Three New Houseplants

It wasn't that long ago that I said I wouldn't be buying any more living plants to adorn my house with. I'm afraid I didn't keep my word. I gave in; and I'm so glad I did because the plants look great and thankfully haven't shriveled up just yet.  My new green friends all sneaked into my shopping trolley at the supermarket and are now happily dotted around the house. I really do love seeing a bit of the outdoors inside, they make such a difference. 

My fireplace in the front room is now home to a lovely fern. I've mentioned previously that our living room is rather shady; and fortunately ferns don't mind that too much. 

Our bedroom fireplace is perfect for this little succulent fella. Unfortunately I don't know it's name - it has tiny heart-shaped leaves that grow from long stems and tumble delicately over the edge of the pot. Any guesses? 

And last but not least the bathroom window has a happy little Christmas cactus also known as Schlumbergera. Our cat Bella has taken quite a fancy to it.

Adding a little splash of green to my home has really helped set the tone for summer. How are you prepping your house for the change in season?

Claire x

Loving Eucalyptus

Eucalyptus has been taking the home interiors world by storm for a while now. It's stunningly delicate green/silver leaves and warming fragrance has made it a strong favourite for many interiors-obsessed folk. I recently picked up a few stems at a local florist. Here's how I styled them in my bedroom:

Eucalyptus in the home

Eucalyptus branches add interest and height to any area

I've been thinking how much easier it would be if I could pop out to my garden, instead of the florist, each time I wanted to bring some of the eucalyptus trend inside my home. Imagine having your own eucalyptus plant just outside your back door. I want in! My initial research on the Royal Horticultural Society website seems promising if a little challenging but I'm willing to give it a try. 

There are lots of different varieties so I'm going to speak to my local garden centre to make sure that I select the right one. Once the garden has had it's makeover and the eucalyptus plant is in-situ, I'll be sure to share the outcome with you. 

Claire x

Laundry Basket, At Last!

We've been on the hunt for a new laundry bag since we decorated our bedroom. I'm not exaggerating when I say 'hunt' because that's genuinely what it ended up feeling like. Stylish laundry bags are few and far between. I've searched online and in store and struggled to find any designs that didn't involve wicker. This meant that we were still using the laundry basket I'd had whilst at University - you do the maths! The poor cream, pop-up bag desperately needed replacing.  

I'd just about given up when I stumbled across this lovely grey laundry bag in Wilkos the other day (I could only find a striped version online here.) At the incredible bargain price of £7.50 and with only one on display, I practically launched myself at it before anyone else did. I am extremely pleased with my purchase, my only criticism is that it is a little on the small side. Although, I suppose this means that I'll be more inclined to keep on top of the washing. 

Do you have a go-to shop for home basics? 

Claire x

White Bedding and a Pop of Pink

I mentioned the other day that I had ordered some new white bed sheets that I was hoping to share with you. Thanks to a little bit of sunshine this weekend I was able to snap a few photos of them styled up on our bed. If you'd like to see the 'before' pictures then you can click here and peruse our Master Bedroom Reveal post from November last year.

The bedding is from Debenhams and is their White pleated 'Tibet' bedding set from the Home Basics Collection. Even though our bed is only a double we like to have a king size duvet so that's the size you can see below. I decided to go for white bedding because I like the contrast against the grey walls and dark furniture. However, I shied away from completely flat sheets and chose a set with pleats to add a bit of texture (plus, it makes me feel less guilty for not ironing them! Does everyone always iron their bed sheets? Or is this just something my mother tends to do?) I also happened upon a rather lovely accent cushion in TKMaxx the other day, the colours fit in perfectly with our bedroom's scheme so it was swiftly popped into my shopping basket. The hint of pink is feeling suitably festive what with Valentine's day just around the corner. 

