Homes And Gardens | Ottawa Magazine

FROM THE PRINT EDITION: The art of setting the mood. One table, dressed three ways (and how to get the looks)

The dinner party never looked so good! Dress up yourself, then dress up your table according to a mood or theme. The key is to have fun. After all, having friends over shouldn’t be a stuffy affair or fraught with anxiety. Nor does a conversation-worthy table setting have to be expensive. So set the mood, crack open a bottle, and get ready to enjoy your company.

Styling by Jonathan Hobin
Photography by Photoluxstudio.com – Christian Lalonde
Flower displays courtesy Blumen Studio

Pewter and slate make for an exotic and masculine table.
The rough-edged pewter bowls and vases on an unadorned, dark wood table create a sophisticated Asian-inspired look. Afraid it’s looking almost too urbane? Add a dash of whimsy with fortune-cookie place-card holders

Eastern Promise

Pewter-look rough-edged bowls, $37.50 each, Ma Cuisine, 613-789-9225; slate tiles used as chargers, $2.99 each, Rona, www.rona.ca; chopsticks, $4.99 each, EQ3, www.eq3.com; Brad Turner limited-edition whisky glasses, $80 each, Wall Space Gallery and Framing, www.wallspacegallery.ca; metal-hinged fortune cookie place-card holders, $14.95 each, Linen Chest, www.linenchest.com; glass wine carafe with oak stopper, $34.95, EQ3, www.eq3.com; wooden side plates, $17.50 for a set of four, Zone, www.zonemaison.com; salt and pepper shakers, $16 per pair, wooden mortar and pestle, $42, metal salad claws, $19.95 per pair, whisky stone cubes, $25 for a package of nine (put the stones in the freezer and use them instead of ice), all from Zone, www.zonemaison.com; wooden salad bowl with silver base, $34.99, HomeSense, www.homesense.ca; rustic nickel vases, large $54 and small $32, Zone, www.zonemaison.com; floral arrangement courtesy of Blumen Studio, www.blumenstudio.ca; rough-cut large wooden bowl, $144.64, Zone, www.zonemaison.com; large print on the wall by Christian Lalonde is entitled The Venetian. Price is according to size and is available by request, www.photoluxstudio.com.

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FROM THE PRINT EDITION: A kitchen renovation achieves a LEED Platinum rating — and does it with style

Because the compact kitchen is part of a much larger room, the team created visual flow by carrying the unique walnut millwork throughout the main floor. Photography by Gordon King.

This kitchen is one of four innovative kitchens featured in the February 2012 Interiors edition.

The starting point was a small bungalow in Old Ottawa South, and the intrigue of the project was in the details. A young professional couple were looking to undertake an extensive renovation that would transform their cramped quarters into a two-storey space with an open-concept main floor. The details? They wanted to build to LEED Platinum standards, and they wanted a renovation that would be fully accessible.

“It’s all about careful design,” explains Steve Barkhouse, owner of Amsted Design-Build, which worked with Montreal architects Laroche et Gagné Architecture Design on the project. “Accessibility is part of what we aim for in every project anyway.”

Because the compact kitchen is part of a much larger room, the team created visual flow by carrying the unique walnut millwork throughout the main floor. “The key,” says Barkhouse, “is that the kitchen doesn’t stand out. The cabinetry doesn’t look like kitchen cabinetry, and the wood we used matches other furniture pieces on this level.”

Other neat features include the two countertop working areas, conveniently located plugs hidden in the kitchen side of the breakfast bar, and heated polished-concrete floors. Interestingly, the kitchen is located at the front of the house, so the cook can enjoy neighbourhood views while preparing meals on the stove. When asked to sum up the kitchen in one line, Barkhouse does so perfectly: “This is a kitchen that isn’t really big, but it lives big.”

The kitchen is at the front of the house, so the cook can enjoy neighbourhood views while preparing meals on the stove. Photography by Gordon King.

