Colin and Justin: Bringing justice to a crime of design
July 24, 2010
Colin and Justin
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
It’s Saturday, and that can only mean one thing. Yup, it’s time for your favourite fairy godfathers to solve yet another design disaster. So relax. Forget Elle Decor, ditch that well-thumbed copy of Veranda and toss your back issues of House and Garden into the nearest — hopefully very stylish — trash can. Courtesy of our considered counsel, you won’t need them anymore. In fact every bit of design info you require to lead an eminently more stylish existence can be found right here in the pages of the Toronto Star New in Homes section (and online at Yourhome.ca), a domestic recipe guide if you like, to better living!
And today’s “correction” is proof, were it ever required, that we know exactly what’s what. And an observation, into the bargain, that virtually anything can be fixed. So gird your loins, narrow your eyes and glance at our before shot.
Oh dear. It’s a shocker, huh? Now come down from the ceiling, adjust your hair and lovingly scan our after shot. Sure, it’s the same room, only this time it’s been lavished with the Colin and Justin touch, and liberated from its previously junky demeanour. And let’s face it: the grizzly scene so needed salvation.
By our reckoning, everyone with whom we work deserves to live in a beautiful house, a home that’s sanctuary from the rigours of the outside world and immune, at the same time, to the burgeoning assault of bad taste. This week, as normal, we desperately needed to establish an environment where life could tick by at its familial best. Space was tight, but our mission was simple: to make best of a nest for a family who were being squeezed at every corner.
To suggest we have a favourite project (or clients) would be like a misguided parent whispering about a preferred child. We tend, generally, to adopt a Switzerland type stance, remaining impartially diplomatic so we can lavish affection on each and every one of the homes we disentangle. That said, we simply couldn’t help but fall head over heels in love with the brood who occupy today’s catastrophic scene: dad Bill, a hardworking and genial policeman, doting mom Hilary and their two wee boys. We have, you see, a particular fondness for people who put their lives at risk to preserve our world: Folk who work within the police industry, for example, as well as heroes from the armed forces, paramedics or the firefighting brigade. So we fuelled our designer engines and set to work.
Before unravelling our master plan, let’s analyze a few problems that resonated when we stopped by for the first time. For starters, the family room seemed dreadfully unloved. Which is surprising, given that the folks who occupy it are just so darned adorable. Time — and available budget — had eroded potential, but we saw the future. As soon as we darkened the door, stylish apparitions started to appear. Comfy seating was sadly absent, as was adequate storage and display. Lighting was virtually non-existent and lifestyle functionality was, well, defunct. So we chatted animatedly with our clients to figure a plan.
As the kids careened around, mom and pop explained that, first and foremost, they hoped for comfort, and then of course basics like a coffee table, comfy sofas, storage and durable floor finishes. In a nutshell, they longed for a stylish new world into which they could invite their broader family and friends to enjoy the hospitality they desperately wanted to proffer but tended to shy away from for fear of being judged. They hinted at their love of green and brown and suggested a modern look, as opposed to an aesthetic composed of a more traditional vernacular.
Colour scheme
We’re often asked how to colour the remainder of a project when an accent paper has already been sourced. And it couldn’t be simpler. You can generally find all the answers in the rolled-up design that tickles your fancy, and this paper provides perfect theory to bolster that logic. We kicked off with the lighter green tone and used this, via latex, on main walls before drawing inspiration for our flooring from the darker brown wallpaper shade. Everything else required (ceiling colour palest cream, upholstery detailing mid-tone beige) was inspired by the differently toned banding of the same Graham and Brown paper. Simple, huh?
Flooring
The pink carpet, herded across for years by two enthusiastic kids, was worn beyond recovery. No amount of cleaning would have tempted the bristle to stand up again, and, to make matters worse, it was stained from splashes of pop and food detritus. So there was only one place for it: The dumpster. So, along with the furniture the charity stores didn’t want, in it went. To cope with the lifestyle of a busy family, we specified oak flooring in easy-to-care-for satin finish and topped it with a green shag rug toned to match another of the stripes in our feature wallpaper.
