DH and I went down to the Vancouver Home and Design Show to catch up on the trends that are new and exciting in this red-hot renovation and building market.
I remember going to the show twenty years ago or so and it seems to me that it was kiosk after kiosk of handy-dandy labour-saving devices, pots and pans, with a few decorating and building companies thrown in. Or maybe that was the PNE. Anyway, the past few years you’ve been able to talk with a lot of renovation companies, plus get some great ideas about new products that are available.
As usual there were great speakers — including Bryan Baeumler, Colin McAllister and Justin Ryan, lots of great chefs and designers.
Small was definitely big this year. There were several retailers showing off various ways to hide beds — not just floor mounted but pieces that looked like regular cabinets but made out into beds. And Urban Barn tasked the three designers competing for their Next Top Designer with designing a dual-purpose space in just 150 square feet.
I saw a lot I really liked but for me the outstanding exhibition was the NOMAD MicroHome. The display unit showed how much living and storage you could fit into a 10 foot by 10 foot footprint. It would be great for an extra bedroom, tucked into your yard. Or, with the addition of other modules, you could easily make a nice vacation home. You can even go completely green with the addition of a Water Generation Plant, a Solar Power Plant, a Rainwater Collection System and a Grey Water Treatment Plant.
And they are pretty good looking, too.
While looking at the home I got a feeling of deja vu — and sure enough I wrote about the Nomad last year. It’s great to see an innovative local company moving ahead.
The Lady Who Lives Down the Lane 