Will and Kate on way, but royal influence everywhere in Canada already

OTTAWA — Until a royal tour sparks public interest — something Prince William and Catherine are about to do on a near-fanatic level — the Royal Family functions like a tasteful wallpaper pattern in Canada: enjoyable in an absent-minded way, but so ubiquitous as to be almost invisible.

From place names and currency, to commemorative plaques unveiled on long-ago royal tours, the symbolic presence of the monarchy is everywhere in Canada — which is exactly what makes many people forget about its significance.

Mail a letter and Queen Elizabeth II is likely to be on the stamp — which you can pay for with coins or a $20 bill also featuring her image. Walk into an airport, government building or school and there's probably a portrait of the monarch on the wall, though it might be a decades-old image of her younger, dark-haired self.

Visit a park or campsite and you might spend your weekend on Crown land, and you'll face the Crown in court if you run into trouble with the law — after being arrested by a police officer with the royal headgear on his badge, that is.

Chances are good that the monarchy is part of your daily commute, given that at least 228 Canadian cities have a Queen Street and 316 have a King Street (or Road or Crescent), along with countless schools, bridges, buildings and highways named for various members of the Royal Family, contemporary or long dead.

Prince Albert, Sask.; Victoria, B.C.; the Queen Elizabeth Islands in the Canadian Arctic; Charlottetown and Prince Edward Island itself: countless elements of this country bear royal names, but many of the origins have faded as they've become established parts of the Canadian atlas.

"Either we just don't pay attention to it so we don't know the connection — such as Regina, a lot of people don't know that's Latin for Queen — or if we do know, often it's seen through historical eyes, that these are streets named after a bygone era of history, colonial times," says Robert Finch, chairman of the Monarchist League of Canada.

Many Canadians are oblivious to the ubiquitous Crown as part of Canada's modern identity as a constitutional monarchy and don't know that the Queen arrives as "Queen of Canada," not an outsider, as is the case with the president of the United States, he says. Finch took to Twitter last week to point out the distinction that Will and Kate will "visit" the United States but "tour" Canada because they aren't considered foreigners here.

He says he believes the vintage of many of these symbols is to blame for the disconnect Canadians feel from "their" Royal Family: dusty portraits of a freshly coronated Elizabeth on many government walls have little connection to the white-haired great-grandmother who tours and appears in the news now.

"Before Canada Post turned monarchist, you used to get a stamp of the Queen and she had black hair," Finch says, laughing. "Where the symbols become a little more powerful or helpful in reminding Canadians about the monarchy is when they're relatively new designations and they involve members of the current Royal Family."

To that end, the world's most famous newlyweds could spark a new wave of namings and a stronger Canadian connection with the House of Windsor after their tour.

Canada Post issued stamps commemorating Prince William and Catherine's April 29 wedding and the Royal Canadian Mint — another of those nearly invisible "royal" elements of Canadian life — is doing the same with coins. Kevin MacLeod, the Queen's Canadian secretary, says he's already received a request to name a Duke and Duchess of Cambridge park somewhere in Ontario in advance of the royal tour.

"If you do a little digging, you'll see that there's a very special relationship," he says of the myriad royalty-related landmarks in Canada. "We kind of know the Crown is there, but we don't give it a lot of thought. We're surrounded by it, but on a day-to-day basis as we live our lives, are we conscious of it? I would venture to guess no."

With 60 years on the throne next year, the Queen herself has been "interwoven into the course of Canadian history" in a way that's easy to ignore, says Carolyn Harris, a royal expert and PhD candidate in history at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. — an institution established by a royal charter from Queen Victoria in a city that was the Canadian capital until she picked present-day Ottawa to replace it.

"To some degree, it's taken for granted and there isn't always such a sense of historical context of how all of this came into being," she says. "A lot of times, people only see the visible manifestations, like these tours or the Queen on our money, as opposed to how the constitutional monarchy works and the structure of the Canadian state."

Both monarchists and republicans in Canada say this apathy toward the Crown is the greatest obstacle faced by those on the other side of the debate.

With the royals soon to arrive with their megawatt star status in tow, Finch says he believes the monarchy is about to get a boost in profile in a country festooned with its symbols — even if it's only temporary.

"It kind of reminds you of having an extended family and they visit every once in a while and you have a big event and you welcome them with open arms, but you probably don't miss them throughout the rest of the year," he says.


http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/royal-visit/Will+Kate+royal+influence+everywhere+Canada+already/5012163/story.html

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Stubbornness leads to many home mishaps

It's been said that necessity is the mother of invention, but I suspect it's stubbornness.

I don't think I've ever met a committed do-it-yourselfer who wasn't convinced he or she could do a job just as well as the pros -at the outset, anyhow. And when those DIYers don't know quite how to do something, they figure out a way.

Sometimes it works out. Sometimes the results are pretty hilarious.

Take Angela Gmerek's dad, for example. Seems her father, Bernie Gmerek of Jackson Township, Ohio, approaches fix-it projects with more of a can-do attitude than a sense of esthetics. Once, he left a mark on the living room ceiling while practising his golf swing and covered it with Wite-Out, "which, of course, was not the right match and stood out like a sore thumb whenever the light hit it just right," she wrote.

Angela Gmerek's favourite story had to do with his attempt to fix her car's leaking windshield. She was in college at the time and had left her car behind, so Dad decided to surprise her by fixing the leak before she came home for a visit. Afterward, he announced to her mother that the windshield had been fixed.

"Much to her horror, she looked out of the window to see that his solution was to caulk around the outside of the entire windshield with WHITE CAULK!!!" Gmerek related. "I never got a chance to see it, because she asked him if he wanted his daughter to drop dead on the driveway from embarrassment when she arrived home from school."

Ralph Singleton's experience was similarly misguided. As his wife, Susan, recalled, he ran into problems trying to install a new outdoor light fixture by the patio door of their Wadsworth, Ohio, home.

When she went to investigate the source of his frustrated rumblings, she found him struggling with the glass panels that were supposed to slide into place after the fixture was attached.

"These *!@#? panels keep falling out when I slide them in. They won't stay put," he complained. "It looks just like the picture on the box! Look at it!"

She did -and discovered the box was upside down. Michael L. Kelly donned his best do-it-yourself attitude when he and his wife, Sue, set out to remodel the bathroom of an apartment in their basement in New Franklin, Ohio. They ripped out a wall, expanded the room, moved the sink and added a tub with a shower.

When he started to put up the drywall, he realized the old wall framing was an inch-and-a-half out of plumb. Since he already had the plumbing in, he decided to use furring strips to build out the frame so the drywall would hang properly. But when he finished the drywall and tried to hook up the plumbing fixtures, he realized those fixtures were now too short.

"Needless to say, me being Irish, I get angry at the drop of a hat," he wrote. "However, my wife said she would fix the plumbing, so my anger was short-lived."

Kelly grabbed his reciprocating saw and started cutting into the wall above the shower fixtures, just where he claims his wife told him to. (I suspect a little shifting of the blame here, but I'll let the Kellys fight that one out.) He cut right through three waterlines.

After they got the pipes fixed and the mess cleaned up, they removed the protective liner from the new tub, only to find a 15-centimetre crack in it. They returned it to the store and exchanged it for a steel tub, because Kelly figured steel wouldn't crack. But when he got it home, the fixtures didn't match up to the openings in the new tub.

"I am getting madder by the minute," he recalled. Again he grabbed his reciprocating saw. Again he cut where his wife directed him to. Again he cut right through the waterlines.

Finally they got the plumbing fixed and the drywall finished, albeit with a few unsavoury utterances. They rented out the apartment and its newly remodelled bathroom.

Three weeks after their tenant moved in, she mentioned the bathroom ceiling had been leaking -for three weeks. She didn't think it was a problem, since the water was dripping into a sink.

When Kelly investigated, he discovered the ceiling was leaking around a drywall screw.

"When I reached up to touch it, the whole ceiling and about 40 gallons of water came crashing down on my head," he said. "Yes, I ran a drywall screw right into the plumbing."

He fixed the plumbing and installed drywall on the ceiling yet again. But before he left the repaired room, he said a little prayer.

"Because if I die and somehow wind up in hell," he explained, "it will be that bathroom."
© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

More boomers to buy condos...

