A touch of the Irish ... green room roundup

Ah, St. Patrick's Day. While the evening festivities are certainly a draw, I also see it as an excuse to explore a colour that doesn't factor very heavily in my wardrobe or decor: green.

So, in honour of my green dress, and those lucky few already raising a pint this afternoon, here are a few spaces that make it easy to be green:

This room by Colin and Justin is certainly a little too bright green for my taste, but I admire how boldly it embraces the grassy shade to make the space feel fun, young and modern.

This kitchen, also by C&J, is a subtler way to bring a splash of fresh green into your space. Soft green cabinets are perfectly accented by the oh-so-carefully staged floral arrangements and green apples.

The green cabinets in the kitchen, as spotted on House & Home, ratchets it up a notch, but I kind of love them - especially when paired with the wallpapered ceiling and the industrial, exposed lighting. Not to mention those cute mismatched schoolhouse chairs.

This room, sourced from Katy Elliot, is a much subtler take on the shade. A darker, muddier green, it's more in line with my preferences at the old Casa Speedy - and it keeps the room from feeling like it's St. Patrick's Day, or Christmas, year-round. Plus, I love how the dark hue is balanced by all that fabulous white moulding.

This dining room, spotted on Desire to Inspire, is simply stunning. The green wallpaper. The mid-century modern chairs. The casual leafy centrepiece. I love it.

You can scope out more green spaces on Apartment Therapy. Happy St. Patrick's Day - Sláinte!

Wordless Wednesday: Valentine's Day eye candy

(Courtesy Tara Dalla-Nora - learn how to get the look here)

(Michael Graydon/Style at Home)

(Valentini, from Canadian House and Home)

 

(Apartment Therapy)

 

(Elle Decor)

 

(DesignSponge)

A few more fabulous gift finds

Sure, I have my fair share of dreams of sugar plums, and spiked egg nog, but I also have a few longer lasting items populating my holiday wishlist.

While some of my top picks popped up in our gift guide earlier this month, here are some of my favourites that didn't quite make the cut in the paper:

Why choose just one photo to hang on your walls? The Kodak Pulse 10” Digital Frame, available online at Kodak and big box electronics retailers, $200, takes the idea of a digital frame one step further by allowing updates via email and Facebook. That means loved ones can share their newest shots from a distance, keeping your walls fresh and up to date.

Whether displaying holiday baubles, treasured mementos or homemade goodies, the modern lines and subtle gold or silver detailing of these artisan bowls from inVU Drapery Co., invudraperyco.com, $49-$100, are the perfect complement to any decor.

No home bar is complete without a set of classic, go-to glasses. These sleek stemless champagne flutes from PC Home (presidentschoice.ca), $10 for a set of four, will elevate anyone’s holiday entertaining spread and look classy serving sparkling wine, mixed drinks, juice or even desserts.

Custom finds are a decor must this season, and what’s more custom than building your own centerpiece? Whether you’re craving clean symmetry or organized chaos, the seven candleholders of The More the Merrier, available in black and white at Mjolk (mjolk.ca, 2959 Dundas St. W), $159, can be rearranged to suit your fancy.

Holiday decor in five minutes

To say that I'm approaching this holiday season with a more relaxed attitude than the last is a bit of an understatement.

This time last year I was frantically preparing for a full roster of family houseguests, buying presents for a list of friends and family longer than my arm and decking the halls (while unpacking) a three-bedroom East York semi. Stress, anxiety and financial duress did not begin to cover it.

This year, I'm heading home for the holidays (on a seat sale, no less!), have all but two of the gifts on my ridiculously short list purchased and am responsible for decorating a mere 475 square feet.

In fact, my festive season is so stress-free that I decided to host a small holiday baking bash next week! A spur of the moment decision, I still wanted to get the ball rolling on my decor early to prevent any pre-party anxiety. So, armed with a spare five minutes on Monday night, and a cup of hot chocolate, I now feel holiday ready!

What did I do? I salvaged some of my holiday basics - in wisely purchased neutrals silver and white - when I moved. Tucked away in a shoebox in my closet - turns out condo dwellers don't enjoy a whole lot of storage space - I hauled out my mini ornaments, unceremoniously dumped them in a vase and pulled out a twiggy reindeer to dress up my bar/kitchen island/prep table. Easy peasy!

(Sorry for the blurry photo. My camera battery is on the fritz, and my cellphone cam just hasn't been the same since it took a dip in the bath.)

For my entryway, I pared down my console table display - just because it's the holidays doesn't mean your decorations don't need breathing room - grabbed a serving tray, lined up some ornaments, in a variety of finishes, of course, and placed it in front of the mirror that's already there (which also doubles as my last minute lipgloss applying and hair check centre). A martini glass full of mini disco balls added a little more glitz and sparkle to finish off the look.

All this done before my holiday albums even had a chance to finish downloading!

Sure, there's more I can do. Lights could, if I feel so inclined, be strung up. My workstation/entertainment unit (can't you tell I"m all about the multipurpose furniture these days?) could use some more festive cheer, maybe in the form of a sweet little ornament.

But, now when I walk in the door, my apartment feels glammed up and ready for the season. And next week, when my pad is filled with friends and the sweet smells of cookies baking, the holidays will have really arrived.

What are your go-to holiday gifts?

As I prepare to start my own holiday shopping this weekend - with the hopes that my to-buy list soon has a few more details than "presents" and a list of people's names - I'm also keeping an eye out for sweet hostess gifts and handy emergency presents.

While I'm all about sourcing thoughtful, personal gifts for the people on my list, I find it never hurts to have a few items tucked away in a closet in case of a spur of the moment swap, surprise present or impromptu dinner party.

