Design Event At Toute Suite in Mississauga

Yesterday was not such a great day with all the rain we experienced but last evening turned into a great night.  The rain ceased and the fun began with a Spring Open House Event at Toute Suite Custom Decor.  Many of the public and Designers/Decorators were seen enjoying the  incredible hors d'oeuvres from Rocos Plum Tomato Catering & Restaurants which can be found on Islington Ave and The Queensway;  while viewing the great Canadian Made furnishings as well.  Toute Suite has everything including beautiful ready made drapery from Faab.   To top that off Jane Lockhart, well known and extremely talented designer was on hand to present some spring design tips and her new line Jane by Jane Lockhart which will be available at Toute Suite. 

Some of the Design Tips shared were that we will be seeing a lot of colour and pattern.  She talked about graphics, geometric, and the all time favourite stripes.  You will also see a lot of furniture with the nail head treatment, contrast piping, tufting and once again yellow metal is showing up as in brass and copper.  As for colour there is an abundance with Pantonne's Colour of the Year being Emerald Green leading the way. We also see mirrored case goods which really help to expand a space.

One can start small with the accessories to add colour to our neutral larger pieces.  White will always be popular and when you add colour and pattern it really gives it some impact.  Below I share some of the photos from last night and you will see I selected mostly grey and light neutral pieces, which I am personally fond of, but there is a myriad of colourful and patterned fabrics available to have smaller custom pieces created to work with your neutrals. If you are ready to go full out any of the pieces below and in the showroom can definitely be fabricated in a bright and colourful pattern!

As we had a chance to network, check out the newest in home decor and of course eat very well, we were also treated to live music from Angelica Ganea who has the voice of an angel.  Check her out on you tube as well.  www.youtube.com/AngelicaGanea

Wow, I would say that Toute Suite really knows how to host a party!!  Thanks to Vish and staff

Lots of Nail head trim and tufting as seen below....

 

The colour we are hearing about will be seen in accessories for many people but if you are not afraid of  colour here is one of Jane's chairs in a lovely pattern with some colour...

CDECA Annual General Meeting & Awards Presentation

April brings us to our CDECA Annual General Meeting and Awards Presentation.   Once again, we met at the Sunnybrook Estates for a day of networking, learning, celebrating and a lovely lunch.  The guest speaker this year was Robin Siegerman who spoke on "Renovation Bootcamp" and offered some good ideas for designers and decorators working on large projects.  We ended our celebrating the winners of our annual Decorating Contest.  Congratulations to the winners!  Check for them on our CDECA Website

Spring Blossoms were our table decor and offered as prizes to attendees.  Created by some members of the GTA West Window Committee;  Dorota Amirmansour; Jasmina Coffa, Debra Schaff Clark; 

Karen Stephens & Jeannette Wisby

National Home Show

The spring brings about many home shows and this year several CDECA Members were sitting in the Homes Publishing Booth, for Reno & Decor Magazine providing complimentary design solutions.  It was a great success and many people booked appointments and came with samples, floor plans etc., ready to gain some professional advice.  Great fun and met some great people.

Jeannette Wisby

Deb Darlington

Helena Asikainen

Audrey Macdonald

Designing French Style

Designing French Style

As an interior decorator  in Mississauga & Oakville, I have the opportunity to attend some really interesting home furnishing events put on by local suppliers, manufacturing and retail businesses in Oakville, Mississauga and Burlington.  I recently attended an event at SOFA about French Design.

SOFA Marketplace, Presented David Thomas of French Market Collection  who spoke on Designing French Style. 

Within the next few years, we will be seeing a lot of the French Style theme blowing up the trends. The French country theme will likely become very popular.  Many home décor showrooms have already been incorporating the beautiful French style décor in many homes especially, homes in Oakville and Mississauga.  It can be added with a more modern look to the old French country, perhaps a nod to French shabby chic. Lots of new merchandise will be showcased in the coming months.

