Adam and I love to tour around model homes and see new products and design ideas, two years ago we happened upon a 4-storey Bloomberg home in St. Jacobs.  The top level had dramatically sloping ceilings and to utilize the horizontal space was this absolutely lovely feature.  The Cabrio Balcony Roof Window by Velux allowed much more light to enter the room, and looked like a large skylight. When opened however, the top portion hinged up and the bottom portion folded out handsomely to allow a person or two to walk out to the new outdoor space.  It felt very spacious and added a whole new dimension! I could see this Balcony Roof Window working well in a loft bedroom, or office, or cottage.  It really allows for an amazing view.

While focusing on architect John C. Henry, I stumbled graciously upon Chateaux de Reves, a phenomenal French Renaissance Manor style mansion. I love the symmetry of the entry, the carved stone, generously sized arches, and the mirrored-shape arched windows.  The two towering white columns with Corinthian pilasters that support the covered entry and the oversized key stone set a tone of formality and traditional design.  Looking through John Henry's portfolio, evident characteristics of his designs are detail, period accuracy and DETAIL.  He gets it right every time.

The interior of the chateaux is as stunning as the exterior.  A glimpse down to the Elliptical Dining Room is possible as one ascends the dramatic L shaped Grand Stair to secondary bedrooms above. The Dining Room has delicate moldings set off slightly from the warm toned plaster finished curved walls. It is connected to the Kitchen via Butler Pantry. I love the handsome window treatments, very elegant.  The two storey sky-lit foyer is a beautiful blend of cut stone details and plaster.  The wrought iron doors under the staircase lead to the wine cellar which is also accessible to the dining room.  Overall a gem of a home.

The Panelite ClearShade insulating glass unit was developed for exterior glazing applications using a tubular honeycomb core with patented polymer technology that offers superior shading performance.  In addition to the benefits of visual privacy and a Visible Light Transmittance of up to 50%, the Clear Shade IGU achieves a Solar Heat Gain Coefficient 75% lower that of other insulating glass units without the need for tinted, reflective or specialty glass.  This dramatically reduces climate control requirements which results in significant energy savings over the life of the building.

Panelite is a wide-ranging product, versatile to many interior and furniture projects.  Best of all it can be customized as well. Panelite can be backlit, support weight, be housed on moving walls, or can be formed into furniture, like the information desk made of Cast Polymer Panelite in the Georgia Aquarium.

Exhibit and Display Application: Westedge Design Competition at Neocon West

Neocon West, Fine Living 2026 backlit Panelite  

Commercial Application of Panelite: Avalon

I love reading articles of small spaces and seeing the beauty that can be achieved in living spaces that force us to strip back to our favorites and our necessities, to simplify.  I think that is my favorite word: simplify.  Spring reminds me of that, through Spring cleaning and going through drawers of stuff I forgot I had. Remembering what I love and what is important.

What about peeling back everything to reveal a simplified and essentials-only lifestyle? I bet you would do much less “because it was on-sale” shopping.  There are interesting concepts out for this living style, one of my favorites by Fullscale & Partners Inc..  Inspired by shapes naturally occurring in nature, Offspring won ARIDO’s award of excellence in 2007, it is chic and stylish with bold graphic patterns and gallery-like interior. 

A beehive is one of nature's best examples of high-density living. The honeycomb’s hexagonal shape, besides naturally-occurring, is an ideal form for dense, urban living. The modularity of the shape facilitates the grouping, reconfiguring, adding or removing of any of the individual units, making this livable space entirely transformable and adaptable based on individual needs. Each hexagonal component in this exhibit represents a separate space and function, simplifying living to the very essentials of human needs.