10 of my Favourite Posts

Things that Inspire does an annual “Favourite Posts” every December. She said every time she comes across a post she likes, she saves it in a folder. I thought this was such a great idea, I started doing the same thing but it’s June and I was already at 14, so I thought I would do a mid year review instead. So here are my top 10 favourites in no particular order:

1. Since this post is inspired by ‘Things that Inspire, I’m starting off with one of my favourites from her blog. It’s hard to choose one, she writes such extraordinary posts, this one is called Light on Two Sides. Who would have thought there was even such a distinction, but there is!

2. Next is COTE DE TEXAS. You need a fresh beverage when you sit down to read one of her posts because each one is like a magazine. This is a woman that get’s over 100 comments on every post she writes. And it’s easy to see why, the amount of work and research that she pours into every one she writes certainly deserves the amount of attention her blog gets from her readers.

This post is called “Like Mother, Like Daughter”, where she compares. . . well you’ll have to read it to find out.

3. Next is ‘Design Esquire’. It’s called Kitchen Inspiration and I fell instantly in love with this kitchen (below) without upper cabinets. So beautiful and clean looking. Love the windows!

4. This post from Designing Your Dream Home is called ‘Staircase Railing Part One: Iron’. She has a total of 5 posts about railings, everything you need to know about this topic! Here is one of my favourites from her post:

5. And one of my ‘closer to home’ blogger friends Patricia Gray Interior Design wrote a post about ‘DIY Canopy Beds’. With drawings and instructions, she walks us through the process of doing it yourself!

6. Just Imagine, wrote a post about my favourite colour called ‘Yellow’, it is filled with images of this happy colour!

7. Another Vancouver blogger friend, Albarosa from Brillante Home Decor has a wonderful blog all about design and travel in Italy. Here we got to see ‘A House on Como Lake’.

8. A Schematic Life wrote a very cool post with images of the set from the Kevin Costner movie from the 90’s. It’s called Message in a Bottle Set, Even I would approve of this leather sofa!

9. One of my blogger friends Brooke Giannetti from Velvet & Linen has a fabulous blog which covers the everyday life of a luxury interior designer in LA. It was very hard to choose my favourite and I already posted a photo of her dining room here because I loved the way it was styled. This is Brooke’s second home in Channel Islands Harbour and this post is called C Magazine, because it was also featured in the magazine.

10. LaurenFaythe, posted a house that was entirely decorated in yellow, called ‘The Yellow House’.

In my experience, an entire house all done in yellow is too much for most people. Clients that have all yellow homes have called me--not to get rid of it--but to help them choose other colours that coordinate with it. I did think the bathroom above was very luxurious, with full drapery, not something you see very often.

I hope you enjoyed my top 10 posts. Hopefully this will inspire you to start your own lists! There are so many talented bloggers out there, it was very hard to choose only 10.

Related posts:

Colour me Happy's Top 10 Posts (from July - Dec 2009)

When to Buy Leather Furniture

Why is it so hard to choose yellow?

The New Hollywood Regency (A Kelly Wearstler Residence)

10 ways to Save money Now by Creating a Focal Point!

You know when you first tour the home you are about to rent or buy? You see all the flaws, the cabinets you will paint (yesterday!), the fireplace stone (it’s gotta go), or how about comments like “Honey there are no crown moldings!” etc. Besides seeing the ‘potential’ of the space, what you also see is the ugly and the dated and before you move into a house, it all seems larger than life not to mention, very expensive!

Then you move in, your furniture is placed, your artwork is installed and those flaws you originally saw as such ‘deal breakers’ don’t seem so big any more.

Clients have said to me “Well I just got used to it I guess”. But I have another theory and it’s closer to--you simply have something else to look at now that you've moved in.

1. The mirror hides the imperfection in the wall [above].

2. The piece of art above the fireplace becomes the focal point, therefore the mantle or stone doesn’t seem as bad as it did at first.

3. Ever notice how much sexier your dining table or desk looks--even when it’s covered with paper--if it has a stunning vase with flowers in it [below]?

That’s how important it is to have a focal point in each room of the house!

4. If the end table in your living room is the first thing you see when you walk in, (like in this image above) then your lamp needs to be one of the most important pieces in the room!

5. Toss Cushions. You would be surprised at how quickly your sofa can be transformed from dull and dated to interesting and eclectic, with the right toss cushions. It seems obvious but all you have to do is take a piece of fabric (or a matching cushion from your sofa) on your next shopping trip to bring some colour and drama home with you!

6. Bedrooms. The bed is the easiest piece of furniture to keep neat and tidy so if the first thing you see when you walk into your (or your kid’s) bedroom is a messy bookshelf or desk, re-arrange the room. It’s amazing how many clients look at me like I am a genius when I make this suggestion (which of course I am :) when it seems so obvious and straight forward to me. However, I don’t judge, I am just thrilled that you have hired me to help you make your home more beautiful!

