LAMPS

So i find this lamp really cute! If your a geek and you love aliens then this is the lamp for you. The aliens picking up the cow is so steriotipical alien abduction. i would personally have this lamp in my room. for any kid this would be great in a bedroom.  The next lamp is also super cute. i think this would also be good for any kids room. it isnt really a lamp but its a night light. this would be good in a hallway. the little man looks like he is trying to pull out the plug from the wall plug in. how cute!  So the next lamp i think we all know this one. its from A Christmas Story. what a great movie :) this lamp is priceless! who in they're right mind would buy this lamp hahaha though it could work in some places. if you have a vintage house with a bunch of old lady things i would think this lamp would work. All of these lamps are unique and special in they're own ways :) -DAKOTASANTAGA (MY CAPS IS STILL BROKEN)

DESK

I LOVE THIS DESK. I AM TRULY SORRY FOR THE CAPS THE COMPUTER I AM ON IS A LITTLE MESSED UP AND MY CAPS BUTTON IS STUCK SO I'LL MAKE THIS SHORT. THIS DESK IS PERFECT FOR ABSOLUTELY ANYONE. IF YOUR A CAR FANATIC ITS ESPECIALY GOOD. IT IS QUITE COMEDIC SINCE NO ONE WOULD TAKE YOU VERY SERIOUSLY WITH THIS KIND OF DESK BUT ITS FUN AND NOT SO SERIOUS. I ALSO CANT USE MY ENTER BUTTON SO THIS IS WEIRD. ANYWAYS THAT DESK WOULD MAKE ANY ROOM FUN AND COMICAL WITH A LITTLE KICK. THE NAVY BLUE IS VERY STRONG AND IS UNISEX.-DAKOTASANTAGA

THE RED WAGON

The Red Wagon is a new cafe/diner on East Hastings. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. They have comfort food which is to die for. One of they're great itmes on the menu is the Crisp Pork Belly. They give you a small peice since the pork belly is so rich. They have such great specials. The first time i went they had a peanut butter, nutella and banana sandwich. I ask for it everytime! They have a great menu for dinner as weel. Its been open for around 2 months now and its always busy! Its rumored that East Hastings will be getting a whole new make over and wont look as grundgy and scary. -DakotaSantaga

DISNEYLAND RESORT!

Disneyland, also known as the Happiest Place On Earth! I have only been once but it was an awesome experience. I went when i was 10 years old with my parents, brothers, my auntie Anne, uncle Shaun and my auntie Irene. We stayed in California for 15 days, and it was so much fun! We went to the Disney California adventure park almost everyday. Two of the nights we were there, we stayed in the Magnificent..Disneyland Resort. It is sooo kid friendly and really makes your Disneyland experience magical. There are SO many characters that walk around the hotel lobby. One thing that i really liked about the suites that we stayed in, is that you could pick the theme of the room you wanted. For example you could pick the Cinderella themed room, but we went with the Mickie mouse themed room. It was so cool and the hotel surprised us with our own set of Mickie ears! Thinking back on it, there really wasn't anything that i didn't like about it. I mean the hotels continental breakfast was Mickie mouse shaped pancakes and waffles...what can be better then that!? Nothing! They also had an amazing pool! Me and my brothers spent a lot of time in it, because the weather was so HOT! Overall it was a great experience and i wouldn't have changed anything about it.
-VanessaBrletic (single post)

SOMETHING OFFICEY

Today we need to write about something officey, which is funny because we just had an office built in our basement! My mom needed an office for her photography business, so we had some walls put up to make an office.   I think one important part of an office is the paint colour. I know I helped my mom pick a paint colour for her office because she couldn't decide on a colour. I think it's important to have a good colour, because a home office is typically a place where someone spends alot of time. Especially if they work from home. Therefore it is important to choose a colour that makes you happy, and helps you focus so that you enjoy spending time in your office area. My mom chose to paint our office a "eggplant-y" purple colour. It looks gorgeous, and the contrast with the white trim looks great. She chose purple because it is a bright happy colour, she didn't want to paint it a dreary colour, especially because she is in there a lot. Another aspect that I think is important in an office is a desk. Obviously every office needs some sort of desk, depending on what the office is used for might impact the type of desk you choose to have in your office. For example I have an "office area" in my room with a desk, but the desk is small, with no drawers. I use this area mainly for homework, so I didn't need a big desk. On the other hand my mom chose to get a BIG desk for her office, since she has lots of files which she keeps, and her camera and other things she uses for her business. It was more practical for her to choose a big desk. She has her desk custom made (because she is a freak and couldn't find any she liked;) ) she made sure that when it was made she had a special spot for all of her equipment in her desk.
Some places that I know you can get some nice desks are Ikea, Anthropology,  and Urban barn. All desks range in price depending on what you are looking for. -BellaCooper


I like this desk, it looks super funky and modern, but only has one drawer for storage.
This is from Urban Barn, and costs 729.00$.