The year 2010 ended on a high note for Toronto's condo market, according to statistics released in January by Urbanation. The fourth quarter of the year (October to December 2010) showed 6,280 new condominium sales, up from 3,805 in the quarter before.

"There was a huge jump in sales and that was directly relatable to the fact that we had 29 new projects and 6,500 units that launched in the fourth quarter," says Ben Myers, executive vice-president and editor of Urbanation, which tracks the Toronto condominium market. "A lot of those were large-scale projects and a lot of them did fairly well."

Investors are continuing to drive the market, he says, making "the bulk of the sales" for newly released condo projects before sites even have their grand openings to the public. But once that surge of sales is over, end users are the prime buyers; Urbanation tracks those existing new projects already on the market, too, where sales continue at the same average pace as they have for the past five to six years. "For the end users, that level hasn't changed, just the level of investor activity has improved," Mr. Myers says.

With a seven per cent to nine per cent increase annually in the price per square foot of condos in the city, it's no wonder investors are continuing to buy. Price per square foot rose from $352 in the fourth quarter of 2009 to $374 per square foot in the fourth quarter of 2010. "Increases like that provide investors with returns," Mr. Myers says.

While investors may be looking for returns, another buyer group — baby boomers — is considering something else: condo lifestyle. A certain segment of boomers is starting to see condos as a viable option, according to a recent report by TD Canada Trust, which tracked housing trends among boomers throughout Canada. The TD Canada Trust Boomer Buyers Report showed that while 61% of the boomers surveyed planned to look for a detached house with their next move, the next largest segment of the population — 24% — were looking at condos, citing the lack of maintenance, better security and amenities as deciding factors.

"We've seen so many condo developments, especially in Toronto, that you're at least seeing these boomers talking about condos, where in the past they haven't at all talked about them," says Farhaneh Haque, regional sales manager for the Mobile Mortgage Specialist area of TD Canada Trust. (Not that all of the boomers surveyed were convinced: 61% didn't like the idea of living in a condo because they didn't want to give up their backyard or garden, and 57 per cent didn't want to pay condo fees.)

So what does 2011 promise? According to Mr. Myers, Toronto can expect a slowdown compared to 2010 numbers — although with the 16,000 new condo sales he predicts within the city limits this year, sales certainly won't stop completely. "I still think it's going to be a pretty solid year," he says. "Based on quarter four, we may even have higher results than the 16,000—but I'll stick to my prediction for now."

http://www.househunting.ca/montreal/Condos/More+boomers+condos/4378845/story.html
© Copyright (c) National Post

Canada Post back-to-work bill clears House

A Conservative bill ordering 48,000 Canada Post employees back to work cleared the House of Commons on Saturday night after a marathon debate and several failed opposition efforts to win changes.

The House gave third reading to the bill shortly after 8 p.m. by a vote of 158-113 and then adjourned for summer.

The bill, which imposes a four-year contract and certain wage increases on the workers, now goes to the Senate, which has been called to sit at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday.

The back-to-work order would go into force 24 hours after receiving royal assent, Labour Minister Lisa Raitt told MPs.

While opposition members expressed fear for the rights of organized workers, Prime Minister Stephen Harper called the three days of round-the-clock debate over the bill "a completely unnecessary delay."

But Harper said he was pleased that "soon Canadians will again have access to their postal service, particularly small businesses and charities."

Third reading came at the end of a 58-hour filibuster, during which the opposition tried to either hold up or modify what it called a "draconian" bill — and after talks between Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers collapsed again.

The Crown corporation locked out the employees on June 14, after the union conducted 12 days of rotating strikes.

Workers face binding arbitration

The back-to-work bill, introduced last Monday also imposes a form of binding arbitration in which each side would table its final offer and the arbitrator would pick one or the other. This provision and the imposed wage increases provoked the most debate.

Late Saturday afternoon, the House gave second reading to the bill, which then moved into committee-of-the-whole, the stage where the Opposition NDP and Liberals had hoped to propose changes.

At the opening of the committee debate, Raitt told MPs the postal dispute was expected to cause a "measurable" impact on the Canadian economy, with losses of between $9 million and $31 million a week.

"The parties in the dispute have tried again and again and again … and indeed there is no agreement in sight," she said.

But MP Thomas Mulcair, the deputy leader of the NDP, accused the Conservatives of rolling back the collective bargaining rights of workers.

"It's an indication of what's to come for other public service workers who are unionized," Mulcair said. "But it's also a signal from the Conservatives to all employers — in a union setting or otherwise — that it's an open bar. They can start going after the acquired rights of their workers."

As MPs voted on individual sections of the bill at the committee stage, it became clear the Conservatives weren't going to accept any changes.

One amendment sought by the NDP would have removed clauses forcing the two sides into final-offer selection by an arbitrator to end the dispute.

Another would have removed the salary provision of the bill, which the NDP said proposes a wage increase lower than what Canada Post had wanted to offer the union.

The Liberals favoured similar changes to end the "stubborn ideological debate" between the government and Opposition on the issue.

"The sterile and hopelessly polarized debate between left and right cannot go on forever," Bob Rae, the Liberal interim leader, said in a statement. "It's time for parliamentarians to put an end to this shambolic debate and find a solution to the impasse."

The New Democrats began the filibuster Thursday evening as MPs were scheduled to start their summer break. The non-stop stall continued all day Friday, with a setback for the NDP as Conservatives and Liberals joined to defeat a procedural motion.

Record for non-stop debate

The NDP had introduced a "hoist" motion to put off second reading for six months but failed to win approval after the Liberals joined the governing Conservatives to defeat it by a vote of 160 to 74.

MPs have set a record for non-stop debate on back-to-work legislation. The Conservative government says the old record of 27.5 hours was set in 1989.

Talks between Canada Post and the union collapsed late Wednesday, with pension issues at the heart of the stalemate.

Canada Post said there were discussions on Saturday morning, but they broke off and the two sides were still "far apart."

CUPW national president Denis Lemelin, who was seen mid-Saturday leaving Parliament Hill with other union officials, would not confirm whether talks had resumed.

With files from The Canadian Press

How to help your clients pick the right neighbourhood

How well do you know the neighbourhoods in which you ply your trade? There’s a big irony that goes with up-and-coming neighbourhoods and in a city with many neighbourhoods, Toronto realtor John Pasalis has seen it time and time again.

“There’s a huge emphasis on neighbourhoods,” says the president of Realosophy Realty, “but what I find is I get a lot of buyers interested in up- and- coming neighbourhoods until you show it to them. A lot of times, they’re thinking cool, young, and hip and then they see it. ”

Up-and-comers or those neighbourhoods on the cusp of being the next hot real estate market often start out as ugly, rundown districts bereft of the badges of gentrification such as young families and thriving commercial activity. Some are former industrial areas. The homeless or people living on the fringe reside there. Others are just old, outdated and untended neighborhoods that could use an injection of charm and vitality.

Six years ago, that was what clients thought of about Leslieville, Toronto’s east-end neighbourhood now known for vintage furniture shops, film studios and cafes. The then-derelict neighbourhood needed more than a little TLC. Today, Leslieville real estate prices have reached those of Riverdale and the Beaches.

At about the same time, Toronto realtor Steve Arruda began suggesting his clients look to Starbucks as a barometer for a neighbourhood’s upward evolution. Because the coffee giant does its research and has a good track record, he encouraged clients to consider investing in neighbourhoods in which a Starbucks was soon to open or had just opened.

“It’s the latte factor,” says Arruda, who owns Urbanopolis.com, a full-service realtor affiliated with Century 21. “If you see a Starbucks opening, it’s a catalyst for something happening soon. Starbucks don’t open at Jane and Finch. They open in neighbourhoods that are on the verge of something trendy happening.”

The benefit to either moving into or investing in a neighbourhood on the rise is that if you get in early enough there’s money, sometimes substantial money, to be made.

Those who are drawn to emerging neighbourhoods tend to be more creative and artistic types, says Pasalis. These people are often on a restricted budget and are trying to get into a neighbourhood so that they can put their stamp on it.

“The people who buy very early have the most to gain,” he says. “Neighbourhoods don’t appreciate at the same rate as across the whole city. Up-and-coming neighbourhoods typically double the appreciation rate of the city as a whole. So if a city house is appreciating at five per cent, the up and coming would be 10 to 12 per cent.”