My normal go-tos include silver or pewter ornaments - guaranteed to match anyone's decor, be it trendy or traditional - and pretty bottled water, like the designer series from Evian, for practical and reusable gifts. Check out some more of my faves in last year's roundup. 

Being ever on the lookout for ways to switch up my options for giving - after all, even my "unique" standbys will become tired if given year after year - I've been asking all of my interviewees this season about their go-to gifts.

This week, I asked Julia Black, of discoveringjewels.com, about her top gift picks for this article, and loved her suggestion of trolling vintage shops - her favourite haunt is Gadabout in Leslieville - for beautiful items that can be framed or put in a shadow box for easy gifts that pack a serious, and sentimental, decor punch.

What are your holiday giving go-tos?

(Shutterstock image)

Sneak peek: Tree trimming

As part of the Festival of Trees for Southlake Hospital, I found myself doing a mad dash to Newmarket last week to trim my first - but certainly far from my last - tree of the season.

After doing a lot of shopping - er, I mean research - I ended up picking up most of my supplies from Canadian Tire's Debbie Travis line.

Of course, my tree had a purple, city dweller theme, with a smattering of shoes!

Seriously, though, how cute are those little boots? I also picked up a bunch of glass slippers!

And, the final product, with one very tired homes editor and a tree topper that still needed a last little bit of TLC.

How's that for getting a headstart on a little Christmas spirit?

Feeling the holiday home project pressure

It always feels like at the very moment that kids - and a fair share of adults - are sleeping off their Halloween-induced sugar coma, retailers haul out all the holiday displays and my seasonal to-do list ramps up.

November 1 really shouldn't be the start of the holiday season, but that calendar change always makes me feel like the pressure is on. And, because I'm a holiday traveller, as are many of my friends, the month also signals the start of those "quick, have a holiday party before everyone leaves town" bashes.

And, this year, in addition to holiday preparations - decorating, baking, shopping - I've got November house guests visiting the Jen-nasium for the first time. As always, I want everything to be picture perfect for their arrival, which means I'll spend the next week hanging pictures, shopping, cleaning and generally fussing about.

My basic to do list:

- Tackle those shameful blank walls, including hanging a candelabra above my bed, framing (and printing) some treasured family photos for a gallery wall and finding a home for my cute blackboard, which is currently just a great place to stub my toe.

- Buy shelves. And hang them. Hopefully on the level. Doing so will rescue my books from my closet (freeing up space for sweaters and stockings).

- Finally give in to my "decorganizing" whims and whip my cupboards into shape, with the help of all of those fabulous lifts, trays and sorters that a girl can't help but swoon over.

- Come up with a solution to the ugly rats nest of cords behind my desk. I love my technology. I love my clean modern lines. Why can't they all just get along?

But that's nothing compared to the projects other people have in store. Casual discussions bring up plans for ripping up carpets, refinishing floors, painting rooms and rearranging furniture before a single holiday trinket is put on display.

It's an awful lot of pressure to add to an already stressful time of year, but the flurry of pre-holiday renovation and decoration projects seems to be a habit for many. So, in the spirit of the season, I'll be sharing my project plans and progress over the next month, and would love to hear about yours! Please leave a comment, and weigh in on the home page poll.

Plant picks beyond pumpkins for Halloween

Nothing screams Halloween like a carved jack-o-lantern on your porch.

Toronto Star file photo

Even though I am a proponent of bringing nature into your decor (especially if you can keep it alive!), I'd never really considered all the other plant decorating possibilities, barring making my own spooky twiggy branch arrangements.

But, a recent release that landed in my inbox from Landscape Ontario has me reconsidering my basic approach to Halloween plants. 

“Your summer annuals that have been bitten by frost can be composted and replaced with several different fall plants that will accompany your décor and Halloween props,” says Landscape Ontario's Denis Flanagan in a release. 

He suggests spicing up your decor with some of these spooky plants:

LANDSCAPE ONTARIO PHOTO

Fall asters, above, which are available in pink, purple, blue and white. I, of course, love the purple ones.

Ornamental grasses with dramatic seed heads. Flanagan says these will add interest, texture and drama to your holiday displays.

Flowering kale, below, and ornamental peppers. The two-toned or multicoloured leaves on the kale usually intensify after a fall frost, says the release, while ornamental peppers are a nice twist on the traditional mini-gourd.

LANDSCAPE ONTARIO PHOTO

Bales of hay and corn stalks will, says the release, help complete the vignette with a "warm fall feeling."

And, if these aren't spooky enough, Flanagan suggests checking out some Halloween-inspired plants like the Venus Fly Trap, the black Bat orchid, black mondo grass - which, the release says, in a cluster mimics a group of long-legged spiders, ghostly grey Spanish moss or spider plants for a creepy-crawly feel.

Be sure to check out more of our Halloween decorating tips around the site, like 5 steps to simple spooky decor and budget-friendly ways to haunt your backyard.

Spooky shower

Halloween decorating has yet to happen chez moi, but I'm certainly still scoping spooky style. Today's fun, yet, frightening find is the Scary Shower Curtain from Urban Outfitters, US$28. (Hat-tip to Whitecabana for leading me to it)

It's so creepy! I'd definitely hang it during a Halloween party, but don't think I could face the idea of something in the bathtub year-round. Blame it on my gothic lit prof for putting The Shining on our late-night study list.

For more spooky decorating ideas, check out our top 5 tips, and be sure to take our homepage poll on whether you haunt your halls for Halloween.

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday: High-style Halloween decor

Who says Halloween needs to be all goofy pumpkins and blood and guts? I love this glam gothic take, which (like my current black mani-pedi) you can easily work all autumn long:

Photo Michael Graydon, Maison & Demure.

Check out more stylish interpretations on Halloween decor in House & Home's photo gallery and read up on our mess-free ways to decorate with pumpkins.