tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7024223468634398142024-03-12T18:46:00.116-06:00Wicked & WeirdLisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.comBlogger724125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-28959043571357612902015-03-10T13:37:00.000-06:002015-03-10T13:37:41.904-06:00Here Comes the Sun!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ACh_yYlR3ZE/VP8QeLOBRnI/AAAAAAAAPGE/gyjNt9-TozY/s1600/yellow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ACh_yYlR3ZE/VP8QeLOBRnI/AAAAAAAAPGE/gyjNt9-TozY/s1600/yellow.jpg" height="640" width="504" /></a></div>
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Is it possible to get drunk on sunshine? Because I feel like I have been the past couple of days - stumbling around all squinty-eyed with a big grin, saying things like "oh it's just so BEAUTIFUL!" and "just look at the SKY!" and "I love yoouuuuu....." I mean, it could be the wine I had with breakfast, but I'm thinking it's the sun.</div>
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There is something about yellow that just makes a person smile, no? I have some new yellow tulips stuffed in a vase in the kitchen and they just put me in the best mood. They're so damned cheerful.</div>
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The way they brighten the space makes me want to switch out all my accents to yellow for spring. Candles, paint some wooden candle sticks, pillows, artwork, a throw... I mean not too much because that's just obnoxious, but little bits here and there to make everyone smile.</div>
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These paint colours are just the sort of shade I have in mind. They would look pretty in a powder room, or a sun room, or maybe inside a closet or bookshelf!</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I0T3NjRwuZQ/VP8hsc4XIOI/AAAAAAAAPHM/STOVOlutQWw/s1600/yellows2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I0T3NjRwuZQ/VP8hsc4XIOI/AAAAAAAAPHM/STOVOlutQWw/s1600/yellows2.jpg" height="640" width="504" /></a></div>
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1. Pratt & Lambert <i>Shantung</i></div>
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2. Benjamin Moore <i>Butter</i></div>
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3. Sherwin Williams <i>Fun Yellow</i></div>
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4. Behr <i>Lively Yellow</i></div>
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5. Benjamin Moore <i>Hawthorn Yellow</i></div>
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6. Benjamin Moore <i>Moonlight Natura</i></div>
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7. Behr <i>Lemon Souffle</i></div>
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8. Benjamin Moore <i>Lemon Sorbet</i></div>
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9. Benjamin Moore <i>Sundance</i></div>
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Side note: It's so crazy how colour is not an absolute. All of these yellows look completely different when you put them beside other yellows than they do when you see them on their own or with another colour. The Sherwin Williams colour (3) looks almost green here but seemed like such a sunshiny yellow in my file. And they all look way more pink than they did in my Photoshop!</div>
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Of course, there's always wallpaper too - maybe because we had pretty yellow wallpaper in my front hall growing up, I always think fondly of yellow wallpaper.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_IspWwQtOyw/VP8ibSOiemI/AAAAAAAAPHU/crdQ9tluSS0/s1600/thibaut-bungalow-wallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_IspWwQtOyw/VP8ibSOiemI/AAAAAAAAPHU/crdQ9tluSS0/s1600/thibaut-bungalow-wallpaper.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How gorgeous is this <a href="http://www.thibautdesign.com/collection/high_res.php?patternID=1446&productID=9682" target="_blank">Thibault</a> wallpaper as seen in <a href="http://www.bhg.com/decorating/do-it-yourself/accents/fast-and-fabulous-decorating-projects/#page=2" target="_blank">Better Homes & Gardens</a>?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gGWbWiWvyKE/VP8icIJfpuI/AAAAAAAAPHc/K338n51INo8/s1600/Harvest%2BHare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gGWbWiWvyKE/VP8icIJfpuI/AAAAAAAAPHc/K338n51INo8/s1600/Harvest%2BHare.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">or this stunning <a href="http://www.fabricsandpapers.com/item/view/8523-Harvest-Hare-Wallpaper-Corn/category/large-design-wallpapers" target="_blank">Harvest Hare </a>wallpaper?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VW-tqEUEOUU/VP8j6WLt7UI/AAAAAAAAPHo/B9wCvqPacVE/s1600/wallpapered%2Bkitchen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VW-tqEUEOUU/VP8j6WLt7UI/AAAAAAAAPHo/B9wCvqPacVE/s1600/wallpapered%2Bkitchen.jpg" height="468" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I can't find the source on this other than <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2011/02/wallpaper-in-kitchen.html" target="_blank">here</a> - any ideas?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kDieYhu7x6s/VP8lFxmrT4I/AAAAAAAAPH4/Retx-j61GB4/s1600/kim9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kDieYhu7x6s/VP8lFxmrT4I/AAAAAAAAPH4/Retx-j61GB4/s1600/kim9.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pretty Farrow & Ball wallpaper from a <a href="http://www.designsponge.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/kim9.jpg" target="_blank">Design*Sponge tour</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gMBTC5PmDxc/VP8lF0MBlSI/AAAAAAAAPH0/zugN2OwS2dg/s1600/framed%2Bwallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gMBTC5PmDxc/VP8lF0MBlSI/AAAAAAAAPH0/zugN2OwS2dg/s1600/framed%2Bwallpaper.jpg" height="640" width="514" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If a whole wall seems extreme, what about <a href="http://cdn.decorpad.com/photos/2008/04/17/cf08b17bfaea.jpg" target="_blank">putting a frame around it</a>?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-958phqcEYPg/VP8l1B_oEEI/AAAAAAAAPIE/stWrSE6ZfU8/s1600/graham-brown-graham-brown-village-green-wallpaper-50-609-p1059-1551_zoom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-958phqcEYPg/VP8l1B_oEEI/AAAAAAAAPIE/stWrSE6ZfU8/s1600/graham-brown-graham-brown-village-green-wallpaper-50-609-p1059-1551_zoom.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How fun is this <a href="http://www.iwantwallpaper.co.uk/images/graham-brown-graham-brown-village-green-wallpaper-50-609-p1059-1551_zoom.jpg" target="_blank">Graham & Brown wallpaper</a>?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-itsBy3YNLok/VP88lVXyHBI/AAAAAAAAPIU/Wghrt7GDp00/s1600/FarrowAndBall-PresentAndCorrect-Silvergate-BP827-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-itsBy3YNLok/VP88lVXyHBI/AAAAAAAAPIU/Wghrt7GDp00/s1600/FarrowAndBall-PresentAndCorrect-Silvergate-BP827-01.jpg" height="640" width="576" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">more <a href="https://www.janeclayton.co.uk/Product_Images/fullzoom/FarrowAndBall-PresentAndCorrect-Silvergate-BP827-01.jpg" target="_blank">Farrow & Ball </a>yumminess</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pmRTux7A6TI/VP89RKUm9SI/AAAAAAAAPIc/FW6GNS5-ZyU/s1600/lotus%2Bfull%2Bbloom%2Bfb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pmRTux7A6TI/VP89RKUm9SI/AAAAAAAAPIc/FW6GNS5-ZyU/s1600/lotus%2Bfull%2Bbloom%2Bfb.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and <a href="https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fchateauandbungalow.com%2F2012%2F04%2F05%2Flotus-wallpaper-is-in-full-bloom-at-farrow-ball%2F&ei=yzz_VKuSIYyayASy3IJQ&bvm=bv.87611401,bs.1,d.d24&psig=AFQjCNEaIBkpzOgKjBt5vWKxDYay84ucdg&ust=1426099673197811" target="_blank">more</a>!</td></tr>
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For an effective splash of colour, one could always paint a door yellow - I love how happy they look. Too bad we have aluminum and glass doors...</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YgPIbrGxdC0/VP897i9UfwI/AAAAAAAAPIk/2HuVc69hHe4/s1600/yellowdoor.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YgPIbrGxdC0/VP897i9UfwI/AAAAAAAAPIk/2HuVc69hHe4/s1600/yellowdoor.png" height="416" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="http://www.simplygrove.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Screen-shot-2010-06-28-at-12.02.18-AM.png" target="_blank">Simply Grove</a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MV-36QV6fJM/VP8-R6Q1x6I/AAAAAAAAPIs/JLvFlcWE58o/s1600/yellow-door-london-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MV-36QV6fJM/VP8-R6Q1x6I/AAAAAAAAPIs/JLvFlcWE58o/s1600/yellow-door-london-2.jpeg" height="570" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="https://modernmaggie.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/yellow-door-london-2.jpeg" target="_blank">Modern Maggie</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EMFXM_yBiMI/VP8-mkAR6RI/AAAAAAAAPI0/JPS8ywckvYY/s1600/yellow%2Bdoor-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EMFXM_yBiMI/VP8-mkAR6RI/AAAAAAAAPI0/JPS8ywckvYY/s1600/yellow%2Bdoor-L.jpg" height="640" width="440" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="http://www.jdrushphoto.com/Other/Architecture-Buildings-and/i-zGzdJTv/0/XL/yellow%20door-XL.jpg" target="_blank">jdrushphoto</a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Glw4J8bFhZE/VP8_J2IqZPI/AAAAAAAAPI8/TWKI_mGloB0/s1600/swedishdoor.JPEG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Glw4J8bFhZE/VP8_J2IqZPI/AAAAAAAAPI8/TWKI_mGloB0/s1600/swedishdoor.JPEG" height="640" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="http://p-fst2.pixstatic.com/51bbb5c7dbd0cb1e55000389._w.540_s.fit_.JPEG" target="_blank">Apartment Therapy</a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oWscOIRQj3E/VP8_fhXNEsI/AAAAAAAAPJE/VKaZRYOiWUY/s1600/yellow-sliding-barn-door-living-room-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oWscOIRQj3E/VP8_fhXNEsI/AAAAAAAAPJE/VKaZRYOiWUY/s1600/yellow-sliding-barn-door-living-room-1.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.realslidinghardware.com%2Fidea-gallery%2F&ei=Yz__VOrdA4yKyAS1y4H4BA&psig=AFQjCNGfV-9C6FYQa16XifvU-MEiZpmyZQ&ust=1426100446819512" target="_blank">Real Sliding Hardware</a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jtIpfDeJ2x8/VP8_uvQUwZI/AAAAAAAAPJM/qS5fF6NPCS0/s1600/700_entryway-door-in-modern-house-by-in-situ-studio-with-yellow-painted-front-door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jtIpfDeJ2x8/VP8_uvQUwZI/AAAAAAAAPJM/qS5fF6NPCS0/s1600/700_entryway-door-in-modern-house-by-in-situ-studio-with-yellow-painted-front-door.jpg" height="640" width="588" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.remodelista.com%2Fposts%2Fmodern-sustainable-and-adaptable-for-117-per-square-foot&ei=pT__VITLCMqsyASlwYHQCg&psig=AFQjCNGfV-9C6FYQa16XifvU-MEiZpmyZQ&ust=1426100446819512" target="_blank">Remodelista</a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kqvuheTS2NA/VP9AGip4PEI/AAAAAAAAPJU/1F7Kn3AeRtI/s1600/Yellow%2BDoor.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kqvuheTS2NA/VP9AGip4PEI/AAAAAAAAPJU/1F7Kn3AeRtI/s1600/Yellow%2BDoor.jpeg" height="640" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">via <a href="https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theartofold.ca%2Fblog%2F2014%2F7%2F30%2Fliving-room-tour&ei=_z__VMiyOpb_yQS2mIHwAg&psig=AFQjCNGfV-9C6FYQa16XifvU-MEiZpmyZQ&ust=1426100446819512" target="_blank">The Art of Old</a></td></tr>
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And of course, you can always count on Etsy when you need a spot of colour. Etsy never disappoints.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xmuAKNNyzJw/VP9Gl4RLaZI/AAAAAAAAPJw/XKw9mp_UWj0/s1600/yellow%2Betsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xmuAKNNyzJw/VP9Gl4RLaZI/AAAAAAAAPJw/XKw9mp_UWj0/s1600/yellow%2Betsy.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/190214865/hello-printable-hello-digital-hallway?ref=sr_gallery_16&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_ref=related&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Poster</a>, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/198311095/teal-and-yellow-cushion-cover-teal-and?ref=sr_gallery_10&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_ref=related&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Pillow</a>, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/200575483/30-colours-love-period-quote-shower?ref=sr_gallery_31&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Shower Curtain</a>, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/167327444/yellow-lamp?ref=sr_gallery_42&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Light</a>, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/220122982/duvet-cover-triangle-art-geometric-duvet?ref=sr_gallery_14&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=3&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Bedding</a>, <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/171197731/spiral-vertigo-sunflower-yellow-vase?ref=sr_gallery_14&ga_search_query=yellow+decor&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_explicit_scope=1&ga_page=3&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_view_type=gallery" target="_blank">Vase</a></td></tr>
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Yellow: I think you get the idea. Have I convinced anyone? And now instead of looking up yellow on my computer, I'm going to go out and enjoy the sunshine!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LKXnbex8oHU/VP9AysY0gcI/AAAAAAAAPJg/AGCNLVfSCuw/s1600/homer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LKXnbex8oHU/VP9AysY0gcI/AAAAAAAAPJg/AGCNLVfSCuw/s1600/homer.jpg" height="305" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peace out.</td></tr>
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-17006978090900058862015-02-19T12:08:00.000-07:002015-02-19T12:08:29.864-07:00Catching up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well HELLO! It's been a while, so I thought I would catch everyone up with a picture-filled post.<br />
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Let's start with skiing. One of my favourite things about being out here in Calgary is skiing. The hubster told me this would happen, and next time he tells me something... I'm still not going to believe him. But about this he was right. I have never been a skier - I just was never really close enough to a hill to warrant buying the equipment and going regularly. Plus, I was an artsy-fartsy - I didn't think skiing was in my repertoire. But since I was forced to get gear, buy a season pass, and get up at the crack of dawn to get to the hill - I have gotten pretty good! And being good at something, or at least reasonably good, is key to enjoying it, in my opinion. Although they have never been on skies before, the boys are naturals, of course, especially Will. I thought they would be on the bunny hill all this season, but we have already passed that and are doing chair lift runs. So fun!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty hoar frost is really common.</td></tr>
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So winter here has come and gone, come and gone. Chinooks are REAL people - not just some nebulous thing that everyone kept telling me about to make me feel better about moving. They're real, and they are spectacular!<br />
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Christmas happened, and my folks were here for a month. It was a fabulous visit and a great holiday, and I think my parents were excited to sleep on a real bed instead of blow-up mattresses (Which was our 'guest room' in the old house).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can't win 'em all...</td></tr>
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Nenshi was kind enough to give me this great book for Christmas (haha) and we went on a few excursions with my parents. We saw lots of dinosaur bones,<br />
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and hoodoos,<br />
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did more skiing,</div>
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and even made some pizza (but wouldn't eat it).<br />
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Chris and I got to have some 'date' time, which of course with Mountain Man means snow-shoe hikes. Pretty amazing way to see the mountains, so I guess I won't complain. There was wine too.</div>
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Since I wasn't blogging I had lots of time to do some knitting projects, including a few I didn't photograph. I made up the pattern for the long scarf I gave to my mother-in-law and was pretty happy with it. I got confident enough to print out a sweater pattern, but haven't started it yet. It scares me.<br />
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On the home front, having Dad here spurred me on to accomplish at least one project, which I'll do a separate post about later. Here is my fancy drawing though.<br />
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I continue to be amazed by the spectacular sunrises and sunset out here. Big Sky is right!<br />
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Someone had a birthday...<br />
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and I started a painting class.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our first class we learned how to mix paints and do a quick apple - 10 minutes!</td></tr>
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I have also slowly but surely been making it a little homier around here. There are still lots of pictures to get hung, furniture to be positioned, and some painting to be done, but I am pleased with the boys' room. The polka dots are my way to liven things up without painting (i.e. lazy solution).<br />
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Some day I will get to have a real tablecloth again... you know, those fabric ones? Without plastic on top? Yeah, I like those. Some day...<br />
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So that's what's been up in my world out here near the mountains. I hope you guys are staying warm, and are having a happy 2015 so far!<br />
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-4629914955865254522014-12-08T16:05:00.002-07:002014-12-08T16:05:25.119-07:00Zachary Smith and Sevenly<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Although I don't get to wander around the internet as much as I used to, I still manage to come across some cool, shareable stuff every now and then. Today's share is via <a href="http://designworklife.com/">designworklife.com</a>, and features the art of <a href="https://dribbble.com/zacharysmithh" target="_blank">Zachary Smith</a>. Zachary does hand lettering and typographic art. I do love the swoops and swirls of hand lettering, and that it makes the words as beautiful as the thoughts they express. Zachary builds one more layer on this by merging his lettering and inspiring phrases with his photographs to make some beautiful images, many of which he features on his <a href="http://instagram.com/zacharysmithh" target="_blank">Instagram</a> account.<br />
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Zachary also contributes to <a href="http://www.sevenly.org/" target="_blank">Sevenly</a>, an online store that sells t-shirts and prints of artist-made designs and gives $7 of each purchase to charity. The designs are more than pretty; they seek to help raise awareness for the different organizations that Sevenly supports. Each week <a href="http://www.sevenly.org/" target="_blank">Sevenly</a> introduces a new charity partner and a new design. To date they have raised over $4 Million for various charities.<br />
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I love this business model! Support artists - check. Create beautiful, quality merchandise - check. Make a meaningful contribution to change - check. Raise awareness of deserving charities - check. Make money and build a successful business - check!<br />
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Why not build a business around making a difference? Why not shop and give to charity at the same time? I bristle at the idea that somehow these things should be kept separate, that giving to charity is simply a marketing gimmick to sell more merchandise. I instead see a business with a soul, but that's not to say the former isn't out there as well.<br />
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How do you feel about "capitalist philanthropy"?<br />
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-25834711418548691462014-11-26T13:13:00.000-07:002014-12-08T13:40:45.913-07:00Art I Like - Emily Jeffords<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WFnrTqtW9WM/VHYl6L5EiQI/AAAAAAAAO6c/LQJ-gbtvUHg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.10.08%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily Jeffers Oil Painting Landscape "Sunshine Valley No. 2"" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WFnrTqtW9WM/VHYl6L5EiQI/AAAAAAAAO6c/LQJ-gbtvUHg/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.10.08%2BPM.png" height="638" title="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_Sunshine_Valley_No._2" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily Jeffords <i>Sunshine Meadow #2</i></td></tr>