So how do you determine the gold mines from the duds? The key, says Pasalis, is doing your homework and knowing what signs to look for. Here are his top three tips:

The first step is to pick a neighbourhood that will gentrify in five to eight years. To do that, look for the early signs of improvement such as people moving into the side streets, fixing up their homes, and adding curb appeal. Once that happens, it’s often followed by the neighbourhood’s commercial district, where you’ll see lively looking cafes and shops starting to open.

Established neighbourhoods that have already gone through gentrification often bound emerging neighbourhoods, he says. In the case of Leslieville, Riverdale, the Danforth and the Beaches, all well-established areas, flank the neighbourhood.

The second pointer Pasalis offers is that the houses in the neighbourhood must have some redeeming features. Curb appeal is critical. Victorian era homes are a good example of this. Their charm will appeal to younger buyers who often fuel the improvements in an emerging neighbourhood.

“The types of neighbourhoods that don’t appeal are older rundown houses that are completely different in style from one to the next,” says Pasalis. “That’s where one home is built in the forties and one in the eighties and they’re not in very good condition, maybe the aluminum siding is falling off. Even if an old Victorian is rundown, you can see the potential, whereas in a neighbourhood where all the houses are rundown, it’s less likely that that neighbourhood will change very soon.”

The third factor in trying to determine a neighbourhood ripe for improvement is to keep an eye on urban areas near main arteries that are close to transit.

Realosophy’s website (www.realosophy.com) offers dozens of very useful and free GTA neighbourhood profiles with a breakdown on schools, house pricing, restaurants and shops, how walkable a neighbourhood is, where the nearest Starbuck’s is and demographics on everything from average household income and languages spoken to the number of families with and without kids.

www.hoodreports.com offers similar information for real estate professionals willing to pay $299 for a one-year license. The fee means you can access information that helps define a neighbourhood based on such demographics as crime rates, schools, EQAO test results, ethnicities, closest transit, population density of the neighbourhood, the marital status of its residents, median incomes, types of dwellings and the age distribution of its population.

“One of the ROIs we demonstrated is that the time you spend looking for information requires lots of energy and effort,” says website co-owner Amit Garthani.“To do that for each client is a lot of work."

Garthani and his partner Ovi Comes started Hood Reports in February, 2010.

What realtor Glenn Perdue,who works for Remax Realty Specialists in Mississauga, likes about www.hoodreports.com is that it breaks down all sorts of statistical information based on the address he enters into the software. “If a client wants information on a specific house, I can pull up local schools and crime stats. A lot of people will ask if there are a lot of robberies in area. This shows it up front. It’s helpful and inexpensive.”

Perdue says the program is easy to use and the information can be emailed to clients even before they’re taken on a showing.

Information like this can fulfill consumers’ growing need to be well informed and educated before making a decision to buy. Once a client is armed with the report, their decision to buy or not to buy is generally reinforced.

“The(se types of reports) reports (don't) scare people away from purchasing a specific home. I think the more information the public has, though, the better position they’re in to make decisions.”

Gary Singh, a sale rep at Kingsbury, says many of his clients are interested in learning about a neighbourhood’s schools. Their second concern, though, seems to centre on what ethnicities comprise the neighbourhood in which they are looking.

What information do you collect when researching a neighbourhood? What do you find your clients are asking about today that they didn’t seem too concerned with a few years ago? What do you look for in a neighbourhood that is emerging in popularity? And what tools have you used to get this information to your clients?

Balance for Canadian Housing Market: CREA

Stability, generally speaking, was the theme from last month, according to new data released by CREA. For many, after swings from high to low swift enough to cause motion sickness, this is welcome respite.
The report says, “Seasonally adjusted national home sales activity edged down by less than one per cent in May 2011 compared to the previous month. Among major markets were activity declines in Vancouver and Ottawa, offsetting gains in Edmonton and Toronto, where sales reached the second highest level on record for the month of May. “Actual sales activity was a manageable 2.7% higher in May 2011 than in April. This also marks the first year-over-year increase in over a year. Despite these gains, the tremendous volatility seen last year is expected to put downward pressure on year-over-year numbers for the coming months.

“The Canadian housing market has seen some big ups and downs in recent years, making national sales activity so far this year look like something of a Goldilocks story by comparison - not too hot, not too cold," said Gary Morse, CREA's President. "Since local housing market trends often differ from national trends, buyers and sellers should consult their local REALTOR® to understand how the housing market is shaping up where they live."

Again there was balance and stability with listings too, with gains in some regions offsetting drops in others. They fell in Vancouver, Fraser Valley and the Okanagan region, but rose modestly in Toronto and Montreal.

CREA paints a picture of balance: “With sales and new listings holding steady on a national basis in May, the resale housing market remained firmly planted in balanced territory. The national sales-to-new listings ratio, a measure of market balance, stood at 52.1 per cent in May, little changed from 52.5 per cent in April. “

"For the most part, sellers' markets became slightly more balanced than the previous month," said Gregory Klump, CREA's Chief Economist. "Toronto stood out as an exception, with sales activity there growing faster than new supply."

The sales-to-new listings ratio was reported to be between 40 % and 60%. Of the 101 Real Estate Boards in the country, 62 were balanced.

Looking at prices, skyrocketing prices in Vancouver are continuing to skew national prices upwards. The flood of foreign investors continues to snap up properties- many of them luxury ones- at top dollar. Toronto too, is placing upward pressure on prices across the country.

In May, the average price nationally was 8.6% over last year and rested at $376,817. If you take Vancouver out of the calculation, the average price comes back down to earth, increasing by only 5.6%. If you take out both Vancouver and Toronto, the average price is up only 3.7%.

"Changes in the national average home price reflect variations in home sales activity across and within local markets," said Klump. "Failure to recognize changes in the mix of sales activity can lead to misinterpretation of average price fluctuations. It can also give rise to faulty predictions of broadly based home price deflation by way of price correction."
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Canada Leading The Way In Global Economic Recovery: Desjardins

According to a new study released by the Desjardins Economic Studies team some industrialized countries are displaying signs of economic weakness, but the report indicates that this is not necessarily a trend.
"Growth should firm up in the second half of the year and continue in 2012, without being outstanding," stated François Dupuis, Desjardins Group Vice-President and Chief Economist. Leading the way, as an example of just this, is the Canadian economy, where a recovery is underway. Although things are definitely picking up in this country, Desjardins warns that there is still much work to do ahead- and that there may be some bumps along the way. There will be challenges presented by “the winding down of government stimulus plans, budget cuts, as well as a currency whose high value is still hurting exports.”

There are also fears that a looming interest rate hike will put downward pressure on the Real Estate market.

Analysts encourage businesses- and the general population for that matter- to continue to invest. “Economic growth has been revised from 3.0% to 2.9% for 2011 due to temporary weakness this spring; for 2012, growth is maintained at 2.7%," emphasizes Yves St-Maurice, Director and Deputy Chief Economist at Desjardins Group. “

The high price of oil has been of benefit to Newfoundland and Labrador- as well as Alberta. There is expectation as well that British Colombia may get a shot in the arm from massive reconstruction efforts underway in Japan to rebuild after the earthquake, through the end of this year- and in 2012 as well. They feel that, eventually, Ontario will benefit again from the auto industry. Although new home building has not slowed down as of yet, they feel that it is only a matter of time.

Consumer spending fared worse in Quebec than it did in other provinces, mostly due to a 1% increase in QST.

Analysts feel that the economic damage done by the earthquake in Japan, while far-reaching and tremendously impacting is short term. “The damage done by Japan's earthquake and tsunami on March 11, and problems that have arisen at a number of nuclear power plants have had repercussions on the global economy. A number of industrialized nations will have their economies slowed this spring by the collateral impacts of these recent events. However, the effects will be temporary. The rebuilding efforts needed will have a positive impact around the world in the second half of the year. “

With inflation on the rise, most central banks are utilizing caution in terms of raising interest rates and monetary policy. Both the UK and Canada are not expected to raise rates until the end of the summer at the earliest.
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The Model: Searching for a perfect love shack?

