2013 Flipagram

Another year has gone in, what seemed like, a flash. 2013 was a full year for our family. We reached a milestone with sending our firstborn off to university. But we also had a few setbacks with my grandfather and my aunt passing away. Despite the setbacks, I am grateful and choose to count my blessings. And most of all, I am excited about starting fresh and making my resolutions for the new year!

Here are some quotes to inspire your new year's resolutions! Looking forward to a great 2014!

Happy New Year!

--Imelda

Decorating for the Holidays: One Room, Three Looks

Your Holiday decor doesn't have to be the same every year.  Switch it up by adding a few key pieces to bring in the Holiday feel and use accessories to create your colour scheme.

1.  Classic Red

Here, we used the traditional colour of red to decorate the room.
The sofa is layered with red cushions and a soft plush throw.  The tablescape sets
the tone for Christmas with a reindeer and more accents-- poinsettias,
a pillar candle with pinecones and Christmas ornaments, all in red.

2. Modern Blue

For a fresh, contemporary look, blue is a popular choice if you want to
move away from the traditional colours of Christmas.
Again, layering the sofa with cushions and a throw to bring in the blue.
 Adding blue accessories and changing the artwork punches up the colour even more.
 To bring in the element of Christmas, we added accessories that sparkle
and decorated the candles with evergreen sprays.

3.  Naturally Beige

If you like a more natural and rustic feel, add accessories made with natural materials.
A light, creamy beige is the accent colour here and we've used accessories made with natural elements--
the wrought iron candle sticks, burlap and linen covered cushions, and a wool knit throw.
The distressed framed art and a rustic bouquet, made with birch bark,
twigs, and pinecones, are the perfect finishing touch.

What colour are you decorating with for Christmas? Do you have a preference out of these three styles?  Which look is your favourite?

--Imelda

If your home is being listed over the Holidays, restrained Holiday decorating is key.
Add just enough Christmas decor to signal festive but keep it to a minimum.
For a home staging consultation, please contact me at
imeldasmithhomestaging@gmail.com or 416.464.1781

Photos:  Imelda Smith

Saturday's Slumber & Sweet Success

As promised, I said I would share pictures so you could see how the decorating came out for my daughter's birthday party.  But first, let's look at the inspiration photos again.

Here is the garland that I wanted to hang above the table.

And here is my inspiration for the sweet table.

And here is what I made...

I wanted the tassels to be fuller so I just used twice as much tissue paper.

This is what I came up with for the table.

I was very pleased with how it all turned out. What do you think?

It was definitely a fun weekend for my birthday girl. Her friends came to sleep over Saturday night. But before that, we took them out for dinner at an Italian buffet.  I told you that I was making the sweet table for her with plans to keep it modest. Well... I didn't factor in all the dessert that they would be having at the restaurant. It is a buffet, remember... ice cream bar and all. Brilliant planning on my part.. here I was the whole time thinking I would have their sweet intake all under control! And the best part was as we were settling the bill after our meal, the girls started a race of who could eat though a stack of sugar packets the fastest! Needless to say, I was horrified!  At that point in the evening, I just had to let it go. I did, however, suggest to put the Wii Dance Party on when we got home, to burn off that sugar.  It was an idea that actually worked out well.

As you can imagine, the table was a hit. The girls cleaned off everything that was on it by the next morning.  It was quite easy to put together with supplies that I got from the bulk food, craft, and dollar stores.  I love tables like this because it not only is a nice treat for your guests to eat, but it is a visual treat for them as well.  Have you ever put together a dessert table like this?


Photos: Trendhunter; Candy Warehouse; Imelda Smith