THE TEAM: Laroche et Gagné Architecture Design (design); Amsted Design-Build (contractor)

APPLIANCES: Bosch

CABINETRY: Laroche et Gagné Architecture Design (built and installed by Espace Cuisine, Montreal)

COUNTER: TechniStone (in Crystal Polar White), Comptoirs Illimités

FAUCET: Boone Plumbing

FLOORING: Maxxon Therma-Floor, installed by Floor Solutions

REFRIGERATOR: Samsung

LIGHTING: Systemalux

SINK: Blanco, Boone Plumbing

TABLE AND CHAIRS: Vintage Danish teak, homeowners’ personal collection

HIDDEN OTTAWA: Funkify your digs with finds from these local shops

Ottawa Magazine’s October issue uncovers “hidden Ottawa” with a hole-in-the-wall handbook that embraces the city’s undercover ambience, celebrating 39 overlooked nooks, hipster hideaways, secret foodie sources, and other mysterious locales. Get your copy at Britton’s magazine store and other newsstand locations around town.

Record Shaap employee Dave Ward. Photography by Angela Gordon

Vinyl, underground
Matty McGovern is a big, scruffy guy who, according to local legend, worked at every record store in the city before opening his own place. Why strike out on his own? His former employers kept closing down. McGovern is usually at the front, chatting with an audiophile or a record collector about rare finds and prized singles. Find The Record Shaap underneath the second-hand clothing shop/lunch spot Gypsy & Co. An odd locale, perhaps, but it reflects perfectly its status as a nexus of hipster Ottawa. And so does the decor: it’s tidy, almost chic, with bright blue walls and a retro decor. 209 Gilmour St., 613-321-0564, www.therecordshaap.tumblr.com.

Light right
This niche business has been supplying light bulbs to Ottawa — nay, the world — since 1971. Buchanan Lighting keeps 4,000 types of bulbs on hand, but it acts as a distribution point for thousands more. Yes, there are bulbs for general use, and they’ll be selling incandescents long after they’ve been discontinued at your local hardware store (they found a legal loophole). But ask them about the map behind the cash — that’s where the stories are. Staff are proud of their contribution to the Canadarm, their bulbs that can purify water in equatorial countries, and the lights used for testing soil for carbon dioxide levels. There’s even a bulb that can artificially age wood for violins. By the time you leave, you’ll be comparing a good LED bulb to a fine merlot. 129 Loretta Ave., 613-728-3551, www.buchananlighting.ca

Short stuff
Surrounded by bright cotton separates and dangly earrings, a mini oasis is growing in this Chinatown shop. Helen Le of Ottawa Bonsai Penjing Art shares the space with Crazy Fashions, but being a one-woman operation in a field that’s meant to thrive in small spaces, she naturally keeps to one small corner. Plumeria, rosemary, citrus, and pomegranate grow in simple pots; most are in the $15-to-$60 range and would work nicely in a cubicle. For avid collectors of the favourite hobby of Mr. Miyagi in the (original) Karate Kid movies, there’s also a $300 ficus tree — a multi-stemmed creation that looks like a miniature forest. And there are some that aren’t for sale but make perfect conversation starters for plant geeks interested in discussing the tao of bonsai. 806 Somerset St. W., 613-788-6988, www.ottawabonsai.ca

Goodwill hunting
Here’s a perfect spot to pick up decorations for a Mad Men-themed dinner party or donate much-loved furnishings or test your luck with the store mascot (a black cat named Jinx that plays kind of rough). Highjinx opened earlier this year as a non-registered not-for-profit, the result of a dream of co-owners Karen Nielsen and Leigh Reid, two former social workers who were tired of seeing only the admin side of community building. They donate all net profits to help the chronically homeless find a decent place to live. Most of the stuff is brought in by friends, family, and people looking for somewhere more accountable than a drop-off box. Stock changes constantly, but you can be sure to find desks and upholstered chairs — all with that retro look that works so well in the small apartments of Centretown. 621 Somerset St. W., 613-261-3502, 613-864-4289.