A little bit of his. A little bit of hers. A touch of theirs thrown in for good measure. The iCouple model at iLoft was designed specifically for a young professional couple. With that in mind, the designers aimed to bridge masculine and feminine, while embracing hip urban loft living with a clean, contemporary style. “It’s professional but not stuffy,” says Anwar Mekhayech, who designed the space with Andrew Bottecchia, both of The Design Agency. “It’s kind of playful, with art and splashes of colour. Urban and playful, but professional at the same time.” The 1,010-square-foot two-storey space features a comfortable European-inspired style, with an open, airy feel and little clutter. While the design looks high-end, Mr. Bottecchia adds everything was chosen to keep it affordable — perfect for a stylish young couple on a budget. Suites at iLoft, by developer Camrost Felcorp, range in size from 720 to 1,125 sq. ft. and in price from $329,900 to $482,900. The sales office is located on the fourth floor at 185 Legion Rd. N., Etobicoke. It’s open Monday to Thursday from noon to 6 p.m. and weekends from noon to 5 p.m. For information, call 416-251-8888 or visit iloft.ca.

1. A glass top and base with chrome in between: Everything about this dining table from Casalife is reflective and “floaty,” explains Mr. Bottecchia — attributes that contribute to the suite’s lofty feel. A built-in Lazy Susan in the centre of the table is perfect for a dinner party. Swivel those canapés this way!

2. Tucked into one corner of the kitchen, the multi-functional desk is the perfect place to pay bills, do work at home or even eat your breakfast. From Ikea, it’s also affordable, but the black tempered-glass top “gives it a little bit of a bump” style-wise, Mr. Bottecchia says.

3. A pop of red’s sure to brighten your day — even if you’re stuck at home getting work done. The moulded plywood desk chair from West Elm scoops your back for comfort. “It’s a very Danish design element,” Mr. Mekhayech says.

4. It’s clear from the art (silkscreen posters of Canadian bands, purchased at Telegramme Prints) that the homeowners here love music. And maybe moose, too? The whimsical faux moose head comes from West Elm. “This is a young professional couple that’s hip and urban at the same time,” Mr. Mekhayech explains.

5. Red and orange are gender-neutral accents throughout the suite. This table from Casa­life, featuring a red tempered-glass top and base, mimics the shape of the dining table, and it’s versatile. The telescopic base can move up or down.

6. “It’s like a nesting table,” Mr. Bottecchia says of the Casa­life coffee table. The glass tabletops can be swung around to increase the reach and surface space during parties. Guests need somewhere to place their cocktails, after all.

Posted in: Condos, Posted Homes Tags: Condominium, The Model

Realtor vs FSBO: A Balanced Perspective

To get legal advice, you visit a lawyer; to get medical advice, you go and see a doctor; most people, to get their car repaired, leave it in the hands of a trained professional. Even to get your hair cut, you go to someone who is trained to do that job. In all of these instances, the average consumer, without specific training and resources in a given area, defers to a qualified individual. So what is it about Real Estate that is so different? ...

Propertywire.ca reported last week on the findings of a poll by Propertyguys.com that surveyed a sampling of 700 Canadians.

Referencing the findings of their internal poll, Propertyguys.com reported that there is a correlation between return on investment and paying out commissions.

There was a wave of response from many of our readers, much of it negatively geared towards PropertyWire.ca giving voice to these kinds of organizations. Therefore, in the spirit of objective journalism, we now wish to present a counterpoint to the findings of this particular poll.

Because of the sensitive and highly controversial nature of the conversations our journalist had with our Realtor readers, many of those who commented did not wish to be identified. Amidst many of the comments there were several common themes expressed by many of our readers.

The beliefs purported by the findings of the Propertyguys.com poll seemed to be posing the question- read, a rallying cry, to our Realtor® readers, of “Why are Realtors® necessary?” Our readers responded passionately- answering not just that question- but “Why are the services that Realtors® provide necessary?" Here are some common themes:

Much depends on the property itself

Many readily admit, Realtors® included, that some properties- and some people- are excellent candidates for private sale. But the fact of the matter is that it often comes down to the property itself.

When all the stars align-price, location, state of the property & market conditions- some properties “sell themselves” in a matter of hours or days. However, as many of the statistics that we were presented with would suggest, for the most part, this is not indicative of the average selling experience.

What our readers told us is that you need to rely on a number of variables for these stars to cross- and it is, often times, in enlisting the services and support of a Realtor® that these variables can not only be harnessed, but turned into opportunity.

As an example, a Realtor® who is well experienced in rural properties with unique challenges, or a Realtor® who offers extensive knowledge of a municipalities, bylaws and areas- or a Realtor® who is very skilled in finding buyers to meet very specific property needs, or are skilled negotiators- all offer something that sellers simply do not have access to privately. These things (and many more identified by our readers) are simply what they feel distinguishes the services of a Realtor®.

Commission vs. Service

The debate over commissions is ironic really, because at its’ core, it has nothing to do with money, although messaging and advertising would lead consumers to believe that. The heart of this debate is really about service and choice. If you ask most consumers, it is not about what you pay- it is about what you get in return for what you pay. Again this comes down to understanding your own professional value and articulating it.

Other issues that private sellers may not have thought of

As many Realtors® have expressed to PropertyWire.ca, they can offer assistance even with things like safety (by screening people and qualifying leads), offering sellers access to their databases and networks, acting as an emotional break between a property they may not be able to be objective about & handling paperwork. A good Realtor will offer even more services than this. PropertyWire.Ca explored this is more detail in our recent article "Consumers Should Weigh Up The Risks Before Going It Alone In Real Estate".

Mixed Messages

By and large, our Realtor® readers are not discounting the existence of FSBO / low fee brokerages. They recognize their place within the market and that there are clients out there for whom private selling is a good option. As one of our commenter's expresses "Propertyguys has the right to compete and consumers have the right to use them".

What we heard from the bulk of those we spoke with is that they are frustrated with the messages, and the half-information that is being distributed by polls like the one that we reported on in the last story; for the public as a result, as reflected by our reader opinion, there is a predominant sense that that the message of “Why do we need Realtors®, when we can do this ourselves?” is being delivered. So who is responsible for delivering the other side of the coin to the consumer and are they doing a good job?

The real issue is that when consumers ask themselves "Why not go it alone?" they do not receive all of the answers they need to make an informed decision, and they end up armed with a little bit of information- which can end badly.
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Glorious sights, scents reward hard work.... By Helen Chesnut, Times Colonist

By Helen Chesnut, Times Colonist


Pick a spot - any spot in my garden. It's almost certain something will need doing there, and fairly urgently. That's just a fact of life when one person is attempting to manage a large garden.

There is an advantage to the situation. At every gardening session I can elect to work anywhere, and I often choose the prettiest or most fragrant location at the time.

That's why, on the Victoria Day weekend, I decided to spend a day in an area of the back garden where a longestablished Shogetsu (Myako) flowering cherry spread its long, horizontal limbs, dipping some of them into a stand of tall, self-sown, violet honesty (Lunaria, money plant) against the side fence. The flower-filled limbs also hovered over a neat row of cushion spurge (Euphorbia polychroma).

When it's in full bloom, I love standing under the flowering cherry tree and looking up into the fluffy mass of dangling white blossom. All this visual beauty was accompanied that day by the strong, clove-like scent of Korean spice viburnum blooming nearby.

Looking around from under this magical tree, I immediately spotted two villains needing to be challenged. The wretched Peruvian lily (Alstroemeria aurantiaca), despite being dug up many times, had resprouted through the wood anemones and daylilies. And sweet cicely had wandered again from its spot against a snake fence into a neighbouring geranium planting. More digging.

A rectangular plot adjacent to the flowering cherry tree had already been planted at one end with potatoes, and sweet peas against a length of wire fencing. Nasturtiums edge that end of the plot. To complete the planting, I dug compost and natural-source fertilizer into the soil, sowed canary vine seeds along a similar length of wire fencing at the opposite end, and filled the rest of the bed with cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower transplants.

It was a day well spent, amid flowers and fragrance, dabbling in a bit of trouble shooting and making another worthwhile down payment on floral beauty and fine food.

A twisted tale of cauliflower. At the most recent potluck gathering in my home, my friend Daphne brought a dish of lightly steamed cauliflower floret clusters topped with a white sauce deliciously flavoured with a little sharp cheddar. The cauliflower was grown at a local farm and sold at the Saturday morning market.

