One of the offerings at the upcoming Fall Home Show in Toronto is a crash course in interior decorating by design expert Janette Ewen. Using a hands-on approach, Ewen will teach the ABCs of home decorating while providing tips and tricks used by the pros.
“It’s going to be all about ‘decorating 101’—sort of learning how to start decorating your home, how to be a good decorator. And we’ll be doing inspiration boards, so you can bring images of a room that you’re looking to redecorate and we’ll create an inspiration board that’ll serve as your starting point,” says Ewen.
She will also give direction on picking a colour palette and how best to shop for and arrange furniture.
“I’ll give some tips on how you can arrange furniture depending on your lifestyle means. For instance, if you have kids and a dog it’s going to be very different from a retired couple that enjoys entertaining.”
Renowned for her expertise in interior design, Ewen appears regularly on CityTV’s lifestyle show Cityline. She has also reported on the latest style trends for Chatelaine, the Globe and Mail, and Chocolat, and has been featured on Canada AM and the Debbie Travis series From The Ground Up.
Ewen says the days of hiring expensive interior designers are over and that people are increasingly undertaking their own DIY decorating projects. She believes anyone can develop a sense of style—it just needs to be “awakened and cultivated.”
“Whether it’s a small project like refurbishing a lamp or something like redoing a room, you just practice and do things like an inspiration board or sketch—just sort of think like a stylist or a decorator. Everyone can channel that inner interior designer.”
