BlogPodium 2015 heads to Vancouver

Have you heard the news? Last week it was announced that BlogPodium, a Toronto-based top-notch blogger conference, is headed my way!! I had the pleasure of attending in 2012, but this time I am so excited to attend this conference in my own fabulous city. I learned so much about the business of blogging; everything from how to utilize social media platforms to your advantage, how to connect with brands interested in working with bloggers, to how to effectively monetize your blog. Local bloggers, I encourage you to pencil this fantastic and educational event into your calendar.

BlogPodium 2015 will be held on Saturday, September 26, 2015 at the beautiful Pan Pacific Hotel Vancouver. This year will feature a handmade market, more lifestyle content, and other developments to be announced in the coming months.

If you have a great idea for content or collaboration please email your thoughts to info@blogpodium.com. If your living in this beautiful city I call home, I hope to see you at this years' event!

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New Adventures In Renovating!

Hi everyone! Thanks for popping by today - I'm excited to finally have the first "before" shot of the home we recently purchased (and many more 'befores' to come soon!!). We haven't quite got our hands on the home yet, but soon enough we will be in demolition mode; there is plenty to  tear down including walls, a fireplace, pink carpets, and 1989 wallpapers everywhere. And I mean EVERYWHERE. I'm nervous but excited. Any wallpaper removal tricks you may have are much appreciated ;)

For today, a look at the exterior of the home. It's on a great street and it's got good bones but needs a bit of re-working:

So here's what I'm dreaming up ... of course budget may come into play but if we can we would love to add shakes, replace the upper windows and the front door, add oversized lighting and shutters, paint, and re-do the landscaping. Here's a wee mock up of what I'd love to see happen to this little diamond in the rough:

Can you picture it coming into our current decade? I think little changes could go a long way in modernizing this home. I'd love to hear your thoughts and your ideas of what you would do if you were to renovate the exterior of this home! I'm quite thrilled to share the process along the way with you, honestly my first reno was the reason I even started blogging some 5 years ago. Thanks for joining in my next journey!

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5 Years & New Adventures To Come

Yesterday I reached 5 years of blogging here on Marcus Design; I originally created this wee corner of the blogosphere to document my projects & renovations in my very first home. I remember how long and hard I worked on those first few posts, and how nervous I was to hit 'publish' for fear of what people would think, or worse yet, if any one would ever really read what I had to say! Blogging quickly became a huge part of my life - I've made many 'real life' friends, learned to develop my own design style, and became part of an amazing community of like-minded people interested in all-things-creative. I'm so thankful for each and every one of you who come take a peek over here from time to time, you mean the world to me!

Fast forward exactly 5 years later, and there is a SOLD sign sitting pretty on my front lawn. I'm closing the chapter on the very thing that got me blogging in the first place. This home has been so good to us and I've learned a lot here; I'll miss it but I'm also beyond excited for what's to come. We haven't found a home yet, but I can promise you a whole lot of renovation goodness once we do! Our neighbourhood is riddled with older homes in dire need of a little love, and we are excited to get our hands on another diamond in the rough ;)

So for now I leave you with a few images of our current little rancher. It's a weird think to see your own home on the MLS website - real estate photos are so different than interior design photos - there's no 'zhushing', and they use all those wide angles and cold lighting! Here is a comparison of a few of my own photos contrasted with the MLS photos:

Funny to see the difference, isn't it? Well, it's on to touring potential houses, starting new projects and new renos! Thank you for joining me on this exciting ride.

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Merry Christmas From My Home To Yours

(my home | Instagram)

Merry Christmas dear friends! I wish you a fabulous next few days surrounded by your family & friends ... I hope you get everything on your wishlist, and eat too many desserts to count. It's a time of year where we can often get distracted by 'things', all those shiny & glittery material items, we even get caught up in what we're going to wear and how we'll do our nails (I'm speaking for myself here!). But I encourage us all to remember what this season really is all about. It's about showing love to our neighbours, spending time with our families, doing random acts of kindness, and most importantly celebrating the One who gave it all for us. Jesus is the real reason for the season, He's the historical basis for this holiday that we have modernized, and it's something that's easy to forget as I get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the Holidays.

I've been trying to focus on that more and more this year; even when writing my Christmas cards out, shopping for the perfect gifts, or baking batches of cookies for loved ones, I'm trying to remind myself why I am doing all of this. To show love to those around me, to give to those in need, and to celebrate the birth of Christ even through tasks that may seem "commercialized."

