Go Team Canada!!!

We won GOLD!!! WOO HOO!!!  Could this weekend get any better? More news to share tomorrow.

Congratulations to all Canadian Olympic Athletes!!  What an amazing two weeks it has been.  Today was the ultimate finale with men's hockey Olympic Gold!  Way to go team Canada!!

xo

Sarah

Kitchen

It has been quite the week!!  Monday and Tuesday were horrible because of all the house shenanigans!  Tuesday at least ended on a positive note when I picked up my brand new Hyundai Elantra Touring.  It's very pretty and apparently has a really nice set of rims (at least that's what every guy in my office keeps ogling on about).  You have to admit it sounds a bit perverted.  ;-)  Yesterday was a great day.  I was finally over losing the house and had a great day at work.  I even brought in a new client.  Woo hoo!! 

I love when work is busy but hate that it takes time away from writing and research blog posts.  I think I'll have more time this weekend to stock up on a few posts.  I have so many ideas.  I simply need to find the time to complete them. 

I had to feature these two kitchens.  They are gorgeous!!  Looking at these beauties definitely makes house hunting a bit more challenging because I see these rooms and want them for myself.  I have to keep telling myself that my dream kitchen will probably not come to fruition until the second or third house.  Patience is not a virtue of mine.  I'm learning... slowly!

I love everything about this room - the light fixtures, hint of grey paint on the walls, mix of traditional dark wood cabinets and white modern cabinets, large rectangular dining table with simple parsons chairs, large island with sink and finally the cupboards go straight to the ceiling.  I hate when space is not used well.  Cupboards should always go to the ceiling unless you have a loft style ceiling.  That is just my opinion.   

Industrial is not my taste.  However, this kitchen is very cool!  I love the island with its huge wooden legs.  It makes it feel more like a table then an island.

My favourite part of this kitchen is the floor to ceiling glass shelf unit with built-in espresso machine.  It allows light to easily pass through from the bright seating area into the work area.  The white tulip chairs look fabulous against the wooden farm table.  I love mixing old with new, modern with vintage/classic.  It makes a house feel more like a home then a show-room. 

What is your favourite style kitchen?  Can you actually choose one style or do you like bits and pieces of different styles?

xo

Sarah

The emotions of house hunting

I'm about to rant so if you come to this blog for beautiful inspiring designs then you might want to skip this post. I’ll be back later or tomorrow (depending on how busy today is) with gorgeous rooms.
Today, I was hoping to sign on and write about our beautiful new house. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. We never heard back from the sellers last night. Our offer expired at 6pm and now we feel like we've been hung out to dry. Last we heard, the seller was at his lawyer’s office (this is a messy sale because the couple is getting a divorce). This news led us to believe we were nearing the end. The end it was since we haven't heard from the since yesterday afternoon. I believe we've lost the house but they don't even have the decency to let us know.

Karma will definitely come back to haunt these people. If you do badly to others it comes back two fold. The sellers were greedy this weekend and honestly treated our offer(s) like crap. I realize the real estate market is one tough cookie to crack but honestly, does it really need to be this difficult? Those who say house hunting is fun and that buyers should enjoy the process must have been high on drugs or they've never gone through the process because so far we haven't had any fun. It has been emotional torture and we've only been at it 3 weeks! I have friends who have been house hunting for 13 months!! Maybe by month 4 or 6 you start to see it as more of a business transaction and less emotional. Right now I'm on the emotional side of it. I thought we found our dream 'starter home'. I should have known it was too good to be true. At one point last night, in the midst of tears streaming down my face I started to think is it my Karma? Have I been greedy? Were our offers not good? Did we go about it the wrong way? You know how it goes in your head (well, if you're anything like me you do). I over analyze and have conversations in my head about how I could have done it better or differently. I swear I'm not crazy! I don’t have these conversations out loud… just in my head…

I was drunk with exhaustion from all the emotions and thoughts racing through my head. Luckily I fell asleep quickly and woke up this morning knowing that we did all we could. We played our cards right. We just didn't win this hand. For now, we need to keep playing. We'll find the right house and it will be better than this one. I need to project positive thoughts. I believe the universe has a plan for all of us. Each step of the way we must learn something to move onto the next step in order to reach our destination (whatever that may be). I’m sure this stepping stone is to teach me more patience (because I have none!) and to leave my emotions out of a business deal! The test will be how I handle the next offer we make. Only time will tell.

