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The One
It has been almost a year since my last blog post. And what a year. You see, last January, I found The One. And when you find The One you get so caught up in the glow of new love, that everything else pretty much falls into the background. I’m talking about my new house, of course. It’s actually quite an old house (late 19th century) but that’s another story. Discovering my dream home involved a deep breath and massive leap of faith, as it meant moving my family away from the localities my husband and I grew up in. It meant leaving our jobs, changing our son’s school, and saying…
- Christmas, Christmas Crafting, Christmas Decorating, Holiday, Holiday Decorating, House & Home, Uncategorized
Simply, Christmas
This post is dedicated to a cousin of mine, who asked me for advice on simple holiday decorating. A busy, single mom to three kids, she was looking for guidance on how to create an attractive, traditional look inspired by nature, and on a budget. Others have asked me for similar advice; there’s so much to share, and it’s easier than you think, so here we go! First off… Decorating, especially seasonal decorating, is VERY personal. Because Christmas comes with a lot of nostalgia, glitter and kitsch, we happily extend the boundaries of playfulness in our homes to include knick-knacks and baubles that we would probably never consider at any other time of the year. Exhibit…
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Seasonal Crafting: Scented Gift Tag Tutorial
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Summer: Hello and Good-bye
I’ve been meaning to write about summer since it started. Then I blinked and it was gone. So much for that idea. That, in itself, is the true spirit of summer, anyway, isn’t it? One day it’s here, and the next it’s gone. You think of all the things you intended to do at the beginning of the summer, when the long, hot days stretched ahead before you like a string of jewels winking in the sun, and then the end of August comes and you find yourself wondering exactly what you did with them. Photo credit: www.countryliving.com So… what does one write about when it comes to summer interiors? We…
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The Romantic Home
The world may celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14th (or at least convince you to buy flowers and a card) but everyone knows that true love can’t be captured in a single day. Photo source: Hearth & Gable Interiors Romance needs to be cultivated in order to flourish. It’s the spirit in which we choose to live our lives; the passion we nurture within ourselves, and the beauty we seek around us. Living a romantic life is easy when you surround yourself with romantic things. What makes a romantic home? The people who live in it, of course, who fill it with the people and objects they love… the ones who provide…
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Winter White – Holiday Mantel Design
Anyone who knows me, knows my passion for fireplaces. And it is the mantel for which I have the utmost admiration and respect. Photo: www.angelandblumewordpress.com The mantel is one of my favourite architectural details, and if you’re lucky enough to have one, then you can already appreciate it as a focal point of beauty and interest in your home. And it is never more so than during the holiday season. I personally tend towards a traditional Dickens Christmas decor. In the past, my mantel designs have featured a lot of deep reds and woodsy greens, and a cozy, rustic or primitive influence. More Father Christmas than Santa Claus, if you know…
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PANTONE’S 2015 COLOUR OF THE YEAR: Marsala
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Harvest Tablescapes
Fall is my favourite season, with its brisk winds and fire-tipped trees. I also love all the colours of autumn: burnt orange, gold, and olive green. In decorating, I personally favour many of these colours all year round, but in the fall, most of us start to crave warmth, texture, and a feeling of abundance, and our homes begin to reflect this. Inspired by the changing season (and Thanksgiving dinner this weekend!) I challenged myself to design a few fall table settings and centerpieces on my family’s harvest table in the kitchen. I wanted to create something that looked rustic and homemade, not polished or Pinterest-perfect, so I used several decorative items and accessories I already…
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Field Trip: Statum Designs
The showroom at Statum Designs is a playground for me. Oh, the eye candy! With hundreds of fabrics and furnishing styles, I could spend a whole day there, just reclining on various sofas and gazing longingly at all the latest textiles. Distinctive interiors begin with distinctive pieces, and Statum’s designs are, frankly, gorgeous. From low mid-century modern sofas to whimsical accent chairs, urban geometrics to plush velvets, it’s impossible not to fall in love with everything. Statum Designs is a Canadian furniture manufacturer with a solid 30-year history and a foothold in the future. With an on-site manufacturing facility and impressive showroom, their upholstered products and textile selection (Kravet, JF Fabrics, Maxwell, and Robert Allen, just to name…
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11 No-Cost Decorating Ideas
In the spirit of my last post, “What If Your Decorating Budget is $0?” I thought I would compound a list of affordable ways to update every room in your home. These are all tips that I am currently putting into practice, myself… some more successfully than others! 1) PURGE, DE-CLUTTER, EDIT Photo: www.gettyimages.ca So often, we hold onto things because they’re still too good to throw away or “might come in handy some day.” Sometimes, we’re too lazy or we forget to find new homes for outcast furniture (much easier to just stash it in the basement.) Sometimes, we’ve inherited pieces we can’t really use, but feel guilty about…
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Budget Decorating: What If Your Budget Is $0?
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Budget Decorating: What If Your Budget Is $0?
… And your imagination has really expensive taste? As I wrote in my introductory blog post (http://hearthandgable.com/welcome-to-hearth-gable-interiors/), about halfway through my extended maternity leave, I decided to go back to school part-time and study Visual Design & Interiors. My goal was to begin a blog and start my own decorating and consulting business. That was three years ago, and now I’m two courses away from graduation. It has been a long haul. Being a student AND a stay-at-home parent for six years meant that money was Tight with a capital T. So, it was a cruel irony of fate that during my studies I should find myself surrounded and inspired by all…
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11 No-Cost Decorating Ideas
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Igniting the Spark!
With Valentine’s Day approaching, I thought it would be fun to write about an interior design feature that is unfailingly romantic in any room of the home: the fireplace. A roaring fire provides us with an almost primitive sense of comfort, inspired by warmth and safety. It relaxes us and fills our senses. Once upon a time, it was the only way to heat your home; the wealthiest home owners built fireplaces in every room. Today, the fireplace has become an attractive architectural feature that lends presence and simple elegance to every room it graces. There are few things in this world as enchanting as the mellow glow of a real, crackling fire. And…