Above images from flickr

7. Garage. Why does it need to be white when the walls in this room get the biggest beating? Bikes, lawnmowers, garden equipment, outdoor furniture, etc. Paint it a fabulous colour (which then becomes the focal point) that fills you with happiness every time you see it and read my post about light colours in dark rooms, if you are still not convinced!

8. Bathrooms. I have saved many an immediate (I can’t stand this bathroom!) renovation by selecting the right colour for the cabinets (that relates to the countertop) and the walls (that relates to the tile), but this solution only works if you have the right colour. This is when the design fee of a colour designer really looks like a bargain!

House Beautiful

9. Kitchens. Cabinets if they are dated, should be painted white or cream period [above]. Read my post on white kitchen cabinets and then have your husband read this post so that he can get aligned with you on painting them! It’s possible also to paint the backsplash if you can’t afford to take it out immediately, sometimes my clients have just painted the dated accent tiles individually if required.

10. Crown Moldings. Okay do they really need to be the first thing you install in your living room before it’s even decorated? I know what this is (your husband is so busted!); men get the value of a house, they want a big, beautiful (our friends will be so envious) house, but then decorating it? The budget suddenly dries up. Is this a familiar song? That’s why I just don’t see the point (of making those kinds of--barely noticeable--changes) until at least your living room is decorated! When you are moving, a stylish living room will sell your house way faster than having crown moldings anyway, so take my advice and decorate instead!

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Related posts:

Colour & Condoms

A Light Colour will Never Come to Life in a Dark Room

Selecting your Kitchen or Bath Backsplash; Accent tile or NOT

The Secrets to Selling your House in 2009

Rules are for Breaking by Janice Lindsay

I have secretly always thought that the emphasis placed on the basic ‘rules’ of colour theory were completely overrated.  When I worked at Benjamin Moore at the retail level, [many years ago] and colour theory students would come in looking for help on putting together a ‘complementary’ colour combination or an ‘analogous’ colour combination, it always occurred to me as a useless exercise.   “I guess the way I pick colour is different from other people”,  I thought.

In the colour theory course I teach at Vancouver Community College, I spend exactly 10 minutes in the first class distinguishing these combinations (and that is the end of the lesson).  I have always told my students that it is definitely important to understand the theory behind the combinations; when you are specifying colour, you need to know that blue is the opposite of orange (complementary) and that yellow and orange (analogous) are beside each other on the colour wheel, but I have never once specified colours thinking to myself “I think this is going to be an analogous colour combination”.

Then a couple weeks ago, one of my designer friends in Calgary, Carol Ann told me about a book she wrote about here in her blog.   So I ordered it on-line and it just arrived yesterday!  This book, written by a fellow Canadian, Colour Designer Janice Lindsay, called All About Colour, is fabulous,  (and here it is in writing, so now I can say it out loud :) and  I quote:

“No one, and I mean no one, uses theory to design their colours.  If they do, they are amateurs.  Colour theory explains how colour is organized.  It is excellent for labeling what has been done. It gives us terminology for describing colour palettes.

I might tell you that here we have an analogous colour scheme, hues from neighbouring or similar colour groups, and this is a complementary one.  Over here, we have gone for a monochromatic or a single-colour approach.  And to really impress you, I might draw your attention to some split complementaries.  Well lah-di-dah.  You might think I design according to rules of colour theory.  I can only categorize them—after the fact. 

The funny thing about colour theory is how interesting it seems and how useless it is.”

People in the know about colour seem to think it is important, if they sang its praises, I hummed along.  But the truth is that I never really understood how I was supposed to use it.  I put colours together by feel.”

All images from Pink Colour & Design

So my lovelies, put your mind at ease if you have done a colour theory course and barely remember what the rules are, or if you worry that you should be using them and don’t.  That is exactly how I have always chosen colours as well, by feel. As long as you understand the colour wheel, you don't need to be that concerned with the 'theory' behind the combinations. After all, we don't use that language with clients either.

And of course taking into consideration that clean and dirty colours should only be included on the same palette if you intended it to happen.  In other words, these are guidelines to follow and understand in general, unless you want to break the rules.  However, as I always say to my students, at least you will know when you are breaking the rules instead of putting colours in a space that clearly do not work!

Related Posts:

What Everyone should know about Beige

Clean vs. Dirty Colours

Three Ways to Describe Colour

The Best Way to Update Forest Green

If you still have forest green sofas from the 80’s, this avocado green will go a long way to updating your living room!  Doesn’t it look amazing here? 