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Technically, I am not allowed to be looking at art. My mom made me swear I wouldn't after we spent the better part of a week wrapping up all my frames, prints, paintings, etc. for the Big Move. But this is purely for blogging purposes, 'K Mom? And maybe a little inspiration...<br />
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Just look at that happy sunny landscape above by Emily Jeffords. It makes me so happy! She does it using so few brushstrokes, it amazes me as well. I love the soft airy way Emily's landscapes feel, and the bright colour palette she uses in her works.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNTWrF-_IsA/VHYoszMNxQI/AAAAAAAAO6s/BI3FUBQBuo4/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.22.36%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_Mid_Summertime" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNTWrF-_IsA/VHYoszMNxQI/AAAAAAAAO6s/BI3FUBQBuo4/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.22.36%2BPM.png" height="640" title="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_Mid_Summertime" width="482" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily Jeffords <i>Mid-Summertime</i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--OGugL1wgvQ/VHYpBt6h_8I/AAAAAAAAO60/xygBH7reumw/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.21.54%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_Rise & Shine" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--OGugL1wgvQ/VHYpBt6h_8I/AAAAAAAAO60/xygBH7reumw/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.21.54%2BPM.png" height="640" title="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_Rise & Shine" width="474" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily Jeffords <i>Rise & Shine</i></td></tr>
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I have always had a fascination with clouds and must have a few hundred in my iPhoto albums from various trips and sunsets. Emily's landscapes almost always have a really low horizon line and lots and lots of sky. I think that is part of what attracts me to her work.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LIWjlHssEJk/VHYp95ntMAI/AAAAAAAAO68/knJwkxqG0mQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.28.30%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_After_the_Dew_#3" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LIWjlHssEJk/VHYp95ntMAI/AAAAAAAAO68/knJwkxqG0mQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.28.30%2BPM.png" height="640" title="Emily_Jeffers_Oil_Painting_Landscape_After_the_Dew_#3" width="636" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily Jeffords <i>After the Dew #3</i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-13i0HxgtHzc/VHYqB4lQH7I/AAAAAAAAO7E/3aNnLKjishk/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.10.45%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-13i0HxgtHzc/VHYqB4lQH7I/AAAAAAAAO7E/3aNnLKjishk/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.10.45%2BPM.png" height="394" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily Jeffords <i>(Commission Painting)</i></td></tr>
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If you feel like her works might be familiar, it is probably because of the enormous amount of <a href="http://emilyjeffords.com/press/" target="_blank">press</a> she has received lately. She is currently working with Minted, West Elm, Etsy, Shoppe, and Great.ly and has been featured in <a href="http://domino.com/at-home-with-minted-artist-emily-jeffords" target="_blank">Domino Magazine</a>, on <a href="http://www.designsponge.com/2014/03/20-great-examples-of-art-at-home-dsart-favorites.html" target="_blank">Design*Sponge</a>, <a href="http://www.babble.com/babble-voices/invitation-only-rachel-faucett/step-into-the-creative-life-of-artist-mom-emily-jeffords/" target="_blank">Babble</a>, <a href="http://decor8blog.com/2014/11/04/10-questions-studio-tour-with-fine-artist-emily-jeffords/" target="_blank">Decor8 Blog</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/domino/emily-jeffords-talks-home_b_5606674.html" target="_blank">Huffington Post</a> and many more. Based out of South Carolina, Emily has two young daughters that spend a lot of time painting in the studio with her (which makes for some super-cute photos).<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gkb477huplU/VHYr6ggzEeI/AAAAAAAAO7M/Z51kmCs5yvQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.36.39%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gkb477huplU/VHYr6ggzEeI/AAAAAAAAO7M/Z51kmCs5yvQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.36.39%2BPM.png" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="http://www.paigefrench.com/" target="_blank">Paige French</a>, who needs a whole other blog post!</td></tr>
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I have been dabbling a bit in painting lately, and this past weekend I had a chance to go up to a camp near Edmonton and spend all day just playing with paint. It was marvelous. While I tried to do some paintings based off of photographs, and a pure abstract, most of the time I tried to copy Emily's Paintings in an effort to understand her style a bit more. It is definitely easier said than done.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F3l2B2LChoA/VHYuR8X9twI/AAAAAAAAO7U/h1vjyVfX-1U/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.46.57%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Learning copy (reproduction) of an Emily Jeffers painting" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F3l2B2LChoA/VHYuR8X9twI/AAAAAAAAO7U/h1vjyVfX-1U/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.46.57%2BPM.png" height="640" title="Learning copy (reproduction) of an Emily Jeffers painting" width="498" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My copy, based on Emily's <i><a href="https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/48917783/driving-to-greenville-original-landscape" target="_blank">Driving to Greenville</a></i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mcQ5iqke8c8/VHYvFPXtIII/AAAAAAAAO7c/ryFDN0LIXxU/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.50.18%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Learning copy (reproduction) of an Emily Jeffers painting" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mcQ5iqke8c8/VHYvFPXtIII/AAAAAAAAO7c/ryFDN0LIXxU/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.50.18%2BPM.png" height="640" title="Learning copy (reproduction) of an Emily Jeffers painting" width="524" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My attempt at Emily's <i><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889157414559/" target="_blank">Sundown</a></i></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UdZd6LSOQNk/VHYvsDAQ2NI/AAAAAAAAO7k/-x2MzSpBDg0/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.52.57%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UdZd6LSOQNk/VHYvsDAQ2NI/AAAAAAAAO7k/-x2MzSpBDg0/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-11-26%2Bat%2B12.52.57%2BPM.png" height="556" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This one was more of an attempt at copying Michelle Armas, but is nowhere near!</td></tr>
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I have a whole <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/lizinka/painting-inspiration/" target="_blank">Pinterest board</a> dedicated to painting subjects and style that I would like to try <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/lizinka/painting-inspiration/" target="_blank">here</a>, if you want to take a peak. <br />
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You may wonder why I don't just paint my own thing, why I am trying to reproduce someone else's style - which is a fair question! I feel that by trying to recreate an artist's work, I can get an idea of how it was made, how it was built from the darks to the lights, what values are where and how it all comes together. I only wish I had a photo of the original landscape to see how they read it into the painting! I love watching YouTube videos posted by artists that show them doing a painting in real time, or sped up, so you can see how it actually works.<br />
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As I was saying to my husband, who was seeing dollar signs floating in the air when I came home with these paintings, there is no way I would ever try to pass these off as 'mine'. Some super-nice Facebook friends who were very supportive when I posted the fruits of my weekend away may get an early Christmas gift... as long as they don't claim it as an Emily Jeffers <i>OR</i> Lisa Mackay original! It's all in <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/26/there-s-nothing-wrong-and-a-lot-that-s-right-about-copying-other-artists.html" target="_blank">the spirit of learning</a>, and I am very inspired by Emily's paintings. After enjoying myself so much this weekend, I have signed up for a painting course starting in January, so hopefully I will be moving on to my own originals soon enough!<br />
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-50464367842958441242014-11-04T14:30:00.000-07:002014-11-04T14:30:21.316-07:00Abandoning perfectionismSetting up this house has been a bit of a process for me. As I wrote a few months ago, I found the modern design and aesthetic of the house intimidating, and I have been struggling to "make it mine." Many of my things have been easy to place, and I am happy with how they go with the house. <br />
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Others just don't match up in my mind's eye - usually older pieces that I have moved from house to house and never really <i>looked</i> at, if that makes any sense. The bed, for example. I have always loved wrought iron beds, something about the deep black colour with soft curves and curlicues. I even did <a href="http://wickednweird.blogspot.com/2009/07/wrought-iron-bed.html" target="_blank">a post about them</a> in 2009 (before I knew anything about referencing images, obviously). When I bought my bed way back in I-don't-even-remember, my only real sources for furniture were my parents' house and Ikea. Since my parents didn't have any extra queen beds kicking around, it was off to the that big blue and yellow store, and I came home with this:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hT2p6RIFiI0/T98w6AfxskI/AAAAAAAALDc/ePFQgENMo3g/s640/bedroom2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hT2p6RIFiI0/T98w6AfxskI/AAAAAAAALDc/ePFQgENMo3g/s640/bedroom2.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></a></div>
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(I went to find it on the Ikea site, but apparently it is no longer available - which means I must have bought it a while ago!)<br />
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It isn't too bad, but there are a few things that bug me about it:<br />
- it is so obviously from Ikea<br />
- the curved line on the top of the headboard - I wish it was straight like the footboard<br />
- those round curly flower things - not sure what it is about them that bugs me, but I think they just seem too cutesy and busy.<br />
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The poor bed bothered me in the old house as well, but when we put it in the master bedroom in the new house, it just didn't work for me at all. I feel like this room is begging for a big upholstered bed.<br />
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Now it would be lovely to put all the stuff that bugs me up on Kijiji and go out and buy exactly what I want, but sadly, they forgot to plant that money tree in our new back yard. So instead I used some West Elm gift cards I had for the Steven Alan euro shams and long grey pillow, and splurged on an Ikea linen duvet cover and wool pillow from Winners.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yV3tKLwkwxE/VFgQEkaD2mI/AAAAAAAAO5Y/PhjyiPzwj9Y/s1600/IMG_7919.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yV3tKLwkwxE/VFgQEkaD2mI/AAAAAAAAO5Y/PhjyiPzwj9Y/s1600/IMG_7919.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Cb353ZnHvhk/VFgP_CGpLeI/AAAAAAAAO44/vNV9JVyIbxk/s1600/IMG_7916.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Cb353ZnHvhk/VFgP_CGpLeI/AAAAAAAAO44/vNV9JVyIbxk/s1600/IMG_7916.JPG" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Aaaand I still don't like it. And there still is nothing over the bed. And I am debating about curtains. And I still don't love the colour. I feel like this room will never be finished. (Cue the violins!)<br />
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However, it finally hit me this weekend that if I wait to share photos until the rooms are "DONE", I will never blog again! So instead of beautifully-styled rooms that I am proud to share, you are going to be getting a lot of photos of not-quite-there-yet rooms that I am not yet happy with. Maybe just posting the photos will spark a moment of genius and I will figure out what the heck to do. Or maybe you guys can give me some suggestions.<br />
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Either way, I am just going to have to decide to be OK with the bed, the sofa, the colours, and the bookcases in the basement. I am going to have to be OK with living in a partly-finished house. Which means, I am going to have to be OK with having a blog that is a chronicle of making this house my own, warts and all, instead of a fancy portfolio of my impeccable style. While I would love to post about putting a room together from scratch, that just isn't realistic. <br />
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Insert deep comment about embracing the imperfections in life, then post inspirational tee photo.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z0-rvDMDNnM/VFlC5yFljKI/AAAAAAAAO54/6Z4iW4Nbdds/s1600/beyonce-wasnt-built-black-611x713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z0-rvDMDNnM/VFlC5yFljKI/AAAAAAAAO54/6Z4iW4Nbdds/s1600/beyonce-wasnt-built-black-611x713.jpg" height="640" width="548" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">T-shirt $30 at <a href="http://www.teesinthetrap.com/shop/king-b-collection/beyonce-wasnt-built-in-a-day/" target="_blank">Tees in the Trap</a></td></tr>
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Thanks for sticking with me folks! :)</div>
Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-50868122320452346572014-09-28T17:31:00.000-06:002014-09-28T17:31:04.405-06:00Etsy treasuries<span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: small;">I have just discovered the joy of creating treasuries on Etsy - a wonderful way to waste even more time online. Really, it is a healthy way to search Etsy without buying every beautiful item I see, don't you think?</span><br />
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<h2 style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 10px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTg2MzcxMXwyNzI2NzUwMTQ4" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #333333; text-decoration: none;"> 'Angular' </a> by <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetrinda" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #333333; text-decoration: none;"> sweetrinda </a></h2>
<table style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 8px; line-height: 19px; width: auto;"> <tbody>
<tr> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/78078178" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/5506895/il_170x135.258041096.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/78078178" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Porcelain geometry triangles... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/NiuTaller" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> NiuTaller </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$35 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/184135624" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/039/2/5281419/il_170x135.581958949_6chk.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/184135624" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> SALE 30% OFF Minimalistic Go... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheFORMA" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> TheFORMA </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$99 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/198583772" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/039/0/9549956/il_170x135.635408348_ys44.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/198583772" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Large Wristlet Clutch with R... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/Mashausha" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> Mashausha </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$30 </div>
</td> </tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/130137934" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/024/0/7593247/il_170x135.526703703_68yu.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/130137934" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> iphone case - triangle geome... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/IsolateCase" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> IsolateCase </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$22 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/163607140" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/044/1/5656935/il_170x135.608328919_3kmo.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/163607140" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Wood & Brass Triangle neckla... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/RebeccaGladstone" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> RebeccaGladsto... </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$22 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/201528618" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/044/1/8465471/il_170x135.646303519_rjhz.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/201528618" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Modern Industrial Style -- A... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/jbFARM" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> jbFARM </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$96 </div>
</td> </tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/198962080" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/034/1/6538339/il_170x135.636767378_o6ko.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/198962080" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Modern Quilt, Multicolored B... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/TwiggyandOpal" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> TwiggyandOpal </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$325 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/158296343" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/044/1/8056797/il_170x135.643582118_nsgw.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/158296343" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Chevron Lines Grey Peel & St... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/AccentuWall" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> AccentuWall </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$35 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/178233090" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/031/0/5457552/il_170x135.560136109_15ov.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/178233090" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Square Wide Bangle,Bracelet-... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/yukabyguliz" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> yukabyguliz </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$70 </div>
</td> </tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/194145281" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/036/0/9619491/il_170x135.617291142_qkpw.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/194145281" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Womens Tshirt / Gray Moon T... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/makemaketees" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> makemaketees </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$26 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/184334699" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/044/0/7598811/il_170x135.582550438_pac2.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/184334699" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Black and White Triangles Pl... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/MelissaMayaPottery" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> MelissaMayaPot... </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$34 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/196843099" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img1.etsystatic.com/030/1/8763997/il_170x135.629009571_sbcf.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/196843099" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Daytripper - Driftwood Grey </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/YieldDesignCo" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> YieldDesignCo </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$195 </div>