Lighting
Bill and Hilary had elected not to install ceiling lighting, worrying, as they did, that hanging pendants might clutter eye lines. As far as we could see, a distracting pendant might actually have been a good thing: Anything to take the eye away from their previous furniture assortment. We had an altogether seemlier plan; pot lights. Our discreet cuties were arranged to properly illuminate the space while keeping ceiling lines truly pared down. As always, we’d recommend calling in the pros for a job like this, as there are many types of pot lights, but not all will suit your ceiling void.
Custom wall shelves
With such a large expanse of unbroken wall, it made sense to specify a custom fit to ensure every square inch was properly commandeered. Smaller off-the-shelf cabinetry might have looked lost in this application, so we sketched a plan and called in our trusty contractor who used veneered MDF boards to build our dream. Our primary concerns were storage (and housing for the telly) so we designed the system with an open aperture to accommodate a TV platform positioned at the perfect viewing height. Stained to complement our decor, the results speak for themselves.
Sofa
Comfort, as usual, was order of the day but because this room is open plan to others — and because through passage leaves it visible at all times — we created a look that’s flexible enough to stand on ceremony. Sure, we designed it for mom, pop and the kids, but our remit was to create a space that would work just as well for entertaining when guests congregate.
Chairs
Playing against the soft sofa at one side, we established balance by specifying chairs which boast ergonomic rigidity. This means that flopping out or sitting to attention are both properly cared for. The visible timber frames work particularly well with our flooring spec and the yielding upholstery perfectly complements the sofa fabric and of course the cream band in the paper.
Next week: Another room from the same project; this time a sun room. Or, as we call them in Britain, a conservatory.
Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan are the hosts of HGTV’s Colin & Justin’s Home Heist (Saturdays at 2 and 7 p.m.) and the authors of Colin & Justin’s Home Heist Style Guide, published by Penguin Group (Canada). Follow them on twitter @colinjustin or on Facebook. Contact them through their website, www.colinandjustin.tv.
Read more Colin and
Justin here.
Check out
their top 10 shopping destinations and watch
the video of their makeover of the Star
editor's office. Scope out some of their previous transformations:
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Black and white and red all over
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A
room recipe that's tasty to the max
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Making
a grand entrance
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A
walk on the wild side-
A
very big garage gamble-
Make
room for baby
-
Nantucket
inspired bedroom
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The
great outdoors
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Dressing
room rehabilitation
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It's
a miracle of garage-sized proportions
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Delicious
dining
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New
York state of mind-
A
master stroke in the master suite-
Treasures
from the trash
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Happy
Days are here again
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Head
towards the light-
Crisis
relief for a design disaster
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Design
on a dime
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Sleeping
with Colin and Justin
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Freshly
squeezed style-
Extravaganza
in orange-
Blue
and white make it right
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Baby
blue strikes the right chord-
Taking
it up a notch-
Well-planned
kitchen really cooks-
Asian-inspired
glamour-
Reaching
new heights-
Tweaking
for a new decade
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Crazy
for Canadiana, eh!-
Create
a holiday affair to remember-
Please
pass the mustard
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Hallelujah!
Designer salvation-
Mauving
right along
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A
beach of a makeover-
It's
a jungle in there-
Kitchen
less than confidential
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Sweet
dreams are made of this
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A
sweet transformation-
Just
a little bit country
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Calamitous
kitchen-
Killer
bee design
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Va
va va voom!-
Cave
dwelling
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A
little Hollywood-style glamour-
Purple
reign
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The
boss's Office Heist
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Now that's making an
entrance
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A
Colonial charmer
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From
ghastly to glorious-
Not
so mellow yellow
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Answering
nature's call-
Picture perfect loft
makeover
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Shades
of grey-
Beyond
the 'wreck' room-
Check,
mate
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Soaking in the
lap of
luxury
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Basement gloom be
gone
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A
country kitchen goes classy