Best of Covet Garden: Clever Kitchens

[Olga's Kitchen from Issue15 . Photography: Donna Griffith]

We here at Covet Garden like spaces that have beauty and brains. We went through our back issues to revist some of our favourite kitchens. There's a mix of streamlined to colourful, but they are all amazing examples of how to fix up a kitchen without spending scads of money by using personal items such as art work, budget-friendly finishes or a new paint job.

[Arounna and John's kitchen from Issue18 . Photography: Ashley Capp]

Kitchens are hard working rooms. We cook in them, we hang out in them and you will always find us in the kitchen at parties. Which explains why impersonal "where-the-hell-do-they-keep-all-their-stuff?" spaces don't really inspire us. Now clever storage solutions, such as Arounna and John's  lockers-turned-bins... that's the kind of idea we can get behind!

[Kurt and Lori's kitchen from Issue9 . Photography: Michael Graydon]

Each of these kitchens have a "why didn't I think of that?" appeal. You'll notice at least three rooms with white laminate cabinets. Yet each is made unique by such details as handmade countertops, colourful backsplashes or plain old interesting use of space.

[Tara and Terry's kitchen from Issue13 . Photography: Kim Jeffery]

The easiest way to makeover a kitchen is with colour. We love the way Tara and Terry were able to reimagine their home's existing cuisine (who wouldn't want to buy the house for that stainless steel sink alone?) with a refreshing coat of green paint? A few upcycled items, like the sliding freezer door, and a kitchen island also give the space a modern update.

I'm going to hang a gallery wall in my kitchen this weekend. What inexpensive update would you most like to try?

Jennifer Hannotte on World Headquarters Auction Night

One of the ways we find the amazing things we have in-store at Russet and Empire, and for clients' homes, is from attending auctions near and far.

Last week, we were lucky to have to trek only up the street to a local auction at World Headquarters where our friends from Smash were emptying out their basement storage area and had a whack of awesome goods up for grabs. Now, it's pretty easy to come home with a lot of garbage if you're not careful; the desire to WIN sometimes clouds better judgement. Example: last summer, we took a road trip to Pen Yan, New York, to a barn auction and bought an antique rocking chair that promptly fell apart when we loaded it into the car, gross horsehair stuffing clumped out of it and blew around the car that was now too full for us to spend more cash at Target. But, we were stubborn and drove it back to Toronto where  landed straight in the trash when we got home.

We were smart (and sober) this night and came home with a sexy pair of heavy gold and glass lamps that require re-wiring and shades but their scale is intensely satisfying. I'm thinking a beautiful peacock blue for the shade in a simple drum shape and we'll have a pair of beauties on our hands. I might be selfish and be using them in my own bedroom as it goes through a transformation I'll be sharing shortly. That's the one downside to auctioning — sometimes it's tough to let go of your prizes. Have you attended an auction? Tell us about your great find or your big mistake, no judgement!

World Headquarters owner Mark Taaffee gets the bidding going on a painting.

We're pleased as punch to feature another insightful post from interior stylist Jenn Hannotte of Russet and Empire Interiors back to the Covet Garden blog. Jenn believes in accessible and collaborative design that stems from narratives we create with objects we love. Her work has been featured in Design Lines,  Remodelista, Apartment Therapy and the Marion House Book to name a few. She lives with her two daughters in the West-End of Toronto.

Adventures in Cape Town: Behind the Scenes at Skinny LaMinx

[image: skinny laminx]

Covet Garden's own Jessica travelled to Cape Town, South Africa earler this month. She came back with lots of great stories and discoveries to share. This is the first of four posts detailing her adventures.

Regular readers of Covet Garden know of our admiration for Heather Moore, the illustrator and designer behind the textiles and homewares label Skinny LaMinx. So when I found out I was going to Cape Town, I knew I had to visit her new brick and mortar shop, which opened last December. And as you can see from the photos, it's an amazing showcase of her distinctive style. My fellow Covey G'er Rhonda wants to live in this store!

Heather is pretty amazing herself. I emailed before leaving Toronto and she gave me great tips on exploring her city. We also met at her shop and she let me peek into her studio. I loved seeing the bits and pieces of inspiration she keeps on hand, such as her collection of Arts and Crafts-style book jackets, and a vase full of wooden spoons (which were no doubt the inspiration for her "Borrowed Spoons" tea towel). While being in South Africa provided new context to the way Heather is influenced by her surroundings in her pattern and imagery (like the amazing plant-life I spotted on my trip up to the top of Table Mountain), there is something very international about the Skinny LaMinx style. 

Similarly, Heather takes inspiration from her colourful collection of vintage fabrics, but there's something very fresh about her designs and the interior of her shop and studio.

[studio photos by Jessica Reid. Pillow by skinny laminx]

I couldn't resist buying a metre of her "Flower Field" fabric in Rosy (pictured above). I'm not sure what I'll make out of it (suggestions are welcome in the comments below), but it will at least be lovingly hoarded for some time.

Lynda's Square Foot Project: Crocheted Scarf

I love to buy yarn and then dream about all the great things I will make — a tea cozy, a hat, a sweater for Lily. The truth is, I’m a dream weaver. I envision myself having a knitting project on-the-go at all times because I like to think I’m that gal. You know, the kind of gal who curls up with a cup of tea and can knit for hours. And I was her — once.  That was a while ago yet I still have a collection of lovely yarns around my house in various baskets and bowls. When I look at them I feel like a fraud. So, this months’ square foot project was to think of a way to use up all the bits of wool around my home.

I was inspired by Alexx’s four hundred squares-blanket featured in Covet Garden Issue 7. I like the  idea of making a bunch of little things that could then become a bigger thing. I’ve always wanted to learn how to crochet so I found a helpful how-to crochet a circle video on YouTube. I began with circles of different sizes and they were so cute and easy to make that before I knew it I had used up all my yarn. Looking at them gathered together on the floor it came to me — I'll make a scarf. Who can have too many scarves during the winter? Not me that’s who!

And that’s not all.  I then sold one of the that bowls that I used to display my yarn! 

Let's recap:

I started by wanting to reduce my "stuff" foot print to 1,600 square feet. Last month's square foot total was 1,594 square feet

 • 18 balls of yarn = 4 square feet 

 • 1 bowl =1 square foot

New total = 1,589 square feet

January Contest Winner!