Miles Redd in House Beautiful 

One could argue that this is the new Kelly Green but it looks pretty forest green to me! Of course the nail head trim on the doors scream old money, but still – the yellowy green gives it the lift you need especially in a hallway. 

See how it’s the fresh green that works in a room with no natural lighting?  It’s a gray green that would dull it down as most people don’t have their lights on in a hallway during the day. However, if you have a dark corner in your living room, please, place a lamp there, as I mentioned in this post.  Don’t just paint that dark room a pale colour, as you will not get the result you are looking for.

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Colour me Kelly Green (A Jamie Drake Design)

Glamorous Hotels in London

Jonathan Berger in House Beautiful

I just bought the July 2009 House Beautiful because of the cover!  I loved the hot pink chairs and the way the table was styled with the pink beverages, cheese and pink roses.

The most fabulous part of this house designed by Jonathan Berger is the foyer in Razzle Dazzle by Benjamin Moore.

Here it is shown going all the way up the stairs too!  I love the way no attempt was made to coordinate the colour with the area rug on the second floor, but it certainly looks great with the zebra print runner and black painted steps!

I think a strong colour like this really works in an entry where you don’t spend a lot of time!  It’s a show stopper for guests but then you go into the living room where all is calm [below] and the only suggestion of flow from the entry is the hot pink toss cushions on the sofa.

I just love the unexpected combination of pink and orange together.  I have geraniums in the same colour all along the front of my house this summer!  Stunning!

Have you ever bought a magazine just because of the front cover?

Related posts:

Color Vibe by Eileen Kathryn Boyd

Colour me Kelly Green!  (A Jamie Drake Manhatten Residence)

My Interior Design Style  (Another Jamie Drake Residence)

The New Hollywood Regency (A Kelly Wearstler Residence)

Colour Love (Stephen Shubel Design)

Aurastone Countertops

 Evangelia Decorative Art Studio is presenting a course on creating these exceptional, environmentally friendly countertops next weekend, June 26 – 28, 2009.

This is an Aurastone counter underlit to look like onyx

She showed me a sample when I was at her studio yesterday and I was blown away by how real it looks.  Aurastone is a new technology that allows you to create beautiful marble, granite and stone effect counter-tops without the cost.

David Rairick, co-founder of Auracos and John Kiernan, certified Aurastone Instructor will be in Vancouver to show you how.  The course will be offered for $750.00 plus GST and it includes all materials.

If you are an artist and a fine faux finisher looking to add this talent to your portfolio in just 3 days, call 604.727.8829 for further details.

Related post:

Monumental, Residential, and Human Scale  One of the best books on Interior Design I have ever read is "Style by Saladino”. . .

Happiness is. . . Ralph Lauren Style

I adore Ralph Lauren’s Home website.  And since these images are new [to me anyway] I thought I’d post them for you to enjoy as well. 

The reason why I love his site so much is because everything is so beautifully styled, look at this sexy hammock [above] and the way it has been arranged!

 Tablescapes; made up of a minimum of 3 items and usually includes coffee table books and candle holders of some sort like the hurricane lanterns above.

Decorative boxes are always good accessories to include on a bookshelf as well to add interest.

Love the hammered salad bowl.  Since I have one that is almost identical (but without the RL price tag) I’m feeling pretty smug right about now :)

Aren’t the striped cushions fun?  Love the contrast piping on the cushions.  This is where I’d like to be sitting this weekend!   Have a happy one!

Related posts:

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Ralph Lauren Home

Vancouver's Top Colour Expert Asks; Have you made these Decorating Mistakes?

Sometimes the best way a designer can help their clients is by NOT giving them what they want.

Image disclaimer; if you are wondering how these images relate to my story, they don’t. I just included some pretty pictures from flickr to break up the copy.

I tell my students all the time, there is a fine line between giving a client the look they want, and giving experienced design advice. It takes a few years in the industry to understand that a big part of what people are paying for is your [a designer’s] honest opinion, many times that includes “No, I would not do that and here’s the reason why. . .”

As a new decorator, many years ago, a client once asked if I could find two chairs that would work with the twenty year old ancient, lumpy, gray leather sofa (sitting in their rarely used living room). Back then I said YES.

Today, I would say no. It doesn’t matter that you have rarely sat on that sofa from the 70’s or 80’s. It’s dated (this is a general statement, obviously there are classics from every era, I'm not saying it all needs to go, but I'm trying to make a point here :) and unless I find some chairs from that era, your new chairs will look like today and that sofa will still look like yesterday.

An experienced designer will tell you that. A new designer will try really hard to make it all work because that's what you are asking for. Better to save everyone the time and angst (because you still won't be real happy with the end result this way) and do it right from the start.

