Day 1 of the Radical Urban Reno
Great clients landed in my lap yet again! They’ve got vision, are very creative, intelligent, socially conscious and responsible. They bought a smallish house (by todays standards) in Old Ottawa South and want to live a kind of Euro efficiency elegance of lifestyle where less is not the proverbial more but rather like the baby bear’s porridge, just right!
It’s exciting to help them realize their vision of tempered needs and exaggerated effectiveness -counter coca cola revolutionary elegance of lifestyle by Euro-efficiency of design. In this world where the tv screens keep getting bigger and technology smaller and all of it more and more disposable they are intent on living and modeling a lifestyle that is counter consumerism by making this house into a home that is modest, elegant and truly accommodating.
- We’re not adding on, we decided to work within the existing shell except for adapting the kitchen windows.(though we explored these options extensively there wasn’t the level of value we’ve set as our standard)
- The house is so due for renovations that we’re not tearing out anything that hasn’t worn out already which is my very favorite kind of reno.
- We’ve found ways to make a small space expansive and it’s so exciting, almost alchemic and I hope you will follow along with the blog so I can reveal why and how and how much fun it all is.
I’ve have had this great project on the board for almost a month now and have been wanting to write about it but also didn’t want to do it till it was pinned down. I’m just the right amount superstitious which means enough to be funny but not enough to be stupid and it’s handy. I can blame my writer’s block on this distraction and hope you will forgive me.
It feels so great to be sharing this story with you all. I’m gonna run this one a little differently and share as it evolves and has already evolved and why we are doing what we are doing. Greg so kindly said, “It’s gonna be a MONECA KAISER DESIGN BUILD HOME AND THAT’S GONNA MEAN SOMETHING!” And you know it will and not cause I am anything special it’s cause I KNOW we each are and in this deliciously ripe age of 46 am finding a humility though I know it’s not readily apparent cause I have this crazy confidence bordering on arrogance in me. But. Since it’s based on a deep and profound self respect its inherently all about respect for us each. And Greg is gonna have to take a bow for what I feel with be the kitchen of the year.
YUP we baked and ached and I even lost my patience and threw just a very little tantrum cause I didn’t think they were willing to compromise, but was wrong. The biggest lie happening in our lives that I blame coca cola for is that we are meant to have it all and cause I fell into drinking a few so deliciously delightful decaf lattes I started believing that whole sky is falling bs that Harper and anyone else who wants us to invest in arms, fear mongers upon us but.
Greg reminded me that we live in an abundant world and revealed a truly elegant solution that is actually sublimely beyond having it all. It’s harmony.
I am going to reveal it in a future post most very soon and am setting an intention to be one of those bloggers, (who I actually never really got my head around) who blog a lot- meaning often, as in more than just once a week like I usually do. I ain’t sayin daily or anything but more than usual cause what we are doing here is revolutionary and we wanna share it with our world. So stay tuned I’d love it if you sign up for updates and follow the evolutions of this wonderful transformation along cause we’re hoping it’s as much a gift for our community as ourselves in it’s co creation.
With love this precious new year! I watched this lovely TED talk on leadership and it said something about how a great leader is all about vision and then people get on board cause they share the vision not cause they are persuaded to that way of thinking but cause it’s already how they are inside what they feel. It’s a humbler kinder picture of leadership and the first time I could be easy with it cause then it’s all and ever about co creation and we can take turns at being “Simon.” It’s the first time I could claim this mantle of leadership as something I might be of such a species as and only because it is so innately and ever humble. That it’s natural that one might emerge to as a leader where one has an emergent passion and skill and the reason it comes is merely because we are of a like mind. I get to be the leader of this one cause I’m the one whose job it is and it’s super fun. I promise to tell you all about it and hope you enjoy the ride! Early on I sent this note to Greg and Evelyn.
“I’m so excited!! I have your design thought through and am not sure I can last till Saturday. I’m such a five year old! Can I come over Thursday or Friday or even tonight after 8 and then we can maybe still meet up on Saturday if I have the next phase worked out.”
“If you are five, we are four years old and less patient than you!” its so cool to be so excited about something when we’ve each been around for nearing half a century. That’s what aspiration infuses I guess and am so excited to share ours with you.
As it WAS nothing worked cause it was all too tight, the kitchen is very skinny, too skinny for an island… but we love the idea of not facing the wall when we cook so wait and see the brilliant ideas to come ala Grag and moi a little and Evelyn had the coolest one – creating a cantilevered outdoor glass banquette but I will have to save that for another kitchen cause it didn’t fit here.
so sorry I’ve been out of touch, not writing for so long eeeek, I missed it, missed you and was swamped. Will tell you all about the renos to my place soon too. with love and best wishes this precious new year!!