A view of a typical French themed kitchen. Complete with pastels and rustic looking pots and pans.
A typical French theme is a ceramic roosters and lemons on the kitchen counter, very popular in French décor.

 

The French country theme includes rustic looking furniture with slightly faded or worn fabrics. Mixing and matching dark and white furniture also goes well with the theme.  Pastel yellows, greens, blues, black and white accessories are the perfect accents when decorating any room. Accessories such as French ceramics can be placed throughout your living room on the mantel, side tables, and cabinets.

Sunflowers are also very favoured in the French culture as seen below.

A typical French country themed living room lots of pillows and lots of textures. Some decorators would recommend a little less would give it a new French twist and less clutter.

   

Back in the 16th and 17th century, the King Louis of France had their own style of furniture that differentiated from the others, however the tradition of the chairs remained fairly similar with minor changes.

The image below are Louis XIII styled chair. This pair is from the 19th century with new up dated upholstery early Louis XIII straight back, curved arms and turned legs.

CDECA PD Day

We are all looking forward to this event...

PROGRAM

Professional Development Boot Camp Get Your Business in Shape

Client Centricity: What It Is and How It Can Impact Your Bottom Line 9:15 – 10:15 am - Catherine Mitchell, One Voice Productions Inc.

A client-centric approach translates to: More business. Better business. More joy. More inspiration. Less stress. And better technical skills. Working through some “game-changing” exercises, you will learn how to be client-centric and will leave this session with simple ideas you can put into place in your business immediately.

WSIB Bill 119: How do the new rules apply to my business? 10:45 – 11:45 am - Ryan Connelly, Subject Matter Expert , WSIB Ontario

WSIB Bill 119 came into effect on January 1st, 2013 affecting decorating and design professionals. This session will provide in-depth information on the changes reflected in the bill and who it affects. Attendees will have a chance to ask questions of the Subject Matter Expert representative from WSIB Ontario.

Risk Management and Business Insurance 11:45 am - 12:15 pm - Neil Felder, Insurance Specialist, LMS PROLINK Ltd.

Decorators are faced with making dozens of decisions each day. Managing your exposure to lawsuits is an important consideration for all professionals. Neil will provide an in-depth overview of the various types of Business Insurance that decorators and designers should consider for protection. He will also outline CDECA’s insurance program tailored for members.

Interactive Panel on Sourcing 1:45 – 2:30 pm

This interactive panel will discuss best sourcing practices as well as tips and techniques. Attendees will be able to ask questions of the CDECA Accredited and Affiliate Member panellists.

Project Management Critical Success Factors 3:00 – 4:00 pm Andrew R. Thomas, PMP, Project Management Consultant

Haveyoueverfoundyourselfscramblingtogetafixonwhat’shappeningwithyourproject? Doyoufindyourself wonderinghowyougotintothemessthatyou’reinandpromisingyourselfnevertoletithappenagain? Thissession will look at best practices that are known to lead to project success. These practices include: assembling the right team, having clearly articulated goals and objectives, effectively engaging the client, understanding who all the stakeholders are and what motivates them...these are just a few of the key topics examined in this presentation.

The Westin Prince Toronto

900 York Mills Road, Toronto, ON

2013 Pantonne Colour of the Year - Emerald Green

It's official - the new Pantonne Colour for 2013 is Emerald Green.  Wow!  We really are getting bright and colourful.  It is such an electrifying colour and is seen everywhere.   Green symbolizes abundance, prosperity, hope, nature and has a powerful energy.  It is the colour of new life, grown and can also be calming as in nature.  Here are a few places you will see it popping up...

A little Christmas Celebration combined with our meeting.....

Our December meeting was held at Parsons Interiors on Lakeshore, in Mississauga, the showroom of one of our members - Jackie Connolly.  It is a beautiful space designed by Jackie and we had a great time finishing up the year's business and did some planning for the coming year.  We had a draw and  then we enjoyed some great refreshments.

See you all in 2013!!!