Happy Holidays!

I have been trying to get into the Christmas spirit with a little holiday DIY I saw on Instagram. I miss my East Coast family so much at this time of year. So, it has been a great distraction to pull out my art supplies and get crafty! Let’s create a budget-friendly DIY fireplace surround with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.

Rosie inspects the supplies.

 

I wanted it to be a super simple holiday style in the living room using things I already had. Painting the logs was so fun, and I got some inspiration from one of my fave local home stores, Five Fields Decor.

 

All finished!

 

DIY Fireplace Surround

For my fireplace, I used – Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Graphite followed by AS Clear Glass Laquer. It’s budget-friendly, looks amazing and I can enjoy the holidays cozying up by my newly refreshed fireplace!

 

Now, I know I did this over the holidays, so naturally I had to decorate it accordingly. But, this DIY is so manageable and can be done whenever the mood strikes! It is so elegant, modern, and fresh, it really is worth the time and effort.

So, whether you are visiting with friends and family virtually or in person this holiday season, I hope you all really get a chance to get into the holiday spirit with some crafty DIY decorations like I have! 

The post DIY Fireplace using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

The post Creating Inspiring Spaces with Annie Sloan appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

The post Spring Tablescapes appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

Peeking ahead to 2020 it’s fun to envision what we will all be drooling over this year. The second style on my watch is grandmillenial; after a few viral articles and the hottest Influencers embracing the trend we will hear this word a lot in 2020. A must read for an in-depth look is r Emma Bazilian, the journalist behind House Beautiful’s viral story “The Rise of Grandmillennial Style.”

It’s a design style that blends traditional prep with a fresh twist. No it not just granny chic it’s a layered aesthetic that embraces formality. Entertaining with China, candles and napkin rings is also part of the movement towards an appreciation of the past. You get a sense of who the person is because the rooms showcase photos and collections without being cluttered. It’s never stuffy it’s a careful balance of patterns with lots of crisp whites and furniture with clean lines to keep it grandmillenial rather than grammas house.

We can all embrace moments of this style; the mix of old and new, the love of setting a good table, or hanging a piece of cheeky needlepoint, it’s about injecting your space with you, which is a great way to celebrate the start of a new decade.                        

Fabulous blog post for more about grandmillennial-style
https://www.onekingslane.com/live-love-home/grandmillennial-style/

Check out our new and vintage finds in store Tuesday – Saturday 10-5 closed holidays.
Best, Deb
Deborah Baker
Five Fields
1(250) 882-9040
Visit us: 2070 Cadboro Bay Road
Follow us: @fivefieldsdecor

The post inspiration or fixation ?!? appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

The post There’s a Mouse in the House appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

Halloween can be more of a trick than a treat, however by keeping things simple and using what you have on hand you will avoid losing your witch. Vintage and layered is the name of the game for halloween decor, skip the plastic and orange and think aged silver, grey, black velvets, and deep purple.

Start at your front door, if you don’t have time to carve, use black temporary tattoos on white pumpkins, and display them in an unexpected way like stacked in columns rather than spread low. Indoors more is more; group and cluster silver, mirrors and any black decor together it makes more of an impact. Tuck away your beach photos and put out your black and white photos from long ago when the flash took forever, they can create an eerie montage (no offence great gramma). Between your own goblins and trick or treaters you will be busy so its best to have a make ahead buffet, and set a fabulous table where everyone big and small can help themselves. Layer your table with scrap fabric or old throws in dark colours, Halloween loves frayed edges and don’t worry about one table cloth that fits use several layered on top of each other. Top the table with as many glass, silver and mis matched candle sticks as you have, trail white pumpkins down the centre, fill vintage silver gravy boats with cutlery and napkins and for fun add a Sugar-uterie platter stacked with fun treats!

Keep the menu make ahead and easy, think pasta bakes, soup, curries, chilli; carbs are your friend tonight as it slows the sugar consumption! Get out Gramma’s punch bowl add two parts white grape juice to one part sparkling water, kids love the little cups and you will love the self serve ease plus white is a lot easier to clean up than a purple juice box!

Decor this time of year can be as imaginative or as simple as your desire there is never a wrong way to decorate, enjoy the kids; yours and others and Happy Halloween!

