Tom Chute of Marre Design is who we felt the most connection with after interviewing and meeting a variety of architectural firms. After several meetings and brainstorming and looking at a lot of pictures, we ended up with a Scandinavian inspired home (surprise). For the outside we knew we wanted a contemporary-style white building with wood details. However we did not want a flat roof and no concrete and no rock/stone. Most homes in Calgary include some sort of rock and many modern homes include concrete… but we know we did not want that as an exterior material. Both my partner and I liked the first draft we were presented with. Either Tom read us well or we are just gave great instruction… A few modifications have been made since this first rendering below (more windows for one). In our current house we lack sunlight, which I really miss, especially all those months when you can’t sit outside (like 11 out of 12).

Here is a sneek-a-peek of our house. What do you think? Too modern for Calgary? Too much like the 60′s. Do I really want to know?

South side has an additional three windows.

Next steps
* Wait for the building permit
* Source materials to firm up budget i.e.
- decide on building method (i.e. can we afford floor heating on every floor? Can we afford blow in insulation etc etc)

We want to build as ‘green’ as we can but many times sadly the budget does not allow for the greenest building methods and materials.

The most fun part for me is planning the interior… and believe me I am already, every day, in 3D and in my head. Stay tuned.

“Let us introduce you to a fabulous new designer, to a miracle-worker masseuse, to a confectionery queen, to the amazing women around town who will help satisfy your next craving.”

These are the pages I am featured on. Included in the book are some great talented women that I had the pleasure of meeting the book launch party at DaDe art gallery in Inglewood. One of these women is Ellinor Stenroos, a talented jewellery designer that I admire, among many others.

The books are available for purchase at $19.95 at local bookstores and a variety of retailers or from anyone featured in the book, including me.

Have a happy and safe holiday season. Wishing you the greatest year 2012.

Cat

The inspiration for our space was from the colours in a small carpet, which became the headboard of the bed and a cushion on the sofa. Despite a few out of stock items (like the sleeper sofa) the install went pretty well. The folks in charge of the show were very helpful and so was IKEA.

The timelaps was created by Philippe Clairo, a great photographer who also provided the light house photograph in our room.

The pre-desing

The sitting area

Sleeping quarters

The Scandinavian Team

If you are reading this prior to September 25, 2011… hurry up and go to the show to vote.

Look at these fabulous 360 visuals. And one more created by Philippe Photography.

We are removing the existing house but using the foundation to build a two-story modern but cozy home. Not too sleek but definitely not traditional. It seems my dream of a Cape Cod house has evolved.

The front has an east exposure and a lot of trees, six of which are on City property that you can’t see in this shot (may have to keep them all). There is a large Cedar at the corner of the house that is uncommonly big for Calgary I hear. We may want to keep some of it.

House from the front

The back has a lot of trees as well. Not sure how many we will be able to keep. The plan is for a large deck at the back and a double garage. The dream is to one day have a garden on top of the garage. Unfortunately decks for entertaining on garage roofs are not allowed in our town.

The back yard slopes down with a garage below.

Hope you don’t have to assemble this lamp yourself…

A big wall is required for this Kartell Book Worm Book case.

Best customer service, best follow through

February 2011 - wow! what a fabulous job Room4refinement did for us. We purchased an older condo that was actually three units combined. The transformation is amazing. During the process, I struggled as I’m not able to see blueprints. She had three dimensional drawings done up so I could visualize not only the layout of the structure, but also adding color and furniture to get a better feel. There were times when I disagreed with her thoughts, which is normal, but i always felt comfortable discussing this with her and never did she make me feel like i had no taste. She was diligent about using furniture and peices I already had instead of buying everythng new, which for obvious reasons was appreciated. Her attention to detail and her ability to see beyond the empty spaces was remarkable. She took me outside of what I thought was my comfort zone and did so in a way to ensure I absolutley loved the results. Today, I can honestly say that without her, the construction would never have been completed. My contractor got 95 percent done and then left my project to go onto his new one. It was Cat who managed to get the subs in and get the work done. Even during the main part of the construction, it was Cat, not the contractor, who spent each day at the site ensuring the subs were being managed. The amazing thing about this is that she did not charge me for all of these hours. She knew I was already paying the contractor and eventhough he was not doing his job, she did not feel it was right for me to pay twice. I have a ton of respect and admiration for the work she did and the way she valued our home. I will highly recommend her firm to others and will most certainly use her again.

Connie

This is Connie’s new kitchen. More to come in a future post…

The blue in the bedroom was painted several years ago and was actually the wrong blue. When I got home the painter was finished I could not believe my eyes. It was the complete wrong blue. We had picked a darker blue, but I kept this one as I did not feel like dealing with the issue. Lesson learned: always check and re-check materials being used. I don’t use that painter anymore, for a variety of reasons.

Step 2: paint. Ben and I discussed the options and landed on Benjamin Moore New Hope Gray 2130-50. It would work well with some of the photos we had decided to blow up on canvas from Philippe Photography.

Work in progress…

And here is the new bed from IKEA covered with older sheets (IKEA 2000 or so)  that seems to work. New pillows and the new photo on the wall.

A new ceiling lamp, desk drawers from IKEA and black chair from Nood. The cobra phone was a nostalgic purchase reminding me of my childhood. Ben thought it was silly as it was not cordless. At least it can’t get lost in the room under blankets or clothing.

Count on good old IKEA for accessories and organization. Art on wall by Calgary artist Mark Gervais.

Ben insisted on doors for his bookshelf to hide “ugly things” . He was right, it really helped make the room look more clean. Now if the room could always look this tidy, that would be a bonus.