Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 19: Money money money..

It's true, it's love that makes the world go around, but boy does a few bucks help! Know the feeling? Well we were beginning to...

We'd found a potential investor by word of mouth, an Englishman who made the trip across from his London home to find out more about design at distance, and what we were planning. And he loved us!  Meetings were had, my brain was picked  (that was the quickest part of the proceedings, as an accountant, this guy was seriously smart!) and we started drawing up the relevant documents.

Trevor returned to his home and we awaited the signing of the documents.

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

What's in a name?

With soft launch moving along as planned, my thoughts were concentrated firmly on our retailers. Talks were going well, (although slower than originally planned) and it looked like it was going to be a race to see which product would hit the shelves first! our own-brand collection, design at distance, or the private label products we were creating for our larger retailers.

As our goal is to deliver our customers (and our retailers' customers) functional, beautiful, personal designs, the brand name appearing on the gift box: whether it's one of our retailers brands, or our own “design at distance” brand name, is not an issue, so long as the result is the same: happy, satisfied customers!   And even better, with private label products we add happy retailers to our list!...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 19: 1^st customers

http://www.designatdistance.com/ was ready to go live, and our French site would soon follow, once our translators had finished their work.

To ensure our designers really knew their way around our software and procedures, they needed to get out of test mode and start designing for “real” customers. But they wouldn't be alone: we'd be accompanying them, from start to finish.

And as I knew from experience, the luxury of having like-minded people to bounce creative ideas off was invaluable. This was the real force of our concept: creating a structured design community to enable our designers to grow, and develop within...

Weekend reading, "North Amercia through the eyes of a European"

Episode 18: Economies ahead!

I knew it was going to be an expensive year, building a completely new concept from scratch.

I was lucky that the creative skills were my own. That alone had “saved” a very real, and very large amount of money. But there were still the professional services, the technical aspects, and the human aspect to fund, before creative thoughts can emerge as hard reality...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 17: Partners

Major companies were supporting design at distance. A huge leap of faith for an "unknown" company.  These were the future suppliers that would help us make our designers more efficient: allowing them to save time by having great products at the tip of their fingertips, and have cutting edge products to choose from “at home”.

From top-notch paints, to fabulous fabrics you can surf on the web, from custom furniture, to high-tech products. Every product has to meet the quality bar we were setting, and every product has to be worth the price tag attached to it.

Great design, at value for money prices: this is our company mantra, and it'what I want us to be known for, today, and very definitely tomorrow!...

We're proudly announcing the arrival of....

The Smeg range of ditinctive kitchen appliances, are coming to the design at distance “d @ d DesignStore”! For the first time the Canadian public can access a collection of Smeg kitchen appliances.

This Italian company is known for it's signature 50's Retro style refrigerator, available in a range of wild and wacky colours. With their products designed in collaboration with leading architects around the world, Smeg is the leader in their field for distinctive, Italian Style kitchen appliances...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 16: Our future in their hands...

We had an interview date. Our visas application had been transferred to our “home town” of Montreal, and we were planning to meet with officials, who would decide our immediate future.

No Visa meant packing the bags and returning to Europe, leaving my not yet launched company without its driving force.

A renewed Visa meant being able to concentrate on getting us out of the starting gates, and back on course for our soft launch...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 15: Our Visa Dilemma

We'd been busy, and time had flown faster than usual since design at distance started to take shape back in the early days of 2010. And we had one date that was probably one of the most important looming up like an express train...

Day 2 of “We love...”

 
Making an entrance!

Today we look at how to make a great entrance from a large space.

There's a tendency to think that the bigger the space, the easier to decorate, but making large areas feel

part of a decorative scheme is an art in itself.

The trick when turning an open hall into a functional entrance area, is to use furniture that is sized in relation to the space.

I love to use old “armoires” (french wardrobes) to hang up coats and bags, either in their original wood finishes, or painted, if the colour scheme calls for it. Choose a contrasting colour and paint out the interior to give a wonderful colour shock when you open the doors!

In the series, “We love...”

Making an entrance!

The entrance hall is one of my favourite “impact” rooms to design. It's the first “inside impression” your visitors have of your home, and should be used to “set the scene” for what's to come: the rest of your home!

There are two ways to treat your entrance space: by making it stand out as a statement in it's own right, or by letting it flow in the same decorative style of the neighbouring room. Both work, it just depends how you like to welcome your guests: with trumpets, or violins, with hard rock, or soft soul...