Deb

 

Door Mat $25

Pin Stripe Apron $30

Vintage Candle Sticks $20 +

The post Host Stories – Last Minute Halloween Decor appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

The post Above the Fold appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

Tickled Pink
Pink in all its shades has permeated every segment of home decor, from pillows to pots to toasters, pink is everywhere. While once thought to be feminine and fussy, it is now in shades that are cool, sophisticated and even masculine.

Decorating with pink is easy. It levels up all the neutral schemes many of us live with. Your grey sofa never looked more inviting than with a pale pink pillow, the taupe on the walls will feel fresh with a punchy pink chalkboard. A hallway will seem punctuated with a traditional press back chair painted deep salmon. 

 

The shade of pink is key. There are beautiful soft fleshy pinks perfect for upholstery and barely blushes that replace basic beige wall paint. Stronger pinks are saved for a statement pieces,  they are great in modern spaces and twin well with copper accents. 

 

If you are still hesitant to take the pink plunge, introduce it in a subtle way, such as napkins, placemats or even something as small as fresh flowers. You may well learn that pink flatters the skin, warms the heart, and is no longer Barbie’s domain.   By: Deb Baker

Fabulous Pink to bring home today available at Five Fields

Visit Us:
fivefieldsdesign.com
2070 Cadboro Bay Road
@Fivefieldsdecor

The post Tickled Pink appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

I have been thinking about writing about my friend Belinda for a long time but it’s one of those things you have to be ready for. This Valentines Day will mark three years since she left us. If there could be a perfect day for a person to leave this world, Valentines day would be it for her. I’m sure she chose that day. I’m sure she did it as her final message to everyone to always remember to love and be kind. That’s what she would want for everyone in her life because that’s what she gave us all everyday.

I remember exactly where I was sitting when I got her email almost four years ago. It was a group message to her friends to let us know (but not to worry) that she had been diagnosed with melanoma that had metastasized into several large tumors in her organs. It was numbing. We knew she hadn’t been feeling well for a few months but never thought this 33 year old, beautiful, vibrant new mother could be sick like this. I think the news knocked everyone to their knees, except Belinda. She was nearing the end of her maternity leave after the birth of her first child Parker and instead of preparing for her return to work; she changed her to focus to fighting for her life.

Our friends banded together and formed the BStrong team in an effort to make Belinda feel supported and also because we felt helpless and just wanted to do something. There is nothing worse than watching someone you love suffer and all you want to do is take their pain away. Her family circled around her with so much love and her husband was what would Belinda would call “a rockstar.” Their support for her was something that has touched me forever and was a true example of what real love is.

Belinda got really sick, really fast. Her cancer was so aggressive and so ruthless but when you talked to her, she never let you see it. She never complained, she never stopped smiling and she never.stopped.fighting. I can say with 100% certainty that I will NEVER meet a person that is stronger then her. We would tell her this all the time and her response was always the same, “what other choice does a Mama have then to fight for their babe?!.” As a parent I can understand wholeheartedly what she meant, but as a bystander there is just no way to put into words what strength like that looks like.

I have this vivid memory of somberly walking through the halls at the hospital with my friends to go see her after it was discovered her cancer had spread. We were SHOCKED when we walked in her room and was greeted with her usual Belinda cheer and huge beautiful smile “Hi Girls!!!!!!,” she literally sang to us. She proceeded to chat away and tell us all the good news she got from her doctor that morning…..and by good news I mean, she was about to start radiation for 10 straight days because her fight wasn’t over. You know when you hear about people choosing joy and that it’s not about the news you get its how you deal with it? Well Belinda chose joy in the most dire of circumstances. She was incredible. It was impossible not to get caught up in her positivity and we all left the hospital looking at each other like “so is it not that bad??!!” It was. Two months later, on a day set to celebrate love, she chose to rest. Her will to live to the very end was iron, she just knew when it was time to stop fighting.

I still think about her all the time and I know I always will. When you experience the loss of a life so big like that, your grief changes you forever. It leaves an imprint on your heart that will always be there. I think it reshapes your path for the future and the hope is that in time, it will make you live with more purpose and more fight. I’m trying for her.

At her funeral, the priest said, “there are some answers to that three letter question (why) that we won’t find an answer for in this world.” That gave me so much peace because deep down I knew it was true. I didn’t need to look for a reason because I’d never get one good enough. What I have taken from it is that every day that we wake up in good health, is the most incredible gift. We need to take that gift and make it our duty to live the best life that we possibly can. This is what inspired me to pursue a career change and go after the life I wanted for my family. Belinda’s favorite color was purple so when I was designing my logo for my new business, there was no question on what the color had to be. My purple logo is a daily reminder to me how precious this life is and to live with that in mind always. How can I not when I’m lucky enough to have today? That message is too powerful to me to waste.

