Style Sheet
 
Mongolian Lamb pillow cover, West Elm, $59 -- $129
It's September! YUK. Aside from the shopping bug I get
infected with every time the seasons change, Fall can keep its leaves
and melancholy beauty. I'm still grieving summer. But for many of us,
September is the unwritten new year's. Back to school, back to work
(everyone is always on a last vacation in August) back to the grind,
until Christmas holidays... What gets us through it? Shopping, as I
mentioned, and here's where we come in: trend reports! All through the month of September we'll keep you abreast of what's new in the world of decor, with plenty of opportunity to discuss its merits.
First up: fur, faux fur and hairiness in
general is in BIG TIME on the runways this season, and as is par for the
course, so it is in decor. Popular decor stores have already began to
accessories chairs, sofas and beds with a touch of Yeti, and I for one
am looking forward to seeing just how far sheep, lamb, fun-fur and other cozy hides will proliferate this season.
Is this look for you? Will you follow? (I have two baby sheepskins form IKEA that I still love and display, and am pretty sure will replace once time comes.)
Take a Poll!
Will You Get Hairy with Your Accessories This Season?Market Research
Related:
Sep 06 2010 08:16
The last long weekend of the summer is upon us, which is sad for some because it means that -- gasp! -- fall is fast approaching (Twitter follower @cBo_Events called it the F-word). Around these parts, however, we're all smiles because as you may have read here yesterday, our fall schedule starts tomorrow! After Vanessa and I got to spend time in New York last week viewing some amazing properties (photos coming soon!), I'm super-excited for the premiere of Selling New York, a new show about the fast-paced world of million-dollar Manhattan real estate. Of course, I'm also a fan of homegrown shows like Property Virgins and The Property Shop, too. I asked our lovely Facebook fans and Twitter @hgtvcanada followers what shows they're most excited for and some of the results are below. I'm digging Jeannette's Mad Men avatar, but alas For Rent isn't new this season (though you can watch season 3 online).
 Recent guest blogger Michelle from Holley & Gill is also anticipating SNY:
The Facebook crew continues the SNY build-up:
So tell us, what are you looking forward to? Related: 
Sep 05 2010 06:27
Clockwise, from top left: Scott McGillivary of Income Property, Selling New York, Sandra Rinomato of Property Virgins and Tatiana Londono of The Property Shop
I hope I'm not alone in rejoicing the dawn of September and with it, all things autumn: boots, sweaters, crisp air-conditionerless air, soups, stews and best of all, new television! This season, we've got some familiar faces (Hello Scott McGillibabe! I blame Elana for the nickname), new faces and new series. There's a lot of exciting programming coming your way, covering all the things you like best: design, makeovers, real estate and renovations. So let's get to it!
New Series
Color Splash Premiering on Monday September 6 at 10am ET
Design Star champion David Bromstad brings his exuberance, passion, decorating savvy and unwavering belief that "color is the root of great design" to transform tired rooms for homeowners each week into vibrant, unforgettable spaces -- while he teaches us to do the same in our homes.
My First Sale Premiering on Monday September 6 at 2:30pm ET & 8:30pm ET
Think buying your first place is tough? Try selling it! My First Sale takes the proven and successful docudrama format of My First Place and turns it upside down -- telling the story from the seller's point of view. Selling your first place means the stakes are even higher than when you purchased. More pressure, more jeopardy, more to gain -- and potentially thousands to lose. My First Sale has even more drama and, most important, more valuable takeaways to help viewers make top dollar on their own sale.
Battle on The Block Premiering on Tuesday September 7 at 9pm ET
Battle On the Block is a fun, character-driven home makeover show where three neighboring families compete against one another in an effort to design and build one new room from scratch, all in the span of a single weekend! The winner not only gets $10,000 but also bragging rights in the neighborhood. You'll recognize host Genevieve Gorder from Dear Genevieve.
Selling New York Premiering on Wednesday September 8 at 2pm ET & 9pm ET
They are assertive, razor-sharp and always compelling real estate brokers in the country's most competitive market. In a city of over 8 million people, where the average sale price is over $2 million, the competition to seal the deal is stiff. Now, catch a rare glimpse into a world where a solid reputation at the top of the real estate food chain involves swimming with the sharks, going head-to-head with the best, and rubbing shoulders with the wealthiest and trendiest of New York's social, political and artistic elite.
