photography by Cooper and O’Hara
People’s Choice:
Designer: Jennifer Hughes, Turquoise Chair
Woodworker: Bart Gellhaus, Gellhaus Woodworks
Artist: Carol Donald, Wow Factor Mosaics
Contractor: Doug Stephen and Arlene Giguere, Alcam
When teammate Jennifer Hughes proposed making a bathroom for their Vignettes space, woodworker Bart Gellhaus was initially hesitant. “I completely bashed it [her idea] ,” Gellhaus admits. However, when the team wanted to make a wood bathtub as a focal point rather than simply having a wood base for a regular tub, his interest was piqued. “Do I know how to build a tub? No. I’ll learn how to build a tub. That became super interesting for me,” says Gellhaus.
Carol Donald admits the design process was just that – a process. “It gets pieced together like a jigsaw – it’s not all right there at the beginning,” she says. The striking wood bathtub immediately draws the eye, but all the other elements in the space, from the small sink to the masculine accessories, warm tones, and chevron pattern on both the floor and roof, work together to create a coherent room.
“I kind of wanted to make it almost like a wet bar,” says Hughes, “the best place for a guy to get ready before a night out.” p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: center; line-height: 12.0px; font: 14.5px ‘Helvetica Neue’; color: #b8853c}p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: center; line-height: 12.0px; font: 8.5px ‘Helvetica Neue’}p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; text-align: center; line-height: 12.0px; font: 8.5px ‘Helvetica Neue Light’}span.s1 {letter-spacing: 0.8px}span.s2 {letter-spacing: 0.7px}
Best In Show
Designers: Lori and Lindsay Elms, Lori Elms Design Group
Craftsmen: Chad Baba, MK Baba, Kelvin Soo
Artist: Glen Ronald
Contractor: Peter Russell, 4 Elements
According to designer Lori Elms, the inspiration for her team’s space came from within. She and daughter Lindsay took a look at artist Glen Ronald and woodworker Chad Baba’s styles and realized that they needed a space that paired with that type of eclectic aesthetic. “In our first meetings we had a bunch of crazy creative minds throwing out ideas. We wanted something super fun – I don’t think we were trying to win, we were just trying to make something for people to talk about,” says Chad Baba.
And they weren’t content to create a space that involved only the visual – they were determined to engage all five senses. People attending Vignettes could hear music playing on the radio set up in the space, smell the scent created by a diffuser and have their tastebuds stimulated with candies on display. The reasoning behind it was simple – the team wanted a space that people could interact with and one that was also more intimate. “A really personal space is what we were trying to make it – someone’s hidden space, their own little oasis,” says Lori Elms.
This article appears in the December 2016 issue of Avenue Edmonton. Subscribe here.