When a client informs me that they would like to keep their white lacquered kitchen [from the 80’s) with black granite countertops (with rounded edges—from the 80’s), rip out the 12 x 12 gray tile flooring and install brown hardwood with a black and brown mosaic backsplash? My job is to paint the picture —in advance—before they do all of this and hate the kitchen. Why? Because adding brown to this mix will not hide your cabinets. You will still have an 80’s kitchen.

Minster Green by Farrow & Ball

I was once in a clients home [for a colour consultation] who had a navy blue sofa, a black area rug with coloured squares in burgandy, gray-green, butterscotch and blue greens. She told me she wanted to paint her walls brown and also asked my opinion about adding a chocolate brown ottoman to the mix as well.

I said not a good idea.

Why? Because she wasn’t changing anything else in the room. The carpet was new and already had 5 colours in it that did not relate to the navy blue sofa. Introducing brown at this point would have added a 7th colour to the room that did not relate to anything existing in the space.

So, unless the client was willing to change something, the wall colour needed to relate to a colour already in the space for the colour to do what it’s supposed to do, which is; pull the space together. Just this week I was hired by a kitchen cabinet manufacturer to style some kitchens to be photographed for their new website (photos coming soon). They showed me images of five kitchens they wanted to shoot.

One of them had stark white cabinets (they should have been cream, see my post on selecting whites here) with brown granite countertops and a brown subway tile backsplash. I said “that one already looks 90’s so I wouldn’t shoot it”. Luckily I had a smart client, he went along with my advice.

During the shoot, my client suggested an angle that would have included dining room furniture that was dated. Again, I advised him not to do it. I know I immediately flip the page every time I see an advertisement selling hardwood flooring or carpeting, with poorly styled or dated furniture so I'm sure other people do as well. That [poor styling] immediately makes the image look like it’s from an old magazine.

Just before you think I’m one of ‘those designers’ that has to start with everything new. On the contrary; what I am saying is, instead of installing a mosaic backsplash into your older kitchen, use simple subway tile instead (for example). Still an updated and fresh look but something that will not draw as much attention as a ‘bling bling’ backsplash that belongs in a newer kitchen.

So before you introduce the newest, trendiest colour or tile somewhere in your house, make sure it works with your existing space. The best homes are not trendy at all, but look like they have been lovingly collected over time into a space that speaks to you, your family and your lifestyle.

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Bobbie Burgers; In Full Bloom inside House & Home Magazine

Warning; You are the Colours in your Home

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A Collaboration of Talent

My header is new (for those of you that are here for the first time) and a little over a week ago I posted the one designed by Lemon Cherry Blogs. I love the illustration so much--I think for the winter I’ll have her draw me wearing boots and a turtleneck!

Then a few days later, my good friend Guylaine Rondeau, a very talented graphic designer who has been in the business for 20 years, decided my new header needed some more white space; which by the way, she wrote about [here] on her blog. So for my birthday she tweaked my already beautiful header and emailed it to me.

When I saw the new font she had chosen (with the addition of the row of colour on the top and bottom which was a wonderful and happy touch) I asked her why it was not centered? She said, “That would be like what people do with their furniture without a designer, they line it up all around the room, instead of arranging their furniture so that it creates a conversation area”.  It reminded me of a statement Nate Berkus once made on Oprah, “It’s like your furniture is all under arrest!”.

All images - Nate Berkus

I especially loved the way she left the ends of the header open, it looks great! Thank you Guylaine at Guylaine Rondeau Design and Katie Lane at Lemon Cherry for my beautiful and colourful header!

Related post:

Week of Publicity for Colour me Happy (my website intro was inspired by Nate’s)

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Selecting your Kitchen or Bath Backsplash; Accent Tile or NOT?

I have seen so much dated and downright ugly accent tiles in my design career, that when I choose them for my clients, I prefer to select neutral finishes and repeat them.   Keep this in mind when you read this post.  If you are madly in love with the accent tile you have just installed or are about to, then read no further.  The following opinions are completely biased based on the above statement. . . 

The hot look in tile is still mosaics, but if you are going to use them, go big or go home.  Like in this bathroom  (above) or in this kitchen (below).  What works about the backsplash here, is that it's the most important feature next to the Caesar Stone Countertop.  This way it becomes the background instead of competing for attention with the limestone mosaic backsplash.

The backsplash tile in this bathroom [below] is colourful and fun, but what if you moved in and did not like orange?  It’s pretty hard to ignore the tile here as it's definitely the focal point. Better to have picked a more neutral tile and still painted the bathroom orange which can then be easily changed on a whim.  

By the way, this brings me to another tip; with newly installed tile or granite, I like to pick a colour that coordinates with it, then it looks like you actually love your new finishes.  To pick a colour that doesn’t relate at all [to your finishes] starts to look like you have just moved in and have decided to ignore them with your colour choices.