I hate ending things negatively so let’s image ourselves enjoying a lovely picnic here. It’s a gorgeous hot sunny day. The water is warm and inviting.  We're fit and looking hot in our bikinis.  There isn't a worry to be thought of and we're with our loved one.  LIFE IS GRANDE! 

Have a great day!!

Raceytay Photos

A few weeks ago while browsing Etsy (AGAIN) I discovered the work of Raceytay.  She is a very talented Canadian photographer from Ottawa.  Here is a small selection of her work.

I have an obsession with art work in blues and greens. 

How cool is this photo??  Can you see the smile in the stars? (just below the top right hand corner)

I love anything featuring London.  I took the same photo while visiting at Christmas but it definitely did not turn out as good as this one. 

I picture this photo blown up in a loft.  It would look incredible!

This is my favourite!!  It's breathtaking.  I honestly don't have words for it.  It stopped me in my tracks.

She offers many sizes (20"x16" 38$, 24"x20" 48$, 24"x24" 58$, 24"x36" 64$).  All photos are sold unmated and unframed. They are also available on canvas.  She features more of her work on her blog and website. 

Today she is offering her followers a give-away on her blog.  Click here for the details.  I've entered so I would wish you good luck but I really want to win!  :) 

Have a great day!!  Oh, be sure to check back later tonight for an update on my real estate fiascos. 

xo

Sarah

And the winner is...

Anna D'Angelo is the lucky winner of my Domino book give-away!!  Send me an email with your contact information and I will send you the book. 

As for the house update, we are still negotiating with the sellers.  It was a difficult weekend of waiting around!  We will hopefully get an acceptance by 6pm tonight.  It's killing me not to know right now.  I'm very impatient!  Ryan told me last night that if we get this house we're never moving again.  Haha!  Buying a house in Toronto is horrible!  Our one saving grace is that we are not in a bidding war with other buyers. 

Tonight is the night!  I can't believe its only 10:15am!! 

I'll be back later today with a decor post.  Stay tuned. 

xo

Last chance to enter!

The Domino book give-away ends at midnight.  Be sure to leave me a comment below the original give-away post if you are interested in the gift.

Thanks readers!

p.s. I'll have an update on our house hunt tomorrow morning.  It's been a crazy weekend!

Domino Decor Book Give-away

Just back from the realtors office.  We have officially sent our offer to the sellers.  Please cross your fingers and send positive thoughts our way.  We really want this house!

And remember to enter the Domino decor book give-away.  Leave a comment for your chance to win a great design book!

TGIF

A little update...

I apologize for being M.I.A this week.  It has been a hectic week at work and we've been busy house hunting.  Last night we toured 4 houses and have decided to put an offer on one of them.  :)  Fingers crossed they accept it!! 

I'll keep you posted. 

Have a great weekend!!

xo

Sarah

Brandon Barre Photography

Have you ever found a room that catches your breath the second you see it?  Well, for me it was the following rooms photographed by Toronto's own Brandon Barre.  I believe most, if not all rooms are designed by the very talented Candice Olson.

This kitchen encompasses all of my favourites: crystal chandeliers, white and dark wood cabinets, white marble, a huge island with a sink, wine fridge, space to entertain while cooking and beautiful french doors leading to what I hope is a manicured lawn and lush garden.  :)

I love the dining area with the mix of it's white table and formal dining chairs, the island open shelves for storing large platters and most used dishes and the large storage cabinet with built in espresso machine.  The cookies and cream colour scheme is my favourite!

LOVE the black, gold and white theme of this living room.  The art really pops against the dark wall. 

Can my future home please come with this living room?  It would be a dream come true. 