Luke 2: 8-12 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

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Recap | IDSwest 2014

I had the pleasure of attending the annual Interior Design Show West (IDSwest) this past weekend, and there was so much wonderful décor & design to take in! And as a long-time Sarah Richardson fan, having her as the keynote speaker was a definite highlight for me. Here is a little recap of the show:

Did you know that in the past 15 years Sarah has designed 300 rooms over 5 tv series? I've been watching from the very beginning - Room Service, Design Inc (by far my favorite!), Sarah's House, Sarah's Cottage, Sarah 101, and Real Potential. She'll have another Sarah's Cottage airing soon - so stay tuned for that! She also mentioned doing a large renovation on her own home which will eventually make it's way to our tv screens as well :)

Oh, and you can now pre-order Sarah's book 'Sarah Style' which will be released November 4th; it's filled with tips and tricks and is only $20 on Amazon!

And if you are a die-hard fan, get excited because this is happening:

It'll be fun to see what she comes up with! Let's take a look at a few of the other exhibits and products that caught my eye at the show. I loved that brass was still going strong - these chic & whimsical faucets from Cantu were like jewelry:

 

 

Another great booth was from Ocean Pacific Lighting Inc, I fell hard for this geometric fixture, and the Lucite & brass combo on the right:

 

 

There were a few lovely booths set up for Dinner by Design - showcasing tabletop décor at it's finest. This first one is by the talented Gillian Segal, all the jewel-toned flowers and gold flatware made for a perfect setting:

There was a really fun booth set up by Endeavour Neon Signs, you've likely seen their work in the home office of Monika Hibbs:

And lastly, tartan was a real theme at this years show - every where you turned there was a handsome dash of plaid! Love the touch with these pillows:

How about a sea of tartan? The Montauk Sofa booth was probably the most popular spot to be sneaking in a selfie!!

Those were a few of my favorite things this year; it's always so much fun to get inspired by such creative minds, I already can't wait till the next show!

{bits & pieces: my life lately}

Happy mid-week! As I had mentioned last week, I wanted to post a few photos of my staycation! It was a perfect week to be off work - we had some summer-like days here in Vancouver, and we managed to visit some of our favorite spots. It was so much fun playing tourists in our own beautiful city!

We took tons of walks around our neighbourhood - and I snapped a few iPhone photos of my favorite house - I always stop and take in all the details when walking by. The landscaping alone is meticulous, but I think one of the details I love most is the strip of black trim around all of the windows. Oh, and the uber charming awning of course:

We did a lot of eating. A LOT. Why does that always seem to go hand in hand with vacations? One of our favorite spots in the city is Meat & Bread. Perfect name, clean branding, and amazing sandwiches!

We got a few pretty shots of the city in all of it's sunny glory! Just below is a view from Granville Island {taken only with an iPhone, I'm proud of that, lol!}:

And English Bay was looking fabulous trimmed in tulips:

We had high tea at Soirette; a definite highlight! Aren't macarons the most photogenic food?

It was a great week! And if you've been following on instagram, you may have noticed that last week hubby & I began working on a little succulent garden in our backyard, we got some pretty pots yesterday and once we've completed it I will definitely show you the finished product, so stay tuned!

{my home office before & after}

Happy Monday everyone! I'm back to work after a restful yet productive week off of work. Today I'm showing you a little mini project I recently tackled in my home office. I purchased a new desk and shelves from IKEA and did organizational overhaul - how cleansing! Thank goodness I took a few iPhone before shots so I could give you a peek at what a mess it once was:

We purchased a laminated desktop (Linnmon - $39) with metal trestle legs (Lerberg - $10 each), a very budget conscious option. To glam it up, I sprayed the trestle legs brass with Rustoleum paint. I added Billy bookcases in white (with the height extensions) to both sides of the windows. The extra height is definitely handy for additional storage space, and I like the look of the shelves nearly the height of the room:

Before & after side by side:

I still have many 'accessorizing' plans for this room, but it has come a long way! I'm going to purchase a rug, add roman shades over the windows, and get creating a gallery wall along side the desk. I'll be sure to post the finished product eventually ;) But seriously, just having all my books and paper-work organized has felt incredible! Spring cleaning is good for the soul, isn't it?