{ Archive for the ‘Kitchen & Bath’ Category }

create your own digital floorplans

picture 2 create your own digital floorplansIn the past couple of years, I’ve moved several times from apartment to apartment, and each time, I’m faced with the task of taking a printout of the floorplan and trying to arrange my furniture with hand-drawn replicas within the tiny borders (neither pretty nor accurate, might I add). As I start preparing to move into a larger space come May, I’ve also started hoping I can find an easier way to plan the layout of the space.

My wishes were not made in vain, because I found floorplanner.com, a fab website that allows you to digitally create your own floorplans. What’s the best part about the site? It’s free!

The site offers a ton of cool features, so here’s the gist: sign up for a free account and start building. Drop-down menus for room selection and objects make it easy to remember what needs to be considered for each space. Drag room objects onto the layout and size them to the scale of the room. Everything is virtually customizable and you can switch between 2D (shown above) and 3D to view. The options are endless. Having a big party in your backyard? The site has objects that let you plan for table arrangement and centrepieces, and garden objects that may obstruct views and groundspace.

With the free version, you can create up to one house, but there’s an upgrade available for $28 US that lets you build up to 5 houses. If you’re in the professional field, whether it be a designer or contractor, floorplanner.com has specialized accounts to cater to your business.

What’s not to love?

Have a neat gadget or tech accessory you`d like me to feature? Shoot me an e-mail at
techstyle@styleathome.com

williams-sonoma: the great cupcake pan

picture 13 williams sonoma: the great cupcake panOne of the great things about Facebook, besides reconnecting with long lost friends (and maybe a few you`d rather have remained estranged from), is being able to check out your friends` latest and greatest pictures. Thanks to Facebook, I`m able to stay in touch with friends in a way that we just didn`t seem to have time for before the rise of social networking. I can get instant updates on their travel plans, see every angle of their newborn`s smile and check out what they were up to on the weekend. It`s great fun and while nothing replaces the necessity of face-to-face contact over drinks, it`s a pretty decent alternative when you`re busy. Anyhow … all of this is by way of explanation for how I stumbled upon this fab new find! Whilst snooping, I mean … casually perusing a friend`s photos of a baby shower she`d recently attended, I spied the loveliest, cupcake-shaped cake adorning the buffet table. Love at first sight! Where, oh where did she get the pan to make this, I wondered? But I wondered only momentarily because, in perfect Facebook fashion, everything I needed to know was right there in the comments section with a list of retailers for curious gals like myself. So I hunted it down at Williams-Sonoma and now I`m sharing it with you. Drum roll, please! I give you … The Great Cupcake Pan!

Available at: Williams-Sonoma
Price: $36

simple human sensor soap pump

simple human border simple human sensor soap pumpEvery now and then, you find a product that you never knew you needed. And then suddenly, there it is, in all its glory and you wonder how you ever lived without it. That`s sort of how I feel about Simple Human`s sensor soap pump. We`ve all used sensor pumps in public washrooms but it never occurred to me how brilliant it would be to have one at home. Well, now that I`ve used this, I realize just how great it is. Particularly in the kitchen, this soap pump makes a lot of sense. Let`s say you`re working with raw meat and you need to wash up frequently. With this pump, you don`t need to touch a soap dispenser with your contaminated hands. Just place your hand underneath the sensor and voila! Just enough soap comes out for you to wash up. So simple, so smart.

Available at: Home Outfitters or visit simplehuman.com for more information
Price: $49.99

muji wall-mounted cd player

l 74842 muji wall mounted cd player

Since I live in a 500 sq. ft. apartment, I’m always on the lookout for ways to save space. While I love my mp3 players and cranking out tunes from my iMac, sometimes I need to get things a little louder (which I’m sure my neighbours love).

Both of these reasons are why I adore this wall-mounted CD player by Muji. It takes up no horizontal space, and would look super sleek and stylish in any area of the home (think kitchen, where counter space is sacred). The function buttons are on the top of the player and you simply tug the power cord to turn it on and off.

Visit the MoMa Store to purchase, and start spinning your favourite jams!

Price: $178 US

pure furniture design by ami mckay

senna1 pure furniture design by ami mckay
Senna Loveseat, Water Collection, approx. $4,650

Love the furniture designs by Vancouver-based designer Ami McKay — not only are they fabulously chic, they’re super natural to boot!

They’re built in Canada, will last you a lifetime and look so good they’re sure to make you look amazing sitting on them, too, don’t you think?

The following materials are why the pieces boast such amazing green credentials:

  • biodegradable, natural latex rubber
  • FSC-certified hardwood frames
  • organic cotton batting
  • jute and latex webbing
  • certified wool fabrics that are coloured with organic dyes
  • non-VOC finishes
  • water-based, non-toxic glues

    • cyrilla pure furniture design by ami mckay
    Cyrilla Arm Chair, Fire Collection, approx. $1,780

    Available at: www.purebyamimckay.com

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

green & black’s organic chocolate fondue

fondue green & blacks organic chocolate fondue

A couple of posts back, I mentioned Green & Black’s Ginger bar, which I first encountered a few years ago on a trip to Ireland. I’ve been in love with the company’s organic chocolate since then. It’s the perfect blend of flavour and values — what’s not to like??

Whether or not you’re going to be celebrating Valentine’s Day this year, this fondue recipe is sheer comfort in a bowl on a cold day, so enjoy!

