A bump in the bathroom makeover road

Our bathroom makeover plans were going along great – and then we hit a bump in the road. I’m the queen of finding bumps and potholes, just ask my poor little smart car ;-) Remember the beautiful moonstone tiles we were planning to use for the floor?

Saltillo will have to order new stock from their supplier, and the tiles won’t arrive for at least ten weeks. Booooo! Hubby doesn’t want to start the reno until we have the floor tiles on hand, seeing as they have to go in before we can do pretty much anything else once the demo is done. Which means the reno won’t start till November – I want the reno finished by November!

So last Friday, I embarked on a hunt for the elusive 12" x 24" moonstone floor tile. I had a list of 10 stores to hit, and I made it as far as… one. Lewis & Clark, I ain't. My expedition ended at Westboro Flooring. They don't have moonstone tiles, but they have lots of beautiful porcelain tiles. These are two that caught my eye – Midgley & West Volcano on the left and I-can’t-remember on the right.

I like that they both work with the striped accent tile and the Super White quartzite that we’re going to use. But now I’m thinking that it might be better to use the “sunflower” mosaic instead of the glass tiles for the accent  so I can still get some moonstone in the room.

As much as I love and want the moonstone floor tiles, I think we’re probably going to go with the Volcano tile (or something similar) for a few reasons:

• They’re half the price of the moonstone tiles (big thumbs up from hubby!)
• Quick availability (7-10 days after ordering)
• Textured/honed finish is for better traction
• Porcelain is more durable than moonstone, which scratches easily

The only real negative is that they’re not as pretty & unique as the moonstone tiles.

A big reason for doing the bathroom reno is for resale value. So pretend you’re a potential buyer and let me know – would you prefer a bathroom floor that’s pretty and durable and not slippy, or a bathroom floor that’s beautiful & unique, but scratches easily and is slippy?

Toby-inspired colour palette

When I was looking at our foster puppy Toby a couple of days ago, it occurred to me that he’s a great interior design colour palette of cream, beige, brown, black, and blue.

And it looks like a lot of designers think so too! Here are some rooms that could have been inspired by Toby…

Artistic Designs for Living, Tineke Triggs

Nina sobiNina Design

Catalyst Architects, LLC

Asher Associates Architects

Image via BHG

Image via Decorpad

LMK Interiors

Michael Abrams Limited | Interior Design

ekd Design Mikal Otten & Armijo Design Group | Photo by emr Photography

Muse Interiors

Muse Interiors | Photo by Michael Partenio

Colour inspiration can come from the most unexpected places! Where do you find your colour inspiration?

Happy weekend!

Tobasco in the house!

Hi, I’m Tobasco

Don’t I look like a sweet and innocent puppy in my mug shot? I did that on purpose so that someone would feel sorry for me and help me break out of this joint. I’m sneaky that way :-) And it worked too! ‘Cause now I’m living in a house with a Catahoula brother and a Lab sister to play with and a yard to run in and a little pool to plop down in when I’m hot and I get to sleep on a big bed every night and there’s peanut butter right within puppy reach OHMYGODIMSOEXCITED!!!!!!!!

Oh, and there are also lots of toys for me to chew on too :-)

I’m so happy here in my foster home, and I know I’ll be even happier when I move into my furever home. Do you think you might be able to adopt me?

I’m part Catahoula and part something else. Maybe my other part is Lab, ‘cause I love playing in the water. Hey, that would make me a Labahoula – cool!

I’m almost six months old, and I’m catching on to my new name {the humans are calling me Toby}. I know  sit {unless there’s something better to do}, I sort of know lie down, and I’m learning that when I pee outside, I get told I’m a good boy. I have no idea why, it’s just pee – but I like being told that I’m good, so I pee outside as much as I can. And I LOVE to give puppy kisses!

Overall, I’m a pretty fantastic puppy package. Oh, speaking of packages, mine seems to have disappeared. I don’t know where it went – one day I was sitting there licking it, then I fell asleep and when I woke up, it was gone! What’s up with that?!

If you think you might like to adopt me, you can find out more about me by contacting the nice lady at Catahoula Rescue Ontario. She helps lots of dogs just like me find their furever homes – I love Gloria, she rocks! ♥  You can also send an e-mail to catahoulaontario@gmail.com

OK, now I have to go torment – I mean, play with – my big brother… see ya!

+ Toby

Amazing stone balance art

Life is all about balance…

 Stone balance artist Michael Grab, Gravity Glue, USA

Getting everything aligned just right so you can enjoy every day to the fullest…

  Stone balance artist Gabriele Meneguzzi, Italy (via Flickr)

…and to be amazed by the world around you.

 Stone balance artist John Félice Ceprano, Canada

This weekend (August 18th & 19th), Ottawa Rock Art and Stones Association Balance International ART are hosting the First International OTTAWA-BAWI (Balanced Art World International) at Remic Rapids here in Ottawa. The event will feature stone balance artists from Canada, Italy, and the USA, as well as music, dance, theatre, and poetry. If you’re in the area, come out this weekend and get some balance in your life :-)

Stone balance artist Gabriele Meneguzz, Italy (via Flickr)

Metallic inspiration

Congratulations to all the amazing athletes who entertained and inspired us over the last two weeks at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. In honour of our Canadian athletes, here’s a big thank you to them, and a little design inspiration for you.

Brilliant Bronze

Derek Drouin • Mark de Jonge • Mark Oldershaw • Women’s Team Pursuit (track cycling) • Jennifer Abel & Emilie Heymans • Meaghan Benfeito & Roseline Filion • Women’s Soccer Team • Antoine Valois-Fortier • Brent Hayden • Richard Weinberger • Christine Girard • Carol Huynh • And an honourary bronze to the Men’s 4 x 100m relay who ran their hearts out and then had their hearts broken.

 Designers – No source | Garrison Hullinger Interior Design | YLAB Arquitectos

Sparkling Silver

Adam van Koeverden • Men’s Eight Rowing • Women’s Eight Rowing • Ryan Cochrane • Tonya Verbeek

Designers – DKOR Interiors Inc. | Amoroso Design | Linda McDougald Design | Michael Abrams Limited

Glittering Gold

• Rosie MacLennan •

Designers –  Camilla Molders Design |Heather Garrett Design | Riehl Designs, Inc, | Atmosphere Interior Design Inc.

And to all our athletes who didn’t win medals, you made us proud with your awesome efforts to perform your very best :-) Let’s do it again two winters from now in Sochi, Russia!

What was your favourite Olympic moment?