Project: Oakmount Facade

We JUST got back from a nice vacation in Maine last week. We survived Irene and just experienced a VERY windy Sunday last weekend and lost power for a day - but there was shopping to be done at the outlets so we managed to keep busy ;)

While away I put together a colour palette for a pair of semi-detached houses I'm working on in Toronto. The young couple want to give their house a mini facelift with new paint on their stairs, porch, railings, trims and door....and the owner of the attached house has agreed to spruce up her side as well. 

{"young couple" lives on the right}

I've chosen a few colour combos to consider which work with their yellow-pink brick (and a "salmon" front door colour as per request by the Mrs) and here's what I'm thinking:

* a creamy beige for railings, trims & risers

* a dark gray for the porch surface and treads

* a bright & fresh coral for door no. one

* a complimentary peacock blue for door no. two

* a dash & albert outdoor diamond runner for some pizazz

We're in preliminary planning right now so things may change, but I'm liking the vision at this point!

Project: Muskoka Front Door

It has been hard finding time for blogging with this great summer weather we are finally experiencing in Toronto! As I promised a few weeks back, here are some after photos of our cottage front door, all painted and pretty!

We wanted something that worked well with the putty coloured faux-wood board and baton and shingles, and the orangey rough douglas fir accents. We were also trying to stay away from the usual cottage suspects - dark green, deep rust and brown. 

The solution: BURNT ORANGE

In order to minimize, or play down, the orange colour of the fresh douglas fir, we chose a burnt orange. It may seem the opposite, but by using an analogous colour-scheme (where colours are from the same side of the colour wheel) and using a colour that blends in with the redwoods, it actually makes the orange shade of wood less noticeable. Analogous colour-schemes are more relaxing and pleasing to the eye - perfect for easy living at a cottage! If we had chosen a blue or green paint, the colour-scheme would have been more dynamic complimentary scheme (where colours are from the opposite side of the colour wheel) and the douglas fir would have actually appeared more orange. 

Project: Muskoka Getaway

Today I'm going to introduce you to a project that I have been helping with, on and off, for the past couple of years! My family is lucky to own a fantastic little piece of Muskoka - aka beautiful cottage country in Ontario.

Over the past few years my parents have been renovating what was a tiny summer cottage (I am on the hunt to find some before photos) into a larger all-season home (see below). While I don't get final say in ANYTHING (boo!) my brother (an architect) and I (an interior designer) are asked our "expert" opinions whenever possible - this was hard while I was living in California which was the reality until a month ago. 

 A little background, this new cottage was designed by an architect before my brother was even in school to become one, and also before I started ID school. This is also not my parents' first stab at home renovation. They built my childhood 4,000 square foot home from the ground up - my father's hobby is very likely the reason both of his children fell in love with architecture and design! Back to the cottage, we LOVE the architectural design, but there are definitely issues that we all wish were realized and addressed before building commenced. Seriously, think about how furniture will be placed in each room while you are still finalizing floor plans and elevations,  and deciding on colour-schemes and materials BEFORE you start these types of projects is highly recommended! Figuring things out as you go is NEVER easy or best!

Enough talking at you, here is the basic shell of the cottage when you arrive...

{cottage in 2009 via cell phone camera}

We've been working slowly at finishing more of the entry, both exterior and interior, and here's a peak at some of the completed parts and other things that are in the works...

I'll reveal what we've finished after this weekend. The front door colour was a difficult decision!