New Seasons
My First Place
Income Property
Property Virgins (moved from Wednesday to Monday at 9:30pm ET)
The Property Shop
Bang for Your Buck (moved from Monday to Wednesday at 2:30pm ET, 8pm ET)
My First Place
Real Estate Intervention
Designed To Sell
Carter Can
House Hunters
House Hunters International
Location, Location, Location
Repeating Shows
Sarah’s House
Real Renos
Million Dollar Listing
Flipping Out
Home To Flip
The Unsellables
Holmes Inspection
Agent vs Agent
Restaurant Makeover
Pure Design
HGTV’s Top 10
For Rent
Mansions
Coming in October
Home To Keep Premiering Tuesday, October 19 at 8pm ET
Peter Fallico helps homeowners turn their homes from potentially temporary to for keeps. Disaster DIY Premiering Thursday, October 7 at 9pm ET
Bryan Baeumler is back to help hapless DIY-ers how to fix it themselves.
Tough as Nails Premiering Thursday October 7 at 2:30pm ET & 9:30pm ET
Watching Cindy Stumpo in action is like watching a tornado tear through a city. With two cell phones glued to her ears, talking on both at the same time, she keeps multiple contractors, employees and even her ex-husband in line as she manages her multi-million dollar construction and development company. And in the middle of this whirlwind, she's a single mother of two. She can sometimes have a short fuse but it's always with good reason. How does she juggle it all and still remain true to who she is in a man's world? She's Tough as Nails. Related: 
Sep 04 2010 06:13
Well, communing with nature is a bit of a stretch. There was much talk of 'glamping' if I remember correctly, but what do you want? We're design folk.
If you happened to miss any of our Camping and Cottaging posts from the late month of August, then have yourself a trip down recently memory lane with the below links. There are some good ones in there, including Michelle Carangi's (of Holley & Gill fame) Top 5 Friday on modern cottages.
Next, look to special Trends posts all through the month of September!
Related:
Sep 02 2010 16:40
Sep 02 2010 14:40
The Lynchs' great room.
Who: Karen and Andy Lynch, self-described empty nesters. Karen is enjoying early retirement wile Andy Lynch still practices as an architect, and is one half of the well-established (c.1979), Halifax-based firm, Lydon Lynch. As Design Architect, Senior Project Architect and Partner-In-Charge, Andy's been a part of many of Atlantic Canada’s most significant and complex building projects including Dalhousie University Arts Centre, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, PIER 21 National Exhibition Centre and Bishop’s Landing.
View of original stone wall dating back to the Tupper estate.
What: A 15-year-old custom-built (by Andy) home, on a sloping, south-facing lot, built with a general nod toward traditional Nova Scotian residential architecture of the 19th century. The home is 2500 sq ft, and came in on-budget at $100/sq ft.
Where: Quinpool area on the Northwest Arm, Halifax, NS. The home's site is part of one of the old estates of the sixth Prime Minister of Canada, Charles Tupper (May 1st, 1896 - July 8th, 1896 - the shortest ministerial term to date!)
Why: When Andy and Karen set out to build, they sought to create a modest, timeless home that complemented the neighborhood. At $100/sq ft, the result is a perfect lesson in how making smart decisions when investing in space, saves you having to chase trends and clog your home with overpriced decor. The house, while ample, feels warm, gracious, and just right thanks to a focus on natural local materials such as Nova Scotia slate and pine, and New Brunswick cedar.
HGTV: How did you find the lot?
Andy: Our real estate agent, Stephen Townsend, had this lot and agreed to sell it after we provided him with a design concept for this house. It has been a
perfect lot – south facing, minimum legal size, affordable, excellent
location and views, and a challenge. This lot is surrounded by a stone
wall built as part of Sir Charles Tupper’s estate, one of a half dozen
estates on the Northwest Arm in Halifax during the 1800’s. HGTV: Would you say the home is built in a particular style?
Andy: This house has roots in traditional Nova Scotia residential architecture
that is founded on fairly simple shapes with steeply pitched roofs,
punched windows with robust trim, dormer windows and low eaves. This
style has evolved over several hundred years in communities such as
Chester, Mahone Bay and Lunenburg where it has been well preserved.