</td> </tr>
<tr><td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/117944765" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/003/1/6299724/il_170x135.406570802_jrga.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/117944765" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> handmade brass ceiling mount... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/studioPGRB" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> studioPGRB </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$695 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/99065643" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/6649781/il_170x135.334305446.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/99065643" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Bars Adjustable Sterling Sil... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/flaviabennettdesigns" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> flaviabennettd... </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$32 </div>
</td> <td style="border: 1px solid #ECECEC; padding: 6px; text-align: left;" width="180px;"><a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/180159966" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <img src="https://img0.etsystatic.com/030/0/5595037/il_170x135.627948690_hcce.jpg" style="border: none; width: 170px;" /> <br /> </a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/180159966" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="text-decoration: none;"> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> Geometric Sterling Silver Ea... </span> </a> <br />
<div style="float: left; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/RawObjekt" onmouseout="this.style.textDecoration='none'" onmouseover="this.style.textDecoration='underline'" style="color: #b2b2b2; text-decoration: none;"> RawObjekt </a> </div>
<div style="color: #78c042; float: right; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
$49 </div>
</td> </tr>
</tbody></table>
Powered By <a href="http://www.handmadeology.com/">Handmadeology</a>Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-24711402670782786812014-09-07T11:05:00.000-06:002014-09-07T11:05:18.961-06:00For the Love of BLOGGING<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Fk2bTy_Chls/VAyJkU7vZPI/AAAAAAAAO18/dVZHWBLSSQo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-09-07%2Bat%2B10.35.47%2BAM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Fk2bTy_Chls/VAyJkU7vZPI/AAAAAAAAO18/dVZHWBLSSQo/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2014-09-07%2Bat%2B10.35.47%2BAM.png" height="344" width="640" /></a></div>
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I have just had one of those weeks where Mr Murphy (of the insidious Murphy's Law) set himself up in my life, made himself comfortable, and refused to leave. What could go wrong went wrong. It was a bumpy Back to School, a lot of which was probably me missing my old network of moms, and the rest being the Calgary bussing system! I also dug into switching my blog over to wordpress, which I have been putting off doing. However, this Saturday is BlogPodium, Canada's only design and lifestyle blogger conference, so I wanted to be able to have my new site all ready.<br />
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/_5mmkldRbhWkOG7ToT8LehTxRWZjsW0WeRfXDjLBYIuVETZgItm9Hqpg03-hrg1jfRJ5J1W15C4JT_NFIiqfjhobZDXCWU1v-Nz2Da9nS3_0pU1aNsRkUoyy6cinp-Dl6AcO3drA8xxUSA" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="BlogPodium" border="0" src="http://66.147.244.218/~blogpodi/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/BP2014button2.png" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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Well, as you can imagine, this has not been a simple process. Those of you that follow me on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/LisaMackay" target="_blank">Twitter</a> were bombarded with every post I have ever posted as I imported them from Blogger not once, but twice (so sorry about that!). I had everything in a place I was feeling pretty good about, until I made a coding snafu that essentially deleted the URL wickedandweird.com from the internet altogether. <br />
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AAAAAHHHH!!!!<br />
<br />
With some help from the nice folks at BlueHost, I got it back, but minus all the changes I had spent the week doing. Sigh. At least doing them the second time is a bit faster, but I don't think I'll be doing much else this week.<br />
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That and trying to organize my itinerary for the week I am in Toronto to see all my friends is driving me nuts and making me feel blue. There just isn't time to see everyone I love in such a short time!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JRP8P_m-jiE/VAyOQNr4FxI/AAAAAAAAO2I/LRkqmaY1fJE/s1600/toronto_skyline-Aeryn%2BLynne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JRP8P_m-jiE/VAyOQNr4FxI/AAAAAAAAO2I/LRkqmaY1fJE/s1600/toronto_skyline-Aeryn%2BLynne.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Toronto Skyline by Aeryn Lynne</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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My impending visit back to where I didn't want to leave has me feeling pretty conflicted too - I am nervous about my reaction, how I'll feel to be wandering around a city that isn't mine anymore. But I am so excited to see the friends I thought I wouldn't get to see for long while - it is going to be a fun, fabulous whirlwind of a week. I am sure I will come back inspired with all kinds of ideas for my blog and for making this new place my own. After all, I have everything I need: my boys (all three of them). Everything else is just icing on the cake. :)<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hfG4LZy5dJM/U_ZtXnpvLDI/AAAAAAAAODo/K231RV0IsPU/s1600/IMG_6963.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hfG4LZy5dJM/U_ZtXnpvLDI/AAAAAAAAODo/K231RV0IsPU/s1600/IMG_6963.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi all! I hope you had a wonderful summer - not that it is <i>completely</i> over. I had an amazing time in New Brunswick as usual and took a break from everything - including blogging. But I am back re-energized and pumped and ready to get started on this place.<br />
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And oh, the projects we'll do!<br />
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To be honest, it is a little overwhelming. Every room I am in, I look around thinking about how much there is to do. Everything is unpacked and furniture is mostly set, but now I have to make the big decisions, ugh. I don't really want to paint anything because they did such an incredible job, but some of the colours are just not me. <br />
<br />
And I can't decide where to put which art. <br />
<br />
And I want new art.<br />
<br />
And new furniture.<br />
<br />
And new rugs, lights, linens, shelves - you name it.<br />
<br />
And my husband thinks everything is perfect just the way it is. Sigh.<br />
<br />
The one decision I finally made was on the counter stools for the kitchen. At first, we weren't going to get stools, and got some low bookcases to put under the overhang. But they just didn't work for me, so I brought them up to the playroom (where they fit perfectly - hooray!) and started on the long road of deliberations. Money being a definite hindrance (getting the stool of my dreams would have an easy decision!) I brought home several options before deciding on these bad boys from <a href="http://bouclair.ca/" target="_blank">Bouclair</a>.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ThLMhgICFmQ/U_ZlUKOCUGI/AAAAAAAAOCo/P8jYPrSFdHw/s1600/counterstool2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ThLMhgICFmQ/U_ZlUKOCUGI/AAAAAAAAOCo/P8jYPrSFdHw/s1600/counterstool2.png" height="520" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SJo_JFEsUwc/U_ZlRg-ApjI/AAAAAAAAOCk/RT6UtehJPTg/s1600/counterstools1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SJo_JFEsUwc/U_ZlRg-ApjI/AAAAAAAAOCk/RT6UtehJPTg/s1600/counterstools1.png" height="472" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1PP0AJQ6Nb8/U_ZlUjN3LSI/AAAAAAAAOCw/wuJNmC4CFJI/s1600/counterstools3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1PP0AJQ6Nb8/U_ZlUjN3LSI/AAAAAAAAOCw/wuJNmC4CFJI/s1600/counterstools3.png" height="484" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Holy awful colour - usually my iPhone is great but these are terrible... oh well.</i></div>
<br />
These were the previous contenders (more bad pics):<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yoJsRtNicRE/U_Zlzm_SksI/AAAAAAAAOC8/VoEGRHFkxw4/s1600/IMG_5970.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yoJsRtNicRE/U_Zlzm_SksI/AAAAAAAAOC8/VoEGRHFkxw4/s1600/IMG_5970.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cheapies from Target - I think they were $20. You could tell. <br />They would work maybe for a kids' playroom, but they didn't match the calibre of the kitchen.</td></tr>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uZ6uMyykVk0/U_Zl0wI8VgI/AAAAAAAAODE/3vnOCUIK3Lg/s1600/IMG_6097.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uZ6uMyykVk0/U_Zl0wI8VgI/AAAAAAAAODE/3vnOCUIK3Lg/s1600/IMG_6097.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another contender from Bouclair - who knew they had so many stools? <br />These were just ok, and they had a bigger footprint. And they were too white.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Anyway, big thanks to my <a href="http://instagram.com/lizinka" target="_blank">Instagram</a> friends for helping me out with that decision!<br />
<br />
The glass cabinet kind of crowds them on the side... I would like to put some walnut floating shelves there instead... I think... there is really nowhere for display in this place.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8zfVna3R02k/U_ZodUR9RPI/AAAAAAAAODU/hLL_3jFaSQM/s1600/IMG_7133.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8zfVna3R02k/U_ZodUR9RPI/AAAAAAAAODU/hLL_3jFaSQM/s1600/IMG_7133.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P8ER0GhI5H0/U_ZodNa6aOI/AAAAAAAAODQ/Ioo9TDGklSI/s1600/IMG_7132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P8ER0GhI5H0/U_ZodNa6aOI/AAAAAAAAODQ/Ioo9TDGklSI/s1600/IMG_7132.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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All that being said, I love, love, love this house. I think all these projects are more difficult for me to act on cause I don't want to mess it up! The paint is perfect, I don't want to ruin it, but I don't love the colour. There is nowhere to display my pottery and tchotchkes, but I don't want to work against the minimalism of the house. I know that we bought it, I have to live here, etc. but it feels like a complete self-contained work of art, and anything I do to it will be something that future owners will be wailing about as they try to restore the aesthetic of the house, like people who live in Craftsman houses, or something.<br />
<br />
Gosh, I really depend too much on external approval, don't I? Why am I worrying about future owners of the house? Or design snobs who will shudder at my every post? Where do I get these wacky ideas?? Sometimes you just need to write something down to see how stupid it is. And then post it for the everyone to read. :)<br />
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-31214685703557855542014-06-13T10:00:00.000-06:002014-06-13T10:02:36.679-06:00Moving 101: Selling Your House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGi_aS-hGZY/U5eOeKaVBiI/AAAAAAAAOBU/hW0DMMmflCI/s1600/MOVING+101+sell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGi_aS-hGZY/U5eOeKaVBiI/AAAAAAAAOBU/hW0DMMmflCI/s1600/MOVING+101+sell.jpg" height="260" width="640" /></a></div>
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To say that you are "moving" does not really begin to capture the scope of work involved in actually MOVING. It is such a little word, and such a huge, massive undertaking. There are so many time-sensitive tasks, so many little to-do's, it is more than a full-time job (on top of the full-time job of packing, and the full-time job of, oh, raising kids...). To help get you started (in case any of you have a cross-country move in your future), I have compiled a bare-bones action list for selling your home. There are much more complete lists to be found online, and I will list some resources at the end, including my friends at <a href="http://www.homedepot.ca/" target="_blank">Home Depot Canada</a>.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Selling Your House</h2>
<br />
So this is kind of a biggie all on its own. I am actually grateful that I was so overwhelmed with tasks that selling my beloved house was less traumatic than I had feared. Not that it wasn't emotional - I talked a little bit about it <a href="http://wickednweird.blogspot.com/2014/03/calgary-ho.html" target="_blank">in this post</a>. But here are the basic steps and a few notes:<br />
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<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Find a realtor </span></h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
Good heavens the thought of selling our own house on top of it all gives me panic attacks. Leave all the listing info, photos, showing, etc. to a professional, for your own sanity. Yes, the commission is a chunk of moola, but did you know that the cost of the commission is <b><u>tax deductable</u></b> under moving expenses? It's all about the silver linings...<br />
<br />
In our case, we went with one of the "celebrity" realtors for our neighbourhood. We figured she had been doing it forever, no doubt had all the right contacts and could get people to come out and see the house. We were also house hunting in Calgary at the same time, and so we had to depend as much as was prudent on her experienced estimate of what our house would sell for to get a budget for our new place. Plus, we needed a really quick and painless sale, and thought this would be our best shot at that.<br />
<br />
We interviewed her at our house, and had we more time, we would have interviewed at least one or two more. She came armed with research on comparables - what similar houses in our neighbourhood had sold for, what houses on our street had sold for in the last five years, what else was currently listed, etc. Our realtor also included a chart showing sales by month, which lit a fire under our butts to get the house ready NOW: houses sell much better in February and March. All of this provided context for pricing the house. We had to be realistic - our house had a great main floor and basement, but the original upstairs bathroom and no parking, so we couldn't get what the house down the street with parking got (we ended up getting the same).<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">A Word On Commissions... </span></b>Some will negotiate on commission, others will not. Our realtor pointed out that their commission includes 2.5% that goes to the buyer's realtor (the seller pays all the realtor costs of the transaction). If someone offers too low a commission, they may be skimping on the buyer's commission, which may dissuade a buyer's realtor from showing their clients your property.<br />
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If they are taking a bite out of their side of the commission, they may be spending less on the advertising required to sell your home. Our realtor hired an excellent photographer to do the 360 tour, a drafter to measure and do the house plans, and a home inspector to do a thorough home inspection available to anyone interested. Many will also hire a stager and rent furniture or props. Our realtor had ads in the local paper as well as the Toronto Star, and of course took care of the mls listing. Now I feel a bit conflicted about this, because it still seemed like an awful lot of money, and I am not sure an ad in the Star does any good, but who knows what combination of marketing brought about our sale. In the end, our house sold in less than a week for the asking price, so we got what we needed and it is pointless to spend time second guessing.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">One more note: </span></b>we were a little stunned and overwhelmed during this process so perhaps the obvious escaped us. However, we were quite surprised to find out from our lawyer when looking at the final figures that we also pay <u>GST on the realtor's fees</u>. That cash would have been a really nice sofa. Like, REALLY nice.<br />
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<br />
<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Find a storage locker</span></h3>
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<br /></div>
<div>
This is where the packing fun begins. Pack up all the extra clutter in your house and get it right out of the way. In our case, this meant a storage locker at <a href="http://publicstoragecanada.com/" target="_blank">Public Storage</a>, but if you know someone with a big garage or extra room in their basement, that would be handy. We were lucky that PS had a promotion on the first month - 1$. Since we only needed it for 1 month, we only paid tax on the regular rate, about 18$. Score!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Make sure the storage place is as close as possible to your house. There will be many trips - in our case lugging everything there and then lugging it all back. Having a second pick-up for the moving company would have added a substantial cost - we checked.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a-ug65hXseg/U5cR5ltM3BI/AAAAAAAAN_o/YjvWlix7Kyc/s1600/IMG_5430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a-ug65hXseg/U5cR5ltM3BI/AAAAAAAAN_o/YjvWlix7Kyc/s1600/IMG_5430.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you can add a blizzard to your move, it makes it way more interesting. This is the path I had to shovel to get to the door of the storage unit. The elevator behind these doors was not working. So I put everything back in the car and went to the next door, where I shovelled a new path and brought everything in.The dolly tipped over twice throwing all the boxes into the snow. There were tears and some NSFW language.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v6LMmGXfcYM/U5cSBaXHTkI/AAAAAAAAN_w/bTplKNlIsKw/s1600/IMG_5431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v6LMmGXfcYM/U5cSBaXHTkI/AAAAAAAAN_w/bTplKNlIsKw/s1600/IMG_5431.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Declutter</span></h3>
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<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I found it helpful to take a picture of each room to get an idea of how much stuff there was that needed to be packed away. Otherwise, I found it challenging to get a perspective on what exactly was "clutter". I had to remind myself that I wasn't styling for a shelter mag (I wish!), I was paring down for a listing. For me, this meant packing (or hiding) everything from any surface area. The maximum I would allow myself was one item to be out, but usually it was zero. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
It also meant putting some of the little tables, random chairs, and other furniture in storage as well. Although I thought my place looked quite nice, I realized when looking at other listing photos (which I was doing a lot of for Calgary) that it came across as overstuffed with furniture.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-akPSYqRIwz0/U5cVnZwSqvI/AAAAAAAAN_8/lWw4ITrJBzY/s1600/DSC_0250.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-akPSYqRIwz0/U5cVnZwSqvI/AAAAAAAAN_8/lWw4ITrJBzY/s1600/DSC_0250.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Believe it or not, this is the uncluttered 'after'.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ahM1Zu4ZeBE/U5cVxEqQuhI/AAAAAAAAOAE/kLIWrkeCez0/s1600/DSC_0262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ahM1Zu4ZeBE/U5cVxEqQuhI/AAAAAAAAOAE/kLIWrkeCez0/s1600/DSC_0262.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGGujvjd5fk/U5cWgZOrBVI/AAAAAAAAOAM/qncbsTiYqVc/s1600/DSC_0254.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGGujvjd5fk/U5cWgZOrBVI/AAAAAAAAOAM/qncbsTiYqVc/s1600/DSC_0254.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh <i>HI</i> backsplash! Long time no see!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-soNX9E9PfmU/U5cW3NuxEHI/AAAAAAAAOAU/gk1laXCwIvA/s1600/DSC_0284.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-soNX9E9PfmU/U5cW3NuxEHI/AAAAAAAAOAU/gk1laXCwIvA/s1600/DSC_0284.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 'uncluttered' shelves - pathetic I know. No wonder we were 13,000+ pounds...</td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rYMgZz9YoOE/U5cXWtIifKI/AAAAAAAAOAg/Ud2Dm0viPgU/s1600/DSC_0295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rYMgZz9YoOE/U5cXWtIifKI/AAAAAAAAOAg/Ud2Dm0viPgU/s1600/DSC_0295.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, I did not end up removing every personal item, which my realtor was OK with. I think it worked in the end, because the buyers were a young couple looking to start a family, and I think our place definitely had a family feel. But your realtor might be more stubborn on presenting a blank canvas. Don't be insulted - they know what they are doing. <br />