White pleated 'Tibet' bedding set

Crisp white bed sheets / Pop of pink

Herringbone blanket / Pleats

Textured sheets

The bedding is soft and looks great, especially considering that the set only cost £50. Bargain! I would love to be able to invest in some Egyptian cotton sheets or perhaps even switch over to linen but I'm not currently able to justify the price. I think this set is holding it's own for now anyway.

Do you like my choice of white bedding? Would you dare to pick completely plain white bed sheets? 

Claire x

Bedding - Debenhams
Cushion - TKMaxx
Vintage-look glassware - gift
Pink heart print - Made By Girl 
Herringbow blanket - H&M
Candle - Yankee Candle (Black Coconut)

Cotton vs Linen

I've recently ordered some new bedding and I opted for crisp white sheets. It's not the above cotton set from The White Company but how cute is the pom pom detailing on the edge? I'm hoping to shoot my new sheets in-situ this weekend so that I can share them with you soon. However, when I see pictures like the one above from Australian bedding brand Cultiver, I can't help let my mind wander to linen sheet heaven instead. Linen sheets look super soft and snug, even when they're creased and a little worn. They tend to verge more on the expensive side, but we spend so much time in our beds that we should at least be as comfortable as we possibly can! 

Where do you stand (or should that be lie?) Do you favour cotton or linen when it comes to your bed sheets? 

Claire x

Source 1 / 2

Home Goals

As well as sharing my general plans for 2015 here, I thought you might be interested to read my plans for our home this New Year. 

Our hallway when it's seen better days (and light!)

Decorate the bathroom: I've mentioned previously how I've been feeling the need to decorate our bathroom and hopefully this will be the year that we get round to it. I want to say goodbye to the current pastel yellow and hello to something crisp and clean. I've been gathering inspiration on Pinterest, if you'd like to take a look.

Touch-up the hallway: I love our hallway. From the dark grey carpet on the stairs, to the light fittings and the radiator covers to the art on the walls. I think it is a great welcome to our home and accurately sets the tone for the rest of our house. However, it's been looking a little bit sad due to wear and tear. I guess that's the trouble with high-traffic areas like hallways. If you're planning on decorating a hallway, then make sure you go for a tough, hard wearing paint. Lecture over ;)

Sand and repaint kitchen cabinets: Our kitchen cabinets are a country-esque cream colour but over time they've become discoloured and cracked in places. They need some TLC. I think we will be able to get away with sanding and repainting them but if not then we might have to look into replacing the doors altogether. This will be a spring/summer job because we will need to do the sanding outdoors. 

Repair kitchen sink: Our kitchen and utility room boast Belfast sinks and I think they look fabulous, but a disaster recently struck one of them. Unfortunately a mystery chip has appeared on the rim of the kitchen sink. I actually nearly fainted* when I spotted it. Thankfully, after a little research I found that there are DIY repair kits, so I shall be giving this a go in the near future. Fingers crossed!

Repaint the outside of the house: We live in a typical Victorian red brick terrace and it's stone masonry is painted an off-white colour. It needs a fresh lick of paint to get rid of flakes, marks and paw prints (thanks, Bella!). This is going to be another warmer weather job. 

Decorate the utility room: The utility room at the back of our kitchen will be the last stronghold of the dreaded pastel yellow. This room requires a very hard wearing paint, as it's the first room we enter after walking our puppy. She is quite often wet and/or muddy so the walls are constantly getting wiped down. I'm yet to feel inspired about how to approach decorating the space so expect lots of new pins on my Pinterest boards in the near future. 

Plant a herb garden: I've already planted some Mint (don't worry gardeners, it's in a container and so won't take over my whole garden) and when the frost stops I'll be adding some Rosemary, Basil and Thyme. The wall baskets are just outside our kitchen door and so will be the perfect spot for us to nip out to when cooking. 

Well, I think that's about everything. Other bits and bobs may creep onto this list over the coming year and we may end up deprioritising some of the above tasks depending on time and money. I'm excited to get stuck in and of course I'll be sharing updates as often as I can. 