Lets look at compact spaces today: how do we make them functional, and still look great, when you're short on space?

Depending on the home, sometimes we can "steal" some floor space from a neighbouring room,  freeing the actual entrance area. But if we are forced to work with the space we have, we have make sure it's functional...

Weekend reading, “North America though the eyes of a European”

Episode 14: Our first setback

Things were progressing well. Our hand-picked team of designers had started their initial training and were being introduced to our procedures and chosen tools. These were going to form the base of the disciplines that would allow us to set our quality controls, and standards. These were the standards which would define us in the future...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Time to take a trip to Toronto

The time had come to spread our net outside of Montreal, and many of the people we were talking to were based in Toronto, so we booked our air tickets and started to fill the agenda with meetings.

It was my first trip outside our home-base, and I was looking forward to see how two of the main Canadian cities compared to each other...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 12: Time off: Indoors

Throughout my life I've had 3 main passions: loved ones (both human and animal), my work, and books.  Since my early days, I've always been able to identify a time in my life by relating it to the book which I'd been reading at the time. Words have always been able to cast a special magic on me, transporting me to other continents, and ages, giving me insight on lives that resembled, or not, my own.

I was never to be found without an open book by my bedside, balanced on the edge of the bath, only resulting in the obvious once (or maybe twice) or tucked into my handbag bag, because you never know when you may have 10 minutes to kill!

So it was no surprise that I'd assembled a pretty packed library in our French home, and I knew them all: like old friends...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

Episode 11: Settling in

The days, weeks, and months were flying by, and as the company grew, life in Canada slowly seeped it's way into our bones. But, our first Canadian winter was kind to us, and we were left listening to tales of the arctic weather hitting our old stamping grounds, with both the North of England, North Yorkshire, and Scotland seeing temperatures usually reserved for this continent. Madness!

Decisions, decisions, and more decisions...

You've made the decision!

This is the year you'll finally: update, renovate, put the house on the market, downs-size, build the home of your dreams...Congratulations! As they say, “the first step is the hardest to take”.

find more great cartoons at
http://www.everydaypeoplecartoons.com/

So all that's left to do now is to:

decide whether you A. “plan it alone”, or B. “Bring in the pro's”

Then you need to find, meet, and choose your contractor/s and trades people

And last but not least, decide how you're going to finance your project

But don't be disheartened, because we've got some good news for you... 

"We Love..."

Espace Mosaik Exclusive Art Furniture

If you love wood in all its splendour, I'm sure you'll fall in love with the collection of hand made furniture and accessories at Espace Mosaik.

Created by Quebecois designer, Joel Dumas, and finished by talented woodworker, Jean Prud'homme, raw materials from Bali are combined into stunning pieces of exclusive art furniture...

Weekend reading, "North America through the eyes of a European"

The d @ d design store tm: where great
products and prices meet with super
services

Episode 10 Taking time out...For sisters!

Sister companies that is. The concept I'd started to develop when I first arrived in Montreal, “Design 4U”, had been firmly stored away in the background since design at distance came to life. But I knew it really deserved to be part of the exclusive collection of design products offered through our online design store.

With little doubt, it would give our designers another cutting edge to their designs, and I was feeling the pressure to pull it out of the cupboard, brush it off and concentrate on getting this new and innovative concept finished!...

Weekend reading, “North America through the eyes of a European”

Episode 9: Growing our team

Finding good designers was never going to be the problem, not within an industry that's overflowing with qualified people. The challenge was to find designers who would understand where were coming from, where we were going: and give us the time to get there!

We knew that we had to find our designers, and start their initial training, long before they'd actually have design at distance customers to design for!  That was going to be the challenge! To keep everyone on-board and interested up to the launch...

But there was lots for our designers to do in the meantime: software to navigate, our procedures to learn, suppliers to discover, and last but not least, our values, and the “design spirit” of the company to adopt. I knew they had the capacities to cope...but would they have the patience to wait for us to bring in custom? Would they want to invest the effort, and have the work ethic needed, to fully embrace our way of working and the standards we were determined to set...that was the question!

I knew that the designers that “stayed the course” were going to be with us for a long time, and would become the true force of our company in the future.

It's the last day of our tip-sharing week

A well designed eclectric/retro look

Money saving makeovers

It's easy to get disheartened when you crave elegance and your room gives you eclectic. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE eclectic, but there are certain "guidelines" to follow when putting together an unstructured look. So if your room is a happy mix of styles more through accident then design then read on.