Found it!
A subtle sign, a side door, stairs down: the west Centretown neighbourhood near industrial City Centre is crawling with these types of shops, and FoundDesign is a good one to discover. Rich with mid-century modern finds, you’ll find Danish (and Danish-style) furniture, statement lamps that serve as conversation starters, retro wall units, low teak couches (some with nice upholstery), snazzy chandeliers, and cool space-saving devices. It’s like stepping into your parents’ 1970s rec room — if your parents were ubercool, that is. Make your way to the back for some funkier finds, like vintage beaded curtains. While the West Centretown locale is less prominent than its former home in Old Ottawa South, we think that’s part of the fun. 164 Elm St., 613-523-2205, www.founddesign.ca

Retro cool
With exposed beams and massive windows, the new home of antique depository A Fine Thing looks like a cottage boathouse. Kind of smells like one, too, as the whiff of dusty nostalgia transports you away and distracts from the construction outside. It moved out of its long-time Hintonburg space earlier this year and into a curious (and huge) store that opens onto the Somerset Street bridge. Better to enter from the City Centre side, though. There’s parking; you just have to climb a fire escape to get to the third-floor entrance. Once inside, you’ll find glass and tableware; enough chairs to furnish a small theatre; and all manner of lamps, cabinets, and dressers. Some items stand out — like a Victorian women’s parlour chair ($495) — and most are sourced from estate sales, so full sets are easy to come by. 989 Somerset St. W., 613-729-1388, www.afinething.ca

Picture perfect
There may not be anyone welcoming you at the door of Patrick Gordon Framing. You might be confused — who’s running the show? But the legwork is worth it. Not only are there deals to be had (not paying for boutique storefront space trickles down to framing costs), but there are also tips and tidbits to be had for the art aficionado willing to chat up the staff — who happen to include some well-established artists. Browse the table up front for news about upcoming events and underground exhibits. On your way to the loo in the back of the cavernous space, have a look at some of the projects on the go; the exacting work done in this open-concept store might even educate you on why it’s best to take prized paintings to the pros. While it’s off the beaten path, on vernissage night Patrick Gordon is at the centre of the action as the hordes of cultured folk stream down the concrete stairs. 160 Elm St., 613-232-7146, www.patrickgordonframing.ca

THEN AND NOW: From car shop to coffeeshop. When Westboro Automotive became Westboro Station

Westboro Station. Photography by Miv Fournier

By Phil Jenkins

Cities grow in two directions — outward and upward. In the process of the condo-ization of downtown, rather like taking old perennials out of a flowerbed and planting new, taller ones, samples of the architecture of the past are disappearing. And so we look both up and back, at five condominium developments that are already up — or soon will be — to discover in words and pictures the buildings that went before them.

WESTBORO AUTOMOTIVE / WESTBORO STATION

Ottawa’s streetcars are gone now — the last one ran in 1959 — but when the lines started pushing out along the compass points from the hub of downtown in the 1890s, they made the suburbs possible. The line that ran westwards travelled alongside what is now Byron Avenue (drive down Byron, and it is easy to see where it once was) until it met Richmond Road, Ottawa’s oldest thoroughfare, where the cars reversed direction, and another line carried on toward the dance hall and riverside amusements out at Britannia. The gentlemen playing bowls at Highland Park club learned to ignore the rattling transportation.

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THEN AND NOW: How Claridge Plaza changed the Rideau streetscape

City of Ottawa Archives (Sacred Heart Convent, 1886-Topley Studio, Library and Archives Canada, PA-027087)

Claridge Plaza by Claridge: Photography by Miv Fournier

By Phil Jenkins

RIDEAU CHAPEL / CLARIDGE PLAZA

In the 19th century and well into the 20th, it was perfectly fair to describe Rideau Street as our main street. Visitors from Montreal came in that way, and photographs from the 1860s show it already built up on both sides with dry goods stores and taverns.

In 1869, Rideau Street got a new tenant. The Sisters of Charity located a girls’ school, the Convent of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, at the corner of Waller. When a new chapel was required 20 years later, the priest, Georges Bouillon, who also happened to be an architect, was engaged and gave the street a quiet place of great beauty. Several generations of young women graduated from Scared Heart before, in 1972, the Sisters sought quieter surroundings and the convent was almost completely demolished, save for the chapel.

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THEN AND NOW: From Georgian-style funeral parlour to art deco condo towers

The Hudson Park. Photography by Miv Fournier

By Phil Jenkins

MCEVOY SHIELDS / HUDSON PARK I AND II

It is not often that a funeral home, a building dedicated to the care of the deceased, is replaced by a tower dedicated to sheltering the living, but that is what happened on Kent Street. In 1939, on the site of a former row of family homes, the two McEvoy brothers built one of the city’s first custom-designed funeral homes. The funeral parlour resembled a fine two-storey Georgian house, one that might have served as a set for a Jane Austen film. A gabled, columned entrance hosted the solid wooden door, flanked by twin rows of tall, shuttered windows.

