What an amazing week! The kids are settled back in school, we got some awesome press for the shop, my house is relatively clean and now I’m off for an impromptu girls night in the city! But before I head out, I thought I’d leave you with some serenity for the weekend. I am loving this clean and crisp mountain cabin renovation that I found over at Country Living…just the perfect blend of rustic and modern, if you ask me. The pickled wood panelling in contrast with warm wood floors and white furnishings is so bright and fresh! I could definitely handle a weekend retreat like this, but how about you? Does it feel like a cabin you could hunker down in or would you prefer a little more kitsch in the mix? Come take a look…

Photos by John Gruen for Country Living

Renovated and lived in by Bobby Houston and Eric Shamie, the couple brought this formerly dilapidated 1960′s rancher out of the dark ages and transformed it into their own personal getaway. Located in the Berkshire Mountains, Massachusetts, the surrounding nature is now the focal point in this calming light-filled space…

Photos by John Gruen for Country Living

Photos by John Gruen for Country Living

What are your plans for the weekend? I’m a little sheepish to say it but I’m off to see Lady Gaga tonight…I know! Not a sentence that I would typically say out loud but my good friend was given box seat tickets and invited a few of us along for the ride…hooray for generous friends! I don’t doubt that it’ll be an entertaining show and I always love a spontaneous night out with my girls! Now if only I had a meat dress to wear…Happy Friday!

Co-owning a home decor has already been a dream come true. If I had to come up with another dream, it would have to be seeing said store featured in a national magazine and, guess what? Spruce Collective is the shop feature in the February issue of Canadian House & Home!!! Ironically enough, I seem to be the last subscriber in Canada to get their copy in the mail and I’ve been stalking my local grocery store for their stash (which should be on shelves today, by the way). My mom read me the article over the phone last night though and I’m pretty much freaking out over the whole thing, in a very good way! Janis Nicolay was amazing enough to coordinate the shoot and to take the stunning photos of our shop. She’s always been such a great cheerleader and supporter of this blog and all of our endeavours here at Birch + Bird and I can’t thank her enough! Without further adieu, here’s a look at Spruce through Janis’ lens…

All photos by Janis Nicolay. Spruce Collective in Canadian House & Home.

One funny note about this shoot, we had literally just decorated the entire store for Christmas the week before we heard word about the feature so we had to un-decorate (and then re-decorate again) overnight! Our storage room and even our washroom were packed to capacity with Christmas trees…using the facilities was just like being in the forest ;) But it was well worth the effort…my new partners and I couldn’t be more thankful for such an incredible opportunity, especially so soon after opening our doors in September!

My lovely friends Aprille and Nancy even popped by to practice their modelling skills and try out our line of CeCe Caldwell’s chalk & clay paint…nice work ladies!

All photos by Janis Nicolay. Spruce Collective in Canadian House & Home.

All photos by Janis Nicolay. Spruce Collective in Canadian House & Home.

Andrea, one of our fabulous customers, was kind enough to send me a picture of our spread to share with you all…

Photo by Andrea Westbrook…thanks Andie :)

Well, I’m headed back to the grocery store to clear their shelves of the new issue before going into work…hope you enjoyed a peek around the shop! I hope to see you there sometime soon but in the meantime, have a wonderful Wednesday :)

 

Living as I do, in 1200 square feet with a family of five, I have a big appreciation for small spaces that maximize every inch without sacrificing style. We’ve got some biggish plans to reformulate our own living quarters this year…switching the kids rooms around and building bunks for the girls, finally finishing our basement rec room (which will add on some much needed square footage for indoor play!) and I’m really hoping to update our galley kitchen and flooring too….fingers crossed. Budget will play a big part in how far we get but it often doesn’t take much to make a small space more efficient. Clearing out the clutter is always the best place to start and if you start small by organizing only one closet or set of drawers a day, you’d be surprised by how fast you can get through it. It’s hard to imagine any clutter in this New York City apartment though…

Photos by Dylan Chandler for Apartment Therapy

 This 650 square foot newly built apartment is far from cookie cutter, thanks to the well curated decorating sense of homeowner Marina. Subtle pattern, texture and colour bring warmth and character to the space, with help from her enviable photography collection…

I don’t know if everything will ever truly have a place of its own in my house as long as there are kiddos living here, but a girl can dream! The kids are back to school today so maybe I’ll start by sorting through the shoe basket in my front closet for now. Have a great Monday :)

What a week and what a start to the year! We closed the shop down on Wednesday to pack up Christmas and well, Christmas is still in ruins in the Spruce workshop but somehow we managed to rearrange and restyle the entire storefront! Whoops, a minor casualty of 5 creative girls working together :) We closed the store for an extra day to put ourselves back together and it feels so fantastic to start the year organized, fresh and clean! Unfortunately, my house can’t say the same and my handsome hubby is folding laundry as I type…which (no offence to Brad) means it’s pretty bad if even he noticed the mountain! Ah well, I’ll pretend that this amazing loft is mine for a moment instead of worrying about dust bunnies…

Jessica Helgerson Interior Design. Photo by Lincoln Barbour.

Located in Portland’s Pearl District, this loft was originally converted out of an industrial warehouse space and was opened up by Jessica Helgerson‘s team who transformed it into the warm and inviting family home that it is today. I especially love the kitchen with its open shelves, dark beams, concrete floors and, ooh, that chandelier! Not to mention the stunning harvest table and vintage Eames DKW chairs, swoon…

Oodles of storage, layered textures and patterns and plenty of natural materials complete the package, all of which are key components of Jessica’s signature style. Her work is so refreshing in that each home and space designed by her team is completely unique and full of personality yet in keeping with natural elements found in the Pacific Northwest. And I’m seriously coveting that wall of shelves…

Jessica Helgerson Interior Design. Photo by Lincoln Barbour.

Well, I suppose I should go put some laundry away now and tend to my dust bunnies but enjoy your day and have a wonderful weekend!

Happy New Year! We’re officially launched into 2013 and I cannot wait to get started on my goals and resolutions! First and foremost, my fitness and health took a major backseat while starting up Spruce Collective but I really need to focus on getting back into shape. Less wine and cheese (a lot less!) and more daily exercise and sleep (a lot more!) starting today. I know that my energy and productivity will see a huge boost, much needed for the busy year ahead! I haven’t had time to really absorb the blur of the last few months but I really do need to sit down and reflect on it all. Opening a store was very likely the scariest/bravest/biggest gamble/craziest thing I’ve ever done but it has been such and unbelievably amazing experience already and I am so proud of myself and my four equally brave partners for taking the leap.  I came across this guide to setting goals for creative businesses over at Nicole’s Classes and think that it will be a great way to get some thoughts down on paper….

Nicole’s Classes

Hitha on the Go

Style Me Pretty

The Stroller Coaster

Helt Enkelt

More one-on-one time with my husband and kids is also high on my priority list as well as more quality time alone with my thoughts…away from the computer! How about you? Do you set resolutions or goals for yourself each year? Feel free to share…sometimes saying them out loud helps me stick to my resolve a little better :)