The accent tile in this kitchen [below] at least makes some attempt to coordinate with the granite but I would have left it clean using just the subway tiles.  I always tell my clients that it’s the colour and accessories that pull a space together.  Unless you are someone  who plans on replacing your tiles every 5 years, it’s better to keep them neutral as they are so expensive and messy to replace.

This tile [below] in your bathroom or kitchen [for example] pretty much dictates the colour scheme. Here your choices would be limited to some version of gold, yellow beige or [ouch] the green.

If you are going to get this artsy and creative [below] with your backsplash tile, then at least make sure it’s the most important element in the kitchen.  In this kitchen, combined with the busy granite,  it’s hard to know what we should be looking at.  Busy granite and a busy backsplash does not equal beautiful, it just screams ‘we-should-have-consulted-with-a-designer’.

images from flickr

Colour Tip for anyone worried about choosing a white cabinet colour to go with white tile. Take some basic whites like cloud white, Mountain Peak White, Ivory White and Vanilla Ice Cream or White Down and paint up some larger 11 x 17 samples.  Then hold the white tile right on the sample vertically and it will be obvious which is the right one! 

What’s your opinion on accent tiles?  Do you love them or hate them?

Related posts:

White Kitchen Cabinets

White Floors for Instant Happiness

5 Questions to Consider when Selecting a New Colour for your Kitchen

Strata Committees - Exterior Before & After

I have worked with a lot of Strata Committees in my colour consulting career. Usually 2 or 3 members of the Committee will handle hiring the designer for choosing colour or selecting finishes to upgrade the building. I usually present 2 – 3 options (at the most) for the committee to choose from.

Colours by Maria Killam Colour & Design

This building also had new vinyl windows installed. In hindsight, I probably should have added white to the top of the fascia to repeat the colour of the windows. Repeating the window colour on the exterior would have helped to avoid the ‘screaming-white-vinyl' look. Although the biggest thing that makes this facade work is that I repeated the brick colour in the accent which is really what gives this building a cohesive look. Here’s the before [below], it certainly was a huge improvement!

Working with Strata committee’s can be challenging because there are a lot of different opinions. Owners that have lived in the building a long time generally don’t want to see dramatic change; while the new, younger owners are usually the ones voting for an updated fresh look.

Meeting with the Strata to present the new colours works well because part of getting the colours approved involves providing the answer to the question why? When it comes to exterior colour, people need to understand the process of how a colour consultant determines the final 2 to 3 choices out of 2,000 colours. That is well worth the fee for the peace of mind because if it’s wrong, there is no hiding.

If you would like to schedule an Exterior Colour consultation please email me at info@mariakillam.com or call 604.318.9725.

Related posts:

Exterior Undertones

Painting the Trim Black; Exterior Before & After

A Happy Mediterranean Exterior; Before & After

Should your Interior Colours flow with the Exterior of your House?

The best Exterior Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

5 Steps to choosing the Right Exterior Colours

Advice to do-it-yourself homeowners on choosing Exterior Colour

6 Uninteresting Things about Me

The splash awards are going around and I received one from Danika at Gorgeous Shiny Things. Thank you! She was inspired by my post on Which colour Market Umbrella you should buy! Then I was over at Pure Style Home where Lauren had also been given the Splash Award and asked to post 6 uninteresting things about her. I loved that idea, so here are mine:

1. I’m a bookworm, a design magazine worm and now because of this blog, I’m a blogworm. Really. When I was in school and someone was looking for me, they’d find me in the library. I’d go over to my friend Jennifer’s house who had a million Archie comics and she’d get cranky cause I’d just want to sit on her bed and read them.

2. I hate to be cold. In other words; I have a low tolerance for being uncomfortable. Which is why, in the winter, I mostly wear turtlenecks. I have one in every colour.

Design by Maria Killam Colour & Design

3. I know I've designed a space that really works for my clients when I come over later and everything is exactly where it was placed from the beginning (like the above photo for my bachelor client in North Vancouver). And I secretly like to get my clients to the point where they don’t buy anything without asking me first, shhhh don't tell anyone.

4. When I’m in a public washroom, I only take one paper towel to dry my hands, and I judge everyone that takes two. The truth is, I hate waste of any kind. People that really know me, call me the ‘war rations girl’. I make juice you can see through and everyone can always tell if I’ve buttered the bread because there is barely any on it!

5. I will not leave the house without lipstick on. With the exception of going to the gym in the morning (too contrived). I recently met a lovely group of women that I hang out with when I do a ‘power up’ class at the gym. This past weekend when I arrived at a party one was holding for her birthday, NO ONE recognized me. That is how different (bad) I look without make-up. That is why there is no photo of me here [above] there aren’t many without my lips on!

