Posted by:Aleksandra Oleksak

I was given the honour, by my boyfriend, to completely decorate his house from start to finish. He purchased it with the intention of renovating it and selling it, which he accomplished successfully, thanks to my great staging abilities, of course. I got to choose everything from the paint colours to the kitchen colours (cabinet, backsplash, etc) to the furniture. It was great because I needed to buy almost everything as he came from a bachelor pad, so I had a ton of fun shopping with his credit card

His semi detached home features 3 bedroom, 2 bathrooms in Corso Italia with a 2 car garage. Here it is, let me know what you think!

Before…exterior

After…exterior

Landscaping…done with my bare hands to save on costs, I had all the trim painted black (ie. railings, screen door and window trim) to give it a modern look and bought a funky light fixture at the antique market

Before…living room

After…living room

Modular couch from Modern Sensibility which can be arranged 30 different ways, rug and painting from Ikea, coffee table found on the side of the street and redone by Renee Elliott from Eat.Live.Shop, decorative pieces from the antique market (I love antique markets!!!!) and Bou Clair. We used a high quality laminate floor that was the perfect brown, as darker floors show every speck of dust, which is annoying to keep clean. Since the house is so big and bright and I wanted it to feel more warm and cozy, so I decided to use a darker neutral colour from Benjamin Moore, Hiking Trail, to make it feel more homey!

Before…dining room

After…dining room

Dining set was bought at a great price….although I can’t reveal all my secrets, the off white colour of the backs of the chairs really complimented the colour of the kitchen cabinets while the colour of the seats tied in the table colour, it was a perfect find! I decided to do an accent wall in the dining room which turned out better then I expected. Decorative pieces were bought at Kitchen Stuff Plus

Before…kitchen

After…kitchen

Here, I went with shaker style cabinets which look clean and modern with grey handles. For the backsplash I decided on black subway tiles which really gives this kitchen a pop and makes it stand out, the speckled colour of the granite has all 3 colours, white, black & grey, from the kitchen, giving it a cohesive look

Before…main washroom

After…main washroom

The washroom is really small and it’s the main washroom for the home, so I wanted it to look as big as possible. We started off by installing a sliding glass door, the colour I used here was Silver Fox from Benjamin Moore, grey is a colour I’m seeing used a lot in homes and I wanted to incorporate it into this home. Also Silver Fox goes really well with the Hiking Trail colour that is used throughout the home as it has a neutral undertone and keeps the bathroom looking bright and airy. Accented with a few grey and neutral pieces and the bathroom looks like a million bucks!

Before…2nd bedroom

After…2nd bedroom

I decided to choose a theme colour of red in this room to make it feel warm and inviting and a colour that complimented the walls. Again the decorative pieces are a mix of antique market finds and Bou Clair (did I mention I love this store?) I think this room is a success!

Master bedroom

Unfortunately I don’t have a “before” picture. I absolutely love accent walls in bedrooms and here is no exception, I used the same colour as the accent wall in the dining room. I wanted to “cool” down the room and make it look masculine, so a mix of black and grey colours worked really well here.

Before…basement

After…basement

Once again I decided to use Silver Fox from Benjamin Moore, luckily majority of the furniture and decorations came from the bachelor pad and worked really well in the basement. The fireplace is inactive but I didn’t want it to go to waste as it’s the focal point, so a few tall candles from Ikea went a long way. I was happy with the outcome as I didn’t want to spend a lot of money on the basement, as we all know kitchen and bathrooms sell homes

Before…backyard and deck

After…backyard and deck


Most of the credit for the backyard has to be given to my boyfriend who built the fence with his neighbour and built a 2 tier deck, primarily on his own. It turned out fantastic…a true extension of the living space. My job was to stage the backyard and I decided to use browns and greens, I love how these colours go so well together. The outdoor tableware and decorations, were purchased from  Bou Clair and Kitchen Stuff Plus, did you expect anything different?

All in all the project was a huge success. I received a lot of positive feedback on the decor and colours during the open house and I couldn’t be more pleased. I’m sure the new buyers are super excited and anxious to move into their new home and start their family. This home is one they will truly cherish and enjoy for many years to come!