Tea Trolley Conversion - Part 1

I stumbled upon an "old-fashioned garage sale" at Machine Age Modern early in July and found a fabulous $40 Hauser tea trolley from the '60's .  I think it's really a tea trolley/bar cart hybrid but it definitely has a feminine feel to it.  It is all original with the exception of a missing bottom glass shelf.  You can see that it incorporates a faux-bamboo design and has an ivy motif on the wheels.  I've been on the hunt for a bar cart and this fits the bill at a fantastic price.  All I need to do is paint it a fun colour and replace the glass.

My little find gets even better though. A week after picking this up, I was walking down Yonge St. and went into Decorum Decorative Finds (1210 Yonge St).  To my surprise, I saw the exact same bar cart except it had been re-painted white. There was no price tag, so I inquired at the front of the shop and discovered it was priced at $595.  I could not believe my luck. With the price of my cart plus re-finishing it, I'll still be under $100 total cost.  I'm not thinking about selling it but knowing how much other's have valued it actually does make me love it even more.

Here is the unfinished piece with photos of the glammed up version to come:

Book art

While looking at the latest post from Remodelista, I came upon a great piece of art(s) from Spineless Classics.  They have taken entire books and re-imagined them on a single sheet.  I love this idea and see several books in their collection that I've enjoyed reading (and in some cases re-read - I'm a huge Jane Austen fan).

School Project - Bedroom

For one of my school projects, we need to design a bedroom.  This includes selecting the fabric, furniture, finishes, accessories, etc.  I've decided to go with a kid's room because it gives me the opportunity to really play with colour and by selecting my 3 1/2 year-old nephew as "my client", it helps make the selection process a little easier.  Obviously, his love of superheroes will play a role and although it won't be a "themed" room it will definitely have a strong influence on colour selection, artwork and accessories. 

I've decided to design using the primary colours - red, blue and yellow (triad).  In colour theory, it is generally thought that children (after they move out of the black and white baby phase), gravitate towards these bright colours.  This is why you'll typically see children's toys in these three colours.  It can certainly be a bit garish in one room but with the right tints, tones and shades you can arrive at a sophisticated colour story.

The room has a few features that are more for the grown-ups - a lovely yellow Eames chair, gorgeous David Trubridge coral light and art that doesn't scream comic book store but rather whispers their reference.  Of course there is some vintage spiderman on the bed to represent the very cool pillowcases I picked up at Pottery Barn Kids.

It's still a work in-progress but by using Olioboard I can get a good sense for how the room will turn out.

Elora Studio Tour

I spent Saturday in the beautiful town of Elora for their annual Studio Tours.  It was a gorgeous Fall day and the drive up from Toronto was wonderful.  The city has lots to offer but sometimes it's nice to leave it behind and head out into the country.  Some of the leaves are beginning to turn but I'm sure it'll be far more spectacular in a few more weeks.

The town of Elora sits on the Irvine river.  The old mill (which has been converted into a hotel) is currently undergoing a refurbishment and much of the original town still stands and is filled with great shops, galleries and cafes.  I picked up a small piece of pottery from one of the local artisans and had lunch overlooking the river.  It is a great little town full of surprises and certainly worth the drive.

Pottery studio - former blacksmith's shop

The blue building in the background is a great antique shop

 Former mill

The town is built along the river

In Need of a Rug

I finally have a new dining room table (with chairs en route) and am in need of a rug to go under these lovely pieces. You don't always need to have a rug underneath a table but in my case, I find the look of wood on wood a bit much. The wood stains are a little to close to each other and without something separating them they seem to blend into one another.  I would definitely prefer my new table to be the centre of attention which means I'm now looking for a rug. 

I love ELTE's second-life rugs and just about everything at Modernweave but the prices are just a wee bit out of my budget (actually a whole lot out of my budget).  Looking at stores more in my price range, I wasn't wowed by anything.  That is until I visited Flor.  I had heard about them through another blog (MadebyGirl) and then a classmate mentioned them to me as well.  While surfing through their site, I came upon a fantastic design that mimics the style I've been after, allows flexibility in the shape and comes at a great price.  

Introducing "Reoriented" - don't you love it?