This desk is totally boring and simple. But ifd thats what  your looking for than this works.
This desk is from ikea, costing only 254.00$



I really like this desk ^... it is from Anthropologie.
I like the contrast between the dark wood and the black legs.
The only bad thing about this desk is that there is not
much storage room and it costs 1298.00$.



CAFE CREPE

When walking downtown, shopping from store to store, you can get hungry.  And what better way to settle your hunger then with a crepe?  Cafe crepe is a restaurant i love going to because of two things: they have amazing sweet&savory crepes AND the atmosphere in the restaurant is super cool.  When i'm in the cafe, eating happily, i look around and really do feel like i'm in France (or how i imagine being in France would be like....)!   With the sly dark color scheme, the dark granite counter tops, the slim frame black chairs and the french paintings on the walls, you really feel like your in a completely different environment.  I think the atmosphere gives off a calm, cool almost mischievous feeling, like you could picture some tall skinny french woman sitting in the restaurant with a barret&red scarf, smoking a cigarette, looking annoyed.  You get the feel.   I really do love this whole french style interior and i think their "Cafe Crepe" sign is fabulous.  I don't totally like the dark feel that the restaurant gives off (because of the dark wall colors and furniture), but it may not be tellement francais if it wasn't that way.  Special considerations when designing a restaurant may be something like thinking about the efficiency of the room design before the look?  Or thinking about room designs that will draw costumers into the environment ,rather than what the designer may have in mind?  This restaurant design is very different from your typical residential design because it makes you feel like your in a different country, like you've travelled.  You can find Cafe Crepe locations on Granville (3 on Grandville!), on Robson, and on Commercial, cherche-toi on crepe, oui oui?


-NoelleKamitakahara (singlepost)

LOVE the checkered floors, just adds to whole feel&look.

French paintings, c'est tres fabuleuse n'est pas?

Crepes anyone?

Such a cool sign, like the cherry on top of the crepe sunday?  You get what i mean.

FOUNDATION

We are still focusing on commercial spaces, and this week we are looking at restaurant designs. I chose to look at a restaurant called Foundation. It is a vegetarian restaurant down on Main st. I am a vegetarian so I love this resataurant. Good food. Not only do they have good food, but the design on the restaurant is really alternative and funky. The inside of te restaurant has like two different parts to it, and what looks like a small kitchen. I love the colours in there, they chose really bright eye-catching colours. It's really funky, the designer used all different chairs in the dinning area. It gives the restaurant a really eclectic feel:) They also use jar glasses in this restaurant. Noelle wrote about them in a previous blog. They add to the whole "vibe". It seems like a whole "hipster" vibe. I dig it(:
-BellaCooper

HOTEL MAX

Ever gone to Seattle?  Stayed at a hotel maybe?  Was it Hotel Max?  Well, if your answer was YES than high fiives all around! But if your answer was NO, than all i can say is that you really should have.  Why you ask?  Because Hotel Max is one of the coolest most modern hotels around and in the heart of downtown Seattle, Washington, it beams with uniqueness.  I've stayed at the Hotel Max once during a short trip to Seattle, and no questions, it's definitely the coolest hotel i've ever stayed at!

The Hotel Max is like no other because it provides platform for both emerging and established artists, with more than 350 paintings and photographs from wall to wall all around the hotel.  This hotel is also super unique because it is rested in the building of what used to be The Vance Hotel, built in the 1920's, meaning that the building is super small, with the tiniest elevator and bathrooms, the hotel really gives off the coolest vibe with it's environment.  The interior design style of this hotel would probably be described as modern vintage.  A little bit of an oxymoron, but makes sense with the all the modern touches, like the cool sofas and wallpaper, that contrasts with the super vintage feel of the setup and the bright neon sign that reads "HOTEL MAX".  Something i love about the Hotel Max is that each suite door is decorated with a different photo or painting.  I think this is one of the coolest ideas, and it's something you definitely remember after your stay.  Something i wish they could change?  That truly is a difficult one, but if i could change one thing, it'd probably be the switch of carpet with hardwood in the hotel rooms.  Though the grey carpet does add that vintage feel, i'd much prefer hardwood.  But now that i think of it, do any hotel use anything but carpet?  Maybe it's just a hotel thing.

