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If we’re going to take any lesson from the housing collapse in the U.S., it’s got to be a resolve to be better informed. The market is flooded with first-time buyers lured into taking on mortgages by low interest rates and special incentives. And whether you’re dipping a tentative toe into the land-owning ocean for the first time or diving in headfirst for the tenth, there’s always something to be gained by learning from the experiences of others. …

House Proud – Check Out The Sites. Toronto SunRead More »

Hollywood screenwriters could not have come up with a script this compelling: Canada’s own contractor extraordinaire Mike Holmes teams up with A-list movie star Brad Pitt to restore the devastated Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. But it’s not a movie; it’s the real-life adventure to make practical and pretty homes for some of those who lost theirs in Hurricane Katrina. Both of the guys behind the project just happen to be household names.  …

House Proud – Making It Right In New Orleans. Toronto SunRead More »

Every home has its own personality and quirks. A wooden floor squeaks. A drawer whines as it’s pulled open. And who hasn’t heard someone say, “Just jiggle the handle” with regard to a toilet flush?  …

House Proud – Which Switch Is Which? The Toronto SunRead More »

You enter your house after a few hours away and it’s like a slap in the nose. You wonder how long it has smelled so bad and if anyone else has noticed. …

Home Sweet-Smelling Home – House Proud, Toronto SunRead More »

My new home has many charms. It’s not too big but not too small, just right for two busy people who do many things together and some things on their own. The backyard is massive, and we’re trying to decide how to use it. Friends have suggested we install a private airstrip or rent it out for festivals. But the kitchen was another story. …

“Kitchen Confidential” House Proud, The Toronto SunRead More »

In the first and second homes I owned, my ex-husband and I chose to express ourselves by splashing our favourite hues on the walls. In house number one, that meant a deep red in the living room contrasted by high, creamy white baseboards and trim. We covered one particularly bumpy old wall that had textured wall-paper, and it took several coats before it finally stopped soaking up the paint. …

In Praise of Beige – House Proud, The Toronto SunRead More »

This was only my second year being involved with the Expo.  Now that I live in London, and with the Show Director, I’m steeped in it.  But I’m sure I only know a fraction of what it actually takes to arrange more than 100 exhibitors, 170 custom bike owners, and all of the details that go into filling the Agriplex and Arena with entertainment for three straight days. …

A Whole New World (of Motorcycle Expo!)Read More »

Many organization experts claim there is no need to collect all that stuff we lovingly call “junk.” For them, it’s a black-and-white issue. They reason that if you have everything in its place, you don’t need to keep a collection of stuff that doesn’t belong together. And they have zero tolerance for anything that resembles a junk drawer. We’re all familiar with that unrelated stuff: a night-light bulb, a fork left over from a flatware collection you no longer have, bits of plastic that have come off something you’ll discover the minute you toss them away and an assortment of flotsam that to the naked eye seems practically worthless. …

Everything In Its Place – Even Junk Should Have Its Own Drawer – “House Proud”, The Toronto SunRead More »

Who would have thought that my trip to Europe would leave me coveting a couple of commercial bathroom gizmos that haven’t been seen in real-life operation in this part of the world?  At least, they’ve never been seen by me or any of the envious friends with whom I’ve shared stories of these washroom wonders.  There’s real disappointment in knowing I can’t have them for my own home – at least not yet. …

As my beloved and I merged our households into one, I encountered the precious space of an entire kitchen shelf stacked full of gift mugs. Each of them bore a saying that spoke to the heart of his gear-headed, M&M-loving, coffee-addicted personality, but they had sat and hung virtually unused, apparently for years. And so it goes with so many of the little tokens we give each other. …

House Proud: Gifts People Actually Use – Toronto SunRead More »