armchair traveller
I will be appearing on the first show of the season of Steven & Chris today at 2:00pm EST on CBC. Please tune in if you can! We’re featuring a fun little decorating project that I worked on with homeowner Susan Taylor. It was so easy to pull together and makes a huge difference in her home.
Susan lives in a brand spanking new townhouse that has a landing space part way up to the second floor. The space is about 7’ wide by 8.5’ deep with a ceiling height of just over 9’.
Susan hadn’t done anything with the space and mentioned to me that she had thought of using it to display her many finds from years of travel in the East. I jumped on the idea and could immediately imagine a cozy little ‘travel nook’ that would display her collection of elephant figures that were currently all around the house, other odds and sods picked up from her travels and related books and photo albums.
The first thing we did was line the back wall with a bookcase that ran the width of the space. Running it from one wall to the other gives it that built-in look. This piece from IKEA is extra tall which is important, and at $279, it fit not only the space but the budget. Here it is if you’re interested. The rug is also from IKEA and it was my absolute favourite at the store because of it’s lovely muted look - much more authentic than many rugs of it’s kind. I was so glad it fit! It’s called Kattrup and at $229 it’s a steal. As I said on the show, we could have used a rug that delineated the living space and left the traffic area bare - in some ways that might have been more practical - but this rug is a real beauty and at full size gives the space the feeling of being a real “room”. Wait ‘till you see the transformation……
The other large pieces we put in were all from Pier 1, which of course has built a business on this global look at a great price. The chair we chose is nice and sturdy but covered in a natural banana leaf weave. The little tulip shaped table was just the right size for a lamp and to hold a coffee. And the red ottoman is a handy, occasional piece that will work anywhere and gave that perfect hit of colour.
Almost everything else is Susan’s - of course! - including the hand carved floor lamp she carted back from India in pieces and had never put together. Here she is on my left and Melissa Coghlan, my segment producer from S&C on my right. The landing really came together as we envisioned and hopefully Susan can use it to plan many more adventures in future!
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