The following Saturday, I bought one of the cauliflower heads at the same farm's table and asked what variety it was. The grower identified the large, beautiful heads as Snow Crown, one of the earliest and most dependable cauliflower varieties. It is exceptionally cold tolerant but not recommended as far as I know for overwintering. This grower planted Snow Crown in her large greenhouse last September.

Snow Crown was for years a constant, reliable cauliflower in my garden, but over the years I'd drifted away to other varieties. Now I'm quite intrigued by the gorgeous May heads at the market. I've acquired seeds (West Coast Seeds) and will sow some indoors soon for transplanting next month and a fall crop.

As an experiment, I'll make another indoor sowing in July for transplanting into a cold frame in September, just to see what happens. A lot will depend on the weather this winter. In a good year, a January indoor sowing and March transplanting of early varieties will yield late spring and early summer crops of cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower.
© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Ask the Expert: The mortgage game

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With anticipated interest rate increases on the horizon, many homeowners are wondering whether to lock debt such as mortgages and secured lines of credit into a fixed-rate mortgage or stay variable. Even some who are mortgage free are concerned with how rate increases will impact secured lines of credit, the financing of vacation homes and recreational property.

First-time buyers may be particularly concerned with entering the national capital’s expensive real estate market.

What can you afford?

As a first time home buyer, it’s essential to figure out what you can afford. A quick rule of thumb is that your household expenses should not add up to more than 40 per cent of your pre-tax household income. Household expenses include mortgage payments, property taxes, condo fees, utility and heating costs, and any payments on other loans such as car loans, credit card debt and lines of credit.

Probably the first step should be to get a copy of your credit history from Equifax Canada and/or the credit bureau. As this is what lenders will look at, it’s important to review its accuracy.

Then do a household budget, list your assets and liabilities and meet with a bank or mortgage broker to get pre-approved for a mortgage. Try the monthly payments on for size. Let’s assume that your current rent is $1,000 and your anticipated payment as a homeowner is $2,350 for principal, interest, taxes, hydro, etc. Try putting aside the extra $1,350 immediately. Not only will this help you save some extra money, but it will get you in the habit of allocating this level of payment every month. Consider the maintenance costs as well, from normal upkeep to potentially larger expenses like a new roof or furnace.

It’s important to find out how much you can afford before falling in love with a house.

Start saving before you start shopping — the larger the down payment, the lower the financing costs. Although it’s not always possible for first-time home buyers, try to come up with at least a 20-per-cent down payment. Any down payments below this level must be insured with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) or Genworth Financial — another expense to factor in.

To assist with your down payment, consider using the Home Buyer’s Plan, which allows you to withdraw up to $25,000 from your RRSP for the purchase of a qualifying home.

Work with a real estate agent familiar with the area you would like to live in, an experienced home inspector and a real estate lawyer to help draft an offer and ensure that title is transferred properly.

Mortgage options

A recent survey indicated that more than 60 per cent of Canadians expect rates to rise over the next 12 months. With this in mind, here are some mortgage strategies to consider.

Fixed rate: If the prospect of rate increases is causing you significant concern, then perhaps you should consider locking in all or some of your debt. With the inflated home equity line of credit rates that consumers have been charged (prime plus 0.5 to one per cent instead of the traditional prime), it’s not that big a jump to a five-year fixed rate, perhaps as little as one per cent more.

If your fixed-rate mortgage is renewing in 2011 and you are interested in another fixed-rate mortgage, it may be worthwhile negotiating with your lender to close out your current mortgage and move into the new lower rate mortgage without penalty. As a strategy to pay off the mortgage sooner, consider increasing the payment and utilize weekly or accelerated bi-weekly payment schedules.

If you would like some level of security but don’t want a fixed rate on all your debt, consider a blend where a portion is at a fixed rate and the balance at a variable rate.

Variable rate: There are many studies that show that despite its volatility, a variable-rate mortgage tends to save more interest in the long term.

House guest horrors: The seven deadly sins

Every summer, the species comes out of hibernation and wreaks havoc in your home, eating everything in its path and leaving a mess in its wake. No, we don't mean bears or ants. We're talking about house guests, those all-too-common creatures who show up on your family's doorstep and create total chaos.

It may seem like we're exaggerating, but for every lovely guest we've heard of (like the gracious woman who offered free babysitting services and made a batch of delicious muffins for our friends), there are two awful tales about a selfish or slovenly visitor who made their hosts regret ever opening the front door.

Before you play host or stay with a friend, read our totally anonymous worst-house guest tales.

SIN NO. 1: SNOOPING When you open your home to people, you are trusting them around your most prized possessions and giving them a peek into your private life. But that doesn't mean a guest should abuse that trust. One friend tells us that there was "obvious evidence that the house guest had gone through our things." There were caps left off of items in her medicine cabinet and things hanging out of drawers. "It was totally creepy," she adds.

If you need something -say, a Band-Aid or an Aspirin -don't just rifle through your friend's things, ask. Better yet, pack wisely (that includes all your basic toiletries and a decent medicine kit), so you don't have to hit up your friends for more than they are already providing, which is a roof over your head.

SIN NO. 2: 'HELPING'

This one came up a lot in our survey: The house sitter who overwatered her hosts' plants in the living room but didn't wipe up the resulting flood, causing thousands of dollars of damage to the floors. The guest who unloaded the dishwasher and placed items exactly where they didn't belong ("I couldn't find my cutting boards until we moved!" our friend admitted). The budding chef who insisted on making a gourmet meal but left a messy kitchen that took hours for the hosts to clean up.

Rather than tackling a project without getting clearance, offer to help by asking "What can I do?" Basic good manners -unloading groceries, making the bed, bringing your dishes into the kitchen -don't need an official okay, but before you decide to refinish that antique chair, see if the chair's owner actually wants you do that.

SIN NO. 3: ABUSING THE BEDSHEETS

One friend told us that she found a "mystery stain" on a mattress after a friend departed. Another had an even weirder tale. He and his wife let a couple stay at their home while they were out of town. When they returned, they couldn't find their comforter. When asked, their guests acted surprised and confused. "Oh, yeah, right," they finally offered up, reaching back in their memory from one day earlier -they'd gone to the emergency room with the comforter and then left the bedding in their car and forgotten about it. No further explanation was offered. We once (stupidly, but in our defence, it was our first kid) changed a newborn's diaper on our relative's 80 billion-thread-count king-sized bed. Disaster.

When you're using someone else's sheets or bed, by all means stick to sleeping, not eating, drinking wine, fooling around, changing diapers or anything that might involved a trip to the ER. If you do spill or get dirt on the sheets, immediately tell your hosts and then either do the load of wash yourself or offer to pay for a dry cleaner. If the stain does not come out, insist on replacing the damaged item. And wherever you sleep -be it the couch, floor or guest bedroom -make up your bed every morning. On the last day you're there, strip the bedding and ask if you can do a load of wash or help make the bed up with fresh sheets.

SIN NO. 4: DRINKING TOO MUCH

"My folks lent out their house to some friends who were in town for a wedding. They left their kids at the house with a sitter and attended the wedding. Their sitter proceeded to help herself to my parents' liquor cabinet and then barfed on the living room chair and rug. And then she passed out. Oh, and she was a minor." Granted, this wasn't the fault of the guests, who were mortified, but it was their sitter who caused the gross damage.

Don't drink to excess when you're a guest.

SIN NO. 5: EXPECTING HOSTS TO BE CRUISE DIRECTORS

"People have no idea how much work it is to entertain," says one woman. Her demanding visitors "were so entitled, they expected to be waited on and amused the entire time." Another frustrated homeowner says, "We had people visit for a weekend. Their kids got up at 6 a.m. and ran around the house while the parents slept until 9: 30 or 10 a.m."

Instead of sleeping, he and his wife had to get up, make the children breakfast and watch over them as their parents enjoyed a free morning of babysitting.

If you're visiting friends to spend time with them, see what they have planned and be a good sport (nobody cares if you don't really like county fairs). But you should also be open to doing your own thing, coming up with suggestions for activities and giving your hosts a break from you. P.S. Never expect to be chauffeured around. Rent a car, get a taxi or borrow a bicycle.

SIN NO. 6: FREELOADING

We'd never advocate charging a guest for your hospitality, but many people take advantage of their hosts' generosity. One woman's cousin will often call to say she's coming, then show up later that day with her boyfriend and two young children in tow. "They don't help with dishes or cooking and don't offer to pay -even for themselves -if we go out."

