This Year's Trend: Break the Rules!

Small Space Dwellers, I must start by sending my love to each of you and wishing you a Happy New Year! I am truly grateful and blessed for the gifts and lessons of 2012 and am excited to see what is in store for 2013! I don't do the resolution thing, mostly because I never keep them...lol, but I do step into each year with a theme. Last year was my year of 'Nakedness' - Living freely without fear of showing who I am and what I love. From this Eight Hundred Sq. Ft. was born, among other wonderful things. This year my theme is 'Limitless'. I am venturing courageously into this 2013th year breaking away the boundaries I used to set for myself about what I can achieve.  This year I am going to live the BREADTH and width of it!

So it was very fitting when I saw this months issue of Style at Home Magazine. They have declared the trend for 2013, 'BREAKING THE RULE, DECORATE THE WAY YOU LOVE', which I completely resonate with. I have always been an advocate for living the way you love and this includes your space; especially when your home is small and space is limited.

To kick off this year of decorating the way you love, I've decided to showcase Designer and Stylist Nicola Marc's 900 sq. ft. 1920s Montreal apartment, a re-feature from Style at Home. Nicola's space immediately evokes a sense of comfort and playfulness. Her choice of an aubergine and mustard palette with pops of moody accents is a definite "swoon". I love her audacity for mixing geometrics, stripes and paisley. She has wonderfully executed a bold yet harmonious design. Definitely "breaking the rules" worthy.

Cheers Small Space Dwellers! Here is to a year of rule breaking and life loving!

XOXO,

Happy Holiday from Me to You!

I just wanted to wish you all a fabulous holidays! Be sure to eat lots, laugh more, and love deeply throughout this festive time!

Big hugs and smiles!!

Day 5: Living in a Nutshell

Our 5th and final space (and my absolute favourite) on this amazing small space tour is Janet Lee's wonderfully fabulous New York apartment. It is difficult to know where to begin because there is so many delicious elements to choose from. Her space is flooding with personality! From the charcoal grey picture frame gallery wall to her caviar tin feature wall to the amazing bursts of colour, her eclectic nutshell of an apartment keeps your mind and eyes fascinated.

I love how she has decorated every inch of her space with unconventional grandeur. Her space is such a source of inspiration and beacon of light to renters, showing that style can come in small packages; owned or not! *Round of applause Janet Lee* You will DEFINITELY be seeing some of these ideas incorporated into my spaces. I'll just have to figure out which one I want to do first.

Live large Small Space Dwellers!!

Day 4: Retro Metro Boathouse

We are at day 4 folks and this one is a little unconventional. TV host and designer, Tracy Metro's 1975 40's Harbor Master Houseboat is tiny but fitted with fun and bright pop of goodness! She has used every square inch of her space, making sure that every nook and cranny was used efficiently.


Sparing no luxury, she was able to fit a gorgeous tufted headboard and wall-mounted lamps into her crawl-in bedroom. She has proven that regardless of size you can inject personality into any space; on land or water! Watch her video as she gives us a tour of Retro Metro.

Day 3: The Unfolding Apartment

Day 3's small space feature pays homage to great architecture and design. Eric Schneider's 400 sq. ft. apartment, on the upper west side of Manhattan, packs away neatly into a wall. A kitchen, closet, bathroom, office and living room turned guest quarters are all created by moveable partitions. Talk about simplicity and brilliance all at the same time!

I love this space because it is well thought out with everything having its place. With a 'click' 'clack' and 'snap' you have 5 rooms in one tiny 400 sq. ft. apartment. Who says you can't have it all in a small space!

Day 2: Half-Bedroom Apartment

Now day 2's small space feature is a tiny one. Jen Chu's half bedroom apartment is only 78 sq. ft. and literally just that; a BEDroom. With her space being so tiny, she decided to make the only piece of furniture in the room the star. Her canopy bed gives her room grandeur and class, and also acts as storage. The shelving allows her to surround herself with the things she loves.

I love this space because Jen pushes the limit and proves that no matter how small your space you can always leave your stamp of style on it.

Live Large Small Space Dweller!

XOXO

Day 1: Fitting Life in a 200 Sq. Ft. Apartment

Our 5 days of small space features starts with Suzi West's 200 Sq. Ft. decadent New York apartment. Her space is a great representation of how you can take what you already own and stage it beautifully within your home. Her 200 sq ft apartment is a testament to amazing interior design in a small space. 

There are so many elements I am hot for; her over dyed fucshia rug, her amber patent file, her sofa bed... I can go on. Her space totally inspired me and gets my stamp of approval for BIG living in a small space.

5 days. 5 Amazing Small Spaces.

Setting the Mood - Fireplaces for Small Spaces

I've been indulging with candlelit evenings for the past month or so. With the stress of the holidays nothing beats rolling up in a warm blanket, a cup of cocoa, and the glow of a few candles. There are days I wish I had a fireplace to set the mood, especially during the holidays. So I got to searching and found some really awesome portable fireplaces perfect for petite places.

I am going to start with my absolute favourite! Piet by Fredrick Hylten-Cavallius, is a chimney free indoor stove with gorgeous brass reflectors lining the inside. This beauty burns using ethanol fuel instead of wood which is ideal for us small space dweller since we do not have worry about storing logs. So chic. I am a definite fan!

Next is this sleek number. The Ghost Fireplace by EcoSmart Fire is strikingly elegant. Its reflective glass panels allows the fire to be seen from all angles and is a winner is a small space because it literally takes up no visual space. This almost invisible, environmentally friendly option is a winner in my books.

For the extreme space challenged, the HOTPOT from Conmoto is a great alternative. It is a mobile fireplace for your table or sideboard and almost looks like a ice bucket. This small fire pot can be carried by its handle to set the mood wherever you want. Not to mention that the fire can be extinguished by simply cover it. I likey!

Another table topper is this ceramic log shaped fireplace. Brasa Fire Avani Portable Bio Ethanol Fireplace from All Modern is a simple and modern way to set the mood. This piece can be used indoor and outdoor and has a slim stainless steel burner that instantly screams modernly chic.

For those of you who have kids or just don't like the idea of an open flame. I though this next idea was totally cute. A bit of canvas, curtain rod and some chalkboard paint and voilà! Seriously...

For now I am going to stick with my candles but maybe Santa will leave one of these in my stocking this Christmas! I'll have to wait and see.

Happy Friday #SS Dwellers!!

The Painted Bench

So, I'm about a week or so away from finishing my "Single Girl" bachelor apartment and I am really excited to introduce you to Ashely (the single girl) and her newly decorated bachelor apartment. I just need to tweak a few things and find a piece or two. One of the pieces I have been looking for was a bench for her desk, but couldn't find what I was looking for. So, I decided to pass along a piece that I had bought from a second hand shop about a year ago. When I bought it it was peach and brown and of course needed to be revived. I reupholstered the top with a fun black and white striped fabric, painted the base to match the striped fabric and added a hot pink colour on the inside.

To fit Ashley's place, I knew I had to change the piece to compliment her new colour scheme of purple and grey. Since I was unable to find fabric that I liked, I decided to paint the bench (and the fabric) to go with what I have already introduced into her space.  After three coats of paint, this bench is going to fit right in. Can't wait for you all to see her space!