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Be sure you budget enough time for filling holes in the wall, painting walls, cleaning high traffic areas, polishing grout, etc. We hired someone to help with all of this, as there was some crumbling plaster, missing grout, etc. that we just didn't have the time to address ourselves. Think of it like a hotel room - you don't want to walk in to your hotel room and find ANY evidence that someone has stayed there before you. Your home doesn't have to be quite as sterile, but it's the same general principle. People want to buy a nice home, they don't want to buy <i>your</i> nice home, know what I mean?<br />
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Be aware that during showings and the open house, people are going to open every cupboard and closet to check out storage. If you try to hide things by ramming them into that space under the stairs, it is going to look like your house doesn't have enough storage. So take this time to go through all of those spaces as well and pack away the things you don't use or haven't looked at in ages. And if you don't want to pack them, sell them or give them away!<br />
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<div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Get to know Craig's List and Kijiji / PURGE</span></h3>
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<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If you have the time, start putting up things you don't need or won't bring with you for sale. I found Kijiji MUCH more active - everything I sold was through Kijiji. Be ruthless, because you are going to be really ruthless later as the moving date approaches, and the earlier you can start selling stuff the better. It's another full-time job! If you have several things up at once, you will be fielding lots of emails, and scheduling people to come look at your stuff, which can get a little complicated as some show up and others don't. But the extra cash is nice and there will be a point when you will feel huge relief with every piece that is carted away from your home.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
A garage sale is also an awesome option, again if you have time. March was not the best month for an outdoor gale (see blizzard above) so I ended up displaying everything in our basement during our big "We're Leaving Town" party, and it was nice to see pieces I loved but never used leave with friends and family.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
I also had great luck with Facebook. I put up photos of things I wanted to get rid of in an album entitled <u>Things I Am Not Taking To Calgary</u>. Most were free; some had a small price. I got rid of lots of stuff this way, and got to see some old friends in the process!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
And of course, have several garbage bags ready for all the stuff you are taking to Goodwill. We had a big pile going in the basement and that made it easy to toss stuff in the bags and not dither about whether to keep it or not.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
My advice, by the way, is WHEN IN DOUBT, THROW IT OUT! (and by throw it out I mean give it away somehow to someone who will find it useful). Do you <i>really</i> want to unpack it? Will you just put it in storage at the new house? Keep in mind William Morris's wonderful dictum: </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful </h2>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
or believe to be beautiful.</h2>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Amen Will.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> A Few Notes</span></h3>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
- <b>Don't get too many boxes</b> at this point, because you are just going to have to store them somewhere. We went on a huge shop at Home Depot, and ended up storing a ton of boxes in our storage locker.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
- <b>Don't fill up on groceries</b>. You are going to be eating out a lot while your house sells as people come for viewings, photos, 360 degree videos, home inspections, etc. Plus you don't want to fill the house with the smell of garlic.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
- <b>Label, label, label</b>. These are the first things you pack up and I guarantee you will forget what is in them. Label not only the contents but which room it should go in in the new house. For these boxes, we put Basement, since they didn't have anything we would need right away. Many of them remain un-opened below me as I type... I probably should have sold them. :)</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
- <b>Attack one room at a time</b>, so that you don't end up with boxes with some kitchen stuff, some living room stuff, etc. It will probably take more than one go-around to get it truly decluttered, so leave a box or two near each room. That being said, the exception is pillows and bedding, which are wondering soft packing materials for electronics and keepsakes, and help offset a really heavy box. Down-filled coats and snow pants are also great!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
- <b>Keep your car handy</b>. Not everything that was 'clutter' could be stored 10 -15 minutes away. So our toaster oven, for example, big ugly behemoth that is was, went into the trunk of our car every morning with the coffee maker and winter coats. I wonder what buyers thought as they walked by a car stuffed to the gills with boxes and tchotchkes. I tried to park down the street.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>- Have a toy box</b>. Our poor kids had pretty much everything packed up in this initial declutter. However, their beloved toy cars, along with markers and a few other games, were left to entertain them. I had one box specifically for dumping all the toys in, and bringing out to the trunk.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>- Your House Will Not Stay Clean</b>. Sadly, your beautiful pristine, photo-ready house will stay that way for about 5 minutes, if that. Prepare to spend at least 20 minutes every time you leave the house for a showing cleaning counters, putting clothes away, wiping down the shower, folding laundry and fluffing pillows. Once it sells, the clutter bomb will explode with such force it is frightening.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Get a Lawyer</span></h3>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Once your house has sold (yippee!) you will need to find a lawyer to draw up all the necessary papers. Even before finding your lawyer, make sure you pay careful attention and follow along while your realtor reviews the Offer Of Purchase document signed by the buyer and seller - it is legally binding. If you don't have a lawyer, your realtor should be able to give you a few names (I think they have to provide at least three to avoid conflict of interest), and you can ask family and friends for recommendations.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Your lawyer will look after things like title searches (making sure no one else has claims on your house), liens, etc. They will prepare the title of ownership documents and the transfer of money to the sellers from the buyers, and, in our case, to our sellers through our Calgary lawyer for our new house. They will help coordinate with your bank the closure of your mortgage on this house and/or transfer of your mortgage to your new house. And they will take your keys and give them to the new owners through their lawyer. Don't forget to budget for lawyers fees. :)</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<div>
<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Finishing Steps</span></h3>
</div>
</div>
<div>
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<div>
By all means crack open that bottle of Veuve your agent brought you (you won't want to pack it anyway). Take a night to relax and enjoy your success before waking up to peer over the cliff at the landscape of Work To Be Done, stretching out in all direction as far as the eye can see. Just a few little things to do:</div>
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<b>- Change Your Address</b>. Head to your closest post office to get the required Change of Address forms. For a fee, Canada Post will forward your mail to a new address for as long as you like - the longer the service runs the more money it will cost. So have your dates ready, and of course the new address. Eventually you will have to contact and change your address with all of your magazines, banks, insurance companies, PayPal, credit cards, Amazon, Indigo, Etsy, Ebay, etc.</div>
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<b>- Change Your Email</b>. If you already have gmail or yahoo (does hotmail still exist?) you will be fine. I, however, had my email through Rogers, who was our internet supplier and it got cut off with the internet when we moved. I had set up a gmail account but neglected to send out a massive change of address email before getting shut down. So if you tried to contact me - SORRY! :( I wish I had had the time to go through my folders and not only contact people about the change but save or forward pertinent and important emails. Lesson: don't be me.</div>
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<b>- Cancel Your Utilities</b>, or arrange to transfer them to the buyers. Sometimes your lawyer can help with this process, but you should contact all utilities to make sure that you won't be billed after a certain date. The lawyers will usually help in calculating how much you have prepaid for utilities and working it into the final financial numbers of the sale. Have a contingency for the lack of internet!</div>
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<b>- Contact Your Insurance Company</b>. They will need to know that you are no longer at the home they are insuring for you. When you know your new address, have them transfer their coverage - there will be a fee for this, of course.</div>
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<b>- Confirm or Hire your Moving Company</b>. Make sure you know what date they are coming, and their estimate for delivery. Arrange a date for them to come if they are packing for you (DO IT) with enough time for an extra day when they see how much sh*t you have.</div>
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<b>- Get Your Stuff Back</b> from storage. You don't want to be paying an extra month!</div>
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<b>- Contact The City </b>about returning any parking passes you have (you can be reimbursed for the months you won't be there if you prepaid). Also make sure you pay any outstanding fines and return all your books to the library!</div>
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<b>- Contact the Province</b> about returning your license plates once you have your new ones - again you can get money back for those pretty stickers you bought.</div>
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<b>- Contact Your School</b> to let them know your kids are moving. The sooner the better for the school, who will use the information to help organize class sizes, and in our case, let someone take Cam's place in Senior French Immersion Kindergarten (*sob*). If there are any records they can give you, ask for them so you have them for their new school (I needed copies of their report cards). And let the teachers know as soon as you can so they can help your kid and their class with the transition of leaving. One of our teachers had the class write letters and draw pictures for Will, and made him a farewell book that he was given at his going-away party. I think this really helped him process the idea that he was leaving. </div>
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<b>- PACK UNTIL THE VERY IDEA OF PACKING MAKES YOU BREAK DOWN INTO THE UGLY LAUGH/CRY THAT FRIGHTENS THE CHILDREN.</b> </div>
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Yeah, there's that wee step... so here's some tips:</div>
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-<b> Label everything</b> as well as possible. You never know what you are going to be hunting for (probably something small but imperative) in an endless sea of boxes in your new place. (The ugly laugh/cry will come in handy here too.)</div>
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-<b> Label the sides</b> so that when boxes are piled to the ceiling you don't have to move every single blessed box to see the contents written on the top. Again, don't be me.</div>
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-<b> Don't cheap out on tape</b>. Cheap packing tape will never come off your stuff. Fine for boxes, bad for lights, beds, storage containers, chairs, etc. It will split into those tiny strips that you have to spend 30 minutes peeling one by one with your fingernail. Is $0.15 a roll worth this? No. No it is not. </div>
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Dollar store duct tape will leave the sticky part behind on everything, requiring gallons of Goo-Be-Gone and what's left of your fingernails. </div>
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Just go to <a href="http://www.homedepot.ca/content/moving-guide" target="_blank">Home Depot</a> already, and tell them I sent you. Please?</div>
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<b>- Boxes too</b>. <b> </b><a href="http://www.homedepot.ca/content/moving-guide" target="_blank">Home Depot</a> my friends - although the liquor store boxes are still the best for books, because those suckers are HEAVY. I also got some mirror/art boxes from Public Storage, and some extra large mirror/art boxes from <a href="http://www.gmpackaging.com/" target="_blank">GM Packaging</a> in Mississauga. The rest was all from Home Depot (and full disclosure they approached me about sponsoring a post AFTER I had bought everything. Yeah. Not bitter at all. :p )</div>
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<b>- Hire a piano mover to move your piano</b>. Or risk this:</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-337ZyAjcxmw/U5eK2iF6ogI/AAAAAAAAOBA/kxrsTysPn3M/s1600/piano+cracked+frame.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-337ZyAjcxmw/U5eK2iF6ogI/AAAAAAAAOBA/kxrsTysPn3M/s1600/piano+cracked+frame.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't wanna talk about it.</td></tr>
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Those photos make me ill. The claim has been filed with the moving company and we are waiting to hear back. Insert ugly laugh/cry on moving day.<br />
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<h3>
<span style="color: #cc0000;">-> Resources</span></h3>
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Here are a few more online resources that probably do a better job at explaining the nitty gritty of selling, buying, and moving:</div>
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<b>- <a href="http://www.remax.ca/editorial/fit-to-sell/seller%E2%80%99s-guide/" target="_blank">RE/MAX Seller's Guide</a></b></div>
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<b>- <a href="http://www.howrealtorshelp.ca/selling.php" target="_blank">Realtor Selling Guide</a></b></div>
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<b>- <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" target="_blank">About.com Home Buying and Selling</a></b></div>
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<b>- <a href="http://www.homedepot.ca/content/moving-guide#moving-day-checklist" target="_blank">Home Depot Canada Moving Guide</a> </b>(Home Depot Canada generously sponsored this post)<br />
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And here endeth the longest and most boring post ever. If you made it down here I hereby award you a gold star.</div>
Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-34009109956666028202014-05-29T12:42:00.001-06:002014-06-13T10:02:58.545-06:00Moving 101: Hiring A Moving Company<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have decided that moving across the country is rather like giving birth. OK, not really, there may be a few <i>minor</i> differences between the two occasions. However, somewhere in the middle of both events, I was struck by the mind-blowing idea that <i>people do this every day!!</i> All the time! More than once! In terms of moving, the whole experience felt so huge, overwhelming, and emotional that it was hard to imagine that my move was just one of hundreds or thousands that were taking place across the country at the same time.<br />
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I still can't wrap my head around the amazing people who bring humans into this world on a daily basis the way others, oh I don't know, book ads and produce brochures. It is definitely much easier to consider that there is a massive moving industry that sticks people's every possession on a truck and deposits it somewhere new every single day. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ux_0CUORg7E/U4OHcF9q94I/AAAAAAAAN8o/5UYkKib3Gb4/s1600/movingvan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ux_0CUORg7E/U4OHcF9q94I/AAAAAAAAN8o/5UYkKib3Gb4/s1600/movingvan.jpg" height="640" width="578" /></a></div>
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In fact, right now someone is frantically marking the last few boxes, trying to keep track of movers in four different rooms of their house at once, freaking out at the sound of any bang or bump, and trying to process the increasingly dishevelled and empty look of their once beloved home. At this moment they are peering into an enormous cavernous truck, simultaneously awed by the fact that their whole life has been squished into this one space over the course of a few hours, and that they have so much STUFF. As I type they are watching as their every belonging is driven out of sight by complete strangers with a strange and intense cocktail of emotions coursing through them. <br />
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It is possible that not everyone is quite as melodramatic about moving/life as I am (<i>theoretically</i>), but a big move is a big deal. And having realized that others may one day go through it, I thought I would try to distill the various lessons I learned over the past few months. Because it is such an enormous project, I'll break it into a few posts, otherwise I'll never get anything up! Up first is the actual Moving Of Things.<br />
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<h2>
So You're Moving! What's Next?</h2>
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The papers have been signed, the deals done, the "are we really doing this?" looks have been traded and confirmed. For whatever reason (usually a big one), you have decided to take a leap and move houses. As soon as you figure this out, you want to get rolling on the details. Here are a few things to consider and some tips on navigating the world of Stuff-Moving:</div>
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</h4>
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</h4>
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<b>Are you going to rent a truck, pack it, drive it, and unload it?</b> </h3>
While this may seem like the least expensive option, it depends on how much stuff you have, how far you are moving, and how many friends and family are willing to help. When putting the numbers together, make sure you include amounts for renting the truck, but also for dollies, platform dollies, carts, straps and anything else you will need to physically get the stuff into the truck. Think about your biggest items (sofa, appliances, box spring, freezer, piano, etc) and how you are physically going to move them. Then add in all the time off you will need to do all the work. Even if this is irrelevant - say you are changing jobs and have a few weeks in between - keep in mind that there are a LOT of other things you are going to have to do at the same time as the move (shipping your car, changing your address, getting new insurance - I'll make a list in a future post!). Then add the cost of gas, hotels, meals, etc. It may not work out to that big a savings in the end, and it WILL be more of a headache.<br />
