BIJOU LIVING

I used to know a clever toast,
But now I cannot think it, So fill your glass to anything, And damn your souls, I'll drink it! Moscow Mule 2 ounces Absolut vodka
fresh squeezed lime juice
muddled ginger
Natural Brew Outrageous Ginger Ale/BeerMuddle fresh ginger and lime together in a rock glass from Artecnica's Design with Conscience Collection.  Add ice cubes.  Pour in vodka and top with ginger ale/ginger beer. Garnish with candied ginger and a glass stir stick - of course. My week just isn't a week without some bubbly!  Vintage Baccart serves it up nicely...


Japanese cuisine all week!  At Kaide and Yoshi it was strictly Sapporo. Even better in a Villeroy and Boch crystal beer glass!
Vodka Perrier Lime - short and stiff 
2.25 ounces vodka
Lime Perrier
wedge lime


Add ice cubes to a short rock glass (6 ounce) Joe Columbo 5 in Uno.  Pour in vodka.  Top with Lime Perrier.  Squeeze a big wedge of fresh cut lime in.  Garnish with lime and a glass stir stick - of course. Last but not least, Award…

'Double, double toil and trouble; fire burn and cauldron bubble.'.  Witches in MacbethTord Boontje has teamed up with Artecnica - Designs with Conscience - to release Witches' Kitchen, a 15 piece handcrafted couture kitchenware collection.  Designed by Boontje and crafted by artisan communities in Brazil, Guatemala and Columbia.
$770 USD for set of six For inspirational pieces try Ten Thousand Villages where I found the Kenyan kitchenware collection. $7 USD for one
$28 USD for set

During a "mood" last week I sold all our living room furniture on Craigslist. Thank goodness for oversized throw pillows and flokati rugs! The old vintage couch  bought in 1971 by the hubbie's stepdad Strictly oversized cushions or tatami mats and low tables in the space could work. 

This is a great piece by Rossana Orlandi that's reminiscent of 1950s throw cushions.  Mah-Jong by Roche Bobois is stunning and could be the answer! We did go price out and choose our fabric for this fabulous tufted couch by Montauk - but unfortunately it wouldn't fit through our apartment door - it's very very deep! A gorgeous piece by Moroso but too big as well.  and this one is pretty but would be just too uncomfortable Inge Sempe Satin Chantilly sofa for edra Perhaps. I'm starting to feel a touch like Goldilocks... September 14th - update on the search for the couch - it's been found!  Click here to see.

I have a penchant for chairs.  Whether they're Victorian, industrial, mid-century modern, 70s Italian or Louis XIV, I love them all. To show off a collection of chairs it's best to place them in a grouping. Remember you never want your home to look like a charity shop!  If you place your collection around a raw reclaimed wood table like the one below the juxtaposition of the design elements becomes more apparent against the organic texture of the wood.  blacksmith's table at Get Back Inc.  mid-century industrial chair in bent plywood and steel 1960s Danish teak chairs mid-century rosewood chair with oversized tweed cushion

buy a villa!  The majority of my friends are expats now living abroad.   In typical character, my good friend Dawn decided to go big or go home and is now the proud owner of a villa in the hills near Barcelona, Spain. the villa Dawn decided to do some renos on her new home - three years worth!  You can see photos of the project here.  For a woman who hates shopping, Dawn has blown me away with her design concept and material choices.   Our washroom chronicles four different decades of bad, unmatched tile and 70s avocado green fixutres - help us, we're in a rental! the catalogue our fixtures must have come from... Take a look at Dawn's washroom before and almost after pics. before almost complete! For the "WOW!" effect she's used Roca fixtures and black and white Dune tiles.

photo courtesy Le Labo On a recent trip to San Francisco my husband introduced me to Le Labo (try Barney's in Seattle).  He was very excited because he thought it smelled like Scotch.   I went on to have the Patchouli 24 (it's unisex) made up for him.  They blend the parfum right there and personalize the bottle for you.  It doesn't smell like patchouli at all - it's more approachable with scents like smoke, leather, birch, and vanilla.  Le Labo describes the scent as: A scent filled with danger for those of us who like to walk a tight rope... Another scent I picked up was This Works: deep calm bath and shower oil . You smooth this oil on your body before the shower.  The heat from the water activates the essential oils and - voila - your own aromatherapy session.  The scent lingers all day and the coconut oil leaves your skin super soft.

Thomas Kakinuma
over 15" in height

John, the very knowledgeable proprietor of DODA on Richards, has opened my eyes to Thomas Kakinuma, probably one of the greatest Canadian potters - and he was from BC. Kakinuma did some beautiful ceramic animals (birds in particular) that I know I'm going to keep my eyes open for.









