POWDER ROOM MAKEOVER

 

SO if any of you have noticed, i added a new "interiors" page to the site in the new year & this will be the first official design post to go into that category! it is also the first design of modest house that i will be sharing with you, but many more are coming throughout the year. on a side note, did you see my living & powder room makeover was featured on DESIGN SPONGE this week!!! incase you missed it, you can read all about it here. now back to the powder room.

the first makeover i started planning in the house was the powder room. i started planning it the second we viewed the home to be honest, i knew i was going to make this house ours. while most of the house is quite monochromatic (i hear it over & over again from justin that it is too grey), i figured the powder room was the ONE room i could do something bold & colourful. to get started i had to decide on the two main design feature: the wallpaper & the faucet. everything else would fall into place once those were chosen.

step one: the wallpaper

it was so hard to pick just ONE wallpaper print. i fell in love with the vintage designs by trustworth wallpaper who is run by one of the nicest artist, david berman. he sources vintage prints + fabrics & then turns them into the most beautiful wallpaper patterns you will ever see. i ended up going with "apothecary garden" in grey because it was an arts & crafts print that dates back to 1926, around the same time our house was built! it truly makes the space.

step two: the faucets & fixtures next up, i had to decide on the perfect faucet to go with the vintage wallpaper design! it seemed like a no brainer to go with brass, but delta faucet makes the most gorgeous "champagne bronze" colour too. the champagne bronze is more of a subtle brushed gold finish. not that i am against shiny brass, but it is harder to keep shiny & clean! plus this brushed bronze is perfectly gold without over powering the rest of the design elements. i went with the victorian line of faucet & accessories (towel rack, towel ring, tissue holder + door hook) to keep the whole 1920's theme i was aiming for.

step three: paint

after i decided on the two boldest designs in the room, i got to pick the rest of the design elements like light fixtures, paints & linens! i went with farrow & ball for all the paint throughout the house, so it was an obvious decision that i was using farrow & ball paint for the bathroom as well. i wanted the wood panneling to be bright & clean, so i went with "wevet" in estate emulsion for both the wood panelling & wood trim. it has the slightest of grey hue to it which went hand in hand with the grey apothecary garden wallpaper. this was actually a last minute decision i made the night before the wallpaper was installed! the original colour was a creamy white & i decided at the last possible second that it wouldn't look as nice with the wallpaper. the rest of the wood trim in the house is painted in wevet so i am happy i made the right choice in here as well. now those doors! believe it or not they were already painted grey when we purchased the house & i had the hardest time deciding to keep them grey or paint them white to match the bright white trim. in the end, grey won but we still repainted every interior door (yes EVERY single door i sanded & painted) in farrow & ball's mole's breath. mole's breath turned out a few shades lighter then the previous grey, plus we had to get rid of all those chips & cracks.

step 4: light fixtures

for the light fixtures i found the perfect sconce lights from cedar + moss, called the wyatt sconce. they have a touch of brushed brass in them, but what really caught my attention was the walnut wood base. i love that the base is a dark wood because it brings in a touch of warmth to offset the white & grey tones. plus, the shade is made of CLAY! yes CLAY! it is handmade by pigeon toe ceramics & every time someone comes over i feel the need to point out that the light fixture is actually a piece of pottery.

step 5: linens

last but not least, the linens! i am a little bit italian (okay, some would say super crazy italian) when it comes to my linens. these linens are so nice that i don't like people actually using them. the linens are from rough linen & came in a set called the "bath makeover". i went with a neutral white but struggled to pick between the dusk & charcoal. every colour was just so pretty, i can't wait to keep a set for the main bathroom was well! the quality on them is absolutely amazing, so i am slowly getting over my craziness & allowing them to be used as i know these linens will wash well for years & years. also, using 100% natural linen was the last little touch of vintage inspiration the space needed to tie it all together.

i hope you love how it turned out as much as i do! xo

lemon + ginger cola winter elixir

 

today's recipe is for anyone who gets sick as often as i do in the winter months! even though i work from home, i still can't seem to escape all the colds floating around outside. this drink is my twist on a vintage elixir that used to be served hot back in the day. it is a natural remedy for anyone suffering with a cold, sore throat, flu & upset stomach. the classic recipe calls for boiling coca-cola, ginger & lemon together, steeping it & drinking it hot. it sounds a little weird to boil something carbonated, so i thought i would turn it into a refreshing drink! but if you want to enjoy it warm, i won't stop you. i made it calorie free by using a sugar free cola made by zevia. it is naturally sweetened with stevia & has no colouring added to it which is why it is CLEAR! clear cola! so cool. i also added mint to freshen things up & add one more naturally healthy ingredient to the mix that soothes stomachs. stay healthy friends!

p.s. exlixir or not, this drink would make for a killer ginger cocktail! just add a shot of rum or vodka to the mix.

ingredients

  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1-2 mint leaves, chopped * 1/2 cup zevia cola
  • ice, for serving
  • lemon slice, for garnish

directions

  • in a large glass muddle the ginger, lemon juice & mint leaves together.
  • pour in zevia & shake.
  • strain over a fresh glass filled with ice.
  • garnish with a slice of lemon.

black fig + honey oat muffins

 

so p.f. candle co. is launching a new scent on the last day of the month called "black fig" & asked if i would create a recipe for their blog to help bring the scent alive (in an edible way). being a huge fan of their candles myself, of course i said yes! plus it meant i got to be one of the first people to burn the new black fig candle & it smells so good. aside from my obsession with pumpkin scented candles, i am drawn to very earthy & woodsy scents. i dislike anything summer, beach or flower scented. probably because my two favourite seasons are fall & winter, so i want my house to smell like those seasons year round.

the obvious was to create a recipe using fresh black figs! these black fig + honey oat muffins turned out so good, that i decided i am going to share it with you guys as well! i have only made oatmeal muffins one other time on the blog WAY back in the day which were my maple oat muffins. these muffins are so moist thanks to the generous amount of yogurt & quite the healthy way to start the day! i know muffins are usually just mini cake that we pretend are a breakfast food, but for real! i used organic yogurt, raw sugar & honey to be the natural sweeteners as well as the fresh figs. you could even substitute half of the flour for a whole wheat flour if white flour isn't your jam (this month). if you have trouble locating fresh figs at this time of year, you can use dried figs or honestly any fruit that you think would taste good in a muffin! blueberries, strawberries, banana & so on.

xo

ingredients

  • 1 cup full fat organic honey yogurt
  • 1/3 cup canola oil
  • 1/2 cup raw sugar
  • 1/4 cup raw honey
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 cup fresh or dried figs, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped (optional)

directions

  • preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  • in a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon stir together yogurt, oil, sugar, honey, vanilla & egg until well combined.
  • sift in the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, sea salt & cloves. Stir until batter just comes together.
  • fold in figs & walnuts if desired. evenly distributed amongst a greased twelve tin muffin/cupcake pan.
  • bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops just begin to golden brown.