Look closely at each piece in your room and ask yourself: why is it there? Do I love it? Is it functional? If it's not one of these two things then it could do with being “fixed”...or moved out!

Day 4 of our tip-sharing week



FAR too gorgeous to
hide in a cupboard, vintage
luggage is a stylish way to
help tidy up a room




Get clever with containers

I'm a sucker for pretty suitcases and sailors chests (the wooden variety...honestly!) and can never talk myself out of buying them: not only because they're pretty, and make me feel nostalgic, but because they can always be used to store things that you don't use regularly.

Some of mine are currently holding special handbags, (although I love to have some out on show, they do tend to fade and are a pain to dust!) and seeing it's winter, my summer dresses, scarves and beach wear...

 

Day 3 of our tip-sharing week

Don't let lack of space cramp your style.

Even if your bathroom is “super compact” try not to give in to the temptation of bringing in plastic drawers on wheels. (Yes, we've all done it...). This is a design direction to follow only if you're a strong supporter of the student look, and one to be avoided at all costs if you're over the age of 20!

However, if you are determined to go down that road, hide the contents by lining the inside of the drawers with some pattern: stylish wallpaper, or funky wrapping paper does the job well, adds a bit of fun...and hides your skin care secrets from the world!

Day 2 of our tip-sharing week

Bathroom Basics

Small spaces are notorious for gathering grunge, especially areas where you use towels, like the bathroom, because they create so much static and loose fabric fibres.

So make storage areas quick and easy to clean, by grouping small items together into containers, that you can whip out of the cupboard, and wipe around in a flash.

These transparent clip-top contaniers form the Martha Stewart Collection are ideal.

This week is a sharing week!

Hints to make your home stand out from the crowd, and tips to simplify your daily life!

Day 1: Get tough on storage. Nothing can simplify your day to day life like getting the way you store things right. Let's start in the bathroom. If you're cupboards are sorted, you can always put your hands on what what you're looking for, and you never leave half empty bottles or tubes at the back of your shelves, then this tip is not for you. But if you're guilty of any of the above then read on...

Weekend Reading,“North America through the eyes of a European”

see more great cartoons at
everydaypeoplecatoons.com

Episode 8: Whose a control freak...?

Our past experience with building concepts was around existing products.

I'd had some “bones” to work with: an existing product, a working store, distribution channels up and running, previous sales performance to compare against. So although building the design at distance concept was inside my comfort zone, starting from ground zero was going to be new experience!

One thing I'd learnt to recognize was my own limitations. I had many aspects to build, and I knew exactly which ones would challenge me the most, given my skill set and experience to date...

Weekend Reading, “North America through the eyes of a European”

Episode 7 : Confirmation of the Concept

We had a major concept on our hands.

I recognized immediately that this was a “gift” that only comes along once in a lifetime. The chance to use all the professional skills you've built up over the years is an amazing luxury. And I knew that I was going to need them all to pull this one together so it would work on a national...then an international level. Because this was definitely an “International Concept” we had here. And I needed to create it as such from day 1....

Focus on : The Timberland Company

Today's post was going to be called “Designs on Men”.

As a mother of 3 teenage sons, a number of male apparel design products have entered our home, one of which is the “Tim-boot”, the “youth-name” for Timberland Boots. And (as a mother of 3 teenage sons) I am ready to pay homage to a great product: they're warm, they're waterproof, they're made to last...and they look great! Mother's everywhere are surely breathing a sigh of relief this winter...

So what relation does a boot company have to interior design? Well, good design is just that! And this company has been steadily turning out quality designs for decades, innovating, setting an example and standing up and being counted in terms of environmental and social issues. Their products have become design icons and you know what? maybe one day we'll be using “the essence of Timberland” as inspiration for a room: natural leathers, green products and big splash of Urban Design!...

“We love....”

Fabrics! And where better to choose them but at C&M Textiles web site?

As a design at distance site partner we've already featured C&M on our facebook pages, but I love their collection so much, and find their pricing so fair, that I really wanted to bring them to your attention again. But before you whizz off and visit their site, lets talk about why we love fabrics so much.

We use fabrics in many stages of the design process. Sometimes when we are searching for a starting point for a design (that famous “inspiration”), fabrics come to our rescue...

"We love..."

