Ok. So I finally tried the Photoshop Save for Web solution to get the photo sizes down more and wouldn’t you know, it worked (thanks Paul from Kiosk). Seemingly twice the labor for me now, but worth it if I can get the site to work faster! Again, our apologies for the slow photo loading time…should improve over the next week (because I am not going to update ALL the photos on the site…that would be mad crazy right now).

Patience my pretties.

And while I am at it, thank you to everyone for continuing to check in with us! We are so happy that you make us a part of your day. And a big welcome to all you new readers (because there are quite a lot of you in recent weeks!). What can you can look forward to in the coming months? Updates on our super amazing new store (opening December 2009), and our move to a crazy small, dark, narrow apartment (what will we do? what will we do?). Life changes!

Alright let me start with saying as beautiful as our new building is on the outside, it doesn’t look anything like this on the inside…

I guess this is the benefit of retrofitting a historic building?
I couldn’t dream up those factory windows. And I can’t get enough of that black kitchen.

Again, unusual staircases are always a face melter for me.

via Trendir

I think what really did it for me was this beautiful round wooden tub with a shower curtain. I didn’t even realize how classy it could look. I guess it helps to have that amazing loft space with crazy high ceilings and white brick walls. I don’t know if you knew this but I am kind of obsessed with wooden bathtubs especially Hinoki bathtubs!

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Who are you, what do you do for a living? Just a Toronto guy born and bred. Currently switching from retail management to graphic design. I’ve been in my Corktown pad for over six years now.

Inspiration for home? Smart and comfortable. I love the no-nonsense look of the German International style, and the warmth of mid-century designers. The house seemed to be telling me that it would look best as a cozy evening place with many pools of indirect lighting.

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And in keeping with our theme of “The Junction”, Celine sent us photos of a fab orange library bookshelf set that she and her husband recently purchased from SMASH. We’ve been following Celine’s blog Bonjour Celine for awhile now, and she never disappoints with lovely photos of her personal interests (Correspondence) or random Toronto/Ontario oddities (The BIG APPLE).

Celine: “We live in a skinny row house that is parted out into two apartments. This part of our apartment is only about 9 feet wide, as wide as the skinniest house in New York! Everything is essentially a hallway, so we have to be very vertically efficient. This shelving unit we got from Smash is perfect. It holds all our books and also gives us space to display our little knick knacks and framed photos.

Paul from Smash told my husband that these were library shelves used at the University of Western Ontario! We love the orange!”

This is a before pic!

And after!

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Looking to return your Victorian home to its original glory? Want to buy doors that aren’t prefab and from Home Depot? Have a hankering for some old-timey stained glass windows?  Post + Beam Reclamation is THE go-to destination shop for architectural features in Toronto. Although it is no coincidence that P + B is seemingly similar to SMASH (Paul Mercer was originally a co-owner before he took reclamation to a slightly different place, literally and figuratively), P + B offers tons of architectural eye candy for the home and garden.

Post + Beam Reclamation
2869 Dundas Street West (at Keele)
Toronto, ON M6P 1Y9
(416) 913-4243
info@pandb.ca

Store Hours:
Winter (Labour Day-July 1): Wed-Sat 10-6, Sun 12-5, Closed Mon & Tues
Summer (July 1 –Labour Day): Wed-Sat 10-6, Closed Sun, Mon & Tues

[how cool are these?!?]

Who are you? Post + Beam Reclamation Ltd. owned and operated by Doug Killaly, aided by Jennifer Reed and others.

How long has the store been open? 4 years (September 10, 2005)

[this bird house reminds me of Scandinavia, specifically a park in Oslo]

Why did you open your store? To earn a living doing something I really enjoy doing, selecting and showing high quality reclaimed architectural pieces.

[we have a fireplace insert much like this one and it gets a lot of attention]

What can people expect to find when visiting your store? The showroom features a selection of articles, 95 % of which have been salvaged from buildings, most of which have come from local sources.  The selection varies every week, with new old stock arriving from various supply lines in Toronto, and from as far away as (currently) Java, Indonesia and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

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Carol over at machine age modern came up with a really clever way to transform glass covered buffets into a sleek modern console.

I’ll let her tell the story:

Many of us welcome and enjoy the addition of a Danish teak sideboard into our homes for storage. They add warmth and style into living, dining and sometimes alternative rooms like bedrooms.

They are a main stay of most vintage shops. Where I work, Machine Age Modern, we often acquire the sideboards complete with the buffet cabinets that sit on top. These two pieces together really have a dated look and the glass fronted buffets are removed and sometimes discarded.

But recently I’ve begun to appreciate the top buffet cabinet for their narrow depth. They often range between 12 and 14 inches deep. They generally have small side supports that when placed directly on the floor act as short legs.

I had a  wonderful design “ahaaaa!” moment and painted the back side of the two glass doors with ordinary black latex paint (using a roller, 3 coats). I added additional glass shelves to store many pairs of shoes.

This console-sized cabinet sits in my entry hall, neatly holding my shoes for each days’ outside adventure. On top I’ve placed my phone, key holder and sunglasses.

And lately, I’ve realized how wonderfully proportioned these cabinets are for holding flat panel tv’s only taking up a 13″ deep footprint in the room.  I had one in the store that sold quickly for use with a tv.

Keep your eye out for one that you can re-purposed.

Thanks for sharing Carol, and I must say I really love the look of that rug!