Hotel to Home: Palazzo Dama, Italy

Today, we’re entering the 5-star luxury hotel called the Palazzo Dama in Rome, Italy. I know, I know, it’s tough to be surrounded by such luxury. Let’s try our best, shall we?

The Palazzo Dama is a stunning property…

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Gorgeous, right? It’s stunning on the inside, too. Just look at these rooms!

Since I’ve featured so many bedrooms and living spaces since I began this Hotel to Home series, I thought it might be nice to feature a new space. As such, I’ve decided that we should head into one of Palazzo Dama’s marble-filled bathrooms.

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Here’s my how-to-do-it-home recreation:

White-Cabana-inspired-by-Palazzo-Dama

mirror, sink, towels, tiles, faucet, shower head, small mirror, sconce, toiletries

Design: Free Standing Bathtubs

I’m far off from my next bathroom renovation, but that won’t stop me from scouring the interweb in search of inspiration. Of late, I’ve had my eye on free-standing tubs, and this round-up – and their surroundings – are simply beautiful.

Gachot-Studios-bathtub

photo by Brittany Ambridge, interior design by Gachot Studios

stylowi_pl_wnetrza_588485

via Stylowl

terri-shannons-bathroom

designed by Jatana Interiors

tub-chatelaine

via Chatelaine

free-standing-tub

via Laura Quattro

bathrooms-modern-glamour

via Style at Home

victora-albert-free-standing-tub

The Crawford Hotel via Victoria & Albert

Marketplace: Valentine’s Day Gift Guide

This Valentine’s Day, I’m thinking hearts, hearts, and more hearts are the way to go. I’ve never been a major Valentine’s Day fan as I think love – and hearts – should be spread around generously throughout the year, so considering this, I think it’s as good a time as any to share some lovely items here (yes, even though we haven’t even yet entered February).

tictactoe_bw_imgJonathan Adler tic tac toe set, $98

modern-neon-letter-heart-a-jonathan-adlerJonathan Adler neon heart lamp, $95

vase-golden-heart-pep-reverterSister Clara vase special edition golden heart, designed by Pepa Reverter, $410, 1st Dibs

heart-slippers-Chapters-Indigofaux suede slippers, $40

cucinapro-heart-shaped-waffle-makerCucinaPro heart waffle maker, $58

bkr-heart-water-bottlebkr water bottle, $49.95

heart-coffee-tableheart coffee table, $2300, 1st Dibs

family-timeline-heart-Mintedfamily time line by Aubrey Bonneau, from $24, Minted

il_570xN.737812475_kldmheart pillow cover, $43, Etsy

Charmajesty-pj-setpjs, $185, Charmajesty (oh, how I love this set!)

hdc0080_color.whtcl_view.1fractured heart marble, $795, Kelly Wearstler

Okay, okay, for all you diamond lovers out there, here’s one exceptional piece to end this post:

diamond-heart-necklace-10-carat10.14 carat heart shaped diamond pendant, $785,000, 1st Dibs

Real Estate: Multi-Million Dollar Canadian Homes

The latest issue of Toronto Life published another article about Toronto’s crazy real estate game. This time, the article was focused on a section of Forest Hill where home owners/developers/architects are basically one-upping neighbours/competitors and building monstrosities that may or may not fit in with the Forest Hill aesthetic (I guess it depends on who’s judging). The article honestly made me laugh out loud. Toronto real estate is ridiculous, and it blows my mind that a $3.25 million house comes with only 1 garage (for example). It also seems unbelievable that $1.5 million houses are torn down for new builds. Or, even when they’re not torn down, they require unbelievable amounts of money to bring them up-to-date.

The article – and my ongoing fascination with real estate – pushed me to browse the Toronto real estate listings. Here are some of the pricey properties that caught my attention.

500 Wellingston-Toronto 500 Wellingston-Toronto-2

500 Wellington St. PH1001, Toronto, $7.9 million

88 Davenport-Toronto-1 88 Davenport-Toronto-4 88 Davenport-Toronto-3 88 Davenport-Toronto-2 88 Davenport-Toronto-5

88 Davenport Rd. #2401, Toronto, $8.988 million

Glen Rd Toronto -4 Glen Rd Toronto -2 Glen Rd Toronto -5 Glen Rd Toronto -3 Glen Rd Toronto -1

100 Glen Rd., Toronto, $9.5 million

50 Yorkville-Toronto-3 50 Yorkville-Toronto-5 50 Yorkville-Toronto-1 50 Yorkville-Toronto-2 50 Yorkville-Toronto-4 50 Yorkville-Toronto-6

50 Yorkville Ave., Toronto SP 1, $11.9 million

50 Yorkville-2402-4 50 Yorkville-2402-3 50 Yorkville-2402-1 50 Yorkville-2402-2

50 Yorkville Ave., Toronto #2402, $12.995 million

118 Yorkville-901-5 118 Yorkville-901-3 118 Yorkville-901-2 118 Yorkville-901-1

118 Yorkville Ave., Toronto, PH901, $18.9 million

I also expanded my search to all of Canada to see what $10+ million dollar properties looked like elsewhere. Here’s a sample:

650 lowry Lane-N Vancouver-1 650 lowry Lane-N Vancouver-2

650 Lowry Ln., North Vancouver, $10,988,800

2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-1 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-2 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-3 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-4

2156 SW Marine Dr., Vancouver, $11.9 million

13283 56th ave-surrey-5 13283 56th ave-surrey-6 13283 56th ave-surrey-7 13283 56th ave-surrey-3 13283 56th ave-surrey-1 13283 56th ave-surrey-2 13283 56th ave-surrey-4

13283 56th Ave., Surrey, $12.888 million

1116 Highland place West Vancouver 3 1116 Highland place West Vancouver 2 1116 Highland place West Vancouver 1

1116 Highland Place, West Vancouver, $19.7 million

Image2

Magog, Quebec, $25 million (click the link – it’s basically a castle)

And, now, for something a little closer to home…this gem in Kitchener, Ontario is full of white, and it seems like a major deal at only $2.5 million!

12 Westgate-Kitchener-1 12 Westgate-Kitchener-2 12 Westgate-Kitchener-4 12 Westgate-Kitchener-7 12 Westgate-Kitchener-5 12 Westgate-Kitchener-8 12 Westgate-Kitchener-6

12 Westgate Walk, Kitchener, $2.5 million

What was that about “if I had a million dollars”? Seems like it can’t buy a whole heck of a lot in Toronto (besides Kraft Dinner, naturally).