I would keep this room all to myself.  It would be my hide-away. It's so elegant!

I wouldn't mind waking up in this room every morning.  It's so girlie and pretty! 

All photos via Brandon Barre

I'm in advertising hell today.  I have way too many proposals due and not enough time.  I'll be back tomorrow. 

Remember to check out my latest give-away below.  You have until Sunday to enter to win Domino decor book. 

Decor Book Give-away!

It's another hectic week at work.  I have just enough time to tell you about another FABULOUS GIVE-AWAY this week.  One lucky Canadian reader has the opportunity to win this book...

This book has everything required in order to design any room of the house.  It has practical knowledge, beautiful pictures and always looks good on the coffee table or book shelf.  I LOVE MY COPY!! Below are images from the book. 

In order to enter here is what you have to do:

• Must be living in Canada (It's just too expensive to ship internationally).
• Become a follower of White Blossom. Either on this blog or through Google reader.  Leave a comment saying you are a follower or have become a follower with your email address or blog info so I can get a hold of you if you win. (1 entry)
• Post about this give-away on your blog and link it back to White Blossom (1 more contest entry).

The Domino book give-away will be open until Sunday February 21st at midnight EST. The winner will be announced first thing Monday February 22nd, so be sure to check back!

Good luck! 

My Shopping Picks Revealed

Good morning my lovely readers!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.  Luckily, I am still enjoying my long weekend.  Thank you Family Day!  :) 


Since we are in serious save mode for our future house purchase I cannot shop for major items but I can virtual shop for things that I would one day like to own.  Here are my picks from Crate and Barrel.  I hope they provide you with a bit of inspiration.  Have a great day!!


In person this chair is awesome!  Add the extra pillow for your back and its incredibly comfortable.  I love the design of it because it looks like art.  

Ankara Chair

My aunt gave me (and Ryan) this serving piece as an engagement gift.  I LOVE it!  It reminds me of afternoon tea at a big name hotel (the Windsor Arms is my favourite spot in Toronto).  It will always be used and when it's not in use it stands alone well.  

Cambridge Two-Tier Server with Plates

This bench is a classic!  You could place it at the end of your bed, in the hall entry way or in the living room as extra seating.  

Colette Bench

I'm not normally attracted to red but this table caught my attention.  It's a classic pedestal table with a great punch colour!  

Esme Rosso Red Pedestal Table

Ah, this is the perfect French table.  I would design a kitchen around this table.  

French Kitchen Table

This lamp would look awesome next to a bed like the Colette.  

Haley Table Lamp

I love anything French.  It reminds my of my trip to Paris when I was 23 with a good friend.  We ate our way through the city and walked everywhere.  It was so surreal.  I couldn't believe I was in Paris!

La Tour Eiffel Tour Print

The Peacock is my favourite!  It would make a great statement on a neutral couch or chair.

Lima Alpaca Throw

I love the bright cheefrul colour of these Dutch Ovens.  Mario you're the best!! Can I come on your next trip to Spain?  Gweneth can tag along as well... 

Mario Batali Dutch Ovens

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope you're all having a wonderful day spent with your very own Valentine!  I'm having a great day so far.  I spent the afternoon with my sister Meg.  We watched Dear John, which is this year's ultimate girlie movie!  And now, Ryan is on his way home to spend the evening with me, sipping red wine and eating our favourite meal of filet mignon with roasted red potatoes.  


For now, I'll leave you with this bedroom designed by Sarah Richardson.  I think it's a very romantic room.  

xo


Sarah

A Dramatic Living Room

It's Friday, the sun is shinning and we have a fun weekend of house hunting and car shopping ahead of us.  Ryan and I have been sharing a car for the last two and a half months.  It was a big adjustment at first but we slowly got into accepting it.  We also loved having only one car payment.  However, now our lives are very busy and we really feel the need for the second car again.  I hate the idea of spending so much money on a car but I know it's a necessity.  We have completely different schedules and with golf season around the corner it will only get worse.  It will also be helpful to know that I can hop in the car anytime we get a last minute viewing that Ryan can't see or to run my own errands.  I'll let you know how it all goes on Monday.