6. I hate to Zig Zag. Because I am a designer, and book a lot of appointments, source fabric, furniture, etc, I am always very organized about how I schedule my day. I plan my shopping/appointments so that I’m driving in a circle, I will go to great lengths to avoid a zig zag and I get cranky on the occasion when this becomes unavoidable.

So that’s it my lovelies! Whoever would like to participate in this game of tag, just post a link in the comments section!!

The Splash Awards

Related posts:

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Week of Publicity for Colour me Happy

Why is Black a Slimming Colour?

Painting the trim Black; Before & After Exterior in Vancouver

There were so many large windows on this house that I recommended painting the trim black. This repeated the already black railings and black roof.

Colours by Maria Killam Colour & Design

I also suggested that the garage doors be painted to match the house (they are a darker gray-green than the house) so that they stopped being the focal point like they were in the before photo [below].

Would anyone like to guess when this house was re-painted? 7 years ago before the brown trend started! Had I picked the colours in the last few years, the client probably would have asked for some shade of brown!

By the way, this is the only time I would use a Colour Viewer to sample colours on your house. It’s fine to see what your house looks like with dramatic trim; however it will not show you how the colour changes the look of your house once the sun comes up!

flickr

Sometimes, if a client does not have a strong opinion of the colour they already want, this kind of house (with no existing stonework or any jumping off point) can be challenging. It’s when a client really needs help in making the final choice. People want to know WHY the colour they are choosing is the right one, and sometimes you have to walk through the entire colour wheel to eliminate the colours they don’t want in order to narrow down the colour that they will be happy with in the end.

If you would like to schedule an on-line Exterior Colour consultation please email me at info@mariakillam.com or call 604.318.9725.

Related posts:

5 Steps to choosing the Right Exterior Colours

The Best Exterior Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

Should your Interior Colours flow with the Exterior of your House?

This was the question asked by the couple that hired me to pick the colours for this house a few years ago.  They said the new dramatic, rich colour we chose drew all the neighbors over to look while it was being painted (sorry the scan didn’t come out very clear).

  Colours by Maria Killam Colour & Design

This was what the house looked like before [below]. A washed out white with blue shutters.  Going back to my post on exterior trim colours – remember what I said the trim of a white house should always be?  Well here’s a perfect example of what NOT to do!!  And I can say this because the owners inherited the house with these colours.  Notice the roof and gutters were replaced and the fence was also painted the same colour.

Back to the main question here.  Should the outside colour flow with the inside?  Yes it should!  However, if your house is dated inside but you are painting your exterior first; then the answer is no. In this case you would ignore the inside because you always want to be moving forward in design.  Understanding this little design tip will help you in making all kinds of design and colour decisions in your home.  This statement determines what you ignore and what you work with everywhere in your space!

I always make a point of touring a house inside before I finalize exterior colours so that I get a feel for the space and can accurately assist in making the best colour decisions!  In the house above, this couple had completed a renovation inside and their home was filled with rich and warm colours throughout, making the final colour we chose for their exterior a natural extension of their interior!

If you would like to schedule an on-line Exterior Colour consultation please email me at info@mariakillam.com or call 604.318.9725.

Related posts:

The best Exterior Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

The Right way to Create flow using Colour

Colour me Happy’s New Header by Lemon Cherry Blogs

It’s been more than 7 months since I started this blog and that’s how long I’ve been in drama over my lack of a real header!  Then on Friday, I received a comment from AB Interiors, and as I always do because it’s proper blog etiquette, I went over to her blog where she had just posted about her new blog design including the header [below].  It was then that I realized mine could be just as simple!!  So I clicked on Lemon Cherry’s website and. . . Here it is Ladies & Gentleman, my new header [see the top of my blog].  Just like magic and it’s only Monday evening!  This is my amazing illustrator, Katie Lane with Lemon Cherry.  Her format is very simple, you click through her menu and buy the package you want and presto, you are in business.  And completely affordable too!  Get her now while you can before she’s so famous that her rates go up!!

Katie was so delightful to work with, I filled out a detailed questionnaire and then she sent me over to colour lovers first to pick the colours I wanted in my header so there was no guessing for her and it made everything so much easier for me!  And she didn’t mind my picky little “can you change the green in the fan she’s holding and make it more yellow?” Love her!

She presented the first one on Saturday morning and after some changes and a second one this morning, I got home this evening and there it was, my happy little header!  

I have also learned a new word; favicon, it’s the little tiny letter or picture in front of the URL.  Right now it’s just the blogspot icon, but she’s changing it so it’s my yellow M.

Blogs freshly squeezed by Katie Lane.  It’s the place to get your header looking just like YOU!