Offer to take everyone out to eat or buy muffins and bagels for everyone for breakfast. Chip in for groceries. Pay the museum entrance fee. If you're driving around and your host needs gas for the car, pay for it (don't take no for an answer).

SIN NO. 7: NOT SAYING THANK YOU

It's surprising how easy it is to forget to thank your hosts -maybe you're racing to catch a flight or your kids are freaking out about getting back into the car and you're focusing on making sure you haven't forgotten anything. But we admit, it stings when our guests don't express their gratitude.

As you are leaving, you should thank your hosts, but we suggest a post-visit thank-you card/call/email/pigeoncarrier letter. If you did not bring a gift when you arrived, a small present would be thoughtful, too, but a heartfelt "thank you" would mean the world.
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Measures set to ease traffic congestion during Mercier Bridge closings

MONTREAL - Montreal’s summer traffic woes just got a lot worse.

But authorities are taking measures to mitigate congestion caused by the sudden partial closing of the Mercier Bridge.

Lane directions are being changed and more South Shore commuter trains and buses are on the way. They’re also considering opening to car traffic the ice bridge next to the Champlain Bridge.

Here are the measures:

Mercier lane changes

The part of the bridge that normally takes motorists to Montreal remains open, but lanes on it will switch directions at various points:

- From midnight to noon, both its lanes will be used for Montreal-bound traffic only.

- From noon to midnight, both its lanes will be used for traffic to the South Shore.

- On weekends, it will be used as a two-way road, one lane in each direction.

There will be short periods during configuration changes when the entire span will be closed.

Commuter trains

The Agence métropolitaine de transport will add six weekday departures on its weekday-only Candiac commuter train line as of Thursday morning, thanks to the cooperation of Canadian Pacific, which owns the tracks and bridge used by the line.

New departures from Candiac will leave at 6:35 a.m., 8:25 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. From Lucien L’Allier station, new departures will leave at 9:35 a.m., 3:55 p.m. and 5:55 p.m.

These are in addition to the 12 daily weekday trains on the Candiac line.

The AMT is also adding a total of 380 additional parking spots at its Candiac, St. Constant and Ste. Catherine train stations.

Buses

The AMT said regional transit authorities on the South Shore will add buses to and from Montreal. Details have not been worked out yet.


Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/Measures+ease+traffic+congestion+during+Mercier+Bridge+closings/4952466/story.html#ixzz1PXRgyRhO

Martha Stewart moves outside

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Martha Stewart is working hard so you can have a nice backyard.

No, the reigning queen of domesticity is not hunched over, feverishly weeding your lawn as you read this. But her goal to make all things beautiful has given the masses access to chic and affordable outdoor furniture and accessories.

The business magnate talks about what’s important in outdoor furniture in a conversation with the Citizen’s Paula McCooey.

To stay in touch with her Canadian partners at Home Depot, the American business magnate and media personality was in Toronto Monday doing what she does best — multi-tasking.

In classic Martha Stewart fashion she was zipping around the city, conducting an interview on Canada AM at the crack of dawn, meeting with Home Depot employees about her new line of products, lunching at trendy O&B, checking out Toronto’s high-end home furnishing stores Elte and Gingers, and visiting Jo-Ann and Michaels stores, where she carries her crafts line that includes her popular “glitter kits”. Oh, and then she whipped off an inspiring speech at Roy Thomson Hall for the Unique Lives & Experiences tour, an annual lecture series that also included comedienne Joan Rivers and Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert.

And in between all of that she squeezed in some time for the Citizen to discuss Home Depot and a partnership that began in January 2010.

“This has been a phenomenal partnership so far, and I expect it to continue to be very, very successful,” says Stewart, the founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, a publishing giant that includes magazines, books, television and radio shows, along with merchandise.

Stewart says she works closely with six people on her design team to put her personal stamp on hundreds of different products, including her 15 styles of outdoor furniture that boasts everything from swivel rockers and conversation sets to party bars and umbrellas.

Stewart, who has homes in New York and Maine, understands the need to invest in stylish, yet lightweight outdoor furniture. The 69-year-old has seen a dramatic shift from the days, as recent as 10 or 20 years ago, when an outdoor chair could be as heavy as a concrete planter.

“It used to be cast iron furniture, remember? They started in the 19th century and then they were made by Fiske and other such foundries. And it was all cast iron, maybe wooden seats, but very uncomfortable and very heavy, year-round outdoor stuff. But now there are chaises, there are fixed cushions, a variety of water-resistant fabrics, and it’s a very different kind of thing. It’s outdoor living.”

She says people are trying very hard to spend more time outdoors, given the growing trend of screened-in rooms, and better furniture choices makes the prospect more exciting.

“People are realizing that they can enjoy outdoors as well as indoors, and the furniture is reflecting the more comfortable (choices).”

Stewart stressed that the goal at her company is to offer the best value, with comfort, stylish design and good construction — and keeping pieces lightweight.

“It is sturdy without being too heavy,” she says.

For those of us who are not, well, Martha Stewart, she and her team have produced indoor paint, furniture and decor that is colour co-ordinated with tags of colour icons to make mixing and matching simple and ensuring colours do not clash.

“We have a whole colour co-ordination scheme that is very, very useful for the homemaker,” says Stewart. “It enables people who think they are (design) challenged as interior designers to co-ordinate colour ... one of our paints, for example, (will match the) colouring of specific rugs, matched to a specific curtain, matched to a specific paint that we are using for kitchen cabinets.

The colour co-ordination extends to the outdoors “to a degree,” she says, and will continue to grow.

Does does Martha Stewart herself use her own products?

Absolutely.

She is now building a guest house on her sprawling property in Maine, where she is using her own furniture line and an array of blush-colour tones (in her low-VOC paint, of course) to create a welcoming atmosphere.

“I am creating a large tool workshop where I am using the entire Martha Stewart Living Craft Furniture line designed for the Home Decorators catalogue owned by The Home Depot. I use my paints exclusively for all painting projects. And I, of course, am building the interiors of a guest house using several items from the Martha Stewart Living Kitchens line.”

Stewart says there are some people who will walk into Home Depot and buy whole collections, however, she acknowledges many will want to refresh their decor in smaller steps.

“Many people have older pieces that they carry over from year to year. You can buy the table with two chairs, or you can buy a couch with two chairs and a coffee table. But many people do buy the whole set, and we try to keep a design at least for two seasons so that you can add to it.”

She says a great way to freshen an outdoor look on the cheap is to buy new cushions for older furniture if you’re not ready to make the leap to a new set. And her design advice for mixing and matching old and new? Pay attention to common tones.

“You can look for similar materials so you don’t have a clashing colour scheme,” she says. “And then you can get replacement cushions to refresh your older patio with some of the new things. And all of that is absolutely doable, so you don’t have to feel like you have to discard a whole set.”

Now that is a good thing.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

The times are a changing.....

OH WELL!

Sugar and spice in little girl's room

In the bedrooms they've created for their little girls, the interior-design team of Nicola Marc and Beth Gold have kept one decorating idea front and centre — these are spaces where older furnishings can take on a new life, where memorabilia is treasured and where favourite things are always on display.

The cradle is gone, and so is the changing table, but these rooms are easy to grow into, the designers say. Each room keeps sentimental touches from their infant days, but because some of the furniture could have been used in an adult space, the transition is smooth.

"As designers, we like to create an aesthetic and work with existing pieces," says Marc, who recently joined Gold in MarcGold Interiors.

In the sunny bedroom of Gold's three-year-old daughter Chloe, drapey white and blue linen curtains fit in with the white-framed prints made by Chloe's grandma. On her bed, a family piece from the 1950s, the white ruffled bedspread is covered with pillows and a quilt that was once Gold's.

"I'm using lots of pillows because Chloe uses it as a seating area," Gold says. "Not all bedrooms have room for seating."

The floral motif in the room is repeated in a vintage framed album cover, on the pillows, the area rug and the wallpaper that backs Chloe's pinboard on the wall just above her desk.

The pale colours in the room reflect the rest of the house, Gold says, where dashes of strong colour add playfulness — like the raspberry desk in Chloe's room. And the straw baskets filled with toys can easily be used for other functions in the rest of the house.

