A shop for key pieces of home decor
[attach]4949[/attach]Susan Whitten believes the difference between the ordinary and the extraordinary is in the detail.
This is one of the reasons why she chose to name her new home décor store, located on Bayview Avenue near Eglinton Avenue East, Detail.
“When you’re doing a job whether as a designer, decorator or even home owner, it’s always difficult to do the finishing touches, the accessorizing,” she says. “It’s easier to get big pieces of furniture than finishing it up.”
As a decorator herself, Whitten was inspired to open a shop where people could find the final key pieces to update or redo a room, like mirrors, vases, silk flowers and artwork.
“I was just like ‘wouldn’t it be neat to have a one-stop shop to complete a room?’ ” she says.
Whitten says she will also use her decorating background to consult with customers and help them revamp their homes if they come in with pictures or need ideas.
“I love what I do,” she says. “I love helping people beautify their living space and this is just an extension of that.
“My goal really is to have people think of this shop when they think of updating or redoing their place.”
Through the store, she says she’s able to cherry pick her favourite products and brands such as Oly and Made Goods and compares receiving new stock to opening presents on Christmas.
Since she has worked on many homes in the area, she says she also kept them in mind when choosing some of the accessories to
carry.
“I know this neighbourhood,” she says. “I’ve lived here most of my adult life, so I know the homes.”
She says she also tries to collect unique or interesting items, like framed butterflies and dragonflies from the rainforest and reusable wallpaper.
“People sort of hesitate wallpapering their space,” says Whitten, who lives near Yonge Street and Lawrence Avenue. “Basically you just stick them on and when you’re tired of it you peel it off or you can move it to a different space, it’s so neat.”
Before she took over the property in May, she says the store used to be an indoor playground for kids, where she even hosted birthday parties for her own children in the past.
Overhauling the property took months of renovating and construction, she says. Her goal was to create a clean and simple space so she could easily change it up in the future.
She says opening her own store was like taking a leap of faith because even though she loved the products, she was really guessing whether others would too.
“You do this and it’s like throwing a big party and you don’t know who is going to show up,” she says.