On Belindas headstone the inscription reads “there is nothing more beautiful than a person who goes out of their way to make life more beautiful for others.” That was my friend. Her message to us all; be a light. Be kind. BStrong.

Love you forever Belinda xo

-T-

The post My Irongirl appeared first on Living Hollis Style.

As the 2018 Olympics are approaching, 30 years later (OMG seriously what the heck?!), I find myself starting to get caught up in that Olympic fever again. There is something so powerful about your entire country binding together to cheer and support their athletes. When Canada won gold in mens hockey in 2002, my university friends crowded into a few of our vehicles and drove through the city beeping the horn and waving Canadian flags. We pulled up to a red light and looked out our window at a police officer who had pulled up beside us. Instead of pulling us over and telling us to stop beeping and disrupting the peace, he simply gave us a grin and a thumbs up. Oh Canada!

Olympic fever also has had me reflecting lately on a sport that is not represented, or maybe even called a sport, but I feel totally should be. It’s called “Momming.” If you have never heard of it, it’s because I just made it up but I do think it’s legit. Just like how skiing, swimming etc have events, so would Momming. Being a parent is one of the most physically exhausting activiites you could ever partake in. Although ultimately rewarding (much like Olympic sports), the physical demands it places on the body are like none other.

Some of the events that could be represented are listed below:

Lego running: This involves a 50 m foot race barefoot across a room full of lego. If you are a parent, you have mostly likely at some point stepped on a small toy. It hurts. You carry on.

Child carrying: This also would be a foot race carrying a child or children. Preparation for this event happens when your child tells you they are about to vomit and you have 1 second to make it to the bathroom. You’ve been there. Given that this is the winter Olympics, this event would take place outside in the snow and up a hill. You are also required to carry a child’s sled and look for buried mitts in the sand as part of the event.

Coffee chugging: No explanation needed

Child dressing: This is a race to see who can dress their children in full snow gear the fastest. Canadians would clean up at this event. There is literally no parenting activity that makes me sweat more then this one.

Child folding: This event involves folding a tantrum-ing child into a car seat the fastest. Bonus marks if you stay patient and calm. I have to change what I said in the last event description. This makes me sweat the most.

Laundry folding in the company of a toddler: Cut off time for this event is 4 hours. I seriously don’t even attempt to put those two together anymore. As fast as I fold, their laundry tossing is faster. As much as I’ve always been obsessed with the chance to wear the red and white, this would not be my event.

Bedroom creeping obstacle course: This event involves creeping out of the dark room of your sleeping child. You can crawl or walk. I’ve done both. If you have done either of these before, you have probably almost gotten to the door and kicked or knocked some random toy across the floor and woke them up. It’s a freaking tough one. For this event, there would be heats over the course of the Olympics and with each heat, the difficulty level would increase Ie. more toys and creaky floor boards to pass.

Picture posing: Getting your children to pose for a family picture without bribing them with sugar. Bonus points if all children are looking at the camera and double bonus points if none of them are crying.

Lastly- the ‘Ironmama” event. This would take place on the final day of the 2 week Olympic schedule. It would involve staying awake for the entire 14 days and then have to feed, dress and parent your children, meanwhile remembering their names, birthdates, your own name and all the names of your immediate family members. The kicker- caffeine is a banned substance for this event. (Shudder)… not trying out. I usually do good to remember first names only after a few long days. This one is not for the faint of heart.

From left to right: Attempting to have children pose for picture with grandparents (7 children in picture), Meeting my childhood idol Elizabeth Manley, a Momming moment with 3 of my 4. 

In all seriousness, I’m very much looking forward to cheering on the Canadian athletes in a few weeks. I’m always inspired by the dedication, spirit and determination of the athletes and the unity it can bring our country. However…. in the 30 years since Elizabeth Manley’s power skate and Canada’s hockey gold, I have a whole new appreciation for some real true sport heroes I’m surrounded by every day. #momsforthewin Go Canada go!

T

PS- I found Liz’s performance on youtube. It inspires me as much today as it did thirty years ago. Take a look

The post My Olympic Idea appeared first on Living Hollis Style.