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<h3>
<b>Compare that total with quotes from professionals. </b> </h3>
One thing that amazed me was the wild differences in moving company quotes. The highest quote I got was double the lowest. To get your quotes, ask friends and colleagues for referrals. Some friends will have had terrible experiences with the companies that look great on paper and vice versa. Check online, keeping in mind that people love to complain. Not quite knowing where to start, I put my information on <a href="http://moveit.ca/">moveit.ca</a> and within an hour was contacted by several local moving companies to schedule visits.<br />
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<h3>
<b>Give them the tour</b>. </h3>
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When getting quotes from moving companies, it is important to have them come out to see what you will actually be moving if you want their quote to be anything near the final bill. I had five companies send out an estimator and two of them especially were really very helpful and knowledgeable about the process, giving me lots of excellent advice. When you take them around your house, point out EVERYTHING that will be going - including boxes in the basement, your overstuffed closet, and the lawnmower and outdoor furniture in the garage. We also had a lot of things in storage that we had taken out when staging our house - don't forget to include those!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AF-WqxZn57c/U4OOL7s6XnI/AAAAAAAAN9A/UDfkmNrYIKo/s1600/officeboxes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AF-WqxZn57c/U4OOL7s6XnI/AAAAAAAAN9A/UDfkmNrYIKo/s1600/officeboxes.jpg" height="640" width="590" /></a></div>
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<h3>
<b>Prepare yourself for the number</b></h3>
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- of pounds that is. All the quotes you get back will have translated your houseful of junk/priceless articles into how many pounds it will roughly weigh on the truck, and then give you the estimate based on what they charge per pound. For example, a family of four in a two-story house is usually around the 10,000 to 12,000 lbs range, and from what I saw prices can range from 49 to 65 cents per pound. Personally I had never thought of my belongings in terms of cummulative weight, and it gives a whole new meaning to your ecological footprint. In the end I am embarrassed to say that we came in at just over 13,000 lbs, and the number kind of made me ill. That's a lot of stuff.<br />
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<h3>
<b>Get out your calculator.</b> </h3>
When the quotes come back, you'll quickly notice that none of the moving companies use the same line items or break down their estimates in the same way. For example, one may show a charge of 49 cents per pound, which sounds great, but then you'll see that they also charge a 10 cent per pound freight charge. Freight charge? What is that? One company had an 'origin city charge' of almost $300 <i>and</i> a 'destination city charge' of another $300. Funny enough, they never returned my call asking what those were for (and they didn't get my business). So ask a lot of questions, and try to make sure that you are comparing apples to apples. <br />
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<h3>
<b>If it sounds to good to be true...</b> </h3>
then, yes, it probably is. We got a great-looking quote and were very excited, until I noticed that they were quoting on 8,000 lbs. That would not have made for a happy arrival in Calgary when they gave me a bill for almost double that amount! And even if they are quoting on the same weight, if the rate is well below the middle of the pack, my advice would be to stay away. As one mover explained to me, for a quote that much lower, they are cutting costs somewhere - either using less people, paying them less, or paying the driver less, none of which is good news for the safe arrival of your stuff.<br />
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<h3>
<b>Are you going to pack yourself?</b> </h3>
I really feel like screaming DON'T DO IT!!! but my experience was brutal for several reasons:<br />
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1. I massively underestimated the amount of stuff I had.<br />
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2. I massively underestimated how long it would take to pack a box. My mom and I were working from morning until night, and there were days that we each only packed about 5 boxes. So many things need to be wrapped carefully, and then packed carefully, and each box is its own puzzle. Do you find little things to fill in the spaces or stuff it with paper? What happens when you run out of little things? What happens when you run out of paper? What happens when the only things left don't fit in any of the boxes? TEARS. That's what happens.<br />
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3. I massively underestimated how many boxes, how much paper, and how much bubble wrap we would need - and how much it would cost. We must have made a million trips to <a href="http://www.homedepot.com/b/Storage-Organization-Moving-Boxes-Shipping-Supplies/N-5yc1vZc89r" target="_blank">Home Depot </a>(who, FYI, have the best prices on boxes, bubble wrap etc. of all the moving stores - and they did not pay me to say that) and a hundred to our local hardware store for more tape and black markers. We did make one big trip to a box warehouse (<a href="http://www.gmpackaging.com/" target="_blank">GM Packaging</a>) for the odd-sized boxes for mirrors and art, but it didn't work out much cheaper than Home Depot, even in bulk.</div>
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4. I have kids - kids who like to climb. And our house was a giant jungle gym of boxes and couches - oh and the toys were packed.</div>
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5. Oh and my husband was already in Alberta.</div>
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6. I didn't really want to move. I am sure it is a very different experience to pack up your house when you are really pumped about moving. Don't get me wrong, I knew the move was for the best, and am sure we will have a wonderful life here, but I was devastated to leave friends, kids, the school, the neighbourhood - a life I loved. Long days and nights packing make a girl tired and stressed, and tired and stressed people don't necessarily process impending change very well...</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WjnOmVGUVmQ/U4d-6N3B2KI/AAAAAAAAN90/2WPbnf4OoLM/s1600/mainfloorboxes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WjnOmVGUVmQ/U4d-6N3B2KI/AAAAAAAAN90/2WPbnf4OoLM/s1600/mainfloorboxes.jpg" height="640" width="568" /></a></div>
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My mom was my saving grace, there is no way in this world that I would ever have managed without her. So if you are packing it all, I suggest calling your mom, or a really good friend. I also suggest getting a quote for packing. Even if you end up doing it yourself, knowing how much moola you are saving will be great motivation!<br />
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<h3>
Get Organized</h3>
As the boxes pile up and the packing paper begins to fly, things can get pretty messy. It's a good idea to keep all move-related papers in one place, and to try to keep that place organized. If you have one oasis in the house to retreat to after a long day, that helps too. And wine, you'll need some wine. <br />
In terms of a checklist, I will hopefully put one together for a future post. In the meantime, I found this one to be helpful when interviewing movers:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-utX6Y9rPvEA/U4OXgf3W98I/AAAAAAAAN9Q/4yPPEj55NVw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-26+at+1.35.12+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-utX6Y9rPvEA/U4OXgf3W98I/AAAAAAAAN9Q/4yPPEj55NVw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-26+at+1.35.12+PM.png" height="640" width="296" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/oca-bc.nsf/vwapj/consumerschecklist.pdf/$FILE/consumerschecklist.pdf" target="_blank">Industry Canada's Consumer Checklist</a></div>
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As well, Home Depot Canada has an awesome Moving Guide, and I am not just saying that because they asked me to (although they did)!</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HDmZEx59NEI/U4OYAej5pTI/AAAAAAAAN9Y/nzE0HYyTBa4/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-26+at+1.37.18+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HDmZEx59NEI/U4OYAej5pTI/AAAAAAAAN9Y/nzE0HYyTBa4/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-05-26+at+1.37.18+PM.png" height="530" width="640" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.homedepot.ca/content/moving-guide#moving-yourself" target="_blank">Home Depot's Moving Guide</a></div>
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This document is a really thorough guide to just about every aspect of moving yourself, from questions to ask movers to a countdown checklist taking you from eight weeks out to moving day. It even helps you calculate how many supplies you will need, which I <i>really</i> wish I had looked at in the beginning! I am happy to promote it for them, because I honestly think it is a great resource to have and will make your move much smoother. And, as I mentioned they have almost everything you need there in terms of boxes, bubble wrap, shrink wrap, straps, etc. Who knew!<br />
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So there you have it - should you be planning a big move in the future I hope this helps a bit. Shoot me any questions, I am happy to answer them. And if there is anything in specific you think I should blog about regarding the move - logistics or shipping or how to wrap art - I would love to hear from you. And if you just did a big move and need to drink a lot of wine and commiserate, I AM YOUR GIRL.<br />
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<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/1635821/?claim=7kk5bgvw6cz">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a></div>
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-38675951048321768392014-05-22T17:16:00.001-06:002014-05-22T17:17:27.374-06:00New Home Sweet Home<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-btDgGq9q98g/U356fR0CV6I/AAAAAAAAN78/rhf_0JdXfv8/s1600/IMG_1127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-btDgGq9q98g/U356fR0CV6I/AAAAAAAAN78/rhf_0JdXfv8/s1600/IMG_1127.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Is rain on your moving day a good omen, like rain on your wedding day?</span></td></tr>
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Welcome to my first blog post as a Calgarian! The past two-to-three months have been one hell of a transition, and it feels good to finally be on the 'other side' of this whole move. I have certainly learned a lot about packing, moving, transitioning the kids, and milking my family for manual labour. My poor mother may never visit me again at the risk of being put to work, and I am sure we both have night sweats just thinking about BOXES (*<i>shudder</i>*).</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This room gives me panic attacks.</td></tr>
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My mom had the brilliant idea of marking most of the boxes, other than the essentials, for the basement and putting them all in the back someday-guest room (currently room-I-avoid-at-all-costs). The sheets and clothes and toys we sent upstairs, but this was the perfect solution for all the "misc. candles" boxes, of which I have, um, several.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Take-out anyone?</td></tr>
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However, the kitchen still managed to be completely overwhelming. Thank heavens for my mother-in-law and my friend Carrie, who helped me establish some sort of organizational system. While the kitchen does indeed have oodles of storage, I would say about 60% requires me getting on the step stool to reach. That made the remaining 40% precious real estate, and we must have moved things 9 or 10 times trying to figure out which was more important - sandwich bags, tupperware, canned goods or pots and pans?? In the end we have sort of a system going and I just think about how buff my quads are going to be every time I climb up that step stool.<br />
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Oh yeah, and did I mentioned that it SNOWED - <i><b>A LOT</b> </i>- for my first week here? As in, the first week of May!? That is not a little dusting pictured above... Luckily, liquor is sold on just about every corner here, so I made it through the nasty weather. Today it is sunny and warm, and I actually had to venture in to the daunting Room Of Boxes to find the fans (cue the scary music).</div>
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I have no idea when I will be able to post some photos of how our stuff looks in the house - those lovely styled shots are nowhere near happening for a while. There is nothing on any wall, other than a clock I stuck up so I wouldn't forget to pick up Will. It has also been a little tough to reconcile this beautiful, minimalist house with all of our vases, pottery, bowls, boxes, art objects, etc. If you look back at the <a href="http://wickednweird.blogspot.com/2014/03/mucho-modern-in-calgary.html" target="_blank">staged photos</a>, you'll see that there are zero display areas! But between purging and creative thinking, I am sure I'll figure something out...</div>
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It is nice to have something to occupy my mind with anyway, so I don't have to think about how home-sick I am. :(</div>
Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-18701119194619902712014-03-30T19:29:00.002-06:002014-03-30T19:29:27.395-06:00Mucho Modern in Calgary<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aseS18fgwNE/UzizarM2NyI/AAAAAAAAN4Q/4QTubJPFiMk/s1600/main+floor2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aseS18fgwNE/UzizarM2NyI/AAAAAAAAN4Q/4QTubJPFiMk/s1600/main+floor2.jpg" height="416" width="640" /></a></div>
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We did it folks, we bought a new house!! I don't think I have ever spent so much money so quickly in my life. Strike that - I am absolutely 100% certain that I have never spent so much money in my life in such a short amount of time. If I think too much about it, it makes me a little bit ill... so we'll move on.<br />
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Here's the scoop: Last weekend, my husband and I flew out to Calgary after work on Friday, and after dropping our kids off at our AMAZINGLY generous friends' house for 2 nights. Saturday morning we were up bright and early to explore Calgary with our agent. At this point our Toronto house was already on sale. <br />
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Now if you had asked me about Calgary a few months ago, I would not have been able to tell you anything, other than my opinion that it needed some more trees (lots more trees). After finding out that we were moving there, I spent hours, and hours, and hours online. I think I could identify just about any neighbourhood in the city in under 5 seconds at this point, and also tell you the name of the closest French Immersion school, how many minutes it would take you to ride a bike downtown, and how far the closest Starbucks is. I had that whole every-street-is-a-number and streets-go-one-way-and-avenues-go-another-way-and-don't-forget-about-the-quadrants thing DOWN. I have my mls/Google Maps/CalgarySchoolFinder black belt, and I know how to use it.<br />
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Up until last weekend though, I had never physically been in 99% of the places we were looking. Luckily, Calgary is wonderfully small! I mean that in the best way possible - we wanted to be "downtown" and were stressing about one area versus another, but really, they are all pretty close, and it is very easy to get around town.<br />
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Our agent and I had determined a short list of houses we wanted to see - I think 12? (... not sure who I am asking...) When we walked in this one, our jaws hit the floor. HIT. THE. FLOOR. We loved it! But... it was a bit further from downtown, and more than we were going to spend... yada yada yada. We said we would think about it. The next day we saw a few new ones that were great contenders, and then went back to look at this one again. I got tingles. That evening, we sat at the <i>pub down the street</i> and enjoyed <i>local craft beer</i> while signing our offer document. It took our agent all of a minute to print them off - he had already filled in all the information for this house the night before. He knew. I guess I am an open book.<br />
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We put in a low offer hoping that we could bring the price down a bit (yes, you can do this in Calgary!). When the sellers didn't budge much, we/I got cold feet and decided to drop it. Yup, just like that. It was just too nice for us.<br />
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Instead we focussed our attention on the "perfect-on-paper" runner up. The neighbourhood for house #2 was amazing - Chris could walk to work. We would be near friends of ours, and the school was great. The house was overpriced, according to our guy, and we could get it for <i>much</i> less than the first place. It was ugly - DAMN ugly - but heck, there would be lots to blog about! The before and after pictures would be killer. It was the responsible thing to do. However... when they got our offer, I guess the sellers had decided they weren't so keen to sell after all. They didn't budge on price, and they extended the possession date to the middle of the summer. This would not work.<br />
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I don't think I had even processed this bit of information before Chris was back on the phone to our agent telling him we wanted the first house! A day or so later, my finger nails were gone, and we were the new owners. Apparently there are Real Estate Fairy Godmothers, and I have one. (<i>Thank you thank you REFG!</i>)<br />
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Before I show you all the pics, let me begin by saying that I am pretty sure we are not worthy of this house. I can imagine walking in with our stuff, only to have the house twist itself up and spit me and my Value Village/Ikea As-Is finds back out onto the street. It is so beautiful. I don't know what the heck I am going to blog about, because I don't even think I will paint the damn walls.<br />
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It is a semi-detached, or duplex. I never thought I would spend so much to live in half of a house, but this is 80% of what is available in Calgary - brand new enormous duplexes. Our half is on the right. <br />
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Please note that this house has been staged for these photos impeccably. It was empty when we looked at it, but now I can't imagine it with any furniture other than this stuff.<br />
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The kitchen makes me want to be a better person. Or at least a better cook. Notice how it is similar to ours with the wood on the bottom and white lacquer on top? And there the similarities end...<br />
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There is so much storage in this freakin kitchen I think I am going to have to keep some of my clothes there.<br />
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So... yeah. I know. It's obscene. It's ridiculous. I don't even.... words fail me. By some amazing twist in the fabric of reality, I will (soon!) be living in this house. Surrounded by all those BIG TREES. (I'll take my words with a side of mayo, thank you...) Twenty minutes from downtown by bike, ten by car. With a yoga studio down the street. Basking like a cat in all that LIGHT. I am beside myself!<br />