What are your decorating plans for the New Year? How do you prioritise what to do first?

Claire x

*slight exaggeration

Boho for Sueno

You may have recently caught sight of my finished almost-there master bedroom which I posted about a few weeks ago here. One of the pieces of furniture I really want to switch up in 2015 is the bed. We currently have a double, wooden bed frame (which may or may not creak slightly depending where you lay on it) and a pocket sprung mattress with a built-in memory foam topper. The bed frame we got for a steal, way back when we bought our house but we've outgrown it's size and style and so I'm looking for something a little more stylish and sophisticated. A week or two after my bedroom reveal and the new Boho collection of beds launched by Sueno was brought to my attention and I just had to share it. 

The well-established family run brand has teamed up with Royal Bohemia to create a capsule collection of six unique and beautifully made beds. The beds are striking and not for the faint of heart but as a centrepiece for a master bedroom, they will effortlessly steal the limelight. Each handmade bed is available upholstered in a range of 28 fabrics: Mink Linen, Rose Herringbone and Aubergine Egg British Velvet grabbed my attention.

The quality of the finish is reflected in the price as they start around £500 for a single and increase to £2000 for a kingsize depending on the style selected. In my dream world, (where I quite often like to retreat to) I'd wake up on Christmas day snuggled in a Kingsize Duke, ah bliss.

Duke

Aubergine Egg British Velvet

Head over to their website and take a look around. Let me know if a particular style tempts you.

Claire x

Master Bedroom Reveal

This post has certainly been a long time coming. Our bedroom has been at this stage for a few months now and it is still by no means completely finished. However, I love it and wanted to share it as it currently is. 

We had been living with the room as it came when we bought our house coming up to five years ago. The walls were a pastel-like yellow and the beige carpet was the cheapest the vendor could get his hands on. We were using donated wardrobes, drawers and bedside tables which were all mismatched and falling apart. It was not a pleasant room to be in, never mind sleep in. You can take a peek into it's past here and here.

I managed to capture some reasonable photos the other day, thanks to a bit of good morning sunlight. I have plenty of ideas for finishing the room off properly and I know it's something that will come with time and money. I've captioned each photo with my ideas for adding to the space. Feel free to comment with your suggestions too.

This is a photo-heavy post, you have been warned ;)...  

I want to add a large table lamp to this set of drawers to add a bit 
more interest and warmth, especially through these dark winter nights.

I'm going to create a display of my perfumes on a tray atop this set of drawers. 
However, I am yet to find one which fits the bill.

This print will eventually be hung alongside a selection of prints 
in a mini gallery-style area above the chest of drawers.

I can picture a selection of vintage-style mirrors above the fireplace 
and a striking vase on the hearth with pillar candles for extra interest.

We are extremely fortunate to have a beautiful cast iron fireplace
already in-situ. My husband gave it a good clean and spruce up.

We need a rug for this large free area of floor space, perhaps a sheepskin 
or something equally as fluffy and cosy?

I love the look of crisp white bedding but I may switch it up to something 
a little more interesting in the future. New sheets are a must. I cannot wait to start accessorising with pillows and throws.

The bed will eventually be replaced with a king size ottoman bed 
with an imposing tufted headboard.

I have more vignette-style plans for the bedside drawers. 
I already know which coffee table books I want lined up on my side.

Bella loves the new bedroom and, as you can see, 
she was thrilled to make her blog post debut.

I adore having a full length mirror after suffering four years without one.

I've previously shared how happy a cocktail chair in the corner of our bedroom
would make me. I'm still hoping that my dream comes true (fingers crossed!)

There you have it. Our master bedroom in all it's glory (or almost). It is now a pleasure to be in our bedroom and we are both really happy with how it turned out. 

Do you have any tips or ideas for finishing touches? Please let me know what you think. 

