Page 22 – Claire Jefford

An Ugly Duckling Transformed!

It’s November already!?! Donald Trump is the new US President?! Christmas is just around the corner?!! I know, I’ve been AWOL for the last little while and so much has been happening in this world!

Let’s escape for a few minutes to see this latest transformation that I recently had photographed. If you like a good before and after, you’re going to love this.

My Hamilton clients living room was a bit of a challenge to decorate due to the vast size of the space. When rooms are so large, it’s a good idea to create ‘zones’ that give each area a purpose.

Watch my Facebook live video here from my clients home. Forgive me for being sideways for some of it, this video was my first Facebook live!

Here are the before photos:

Living Room Before

This leather sofa went to the basement and a new room was born!

Large Gold Leaf Prints create a Stunning Focal Point

We accented with teal, oranges and some purple tones as well. The stunning artwork of these three gold leaf prints really are the focal point of the room.

When this artwork went up, my client said “Wow, these really finish off the room beautifully.” (And that was the hubby!)

Custom Floating Shelf

My carpenter built a floating wood shelf to anchor the large TV which also allowed us to add some accessories on either side. The large gold framed mirror works wonderfully with the tones of the artwork flanking it on either side, as well as with the large gold leaf prints.

Below is a console we customised to fit three cubes underneath for extra seating as needed.

We colour blocked the inverted pleat drapery using the same blues/cream that you see in the geometric pattern of the occasional chairs.

The biggest splurge was the area rug which adds extra softness to the room while complimenting the colour scheme.
My clients recently put this house up for sale and it sold in just one day!! The home required no ‘Staging’ and sold for more money than any other house in the area.

The realtors said that there wasn’t anything on the market in their area at a similar price point that was finished as beautifully as this home was and essentially ‘turn key ready’ for the new home buyers.

This was great feedback for me and goes to show that the return on the investment of working with an Interior Design professional is well worth it. Not only did my clients get to enjoy the home while they lived there, but they also didn’t need to do any extra work in order to have it ready to put on the market. Nice!

My clients are thrilled with the result and so are we! What’s your favourite part of this living room?

Ready to work with me on your upcoming decorating project? We are booking into January 2017. Contact me here to set up a phone call with me and let’s do this!

Halloween Decorating Ideas at Homesense

Do you go crazy for Halloween? So many people do! I think it’s because you can have so much fun with decorating this time of year, there seems to be no limits and its only growing in popularity.

Last week, my daughter Elise and I headed to Homesense in our home town of Burlington, Ontario to see what decorating ideas we could find. Homesense never lets me down Continue reading “Halloween Decorating Ideas at Homesense”

Stonington Gray by Benjamin Moore

Despite the ever-growing popularity of the colour white in interior design, grays are still widely used for wall colours as a neutral backdrop and for many fixed elements. Stonington Gray HC-170 by Benjamin Moore has a slight blue undertone and is one of my favourites to mix with whites and bold colours.

Check out my latest video below where I:

Compare Stonington Gray to other BM grays
Select the best whites to use with this gray for your trim and ceilings
Show you pairings of fabrics that work wonderfully with this colour & how I’ve used Stonington Gray in a clients home

After you watch my video, to get all this information conveniently in one place and to have even more paint colour combinations to use with Stonington Gray, check out my Perfect Colour Palette for Stonington Gray.

A must-have for any colour enthusiast or interior design professional to use as a helpful resource.

Stonington Gray Perfect Colour Palette – Get it here now

Watch my colour review of Stonington Gray below.

Photos below of Stonington Gray in my client’s kitchen and front foyer.

Stonington Gray walls surround this gorgeous window seat with custom treatments.

Stonington Gray HC-170

Gallery Walls with Stonington Gray backdrop and Cloud White Wainscoting

Foyer painted in Stonington Gray with striking black dresser and lamps.

Vignette on dresser with gold accents.

I’ve also created a booklet appropriately named ‘Fifteen Shades of Gray’ which you can download for free! It lists 15 grays by Benjamin Moore and categorizes them into three different undertones so it’s simple to understand and use. Download your free guide here.

Download it for free now

Perfect for pinning on Pinterest!

Stonington Gray Magazine Cover Image

To see more on my Benjamin Moore video series, click here.

Comment below to let me know if there is a specific colour you would like me to review in an upcoming video.

Be sure to also watch my most popular video on ‘Best Gray Paint Colours’. It has over 150k views!

Convenience At Your Fingertips

Our Perfect Colour Palette library is expanding. Click here to see all of my Perfect Colour Palettes.

See all available colours here!

Stonington Gray is now part of my Benjamin Moore Grays and Blue-Green collection showcasing all 10 of my Benjamin Moore gray and blue-green Perfect Colour Palettes.

If you want to get all my Benjamin Moore colour guides in one place, look no further than my Benjamin Moore Ultimate Collection. All 20 of my guides in one handy collection.

Remember, it only takes one mistake to take your home decorating project from divine to disaster. Don’t let the paint be what stresses you out!