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Anyone wanna come visit?Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com46tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-38056229908132629502014-03-27T08:00:00.004-06:002014-03-27T08:00:55.264-06:00Kids Say the Darndest ThingsHi guys, this is not really related to anything, except that perhaps it is helping with the moving stress. I have watched this about 15 times and it cracks me up every time (my favourite line is when he knocks on the doorbell...and rang it). I went through a few others and they are also amusing, but for some reason, this one just gets me!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/wsRk0TXYXuA" width="640"></iframe>Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-50755996971321132752014-03-26T08:35:00.000-06:002014-03-26T08:35:43.999-06:00Calgary-Ho!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have not been on here for a while, and here is my excuse: Somewhere towards the end of February, out of the blue, my husband got offered his dream job in Calgary... starting the beginning of April. From that point on, life became a blur of packing, storage, moving companies, agents, listings, open houses, de-cluttering, and even a quick jaunt to Calgary to look at houses. Any spare time was spent on the internet flicking between mls, google earth, and the calgary school board school finder page. Entirely too much wine and coffee was consumed.<br />
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Last night we sold my beloved house, the subject of so much of this blog. <br />
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It actually felt kind of nice to "stage" my house for sale - I felt quite proud of the photos and virtual tour, and was happy to pack up a lot of the chaos to let the house shine. Sure, maintaining clear surfaces was a pain, but it was lovely to sit in the evenings with my bottles of wine and think "I did this!" I made this warm and cozy space.<br />
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The downside is that, despite my efforts polishing bathroom fixtures, filling in the nicks in my painted bathrooms floor with a Sharpie, hauling my toaster oven out to the trunk of the car every morning, and scrubbing every handprint from the walls, we received but one offer. Happily, it was for our asking price, but somehow the hype of the Toronto real estate market had me secretly hoping for more. With all the press around multiple offers and bidding wars, scarcity of product and rabid buyers, it was generally assumed that for a house like ours, in the neighbourhood we are in, people would be lining up at the door. I know that sounds like hubris, but this message was reiterated and reinforced over and over from friends, agents, and armchair analysts. Day in and day out, the real estate sections of the papers crowed about the seller's market, the unstoppable prices, the results that exceeded everyone's expectations.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V-itoPhLRB4/UzLgy4kdEgI/AAAAAAAAN3o/-Ko97bOkcjo/s1600/faucet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V-itoPhLRB4/UzLgy4kdEgI/AAAAAAAAN3o/-Ko97bOkcjo/s1600/faucet.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a>So when we had one agent quietly submit the offer last night, I felt relief to have received our asking price, relief that this big component of our process was finished, and relief that we could bring the toaster oven back in permanently. I even felt really happy for the nervous couple that were no doubt waiting outside in their car with their fingers crossed. But I also felt a little... rejected. So many views online, so many showings, such successful open houses, and one offer. No one wanted my beautiful house.<br />
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Now, before you all start reassuring me that this wasn't the case, I have a beautiful house, I should feel proud (cause I know you guys are amazing and sweet and kind and will do that!), or chastising me for being so greedy, know that I consciously and rationally accept that it was not the house, it was the lack of parking. Parking is a huge hairy deal around here, and that was the overwhelming feedback from the viewings. Our neighbour, who has had his completely top-to-bottom renovated fancy house on the market since November, has been having the same frustration. The other issue is that the school zone right next to ours is apparently the one everyone wants to get their kids into. Plus there are a LOT of really beautiful houses around here. So I am very very grateful to have had someone buy it at the price we were asking (which seemed huge).<br />
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All the same... it sort of stung. <br />
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HOWEVER, this morning I am feeling much more upbeat about the whole thing, and concentrating on the full-to-the-top glass and not the missing overflow! Our house still sold in a week, for a very silly amount of money. Three of these seven days we were all out of the house and didn't have to worry about wiping the fridge handle every time we closed it or camping out at the coffee shop while people toured the house. I already have a large chunk of the packing done. It was a quick and painless process, when it could have dragged on and on and on. It is a huge financial relief, and we now know what our budget is for Calgary and that we can move forward on a house there without worrying about carrying two mortgages. HOORAY!<br />
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Amazing what a good night's sleep can do for one's perspective. :)<br />
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Now everyone sing along with me:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/GER396B6M7w" width="640"></iframe>Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-85440235296332681772014-03-05T12:59:00.000-07:002014-03-05T12:59:10.597-07:00Things I never thought I would say<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" mozallowfullscreen="" msallowfullscreen="" nbsp="" oallowfullscreen="" src="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nripperger/4080744305/player/1d9c300417" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe><br />
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You know, it's hard out there for a blogger. Any time I see something funny and cool I want to pass on, I scroll down my Facebook feed and see that it has already been sent around 20 times. But whatever, I am posting these posters anyway, cause they are damn funny.<br />
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I know everyone has had at least one moment with a child where you say (or, more likely, yell) something outrageous at your kid. It's only then, once the words have left your mouth and you have heard yourself say them, you stop, slightly surprised, and think "Wow. That's the weirdest thing I have <i>ever</i> said." Then you post it on Facebook and file it away to trade with other parents at a later date.<br />
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Well, Nathan Ripperger is WAY more industrious than that. He takes the crazy and insane things that come out of his mouth and turns them into really cool posters. And then sells them in his Etsy store: <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/nripperger">https://www.etsy.com/shop/nripperger</a>. Wish I'd thought of that.<br />
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I have definitely said the toilet seat one. Actually, let me think of some of the things I said this week:<br />
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- No penises on the table. (How many times do I have to say it??)<br />
- Why is there toothpaste in both your eyebrows?<br />
- Just because your brother is sitting on your head does NOT mean you get to stay home from school.<br />
- Yes, you can bring Giraffy the Turtle to the dentist.<br />
- Everybody has to wear their OWN underwear.<br />
- No scissors in the bath!<br />
- Yes you can take a bath with the farm animals.<br />
- Stop wiping your nose on my arm.<br />
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Do you have any memorable "I never thought I would say that" quotes?<br />
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-61488170052294183882014-02-24T18:18:00.000-07:002014-02-24T18:18:09.087-07:00Crayon Hearts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This weekend the hubby went away and the boys and I had some Quality Time together. I would just like to say how much respect and admiration I have for actual single parents, especially those who have to work one or more jobs. I knew my husband and I were a good team, but you just don't realize how much you depend on each other until your team mate skips town.<br />
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Anyway, we did do a few activities besides Netflix... I had bought a silicone heart mould at the dollar store before Valentine's Day and the boys have a bucket of crayons they never use - they are straight up marker dudes. I had seen lots of tutorials about melting down crayons and when I suggested it they were pretty excited. I won't describe the whole process, since there are lots of tutorials online, but the essentials are:<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ol>
<li>Take paper off crayons: this is kind of tedious and your kids will abandon you and your nails will never be the same again.</li>
<li>Break crayons into little pieces: or not so little, depending on your hand strength.</li>
<li>Put them in the silicone mould: if you want hearts that are actually shaped like hearts, you may want to skip the dollar store and invest at, say, Walmart. (Our mould was promptly chucked in the garbage after this craft, and I am relieved to say that none of it remained in the oven.)</li>
<li>Back up 3 steps and set the oven to 200 - 250 degrees.</li>
<li>Once your oven has heated, put the mould on a baking sheet and pop 'er in. Plug your nose and watch them melt, slowly, for about 15 - 20 minutes. Open windows. Wonder how many toxins are in crayons and look worriedly at your children.</li>
<li>Put them on the back porch to cool down.</li>
<li>Ooh and Aah as you pop them out of the mould and watch your kids colour diligently until they remember they don't like crayons, get bored, and go watch Netflix.</li>
</ol>
</blockquote>
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The weird thing was how the pigment sank to the bottom and all the extra (filler?) wax pooled at the top. I assume that these were probably not top-of-the-line crayons... I didn't remember anyone mentioning this online.<br />
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Me being me, I took out a paring knife and shaved off the extra wax. Then I noticed the shaving were kind of pretty so I took photos. Then I went and got my hair dryer and experimented with melting the shavings onto paper and canvas. They looked sort of pretty until they got quite liquidy and the green overpowered all the other colours. The result sort of looked like someone barfed on a canvas. I didn't take photos. But it was kind of fun to get my hands dirty and play around. I also noticed that the heart crayons made it into their stories and play for the rest of the weekend (I think at one point they were alien space ships) so I am calling it a successful craft. :)<br />
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-76516492532407008722014-02-10T12:41:00.000-07:002014-02-10T12:41:41.843-07:00Building a design portfolio<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As I launch into this interior design business, I realize that if I am going to go beyond friends and family, I am going to need to put together a professional-looking portfolio. I am finding that this is hard to do in retrospect because the perfect "Before" shots may not exist, and I am not sure that my photography skill level is up to the best looking "After" shots (understatement).<br />
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I thought I would start by putting something together about my own kitchen first, since I have oodles of photos. None are styled the way I would like, but beggars and can't be choosers, and I am way too lazy to do that now. There is nothing like looking at your space on a photograph to really force you to take a step back. For example, in the first photo my Breville espresso machine would be way better than that fugly toaster oven. The chair and table are distracting in the corner. The thermostat on the window sill needs to go and the whole counter, window - everything could be styled better. I do like the splash of red/orange though. Otherwise the kitchen is pretty bland in a photo.<br />
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It is also difficult to match up the angles of the before and after shots, but hopefully you can tell it is the same space. It looks so wildly different to me, it's not even like looking at the same house!<br />
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And then there's the drawings. Do I add the drawings? Are they part of the portfolio? Do I add the final one or all the layouts I played with to get here? I tell you, I pretty much did a masters degree in this SketchUp program by the time I was done this...</div>
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And I didn't do an inspiration board for myself, but I guess I should put one together in the style I would present to a client...<br />
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Anyway, thanks for reading. I am excited to be moving forward on this. I have to say, Sarah Richardson's <a href="http://www.sarahrichardsondesign.com/get-inspired/ask-sarah/2014/02/10/ask-sarah-ep-11-passion-practice" target="_blank">post on Facebook</a> this morning was exactly what I needed to hear, and really got my butt in gear. I even have found a photographer to do some of my other projects, hopefully they will end up way more profesh! And the more I realize I have already done, the more I realize that the only thing holding me back is a lack of confidence, not a lack of ability. And that just seems silly, now, doesn't it?<br />
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<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-82335848705000951592014-02-06T20:29:00.000-07:002014-02-06T20:29:55.941-07:00Back in it with Waterlogue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So, my Blogger dashboard tells me that I last posted December 9. That's a while ago. I won't go into too much about why, where I was, or what I was thinking - there are some great posts that sum it up so well by <a href="http://www.designsponge.com/2014/01/state-of-the-blog-union-how-the-blogging-world-has-changed.html" target="_blank">Grace Bonney</a>, <a href="http://www.ramblingrenovators.ca/2014/01/weekend-brunch-epic-ode-to-blogging.html" target="_blank">Jen Flores</a>, and <a href="http://lifebeginsatthirtyright.blogspot.com/2014/01/bloggers-be-blogging.html" target="_blank">Janice</a>. Suffice it to say that it became a lot of work, a big time investment, and I was just not that into the new 'direction/professionalization' of blogging for myself. I like to just throw stuff up that I think is pretty. I include photos of my kids. I don't really fit in a niche, and, having tried, I don't really want to. I was all set to "take this thing to the next level" with a new Word Press site, fancy hosting, plug-ins, SEO, bla bla bla... and then I just stopped. Stopped writing, stopped reading blogs, stopped spending all my waking hours looking at the computer. I have read a LOT of books in the mean time!<br />
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But I kind of miss it. I say 'kind of' because I don't really miss all the techie stuff, much as I liked it. And I certainly don't miss looking at my numbers, that stresses me out. And I don't miss all the emails asking me to review things, blog about things, let other people write on my blog, etc.<br />
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I miss having a place to post stuff I like in a more thoughtful way than pinning it on Pinterest (which I still love). When I post things here, I am forced to ask myself why I like it, and what about it speaks to me. And here I can post about design, products, apps, crafts, colours, fashion, environment, music, you name it - it's my freakin blog!<br />
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So if you are with me, awesome, I love you, and I am grateful for your company. If you are no longer feelin the love, that's cool, carry on, I'll be around if you change your mind.<br />
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But now, on to the main event, the reason I opened up this posting thing again: <a href="http://www.waterlogueapp.com/" target="_blank">Waterlogue</a>.<br />
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I know it's cheating, but hey, so is Instagram. I know I am not <i>actually</i> a fabulous watercolour painter artist-extraordinaire, but I get to imagine how awesome I would be if I had the skills. Just like with Instagram, I get to feel like a real photographer, capturing magical moments in time with just the right <i>je-ne-sais-quoi</i>. (On that topic, you must watch this hilarious video: <a href="http://youtu.be/5i9wUa8ofvE">http://youtu.be/5i9wUa8ofvE</a>)<br />
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You will see from my heading at the top I have a huge love of watercolour. Watercolours happen to be very "hot" right now - the loose impressionistic aesthetic is similar to the current rage for hand-written fonts over structured typefaces. The artistic, the individual, the one-of-a-kind is refreshing in a world of cookie-cutter everything. <br />
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The irony of this is that you are no doubt going to see Waterlogue used EVERYWHERE now - your Instagram feed is about to go all <a href="http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/david-brown-milne/" target="_blank">David Milne</a>.<br />
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This is my son at a recent Toronto Symphony Orchestra student concert (field trip). I am just so blown away by the treatment of this app, the fidelity to real watercolour techniques and effects. The photo above looks like it could be an illustration in a kids book.<br />
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So there you go: <a href="http://www.waterlogueapp.com/" target="_blank">Waterlogue</a>. Best $2.99 I have spent in a while! :)<br />
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Thanks for reading. xoLisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-41082901940797742142013-12-09T08:01:00.000-07:002013-12-09T08:01:09.197-07:00Yao Cheng Design<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PAgL3LiFvWk/UqXY0CPSoTI/AAAAAAAANvo/aShLaUyza6E/s1600/yao+cheng+blue+waves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng Blue Waves print from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PAgL3LiFvWk/UqXY0CPSoTI/AAAAAAAANvo/aShLaUyza6E/s640/yao+cheng+blue+waves.jpg" title="Yao Cheng Blue Waves print from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue Waves</td></tr>
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I was cruising around the internet the other night looking for inspiration for a silkscreening class I am doing and came across the beautiful work of <a href="http://www.yaochengdesign.com/" target="_blank">Yao Cheng</a>. I just love the pretty pinks (never thought I would say that!) and soft watercolours paired with her beautiful hand lettering. Her <a href="http://www.yaochengdesign.com/shop/art-prints/" target="_blank">patterns and prints </a>are just lovely as well. There is so much talent out there it constantly amazes me, and just when I thought my days of blogging might be done, I find a slew of incredible artists I feel like I just have to share. Also, I would like to take a watercolour course next!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZLvCwpmgS-s/UqXYz0Rb7DI/AAAAAAAANvk/W569IMeKaf4/s1600/yao+cheng+abstract+circular+marks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng abstract circular shapes from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZLvCwpmgS-s/UqXYz0Rb7DI/AAAAAAAANvk/W569IMeKaf4/s640/yao+cheng+abstract+circular+marks.jpg" title="Yao Cheng abstract circular shapes from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abstract Circular Shapes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--8qY0EKDD8o/UqXZEJXMO1I/AAAAAAAANwY/YGEHYCVMbYI/s1600/yao+cheng+home.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng floral wreath from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--8qY0EKDD8o/UqXZEJXMO1I/AAAAAAAANwY/YGEHYCVMbYI/s640/yao+cheng+home.jpg" title="Yao Cheng floral wreath from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Floral Wreath</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_03PqCidTVg/UqXY3fTxTKI/AAAAAAAANv4/ifAvxBQX78k/s1600/yao+cheng+colourful+dots+falling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng Colorful Dots Falling print from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_03PqCidTVg/UqXY3fTxTKI/AAAAAAAANv4/ifAvxBQX78k/s640/yao+cheng+colourful+dots+falling.jpg" title="Yao Cheng Colorful Dots Falling print from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colorful Dots Falling </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yTCdzRR2vo4/UqXY8eJRQkI/AAAAAAAANwQ/q-CyFAjqsPI/s1600/yao+cheng+landscape+forest+in+indigo+and+green.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng Landscape Forest in Indigo and Greenprint from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yTCdzRR2vo4/UqXY8eJRQkI/AAAAAAAANwQ/q-CyFAjqsPI/s640/yao+cheng+landscape+forest+in+indigo+and+green.jpg" title="Yao Cheng Landscape Forest in Indigo and Green print from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Landscape Forest in Indigo and Green</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Qal5qyoDXg/UqXY5Pjl03I/AAAAAAAANwA/aeD5jgT_asc/s1600/yao+cheng+multi+triangles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Yao Cheng Triangle Shapes Light print from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Qal5qyoDXg/UqXY5Pjl03I/AAAAAAAANwA/aeD5jgT_asc/s640/yao+cheng+multi+triangles.jpg" title="Yao Cheng Triangle Shapes Light print from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Triangle Shapes Light</td></tr>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C8MyDpnj02E/UqXY6G7RARI/AAAAAAAANwI/3oYcU2ngjjE/s1600/yaocheng.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Yao Cheng custom postcard from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="448" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C8MyDpnj02E/UqXY6G7RARI/AAAAAAAANwI/3oYcU2ngjjE/s640/yaocheng.jpg" title="Yao Cheng custom postcard from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JyZt0G-txsQ/UqXYzu3l9nI/AAAAAAAANvg/CzV1UYwXuYk/s1600/Yaochengpostacrd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Yao Cheng custom postcard from Wicked and Weird blog" border="0" height="448" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JyZt0G-txsQ/UqXYzu3l9nI/AAAAAAAANvg/CzV1UYwXuYk/s640/Yaochengpostacrd.jpg" title="Yao Cheng custom postcard from Wicked and Weird blog" width="640" /></a></div>