"We think about how we can make a fairly easy transition from one stage to another," Marc says. "It reflects our general approach to design."

"We want to give things new life by recovering and reframing," Gold says. "I'm soon going to reframe my husband's baby sampler for Chloe's room."

It's important, they say, to keep things fresh and to honour a child's history in their room — rather than reflecting the latest fad or cartoon character, their children's' room are designed to reflect the child.

The room, they believe, should fit into the overall design of the house, and they might even use an iconic piece, like a child-sized Barcelona chair — to add both a design-conscious and user-friendly element.

"We think you can make a child's bedroom fun and young without using child-themed paper or bedcovers," Gold says.

Marc's daughter, Clara, who just turned four, has a pegboard just above her bed, made from a recycled antique wooden shelf. Marc covered the backing with cork and trimmed it with bunting so that when Clara comes home from nursery school, she can put up her latest drawings.

She chose a fresh putty colour to paint the pegboard. "That colour looks so nice with blue," Marc says. "I like to do the unexpected with colour."

The fabric-covered single bed was found at a garage sale, its cane head and endboards broken. Now the pretty fabric used to cover them are also used in details on the pillow and on the fabric bolster, inside which Clara keeps toys from time to time.

A complimentary blue-striped linen with cream lining is used to make the canopy that drapes the bedhead.

"Kids love those whimsical touches," Marc says.

Because she wanted to keep the dark-stained hardwood floors yet achieve a cosy ambience, Marc added two champagne coloured sheepskin rugs on the floor, just below the painted bookcase full of Clara's favourite books and boxes to hold her dolls' clothes, books and toys.

On the spacious wall near the bookcase, Marc has created a grouping of her daughter's artwork and family photographs above a prettily framed series of letters, written to the newly born Clara by each of her grandparents.

Baskets of toys fill a corner of the room, while on butterfly hooks above Clara can hang favourite items. In the far corner, what was once her changing table has reverted to its original use as a white-painted chest of drawers.

Even the large cupboard in the room is put to play and storage use, covered with blue and white floral wallpaper, with organizational boxes and room to put away clothes and shoes.

"I love the huge scale of the flowers in this wallpaper," says Marc, who has labelled the boxes with various types of clothing.

"This gives Clara a chance to learn how to organize her things," she says.

donnanebenzahl@videotron.ca
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Dream closets start with good sort...

DIYers often install systems without first measuring their stuff, then try to make their stuff fit. Instead, first size up your contents.

DIYers often install systems without first measuring their stuff, then try to make their stuff fit. Instead, first size up your contents.
Photograph by: Thinkstock, Postmedia News

There's always a trigger, experts say. When someone finally checks into rehab or jumps off a bridge or breaks down and organizes their closets, some event sets it off. For me, it was moving to a house with smaller closets.

While I considered pitching myself off a bridge, I settled on getting smarter about closet organizing. In my new place, closet space isn't just smaller overall, the master closet area is divided into three closets: his, hers and I don't want to go there.

Because I purged when I packed to move, all the clothes I brought to my new digs were staying. Every garment fits, looks good, all the zippers work and nothing bears some sorry hope of coming back in style.

As I set about organizing my new closets, I knew they would have to meet minimum standards -no belt snake pit, no sweater stack that comes with an avalanche warning, no underwear drawers that look like chickens live in them and no hangers so tangled they look like they've been in a barroom brawl.

More than that, what I really wanted was a closet so organized that I could pull together an outfit without taking a step.

I started by sorting. I grouped clothing by colour, then by season. I divided clothes into fat days and skinny days, by short and long, by categories (pants and blouses), and by function (work, casual and dressy).

This got so complicated, I called a professional . Lisa Engel, vice-president of marketing for Closet Maid, knew my pain. "Moving is a major closet-makeover trigger," she said, sympathizing. Other ones are having a baby and getting married.

The recession is also having an effect. "Before, when people got married or had a baby, they often got a bigger place," she said. "Now people are stuck, so they're making the closet space they have work harder."

To help me get the most out of my closets, Engel shared some inside-thecloset scoop. Here, she said, is what most consumers don't know:

. The typical three-metre-wide wall closet with a pole and a shelf holds three metres of hanging clothes and three metres of stacked folded clothes on the shelf.

That same closet with a system can hold just over three metres of hanging space, five metres of shelves for folded items, plus drawers and racks for belts and shoes.

. After a point, additional cost buys strictly looks. For a relatively minimal investment, you can have a wire-closet system that does everything a pricey cherrywood system does: organize and add useful, differentiated space.

. DIYers often install systems without first measuring their stuff, then try to make their stuff fit. Instead, first size up your contents.

Measure how many feet of longhanging items you have. Start your plan there, then add upper-and lower-hanging racks for short-hanging items. Next add a shelf tower, bins and racks for ties, scarves and belts.

. The best hangers curve like shoulders to keep garments in their ideal shape, but contoured hangers can hog space. Next best are flat, thick (halfinch) wood or plastic hangers, which take less room.

. The primary rule of closet organizing is put what you wear most within easy reach, said Engel. Archive items you won't wear until the weather cools.

Consider under-the-bed storage boxes. After that, how you arrange your clothes is personal.

. Don't hang what you should fold, and don't hide what you should see. Fold and stack T-shirts, sweaters and exercise wear, and don't keep shoes or jewelry in boxes, which wastes space and makes you forget what you have hidden.

. Buy systems you can adjust. This way you won't worry if you make a planning mistake. Plus, you can take flexible systems with you when you move, which you may not have to do if you get the closets right.
© Copyright (c) McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

And they're off! Queen leads the way in style stakes as Royals attend day one of Ascot

The Royal Family were out in full force again today as day one of Ascot kicked off.

The Queen, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, Beatrice and Eugenie arrived together in horse-drawn carriages to celebrate the event's 300th year.

The monarch looked elegant in mint green as she waved to the crowds, accompanied by her husband, Prince Phillip.

The princesses looked elegant in smart attire and wore a more toned-down look than at the Royal Wedding.

Eugenie, 21, wore a teal lace dress by Issa, matching hat and white jacket.

Beatice, 22, looked demure in a nude and black outfit.

Prince Charles and Camilla were also at the event, but there was no sign of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2003369/Royal-Ascot-2011-Queen-leads-way-Royals-attend-day-horse-race.html#ixzz1PHnV2cFZ

Camilla followed in the footsteps of Catherine, who has been pictured in a number of recycled outfits lately, wearing the same blue coat and dress she wore to the Royal Wedding.

Also in attendance was Danielle Lineker, who did her best Posh impression, posing in a nude Victoria Beckham dress.

Also in attendance is Jackie St Claire, a regular at the five-day meeting at the famous Berkshire racecourse, that is set to attract royals, celebrities and horse-racing fans alike.

Jackie wore an elegant grey dress offset by a larger-than-life yellow hat.

A statue of Ascot equine legend Yeats is to be unveiled during the Royal meeting, which runs until Saturday. The four-time Gold Cup winner dominated Royal Ascot from 2006 to 2009.

Set for summer

Toronto interior designer, blogger and TV design expert Michelle Mawby believes Canadian summers are too short not to make the most of them while you can. She has a host of suggestions for blurring the boundary between indoors and out now that the weather is warm.

Bringing the Indoors Out

Outdoor entertaining has moved beyond melamine plates and plastic glasses to become as elegant as dining indoors. Ditch the patio furniture and buy an elegant dining room table (new or tag sale; it’s up to you), and weatherproof it with a coat of transparent epoxy or marine paint. (Ms. Mawby protects her “repurposed” Chippendale-style table with a sturdy cover, and leaves it out all winter.) You can buy quite elegant outdoor serving pieces and linens to set your table, but there’s no reason you can’t use good (or even everyday) china, crystal and napkins for meals in the garden — after all, the Victorians did.

Great lighting helps to create an inviting setting for summer evenings. Install accent lights in trees, and place solar or electric-powered lights along the garden path for a soft glow. For the table, use hurricane lamps or attractive votive candleholders; one company, Kichler, makes outdoor LED table lamps that are as attractive as anything you’d use inside. Or hang classic paper lanterns — Pier One sells plastic ones with built-in LEDs that look like the real thing, but are much less fragile.