Did you know that “Smartbox” is the company that founded the concept of “lifestyle services” sold in a pre-paid, Gift Boxed format?

Back in 2001 a very clever Guy, called Peirre-Edouard Stérin came up with the idea of making "the gift of experience” available to the public, in a pre-paid, Gift Boxed format, and won the Oscar of Innovation 2004 with his exciting new concept. His company “Smartbox” has since expanded into over 13 countries, and is still the world leader in the industry...

"Did you know...?"

An episode of the “Extreme Makeover” TV show inspired our charity program, Designing Smiles!

We Europeans have a saying, “Everything is bigger in America”. But as we know, sometimes bigger doesn't always mean better, and when we flip over the coin and check out the other side, the reality of life can be less than perfect...

I watched my first episode of Extreme Makeovers in Montreal (although it was originally produced by a UK based TV company) and I was amazed... by the extremes!

Not only by the speed of the build, and the size of the houses (OMG, everything really IS bigger in America) but by the stories behind each show. Now I know that misery makes great television, but Hey Guys, I challenge you to watch this show without counting your blessings....and emptying a box -full of Kleenex!

Weekend Reading, “North America through the eyes of a European”

Episode 6 : The birth of a Concept

We were used to working with a "local" client base, which most interior designers do (unless of course you're a celebrity designer, who globe-trots to service your clientele) so I'd first-hand knowledge of how difficult it is to make a regular, and healthy living purely from interior design clients. Luckily we'd the mix of our design stores, the real estate development company, and our branding service, that helped bridge the many financial gaps that appeared while waiting for customers to turn up clutching both their dreams and their cheque books...

Weekend Reading, “North America through the eyes of a European”

Episode 5 : Business calls...

It was all well and good taking time out to get house and home together, but I was here on a12 month working permit, and time was ticking...

We'd envisaged re-creating our French retail business over here, but I still wanted to check out the reality of life in the furniture trade on this new Continent.  I quickly realized that it would be an expensive, and slower route, than we needed at this point of our business lives, so I decided to look again at a new concept that I'd started working on before I left Europe, and see where it would take us...

Helping you to get the most from the sale of your home.

This home was revised inside and out
by a major makeover, but the investment paid off.
It's value more than doubled!

Up until we created the Design To Sell Service, the only way the general public had access to the advice of a professional real estate developer was to be chosen for a TV show makeover.

If you've already following the advice of a real estate agent, or hired a Home Stager to “stage” your home before sale you'll realize just how important presentation is if you want to sell at a good price....

Design inspiration

We recently posted a facebook article on where design inspiration comes from, titled: Wow, where do we start?? Because inspiration comes from everywhere: nature, urban spaces, faces, design icons: be it people, or products, clothes, art, music, words, pictures....it's all around us.If you already have a pretty good idea of what you like and dislike, in terms of your style, our designers' job is to confirm, and refine your preferences, pushing the boundaries of design and products to create you a scheme that screams “personalized design”...

"Did you know..."

How we design...for you!

While working alongside some of our design team members last week, it dawned on me just how lucky we are to be part of the design industry today.

The choice we have in terms of quality products is so huge, it's difficult sometimes to limit ourselves to selecting one scheme per client, because we know that so many choices can bring amazing results....

In the Series "How to..."

Get the best from your Trades-person.

We've all heard the horror stories about contractors, builders etc etc who go badly over budget, bodge the job...or simply don't finish the job!  So what's the best way to protect yourself when you're thinking about renovating or extending your home?

We asked Luc Gendron, owner of Habitation Plani-conseil, the d@d resident build expert for his help. Here's his “Top 10 Tips” for getting the job done at the right price...without renovation regrets!

"We love..."

Charity shops!

They are a mine of potential wonders!
For clothing, although it no longer goes by the name “second-hand”, but “retro”. So much trendier!

Or for furniture & accessories...

Weekend Reading : North America through the eyes of a European

Episode 4 : Hello Canada!

We finally arrived at Montreal Airport and headed towards the immigration office. And very nice they were too!

Our visas were handed over, our bags and boys man-handled (by us) through customs and our Canadian adventure had begun!

Weekend Reading: North America through the eyes of a European.

Episode 3 : Finding a temporary base

We'd found a super place, a fully furnished contemporary condo with big terrace close to all the main amenities, and we began to visualize life in Montreal. But we lost the option on the flat, and the second search for a “home-base” resulted in a great quality, but totally empty appartment needing fully furnished...and re-painted, before it would feel like home.

