Makeover Love with Style at Home

I have a sneaking suspicion that I don’t have to tell you this… but I absolutely LOVE taking a raw, unappealing room and transforming it into something special through renovation and decor!! HaHa... did I share something with you you didn’t know?! NO!!  ;-)

My husband and I have transformed many rooms in several homes over the years, and I’ve shared lots of them with DesignTies readers… here are a few (click on the pic to read all about it):

 

Not too bad, hey?!

But each of these spaces started out pretty darned ugly!! In the same order as above…

 

As you can imagine, transforming these spaces took creativity, energy and… yep… money.

We have soooo much more work to do on our little bungalow. And you know… I have some creativity, my husband and I have a little energy… but money?? There’s NEVER enough money!!

So why not enter a fun and fantastic contest??!!

It’s SO totally terrific!!

The on-line site of my favourite Canadian decor & lifestyle magazine – Style at Home – is hosting a makeover contest and, if I enter, I could win one of two $2,000 Home Depot gift certificates!

Heck… YOU could win a $2,000 in Home Depot gift certificate if YOU ENTER!!

This fabulous contest – the Style at Home Makeover Contest 2009 - invites Canadians to share a photo of a room in their home that’s in desperate need of a makeover. Whether it’s a kitchen that’s buried under a sea of clutter or a bedroom that’s just plain boring, they want to see pictures of rooms that need a decorating overhaul!

When I get home from work tomorrow evening I’m definitely going to enter. What room? My basement family room… it’s a horrible mess! What I really, really want to do this winter is add a fireplace!!

 

Like my mock-up?!

So… contest entry deadline is September 24th… that’s only a little over a week away!

Then, the next day (9/25), they’ll open up the site for voting. Yes; you can vote for the room YOU think needs a makeover! If you vote – or if you leave a comment on one of the entries – you could win a $50 Home Depot gift card!! 20 will be given away. So… be sure to hunt down my room and vote for me as many times as you can (one vote per day, I think) :-)

I’ve already taken a few trips over to the Style at Home Makeover Contest site and I have to say, I have a LOT of competition. So far there over 450 entries! And you know what… I have a feeling that my blog partner Kelly is going to enter, too. Darn!! She’s tough competition! She has SEVEN LAYERS of clutter in HER basement!!

Regardless if you enter the contest or not, be sure to bookmark the Style at Home site… it’s a truly wonderful source for design and decorating ideas!!

A modern parterre garden

A parterre is a formal garden that consists of planting beds edged in stone or tightly clipped hedging and gravel paths. The layout of a parterre is usually symmetrical.

Here’s an example of a traditional parterre garden with hedges, bay trees, and topiary at Bickham House in Devon, England (photo from pro.corbis.com).

And here’s a modern take on a parterre garden in Vancouver, BC. It was designed by landscape architect Ron Rule:

I love how the white hydrangeas with their green foliage stand out against the dark gray house.

The fountain is made from an antique Chinese wheat grinding wheel.

I always like decks and patios that have multiple levels. In this case, you can see the eating area to the upper right. The lower level looks like a great place to lounge around in front of the fireplace.

This water wall is an interesting take on a water fountain. The design is beautiful and unique, and would be lovely even without the flowing water.

All pictures from Style At Home May 2009

Spring has arrived…

Kelly @ JAX Decor & Design

Well, sort of – it came today in my mailbox :-)

I’m not really into pink & flowers when it comes to home decor, but the cover of the April issue of Style At Home is just so pretty. The vibrant pinks and greens really brighten up a gloomy winter day :-) And they inspired me to change up my font colour for this post. I won’t be typing in pink again any time soon… but for today, it just feels right :-)

I haven’t had a chance to read the issue yet, but I can’t wait to look through the 66 pages of pure, delicious colour :-)

And, I can’t wait for spring to get here for real!! Winter has worn out its welcome. Well, actually, that happened when the first big storm hit… and then again when the temps went down to –35 with the windchill. Yep, that’s cold!!

The third weekend in May (Victoria Day weekend here in Canada) is the traditional start to the gardening season here. It’s finally warm enough for annuals to go into the ground and the danger of frost has passed. Usually. But not always… if you’re a plant here in eastern Ontario, you need to be tough!!

Until the snow melts and the flowers start to bloom, I’ll have to get my spring fix from pictures of flowers from seasons past…

View Full Album

And my absolute most FAVOURITE flower… blue hydrangeas…

View Full Album