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-39461687072720547362013-11-19T20:38:00.002-07:002013-11-19T20:38:22.832-07:00Inspired by Elle Decor's December edition<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bGEUmJ7YFdo/UowESk4D3wI/AAAAAAAANtM/nVZNttS4Rag/s1600/Christian+Liaigre+St+Bart+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bGEUmJ7YFdo/UowESk4D3wI/AAAAAAAANtM/nVZNttS4Rag/s640/Christian+Liaigre+St+Bart+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original photography by William Abramovitch</td></tr>
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Have you ever found a new shelter magazine in the mail, drooled all over the cover, made yourself wait to open it until you were comfortably nestled with a cozy throw and a glass of wine, and then flip, flip, flipped to the end without being stopped by anything inside? That did NOT happen today when I got the December Elle Decor in the mail. I was so excited I actually put down the wine and took photos of the photos in the magazine. I know. There were a few homes and designs that, while I appreciated the aesthetic, did not appeal to me. But the St. Bart's beach house of Parisian interior and furniture designer Christian Liaigre pictured above had me already feeling the humid breezes and hearing the sounds of the surf. Who knew a beach house could be sophisticated? I love the kitchen and the bathroom especially, and the outdoor eating area (which I didn't show - you have to look at the magazine for that one - trust me it is beautiful).</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sa5OgdA3mig/UowERZpfm8I/AAAAAAAANtE/ihZswSPO76U/s1600/Christian+Liaigre+St+Barts+Bath+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sa5OgdA3mig/UowERZpfm8I/AAAAAAAANtE/ihZswSPO76U/s640/Christian+Liaigre+St+Barts+Bath+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="498" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C4V8Rc-xtv0/UowHREYDjdI/AAAAAAAANuE/41Eo1S0qAuk/s1600/Michael+Boodro+letter+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C4V8Rc-xtv0/UowHREYDjdI/AAAAAAAANuE/41Eo1S0qAuk/s640/Michael+Boodro+letter+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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It could be that the editor Michael Boodro's letter hit the nail on the head for me - I have often wondered how I could be attracted and happy with so many different styles of design. Shouldn't I have one signature style? Michael says no. Boo-yah Michael. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NtUoorPb1Pk/UowESz2uQPI/AAAAAAAANtQ/_1okcPuQDho/s1600/square+disc+sconce+elle+decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NtUoorPb1Pk/UowESz2uQPI/AAAAAAAANtQ/_1okcPuQDho/s640/square+disc+sconce+elle+decor+12+2013.jpg" width="492" /></a></div>
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For example, I would have no where to put this amazing light fixture - it does not jibe at all with the things I have in my home - but I covet it none-the-less. How does this make sense? <i>Sooo shiny...</i></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ekHwEHQz55s/UowHTewZABI/AAAAAAAANuQ/qKcW1wfM-MI/s1600/Ochre+Ad+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ekHwEHQz55s/UowHTewZABI/AAAAAAAANuQ/qKcW1wfM-MI/s640/Ochre+Ad+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="472" /></a></div>
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My photo does not do justice to the rich, yummy, deep velvety green on this sofa in the ad for Ochre. It is actually much darker. I tried to find it online but no dice. It's that amazing mossy forest green that you feel like you could fall into and dream of fairies and sprites in magical German woods. Or something... But when I saw it I knew immediately that THIS is going to be my colour this Christmas - this rich deep velvet green, with cream and gold and white and lots of sparkly little lights. Think Value Village has any deep green velvet...? Perhaps velour will do in a pinch, provided I maintain low lighting at all times.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--FnGA1_hM6I/UowHQjrPClI/AAAAAAAANuA/wKU6tUkitLc/s1600/Colorado+Home+Office+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--FnGA1_hM6I/UowHQjrPClI/AAAAAAAANuA/wKU6tUkitLc/s640/Colorado+Home+Office+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original photography by Eric Piasecki</td></tr>
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Much of this "cabin" (monstrous home) in Colorado designed by Caroline Sarkozy was a little contrived for my taste - too much birch bark, antlers, and pine cladding for my liking. But for some reason I enjoyed this cozy home office pictured above - a photo tucked away on the contents pages ...maybe I would just add some books to those shelves.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h3srPQdCmpg/UowHUYtrboI/AAAAAAAANuY/L8KHArZKpBU/s1600/Oierre+Yovanovitch+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-h3srPQdCmpg/UowHUYtrboI/AAAAAAAANuY/L8KHArZKpBU/s640/Oierre+Yovanovitch+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="490" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original photography by Jean-François Jaussaud </td></tr>
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Another little snapshot from the contents pages was this beautiful curved nook found in a chateau in Provence owned by the designer Pierre Yovanovitch. The rest of the chateau was very nice in an overt modern-minimalist-luxury-in-an-historic-French-chateau kind of way, but everything about this image appeals to me much more. The curved wooden shelves on the curved wall, the rustic dishes, the wooden-framed painting, the two-toned wall, the delicate antique rocking chair - c'est parfait.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j0usdzS7iE0/UowHKg37yPI/AAAAAAAANtw/KCttenshE6U/s1600/Amy+Mellen+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j0usdzS7iE0/UowHKg37yPI/AAAAAAAANtw/KCttenshE6U/s640/Amy+Mellen+Kitchen+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Original photography by William Waldron</td></tr>
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However, the home I could move into in a heartbeat and change NOTHING is this fishing cabin-turned weekend house designed by Amy Mellen, creative director for Calvin Klein Home. Just look at the mix in this kitchen. Sleek cabinets, faucet, stainless appliances, and Calvin Klein windsor chairs - with their modern angles and lines - pair so perfectly with the antique table, original pine floors and dark-trimmed sash windows. And such great styling by JC Garcia Lavin!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pCSz_7eYEP4/UowHITBQ_SI/AAAAAAAANto/NX2x0fIlTtk/s1600/Amy+Mellen+Living+Room+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pCSz_7eYEP4/UowHITBQ_SI/AAAAAAAANto/NX2x0fIlTtk/s640/Amy+Mellen+Living+Room+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FvDMUWcGG4c/UowHMiIfUiI/AAAAAAAANt4/UmGfM2OMIMs/s1600/Amy+Mellen's+Mantel+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FvDMUWcGG4c/UowHMiIfUiI/AAAAAAAANt4/UmGfM2OMIMs/s640/Amy+Mellen's+Mantel+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="492" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6zTx7le4apM/UowHHYHDvMI/AAAAAAAANtg/NXjNveOTi60/s1600/Amy+Mellen+Living+Room+2+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6zTx7le4apM/UowHHYHDvMI/AAAAAAAANtg/NXjNveOTi60/s640/Amy+Mellen+Living+Room+2+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-22HoTin1QdI/UowpRRq_3cI/AAAAAAAANuo/9EOOowTG-pU/s1600/Amy+Mellen+Bedroom+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-22HoTin1QdI/UowpRRq_3cI/AAAAAAAANuo/9EOOowTG-pU/s640/Amy+Mellen+Bedroom+Elle+Decor+12+2013.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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And that bedroom is just so serene and right up my alley. In fact, I think that might be the colour of my bedroom walls. If only I didn't kill those weird ferns every time I buy one. Again the mix and styling in this photo (or at least the actual photo in the magazine) are great. (Wait, wasn't that fern on the mantel before? Maybe they aren't meant to live - maybe they're just for styling!)<br />
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So thanks for letting me read the magazine for you, and thanks to Elle Decor for actually inspiring a blog post. That's no small miracle these days!Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-9396354781704514512013-11-08T12:25:00.001-07:002013-11-08T12:25:54.262-07:00Happy Birthday Joni Mitchell<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joni Michell 1970</td></tr>
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Joni Mitchell has to be one of my top ten favourite musicians of all time - maybe even THE top. Her songs are unusual and inventive; poetry set to music. She turned 70 years old yesterday, so I thought I would post one of my favourites of her songs - I love pretty much everything about this one. Her guitar playing is incredible, the lyrics are thoughtful and evocative, and her voice just ripples over the melody like sparkling clear water.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/6voJjexENok?rel=0" width="640"></iframe><br />
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Rolling Stone called her "one of the greatest songwriters ever" and I completely agree. She is also a painter, and in fact she has said that she considers herself a "painter derailed by circumstance." I have always felt that Joni is a true artist - a kind of human conduit for creativity of the style Elizabeth Gilbert describes in her <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html" target="_blank">TED talk</a>.<br />
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I have a this theory that there is magic and mystery and music all around, available to us if we sort of shift our "frequency" to let it resonate through us. I am sure you have felt it every now and then, no? Since I am a visual person, I see it in my head in terms of density - I imagine that some people are more opaque than others - there is just no space in them for the magic to get in or through. Each of us are varying degrees of opacity, at different times, and artists of any vocation simply have less mass in them... they're "thinner." Joni is a rare being that is practically transparent, or like a crystal - the magic/art not only comes through clearly, but is amplified as it shines through her.<br />
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Did that make any sense? Did I just write all that? Jeez, put the joint down Lisa... (although I will leave it in because, heck, were talking about <i>Joni</i>).<br />
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Anyway, I also want to include the lyrics to another favourite song of hers, Chelsea morning. I always play it when I'm feeling blue, and it never fails to make me smile. For the longest time I always had yellow curtains in the bedroom so I could wake up to a Chelsea morning. :)<br />
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<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Woke up, it was a Chelsea morning, and the first thing that I heard</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Was a song outside my window, and the traffic wrote the words</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">It came a-reeling up like Christmas bells, and rapping up like pipes and drums</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Oh, won't you stay</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">We'll put on the day</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And we'll wear it 'till the night comes</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Woke up, it was a Chelsea morning, and the first thing that I saw</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Was the sun through yellow curtains, and a rainbow on the wall</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Blue, red, green and gold to welcome you, crimson crystal beads to beckon</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Oh, won't you stay</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">We'll put on the day</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">There's a sun show every second</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Now the curtain opens on a portrait of today</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And the streets are paved with passersby</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And pigeons fly</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And papers lie</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Waiting to blow away</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Woke up, it was a Chelsea morning, and the first thing that I knew</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">There was milk and toast and honey and a bowl of oranges, too</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And the sun poured in like butterscotch and stuck to all my senses</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Oh, won't you stay</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">We'll put on the day</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">And we'll talk in present tenses</span><br />
<br style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">When the curtain closes and the rainbow runs away</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">I will bring you incense owls by night</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">By candlelight</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">By jewel-light</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">If only you will stay</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Pretty baby, won't you</span><br />
<span style="color: #474747; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">Wake up, it's a Chelsea morning</span><br />
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Finally, I heard part of her interview on CBC with Jian Gomeshi yesterday and it was so interesting - she's such a weirdi-cat. Man, I love her, can you tell? <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/q/blog/2013/06/11/joni-mitchell-portrait-of-an-artist/">http://www.cbc.ca/q/blog/2013/06/11/joni-mitchell-portrait-of-an-artist/</a>.<br />
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Happy Birthday Joni!<br />
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-80915109003877403722013-10-29T10:32:00.000-06:002013-10-29T10:32:43.396-06:00Ai Weiwei Exhibit at the AGO<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-96ayc1dVxys/Um_KCNd-cwI/AAAAAAAANpY/RyRuT0WmBzs/s1600/Ai+Weiwei+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ai Weiwei art retrospective at the AGO According to What? from Wicked and Weird" border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-96ayc1dVxys/Um_KCNd-cwI/AAAAAAAANpY/RyRuT0WmBzs/s640/Ai+Weiwei+1.jpg" title="Ai Weiwei art retrospective at the AGO According to What? from Wicked and Weird" width="568" /></a></div>
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This weekend we had the pleasure of hosting my brother- and sister-in-law, who were in town from Kelowna. There was much food and wine, but we also classed it up with a visit to the AGO to see the Ai Weiwei exhibit before it closed (yesterday). I am SO happy that I got to see it, it really was amazing. <br />
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[Warning: this post got kinda looooong.]<br />
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Ai Weiwei is probably best known for being a thorn in the Chinese government's side; I first heard of him during the Olympics when he used the public platform given to him as the designer of the show-stopping "Bird's Nest" stadium to loudly denounce China's record of human rights. He has been incarcerated, had his studio destroyed, kept under 'house arrest', followed, interrogated, and been beaten to the point of a brain hemorrhage by Chinese authorities. As you can imagine, his art is completely intertwined with his political sentiments. I expected to be moved by the messages in his art, but was not prepared to be so moved by the art itself. It was beautiful, warm, meticulously crafted and aesthetically enchanting.<br />
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In most of his works, Weiwei uses traditional Chinese materials and techniques in new, and often subversive ways. The top left image is of his piece <i>Teahouses, 2011</i> which consists of three precisely packed and positioned houses made out of tea leaves. Each house weighs one ton (and needed to be installed by a structural engineer). The smell of the tea is beautiful, and the effect of standing before such an imposing and heavy piece that is made out of miniscule scented dried leaves is confounding.<br />
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Beside it is a close-up of what was an enormous, long piece. It was created out of Chinese iron wood pillars from a dismantled Qing Dynasty temple. The pillars (it looks like there were eight?) were fused together using traditional Chinese joinery techniques with no nails or screws holding them together. This homage to Chinese history and craftsmanship is juxtaposed with a machine-cut detailed outline of China that runs the entire length of the pillars. As my four-year-old would say "How the HECK...??" It is oh so beautiful.<br />
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Below are enormous traditionally built cabinets made of huali wood (from the quince tree). The glow and grain of the wood is incredible - if I had been allowed to touch the art I think I might have rubbed my face on it. What can I say, I love wood. Below you can see a close-up looking through the holes at the centre; somehow using positive and negative space, the cabinets lined up together show all of the phases of the moon, which is the basis for the Chinese zodiac calendar.<br />
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Lastly is a massive snake that was positioned just outside the entrance to the show made of 5,000 backpacks, representing the 5,000 children lost in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Most of these children were killed when their schools, built by a cheap government with absolutely no building codes or safety inspections, collapsed around them. When the government refused to acknowledge the disaster, take responsibility for the shoddy building construction, or even bother recovering the names of those who died, Weiwei went to the site of the tragedy and launched a door-to-door campaign to discover and honour the name of every single child that died in Sichuan. One wall of the exhibition was a memorial to them and showed every name, date of birth and date of death, while voice read them out one by one.<br />
