SHADES OF

BLUE

When it came to choosing a palette for the 2010 PNE prize home, the trio

Thousands of visitors

to the PNE prize home this summer admired its Craftsman-style, the thoughtful detail of the finishings and its elegant furnishings. But what they didn't see is the view it comes with - the house's permanent perch on Kirschner Mountain in Kelowna, overlooking Okanagan Lake. The stunning vista filled with shades of blue - from water to sky and the mountains beyond - is the inspiration for the neutral blue-grey tones that wrap the home's interior. "Because this house has so many windows in it, we wanted to create the sense that you were

of designers turned to nature and took inspiration from sky and water views

TEXT TIFFANY SLOAN PHOTOGRAPHY MARCOS ARMSTRONG PRETTY BLUE Walls wrapped in soft blue evoke sea and sky. Fabrics help carry the theme through the home, creating fl ow and continuity from room to room. actually outside," explains Barbara Aylesworth from A Stroke of Genius, one of the home's three designers. The blue was chosen to "blend in" with the outside view, and dark window frames draw the eye outward, rather than catching one's eye as white frames do. "Some people think of blue as being cold and uninviting," says Aylesworth, "but in this case it's not. It's a warm blue; it's calming and relaxing." Dark hardwood floors and black trim anchor the lightness of the space, creating contrast and also a sense of warmth, says Cathy Still of Seascape Interiors. "It's a pretty neutral colour scheme but just a really good mix; we used dark, medium and light colours in almost every room, with blue being the theme." Rich, co-ordinated fabrics used for the curtains, upholstery and linens pick up that blue and carry the colour palette throughout the house. "A lot of the fabrics are muted and textured, so we added contrast by adding some shine," says Still, noting the glossy wood floors, granite counters and polished chrome hardware. Black and metal accents appear in nearly every SEPTEMBER 2010 BC HOME | 35

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