The 1960s. In the golden age of Hollywood where glamour reigned supreme, decorating ones' home to feel as luxurious as a high-end hotel was de rigueur. And that aesthetic continues to inspire the interiors of homes today. After all, who doesn't love a velvet couch in the palest pink?

Sotheby’s Celebrates 275 Years | This year marks the 275th anniversary of the Sotheby’s Auction house. 2019 also denotes the 70thanniversary of our company. While sharing significant anniversaries is something to celebrate in itself, today we’re blogging about more than that. We’re writing to celebrate the very DNA that our company shares with Sotheby’s, namely, a heritage of innovation and dedication to continuously evolving.

2019 Top-Tier Spring Outlook | Population growth and revitalized consumer confidence in the country’s largest real estate market is expected to drive Canadian top-tier real estate performance in spring 2019. New data compiled by Sotheby’s International Realty Canada reveal that Greater Toronto Area top-tier sales have stabilized from previous years’ unpredictability, with sales over $1 million down a nominal 2% year-over-year in the first two months of 2019. A shortfall in inventory over $4 million, as well as a shift of luxury real estate transactions to off-market and private channels resulted in a 38% decrease in MLS® sales compared to the first two months of 2018; however, demand for luxury housing remains robust leading into spring. While buyers’ market conditions remain entrenched in Vancouver as the city started the year with 52% and 50% declines in sales over $1 million and $4 million respectively, pent-up demand and a positive shift in market confidence are palpable.

Paint it Black | Shading your walls in black may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you’re considering paint colors. But black has a daring all its own that can bring character and chicness to your space.

“The result is both unexpected and incredibly sophisticated,” says Andrea Magno, a Benjamin Moore color and design expert.

“Black has an interesting effect on the walls of a room because the corners and shadows are obscured more than if a midtone or pastel color is used,” Magno says. “This can be used as a visual trick to give the space a less-defined appearance and can make a room feel a bit more expansive.”

Potential home buyers in cities with white-hot real estate markets got some relief in Tuesday’s federal budget with an incentive program that could lower mortgage payments for households making less than $120,000 per year.

The government unveiled a multi-pronged approach to housing affordability that centres on the incentive plan, but beefs up an existing initiative that allows buyers to withdraw money from their RRSPs, and a variety of measures to boost the supply of homes on the Canadian market.

What's New in Art, Architecture, and Design | The year 2019 is bringing in new technologies and old techniques to create beautiful spaces and objects. Below, some of the latest trends in art, architecture, and design.

Sotheby’s International Realty Announces Expanding Presence in Slovakia | Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC today announced its expansion in Europe with the opening of Slovakia Sotheby’s International Realty.

The firm is owned and operated by Ilona Mancikova, who also stands at the helm of Czech Republic Sotheby’s International Realty and Croatia Sotheby’s International Realty. The flagship office of Slovakia Sotheby’s International Realty is located in the capital city of Bratislava and will serve the luxury residential real estate markets throughout the surrounding metropolitan area and into the High Tatras Mountain region.

What’s New in Art, Architecture, and Design | Whether we’re talking trends in art, architecture, or design, it’s all about seeing the beauty of traditional materials used in new ways. It’s looking at ordinary objects in a different light. It’s rethinking the purpose of conventional spaces. But most of all, it’s about being open to possibilities.

6 Exclusive Tasting Menus Around the Globe | Stimulate your palate with a foamy amuse-bouche. Finish your multi-course meal with a silky chocolate dessert. Often presenting delicacies like foie gras, sweetbreads, and Wagyu, tastings allow gifted chefs to show off their cooking chops.What gourmet dreams are made of, the tasting menus at the following restaurants might not be on your radar—but should be.

Designed to Inspire: Philippe Starck’s Island Home | In the midst of a juniper orchard, a rustic, waterfront property perched on top of a cliff on the Cap de Barbaria—only 60 miles from Africa’s Barbary Coast—is where designer Philippe Starck works and plays a few months out of the year.

The French icon, known for creating avant-garde interiors, furniture, and household items, designed the six-bedroom, six-bathroom villa in Formentera, Spain, in the mid-1990s. Starck has since used the home as an escape, but it’s now listed by Ibiza Sotheby’s International Realty for 7.9 million euros (US$9 million).

Decorating Like a Parisian | There’s a certain chicness about a Parisian home that’s so effortless, even the most haphazardly strewn items seem decidedly curated. It’s that je ne sais quoi that comes second nature to the French.

Designing a quintessentially French space is about elegance, a sense of the spectacular, and creating a warm and cozy atmosphere, says Paris-based interior and furniture designer Aline Hazarian, who works with clients who are leaders in international business and finance, and who is known for her striking and sophisticated interiors.

The New Private Clubs | Private social clubs, traditional bastions of upper-class decorum, are reinventing themselves as democratic gathering spots for a diverse, younger generation of members.

The old clubs are easing membership rules, dress codes, and even fees, while new clubs like the one being planned by David Beckham and Guy Ritchie in West London’s Notting Hill are catering to the chic sneakers-and-cellphone crowd.

March 2019 | Market Watch - “The OSFI mandated mortgage stress test has left some buyers on the sidelines who have struggled to qualify for the type of home they want to buy. The stress test should be reviewed and consideration should be given to bringing back 30 year amortizations for federally insured mortgages. There is a federal budget and election on the horizon. It will be interesting to see what policy measures are announced to help with home ownership affordability.” said Mr Bhaura.

Chapultepec Uno - Mexico City | Chapultepec UNO is a hybrid multipurpose project that has offices, residences, and the Ritz-Carlton hotel. It is located in Paseo de la Reforma, nearby the famous park of Chapultepec that has various outdoor attractions. It was designed with an avant-garde architecture and has sophisticated technology, such as domotic parking, last generation lifts, double façade system that allows freshness in the summer and heat in the winter.

Last week we visited De Pijp and discovered Amsterdam’s coolest neighborhood. Today, we join Sotheby’s and Tim Marlow as we travel to the neighboring Van Gogh museum to explore a can’t-miss exhibit.

Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC today reported that in 2018 its affiliated brokers and sales professionals achieved more than $112 billion USD in global sales volume, the highest annual sales volume performance in the history of the brand. Additionally, 27 affiliated companies surpassed $1 billion USD in sales volume in 2018.

Rosedale | Highest Rated Restaurants - Hungry? I sure am… We have compiled a list of some of the hottest restaurants in Rosedale and Summerhill. Check it out and let me know which one is your favourite.

Netflix coming to Toronto | Netflix Inc said on Tuesday it is creating a production hub with two studios in Toronto that is expected to create 1,850 jobs per year. Netflix will lease Cinespace Studios, a Toronto-based film studio comprising four sound stages, office space and support space that measures 164,000 square feet, and Pinewood Toronto Studios, which measures 84,850 square feet, the streaming company said in a statement.

Karl Lagerfeld’s Parisian Home | On design Lagerfeld says "We are at the heart of a Russian doll: first the clothes, then the apartments and houses. Even the streets and the cities are part of the evolution of our preferences and our taste."

“So many people reference Dior. He’s one of those people in fashion: everybody knows who he is, everybody knows the silhouette he created,” says Oriole Cullen, the curator of Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams, a major new exhibition at London’s V&A museum devoted to the influential French fashion designer and the powerhouse he left behind. The retrospective is the biggest Dior show ever staged in the UK, and one of a string of exhibitions around the world that reveal Dior’s extraordinary popularity right now.