Take my Colour Quiz to discover your Perfect Colour Palette.

Avoid DIY Disasters – It’s Easier Than You Think

No matter what the task, project or goal, it’s no secret that when you have a plan in place you are more likely to succeed. If you want to lose weight & you choose to just ‘wing it’, chances are you’re going to fail.

If you want to try making a different meal, but don’t have a recipe or know what the ingredients are, it’s probably going to be disaster. So why would anyone start a renovation or decorating project and invest thousands of dollars without having a plan?

You’d be suprised at how many people want to skip this part of the process. The most bizarre part, is that the reluctantcy to do so, is often because people think it will save them money not to plan!

But in the long run, it can end up costing way more and the end result is not nearly as pretty or functional as it could have been, had they taken the time to plan.

Here’s my latest video, check it out and see how easy it is when you have a plan!

Not subscribed to my Youtube channel yet? Shame on you! Go here to subscribe and I’ll see you there.

Ready to get a plan for your upcoming project? Contact me here.

Benjamin Moore White Paint Colours

Grays move over, whites are where it’s at!! Have you noticed the shift? Well, it’s definitely happening.

Whites are quickly taking over as the most popular neutral and it’s no wonder, with the oh so popular Scandinavian design style that we see in all the magazines these days, not to mention the crisp, clean look that it offers which so many of us love.

Today I’m comparing three popular whites by Benjamin Moore & sharing beautiful spaces where these whites have been used.

Watch the video below to learn more about using whites in your space and I’ll see you there!

A special shout out to lovely fellow designers, Jil McDonald & Kristie Barnett who kindly agreed to let me use photographs of their gorgeous work in this blog post and video. I’m so blessed to work in the same field as these amazingly talented women!

Simply White

Dining room & Kitchen Design by Jil Sonia Interiors, BC, Canada.

White Dove

Piano Room & Living Space by The Decorologist, Tennessee, USA.

The ceiling in Kristie’s clients piano room is painted Kendall Charcoal HC-166, by Benjamin Moore. You can also see how nicely these two colours work together when shown side by side here on my large paint boards.

White Dove & Kendall Charcoal by Benjamin Moore.

Although our clients dining room shown below, is not in the video, it is painted White Dove as well.

Snowfall White

Bathroom design by Claire Jefford, Burlington, Ontario.

You can see more of our Toronto clients second floor project here. All phography by Stephani Buchman.

Perfect for Pinning!

Snowfall White, by Benjamin Moore. Follow me on Pinterest to see more wonderful white interiors.

Cabinetry & Walls in Snowfall White by BM.

Want to make sure you get the right white that works with the finishes in your home? Contact me, I have more than 25 large white paint boards to ensure I get the right white for my clients, everytime.

More fabulous tips for decorating your home is waiting! Subscribe to my blog here. Let’s do this!

Kitchens And Baths – Before & After

Before and After photographs are so compelling for any Interior Design business. We can’t help but love seeing how spaces can be transformed from Fugly to Fantastic!

This is especially true if you feel there is a space in your home of which there is no hope for and it’s almost impossible to see past it’s current state…the key word there being ‘almost’.

In my latest video, I showcase all of my Kitchen & Bathroom Designs that have been professionally photographed, starting with the before photo and followed by the inspiring afters.

You can see these incredible transformations in my video below.

Photography courtesy of: Stephani Buchman Photography; Baeumler Quality Construction and Leah Kirin .

Here’s one of our latest kitchen designs below. I wish my kitchen was as pretty as what I create for my Interior Design clients!

You can also see more of this kitchen here in my portfolio.

Custom kitchen design by Claire Jefford. Photo by Stephani Buchman.

Ready to transform your kitchen or bathroom into a space you’ll absolutely love? Contact me here and let’s do this!

Why Renovations Go Over Budget

Home Renovations can go over budget for a variety of reasons and this can make it very frustrating for many home owners to plan a renovation. I lay much of the blame on networks such as HGTV which provide only ‘half truths’ to it’s audience about the projects they do. Creating drama and good entertainment overrules educating viewers on the details of a renovation which can be deceiving & confusing for home owners. But there’s also another reason…

In my latest video, I review a recent Houzz article that surveyed more than 120,000 home owners who renovated their home from 2015-2016. I break it down for you and explain why renovations go over budget and also how to prepare yourself for your next interior design or home renovation project. Being prepared will save you time & money!

The reasons projects frequently exceed the original budget, are not suprising, but what you can do to avoid over spending isn’t as difficult a task as you may think. It’s all in the planning!

This is the second video in my ‘Naked Truth’ series which is all about being transparent when it comes to costs for renovating and interior design projects. You can see all of my playlist in that series by clicking here. I try to upload new videos every Wednesday, so be sure to subscribe if you haven’t already and I’ll see you there!

Wanna work with me on your next home renovation or interior decorating project? Contact me here and let’s do this!

