Hands are amazing. From still hands in prayer, to dynamic working hands — creating and manifesting.
My hands express thought, feeling, emotion, and spirituality in everything they do.
Click any of my services to find out more.
One of a kind stained glass. Competent in various styles from traditional to contemporary.
All manner of shapes and sizes of scarves, for fancy dress or every day. Clothing by request.
Handmade soap in small batches. Every batch is unique. Beer soap will be on tap for 2015.
Seasonal annuals perennials, herbs and edibles. Each year will offer something new.
Space planning can make all the difference in how a room feels and functions.
How does the line go?
… you can’t see the forest for the trees…
We sometimes go room blind, when we’ve been living in the same space for a long time. Everything is familiar and comfortable. We simply add a new piece of furniture because of an immediate need – like more seating or storage. This unorganized approach can lead to a room becoming cluttered. Styles clash. Function decreases. We wake up one day, miserable about our living spaces, with little means or resourses to do something about it.
Having someone come in, like me – an aspiring interior consultant, can see past all the things you might not like. Instead, with fresh eyes, see the bones of the room, see the proportional relationships, interpret themes and understand the needs and function.
Sometimes new furnishings will need to be purchased. But having a plan means you know what you are looking for, what style and what color, means you can also wait for the right sale. Sometimes it’s simply a matter of moving the existing furniture around the room or within the house. This could mean a less used chest of drawers finds itself in a high traffic zone, catching all the stuff we empty from pockets, near the main door. Perhaps a funky granny chair becomes the conversation piece in the living room – and extra seating. Every house is a potential treasure chest of things we already love, that just need new focus and purpose.
And what a great time to freshen up a room with a coat of paint!
Did I mention I love color? And I can help you with that too!
Just wanted to share a great experience while working through my Interior Design course.
I recently had the opportunity to work with a couple planning to build a new house. They were working with a local hardware store, buying a ready made floor plan. However they were having a difficult time trusting that it was going to be big enough and that they could afford it.
I suggested an interview so I could get a sense of their furniture, their lifestyle and their needs. We also chatted about their finances and their future needs. They were kind enough to share the plans they initially thought would work, for me to review.
More isn’t always better. They were encouraged to increase their square footage, with every additional item on their wish list, thus increasing the cost. Hallways were poorly laid out, wasting a lot of space. Storage wasn’t adequately considered nor placed. By reviewing what they actually needed and where they needed it, meant I could suggest a smaller foot print. The potential for saving a lot of money, while meeting every expectation, through better space planning and proper storage means they will have the house of their dreams, rather the house of continued renovation, trying to fix the short comings.
My last few months at Georgian College have really reinforced my determination to go back to school full time in the Fall. As some of you may know, my Interior Design course required that I learn some AutoCAD. It was really tough trying to learn it on my own and despite passing the AutoCAD module, I really didn’t feel I had a solid grasp on the full capacity of this software. While hunting around for another AutoCAD course, I came across the Architectural Technologist Course, at Georgian College. After talking to the Program Director, I managed to take a couple of classes part time, to see if it was going to be a good opportunity for me. I loved it!
Architectural drafting may still be difficult, as the software is truly the most complex, but the more I work with it the easier it becomes. The Design Fundamentals course was like stepping into a comfortable pair of shoes, it fit so well and I did so well.
This course is going to compliment the Interior Design course amazingly!
My parents arrived separately from Europe, met and fell in love in the most recent immigrant ghetto of the late 1950’s Toronto.
I learned a good work ethic from them. Work hard, live clean and play fair. Add a healthy dose of parental respect, obedience and new world invisibility and you get a creative child, full of fanciful ideas, without a supportive network. Yet, enough of the spark and fire that had encouraged my parents' independent departure from a homeland of friends, family and security, fostered a creative rebel in me.
In grade thirteen, I answered a skills exchange ad and learned about stained glass. I got a job almost immediately in a small stained glass store. When I picked up and followed my boyfriend to Vancouver, I did glass there. I also took the first computer courses at BCIT. I continued with interior design, travel bookings, silk painting, typing and CPR. I believe a gal should be well rounded. Cross training works well for athletes, and diversity in training and education broadens the artistic mind.
After nursing my sick boy friend, who had developed Hodgkin disease, for about four years, he got well and we broke up. I travelled Australia for six months, enjoying the art and culture of this amazing land and it's unique stained glass. I came back to Vancouver, worked as a nanny, until I could afford to travel again. I went to live in New Zealand for a year. All kinds of work, life experiences, cultural overlays and always, including something creative or stained glass work.
When I arrived back in Toronto, my parents felt connecting with my ancestral roots might slow me down, so they took me to Germany. Well, that didn't quite work as they expected. I was at loose ends for a bit, teaching and creating stained glass trying to answer the big "What's life all about?" question when I was given a bottle of lavender essential oil at a pivotal birthday and I was drawn down an entirely new path.
I studied massage therapy, reflexology, shiatsu, aromatherapy, became interested in non ordinary healing modalities. What was it about the awe inspiring colour of cathedral stained glass that made people change in it's presence? I delved into ancient religions, cultures, and went on pilgrimages. Sacred space is so much more than the architecture, the stained glass, the incense and prayer. Though when these elements come together in harmony they transcend the mundane, even the most hardened heart will be changed. This is what I try to capture with each piece of work I create.
When I met my future husband, we almost immediately left the city and landed in the great white north. The family cottage our retreat, until we purchased in Seguin. Surrounded by amazing forests, a dazzling array of fresh water lakes, seasons that remind you what it's like to be Canadian, this is our home now. Every day is a gift, be it a glowing sunrise, an unexpected snow day or warm summer rain, our cats, good neighbours and plenty of summer excitement, with seasonal visitors are the cyclic treasures we enjoy year round.
Let's Get in Touch.
Elizabeth Steinebach