

- Colin and Justin go wild in the bedroom

- A behind the scenes look at one family's experience on a reality home reno show

- Fun solar light finds

- The Selby is in your space

- Cottage gardening guide

- Rookie landlords have a lot to learn