Revealed! Total Cost of This Custom Living Room

Thanks to TV programs like HGTV, most homeowners struggle with establishing a realistic budget for their renovation or decorating project. Many people simply do not understand what everything will cost or the level of detail that’s involved in putting together a fabulously functioning and beautifully tailored space.

With my lovely clients consent, I am thrilled to reveal the total cost of a stunning custom family room design that I did last year. In the video, I disclose the price of each item of furniture, the cost for custom built ins & paint work, as well as the total fees for my design services.

My Elite Interior Decorating Package includes:

2 Hour Intial Consultation Meeting at clients home
Visit to My Trade Only Design Centre to gage preferences for sofas and other furnishings
3D Designs with 2 options for layout; fabrics; furnishings & paint colours
Virtual Renderings/Drawings with inspirational photos & a Virtual Video Tour
Scope of Work & Considerations for the Design
Presentation & One Revision (up to 4 changes)
Implementation of all purchases and scheduling of all trades
REVEAL DAY! All installations (except for built ins done previously) & accessories/styling
(See all the service packages I provide by clicking here.)

Below is a photograph of my clients family room ‘before’ so you can get a sense of the amazing transformation that took place.

Click the play button on the image below to see all costs involved for this project. Are there any suprised here for you or are costs what you would expect for a custom family room project?

This video is the first in a new series on my Youtube channel called ‘The ‘Naked Truth‘…Naked because I’m not holding anything back!

Pricing of products and trades services will vary depending on the quality of the furnishings and finishes you select for your home project and the experience/demand of the trade professionals you hire. There is always opportunities to go ‘high’ or ‘low’ on certain items in order to stay within your budget – providing it was a realistic investment amount in the first place – and that’s what good design is all about!

Are you ready to hire a design professional to help you Love Where You Live? Contact me here and let’s do this!

My Outdoor Studio & Landscaping Project!

Bringing the ‘Indoors Out’ is a phrase we hear frequently these days. To connect with nature, feel a soft breeze in our hair and smell various fragrances from our gardens is a beautiful thing! This was a big part of what motivated us to undergo a large scale landscaping project in May of 2015.

Here’s an inspiration photo for our outdoor space. Gray stone, stained cedar & greenery – link here

We also wanted to create an outdoor studio for my Interior Design business here in my home town of Burlington, Ontario and thought this would be a great opportunity to bring the two elements together.

Planning is key to any successful design – this is my mantra! Therefore, our landscaping project began with the interior layout of my studio in order to determine what space would be remaining in the backyard for the patio section.

My Rendering of the Inside of the Studio

I had outgrown my small, dark office in our basement. It no longer functioned in a way that was productive to my needs nor was it even a pleasant working environment if I’m honest. Also, as I often bring home samples and items that I’ve purchased for clients, to bring these items into my home, down the stairs and through the basement was not practical. If I wanted my business to continue to grow, implementing a change was necessary. Below is one of my first drawings for the new studio layout.

First I measured out my current office space to evaluate how much bigger I require my new studio to be. With function being a priority, all new furnishings were necessary. I also wanted a completely different look with a more ‘clean’ and fresh colour palette so it was a good excuse to start from scratch. (Any excuse for new furniture!)

I sent the drawings and dimensions to my landscaping company along with some inspiration photographs from my houzz studio ideabook that I created to share with them. (This is a great tool that I use with clients all the time) Below is the drawing that they came up with based on the information and inspirational pictures that I provided them with.

Studio rendering with dimensions

After some slight tweaking and minor revisions, we broke ground in March of 2015. I took plenty of photographs to document the project before and during the renovation. It’s interesting now to look back and see how the work progressed over time.

Here is our backyard once we removed the swing set

A family affair…the kids and Chris took up the old stones while I took the photos. LOL

The grass was dug up and the ground was leveled out

Framing out the base of the studio before pouring the concrete pad

The patio stones are laid, concrete pad poured and new grass was laid down.

The framing of our outdoor structure begins

The black roof was put on with eavestroughs at the back

Insulating with spray foam was well worth the extra money

The Stone Brick Focal Wall

I decided on this natural brick with individual stones for our focal wall that would house the TV in our seating area. The stones incorporated both the cooler tones of the grays we used on the patio and the warmer hues which tied in nicely with the final stain of the cedar and the overall decor.

Opposite side with river rock to assist with drainage, my window to view the birds

So once again, here is the original rendering…

Studio rendering with dimensions

And here is our outdoor studio structure! (sorry the image is so small…grr!!)

I can’t tell you how much we love our new space! The outdoor living area is fabulous and a truly beautiful new ‘room’ of our home. We play games with the kids, watch movies and sporting events (Coronation Street too) and relax with wine and friends!

Although I have been working from my studio since late July last year, it’s not fully finished with artwork and custom built ins. However, I will definitely share with you when I am ready for the final reveal! (see the video here, it tours the insdie of my studio, but please note that it’s not yet finished)

Have you brought the ‘Indoors Out’? Comment below and share how you have extended the life of your backyard living season.

Not subscribed to my Youtube channel yet? What’cha waitin for? Click here to subscribe & let’s do this!