Kitchen

Denby dinnerware in Natural Pearl

 

I am totally, completely in love with Denby dinnerware.  It is available in Australia but I've not seen it here before.  I saw it earlier this year when I was holidaying in the UK, Andrew took me to Clark's Village in Street and we found the Denby range there. 

http://www.maxwellandwilliams.co.uk/

I don't know about you, but I love Maxwell and Williams homewares for the simplicity and timelessness of their products.  And now that I know I can definitely buy it in the UK and Australia, I'll definitely invest in many of their pieces especially their range of storage jars for the kitchen.  I hate having open boxes and packets of raw ingredients cluttering up the pantry, especially if there is just one cup of flour left in the bag or 1/2 a packet of spaghetti.  I used to just use Tupperware containers but I am trying to steer away from using plastics so glass jars and canisters are my best option.

Sydney to London via Singapore

My flight to London is booked for 13th of October, so it will actually be the 14th when I touch down at Heathrow.

Now it feels really real and my tummy is getting nervous flutters, I can't wait to see Andrew and give him the biggest hugs and kisses.

I do feel a sense of guilt in my decision to live in the UK for a while as I will be so far away from Mum & Dad and I'll be unable to do anything if one of them falls ill.  At least my brother is only interstate if they really need his help.

Wish list

Here are some stunning items I've found on various UK websites.  I've bookmarked them so that *hopefully* I can find them when we are able to afford a few luxury items for our home.

M&S Autograph metal lantern

discountbicycles.com 'Pashly Princess Classic'

(I can just see myself now, pedalling along a country lane with a loaf of fresh bread and a bunch of daffodils nestled in the basket!)

Dooleysfurniture.com square metal clock

Planning

I've got alot to do before I can board a flight to London and suddenly there doesn't seem to be enough time to get everything done but I told someone weeks ago that this would probably be the way!

I'm staying with my brother on the Gold Coast at the moment, just to spend a bit of time with him before I leave, and it has been so peaceful, a really nice change from Sydney.

I'll be flying back to Sydney on the 5th of October, that will give me a week to do a few jobs that I've been putting off due to weather or the mess ie painting two timber armchair frames and a wardrobe.

Shocked

My visa has been approved.

Took less than six weeks from the date it arrived at the British High Commission in Canberra. All visas are processed within their current waiting time of 12 weeks, but I think mine was dealt with quickly because I wrote a very polite cover letter to explain how long it had been since I last saw Andrew and I also mentioned that our 4th wedding anniversary is coming up in October so I'd love to be re-united with him by then :)

Mosaic

I had this idea ages ago for prettying up the front of the fireplace but I keep forgetting!

I've never done mosaic work before but I'm willing to give it a go. Why not do a pretty mosaic feature to cover up the slate?

Because the Tree of Life is so symbolic for Andrew & I, that might be a nice pattern to use for the fireplace.

Here are some inspiring "tree of life" mosaic pictures I found on Google.

Or I could just make my own Tree of Life by repeating the style of our wall art?

And the awesome thing is that I have just found an online mosaic design website so I can start experimenting!

Our village

Gypsy caravans for hire


Our village


Thatched cottage

Remains of 15th centure church tower - we can actually see this from our bedroom window, I have just discovered!

The laneway leading off the main road to our village is quite narrow, in some parts so narrow that if two vehicles approach each other one will have to pull into a driveway to let the other pass. After driving for so many years on our spacious Australian roads, it will take some getting used to. What makes it even scarier is that the laneways are often lined with tall thick hedges so it's impossible to look across a paddock and see what is coming. Andrew & I had some close calls with other cars when he took me sightseeing one day near his home town, the locals just take it for granted that there is nobody else on their road!

Friday night

GO THE EELS!!!!

An Australian touch

I've seen this house number plaque in a couple of shops and also on eBay, one of these would look really sweet at our front door. It's a nice way of adding some tasteful Australiana to our home.

I also love this Waratah tile.

Tree of Life

Moontree Candle Studio


Believe it or not, Andrew chose this artwork. It is a set of three mangowood carved panels.