HGTV: I see that natural materials are highlighted throughout the home, could you speak to that?
Andy: Natural materials tend to be timeless – they ignore trends, are local
and frequently complement the neighborhood palate. Nova Scotia slate is
used on the fireplace; the offcuts make the landscape work; New
Brunswick eastern cedar shingles are finished with Cabot bleaching oil;
the timber is 99% Nova Scotia pine.
HGTV: How has the home changed since you first built? What would you change about it?
Andy: When building a new house, lesson no.1: get a fixed price; lesson no.2:
don’t change anything; live in the house for a decade and then change
what you want. We have lived in the house fourteen years and have no
desire to make any changes, however appliances always have to be updated
and we are due for a new Liebherr fridge.
The dining room hutch in the background, past the fireplace, bought at auction and hails from PEI.
HGTV: What is your favourite space in the house?
Andy: The living room is our great room: south and west orientation, wood
burning fireplace, in-floor radiant heating, French doors to the
deck, 6 meters square and high, sun and views.
HGTV: The home is not overwhelming large and yet it feels very spacious/just right. Is it the proportions? How did you address the division of space?
Andy: This house is modest in size but the main floor is mostly open and
gives the illusion of being larger.
HGTV: You have a loft master that opens onto the living room. Many are afraid to do this due to privacy/noise concerns. How do you find it?
Andy: Our children have started new families and we have become empty nesters
so the loft master doesn’t present any problems for us but could be an
issue for other families.
HGTV: Who in the family had the most say in decorating? Would you say you have a particular style? Where did you get most of you furniture/décor items? Do you have a favourite store in Halifax?
Andy: When we started the house Andy was the architect but Karen was the
client and the design evolved as a collaboration that continues through
furnishing and decorating. Our furniture has come from various sources, but is eclectic overall.
Living room sofas are Snyder Furniture from Toronto; dining table was
built custom by Geddes in Halifax; several pieces came from auctions
like the dining room hutch, which came from PEI. Our favourite store in
Halifax is Attica which sells contemporary Canadian furniture.
HGTV: Tell me about the fun collection of china/pottery in the kitchen?
Andy: Our (Karen’s) pottery collection is also local: Allison Cude, Kathy
Thompson, Lucky Rabbit Pottery, Cape Breton Clay, Birdsall Worthington. They all have roots here and many are graduates of that wonderful school,
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. The lack of shelf space has been
the only limitation to Karen’s collection.
Andy: We have a custom liquor cabinet in the living room created by Steve
Sekerak, a local custom cabinet maker. The mahogany is recycled from a
table in a vegetarian restaurant which didn’t match the other tables –
Steve made them a pine table to match the others and we received the
benefit.
Andy: The settee in the master bedroom was a wedding gift from parents
– came from auction and was recently reupholstered with fabric from
Bellissimo.
HGTV: I like look of your eclectic first-floor powder room -- seems ahead of its time for being 14 years old.
Andy: We found a marble bowl sink in a shop, Renovators’ Resource, which came
from a Victorian Hotel in Yarmouth – it cost maybe $25. Steve Sekerak
then built the bowl into a custom vanity which just fits nicely into the
powder room. The wallpaper came from the Art Gallery
of Nova Scotia which commissioned and sold custom wallpaper designed by
local artists, mostly from NSCAD.
 HGTV: Tell me about the decision to put in concrete floors -- pros and cons?
Andy: The decision was the most venturesome, but the
best decision we made. Fourteen years ago, none existed so we had to be
innovative without being expensive. We mixed bags of charcoal mortar
color into the concrete while still in the truck so when it was poured,
it looked a lot like fresh asphalt, which was a bit disconcerting. Once
the concrete set up, it was steel trowel finished and then scored to
give it that slate appearance that is so attractive. We have the hot
water radiant piping cast into the floors and it is the best heating
system you can buy. We put a coat of acrylic sealer on the floors once a
year and that’s it for maintenance.
HGTV: Can you offer some advice on how to create a look and feel for longevity?
Andy: Architecture emerges from various influences; the neighborhood, the
palette of materials, the desire for sun, view and interior space, the
program and the client. Good architecture is timeless and cannot be
labeled easily. This house has been the recipient of the Nova Scotia
Home Award, the Lieutenant Governor’s Award from the Nova Scotia
Association of Architects and was featured on Homes by Design. LOVE. You?
