Posts by cmtextiles

And there you have it, summer is over. As we approach the first week of September we are starting to see a lot of students filter in through the store again. The cooler weather and the changing of the leaves always has a bit of excitement in the air, especially for first year college and…

Draperies and hardware go hand in hand. There is so much to consider when purchasing new drapes but often times the hardware is an afterthought. Instead of getting hung up on the hardware, get hooked up! Here are the hardware basics to help plan the final stages of custom drapes. Types of hardware and components:…

It’s 5am, it’s still dark and crisp outside. A little girl finishes her bowl of cheerios and heads out, half asleep. Her dad drives her to the rink, where they go 3 times a week. She sits down on the cold bleachers and her dad laces up her skates. Not too tight and not too…

Alright, let’s settle down. I’m not referring to the erotic novel or the sinfully delicious movie that followed. Simply, the colour grey! Goodbye beige, hello grey! Grey IS the new neutral. It has far surpassed beige and that’s a big deal! Grey is in between white and black and is a colour, without colour. Sounds…

Recently I did a little weekend getaway and stayed in a boutique hotel. I almost always stay in my favourite hotel chain when travelling, but this time wanted to spoil myself. Not to mention, I did want to say that I too, had stayed in a “boutique hotel”. What a treat! Everything from real hardwood…

“They come runnin’ just as fast as they can… cause every girl’s crazy ‘bout a sharp dressed man” Everyone notices a man in a nice suit. A suit is the international symbol for business, confidence and style. A suit tells people you are a man on a mission. Suits have always been in, but recently…

C&M Textiles opened its doors in 1948. Some businesses don’t last a decade, C&M has been through 6 of them! Even more impressive, the business is still in the family, handed down from generation to generation. Let’s highlight the best (and worst) decorating trends from each decade C&M has been through. 1950’s – This era…

My husband is a phenomenal chef. I, on the other hand, couldn’t fry an egg if my life depended on it. I just don’t have it in me. When guests come over for dinner, they always ask for his recipes but he always says: “the best recipe is no recipe”. (I think he might have stolen…

C&M Textiles is your place to shop for everything custom and nobody does it better! Did you know we are a one stop shop for ready-made items too? Sometimes you may get a decorating itch and don’t want to wait for custom. You want it and you want it now! Looking to enhance your space…

Cords are a nightmare. They get tangled and look unsightly. We spend time and money decorating our homes and cords take away from the finished look. Cords are a decorating downer. Cordless is becoming the way of the future. It started with cell phones. Do you remember your first cell? How new and exciting it…

And the award for “Colour of the Year” goes to… Marsala! I’m sorry, pardon? I don’t want to rain on this colour’s parade, but The Pantone Colour Institute was WAY off on the “Colour of the Year” for 2015. Other years I’ve gone with it. I’ve seen where they were coming from and I’ve almost…

It’s official, Swag and Jabot have broken up. Sounds juicy already, like a good soap opera you haven’t seen in a while. All the same characters, new plot. Swag is doing quite well all on it’s own. No reason not to be, it was always the backbone of the relationship. Jabot, not doing so well.…

When I first started selling drapes a decade ago it was “what kind of pleat do you want?” It’s either pinch pleat, box pleat or goblet pleat. Then something different came along, grommet drapes. It wasn’t a pleat and it didn’t require rings. It was more modern, but wasn’t for everyone. Most clients asked for…

Facebook or face to face? Instagram or insta-experience? Twitter or chatter? Some people are just online shoppers, there’s no changing that! They like to browse, customize and purchase online. They click yes, pay and except delivery, done! There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s quick, easy and a get it done type of approach. Then, there…

It’s happening. Slowly but surely, it is happening and there’s no stopping it. Once upon a time, I would have bet my life that under no circumstance a floral pattern would ever make its way into my wardrobe, and especially not my home. It all started this winter, when shopping, my mom pointed out a…

Ikat. What is it, why is it so popular and why do I need it in my home? When fabric shopping you may have heard this term thrown around… a lot! Maybe you have no idea what it is. Maybe you do but still don’t know what the big deal is. So, what is Ikat?…

I want to squash a common decorating misconception. I have so many clients come into the store who have a small dining room chair they want to reupholster, a small window they want to dress or a small room they want to decorate. Let’s take the chair for example. Clients bring in this tiny chair…

SO, you’ve got this really great chair from your grandma. It’s full of memories. Memories of you visiting as a child and it was in the living room by the fireplace since the beginning of time. Or maybe the chair you have is from a random yard sale. You saw it there and just had…

