Stair runner

I really wanted something modern and bright, yet functional and homely to go up the stairs. Lots of carpet shops sell really dodgy old fashioned ones, but I managed to find a pretty nice company called 'Dash and Albert' who sell various rugs in different sizes which you join together to make a runner.

They sounded easy enough to install, you just had to have a few upholstery tools....staple gun,upholstery hammer, tack remover, back tack (which is long strips of card to do neat hidden folds)

I have all the tools from my other upholstery work. 

This was the chosen pattern- they're call indoor/outdoor rugs witch are made to suit high traffic areas, and can be easily cleaned- made from recycled plastics. 

Here's the Stairs finished- I absolutely love it and it's exactly what I had in mind. 

Manikin madness

Fun morning out at the Scrap store- I LOVE it! The boys loved it too, a shopping trip where you can put whatever you like in the trolley! 

Came home with 'Cassandra' a bright orange manikin!! Thinking she might make a standing lamp! Wasn't exactly what I went shopping for, but very chuffed with her.

This trip was more of a novelty trip for Rupert, he filled a giant bag with everything from wood, carpet rolls, ribbons, strange electric cables, pipes.....

It'll keep him amused for hours at home, better than any toy!

Stacks of fabric too- I'll be heading back another day to get some of this for some project or another. 

Spring is in the air

I'm sure I heard birds this morning that made it feel slightly more spring like!

Just wanted to capture a few pictures to see how the house is going to transform over the next 6 months.  So excited to inject some colour onto the very plain walls, just trying to find the time to get sorted! 

Going to go for a bold green on this back wall, I want it to feel cosie and homely- this should compliment the Reds and oranges. It's a big room so it can take statement colours. 

My collection of plates would look better on a colourful background.

I'm beginning to collect and make cushions, mixing old fabrics which I've collected over time together with more contemporary prints. 

These sofas were a bargain for £100 off eBay, I've tried to jazz them up with throws- although I'm planning on putting some brighter ones on them. 

This baby is our next project, although I am trying to encourage Ant to take a small break after none stop slog with the house! The plan is to transform it into a studio/annex/hide out! Ultimately I want to run workshops and work from here. It needs knocking down and re-building, but we will keep all the character and re-use the bricks, it'll just be water tight!

We're calling it The Bird House (there's a sweet little stone ledge with a hole on the outside!)

This was ripped from the old kitchen, I absolutely love it but it's completely coroded, so we're using it as an outdoor fire. 

Unpacking....still!

Our outbuilding is like a tardis of never ending boxes to unpack, half of it I've not seen since our first house 5 years ago!

All sorts of treasures have been appearing, and it's kept the boys entertained for hours....

Antique picnic sets, fans collected in Thailand, an umbrella from Japan, my grandpas chess set, cigars from our travels in Cuba and all sorts of other random stuff! I lived without it but now I can't bare to get rid of it! 

Brights brights brights

No surprise I absolutely love these prints by Matthew Williamson for Osbourne and Little- particularly 'Jungle beat' used to upholster these chairs...

This wallpaper by Cole and Son is pretty cool too. 

I've started on my bedroom on the house, I already had lots of bright throws and cushions, but need to finish making the curtains, get a few more furniture bits and light fittings. 

I've gone for yellows, oranges and greens , which although pretty vibrant it's a harmonious colour scheme...

Which is a group of hues that sit next to each other on the colour wheel- this means it's quite calming and subtle. So although the main colours I've chosen for the bedroom are vibrant, they are easy on the eye and make a good blend. I can add different, more suble tones of these hues, with painted walls and further accessories to calm everything down if I decide it's a bit bold. 

I've added these little hand made paper mâché storage baskets in for even more colour!