Toronto Fall Home Show 2017 introduces DIY seminars | Toronto Star

Fall’s imminent arrival will, for many people, fine-tune their focus to their homes. All the little things that don’t work quite the way they should — or look as well as they could — will get renewed attention.

The solution? The Toronto Fall Home Show, which runs from Friday, Sept. 15 to Sunday, Sept. 17 at the Enercare Centre at Exhibition Place.

New to this show is a DIY feature that will run how-to seminars by Jordan Spear, a craftsperson and carpenter with a deep knowledge of restoring and renovating century homes, and well-known contractor and handyman Shawn Monteith.

Mastering DIY skills can deliver significant ROI for homeowners, Monteith says. “Contractors are expensive — they can charge you $500 for a half day for something you might be able to do yourself for $20,” he says.

Hands-on experience for a variety of household projects, from drywalling to cutting and installing trim will be available, says Monteith, who with Spear will also answer questions. Visitors with specific DIY dilemmas should bring pictures and dimensions of problem areas.

Another new feature will tackle storage and organization challenges, while expert advice about landscaping and constructing outdoor spaces will be available from a roster of certified landscape designers.

On the show floor, more than 300 retailers will share information about home-related products and services.

The Destination Renovation booth will provide one-on-one advice from renovators, including insight into how to select the right professional.

For questions about decor, there’s the popular Design Intervention booth, which offers free 15-minute consultations with such designers as Jamie Alexander and Glen Peloso (also a Toronto Star columnist), Paul Semkuley, Kate Davidson, Linda Mazur, Yvonne Whelan and Janice Fedak.

Long-time visitors can expect something a little different in Design Intervention booth style — executed this year by Terry Edward Briceland of TEB Interiors, who will also be a consulting designer.

Like this year’s booth, he says too-tame home decor sometimes “needs a good kick in the butt.”

“I think design media has put the fear of ‘doing it wrong’ into people . . . We’re saying there’s no hard-and-fast rule book, and that we‘re here to give you ideas and inspiration,” he says, encouraging visitors to come armed with pictures, samples and floor plans.

Main-stage presenters will include landscape designer and outdoor expert Carson Arthur, paint expert Sharon Grech, DIY maven Leigh-Ann Allaire Perrault, as well as designers Jo Alcorn, Davidson and Mazur.

The theme for the annual Upcycle Challenge competition in support of Habitat for Humanity GTA is “runway to room.” With used items from Habitat for Humanity ReStores, celebrity experts created upcycled pieces inspired by runway fashions.

Designer Nicholas Rosaci was influenced by Diana, Princess of Wales. “So much of what we know about her is based on her fashion sense and how it changed over time,” he says. His bold, black-and-white, houndstooth-and-striped design on a dressing table was inspired by a glamorous Moschino ensemble worn by Diana.

Stylist, blogger and Star contributor Debra Norton took inspiration from street-fashion statement T-shirts that inspired her to transform a bench that was “in terrible shape” by sanding it, affixing vinyl-letter words and then staining it.

“I liked the idea of renewing something that had history and purpose, while making a statement about hope and change,” Norton says.

Online voting for a favourite item occurs from September 8-16. Pieces will be available for sale at the show, with proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity GTA.

For more information on the Toronto Fall Home Show, go to fallhomeshow.com. Follow the show on Twitter @HomeShowsTO, Instagram @homeshowsto, on Facebook facebook.com/Torontohomeshows