-NoelleKamitakahara (doublepost)




The lobby at The Hotel Max.

  

One of the many original pieces of art that can be found in the hotel.

A quick pic of the lobby, on the right you can see the super cool front desk, it's pink!

The neon sign that sits at the top of the hotel, such a cool piece.

Just a casual day at The Hotel Max.

"Do not disturb"?  Nope.  Just Nope.

The suite doors inside the hotel, each with a different photo or painting.  Easy way to remember which room your staying in, hey?

The "smaller than normal" bathrooms in The Hotel Max, though i do love the sink&wall color!

The entrance to The Hotel Max.

The inside of a hotel room.  Love the colors used in the room&the bed frame is so modern&chic!

One of the coolest art pieces in the hotel, which sits in the lobby right near the entrance.

I think either of these hardwood floors would look totally awesome in the hotel rooms at The Hotel Max, matching the color scheme of the rooms with the grey look and adding to the modern interior.

  

OUIOUI- LE CHATEAU FRONTENAC

Bonjour! I am going to blog about Le Chateau Frontenac, it is located in Quebec city. When I was in grade 7 (french immersion) my class went on a week long trip to Quebec city. It was an amazing experience. We stayed at Le Concorde, it was a nice hotel... but nothing too special. As one of our "Day trips" we went on a tour of Le Chateau Frontenac. It was built in 1893, and it is STUNNING! It is HUGE! And has hundreds of room. It is very classic looking, and it looks really old fashioned. Not tacky though... One thing I loved about the hotel was the overall outside look of the hotel. It really does look like a castle, you feel like royalty walking in there! :)
-BellaCooper

Here is a picture of the outside of the castle. The roof is green because it is made out of copper, and over time the copper turned green, like a penny. And with the rain over time, it turned the roof green. I think that the green roof adds to the look of the castle :)

One thing that I noticed about the hotel that I did not like, wasn't really a design aspect. I noticed that the visitors staying in the hotel are allowed to smoke in their rooms. EW. EW. AND EW. Nasty. The entire hotel smelt like smoke! I think I got a minor case of lung cancer just going on the tour!


Overall though , I like the whole "old fashioned" look of the hotel. It really is a whole experience, not just a hotel:)

PARA PAINT

Go green! The environment is improving slowly, but its definitely getting there. A great way to help the environment in your own home without spending millions of dollars is by using PARA-PAINT! Para paint is an Eco friendly brand of paint. One of my favorite TV shows is Sarah's house or Sarah 101. She is an interior designer with a lot of patience and passion for the job. She has recently partnered up with the company Para paint, which has always sold Eco friendly paint. Sarah has wanted for years to create her own collection of paint, to show people her passion for it. She has also individually selected 75 colours to use in her collection so you can use them in combination to create exciting yet harmonious backdrops for any space. There are many different brands of Eco friendly paint out there, and they all range in price. They are fairly expensive, and definitely more expensive then normal paint but its worth it! HELP THE ENVIRONMENT PEOPLE!
-VanessaBrletic  (single post)

FREEFRIDAY! MAY6TH.

FREEFRIDAY! Woohoo. This is fun. Blogging about whatever we want. NICE. I have decided that I want to blog about Aritzia. Aritzia is a clothing store, it has many different locations, Pacific Center, Robson, Metrotown, Coquitlam Center. I actually just got a job at the Pacific Center location, I am super pumped(: One aspect that I want to address is the atmosphere within the store. I find it really interesting how the chain sotres, especially higher end stores, change their stores "feel" depending on their location. For example, the Aritzia at Metrotown, has a lot more changerooms, because it is busier than the downtown location. The Pacific Center location is very fancy, the people that work there are dressed very nicely aswell. I have noticed that at the Pacific Center location it feels very high end and modern feeling. The Coquitlam Center location, has a more laid back, causual feel to it. They store designer does this by adding more seating to the Coquitlam Center location to give it a more comfortable feel. -BellaCooper

HERE is a picture of the Coquitlam location, it only has one entrance,
through the mall. I couldn't find a picture of the inside, but there is
a lot of dressing rooms and a large seating area.



Here's a picture of the inside of the Pacific Center location,
Lots of tiles on the wall and floor give it a cool modern feel. DIGGIN' IT.