Thomas Kakinuma
all pieces from the writer's private collection Stacy Reynaud
Related Posts:
Sheila White - The Mysterious West Coast Potter

'Go, play outside!'; is what my mom used to tell us. I grew up in Langley, BC surrounded by land, grasses, trees and wildlife. It's heartbreaking to see what's happened to Langley now. There's goes the habitat.We built some of the best forts or, shall I so boldly say, earth integrated architecture, in Langley. My favourite was the 'Moss Fort'. The Moss Fort was a grouping of huge smooth granite boulders that formed somewhat of a circle - these were the walls. The roof comprised low hanging alder and cottonwood branches and we were the only kids to have a shag carpet of moss - you had to take your shoes off before you came in the Moss Fort. You couldn't stand up in the Moss Fort, but that was okay because the low roof, moss insulation, granite and body heat kept it warm. It emitted a quiet yet powerful energy. It was protected from the adults, of course, by salmonberries and thistles. The Moss Fort was silent like a womb and a place to go for peac…

Rye & Ginger short and stiff Drink from 4-7pm during news hour Ingredients: 2.5 ounce rye whiskey 4 ounce Diet (!) Ginger Ale Add ice and rye to a rock glass top with Ginger Ale Conversation topic over rye: Crown Royal was created in 1939 to commemorate the visit of the Queen Mum to Canada - thanks Mum! Old Fashioned 2 0unce rye 1 sugar cube dash of bitters 1 slice lemon 1 slice orange 1 cherry Combine the sugar, bitters and 1 tsp water in a Carlo MorettiOttagonalegold rimmed whiskey glass. Muddle well, add rye and stir. Add a twist of lemon peel and ice cubes. Add slices of orange and lemon and top with the cherry. Serve with a swizzle stick. Veuve du Vernay Brut Always a fun beverage to get you started. Goes well with everything, particularly, Panago Primo Vegetarian Cracker Crust Pizza.
Jackson Triggs 2006 Proprietor's Chardonnay - again. Not as good as last week. Kind of tasted like Gala Keg (wine in a box) this week. Speaking of wine. What …

'The count is back with an eye for London's hot pants.'

Kings Road, Chelsea, 1972. Dracula A.D. 1972 is highly worth watching simply for the interior design and fashion. Although, I'm sure you won't be able to resist Johnny Alucard. Favourite shots - the Cavern coffee bar, Johnny's pad, and the party featuring "Stoneground". Rosemary Burrows was in charge of wardrobe but I'm not sure of any exact designer (Thea Porter & Ossie Clark, perhaps). You can check out a scene from the party here.

'Poor Nell, you look like Death.'. Of course she does Theo, you're the one dressed in Mary Quant! Quant did the costumes for one of my other film favourites, The Haunting (1963). You can watch one of the more frightening scenes by clicking here.

Maarten Baas has teamed up with Dutch label Moooi to reproduce his iconic Baroque Smoke Chairs (try Inform Interiors).  Baas works a torch like a chisel and systematically burns each piece, after which they are preserved with a clear epoxy coating.
Talk about having the hottest seat in the house - I just couldn't resist...
(smoking photo by Bas Princen)

Since we're onto smoking.  D.L. & Co's Modern Alchemy Salem candle is infused with scents of New England maple, hickory and walnut.  Nothing like the scent of a ravenous bonfire to set the imagination spinning.  My personal favourite is opium den (shown).

Laptop? For $4000 (basic model) you can set yourself up with a 2.6kg uber luxe laptop.

I fell in love with Kermodi's designs back at the 2007 IDS West. Kermodi believes that living art is the missing link in space design. Nice. Which one will balance the feng shui in your cubicle this season? Their site leads you through the selection from low light to bright light.

I love vintage wall tapestries! My favourite interior designer, Suzy Hoodless, has just released a Spring 2008 collection of wallpapers with Osborne and Little.  If only I would have kept all those vintage wallpapers I sold on eBay ten years ago...Hothouse Collection by Suzy Hoodless

'Raccoons and cats become a little bit boring...'
About a year ago I came across Grey Gardens. A beautiful film that gave me nightmares. The Cult's song Ciao Baby is about Edie Sedgwick not Little Edie. It would be nice if Little Edie had a song.
There's a great fan site dedicated to Grey Gardens and you can view it here.

Stacy Reynaud Star signLibra
Inspirations the beach, the forest, vintage fashion, vintage cars
Dream home buy 1970s West Coast vernacular (must have a galley kitchen)
Favourite design object Opinel knife
Perfect day morning snuggles, coffee and croissants, thrift shopping, late lunch on a sunny patio, forest meandering, dinner snacking, dusk beachcombing, and a solid night's sleep

In 1999, fifteen years after she sold her first collection of vintage clothing, Stacy went on to create one of the first online fashion retail companies - Czarina Vintage. Following the success of this venture, she successfully developed an international vintage clothing and fashion brand. Splitting her time between New York, Los Angeles and London, her highly sought after vintage collections have been shown with Los Angeles' Caskey and Lees, and the exclusive Manhattan Vintage Clothing Show. Her restructured vintage fashion brand, edle, landed in high-end boutiques in eclectic districts such as Tokyo'…