Earlier in the week while perusing the internet for the next great room to showcase I discovered Stan Topol through Atlanta Homes & Lifestyle Magazine.  (The City of Toronto really needs something like this magazine!)  Take a few moments and peruse through his website.  To say he and his team are talented is an understatement.  They begin every project with an architectural drawing with details of furnishings, traffic flow and the view to outside.  The results are incredible.  His rooms are elegant, well thought out luxurious spaces designed with the owner and their needs in mind. There isn’t a corner untouched by his genius. This is just one of many spectacularly designed rooms.  My list of loves in this room is very long - gold chandelier, stained built-ins, the mantle-less fire place, classic sofa and chairs in different colours, the two gorgeous pieces of art flanking the fireplace, gilded mirror, the height and grandeur of this room... shall I go on?

I wish you all a very happy weekend!!  Next week I have a little surprise for my Canadian readers so be sure to check in. 

All things Nate

Last night I found myself browsing Nate Berkus' website AGAIN!  If he wasn't gay and I wasn't married I know we would be together.  I think we could at least be BFF's.  If he met me then he would realize that we should (a) have brunch every weekend together while talking design and Oprah (b) I'm a hidden talent that he should hire.  :)  A girl can dream... right?

My heart starting pounding fast when I first saw these gorgeous sliding hidden doors leading into the bathroom. 

I love the metal tub and detail around the vanity against the stark white tile and marble. 

Oh how I love lacquered black doors! 

I LOVE WHITE!  It is the perfect backdrop for so many different styles of furniture and art.  It's the perfect colour in my eyes. 

I'm attracted to this ornate gold headboard which surprises me because I normally like simplicity.  The bedside table is stunning with just the right amount of detail, mix of white and grey and the marble top.  I think this room would be very refreshing to wake up in and I haven't even seen the entire room. 

I love the mix of golden brown and grey in this room.  It's masculine and cozy!  I think that has something to do with the accessories and gallery walls mix of sizes and styles. 

Here is the cutie himself next to the tiniest kitchen I've ever seen or a great bar area... What is it about guys in a great pair of jeans, t-shirt and bare feet? So Sexy!

Lonny!!!

The next issue of Lonny just came out!  For those of you who have not yet discovered Lonny magazine then you're missing out!  Check out the latest issue online. 

I have quickly browsed it.  So far I pulled an ad from Ballard Designs that completely caught my eye and makes me wish (yet again...) that we had one of their stores in Toronto.  The room below is 100% my style.  I want to move in!

J’adore Paris!

As you know, Restoration Hardware is one of my favourite stores!  I'm on their mailing list so I can be one of the first (million) to hear of a sale or new product.  :)  Today they featured a vintage map of Paris.  It's beautiful!  I would absolutely love to hang it in our living room as it would fit in so well and be a great piece of art.  Anyone have an extra $1,795?? 

Oh well, for now we can all just admire. 

The house hunt continues.  So far it has been a lot more frustrating than I originally thought it would be.  We drove an hour north of the city on Monday evening to look at a new development that advertised the starting price $50,000 cheaper than the actual starting price!  We were extremely annoyed!  What is even more frustrating is that they are not the only builders who have done that.  I have learnt to call ahead and confirm the price list before hand.  Yesterday was looking promising when we saw a gorgeous house in the area we want.  They were holding off all offers until Sunday.  That left us plenty of time to view it and research our offer... or at least I thought it did.  Someone offered $16,000 over the asking price and it sold.  I didn't even know you could do that! 

Over the last week I have learnt a lot about real estate! 

1. Do not get excited until you have purchased a house!
2. Be wary of all advertising!  (I should know this by now since I'm in the ad industry)
3. Call to confirm the price before you drive an hour north in rush hour!
4. Be patient!  House hunting takes time. 

I'll be back later with more delicious photos.  Have a great day!!

Weekend Update

Good morning!

