Skip to main content
CartClose Cart

Inspiration and my Tiffany Blue Office

08/29/2010
79 Comments

Turquoise office photos by Maria Killam  Sometimes I get direct inspiration for a project from reading design magazines, blogs or even movie sets. Everyone knows the Something’s Gotta Give set that is the most copied white kitchen! For my home office, inspiration came from Meryl Streep’s office in the Devil Wears Prada. I love all…

Continue Reading

Colour Cues in BC Home Magazine

08/28/2010
23 Comments

As promised, here is the actually story on my project featured this month in BC Home by Tiffany Sloan. If you missed the ‘before’ pictures from my last post, click here to see them. Interior Design By Maria Killam, Photography by Anna Beaudry   “We’ve always said we wanted our house to look impressive when…

Continue Reading

BC Home Article; Before and After

08/26/2010
45 Comments

Remember that photo shoot I talked about way back in March? Well I can finally share this house with you because September’s BC Home issue has arrived! Thank you so much to everyone at BC Home for featuring this project! I’m honoured to be in this magazine again this September, here is last years post…

Continue Reading

Top Ten Throw Pillows

08/23/2010
37 Comments

Lately I’ve been obsessed with toss cushions because I’m selecting fabrics for the pillows that will be on my new sofa and in the bedrooms. I never design a room for a client without them. Here are my favourites: Samantha Pynn 1. Love this big floral for the drama and the way it pulls together…

Continue Reading

Sneak Peek of my Entry

08/21/2010
35 Comments

This is the cabinet I recently found from HomeSense for my entry. Isn’t it fabulous? Because there are two drawers they neglected to insert a knob in the middle. I might change them all out and insert new ones because it looks like they are missing at the moment. Photos not otherwise credited by Maria…

Continue Reading

How to Measure for a Curtain Rod

08/20/2010
curtain rods
39 Comments

The most common mistake that people make when measuring for off-the-shelf drapery is the rod itself. I see this mistake so often that I decided to write a post so that at least all my readers will be in the know. And, if you want to know which colour you should choose for your curtain…

Continue Reading

The House of Blues

08/18/2010
38 Comments

When Robin Dow, CEO of Galahad Metals Inc. called me to help choose colours for his new house in West Vancouver, I immediately tried to talk him out of all the blue grays he showed me. In fact I’m pretty sure I can only take credit for one blue in the whole entire house, he…

Continue Reading

Are you Decorating in the Dark?

08/16/2010
24 Comments

How many times have you been in a store looking at a piece of furniture or a toss cushion and wondered if it coordinated with your existing colour scheme.  This happens to me when I’m shopping for clothes. I wonder if the top will match the shoes I have at home and every time I…

Continue Reading

Dining Tables with Matching Chairs; Yay or Nay

08/13/2010
41 Comments

I think the most interesting dining rooms are ones where the chairs don’t match the table. So I was very excited to find these french chairs for my dining room when I decorated it a few years ago. Elle Decor So, keeping in mind my sunshine yellow sofa, I now have to decide which colour to paint…

Continue Reading

Exterior in Grays; Before & After

08/11/2010
27 Comments

Cathleen hired me to help her choose colours for her house in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Here is Cathleen’s house before. She wanted to update it with some new colours because she will be selling in a few years: Such a pretty setting! And here is the after (below), nice to break up all the red:…

Continue Reading

Five Accessories Everyone should have in their Home

08/08/2010
18 Comments

Source The most exciting thing about my new place is that I have space–which equals endless opportunities for vignettes and tablescapes–which play a huge part in creating atmosphere in your home. In the years that I have been decorating, there is a common theme on accessories that are usually missing in a client’s home and…

Continue Reading

Why your Designer should be a Blogger

08/06/2010
45 Comments

If you are about to hire a designer to help you with your house, it’s best if your designer also has a blog. Design bloggers really are on the cutting edge of what’s cool and current (maybe). Here’s why. Yesterday I posted about IKEA bookshelves and then Erika from Bluelabel Bungalow posted a comment saying…

Continue Reading

Here’s a way to make your Bookshelf Beautiful

08/04/2010
32 Comments

When I was debating which bookshelves to buy for my living room I did a search for Billy Bookcases and found some very cool examples of ways to make them look more colourful and custom.  House & Home Magazine   You may or may not know this but what makes a custom bookshelf different from…

Continue Reading

Help! I Hate my Yellow Living Room

08/01/2010
43 Comments

Update in 2024, find out what I should have done to make my yellow walls work here. (Hint, my walls were naked). So I decided to paint the room yellow to match my sofa (I got talked out of a linen shade which was my first choice initially). Cloverdale Paint sponsored the paint for this…

Continue Reading

The Colour of a Perfect Summer Day

07/30/2010
30 Comments

Source I have specified BM Summer Blue 2067-50 so many times for little boys rooms that the paint store would know it was my chart just by looking at the colour. It’s really fabulous. And truly the colour of a perfect summer day. Also great in a windowless room because it’s the colour of the…

Continue Reading