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THEN AND NOW: Who remembers life before 700 Sussex? Was the Daly Building worth saving?

Photography by Miv Fournier

City of Ottawa Archives (Daly Building, 1913-MG011, Ottawa Journal CA-003258)

By Phil Jenkins

THE DALY BUILDING / 700 SUSSEX

In 1905, architect Moses Edey built a controversial four-storey building right in the heart of the city on the sloping corner of Sussex and Rideau. That corner was as old as the town itself, laid out by Colonel By and first occupied by a barracks.

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THEN AND NOW: How Cathedral Hill will change the landscape

Photography by Miv Fournier

By Phil Jenkins

Cities grow in two directions — outward and upward. First Bytown, then Ottawa, moved out from beside the canal, across the fields, sweeping the surrounding villages and towns under its carpet. For much of that development, the spires of the churches were the highest points a pedestrian could look up to. Then, as the 20th century advanced, the buildings went higher and Ottawa gained more and more storeys, even as the suburbs pancaked over the landscape.

Now, in the early years of the 21st century, local residences are reaching new heights: the condos are coming, and thousands of Ottawans are living the high life. There is a whole new generation of us “sky people” — people who live in the condominiums, descend to the ground to get to their places of work, and then ascend into the air again to their offices, thus spending much of their lives in mid-air.

In the process of the condo-ization of downtown, rather like taking old perennials out of a flowerbed and planting new, taller ones, samples of the architecture of the past are disappearing. And so we look both up and back, at five condominium developments that are already up — or soon will be — to discover in words and pictures the buildings that went before them.

CATHEDRAL HILL

There wasn’t much to sightsee in Bytown, the little town where two rivers met, but a Dr. Strachan, on a visit from Toronto in 1828, noted in his journal that while the Presbyterians, the Catholics, and even the Methodists had put up places of worship, the Church of England was homeless. And so Nicholas Sparks agreed to donate the land where Christ Church Cathedral now rises on the limestone promontory at the end of Sparks Street.

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SAVE THE DATE: “Over the Hedge” garden tour on June 25-26 takes in 12 country gardens

On June 25 and 26, 12 extraordinary gardeners show off their spectacular country gardens to raise money for the Ottawa Botanical Garden Society, which is lobbying hard to bring a botanical garden to the nation’s capital. Here’s a sneak peek at one of the gardens on the “Over the Hedge” tour — a country garden in Almonte owned by Else Geuer. Skip to the end for ticket info and other details.

The story about Else Geuer’s incredible garden is written by her daughter, Wendy O’Keefe, an author and designer who lives in Almonte. The complete version of this article can be found in Homes and Gardens Magazine for Eastern Ontario.

It must have been difficult to keep a straight face. The gardener came to five-year-old Else’s father, saying, “I’m afraid I must quit my job. Your daughter is re-planting the weeds!” Else’s father asked whether his daughter might “work” alongside him. And so began Else’s early education in flower gardening. In time, she learned so much that she became that kind gardener’s little “apprentice.” Eight-seven years later, her love of gardening is as strong as ever.

After enduring the war years in Holland, Else joined her fiancé, Juan, at his family’s homestead in the mountains of Bolivia, where they married in 1946. In 1953, the couple decided to move to Canada. They settled in the lovely Ottawa Valley town of Almonte, in a house that bordered on Gemmill Park, where they raised seven children. As a new Canadian, Else familiarized herself with the native plants and animals of her adopted land.

From humble beginnings — some border plantings and rock gardens — Else’s garden has become a multi-level riot of gorgeousness. The house is built into the side of a hill, and the best way to arrive is from the street at the bottom. Here is the rose bed, accented by French lilacs, and hops growing over a quaint fence. Three large planters hold canna lilies surrounded by an array of smaller plants in supporting roles, offering horticultural drama. As you turn toward the house, you spot meandering paths leading up. But don’t hurry up, because the variety of plantings — spectacular ligularia, bluebells, vibrant Maltese cross — need to be discovered. A rock garden features plantings such as sedum, coral bells, and salvia; and pots of nasturtiums, tiny begonias, and coleus are everywhere.