We’ve all been there, done that. The asparagus is in the oven, ready to go, the potatoes washed, in the pan, not yet started, the salad done minus the dressing, the meats seasoned, prepared for the oven, and the hint of rosemary filling the kitchen air. It’s 30 minutes out from the guests arriving when…
Tag: home
The administrative part of a reno, how to do it right and why it wins you 75% of the battle
So, what is the administrative part? documenting what you do figuring out which is the latest decision in relationship to a particular item do you know the impact of a framing decision later on in the process? budgeting scheduling tracking tax deductions, if any record-keeping for maintenance or, for instance, getting that paint for touch-ups…
Culture, what else have we learned from the egyptians
Table centrepieces made of garlands or wreaths are one custom that has endured the test of time yet not that of forgotten beginnings. Dating back to the Egyptians, wreaths were placed on mummies as they entered the afterlife in a nationwide custom that celebrated this important rite of passage. A few centuries after, rose-petal garlands…
Land of Dochia Magazine Issue #5 Showcase
The key concept I chose to apply here is the sympathetic design. Bedrooms are the most private rooms of our homes. They are our most intimate space or rest, recharge, joy and pleasure. They are the rooms where we carefully put ourselves together for the world to see and get to know us. Here, for…
Lessons from design: mental health in condos
Globally we find ourselves in what is now called the cognitive revolution where the recognition that self-fulfilment, social health and the fight against loneliness are at the core of chasing personal wellbeing. Their importance is as high if not higher than nutrition, exercise, and amassing sufficient wealth to ensure a comfortable life. While all of…
Quote of the month
A home should be fun, relaxing, comfortable, and, both: personal and sustainable. Read on in Land of Dochia, Issue #2 (monthly digital periodical)
Keeping a little sparkle going in the relationship between you and your house
Like with any kind of relationship, when things are too familiar and uneventful, things get stale. The culprit? A phenomenon called hedonic adaptation. If you look at your kitchen for a long time and you’re there all the time, you will likely not notice its beauty, no matter how beautiful it is. Having mini-adjustments continuously…
A beautiful walkway
Canadian designers often face the challenges of merging heirlooms and artifacts with a contemporary aesthetic, as many families have a link to one old world or another. This is such a home where the interiors have been shaped at the intersection of a distant past with the contemporary architecture of the present and a new…
Is it me or every home is a luxury home? Whatever happened to good old sensible design?
Dead of winter is here. And it feels more alive than ever. Standing on the fireplace mantel is a small wooden amulet chipped at a corner and leaning against the plaster. Next to it is a bowl full of fruits, fresh bananas and oranges from the harvest season of a faraway land. The copper bowl…
Living with snow in Canada
At the start of winter, an ever-changing mass of gulpable snow covers buildings, trees and streets with blobs of different sizes, colours, and cleanliness levels. Everyone assumes that Canadians love snow just because we have it. I am Canadian. And a Romanian emigrant. I do like snow but not necessarily all aspects of it. Does…
From candles on the dinner table to the chandelier above it
From gathering around the fire, to the fire on the table, to the light above it and what that did and where do we go next. Gathering around the fire The chill of the night, forgotten, the closeness of others, embraced, the loving hand of a forgiving universe present in the darkness of the sky….
Christmas traditions, dishes and how to present them
I am a Christian. I do not know how much of a believer but a Christian in terms of traditions. I was raised in Romania in a mixed Hungarian-Romanian family with many customs that did not fit one norm but rather straddled the two cultures. Food tradition, like in any celebration everywhere in the world,…