Home design: Downsizing, Paris-style
Yvonne Dametto's tastes are super specific. The semi-retired nurse is enamoured with everything old and French: Baroque dressers with tassels, burnished champagne buckets, Aubusson rugs and countryside oils depicting Provence in giltwood frames.
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Her affection for French culture runs so deep she keeps a pied-à-terre in Paris, where she frequently travels.
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Naturally, Dametto's home base in Guelph was also French-imbued, down to her extensive art collection. She raised her kids (who have kids of their own) in the 5,500-square-foot family home but when she became a widower, she downsized to a nearby townhouse nearly half that size.
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And so, alongside Bellamy Custom Homes, she recruited Cristina Kirby, the designer and visual curator with FOR Design, in Oakville, to overhaul the home into an enchanting refuge for herself and a pair of British short hair cats, Rupert and Angus.
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Dametto wanted to skew towards a femme fatale vibe, less countryish. 'She wanted something curated to express her new life,' says Kirby.
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The goal for the townhouse, Kirby continues, was to lean into the drama by embracing the opulence of the Beaux Arts. To create the effect, Kirby layered every level of the four-storey townhouse in a rich palette. Deep green hues, plummy-toned tapestry, mood-making wallpaper and sumptuous velvet and linen lend a nuanced and dynamic feel throughout the home.
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Dametto's art collection has also been weaved into the design scheme alongside newer pieces from FOR Living, the design studio's retail shops in Oakville and Guelph.
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'That's to balance the antique vibe,' says Kirby, 'and to make it curated. In all of my designs, I emphasize that everyone should have one piece of original art and one antique. It makes it feel like a collected home.'
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For better flow in the formerly cramped dwelling and to get rid of the golden-toned 1980s-era wood, the team at Bellamy Custom Homes stripped the house to the studs.
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CBC
4 hours ago
- CBC
Parents are pressured to give kids an '80s summer. Are we wearing nostalgia blinders?
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a day ago
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Article content The philanthropic brand commemorates 10 years of its animal lifesaving mission with new Paws for a Cause scholarship winners' styles, pet adoption events, grant donations and register round-ups for shelter pets in need Article content BOBS from Skechers is feeling (and giving) the love this National Foster-a-Pet Month. Throughout June, the philanthropic BOBS brand has been celebrating its decade-long era of caring for animals in need—hosting pet adoption and check presentation events for shelter organizations across the country, launching its second year of Paws for a Cause Design Scholarship winners' styles, and raising funds through register round-ups at Skechers stores nationwide. 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Santana and Moser have also received $10,000 college scholarships from the Skechers Foundation and one-on-one corporate mentorship sessions with key Skechers design personnel. Article content Said Santana: 'I decided to apply because of my belief in rescuing and protecting dogs, and I wanted to pay tribute to the resilience of every vulnerable dog who found a loving home, as well as celebrate the volunteers and rescuers who worked hard to save them. I am very excited to see my creation come to life, and I hope it becomes a step towards a brighter future for animals in need, inspiring others to adopt, donate, or get involved.' Article content 'My two shelter cats, Minnie and Daisy, have undoubtedly transformed my family's lives,' added Moser. 'They make us so happy, and I believe adopting a rescue animal can be a beautiful addition to so many families. The scholarship will be so valuable for my education. It is an incredible opportunity to be recognized for my art, provided this aid for my tuition, and mentored by Skechers.' Article content In addition to Paws for a Cause, BOBS ® from Skechers ® hosted adoption events this month at stores in Torrance, California with LA Animal Services (LAAS) and Cincinnati, Ohio with Cincinnati Animal CARE Humane Society, where shelter dogs and cats found homes and the animal welfare organizations received grants from Petco Love. Article content Since 2015, Skechers has helped produce adoption, vaccination, and check presentation events for more than 4,000+ animal welfare organizations across the United States and Canada, as well as funded flight transports for animals in need in times of natural disasters. For 2025, the Company is contributing more than $500,000 to Petco Love, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that helps save the lives of dogs, cats and other pets in shelters in North America, and in select international markets, donates to support shelter pets and animal welfare organizations for specially marked items purchased. Article content The BOBS from Skechers and Paws for a Cause offering is available online and at Skechers stores; additional BOBS styles are also available at department and specialty locations. To learn more about the offering, follow BOBS from Skechers on Facebook and Instagram, or visit Article content Skechers (NYSE:SKX), The Comfort Technology Company ® based in Southern California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle and performance footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children. The Company's collections are available in 180 countries and territories through department and specialty stores, and direct to consumers through and more than 5,300 Skechers retail stores. A Fortune 500 ® company, Skechers manages its international business through a network of wholly-owned subsidiaries, joint venture partners, and distributors. For more information, please visit and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Article content BOBS from Skechers' charitable collection of shoes, apparel and accessories have improved animals' lives: over the past decade, Skechers has contributed more than $13 million to help over 2.3 million shelter pets, including saving more than 1.8 million rescued animals in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Japan. It all started in 2011, when Skechers launched a movement to support children impacted by natural disasters and poverty—a cause that has helped the Company donate more than 16 million new pairs of shoes to kids in more than 60 countries worldwide. To learn more about BOBS from Skechers' commitment to making a difference, visit and follow the brand on Facebook and Instagram. Article content This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, Skechers' future domestic and international growth, financial results and operations including expected net sales and earnings, its development of new products, future demand for its products, its planned domestic and international expansion, opening of new stores and additional expenditures, and advertising and marketing initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking language such as 'believe,' 'anticipate,' 'expect,' 'estimate,' 'intend,' 'plan,' 'project,' 'will,' 'could,' 'may,' 'might,' or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include the disruption of business and operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic; delays or disruptions in our supply chain; international economic, political and market conditions including the effects of inflation, tariffs and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations around the world, the challenging consumer retail markets in the United States, and the impact of wars, acts of war and other conflicts around the world; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers; decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers, especially in the highly competitive performance footwear market; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in Skechers' annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q in 2025. Taking these and other risk factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic into consideration, the dynamic nature of these circumstances means that what is stated in this press release could change at any time, and as a result, actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. The risks included here are not exhaustive. Skechers operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and we cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all such risk factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance. 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