Scott Frances

Photographer Scott Frances is one talented man! I stumbled upon his website recently and realised that I have been enjoying and gawking over his work for many years through design magazines and designers' websites.  I feel like I have experienced each and every one of the interiors he shoots through his photographs and the fantastic light and feeling he manages to capture. There is an incredible elegance and simplicity to his photographs that have me hooked.  With a beautiful combination of architecture, interiors, details and landscapes, Scott's photos really have something for everyone.  I hope you enjoy the selection and that it helps to inspire your day as it has mine!

All Photos courtesy of Scott Frances Photography

Before & After : Bathroom

As you know we moved to Manhattan about seven months ago from London.  We weren't really ready to leave London, but when my husband's company offered us the opportunity to live in New York how could we say no?  The offer was kind of a shock as we were settling in to life in the UK and had even  just purchased a 600 square foot apartment in North London (Tufnell Park to be exact) in July 2010. 

With me being a designer, and my husband being great at DIY (I mean AMAZING!), we were looking for a project.  Not only did we think that it would be a good way to increase the value of our investment, but neither of us could picture moving into a perfectly renovated apartment - we wanted to put our own stamp on it.  We made an appointment with the estate agent to go and look at an apartment and when we arrived realised that we were not seeing the one we thought. The agent explained that the one we originally wanted to see was no longer available, however this one was so why don't we take a look.  At first we laughed our way around - the apartment looked like something out of the 80's with bad kitchen cabinets and bathroom tiles, vinyl faux tile and wood flooring, surface-mounted cabling running all over, and a retro infrared multi-room stereo system. With all that being ridiculed, the more we walked around the more we realized that it was perfect! 8 weeks later we were the proud first-time apartment owners and had a big project on our hands.

Over the next couple of weeks I will take you through our renovation starting toady with the bathroom!  As you can see from the images below the bathroom was in need of a serious facelift! The tiles were out-dated, the room wasn't well organised and felt really dark and tiny, and with very high ceilings in such a small room, it just felt like the proportions were all wrong.  We wanted to make the room feel larger, brighter and more modern.

As neither of us really take baths we decided to remove the bath and install a walk-in shower instead. This really helped to make the room feel much larger as it opened up the floor space.  We also wanted to make the scale of the room feel more proportioned so lowered the ceiling about 30cm - this gave us space to recess the extractor vent and LED lighting which added a lot of light and brightness to the space. We installed large white gloss subway tiles 3/4 way up two walls and slate tiles (both from Fired Earth) for the flooring to keep the material palette very simple.  The paint on the other two walls and above the tiles was a gloss Slate III from Paint & Paper Library, a colour I used on several clients projects and was dying to have in my own house. We kept the fittings very modern and minimal with chrome and white porcelain.  On the whole the room turned out exactly as we wanted, and with the mirrored cabinet above the sink we even got some much needed storage!

Welcome to the 2012 Homies

Well, being relatively new to blogging I am learning more and more each day about this wonderful creative world, and how everyone works together.  Canoe Design has been nominated by the amazing Apartment Therapy community for their Homies Award 2012 in the category of Best Home Design Blog.   I cannot tell you how this has left me completely speechless.  THANK YOU!

So, if you have a moment, here is how it goes - visit Apartment Therapy here to sign in and cast your vote (preferably for Canoe Design).  Voting will end on March 2nd, and although I am happy for all the votes, I really am so happy to be considered and to be in the company of so many amazing bloggers - including Emma from The Marion House Book where I visited today.

Inspired By

Safari! Well, I am so excited, I can hardly contain myself! In just under two weeks we are heading to South Africa for a holiday I have been looking forward to for ages now! My mother was born in Johannesburg and has not been back in over 30 years.  As she just had a milestone birthday (mom, don't worry, I won't reveal how old you are!!) we thought that a great way to celebrate would be to head back to where it all began. My brother and I (and our significant others) have never been, so it is sure to be a trip we will all remember. Although I am very much looking forward to Joburg and the Cape, it is the time we are spending in the game reserve that I am most excited about.  I have been thinking A LOT about out time on safari lately and thought I would share some fun and stunning inspired images with you.

A Well Travelled Woman

Ralph Lauren

Maison & Demeure

Pinterest

Apartment Therapy

Guest Post

I am also so happy to announce that today I am with Emma at The Marion House Book talking about my favorite things! Please head over for a look!

Quintessentially the Oscars

Tomorrow night is the big one, and as I mentioned here, I love awards season.  With the Academy Awards starting in the afternoon, I can hardly contain myself - all the red carpet glamour, Billy Crystal back as host and enough Hollywood glitz to make your eyes hurt!  For the few years we were in London I missed watching and all the excitement of the live show, so I feel this is an even more special year for me this time.  In honour of Oscar, and the great parties I am sure we are all hosting tomorrow night, here are some yummy treats, decorations and party ideas to go with this gold night! What have you got planned? Are any of you hosting parties of your own? 

Pinterest

I love the palette of this table - black, white and gold - very Hollywood, very chic! And to customize people's drinks, you can do as the stars do down the red carpet; have a mini bottle of bubbly with a straw and a personal label. Not too keen on the champers out of a straw, but love the label idea!

Celebrations at Home

Twig & Thistle have some amazing make-your-own party templates available for download ont their website. I love the idea of everyone having their own personal oscar ballot to fill out before the ceremony begins. And what movie party would be complete without a drink (with your own personal tag) and your own personal bag of popcorn?