Live in the Montreal area & thinking of renovating your home?

Then take a look at www.planiconseil.com where Luc Gendron & his team at Habitation Plani-Conseil are waiting to transform your home...without the headaches.

Luc takes pride in estimating all areas of your project in detail, from A through to Z.  In reality that means that you may have a bigger quote than you'd hoped for, but at least you get to know exactly what's needed...and how much it's going to cost! 

Compact Living

I've lived in large & sprawling, seriously smart...& now I'm living Compact!

Outgoings & time spent cleaning, whether you're doing it yourself, or organizing getting it done, are non- comparable. After years of living with a luxurious excess of space we find we spend more time together as a family, & we love it!

However, keeping separate space is important: the parental bedroom doubles as the 2nd TV room, complete with a cosy couch and coffee table, & the smallest bedroom is taken over for the computers and a small working desk for one. The built in wardrobe, which was tight for clothes, becomes a great area to store paper-work and those ever present technical “bits” out of sight. Use open topped boxes (clear is good) to gather like-with-like and make searching for stuff easier. I designated a shelf for school related bits and get the boys to clear it out once a month...well that's the plan anyway!

Weekend reading: North America through the eyes of a European

                                          Episode 2: Going it alone

Our businesses were hit, our contemporary Danish furniture stores were hit and the belts began to tighten Europe-wide.

Worse still, my husbands company decided to put the development of new countries on hold. They needed to look after existing countries that were struggling before going out and spending to develop new markets.

A morally sound decision we couldn't argue with, but one that had potentially big repercussions on our life. Our move was off!

Or was it?....

Decision time. To move or not to move Continents...Without the safety net of an executive relocation? 

Weekend reading

North America...through the eyes of a European

Episode 1: the story behind the move

We made the move in August 2009. French Husband (still physically France-bound, although with us in spirit), English wife and 3 bi-lingual boys.

The expression “Fresh from Paris” would be a good one to use...however after 16 years of French life “fresh” is a relative term. But don't get me wrong, we love France!

The architecture is just stunning. Paris never ceases to amaze me, it's like being in an endless movie scene.

The food and the wine: what is there to say...?

"We love..."

The HBC Point blanket collection.

Being new to Canada I'm learning daily about your habits and Heritage and while walking through a Bay store recently I happened upon a wonderful striped blanket that took me straight back to my early years of caring for our horses on chilly winter evenings and mornings!

Before the horse world saw a revolution in stable husbandry, thanks to the technological breakthroughs in textiles (and suddenly, the much loved, and rather pampered inhabitants of our stable block, had a wardrobe that matched my own...) we used to keep them snuggly warm with beige woollen blankets, edged with green and red stripes, under very basic jute rugs.

"We love..."

Check out www.rustoleum.com and be amazed at the amount of things you'll be able to transform with their range of specialized paints. We love them... because we've used them! No need to be a "pro", these paints are designed to be used by home-lovers who dream of turning bland into bling, scruffy into sophisticated & awful into amazing! Visit online or get down to your local supplier to see their range of paints and colors.
So get creative, get painting and make your home match your style! 

"Did you know...?"

That design at distance has a sister company called Design4U?
Creating innovative,made-to-measure design products based on printed images, we're always looking for artists and photographers who are wanting to get their work out to a wider market.
Think you have what it takes? Then send us pictures of your work at design@designatdistance.com

"We love..."

Texture!

I always think in terms of "depth and distance" when I'm decorating a space, be it a private room or a commercial space. The way perspectives can be played with using colour and form, has always fascinated me, and I love how I can change the fundamental feel of a room...

"Have you visited...?"

http://www.boconcept.com/ the accessible way to great Danish design is only a click away if you're in Canada, and only a store away if you're visiting Europe, as this Danish company has taken the European furniture market by storm.

“We love...”

Danish design...
If you've been lucky enough to visit any part of Denmark you'll know what I'm talking about...



I only started to really understand what Danish design was all about after I'd strolled around Copenhagen and window shopped (it was about all I could afford at the time...). Just about every other store was full of...Design. The Danes are born with it, they “bathe” in it in their daily lives, and they truly understand it.

Wishing you a Healthy and Happy 2011

The design at distance Team wish you all health and happiness in this New Year. May all your projects be realized and fill your rooms with joy!