Claire x

Drawers - Ikea
Jewellery box - Zara Home
Photo frames - Zara Home and Jasper Conran
Print - Nordic Design Collective
Wardrobes - Ikea
Bedding - Matalan

Bed - old
Bedside tables - Fads
Bedside lamps - Dunelm Mill
Mirror - Ikea
Curtains - Terry's Fabrics
Paint - Farrow & Ball Dove Tale and Dulux Nutmeg White

Cocktail Hour

Made

Swoon Editions 

e-bay

Rockett St George

I want, want, want a cocktail chair for our bedroom.  The only thing is, so does everyone else and therefore they don't come cheap.  I've brought together a little selection of chairs that have caught my eye.  Not all colour combinations would work in my newly decorated bedroom but it's still feels good to have a look. 

I have made it my mission to own one of these little darlings and so when I do eventually save enough money, to click that purchase button, it will feel that bit sweeter.  

Do you fancy one of these blasts-from-the-pasts?  

Claire x

All images were taken from the mentioned websites

Mini Interiors Update

Our master bedroom update is looking mighty fine, even if I do say so myself.  However, taking some good quality shots is proving difficult.  It seems I need more time, daylight and money (a swanky camera is sure to help, right?) 

Whilst I ponder on how to get some better-looking images I thought I'd share a little sneak peek...

Fireplace with art - I love it when the light filters through the trees and into our bedroom

Curtains - one of my favourite finds

What do you think so far?  Can you guess what accent colour we went with?  

Claire x

3 / One Pic Wednesday

Now that we've done all the major decorating and furniture building in our master bedroom (which I promise to reveal soon). I've instantly moved onto the finishing touches.  I've had my heart set on a little perfume vignette much like the one above and so I've made it my task to recreate it.  The foundation for this look is a beautiful mirrored vanity tray and so I'm currently trying to hunt one down.  I think it also gives me the perfect excuse to add to my perfume collection ;-)

Claire x

I came across this pic on Pinterest and unfortunately could not find it's original source. If you happen to know then please point me in their direction. Apologies!

Interiors Update 6

I'm delighted to report that our master bedroom is slowly but surely coming together.  It's certainly been a while since I shared an update so I thought I'd clue you up.  

The giant gaping hole in the wall/ceiling has been filled and re-plastered.  It took a little while to get it looking good but I'm glad that my husband we persevered. 

Gaping hole no more

We decided on Nutmeg White by Dulux (below left photo - bottom row, 2nd from right) for three of the walls and Dove Tale by Farrow and Ball (below right photo - left colour) as a feature wall.  

This colour selection has been a long time coming. The left selection of testers has been on our wall for close to a year! 

Dove Tale is a grey with purple undertones which is exactly what I'd been looking for as I want to pull purple/pink accent colours into the room with accessories.  Nutmeg White is a warm white with grey undertones which compliments the accent colour beautifully (even if I do say so myself).

Farrow & Ball - Dove Tale

I've never used Farrow and Ball paint before but I will definitely use it again.  I found that there was quite a significant difference in coverage between F&B and other cheaper brands.  It glides onto the wall with ease and even just one coat leaves a really good level of coverage. However, that being said it was harder to clean the paint off the brushes and rollers.  I don't mind the extra cleaning effort required if you're dealing with a quality product.

In progress paint shots

Here is a shot of our fireplace. I love it when I can sneak a glimpse into the past style of a room.  Someone clearly had good taste in wallpaper.  We'll be refitting our cast iron fireplace, once the carpet has been fitted.

A little window to the past

The carpet should be down soon and we've placed our order for new wardrobes, drawers and bedside tables.  I still need to decide on bed linen, a ceiling light and accessories.  Hopefully not too long to go!

Claire x

Want / Need 4

Want/

One particular bedroom trend that I would like to follow is that of the Moroccan Wedding blanket. I think one of these beauties would look rather swish adorning our new bed (when we actually get to the stage of buying a new bed).  However, they verge on the side of expensive and so it may be something that I have to save up for.  I would love to have the opportunity to actually go and source one in Marrakech.  Maybe one day!