Green & Black`s Amaretto-Almond Fondue

1 100 gr (3.5 oz) Green & Black`s Milk Chocolate and Almond bar
1/8 cup plus 1 tbsp water
2 tbsp (1 oz) Amaretto

conventional method

Break up the chocolate and put in a saucepan with the water. Over low heat stir with a small wire whisk until ingredients are smooth and combined. Add the amaretto and stir. If the resulting sauce is too thick, add a few drops of water and whisk to blend. Serve with desired fruit and nuts. If fondue becomes cool and thick, microwave for 10 seconds and stir, repeat if necessary.

microwave

Break up the chocolate and put in a plastic bowl with the water. Give the mixture of ingredients 10-20 second bursts in the microwave, whisking in between. Do this until blended and warm.

Suggested dippables: Strawberries, peach slices, grapes and almonds.

Serves 2 to 3

Green & Black’s Chocolate Bars available at: Sobey’s, Metro, Loblaws, Shopper’s Drug Mart

Price: approx. $3.89

Recipe courtesy of Green & Black`s Organic Valentine`s Day 2009

The last winner of a Go Green Works Starter Kit, including the following products, is Stacey Dempsey of Duncan, B.C.! (To see the original post announcing the contest, click here.)

  • Green Works Dishwashing Liquid, Green Works Natural All-Purpose Cleaner, Green Works Natural Glass & Surface Cleaner, Green Works Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner, Green Works Natural Dilutable Cleaner, Green Works Natural Bathroom Cleaner

If you’d still like to subscribe to my blog, just click this icon: emailfeedicon green & blacks organic chocolate fondue

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

valentine’s day lingerie, candles and chocolate!

eberjey1 valentines day lingerie, candles and chocolate!
With Valentine’s Day coming up, here are some things that will add up to a very romantic — but still natural and green — evening! This sassy O Girl Babydoll from Eberjey is made from organic cotton and comes in spearmint (shown) or pink. Buy it from one of the Canadian retailers that sells Eberjey lingerie (see the site for details) or if you can’t find it at the shops, order it or another O Girl item online.
archipelago1 valentines day lingerie, candles and chocolate! Available at: www.eberjey.com
Price: $57 (US)

Then light up the night with the sweet scent of Archipelago’s Jasmine scented candle. Made of cleaning-burning soy wax, it lasts an incredible 90 hours.
Available at: www.archipelago-usa.com
Price: $29.50 (US)

greenblacks4 valentines day lingerie, candles and chocolate! And savour some delicious Green & Black’s organic chocolate. My favourite is the Ginger bar, with real bits of ginger, but you can get all kinds of other yummy flavours, including Cherry, Espresso and Caramel. You won’t be able to resist them. I know I can’t!
Available at: Sobey’s, Metro, Loblaws, Shopper’s Drug Mart
Price: approx. $3.89

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

green works cleaning kit contest

greenworks green works cleaning kit contest

This is your chance to win a great prize! I’m giving away four Go Green Works Starter Kits, including the following products made from plant-based, biodegradable ingredients, all in a handy big metal bucket (retail value $50).

  • Green Works Dishwashing Liquid
  • Green Works Natural All-Purpose Cleaner
  • Green Works Natural Glass & Surface Cleaner
  • Green Works Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner
  • Green Works Natural Dilutable Cleaner
  • Green Works Natural Bathroom Cleaner

This is a super-easy contest. I`m giving away four kits over the next four weeks. All you have to do is be a subscriber to my blog.

If you’re not a subscriber already, sign up to have the Natural Chic blog delivered directly to your e-mail inbox for a chance to win. To do so, just click this icon: emailfeedicon green works cleaning kit contest

I`ll pick one winner a week for the next four weeks. Best of luck!

Open to all residents of Canada, except those in Quebec. Not open to any Transcontinental Media employees, their families, or any other persons with whom they reside.

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email me at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

updating my kitchen backsplash

Happy New Year! I hope each and every one of you enjoyed a wonderful holiday. I know I did. But it never ceases to amaze me how quickly it goes by. It seems like Christmas Eve was just yesterday and now it`s January 5 and I`m back at work. Boy, I hope this winter goes by fast!

So, I don`t know how many of you made new year`s resolutions this year — you know, those dirty little promises we tend to make and break? While personal resolutions are private, we asked the Style at Home staff about their around-the-house resolutions for 2009. You can read about them here.

grayglass border updating my kitchen backsplashMy around-the-house resolution is to finally get around to updating the backsplash in my kitchen. I hate the one that`s there and I dream of something more striking like glass, which can be illuminated beautifully with under cabinetry lighting. I was originally thinking of one-inch by one-inch glass tiles but then I saw this backsplash (pictured here), which is also quite lovely. This is from New York-based Grayglass. Grayglass will custom-make glass backsplashes with coloured and patterned glass, according to their clients` specifications. Ooh! The options! Now I can`t decide what I want to do. But it`s only January; I have time, right?

If you`re thinking of doing a kitchen renovation this year, check out our kitchen section; it`s full of helpful ideas for creating your dream kitchen.

the perfect waffle

img1m1 the perfect waffleIf there’s anything that makes my stomach grumble ravenously with hunger, it’s the thought of waffles. The smell, the taste, the warm feeling — there’s nothing quite as delish as a waffle in the morning.

My fervour for this delightful grilled breakfast food was only magnified when I discovered All-Clad’s Classic Round Waffler. This amazing kitchen gadget uses steam release technology to stop condensation build-up in the grill, thus creating the perfect waffle — tender on the inside and wonderfully crisp on the outside. Best of all, it features an indicator light which lets you know when it has reached its optimal temperature, ideal for Christmas morning when you’re busy making oodles for your family’s breakfast. Bon appetit!

Price: $160

Available at: Williams-Sonoma, williams-sonoma.com (prices on site are shown in US dollars)

(Looking for other gifts to give food-loving friends and family? Check out Style at Home’s 10 best gifts for foodies)

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