In Montreal, every summer, the last week of July and first week of August are part of what is called construction holiday. It is, to me, the dumbest time for everything to come to a complete stop. Everybody renovates in the spring and summer here. Winter is clearly not the best time to gut your house or change your windows. Spring and summer are perfect reno times. And then everybody has to press pause because suppliers, producers, etc take a two week break. Now I understand why it happens- obviously people in the field want to enjoy the short-lived summer just as much as the rest of the population. Fair enough. But why can’t it be at the end of the summer? Why smack dab in the middle? Why? All this to say that work has slowed way down in the last week. Half of my clients are out of town and my work for the new General 54 has decreased too.That being said there have been some major advances in the new store. We are just at the stage where I have said my piece and now it’s up to painters and builders and electricians and the business owners to get ‘er done. Here are some recent pics:
the cash is almost complete. It is missing the glass display for jewellery that will fit on the lower portion of the top. I love it. The design is simple but effective.
the back stone wall was painted a minty green. I like it but I would love to age it a bit-it’s too crisp.
the flea market lights were sprayed in Lagoon by Painter’s Touch.
My flea market find table was given a fresh coat of paint
And the kijiji dresser I found was painted to match the table.
We decided to paint the back wall in the ceiling’s Hague Blue. I wanted wallpaper back there but there was worry that it would compete with the merchandise so I decided to tie it into the ceiling colour instead. Maybe they can still wallpaper it one day…
The first coat of floor paint went down and at some point this week the stencil will get laid down on top. Exciting! We decided to go with Wescott Navy for the floor and Snow on the Mountain for the stencil.
Given this slower work period, I am searching for inspiration elsewhere. Mainly on the internet but also on the street: design ideas, recipes, fashion fixes. Things that will get my juices flowing. I thought I would write about some of the things I’m into looking at/trying/buying/gifting right now.
In no apparent order whatsoever:
Spoonflower. This is a site where you can custom-make wallpaper, gift wrap, or fabric. Which is great but more importantly you can buy wallpaper or fabric designed by other people, some of which is pretty cool. One of my BFF’s, Elias, has used the site to create beautiful fabrics and he has vouched for the quality. You can check out his beautiful blog and one of his Spoonflower experiments here. And it is really affordable: 60.00$ for a standard wallpaper roll. Here are some of the designs I am digging right now:
Billie is one of my favourite women’s clothing shops in town. Really, though, I’ve only ever bought accessories from there. So maybe it’s just my favourite jeweller. Some of my most precious and everyday pieces come from the shop and my very latest purchase were these super cute (and cheap) beaded, stretchy bracelets:
Great to gift or to keep and the heart pendant on the right was my birthday present from Hubby, an E to represent him and to go with my kid’s O and E. I never take these off.
Another way that I’ve been whiling away the hours (I’m writing like I have a ton of expendable time which with two kids and multiple businesses is ridiculous but this post is about finding inspiration so let’s just go with it), is Pinterest. I am really late to the party and have started using it as a work tool only recently. So far though, I really enjoy it. I’ve been able to create specific boards for clients which has been an easy way to communicate the vision I have for their spaces. I’ve also been able to use it as a great research tool: type in “painted dressers” and you’ll get hundreds of images, many of them really useful. My categories, or boards to use the appropriate lingo, are mainly design oriented. I’ve kept a couple private. For instance you will not be able to look at my secret wedding board which I spend almost no time on whatsoever (hmmm…) As a newbie with zero patience or time to look up the proper Pinterest way of doing things, I have mainly been free styling, following a few people here and there, pinning a few pics, creating a few boards. Dabbling really. The danger here is the vortex I get sucked into any time I start looking at the site. It’s like Facebook except for people like me and minus all the ads and weird stuff. Though that stuff is also probably there and I just haven’t found it yet.
After what feels like four years of trying to squeeze it all in, it is a strange feeling to have this “free” time. I know that it is temporary. That by next week it all picks up again with new clients and old ones back from their breaks. But during these two weeks, I’ve even managed some extra me time which truly is amazing. Writing this blog over the last couple of months has been the first step in carving out a little time for myself and for that I am eternally grateful. And I am super grateful to summer in the city: so short yet so sweet. Pools and parks and BBQs and playing.
Summer has also been about retail therapy, cottage getaways, wonderful evenings with friends, and great family times.
That is a pretty great summer right there. Dumb construction holiday and all. Forcing me to take a breath, slow down, and be bored for the first time in ages.
xa
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