UPDATE No 2 : NYC INSPIRED CONDO

Here's a sneak peak of the progress from the NYC loft inspired model condominium I'm currently working on. It's definitely looking more like a condo. The furniture and appliances should arrive relatively soon. I'm also looking forward to accessorize the space and show you the final result. It's going to make a big difference.

 When I think of a loft, I think of brick wall. It's one the main features I wanted for this space. The tall entrance wall was the perfect location for these brick veneers. They give the space a nice texture and warmth. These artificial bricks are from a company called Speka. I selected the VersaBrick- Urbain. There are two wall sconces on that wall (you can see one of them in the top right photo). Once the lights are on, it will further emphasize the texture.


The walls in the guest bedroom and the master bedroom have been painted the same color, but the sun exposure gives them a different look. I've planned something special for the feature wall in each room. I'm looking forward to show it to you once it's ready.

 For the kitchen, we're only missing the appliances and accessories. I love the pendant lights above the counter. (I'll take more detailed pictures next time). They are large glass bulbs that don't take up a lot of visual space and distract from the kitchen.

 The backsplash is really fun.


Above is a view of the future dining area. I chose a simple pendant light. I wish I could have used the same as the ones above the counter in the kitchen but it was unfortunately not possible. Still looks good so far.

Did you notice that the baseboards are painted the same color as the wall? This was to create a more modern look. When you paint the baseboard the same color as the wall, they essentially disappear and help create various architectural 3D shapes.




I'm happy with the bathroom progress so far as well. It's fairly neutral right now (just the way I like it) and the accessories will give it personality. Since it's an entry level condo, the counter is a laminate which eliminates the possibility of an under-mount sink. Using a light colored laminate minimizes the contrast between the sink and the counter, so they still read as one uniform block.

a boutique inspired bathroom

This is a recently completed project of mine where I was asked by my client to modernize her dark and gloomy 1970's bathroom and turn it into a bright and airy one. The goal was not only to modernize the bathroom but also to add a separate shower. The color palette is fairly neutral, with a mix of whites, taupes, chocolate and grays.

We kept the footprint relatively similar to save on costs. We got rid of the old tiles on the floor and tub, changed the fixture and vanity and got rid of the "canopy" above the tub, which was making the tub area even darker.

I'm really happy that we were able to add a good sized shower to the space. It's my favorite part of this room. We took some space from the closet in the room next to the bathroom. Since it was a really large closet for a kid's room, it didn't affect the function of the room. I really like the pebble tiles from Terra Verre made of various cut stones.

We used a simple out of the box vanity and sink set to stay within budget and added a cool looking faucet.

The only thing missing is a unique shower curtain, like the Tree Shower Curtain from Urban Outfitter, the Dwell Studio Dot Chocolate Shower Curtain available at Modern Karibou or the Arbor Shower Curtain from CB2.

Tangram shelving

ORIGINAL POST DATE : 2007-03-17

source : Wikipedia

Remember Tangrams? Ever played with them when you were younger? The concept behind this game was very simple: create various silhouettes from seven basic geometric shapes (usually a square, a rhomb and five triangles). This game could occupy a kid with a big imagination for hours, creating a cat, a bunny, a person, a house, or more.

source : Lago

This concept can now be integrated in interior space, thanks to the creativity of Italian furniture designers at Lago . They created a modular wall shelving system that enable people to create various shapes on their wall while storing books, DVD, etc. This system is perfect for those who like to change things around, since it can take as many shapes as you can imagine.

source : Lago

See, shelves don’t have to be boring.

2009-10-26 UPDATE : A couple months after I first posted this, I got the opportunity to integrate a Lago inspired shelving system in the room of a teenage girl, while working for a TV makeover show for teens back when I was in Montreal. Since she liked horses a lot, I decided to design a horse shaped tangram shelving system for her. The carpenter made it out of MDF and we painted it turquoise. It turned out great as you can see below. It gave her an original space to store CDs, stuffed animals and books.

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Rockin' SNILLE

PREVIOUSLY POSTED ON : 2007-11-25

When you are faced with a really tight budget, you sometimes have to use the same product over and over again because it doesn’t cost a lot of money. Believe me, 1000$ for a teenager’s bedrooms goes out fast! So when it comes to furnishing, to add a bit of variety to a limited choice, you have to personalize and that’s exactly what I did with IKEA’s SNILLE chair for one of the rooms I recently did.

At $29.99, they are the cheapest I could find with a decent look. Problem is, they only come in four colors: white, blue-green, pink and red. (Perhaps they’ll eventually add more color choices). In any case, they just didn’t fit my design. I needed a chair with a bit more edge to match my client’s personality and style. So I put together a drawing that I felt better represented her personality (as shown below) and spray painted the chair black.

I’m sure there are many ways to do this, but here’s how I did it. No fuss. Anyone can do this in a couple of hours.

Here’s what you need:
- painter’s tape
- black marker
- black and white drawing (drawn or printed)
- scalpel
- black spray paint (or any color you like)

First I laid out several rows of painter’s tape on the back of the chair to cover the surface that needed to be protected. Then I temporarily stuck the drawing on the back in order to trace it onto the tape. I also made a point to write where I wanted the black and the white to be so I wouldn’t mistakenly spray-paint where I didn’t want to.

Then I used the scalpel to carve out all the bits of tape I didn’t need. It’s basically just a question of tracing with the knife and peeling off the unwanted pieces of tape. Once I was satisfied with my homemade template, knowing that everything blue on my chair would become white and everything white would become black, I spray painted the chair. It took 2 coats.

And voila: A personalized and rockin’ SNILLE chair. She loved it!