Source

Need/

A bedroom item that we most certainly do need is new bedding.  I've noticed that the blogging world is full of crisp white bed sheets, and they do look rather wonderful, but I know that this is not an option for us. This is thanks to our lovely little fur ball, Bella.  She always sleeps on our bed and so I want something that wont show up her fur quite as much as pure white bed sheets would.  I found this light brown and beige striped option over at Urbanara.  They're really reasonably priced too!  

Source

Claire x

Interiors Update 5

We're making slow process with the Master Bedroom plans.  By 'slow progress' I mean slowly filling in the giant gaping hole that was created to allow the bricks and ceiling to dry.  

My husband has been doing all the DIY, I tend to stand back and make disapproving faces and noises (apparently this isn't very helpful).  

Giant gaping hole

This week saw his first attempt at plastering the area.  Unfortunately the plaster has cracked so round two will be taking place at some point soon.  I've had to advise my extremely patient husband that if round two fails then we'll be calling in the professionals. 

First plastering attempt

I hope you enjoy these 'before' shot because I am certainly not enjoying living in them.

CB x

Photos by me

Interior Update 4

I wanted to share a useful tool that I've recently come across thanks to Mint Design Blog.  If you're planning on a room update then The Make Room by Urban Barn is pretty helpful.  

The Room Planner allows you to input the dimensions of your room and all the furniture you want in it.

See below for my quick attempt at our master bedroom.  We don't actually know what furniture we will be buying just yet so I've gone off the size of pieces I've seen online and took a fancy to.  

My attempt at our Master Bedroom floor plan

Those lucky Canadians must all have walk-in wardrobes, as I couldn't find an icon for wardrobes on the furniture tool.  It's not really an issue because I just used a chest of drawers and made them wardrobe size.  

My husband and I are currently undecided on where to have our wardrobes and how big to have them.  I'm of the opinion that we get a tall, possibly three-door, set to go in the alcove to the right of the fireplace (pictured bottom left). Whereas he feels we need more space and so should have a larger, possibly five-door set, behind the door (pictured right). I don't think we have enough wiggle space to put the wardrobe in that position.  Our current wardrobe is there and it feels far to close to the bed.  

Decisions, decisions...

CB x

Interiors Update 3

This year is the year of the Master Bedroom.  (Ok, so it's actually the year of the Horse but I'm talking personal interiors here.)

My husband and I have lived for almost 4 years in our lovely Victorian terrace.  In all that time we have not touched our master bedroom.  This particular sticking point has nearly driven me to insanity.  Thus, we have vowed to sort this out once and for all!

The main problem preventing us from attempting to decorate our bedroom has been a leaky roof, leading to a damp corner to the left of the window.  We've had several 'roofers' look at it and we think this last one has finally hopefully solved our issue.  A couple of days of torrential rain will soon let us know the truth.  (Thanks, great British weather!)

Of course this means I've had far too much time to be thinking about the decor.  It has literally prevented me from sleeping.  Not helping when I'm already quite a poor sleeper.  (I've had some friends tell me to buy lavender oil.  Anyone know if this is any good? Personally, I think I need a remote control for my brain.)  

I shall be sharing ideas / inspiration and hopefully the final product.  This may be quite some time down the line as we're having to take the plaster back to the brick to make sure the damp has definitely disappeared.  I just wanted to set the ball rolling so that we can't back out!

My future bed from made.com

I spotted the above bed on Made.com and I really want it.  Bad.  We currently have a wooden double bed frame but I have since decided I want a cushioned bed head with plenty of storage, trying to keep away from a divan.  The perfect answer...a kingsize ottoman storage bed!  We may have to save a few pennies to get this piece but I think it will be worth it.  

Some other slightly cheaper options I've come across: 1 / 2 / 3

I cannot wait to get cracking with this project!

CB x