The tree of life holds alot of emotional and spiritual sentiment for us, for Andrew especially.

So when we visited the Moontree studio in the Blue Mountains back in December, Andrew saw this beautiful artwork and bought it on the spot.

I think it will take pride of place in our lounge room or perhaps in the hallway so it can be seen as people walk through into the house.

The worst thing about this is that since our visit to the store, they have added more mangowood carvings to their range......





Guess who wants to buy this one but has been told there's not enough room....





(sheepishly raises her hand)

My latest finds for the lounge room

Moontree Candle Studio (my favourite shop in the whole world!)


M&S wool rug



M&S hurricane lamp




Driftwood wall sconces on eBay



How pretty are these sconces? Very creative I reckon.

Not sure I'd actually have them in my house - I mean, our house.... but they are really lovely anyway.

Wow!!

I just received an email response regarding the Chatsworth cushion cover that I am lusting after. The stockist still has a few and she is selling them at.... one pound each. That's about $2. Plus VAT (British taxes) and delivery. So maybe $10 in total? How good is that!! If I don't like the covers (I doubt it) I probably won't get my money back as they are a clearance item, but who cares, it's not a great deal of money to lose is it?

So I've replied to the lovely lady's email, asking how she would prefer me to pay and whether she could hold the goods for me until I have flown to the UK.

Oopsy-daisy. I think I just broke my promise not to spend money.

Just because I can

theglowcompany.co.uk


Orson & Blake


Ikea (!!)



Freedom Furniture

I've been trawling around for some inspiring homewares both in the UK and Australia for our new home. Andrew, if you are reading, don't worry I haven't bought anything, these are just some ideas!

I absolutely adore the owl lamp from Orson & Blake, I just have this obsession with owls. Wouldn't that lamp make a brilliant conversation piece?

The other lamps look elegant and classy. I'm still in shock that Ikea has such a pretty lamp and from memory the price is very reasonable too.

Success

It has taken me hours of browsing online to find these cushions to compliment my colour scheme in the main bedroom. I kept searching for "dusky" pink but discovered that it is also referred to as "dusty" pink, which is a bit of a typo by my standards. And then there's also "damson", "rouge", "clover" and "blush" pink just to confuse matters further!

This first cushion, the Chatsworth, looks absolutely luscious. The downside is that I don't think it's available anymore, and I'm waiting on an email requesting more info from the supplier.



Chatsworth by Jeff Banks (left)



Wallace Sacks pink faux fur



Sarah silk dusty pink


Peony by John Lewis




Lulu's Salon Collection Dusty Pink Button



Cross dyed cushion


Mandarin cushion



Beaded pintuck faux silk



Peacock by Graham and Green

Before photos

Brace for impact.

This is how the house looked before Andrew moved in. Some rooms had already been painted so you won't be able to see the hideous kaleidoscope that was our home. But these pics should still give you some idea. Our bedroom was a horrid salmon pink colour. The person who chose the colour scheme and painted each room was the guy who had been living in the house for about 10 years. Yes, a man chose these colours!! Was he colour blind?

Fireplace

I know.

It's a shocker. Isn't it.

The drop sheet is gone now, so is that wooden thing (no idea what that was!), the screen has been folded up and put to the side. I'm sure Andrew has swept it out and tidied it up by now also.

We don't intend to use the fireplace for heating the room as there are radiators all throughout the house which ought to warm us up nicely. The fireplace is our last resort if we're freezing our bottoms off.

So then we are left with this rather ugly stone feature that I want to pretty up.

I think I'll buy some mirrors to fit inside the fireplace, then fill the pit with lots of candles. That can at least give an "aura" of having a fire going and it's less messy.

Andrew's best mate Andy is a professional joiner (not a carpenter, thank you very much! lol) who works with his father Ken in Somerset. Perhaps Andy could build a new mantel to fit underneath the mantelpiece?

The other option I thought of is to just tile it over from top to bottom, but I'd much prefer a new mantel and then just put down some black tiles at the footing (sounds good, but I don't know what that part is actually called hahaha).

Suggestions please.