Ottawa Home and Garden Show raising the bar

As you might already know, the Ottawa Home and Garden show is going on right now until March 27, 2011. I really think many Ottawa exhibitors have stepped up their game because a lot of the booths are looking a lot nicer and more polished than before. Don't you think?

I think those who worked hard to make their booth visually appealing deserve to be mentioned. So here's my list of "best in show" booths in the "Home and Decor" section (in no particular order):











A special mention must go to the really cool animal-shaped ottomans. We had to bring one home :)


My main contribution this year was the urban lounge sponsored by IKEA, Mikaza Home and Permacon.




I also had in bit of influence in other features such as the two model homes, the stage, the artist gallery and the foodies section.

There's one day left, if you want to go check out the exhibitions.

There's a new condo project in town

I recently was invited to attend the launch of a new condo project by Domicile called hom. This new project is located on Champagne street, right in front of the current Ottawa Humane Society. (So once you get your condo, you can cross the street and get a pet too)

The building is targeting a LEED Silver certification. Some of the eco-friendly features of the building include individual utility meters, dual flush-toilets, water-efficient shower-heads and faucets, low VOC materials and plans to divert more than 75% of their construction waste from the landfill. Of course there will also be standard amenities such as a lounge, a fitness room, etc. But some original and notable amenities include a pet washing station (hint hint), separate bicycle storage rooms, and car wash supply tap, hose and brush on each parking level.



There were two furnished and staged models suites decorated in a contemporary way for visitors to explore. What I liked the most was the use of european-style counter-depth fridges in both kitchens, which I think is very appropriate in small spaces.




The one-bedroom plus den suite had an interesting layout for the bathroom/laundry area. It's a long room accessible from the bedroom and the den. The advantage of such a layout (from a construction point) is that all the plumbing is located in one area.




One another note, it was also neat to finally meet some fellow bloggers and tweeples that I had only "met" online thus far (i.e. Matt Richling, Phil Castro, Eric Darwin and Jane Daly)

photos : MOOT | hom