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Another highly effective memorial to the victims of the earthquake is shown below, consisting of the cheap iron rebar found in the rubble of the schools and other buildings. Weiwei's team painstakingly straightened each mangled bar and placed them together in an undulating river under the quot<span style="font-family: inherit;">e: "The tragic reality of today is reflected in the true plight of our spiritual </span>existence<span style="font-family: inherit;">. We are spineless and cannot stand up straight." It was very powerful.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eYffogq2XP4/Um_KBcG1VPI/AAAAAAAANpQ/nhkGsgL6Id0/s1600/Ai+Weiwei+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ai Weiwei art retrospective at the AGO According to What? from Wicked and Weird" border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eYffogq2XP4/Um_KBcG1VPI/AAAAAAAANpQ/nhkGsgL6Id0/s640/Ai+Weiwei+2.jpg" title="Ai Weiwei art retrospective at the AGO According to What? from Wicked and Weird" width="568" /></a></div>
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So I didn't realize that this post was going to be a long art essay on every piece in the show! I will speed through the Coles Notes of the rest (doing their beauty and impact no justice). Top left is a nod to the commercialization of the world with the Coke logo painted over an antique Han Dynasty urn: cheap modern advertising desecrating a work of art that had previously lasted centuries. Or is it that the bones and shaped of the past lie under and give structure to everything we do? Or that the foundations of Chinese culture are strong and can withstand cheap decoration, unlike the bones of the buildings in Sichaun? Discuss amongst yourselves. Also a nod to pop art a la Andy Warhol. <br />
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Bottom right is called <i>Divina Proportione,</i> referencing a drawing by da Vinci with the same name. Again, his team put this together using only traditional craftsman techniques, which took them over a year to learn. The joinery was mind-blowing, not to mention the complicated geometry required. The beautiful wood is reclaimed huali wood, and what I wouldn't do to have one of these in my house... I drooled over them for a good long while.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--koV31sWaiY/Um_KCqed_xI/AAAAAAAANpc/wWrNsFAWxBY/s1600/Ai+WeiweiDropping+Urn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ai Weiwei retrospective at the AGO including Dropping Han Dynasty Urn" border="0" height="572" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--koV31sWaiY/Um_KCqed_xI/AAAAAAAANpc/wWrNsFAWxBY/s640/Ai+WeiweiDropping+Urn.jpg" title="Ai Weiwei retrospective at the AGO including Dropping Han Dynasty Urn" width="640" /></a></div>
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Above is two works: <i>Dropping A Han Dynasty Urn</i> (in which the artist drops a Han Dynasty urn) and <i>Colored Vases</i> in which, like the Coke urn above, ancient urns are dipped in cheap colourful paint from the bottom and the top. Aside from the desecration of centuries-old urns, I thought these were quite pretty! Sometimes I'm shallow that way...</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m_-h5Qqqv6A/Um_Lr7rYsLI/AAAAAAAANps/UGa4nk_5vJE/s1600/Ai+Weiwei+He+Xei.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Ai Weiwei AGO retrospective He Wei 3000 crabs seen on Wicked and Weird" border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m_-h5Qqqv6A/Um_Lr7rYsLI/AAAAAAAANps/UGa4nk_5vJE/s640/Ai+Weiwei+He+Xei.jpg" title="Ai Weiwei AGO retrospective He Wei 3000 crabs seen on Wicked and Weird" width="588" /></a></div>
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Above is the piece <i>He Xie</i>, 3,000 individually-painted porcelain crabs. Apparently <i>He Xei</i> means river crab, but the sound of the words is very similar to that of the Mandarin pronunciation for "harmonization"- a Chinese government slogan and euphemism for censorship. Weiwei had these crabs made in an economically-depressed village, with the hope of "giving them something to do and keeping the old way of making things alive." As a thank you gift for creating this amazing work of art, Weiwei had his studio destroyed and was thrown in jail. Doesn't sound like a fair trade to me.<br />
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Thanks for reading all the way down here; I think you have probably gathered at this point that I really liked the show and admire the strength of Weiwei's convictions. I wish I had gone earlier and could tell you all to run out and see it, but alas, it has moved on. I am not sure if his installations are still on display at Nathan Philips Square? I didn't get to see those but heard that they are also quite impressive! Did anyone else catch this show? What did you think?Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-75073466201340118612013-10-21T11:34:00.001-06:002013-10-21T11:34:35.016-06:00Competitive Home Decor <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/8b/61/ab/8b61abbaf6b1c6ca1f01d017d890653d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Beautiful Inspiration from Wicked and Weird for clean fresh bright bathroom" border="0" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/8b/61/ab/8b61abbaf6b1c6ca1f01d017d890653d.jpg" title="Beautiful Inspiration from Wicked and Weird for clean fresh bright bathroom" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155257657/">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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It finally is starting to feel like fall around here, which is great. Not great because I love fall, (November is the most miserable month of the year, in my opinion), but because with the lovely warm September and October, I found myself outside watching the kids in the playground, going for bike rides and walks, and generally soaking up every last morsel of sun and warmth like someone scarfs down caramel cheesecake knowing she is starting a diet the next day.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/33/07/3b/33073bee886b71d52f3c05b9e85db54c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="beautiful living room inspiration from Wicked and Weird for rich saturated colour" border="0" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/33/07/3b/33073bee886b71d52f3c05b9e85db54c.jpg" title="beautiful living room inspiration from Wicked and Weird for rich saturated colour" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155332078/">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
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The cool rainy weekend spent inside revved up my nesting instincts again, but more importantly forced me to acknowledge the house reno/flip next door that has been going on all summer is coming to a close, and that said house is starting to put our house to shame. As they paint the trim and stucco the foundation, I suddenly notice all our cracked paint and crumbling mortar. As they spray the ceiling of the front porch a nice clean grey, I see that ours is yellowed and peeling. As they landscape the back yard, I realize that I haven't weeded in months and my outdoor rug looks like the bottom of a shoe. By the time they list the house it will no doubt be clear to me that have no choice but to undertake a COMPLETE OVERHAUL OF OUR HOUSE.<br />
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<i>... funny, the hubster is on the other side of town, but I could swear I just heard him groaning...?</i><br />
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Anyway, hopefully this new-found competition/inspiration will result is some fun blogging. In the meantime I leave you with some of my more recent Pinterest pins, because a blog post with no images is a sad blog post indeed, and I ain't showing you my house beside <i>their</i> house.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/e1/5c/a6/e15ca6bdbef56985db8d2cf1df31c561.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="beautiful dark kitchen window with brass hardware from Wicked and Weird" border="0" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/e1/5c/a6/e15ca6bdbef56985db8d2cf1df31c561.jpg" title="beautiful dark kitchen window with brass hardware from Wicked and Weird" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155332055/">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/51/4b/a4/514ba4ee7943ec9940ca8c8ea947a8ab.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/51/4b/a4/514ba4ee7943ec9940ca8c8ea947a8ab.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155332051/">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/a5/a8/1c/a5a81c1e0867d41fcf3a1da4f428b30b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily Henderson living room inspiration from Wicked and Weird" border="0" src="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/a5/a8/1c/a5a81c1e0867d41fcf3a1da4f428b30b.jpg" title="Emily Henderson living room inspiration from Wicked and Weird" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155331486/">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/93/67/ac/9367acefddc761189b1442e91e6b3a1d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Emily Henderson bedroom inspiration found on Wicked and Weird" border="0" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/93/67/ac/9367acefddc761189b1442e91e6b3a1d.jpg" title="Emily Henderson bedroom inspiration found on Wicked and Weird" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click to see source on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/281826889155258353/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-53903570516089606242013-10-08T08:47:00.000-06:002013-10-08T08:47:22.326-06:00Bathroom mural ideas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iMfbP6HmNlM/UlM2o7FeK5I/AAAAAAAANns/Z9T4p3zMedo/s1600/clouded+mural+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iMfbP6HmNlM/UlM2o7FeK5I/AAAAAAAANns/Z9T4p3zMedo/s640/clouded+mural+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The other day Jen at <a href="http://www.ramblingrenovators.ca/">Rambling Renovators</a> posted a link to a mural she liked that led me to the Canadian website <a href="http://anewall.com/">anewall.com</a>. What an awesome site! They specialize in historic, and I assume royalty-free prints for your home in large sizes, including wall mural decals. I could lose myself for hours on their site, and their blog, but when I came across this painting above in the wall mural section, my imagination went a bit crazy.<br />
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A Dreamy Bathroom</h2>
These are my colours - muted blues, greys, a hint of green, and cream. While I would be thrilled to have this on just about any wall of my house, for some reason it got me thinking bathrooms - perhaps because I could imagine lounging in a soaker tub gazing out enormous (but well-insulated) windows looking over a stormy sea like the one pictured. What? You don't have daydreams like that? Weird.<br />
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Anyway, I spent much too much time flitting about the web, collecting items for my dream bath. Of course the room is enormous, because to me the epitome of luxury is a huge bathroom (that and a walk-in closet). I ended up with so many ideas I had to do a couple of boards.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QRFxJxHLEPU/UlM2vGkF97I/AAAAAAAANn0/TDeeHB4g_Qc/s1600/bathroom+mural.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QRFxJxHLEPU/UlM2vGkF97I/AAAAAAAANn0/TDeeHB4g_Qc/s640/bathroom+mural.jpg" width="496" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rqzaXu37OIk/UlM2yCgFFhI/AAAAAAAANn8/1t-DExlPRI8/s1600/bathroom+mural+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rqzaXu37OIk/UlM2yCgFFhI/AAAAAAAANn8/1t-DExlPRI8/s640/bathroom+mural+2.jpg" width="496" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Go with the Design Flow</h2>
Here's the funny thing: these boards looked WAY less alike in my head as I was doing them than they ended up. I started out with two completely different people in mind, but when I look at them together I sort of did the same room twice. Not sure if that means I have a distinct style, or that I have no imagination. :) <br />
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Also, neither room looks quite like the ideal image I had in my head when I saw the painting. It could be that this is where mood boards don't quite capture the essence of a room. However, I also think that this is true to life in any design - you start with a concept and in fleshing it out you adapt it to the things you find and the pieces available, and it sort of modulates along the way. I quite love how both the rooms represented above turned out! </div>
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What do you think? Is it better to stick more closely to an original idea - staying absolutely true to it - or to let the design take on a life of its own during the process - at the risk of losing the original thread? I guess it would depend on the client, and the level of attachment they or you have to the original plan, or aspect of the plan. Oh the things I waste my time thinking about...</div>
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<i>PS. I have sources for all the stuff if you are interested. Recognize the Turkish towels and hooks in the second board? They are from Emma's bathroom on <a href="http://www.themarionhousebook.com/">The Marion House Book</a>!</i></div>
<br />Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-702422346863439814.post-84385139167413111412013-09-24T10:40:00.000-06:002013-09-24T10:40:39.827-06:00BlogPodium 2013: Why Canada's Design Blogger Conference Blew Me Away!This weekend was the big BlogPodium conference that I have been looking forward to all spring and summer - heck all year! I was lucky enough to work with the amazing <a href="http://about.me/JenniferFlores">Jen Flores</a> of <a href="http://www.ramblingrenovators.ca/">Rambling Renovators</a> on the marketing of the event, and not only did I have a blast and learn a bunch, I also found so much inspiration in watching Jen take on this huge project and knock it out of the park. That girl is a quiet dynamo.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jen and her team, photo by <a href="http://flowphoto.smugmug.com/Snapshot-Photobooth/Blog-Podium/32028974_tvqThR#!i=2780929093&k=Gg5F8M7">SmugMug</a></td></tr>
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All the things I love about conferences happened at BlogPodium</h2>
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<li>I spent the day hanging out with people who <i>immediately</i> understood why I spend way too many hours writing, editing, styling, photographing, photoshopping, tweeting, instagramming, and web-surfing. No explanations required, no rolling of eyes in my direction. These were my people, and there were almost 300 of them.</li>
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<li>Everyone was as happy and excited to be there as I was. The mood was celebratory, the smiles contagious. It was an amazing day before it even started.</li>
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<li>The speakers and panelists were <u>inspiring</u>. I filled my iPad with quotes and ideas, and had many 'AHA!' moments, nodding my head with all the other bloggers in synchronicity. These guys knew their stuff, and our stuff to boot. I have a resulting to-do list that is <i>for sure</i> going to light my blog on fire.</li>
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<li>It was like a big ol' family reunion. The nature of blogging means that many, many of my friendships and relationships are built online, through comments, tweets and instagrams. I talk more often with these ladies (and Tim) than I do my friends down the street, and as a result, I feel like I know them just as well, if not better! So it is a joy to put faces to Twitter handles and be able to back up blog comments with great big hugs. (I'm a hugger.)</li>
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As an added bonus, I got to feel a real sense of accomplishment as I looked around at the sea of grinning faces. I am under no illusion that my efforts brought them all there (the name 'Sarah Richardson' might have had a little something to do with it) but it felt kind of awesome to know that I was able to use my non-blogging skills to bring in a table or two of tickets. <br />
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My biggest BlogPodium take-away</h2>
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The best part of the experience, however, was seeing a beaming Jen Flores floating around the rooms. Unlike most conferences I have attended, I had watched the organizer work her tail end off with passion, poise, and purpose for months on end building up this experience. She arranged the speakers, booked the venue, scheduled the sessions, oversaw the menu, brought in the big name sponsors, coordinated the blog contributions, and oversaw the marketing, social media, website development, event coordination, and all logistics. Jen threw herself into this day with everything she had; refused to get knocked down by any of the setbacks or disappointments that arose; diligently worked through meetings, emails, conference calls, presentations, and every other task required with inspiring determination.<br />
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Through her vision and effort, Jen created an epic day that will fuel and inspire not only the 300 people in attendance, but their readers, clients, and colleagues.</h3>
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To have been able to watch all this happen was the biggest gift of all, and was to me more inspiring even than Sarah Richardson's amazing keynote speech (which was awesome!). Through this process, I learned from watching Jen that having a vision is just the first step. <br />
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If you truly believe in something, and are willing to invest yourself completely into making it a reality, not only will it happen, it will be a massive success.</h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://about.me/JenniferFlores">Jennifer Flores</a> Photography by <a href="http://annawithlove.smugmug.com/Blog-Podium/i-8cM2HWd">Annawithlove</a></td></tr>
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Not surprisingly, this philosophy seemed to be thread running through the day for me. I heard it in Sarah Richardson's beautifully honest, sincere, and motivating keynote address. <br />
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I heard it in Margot Austin and Rhonda Riche's articulate contributions to the lunchtime keynote panel.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New, Old, and Online Media panel, photography by <a href="http://annawithlove.smugmug.com/Blog-Podium/i-8cM2HWd">Annawithlove</a></td></tr>
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<i style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">"I learned everything on the job, by being willing </span></i><br />
<i style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">to pick up new challenges and work hard."</span></i><span style="text-align: center;"> Margot Austin</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">"When shelter magazines were shutting down </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">we saw an opportunity to make our own fun, </span></i></span><i><span style="font-size: large;">in the way we had always wanted but couldn't do before. "</span></i> Rhonda Riche, Covet Garden</div>
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I heard it in Keka DasGupta's charming and energizing session on working with agencies, and I heard it in Karen Bertlesen's frank and hysterical session on monetizing your blog.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Keka DasGupta, photo by <a href="http://annawithlove.smugmug.com/Blog-Podium/i-8cM2HWd">Annawithlove</a></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">"State of mind matters. Be confident, be sure. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Recognize what you are bringing to the table!</span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;">"</span></i> Keka DasGupta</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Karen Bertelsen, photography by <a href="http://annawithlove.smugmug.com/Blog-Podium/i-8cM2HWd">Annawithlove</a></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">"Creativity is the key to success - </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">when you can do whatever you want </span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;">and have fun doing it, </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">you will be your most authentic.</span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;">"</span></i> Karen Bertelsen<br />
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All in all, it was a thrilling Saturday, and I am exhausted! I met so many amazing people, doing so many amazing things - I wish everyone could have that kind of soul-enriching experience. I can't wait to see what other great things Jen can dream up for next year!</div>
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Lisa Mackayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11551992179195626629noreply@blogger.com10