STORAGE (:

Storage is very important in all homes. Kitchen storage, bedroom storage, bathroom storage, old junk storage! You need somewhere to keep it all. I have decided to focus on bathroom counter storage. Personally on my bathroom counter I have a slot of stuff! I have Q-tips, cotton pads, face washing products, hair products, toothbrush, toothpaste, makeup and if I don't keep it somewhat organized my bathroom would be a disaster. One thing I did to free up some counter space was to put shelving on the wall, I put three parrallel shelves on the wall beside my sink, and on the shelves is where I like to keep my hair products. I think that the packaging for some of the products is really ugly... like... Q-tips? They look super funky sitting on your counter, NOT! Ha. I found some old jars that my grandpa had in his garage and used them as storage! They look really cool, it's a cool different alternative than to just leave things in their packages. I have them lined up along the back of my counter. Not only are they useful storage,



This is cool! This example uses jars to hold craft supplies. NICE!

but they are also funky looking! Win, win situation:)

This is one example that is similar to what I did
in my bathroom. I have seen it done before in kitchens
to hold spices too!

-BellaCooper

ENVIRO-design

Bonjour! Our task this week was to blog about an aspect of interior design that is eco-friendly. I love doing things green. I love to recycle, and am interested in doing anything I can to reduce the amount of waste I consume. If I were to design a home, I would be very interested in making a green home. I like to watch the show "Canada's Greenest Homes," they have some funky environmentally friendly ideas on designing your home. Sometimes, people compromise the design aspect and the looks of their home to have it be environmentally friendly. One aspect I am very interested in is the idea of using "GREEN" flooring. I have seen, and heard of people using bamboo flooring in their home. It is becoming very commun for people to use bamboo flooring. Not only does it look gorgeous, but does not impact the environment, unlike using lamenate or hardwood. Normal trees (hardwood flooring) take hundreds of years to grow, before people are able to use them for flooring, but unlike normal hardwood, Bamboo takes only months to grow fully. It is not an endangered plant, so it is safe to use it. Bamboo is also easy to clean, and is very practical to have for a floor in your home. -BellaCooper



Personally, I thought that this sample was really nice.

It is different and funky, and I think it would be a nice accent to a modern space (:





I think this is a really nice option if you are looking for something a little more classic, or a little more subtle.
I really like the colour, it is dark enough, but also is not too dark (:



STARBUCKS

The most wonderful coffee shop in the universe! It tastes sooo good, but can be fairly expensive at times! Its STARBUCKS! Yummy yummy yummy! We are soo lucky to have a starbucks with great service in Kensington plaza, which makes it soo easy to get a cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate at school! 

On March 1st, 1987, Starbucks opened its first Canadian store, Seabus, in Vancouver, B.C. In 1995, Starbucks formed an alliance with Chapters, Inc., the Canadian bookstore chain. The next year marked the first stores in the Ontario market, with the January 20th opening of 5 stores throughout the greater Toronto area. To date, Starbucks Coffee Canada has over 785 company-operated stores and over 266 licenced concept stores across the country. Starbucks coffee houses offer more than the finest coffee sourced from across the globe. Friendly people, great music and a comfortable upbeat meeting place create the famous Starbucks experience.

All starbucks coffee shops around the globe are made to make everyone feel relaxed when they walk in or even stay in the cozy lounge area to enjoy their coffee. There is nothing better then the smell of fresh coffee beans when you walk into any starbucks. The most wonderful thing that starbucks offers is FREE WI-FI! They have nice confortable study spaces, which is great if you ever need to get your work done. Starbucks has also been trying to create a more "environmental" planet of coffee. They are committed to buying and serving the highest-quality, responsibly grown, ethically traded coffee to help create a better future for farmers and a more stable climate. All starbucks's around the world have set goals for 2015, which are 100% of there coffee will be responsibly grown,and ethically traded, 100% of there cups will be recyclable or reusable and finally they will contribute more than one million community service hours each year. But no matter what they will always sell the most delicious coffee, tea and hot chocolate.
-VanessaBrletic (double post)















First Starbucks in the world!





PLASTIC BAG DISPENSER

Storage storage storage! We continue shopping and shopping and we are left with so many shopping bags! This is where a plastic bag dispensers come into play. In my house we own 2 plastic bag dispensers, and let me just tell you, they are fantastic! You can buy them in so many different colors and they are really cheap! If you go to Ikea, you can get them for $1.99! Now that's a good deal! They help save SO much space in the closet. Instead of having a zillion plastic bags from groceries lying around on the floor, or in the closets, it leaves your house clutter free, well at least just "plastic bag" free. All you have to do is hang it up on the door, and VOILA! You got yourself a plastic bag dispenser!
-VanessaBrletic (single post)




This white platic bag dispenser is from ikea and is very cheap!
It is on sale now for only $1.99





This plastic bag dispencer is the exact same one as
the white one above its just a different color.





This plastic bag dispenser is also from ikea, but its not as cheap
as the other two above. This one is about $15.00