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10 Things I have Learned about Blogging in 4 Months

Header Dilemma

Vancouver Colour Advice on Exterior – Before & After

This is an exterior I did a few years ago in West Vancouver. Notice how the Mediterranean tiles have faded to a pinky shade on the roof? Well it is a bit hard to tell, they were the same on the dormers which were a huge visual piece of the house, so I had them painted the same colour as the gutters and the brackets!

Exterior Colour Selection by Maria Killam

It’s unfortunate that the before picture was taken at a completely different angle, but I usually snap them as I’m leaving the consultation! It was quite the transformation on this previously boring white house!

Related posts:

5 Steps to choosing the Right Exterior Colours

The Best Exterior Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

If you would like to schedule an on-line Exterior Colour consultation please email me at info@mariakillam.com or call 604.318.9725.

The First Mistake a new Colour Consultant will Make Every Time

Today is my birthday and I’m 42! We’ll get to the colour lesson at the end when I show you the first place I ever decorated for my baby sister, but first a little trip back in time;

This is me at 4 years old already wearing one of my favourite colours and don’t forget the pearls to dress up my summer bathing suit! I see my mother also missed the left side of my face when she cut my hair. . .

My first birthday party. I was 7 and my whole class was invited. Everyone got a necklace as a party gift, I see mine coordinates with my outfit nicely :) That’s my mom in the background!

At 19 I went to modeling school. Alas my career never took off because the first time I auditioned to be in a fashion show I did not make the cut because I didn’t walk like a model. Apparently, according to my sisters, I still don’t.

My very first apartment. I was 21 years old. Actually it was a cottage, my rent was $200 a month (cheap even for then--it wasn’t THAT long ago). You can tell it was the 80’s with the black and white look I had going on! My favourite magazine was Architectural Digest and I loved nothing more than a fresh copy to dream about being in one day. . . Click here to read my article on Decorating with Yellow published in BC Home and Alberta Home magazine. In the early days, before my design career, I was a Sales Manager at The Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel and [above] I’m standing next to my Director of Sales, Tamara Gibson at a Christmas party. Look at me with my 80’s perm—those were the big hair days! Red lipstick was my go-to colour in those days – NOT any more!!

My ex-husband Scott. He was a big sailor. I was not.

This is me at 33 with my nephew Luukas.

My first official decorating job many years ago. My baby sister moved into this little bachelor suite. We immediately replaced the awful white curtains with IKEA wood blinds, painted the trim cream and bought the furniture on installment from a big box furniture store.

Photo by Maria Killam

As she was renting, we didn’t want to paint the entire room because it had to go back to white when she moved out so to add some colour we just painted halfway up the wall.

So here it is, the first mistake a new designer will make when picking colour. We look around. . . desperate for some inspiration. . . in this case, nothing here but a few primary colours in the wall hanging (which was no longer a wall hanging after I was done), so what to do? I look at the floor. The fir floors have an orange cast to them so what colour do I choose? CC-420 Maple Syrup.

I specified a lot of CC-410 Boardwalk (which is the lighter shade) in my early days of colour consulting when I walked into an empty space or one with black leather furniture and zero inspiration until I discovered the many different shades of beige.

When I used to talk to people in the paint store about colour, they thought it was so important to tell me the colour of their dresser or bed or dining table when really unless it’s cherry or mahogany and you are painting the walls red (even then it’s not that you shouldn’t do it, just make sure you pick one that doesn’t fight with the wood), it’s generally not an issue. The colour of your wood furniture is like a pair of jeans, they go with everything.

Just to be clear, its not that the colour didn’t work in the room, but at the time (because I was new) I didn’t even consider any other options. And as I said, it’s a common mistake we all make in the beginning. And if you are reading this and have no idea what I am talking about because you have never made this mistake. . .leave a comment and let us know what yours was because that is why we blog, to learn from each other and to get who we really are.

And since it is my birthday, please leave a comment, that’s all I want, and you’ll get one back, kind of like 2 presents really.

Related posts:

What Everyone Should know about Beige

When to Buy Leather Furniture

What to do Before you get Fired from your Corporate Job

Happiness is. . . Having the Career that you Love

The Best way to Prepare for a Colour Consultation

Happiness is. . . a Beautiful Vignette

My blogger friend Brooke Giannetti at Velvet & Linen just had her home in Channel Islands Harbor published in C Magazine. Click here to see the whole post. She is a luxury designer in California who has a stunning blog with a huge following!

C Magazine via Velvet & Linen

I just love the chandelier and the old doors with vintage oil paintings attached to them. And what really drew me in to this space was the charming vignette of mercury glass on her dining table! I am always looking for unusual ways to dress a dining room table and I had seen those balls-on-stands in my travels but wondered where they would ever go? Well here they are with the vases and candlesticks and the white hydrangeas, looking so at home.

