Style & Decor Blog

Waterford Wedgwood had a pretty spectacular table vignette at their booth at the Canadian Gift & Tableware Association show this summer.

With eight Louis Ghost chairs set around a table that’s swathed in rouched, silky linens, the effect is totally ethereal, and quite dreamy.

Each place setting represented a different designer’s contributions to the Waterford Wedgwood collection, including this subtle and sophisticated arrangement of Jasper Conran’s Tulle platinum-band bone china.

Love the signature Jasper Conran teacup handle - definitely one of the most important features to consider when selecting a china pattern. Seriously!

In case you missed it… Here’s my last gig on CityLine.

Click HERE to watch!

On CityLine tomorrow morning, I’ll be showing host Tracy Moore how to fold a napkin to create a pretty pocket for cutlery. Here are the step-by-step instructions!

Shot on my Flip Video MinoHD video camera!

A confirmed sucker for stylish window displays, I’ve come to expect a lot from William Ashley, downtown Toronto’s destination for glam tableware. But I was hardly prepared for this…

Yep. That’s an actual Tesla Roadster – the world’s only 100% electric sports car – perched on top of just four Wedgwood teacups outside Ashley’s flagship location on Bloor Street.

Although we often think of it as being delicate and dainty, bone china is actually the hardest and most durable ceramic, and stronger than any other dinnerware on the market. Strong enough to…well…withstand this…

Why an electric car, you ask? Well, if you consider the longevity of quality bone china, and amortize the cost of the initial purchase over the years (and even generations!) of use you’ll get out of them, they’re actually quite a “green” product. I think that’s something we tend to forget when considering how environmentally-responsible a purchase is – how long will we be able to enjoy it before it ends up on the landfill?

Check out William Ashley’s “Tesla On Teacups” until September 21st at William Ashley China, 55 Bloor Street West, Toronto.

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When I was browsing the aisles of Copenhagen’s Illums Bolighus – hands-down the most impressive store I’ve ever been in…EVER – I came across these impossibly pretty little fine bone china bowls. I was running low on Danish Krone at the time (it tends to happen in the land of the $6 coffee), and I couldn’t put my finger on where, but I was sure I’d seen them somewhere much closer to home…

Only about 3.5″ high, “Gold Dots” designed by great Dane Rikke Jakobsen, stood out from the rest of the amazing offerings at Illums as a super-sweet “small”.

Check out the pretty “Silver Abstract” design, too… Stunning!

So dainty, but such captivating detail in the metallic designs… You can understand my dilemma - to buy, or to wait until I got home to find out if it is indeed available in my home and native land?

Luckily, Rikke Jakobsen fine bone china is indeed available right here in the Big Smoke – just pop down to the 7,000 square-foot Shop at the Art Gallery of Ontario for a dose of these Danish delights!

Art Gallery of Ontario, 877-225-4246; Toronto, 416-979-6660

Woo-hoo!

I’ve done pre-taped segments for CityLine before (butler boot-camp, anyone?), but I’m making my live studio debut later this month! 

I’ll be joining STYLE AT HOME’s Contributing Decorating Editor, Kimberley Seldon, on the show, airing at 10AM on Tuesday, July 28, to dish on some Scandinavian table settings – all the rage this summer, as seen in my “Table Style” column in the August issue, on stands now!

I’m so excited to meet Tracy Moore, as I haven’t had the chance to work with her yet. Yippee!

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Poolside parties… Backyard barbeques… Relaxed, easy, breezy entertaining is what summer’s all about. I’m as big a fan of the casual ‘que as the next guy (after six months of winter, who isn’t?), but I also love adding a splash of the unexpected to that informal atmos to shake things up a bit.

Circ’s porcelain ice buckets offer a refined take on the cheap n’ cheerful galvanized pail. A totally refreshing twist on that summer serving staple, it’s a cool and contemporary way to keep your bevvies… Well, cool.

Add these brilliant white buckets to your shopping list as an al fresco entertaining essential!

Large, $52

Small, $32

Available at: Urban Barn

Image by Splash News

With a fashion sense best described as eccentric, it’s no surprise that pop princess Lady Gaga’s latest accessory is… A fabulously frumpy china tea cup and saucer.

Whether she’s out clubbing, lunching or shopping, whenever the “Just Dance” chanteuse has been snapped by the ever-present paparazzi recently, she’s had the staggeringly incongruous item grasped firmly in hand. 

The reason she prizes her little purple teacup is actually quite sweet, and something I think we can all relate to. In an interview with the UK Sun, the superstar says she used to enjoy tea with her mother every day out of china tea cups, and by continuing to do so, it helps her feel at home no matter where she finds herself on her current tour.

“I’ve made a habit of drinking out of china because it makes me feel grounded,” she tells reporters. “I don’t think it’s a good lifestyle to always be eating and drinking out of paper. It’s very wasteful.”

Cute, and you’ve gotta give props to her environmental awareness!

Should you find yourself wanting to jump aboard the Gaga trendwagon, might I suggest the following florid purple florals… 

I’ve been doing a lot of antique hunting lately, and have fallen hard for antique embroidered table linens. There’s something about a stately monogram that elevates an already stylishly-set dining table to epic levels of elegance. 

That’s why I decided it was time to splurge for my very own, old-school, hotel chic, crisp white monogrammed napkins. But where to find them?

Monogrammes, in the historic downtown of Port Hope, Ont., is renowned for custom monogramming (even home retail giants like Elte and Ginger’s Bath employ their services for custom embroidery), stitching lovely letters onto everything from table linens to cushions to handbags. 

Above, you’ll see some of the samples they prepared for me in my hunt for the perfect monogrammed napkins… I’m so cited! Such an amazing assortment of styles… Which one do you think should I choose? I think I’ve made up my mind, but want to hear your thoughts first…

Embroidered hotel napkins, $36 per set of four (What a steal!!!)

Monogrammes, 14 Ontario St., Port Hope, Ont.; 866-239-9967

Here’s another restaurant makeover that really rocked my socks.

The recent $750,000 refresh of Yorkville’s iconic Bloor Street Diner brought the 28-year-old eatery into full-on cool and contemporary territory, without sacrificing the casual comfort (and surprisingly affordable menu) that originally put it on the map. And the Cobb salad’s just as tremendous as it always was.

I was lunching at the Diner last week, and had the chance to chat with Sebastien Centner, director of Eatertainment — the firm that operates the Diner in addition to some of Toronto’s most celebrated (and celebrity-frequented!) restaurants, including the Panorama Lounge. Sebastien kindly shared the “before” shots, knowing that I absolutely luuuuurve a tasty transformation!

Here’s the Dining Room BEFORE the makeover… An late-’90s mix of American diner and French brasserie…

… And after!

Designed by Mehran Foroughi, the ceiling is solid teak panelling, elegantly lit by 40 spectacular conical pendants. The real standout for me is the textured white wall that lends the dining room a Euro-chic wine cellar vibe.

And I’m a sucker for an achromatic approach done well, which is certainly the case here. “We didn’t want the renovation to look dated in five years,” says Sebastien of the timeless black-and-white scheme (with a few hits of rich bordeaux, primarily in the cafe and billiards areas).

Congrats, and bon appetit! 

Bloor Street Diner, Manulife Centre, 55 Bloor St. W. (Bay & Bloor), Toronto, 416-928-3105