Crosson Clarke Carnachan designed a hut on sleds in Whangapoua, New Zealand. More photos here! Project description from Contemporist: Designed to close up against the elements, the hut measures a mere 40 square metres and rests on two thick wooden sleds that allow it to be shifted around the beach front section. This innovative portability is a response to the ever changing landscape that line the beachfront in this coastal erosion zone. Within the hut, the ingenuity reveals itself further as no nook or cranny is overlooked. Every available space has been utilised, right down to the secret individual cubby holes hidden in the children’s bunk room. For these clients it was all about the real essence of the hut; small, simple and functional. The hut comes to life when the enormous shutter on the northeast facade winches open to form an awning, revealing two-storey high steel-framed glass doors that form the main entrance. The hut then transforms into a sun drenched haven, opening up to the views of the surf and the distant Mercury Islands. 
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We finally did it! We painted the downstairs entertainment room. It's a very subtle colour, but I find it makes the room a lot warmer and finished looking. We actually liked the colour so much we are thinking of painting the front hallway with the same paint. One step closer to finishing this room. 
We also put up my postcard project that I wrote about when we were still living in our condo. However, I have added more frames to make it even bigger! I think it looks quite good above the couch. As I get more postcards (I might replace some of the older ones I have up now) I could add more frames to make the project even bigger. I love getting postcards from all over the world, so if you go somewhere exciting you should sent me a post card! Then it will go up on my wall!
I have purchased a few new things for my office in the past little while. Just to give it the last finishing touches. Is a room ever really done? 
After much debating I decided that curtains were a good thing for my office. I already had a curtain rod from a previous place that I really liked, so we attached it above the window. However, we still needed some curtains. This is where the debate came in, what kind, what colour, long or short? We originally bought grey ones, but it didn't look quite right in the room. So we took them back and just got white ones, that seem to match a lot better. They are just a matte white fabric, but on them there is a geometric design in a different texture. I am very happy with the outcome, and they block out the sun in the mornings if I need to be on the computer. 
I also got this neat frame dipped in white paint. For now it has a picture of a bicycle in it, which I like, but I might think of something better down the road. I also like the idea of a dipped frame in paint. I bought this one as it is, but maybe in the future all try and dip other frames in different colours of paint. What a great idea!
Richard Hutten has designed the Layers Cloud Chair. An interesting piece of furniture made entirely from layers of fabric. It has been created by using a CNC machine, which is a 3D precision cutter with computer aided design abilities. Pretty neat idea, and I love all the layers of colours. Looks pretty comfortable too! Check out more photos here. 
We are actually here in Vancouver for the week. Just thought I'd say hello from the west coast. We are visiting lots of family and friends, and having a little vacation at the same time. I have never actually seen much of Vancouver before so it's very exciting for me. More on our favourite things to see and do later! 
I just thought I would wish all of you a happy Easter and long weekend. When I think of Easter, I think of chocolate, and all those fun times I had as a kid looking for eggs. And speaking of chocolate, if you live in the Toronto area you have to check out Soma Chocolatemaker for their amazing selection. All handmade, organic, and they buy their cocoa beans directly from the farmers of small plantations. They are always coming up with new and inventive ways to consume chocolate. Check them out on Facebook too, they often post photos of their new creations. Everything I have tried from Soma has been amazing and a little adventurous! Enjoy! 
These little structures function as entire homes, that are extremely cheap to create. Hajjar Gibran is the builder of these dome houses at his retreat centre in northeast Thailand. The cost of the home comes in at about $9000 for everything. Check out more photos here! Such an amazing idea for a really low cost. 
What our house needs is more art! I am definitely not any kind of professional artist, but for this project you just need an imagination. What You Need
What I did
I'd like introduce my good friend Irene. She has also been working hard on her new house. Recently, Irene has created a really neat project, taking an old table and making it new again. Check it out! 