Strings of LED lights aren’t just for Christmas. You can get all kinds of novelty (or elegant) shapes, ranging from dragonflies to chili peppers, that provide a nostalgic, summery glow. Or just use regular Christmas-style strings of white or cream lights, festooned along the fence or in your shrubs; or if you have enough, wrap them around the trunks of your garden trees, like restaurants do.

For seating, director’s chairs can be dressed up at relatively low cost by replacing the standard canvas seats and backs with sturdy, summer-patterned outdoor fabrics. There are amazing outdoor fabrics nowadays from high-end houses like Robert Allen, Lee Jofa and Schumacher. (Ms. Mawby is so enamoured of one pattern, by fashion designer Trina Turk, she’s bought it in several colourways and is thinking of using it indoors as well.) Along with florals, awning stripes and other summer staples, opulent alternatives such as paisleys and medallions add a contemporary, elegant look.

Renew tired outdoor furniture with a new coat of paint and new (or reupholstered) cushions. Metal furniture can be painted or sprayed with rust paint in a choice of bright colours; wicker furniture can be spray-painted, or painted with a brush. Other types of wood furniture, such as teak, can be cleaned and rejuvenated with tung oil.
If you are blessed with a back porch, give it a cabana feeling with curtains on three sides, hung on rods attached under the eaves of the porch; have them made to measure by a drapery company, buy ready-mades from a home store, or sew them up yourself out of heavy cotton or linen.

Bringing the Outdoors In

Just as outdoor living is becoming more elegant, make the most of summer living by bringing the outdoor feeling inside. Summer is a time to lighten and brighten, Ms. Mawby says, so look for every way you can to make your rooms look clear, clean and uncluttered.

That might mean starting by going through your home and “editing” accessories and bric-a-brac. “Too much is too much,” she laughs. For example, instead of a piano covered with framed photographs, remove all but one or two, or replace them with a vase of fresh flowers (protect the surface of the piano with an artfully draped shawl or length of summer fabric, if you like). Replace heavy accessories with displays of natural objects such as seashells, coral, pinecones or a beautiful piece of driftwood.

Put away heavy rugs and replace with light, summer-weight ones, or leave your floors bare, if they are beautiful. If you have a combination of heavy draperies and sheers on your windows, take down the outer draperies and leave the sheers in place to let in the sun. Replace woolen pillows and throws with lightweight cotton ones in light or bright colours.

“Scent is a great way to stimulate the senses and add atmosphere,” she says. “I have a lampe-Berger in every room (an air purifier invented in Paris in the 1900s that uses a simple chemical process to scent and clean the air); it’s a lovely old-fashioned remedy that still works.” Alternatively, fill your rooms with fresh-cut flowers or scented candles.

Consider moving your artwork around; you’ll find that even a painting you’ve owned and loved for years takes on a surprising new look when you hang it in a different setting. Simply rearranging your furniture to take advantage of morning sun or afternoon breezes can have the same effect.

Finally, it’s a great time to spruce up the front of your house. Change the arrangements in your urns or planters to summery flowers such as petunias (modern varieties will keep blooming profusely until frost), bright geraniums or thick, healthy-looking ferns. Buy a few hanging planters from the garden or grocery store, to provide a welcome burst of colour, and sometimes fragrance, for visitors. Consider painting your front door a fresh new colour as well; that’s one of those home-improvement jobs that, for about one long summer’s afternoon worth of effort, make a huge difference to the look of your home.

Challenging the acai berry

If you keep even a half-hearted eye on nutrition these days, no doubt you have heard the buzz about acai berries. Pronounced a-sigh-EE, this Brazilian fruit is often touted as one of the so-called superfoods of our time. But, as we learned in last week’s column on goji berries, the hype surrounding these exotic foods doesn’t always match the evidence. So, in the interests of fairness, let’s take a look at the buzz versus the bottom line for this popular berry.

The hype

Acai berries reached the North American market in the mid-2000’s amid a flurry of claims that its juice, as well as extracts made from the berry, were helpful for weight loss, detoxification and overall health. Before long, the berry had made its way to Oprah and Dr. Oz, with abundant claims surrounding its antioxidant capacities. A star, it would seem, had been born.

As a result of the hype, acai products also started showing up in numerous ads, mostly online, purporting that supplements containing acai extract could be used to support dramatic weight loss. So-called “free” trials of acai pills turned sour for many consumers, however, leading the U.S.-based Better Business Bureau to issue a warning regarding online companies selling acai for weight-loss purposes.

The evidence

Much of acai’s claims have surrounded its supposedly high anti-oxidant content. As the theory goes, our daily exposure to pollutants, chemicals, or just plain age, induces oxidative damage to our cells, leaving us older and sicker over time. According to the prevailing wisdom, this oxidative damage can be reversed, or at least held at bay, by consuming foods rich in anti-oxidants. The downstream effects could include cancer protection, cardiovascular health, or anti-aging benefits. While the concept of anti-oxidants has been around for ages, the truth is that we don’t actually know for sure that anti-oxidants help fight disease. While food sources of anti-oxidants seem beneficial to our health — possibly for reasons more complex than just anti-oxidants, the research on anti-oxidant supplements (which includes the likes of vitamin E, vitamin C and selenium) simply has not panned out.

Enter acai, which claims to be antioxidant-rich, as measured using something called the oxygen radical absorbance capacity, or ORAC, score. In theory, ORAC allows one food to be compared directly against another, with the assumption being that the food with the highest ORAC would have the greatest potential to fight disease. In reality, there is little evidence to link ORAC scores with actual health measures or disease risk. Moreover, in a study of various fruit juices published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, UCLA-based researchers found that, when it came various measures of anti-oxidant status, including ORAC, acai juice actually fell somewhere in the middle, ahead of cranberry, orange, and apple juices, but behind pomegranate juice, concord grape juice, and yes — even red wine.

The reality

According a handful of studies — mostly industry-funded — acai juice has shown some potential when it comes to preventing oxidative damage to cholesterol and other lipids, which may have downstream benefits for heart disease risk. Otherwise, the rest of the data is either from rodent studies, or is indirect enough (i.e. anti-oxidant levels in the bloodstream) that it can only be loosely tied to health or disease risk.

The bottom line

What to make of all of the acai believers who claim to have seen their health change for the better after drinking a few hundred dollars worth of the juice per month? It’s likely that you are seeing a combination of a few real health benefits, along with the power of self-healing. Based on what we know for now, acai does have potential health benefits, but we don’t have reason to believe these benefits are any more profound than the numerous other fruits and vegetables on the market — at a fraction of the cost.

Jennifer Sygo is a dietitian in private practice at Cleveland Clinic Canada, which offers executive physicals and personal health care management in Toronto.
© Copyright (c) National Post

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School yard bullies are most likely to abuse partners

Boys who are bullies at school are at increased risk of abusing their partner later in life -- a link that U.S. researchers say could hold potential for curbing domestic violence, which affects about a fourth of all U.S. women.

While their study, published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, can't tease out cause and effect, the link appears to be surprisingly strong and warrants further study, said study leader Jay Silverman, a psychologist.

"We need to do a far better job at recognizing bullying in schools, particularly the harassment of girls by boys," Silverman, at the Harvard School of Public Health, told Reuters Health.

"For adolescents, the school context is very much a practice ground for behaviors as adults."

Based on data from a survey of nearly 1,500 Boston men aged 18 to 35 years, Silverman's team found that 16 per cent of the men -- about one in six -- said they had abused their partner physically or sexually within the past year.

Of those who admitted to recent abuse, 38 per cent said they had bullied their peers frequently in school. That compared to only 12 per cent of the men who hadn't maltreated their partner as adults.

After taking into account other risk factors for domestic violence, such as being abused as a child or witnessing abuse between parents, carrying out frequent bullying as a child was linked to a four-fold increase in a man's risk for partner abuse.

That association was even stronger than things such as being abused as a child.

"It was somewhat surprising that the effect for bullying was so much more powerful than many of the other issues we typically consider," Silverman said.

"The take home message is that bullying should be an important consideration when we're thinking about reducing gender-based violence in adults. We really need to look at bullying also through that lens."

SOURCE: bit.ly/kW3qlw
© Copyright (c) Reuters

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/health/family-child/Schoolyard+bullies+more+likely+abuse+partners/4905067/story.html#ixzz1P6Iq2RdC