5 things I’ve learnt from…

This week I have been catching up on reading all of my favourite blogs. I love reading the blogs of others especially if I learn something new and interesting. This week I thought I’d share some of those posts with you.

1. Over on A CUP OF JO, I found out that Hygge & West have launched a new wallpaper that is removable. I love the blue hue with the birds and clouds.
2. I learned who the “Top manufacturers of cashmere home goods” were on the blog L’ESSENZIALE  a fellow KLC student.
3. A CUP OF JO also taught me “3 ways to arrange flowers”.
4. James Davidson provided an insightful view of his “Creative Process” over on COLOUR LIVING.
5. EMILY HENDERSON gave us 5 tips to designing a timeless kids bedroom.

Do take a look at these posts. I found each of them really interesting and as you know, I love it when I learn something new. I’d be keen to know if you learnt anything from them also.

I’ll be back on Monday for another Interior Style. I hope you have a wonderful weekend. xD

A room with a view…

Like I said yesterday, the weather has not been behaving itself this week. And it’s usually in the middle of the week that I start needing some inspiration to get me through to the weekend.

So today I really want to escape to somewhere exotic and warm. This image was taken from a hotel room in India. I love the blue hue of the buildings taken at dusk. How wonderful it would be to bask in that light.  Can you smell the spices in the air? xD

Image Source: Jenslennartsson.se

A beautiful place and Pinterest

I’ve been busy over on Pinterest.com  getting lots and lots of inspiration for some projects that need to get done over the summer. During my inspiration fest I came across this quote that made me smile. Has that ever happened to you?

And speaking of Pinterest, I’ve started to pin some of the “how to” type posts that I have written for easy access and reference for people who might be interested. Just click on the images below to take you there. Back tomorrow for more inspiration.

The weathers been atrocious over here, so I’m off to get myself a hot cup of tea before I head out again. Till tomorrow. xD

Image Source: whatIloved.tumblr.com

Book Review: Things I Love by Megan Morton

Megan Morton is one of Australia’s most successful and well known stylists. I’ve been an interested observer of her work when I first saw her home being featured in the Vogue Living Australia Blog last year and been an avid follower since.

I must admit that when her latest book called “Things I Love”  came out I was sceptical. But I was after a coffee table book that provided some eye candy and because I liked her home, I took the plunge and decided to make the purchase. I even left it for a few weeks after it arrived before I actually sat down to have a read and I was pleasantly surprised.

The book is divided into 4 sections – Houses featuring various creative people with interesting homes, Things which are objects styled and featured in an assortment of rip out post cards, People which features interviews with inspiring people in the creative industry and Doing which is full of practical tips that every stylist should know.

What I loved about this book was that I was inspired in several ways; through the visual images of interiors, through the inspiration of the people she featured and practical  how to’s that included step by step instructions. I learned a whole lot of things that I never realised I wanted to know but have found extremely useful. From how to dewrinkle ribbon to my all time favourite – how to fold a fitted sheet. Megan has imparted her knowledge and wisdom in this book and I highly recommend you take a look.

 

 

If you’re interested in purchasing the book, you can find it on Amazon in the UK or from her website Meganmorton.com. Have a lovely Tuesday and I’ll be back tomorrow. xD

Image Source: Last image – Amazon.co.uk

 

Designer Profile: Rose Uniake

Firstly, I just wanted to thank those that sent comments, messages and tweets about my birthday. It’s nice to have so many kind wishes. I had a lovely day with my family and got to relax, read a couple of interior magazines and then have Pizza Express for dinner. How was your weekend? I hope it was all you hoped and more.

Lately, I’ve been reading up on successful Interior Designers. I like to find out about how they came into the industry and whether they have a particular aesthetic that I can identify with. Of course, there are many talented and successful interior designers out there, however I’m finding that I don’t necessarily appeal to the work of all of them. The more I look, the more I’m drawn to the work of particular designers and their styles (it’s only natural I suppose).

One such designer, whose work I’ve been keen on is Rose Uniake. She started out as an antiques dealer and opened up an antiques store in Pimlico. One day a client of the store asked her to decorate their home and the rest is history.

You can see her passion for antiques in the interiors she designs. She has a wonderfully toned down style using primarily natural, textured materials such as Wood, Marble and Linen. Her designs mix the serenity of minimalism with the opulence of glamour through the use of carefully selected antiques against a muted and natural colour palette. I like that she has a distinct aesthetic (examples in the 2 homes shown below) and yet has the ability to translate that into different forms. For example, her own home is a classic style with a muted colour palette, and then her clients home is still muted but more contemporary and agressive (black and white) but still with her antique trademark.

If you want to see more of her work, you can look up her website here.

What do you think? Do you like her style? This is the first post in the series of Designer Profiles. I will be back next week with an Interior Style. Have a lovely day. xD

Image Source: nytimes.com, RoseUniake.com

5 things I’ve learnt from…

The Victoria &Albert Museum is fantastic when it comes to providing affordable classes on almost any topic related to art, design and culture. Back in May 2009, I attended a very interesting study day called “De-mystifying the Commissioning Process”.

At that time I was in the throws of renovating our old flat. We were seriously considering commissioning a fairly large bespoke AV unit as we had spent way too much time trying to find one ready made that met the needs of both big J (it needed to fit all of his precious audio and visual equipment and exacting measurements) and mine (it needed to look good). Then this study day came along and so I jumped at the chance to find out more before we took the plunge. Here are some tips that I learnt that day…

1. Make sure that you are clear about what you want and get everything in writing.
2. Ensure you are  clear on price (including any delivery and installation costs), timing and terms of contract before proceeding or putting down a deposit.
3. Provide images, sketches and fabric swatches to the craft person to help them with inspiration and insist they provide samples for approval.
4. If working with fabric, always get stock cuttings as the colour on the samples could be different; then check how much is left on the roll. When you receive the delivery of the fabric, always check the stock cutting you have against it as batches can vary in colour.
5. Get the crafts person to visit the property they will be building for if possible. This will allow them to take measurements if required and see the space.

A lot of this is common sense however I did learn how important it is to ensure that both the craftsperson/designer and client understood each other and agreed on expectations before any exchange of contracts took place. This helped immensely in our own commissioning process.

So have you had anything commissioned? What are your experiences of this and do you have any lessons learned you’d like to share? I’d love to know.

It’s finally the weekend and this Sunday is my birthday so I’ll be celebrating quietly with my family. I hope you have a lovely weekend and I’ll see you on Monday for more interior talk. xD

Image Source: Unknown

A room with a view…

 

Every week I post an image of a room with a fabulous view to keep us all motivated until the weekend. Today I thought I’d keep with the New York theme and show a sensational view which is a backdrop for some to die for summer shoes. This is inspiring in 2 ways, the view of the city itself is wonderful but also, the summer shoes remind me that the weather where I can wear those shoes is just around the corner. Have a lovely day. xD

Image Source: Unknown (if you know the source, please let me know and I’ll update).