Notice how one chair has been casually placed on an angle to get the centerpiece in the photo? These are the details that are so important when photographing interiors!

Have a happy weekend everyone!

Related posts:

How to create a Vignette or Tablescape

Parisian Inspired Townhomes

Stunning Designer Offices

Colour Love (Stephen Shubel Design)

How to pick Exterior Colour without a Designer

I have always admired the combination of colours on this elementary school so yesterday, I stopped and walked right up to the building and matched the colours to my  fan deck. I highly recommend simply owning a fan deck from any paint company for this reason but I recommend Benjamin Moore fan decks because most designers specify their colours as they are one of the most ‘designer-friendly’ paint companies around. This way you are sure to get the closest match as 9 times out of 10 it’s a Benjamin Moore Colour.

 

The main field colour is Benjamin Moore HC-6 (Windham Cream), the foundation is HC-93 (Carrington Beige) and the blue/green is HC-144 (Palladian Blue).  I was actually surprised at how much lighter the yellow was, I expected it to be closer to HC-4 Hawthorne Yellow which is two shades darker.  However as blue & yellow are complementary colours, the blue’s that surround the yellow on this building make it pop even more which is why using complements work so well because each colour makes the other one appear even more vibrant!

The fascia above the doorways and the railings are CC-770 and the accent fascia is HC-154.

Yesterday I also had lunch with my good friend Nancy DeVries with Urban Aesthetics at  the Holiday Inn in North Vancouver.  This is another colour scheme I have always admired.  The lighter shade is 2108-40 and the darker colour is CC-512.

I love the orange window frames and the fact that the windows are tinted blue, it relates so well to the blue roof!  It’s a happy yet sophisticated combination of colours!  I would stay here based on the colour of the hotel alone!

Photos by Maria Killam

If you want to choose your colours without the help of a designer, I recommend reading the following posts I’ve written on undertones and the fixed finishes you need to consider, then just find a house or building that you like and match the colours yourself.  Some exteriors are easier than others so if you only need a single colour, this is one way to do it yourself.

Related posts:

Exterior Undertones

5 Steps to choosing the Right Exterior Colours

The Best Exterior Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

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Market Umbrellas; Which Colour is the Right one for You?

Last year I needed a new umbrella for my garden. The first one I bought was bright orange (it was on sale). “I like orange” I thought, “I’m sure it will be great in my garden patio”. The next morning before I even looked outside, I noticed an orange glow coming from my windows and the first thing my eye was drawn to was the orange umbrella, it had become the focal point of my garden! Back it went and I came home with a white one (which is what I originally thought it should be anyway).

flickr

I love my white umbrella, it matches all the white flowers in my garden (below) – although I do have colour there as well! And it matches the black and white fabric my outdoor 50’s dining chairs are covered in. I can dress the table any colour I want and I don’t have to worry about coordinating the decor to the umbrella.

Photo by Maria Killam

Another white umbrella that matches the flowers and the trim of this particular house, which is also another way to choose the colour. It also looks like the garden is the focal point here which is why a white umbrella makes sense.

Annabel Bartlett

And of course here in this outdoor market in New Mexico (I fell in love with this image from flickr so I had to include it) the blankets remain the most important element with the white umbrellas in the background.

And these turquoise umbrellas are so beautiful with the fresh yellow (we will ignore the muddy pink colour on the right) and the turquoise buildings as the backdrop!

Here these periwinkle blue umbrellas look so stunning as they work so well with the blue pool and windows!

Here, there is nothing to see except grass beyond the patio, so the graphic patterned yellow on this umbrella with the matching cushions are fabulous!

You know when a great colour as the best idea? If you want to take the attention away from a garden, balcony, or patio area that isn't that attractive (or not yet at the level you want it to be). Find an umbrella and some patio cushions in your favourite colour, and it will instantly bring your garden to life!

flickr

This navy umbrella from House Beautiful is perfect on the dock to go with the lake!

This black umbrella is great in this poolside patio from David Jimenez where the focal point is definitely the umbrella with the coordinating cushions as the only thing behind the view is a simple tall hedge which provides a lovely backdrop for this outdoor vignette! No flowers or a busy garden here to create confusion with the umbrella colour. This 1/2 umbrella for balconies is such a great idea! I like the way they picked black to go with the railing! Also black looks so great with orange bricks! If you are buying an umbrella for your balcony, matching the trim in the building or the railing as shown here is a good place to look for the colour!

Notice that I’m only showing market umbrellas for your balcony or patio? That’s because these cheap ones (shown below) belong ONLY in the sand at the beach! Never in your patio.

This is where I’d love to be right now!

Related posts:

Clean vs. Dirty Colours

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A Happy Mid-Century Renovation