Twig & Thistle

Twig & Thistle

What party would be complete without Oscar's presence? Well click here to see how to make these amazing cookie statues - they look amazing!

Bakerella

If you aren't in the mood to bake, there are several websites that will deliver delectable Academy Award worth treats right to your door.  My favourite is Eleni's where their cookie and cupcake categories include Best Actor/Actress, Best Picture and Hollywood Quotes.

Eleni's

Furniture Fridays

Today I invite you all to join me in welcoming Lysann from Pure Living Interiors for Furniture Fridays! Based in Germany, Lysann has a wonderful eye for design and always features unique and beautifully  simple interiors on her blog.  Being relatively new to the blog world (like me), I think Lysann brings a fresh look and enthusiasm to her posts, and PLI has become a daily read of mine.  I am truly excited at her selection of 'favorite furniture piece' as it is one I covet (love the combination of leather and steel). Thank you Lysann for your great post and I highly recommend everyone to stop by and enjoy her site.

I was very excited, when Anna asked me if I'd like to guest post for her Fridays series. I'm following her truely inspiring blog since nearly the beginning and so it was just an honor to get invited. Thank you, Anna.

Her brief was to pick my favourite piece of furniture, which wasn't easy, as there are quite a few I really adore. But as a young love is always extra sweet, I thought it would be a nice idea to share the latest one I fell in love with. Some weeks ago I visited the 'Trendset' Fair in Munich, Germany and stumbled upon two beautiful brown leather eye-candies - an upholstered bench as well as a round coffee table. Aside from the brown ones recently I also found the same bench with a woven leather seat in dark brown, which is very gorgeous, too. I love the foldable bases, which means you can easily move the bench around your home - from being a stool in your hall next to the front door to a bench in front of your bed, to replacing your desk chair or becoming an extra seat for guests.  The first feature that caught my eye was definitly the vintage look of the leather. And did you spot the hand stitching details on the seats as well as at the edge of the table top? It looks just wonderful, doesn't it? For sure it makes these outstanding pieces. 

Lysann x

Urban Barn

Hübsch A/S

Janson Goldstein

The work of Architecture and Interiors firm Janson Goldstein is one I have been keeping my eye on for quite some time.  They are a New York based company that approaches each project with an all encompassing design view - each element contributes to the whole.  The use of refined materials (both in architecture and interiors), elegant colour palettes and a wonderful mixture of custom designed pieces with some more unique items, gives their interiors a really comfortable and individualised look.  You can see the client's taste and lifestyles coming through in each of their projects.  With projects ranging from the very modern to the rustic, I feel that Janson Goldstein really can tackle anything that comes their way in a tasteful and refined manner - just look at the elegance of the library below!

All photos courtesy of Janson Goldstein LLP

PS - Apologies to all about the flip flop these last couple of days on the blog design. I am trying out some new things (and thinking about what I learnt in yesterdays Alt Summit class) and so I appreciate your patience.  Any thoughts and recommendations on the layout and design are appreciated - after all you are what make me succeed! Have a great Thursday all!

Chocolate Heaven

I was perusing one of my favorite inspiration blogs Bjorn's Randoms and came across a delicious post on the Godiva store in Tokyo's Harajuko district. Although the store was complete a couple of years ago it is just too good to not write about. Designed by the local firm Wonderwall, the shop features melting chocolate walls, ceilings and a much more playful approach with this 'themed' flagship than the more traditional shops the brand is known for.  I don't know about you, but the combination of sleek marble, chrome and chocolate make this a design success good enough to eat! Enjoy the treat...

All Photos courtesy of Wonderwall

Guest Post - Design Shuffle

My Inspired By post yesterday was not only inspired by the colour and pattern of David Hicks, but I thought that it would be a good segway into todays guest post from Design Shuffle.  I am happy to welcome this collaborative opportunity and hope you all enjoy this treat of "Colour in Design".

Hi, I'm Susi, a blogger for Design Shuffle, a wonderful site that brings together designers and design lovers from around the world to showcase their projects and find inspiration. I'm so excited to be visiting Canoe Design today. I loved Anna's post on Diane von Furstenberg's colorful apartment and was inspired to do my eye candy guest post about color in décor. Hope you enjoy the interior design eye candy!

 
Jennifer Brouwer Design

The tomato red of this buffet table is dramatic in a predominately black and white room.

   

Using contrasting colors gives this living room and dining room a synergy between the two areas. I love the turquoise chairs against the backdrop of the yellow abstract painting.

   

The bright green upholstery on the banquette and chair seats is a nice contrast to the greys and white of the city view beyond the window.

   

This beautiful living room has a more transitional traditional feel to it that works best with more subdued colors. Adding grey as an undertone to greens and blues softens the color.

   

Color in décor can be bright spots as well as bold swaths of color. I love the deep fuchsia accents and blue lamps against the soft grey in this bedroom design.

   

Colorful décor doesn't stop with the furniture and decorative objects. This colorful patchwork carpet is offset by the grey sectional and rose accent chair.

   

This intensely colorful living room design was designed by Marjorie Skouras. Deeply hued walls set a dramatic backdrop for colorful furnishings and lighting. The room would feel very different with 

neutral ways. 

   

These colorful and patterned accessories remind me of Anna's post on DVF's NYC apartment above the High Line. Bold colors and patterns can be mixed for a chic bohemian look—lovely decorating ideas that could be used in just about any outdoor living space. 

Images 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 What's your favorite bold color?