Related: 
Sep 01 2010 14:20
It's the Mid Mod icon: the Barcelona Chair. I don't know if I really need to say much... IS IT OVER??? What if you got one for free? Would you sell it and buy something you liked better? I think I would... (Mies van der Rohe just shot me the evil eye from the beyond.)
Take a Poll!
Are You Over the Barcelona Chair?Market Research
Related:
Aug 30 2010 14:24
Driving with the family on one of our last road trips of the summer, and I can’t help but think about all the work waiting for me upon my return. Not just the work -- which, of course, doesn't really seem like work! -- I do here at HGTV.ca, but the “Back to School” preparation that will be upon me in full force come end of this month. A new and uncharted era of "tween" has dawned at my house, and as a firm believer in the influence a space has on its occupants, I feel the décor in my kids' rooms should better reflect their age and upcoming aspirations. As usual, for inspiration I turn to our industrious Flickr group, who seem to be on the same page...
Primary Colours Motivate
The custom-painted shelving by Gr8matt has a real air of "get to work kid" about it -- all those cubby holes are just waiting to fill themselves with overdue library books, half-eaten lunches and paper planes. Posh Living, LLC's custom desk (right) with a wave-shaped backboard is the
centerpiece for a kid-friendly beach house guest room. Roman shades were
added in a snappy red stripe and a vintage-look painted lamp.
Nostalgic vs High-Tech
Vintage Pleasure sees no reason to sacrifice the innocence of kids' room décor from times gone by. Her daughter Maisie’s new workspace was finished just in time for her first piece of homework which in this room will surely feel more like play than work.
You can count on me’s space reminds us that no matter what colour you paint the walls, you can't avoid considering all of the high-tech gadgets that will be a big part of the “new” room budget.
If You Build It, They Will Work
Not all of us are budgeting for a full renovation at this time of year, but we can appreciate the suggestions that designers make. Shinlandscape (left) shares a kid’s workspace from Guga Architecture. For fans of modern decor, this is a clean spacious, and no doubt efficient room that instills order, focus and still leaves room for personality.
Steve Kahn (right) renovated the basement for a complete kid-friendly environment, including a puppet theater and a full school room complete complete with chalkboard walls.
Take the last weekend of the summer to help the children in your life personalize their space and own the school year ahead. Show us your decor idea and Join our Flickr Group.
Related Links: 
Aug 29 2010 08:20
Why is summer like chocolate? So lovely and indulgent while it lasts, but always seems to melt away too soon? (I shouldn't get started on chocolate actually...) I'm going on like this because whether I like it on, the calendar says summer is packing its things and leaving us for Australia.
Our expert, Veronica SlivaThat means the end of many a good time, not the least of which is gardening... Our How to Garden expert, Veronica Sliva, has kept us green company the whole season through, and while surely she can find things for us to do in the garden until the bitter end, better to leave things on a high note. (If you would like to follow Veronica to the bitter end of the warm weather, you can check out her blog GardenersWorld.ca)
If you've been following Veronica's expert posts you'll know that the horticulturalist has taken a recent trip to England, where gardening is close to Godliness. So until next season, I leave you with an annotated gallery of Veronica's most inspiring English garden pics, which we can pretend to try and emulate in our own gardens next year (there's no way.)
Scroll past the gallery for a recap of Veronica's How to Garden series.
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How to Garden, by Veronica Sliva
Related:
Aug 29 2010 06:20
Being organized doesn't mean boxes, labels and partitioned drawer spaces, necessarily. You can make it crafty and cute... and practical. These three ideas for displaying and organizing your jewelry are practical, yes, but you can also make them your own to fit in with your decor. The best part about these ideas and what truly makes them a bargain is that you've probably got some of the pieces lying around your house already to tackle a little DIY this weekend. - String some wire across an ornate frame to display earrings
- Use old plates and bowls
- Wrap a wooden frame in extra fabric from linens or cushions
 Above, from left to right: Vanity tray earring display from The Flirty Girl Guide,Jewelry stand from whomadeit's Etsy shop,Fabric frames from East Coast Bungalow How do you display your jewelry? Related: 
Aug 28 2010 06:02
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