Hello! When Laura asked if I could document my experience reviving a sad, old side table that I had I couldn’t have been more pleased! Laura and I have a keen appreciation for design and decor and with both of us in new homes I have enjoyed exploring all the possibilities together with her. I have a great love for colour and antiques and while I wouldn’t paint every antique piece that I have, this side table of mine was a poor old soul in definite need of a resurrection. It was my husband’s even before we were married, and that was eight and a half years ago, and has stuck with us for 5 moves! (Come to think of it, this may be the only piece of furniture we still own from our wedding day…yikes) All the surfaces had major scratches and all the corners were all dinged up and bruised (think bachelor pad bruising, lol). The final straw someone had accidentally squirted hand sanitizer on it and left it there to dry without wiping it up, leaving HORRIBLE bleached out splotches on the top. No amount of tablecloths or doilies could cover up the fact that this guy was on his way out. I had been looking up instructions for some time on how to refurbish old furniture, from sanding tips to varnish removers , all of which looked like a ton of work before even considering what colours to paint or stain. I had been following adelinewoolf.com and loving the magical colours that she used on her furniture but it didn’t really connect with me until I saw Kylie M Interiors’ post that I learned that it could be done without all that prep work! Annie Sloan’s Chalk Paint can go on any surface, even glass and metal. I had to see for myself, so after some research, I decided to try out some tester pots in Graphite and Old White. The girls at The Painted Brush in Oakville were super nice and helpful! 
Pretty scary huh? I tried the first coat in Graphite, because I loved the deep rich grey, but realized that most of my furniture is dark already, and I should go lighter. If you look at the bottom of the table you’ll see the original wood, and all the scratches and nicks that it had. 
1 Coat on the Body, and 2 Coats on Top
So after contemplating the Graphite over the weekend, I changed my mind and decided on French Linen, a pretty grey that goes well with the blues and greens in my home. And since I had a tester pot in Old White still, I did a lighter tint (about 1/3 Old White, 2/3 French Linen) for the top, and used up the remaining Old White on the inside of the doors. 
Almost Done! (Top is shiny because the paint was still wet)
The paint applied amazingly, though it does take some getting used to—it dries quickly, and you will get texture on the paint from the paintbrush, but it leaves a gorgeous velvety finish, and if anything goes wonky, just wait for it to dry (about 30 mins), sand it down, and try again. There’s no odour, which is amazing, and I was able to do this project in my little reading room. I did want my top to be a smoother finish, so I sanded it smooth using 220 grit sand paper. It turned out almost glossy! All the claims are true—I was too lazy to take off the hinges and knobs, so I just painted over them, no problem! If you’re thinking about taking the ASCP plunge I found the most helpful tips were found on from the Purple Painted Lady on Youtube. The only real challenge I had was on the edges of the top, the paint kept cracking no matter how many times I sanded and repainted. 
Finally I sanded it down and dipped my finger into the paint instead of a brush and rubbed the paint in firmly but smoothly. Problem solved! No idea why this happened, it was fine on other curvy parts of the table…maybe it had to do with the tinting? Who knows. 
And after waxing here’s the finished product! I know that ASCP is popular among those who like the distressed shabby-chic look, and I might consider that too, but for now I’m glad this side table is clean and chic, and no longer shabby! Now what else can I paint??... 
Check out these really neat vessels! These artists are a group of three individuals from Italy. They are so colourful and intricate, which makes them amazing to look at. One would look great in our place! Check out more about 3 Dot Collective here. 
More about the artists: 3 Dot Collective is an evolving group of creative travellers, founded by Anabella Vivas, Miguelangel Troccoli and Vanessa Redondo. A design collective born out of the dream of three ready and willing makers, to create design in the emergent contemporary scenario. Their multi-disciplinary approach brings together experts in architecture, product, and conceptual design. Each partner contributes his own knowledge and passion according to his own personal inclination and education. The result is a versatile and complementary team able to face any kind of project with integrated approach. They believe that design is created at the intersection of passion and experimentation, and always base their work on high standards of collaboration, process and product, where knowledge and innovation are basic resources. The collective behind break-through design concepts, work on creating industrial products, developing internal projects, experimentation and exploration of materials and techniques. 
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