If you like design and blogs, chances are you’ve had a browse (or several) on Realtor – the Canadian real estate site. During one of my recent searches, I stumbled upon this gorgeous multi-million dollar home in Oakville. This is what $11.8 million can buy you outside of Toronto.
The outside is just as gorgeous as the inside. Have a look here. Yearly taxes are only $75K (gasp!).
Happy Monday, everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I think I have finally finished going through my photos from Paris. Here is the final collection of photos from my recent trip.
beautiful scrolls on a fence outside the Sacre Coeur
Dior – in white
children’s clothes at Ovale
cool restaurant chairs
Sonia Rykiel window display
Le Bon Marché department store
coffee & madeleine at Mamie Gateaux
sculpture near Place de la Concorde
water selection at Le Bon Marché
Ah…Paris…I just loved seeing the beautiful design details in shops and restaurants around the city (and the architectural details, too!).
Earlier this week I was invited to attend an event at the Princess Margaret Home Lottery Vaughan showhome. The evening included a tour with designer Jack Celli of Greenpark Homes, as well as wine tasting lessons from Krystina Roman of Rosewood Estates in Beamsville/Niagara, and delicious food and cooking instruction from Steve Gonzalez of Toronto’s Valdez (and Top Chef Canada – Season 1). Laura was our happy host for the evening, and design and food bloggers mingled and ate in a $4 million home. Not bad for a Monday night, right?
The Vaughan showhome is far…in the country…north of Woodbridge…almost in Barrie? Joking…it’s just north of Woodbridge, but it’s definitely in the countryside (and just over an hour drive from Waterloo). The massive showhome is surrounded by other massive homes and a beautiful landscape. The house is full of white so, naturally, I went a overboard with the photos. Black and gold are accent colours throughout the house.
first floor hallway
details in the dining room – moulding &Â art
main floor family room – beside the kitchen
open concept kitchen
white bathroom ensuite – 2nd floor
the elevator (yes, an elevator!)
substantial doors throughout the home
high ceilings & crown moulding
Greenpark‘s Director of design – Jack Celli – in the master bathroom
Rosewood wines: Riesling, Semillon, Mead (honey wine)
chef Steve Gonzales in the kitchen (cooking up things like ceviche, arepa, & chorizo…yum!)
Danica (Country Chic Renovator) & me with our Rosewood honey
beautiful view from the lanai
hakwood floors & oversized armchairs in the library
winged art sculptures
one of the 2nd floor bedrooms with ensuite
master bathroom (the size of a football field – well, almost)
his & her toilet rooms in the master bathroom
door & floor details
the runway room
half a dozen switches in the master bathroom
While the house is much too fancy for my taste, it has a good layout, it’s really airy, and the lanai off of the kitchen & family rooms is a beautiful space that can be used year-round. I also quickly noticed – and liked – how substantial the doors, moulding, and trim was throughout the house.
I loved the Hakwood flooring throughout the house. My favourite room in the house was the library – it is currently set up with four large comfy chairs and shelves of vases and other interesting objects. If I lived there, I’d obviously fill those shelves with books. The room has good light from a large window, it’s near off the main foyer and living rooms, and it has a mini-kitchen beside it. How handy.
So, are you interested in this big ticket item? Have other prizes caught your eye? Have you bought your ticket?
Thanks to Laura Z. for being such a wonderful host and event coordinator.
Photos by Jordana. Additional photos here.
Place des Vosges in Le Marais is one of my most favourite places in all of Paris. It’s beautifully rosy and completely symmetrical. The archways are lovely to walk under and the centre courtyard is the perfect place for throwing a frisbee (not me, but I’ve seen others do it!), lounging around, and taking a break from the noise of the city. It is the oldest planned square in the city and it has a long and interesting history (going back to 1604!) that included several name changes (Place Royale to Place des Vosges and back again). At one point it was simply a lawn for hosting duels. People like Cardinal Richelieu (French prime minister) and Victor Hugo (author) lived in the apartments of Place des Vosges (during various centuries). Like all of Paris, this place has a story to tell!
Place des Vosges, Paris, photos by Jordana
Happy Friday everyone! Have a wonderful weekend!
I feel so lucky to have spent so much time in Paris in the last decade. I’ve gotten to know some of the areas quite well, I’ve seen a lot of the major tourist attractions, and I now love to just wander the city. The store windows are inspiring, the architecture is unbelievable, and there is always always always something exciting going on in the city!
This post highlights some of the small(er than the Eiffel Tower) design details I captured in Paris.
1. This crazy cool light fixture that was in the Grand Palais gift shop.
2. Angelina’s was a new stop for me this year. My friends and I stopped in for a rich hot chocolate and dessert. The interior was gorgeous and we had a really happy and friendly waitress. In between sips of hot chocolate, I looked up and noticed that Angelina’s has the same light fixtures as me!
3. More amazing chandeliers were to be found at the Marché aux Puces. Amazing. There were hundreds (or thousands?) of crystal chandeliers around the market stalls and they were all brilliantly shiny. Oh man. So lovely.
4. Lighting wasn’t the only thing that caught my eye. I am fascinated by Paris architecture. This wall and window and clover-detailed window grate was on a wall behind the Sacre Coeur. While everyone else was staring at the magnificent cathedral, I was taking photos of lesser-known walls around Montmartre. Can you imagine lifting and laying each one of those massive stones?
5. This little detail was on a rather simple building in St. Germain (on Rue Cherche Midi). It was just sitting up there over the doorway. Love the bow.
6. I think this next simple white door and wall was around Place des Vosges in Le Marais. I like that all the straight lines are broken up by a round window.
7. I only just noticed that above the face is “J’Ă©coute” (I listen). This was also above an entry way and I am impressed by all the details…look at those flowers. How, how, how did people do this kind of thing centuries ago?
8. The Sacre Coeur. Okay – so I lied in one of the above comments. Just like everyone who visits Montmartre, I stared at the Sacre Coeur. It’s too incredible. And very white. It’s made of self-cleaning stone.
9. My friends and I attended Sunday mass at St. Sulpice. It was beautiful. No surprise, right? The organ concert after mass was incredible. Did the Da Vinci code mention the organ?
10. A few bridges in Paris are getting filled up with padlocks-of-love, but I think Pont des Arts definitely has the most! I hope the bridge can handle the weight of them all.
And there you have it – another Paris update. See more here.