It was quite the weekend for me.  We started our search for new homes on Saturday.  After dropping Ryan off at work, I drove up to an area called Maple and North Thornhill (north of the city) to browse and get acquainted with what we hope will be the site of our future home.  Needless to say at first I was completely freaking out because let's be honest I'm a city girl (always have been) and moving out of the city freaks the heck out of me.  I realize it's the only way we can afford to have a backyard, garage, 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms but it's still scary.  After giving myself a pep-talk I opened my eyes and realized it's not that bad.  The area has a lot to offer.  The houses are new and gorgeous.  The schools are new and there are a few shops.  I was able to get a manicure for $16!!  Yes I stopped for a manicure!  The sales offices open at 11am and I was an hour early.  What else would a girl do?  It's necessary to check out all the amenities.  :)  Any who... I ended up loving the area and called Ryan to tell him we must buy!  He was excited and so was I. 

Fast forward to me leaving the fourth sales office and crying in the car.  It seems all of the affordable starter homes have been sold and all that's left are the expensive estate homes.  I was told that we wouldn't even get a town-home for our price range!  The sales reps said it like a townhome was the most disgusting possibility ever.  Most of the offices I went into were on phase 3 of construction.  Phase 1 is apparently when you want to buy a starter home.  

I heard people talk about getting emotional about house-hunting but I never really expected it to be such emotional torture!  Forget physical torture for war-prisoners just make them buy a house in Toronto!  Ok... maybe I'm exaggerating a little bit but it's tough out there!  Don't worry though, I have not given up the battle.  We are heading up north again tonight to check out a new build that started selling on Friday.  Please cross your fingers that they still have houses in our price-range and that we absolutely love them.  It would make our lives so much easier.  :)  

Today I will leave you with this dreamy kitchen by Kvanum.  Look at all that cupboard space!  The natural floors are what makes it look country casual.  If the floors were a dark high gloss stain it would completely change the feel of this room.  I also love a hidden fridge. 

Have a great day!

Real estate update and a few favourites!

TGIF!!!  There was no post yesterday because the day got away from me and before I knew it I was at home making dinner for my sister Meaghan and cousin Lauren.  We had a great time catching up over a bottle of wine.  Today I'm paying for it a little... totally worth it.  I love red wine!   

We met with our real estate agent on Wednesday night.  Her name is Luisa and she is a peach!  She made us (I should really say 'stressed out me') feel so much better about the buying process.  Not having gone through this before I'm completely nervous that we will have to settle just to get into the market or that we won't find anything for months and months!  It's also an ENORMOUS amount of money to spend.  The largest purchase of our lives is hopefully around the corner.  YIKES!  I know Luisa will do everything in her power to make it as easy for us as possible.  My s-i-l Aaren has loved working with her and told us that the first house always seems more daunting than any other.  So far, the listings we've seen have been quite dismal.  It's going to be an interesting ride so I better buckle up and prepare for a rollercoaster ride of emotions over the next little while. 

How have your experiences been with buying?  Any good advice? 

Today, I want to share my favourite items with you.  Some of them are new and some you have seen before.  I hope you enjoy dreaming about them as much as I do.  :)

1. Driftwood lamps and chandeliers and bleached herringbone wood floors!!

2. Distressed plank floors.

My Home Ideas.com

3. The layered look to a table vignette and those single flower vases with large oval bases.  They would look very cool placed on a dining table scattered around. 

House Beautiful

4. This turquoise tufted sofas from Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams.

5. Tori Spellings Kitchen Floor!

6. The cubed slip covered ottomans from Elizabeth Kimberly Design.

7. The Greenwich Tufted Bench from Elte.

8. The Stockholm Rand rug from Ikea.

9. Pedestal tables like this one from Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams.

 

10. The Martyne tufted upholstered armchair from Restoration Hardware. 

I have a very busy day of work ahead of me.  There are a few deals that have fallen through this week so I really need to fill my pipe-line (for all of you sales reps out there).  If I find anymore inspiration throughout the day I'll be sure to share it with you.  Have a great day!! :)