We all know that first impressions mean everything. When we first meet a potential boss, coworker, friend of a friend, new neighbour or even the person serving us our morning coffee we are subconsciously scaling them up and down. We are creating what will be our first impression. In milliseconds we look at the person…

Mommy wants a nice house, is that too much to ask for? So, you used to be young, cool and stylish. Then, wham, you had kids. And for no mistake to be made, you wouldn’t want it any other way. You love those munchkins and nothing else matters. Well, let’s be honest. Your house kind…

There’s this one room in your house you can’t stand anymore. It’s time. It needs to change and fast. How do you make a big impact on a tight budget? Here’s how to get the biggest bang for your buck! PAINT – Wall colour is the least expensive way to create a fresh, new look.…

I love colour. I love matching up colours and having fun with it in my home (and other people’s homes). Maybe it’s my personality or maybe it’s because I understand colour and work with it every day in my line of work. I have found though, that some people are truly afraid of colour. Like…

So, you’ve taken on a home decorating project. Whether you are just in the early stages, halfway through or almost done, you are starting to question if you are doing the right thing. The project might be a simple, small one or a large undertaking. In any event, you are realizing you have bitten off…

Most people who just meet me might peg me as a ‘summer gal,’ but truth be told, I love all the seasons equally. After all, a change of season gives me the perfect reason to redecorate! For someone who works from home, a quarterly change of home décor helps keep my living/work environment fresh and…

At my age, having a large circle of friends means being exposed to all the various forms of living situations afforded by those rapidly approaching (or departing) their late 30’s and 40’s: married, single-and-ready-to-mingle, divorced, divorced with benefits, roommates, roommates with benefits, married with extracurricular benefits, abstinent (not many in this category, admittedly) and the…

I’m no history buff, but if there’s one thing I remember from my eight grade history class, it’s that the Romans got a few things right, like aqueducts, stadium construction, chariot racing, and non-constrictive undergarments. On one of my frequent visits to C&M Textiles, I discovered a new item to add to the Romans’ impressive…

At C&M Textiles, a constant desire to bring our clients the best in customer service, luxury home decor items, and high-quality fabrics (at unbeatable prices) is of paramount importance, which is why we are proud to reveal our new fabrics! Whether for upholstery, drapery, or the creation of a fabulous new piece of haute couture…

Sharon’s been my best friend since before we were both able to pronounce the phrase, and if there’s one point we’ve always diverged on, it’s our taste in significant others: I’ve always had a penchant for the slick, suited professional, while she’s always loved the rugged, handyman/lumberjack-type. (Maybe that’s why we’re still such good friends-…

Murphy’s Law: (defintion): A rule that states that, “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong, and usually at the worst time.” Of all the laws put on this planet by Gods and Men, this particular rule seems to be the one my life path is determined to follow.  After all, I didn’t really plan to get…

I’ve never been much of a gambler and to be honest, I’ve never had any great desire to visit Las Vegas (I’m more of a Santorini/Nice/Capri type of gal), but when you’re the maid of honor at your best friend’s wedding and she decides that’s where the bachelorette party is going to be, you kind…

Has anyone ever seen the A&E program, Hoarders? You know, that show that documents the lives of people struggling with the severe inability to throw out or give away anything that they own, effectively reducing their homes to veritable museums of otherwise useless items? I’ve always felt that a show like that should exist for…

I suppose it happens to a lot of us. While waiting in the doctor or dentist’s office or leisurely trying to evade unwanted attention at a local Starbucks, flipping through the latest issue of Cosmo or People and seeing the fabulous dresses splashed across every other page has always seemed to provoke the most deep-seated…

Whether I’m looking for the ideal room at our soon-to-be Caribbean hotel or scrolling through our friends’ recent vacation albums on Facebook to see where they found one, there was always one particular room that consistently popped up, caught my eye, and had me reaching for my travel agent’s number. There’s just something about this…

If you’re anything like me, your moods can run from outrageously outgoing and over-the-top, to privately quiet and contemplative (oftentimes in the same day). With this in mind, living in a house with large windows presents me with a unique challenge, seeing as how one day, I feel like vacuuming the living room in my…

Don’t get me wrong- I love kids, especially my sister’s kids. As a matter of fact, one of the things I look forward to the most during the week are those 2-3 hours I get a simultaneous taste of adulthood and parenthood by entertaining two high-octane toddlers with everything from PlayDoh to multiple viewings of…