Alpine Loving

This is will be my last post for the next few weeks as I'm off to Austria for Christmas and New Year and I thought I would use my soon-to-be-surroundings as inspiration for this post.

So I'll leave you with some Alpine inspiration and a 'Merry Christmas'!

** warm and cosy ** edelweiss flowers ** ski gear indoors ** contrasting textures ** open fires ** bare wood ** knitted pillows ** hunting ** stag heads & antlers ** sheep skin throws ** cowhide rugs ** thick quilts ** chalet chic ** raw materials with modern twist ** rustic ** hand carved furniture **

1. Woodchip and Magnolia 2. Eco-Stylista 3. Je Dore Decour 4. Woodchip and Magnolia 5. Flickr 6. Eco-Stylista 7. Eco-Stylista 

Finally found!

Quite a few weeks ago I posted about my ongoing search for a set of circus lights to hang indoors or possibly outdoors. A few people helped me out with possible places to search for these (thank you to all of you) but I was still unable to find any that were quite right.

Until just now!! After a loooooong day Christmas shopping I walked past a street stall that had some beautiful and absolutely perfect string circus lights, and the lady told me I could find them at Lights4Fun. A little bit of a questionable name but they were perfect- cloudy bulb giving a softer glow, white string and they can be joined together to make a much longer chain.

So I have just placed an order with Lights4Fun for one set of '10 Globe Warm White LED Party Lights' that will be hung in our dining room and will, fingers crossed, look amazing! Will post photos when they arrive and are up and running!

Here's a little preview from the website-

Va-Va-Voom Chairs

How to make a simple chair way more exciting....

Take a/ a set of wooden chairs...

Sand it down and prime with white wood paint...

Pick a bright colour...

Paint it all over or just the legs or just the back, its up to you...

Maybe stencil on something fun...

Or...

Learn how to upholster with a Youtube video...

And cover the seat with contrasting, patterned material...

And...

To make it look a little worn and used sand down the corners and edges...

Or finish off with a thick layer of clear varnish.

Et voila!! Interesting chairs to be proud of and so simple to do on a stay-in-Sunday. Mix and match with different colours and upholstered material around the dining table, use as a bedside table or place in the bathroom or hallway.

Clockwise from top left: Brunch At Saks, Upstyled, Bright Bazaar, Etsy, Brunch At Saks, Bright Bazaar.

Study Spaces

It's down to the final days of term and all this last minute essay writing has got me daydreaming about the perfect work space to encourage some inspirational pen-to-paper action.

Clockwise from top left:

Colourful wall hanging to inspire. Design Sponge

(Definition of 'Study'- Very, very true!) Pinterest

Vibrant, colour-coded mood board to boost creativity (p.s. I have one of those little cardboard deer heads, they are so cute!) Prepfection

Quirky over head light to focus you. Design Files

Desk positioned away from the wall so you don't come up again a mental brick wall. Hanna Skoog

Greenhouse in House

I think that bringing a bit of the outdoors indoors is really important in every house, not just bunches of flowers but real, living plants. They bring vibrancy, freshness and life. Plus house plants are very easy to keep alive, which for someone like me that hasn't quite found her green fingers is a bonus. 

Larger tree plants can stretch up into taller rooms with high ceilings making them cosier and plants placed in windows can create dappled, soft light in a bright room. We have 2 quite big plants in our bathroom that sit behind the glass pane of our shower and it makes you feel like you're showering in a tropical forest, which I love! 

Why not try putting a plant in your fireplace, on a fridge or windowsill, hang one from the shelves, stand one in the corner of a room, at the end of the bath or on a stool.

(1.) SeeSaw Designs (2.) Reference Library (3.) I Love Nesting (4.) We Heart It (5.) A Pretty Life

Bathroom Tile Inspiration

Recently I have been looking around for some bathroom tile inspiration. We don't have any tiles behind our bathroom sink at the moment and I want to find some colourful, patterned tiles to go there, just a few that will bring colour and detail into the room and make it a little bit more interesting. Ideally they would be quite quirky and unique, but not too modern. 

So if anyones knows of anywhere I can get anything like any of the below, please let me know! And I hope you find some inspiration from these too.

1. UK TV 2. Bathroom Tiles Design 3. Fired Earth 4. Red Online 5. Welbeck 6. A Casa da Va 7. Home Klondike

Please Come In....

I always forget what you can do with a hallway until I see something like the below. They are often so small, and hard to do anything with. I for one always forget how useful they are and that they make the first impression when people come in, so make a statement and be bold because you can very easily

1. Classy, old world colours but detailed and interesting makes you feel like you in a country pub where you're going to find an open fire and amazing Sunday roast (the best feeling you could get when you walk into somewhere). House to Home

2. This hallway has a really lovely 'taken from the workshop' feel to it with the worn wood coat hanger, umbrella stand and utility table. Similar things could all easily be picked up at a flea market, car boot sale or charity store. Design Files

3. A hallway is a great place to display an array of oddities and randomness as the smallish space will hold them really well. The art deco double layered frames painted on the walls are amazing and would be easy to do yourself with some masking tape and patience. Design Sponge

4. Those fairy lights across an entrance wall make it inviting and warm and somehow doesn't look Christmas'y at all. ZsaZsa Bellagio

5. Farm house, checkered flooring with bare brick above high panelled walls. Yes please. Klikk

6. This victorian inspired hallway with swirly patterned wallpaper and decorative vintage umbrellas is kept modern with the simple chest of draws and bright colours.  Pinterest

7.  Aqua blue walls, barbie pink banister, bright white stairs and parquet flooring; who knew it would make for the most incredible hallway? Bright Bazaar

8. I have always been told that in a small space you dont want to clutter the walls too much or it will make it look even smaller. But this hallway completely goes against what I was told, still giving the illusion of a spacious corridor with space for coats and even somewhere to put on your wellies. I love it!  La Petite Lavande.

9. Two tone walls with the dado railing breaking it up and keeping it fresh. The contrasting bright colours between the two rooms is really nice. Unfortunately, for me, it's ruined by the tacky butterfly frames but the idea is nice. Design Files

Shopping Bag Decor

Today on this cold, wet, miserable December day this girlie dresser warmed me inside and completely inspired me. I absolutely love the idea of framing classic shopping bags (no Topshop or River Island ones allowed) to hang them above a dressing table or even around your bathroom mirror. They are all quite simple but the different colours and sizes fit together with the consistent white frames. Sadly I'm just a poor student so have absolutely no way of obtaining a Chanel shopping bag unless a kind rich person were to donate one to me... hint, hint.

But after quickly scouring Ebay, you can buy one from a lady in America for £7 + £6pp, don't know it that is tempting or not? Probably not. 

The Nest

My little bit of Tribal

Last week I posted about tribal patterns so this week I thought I would show you a bit of my tribal....This is a pillow and material we bought back from Panama earlier this year. They were both was made by Kuna Indian women, a native tribe in Central America. There are really traditional patterns and style and the Kuna people still wear embroidered material like this around their waist everyday. They're made from lots of different layers of material sewn together with colourful thread, I think they're so beautiful and having it brings back a bit of the culture from Panama and memories from an amazing trip.

Corners To Curl Up In

In the cold winter months it's nice to have a warm and cosy place to curl up with a book and a massive cup of tea. We don't really have a place like this in our house at the moment and I'm really wanting to squeeze one in, somehow.  

So in the mean time I'll sit with my tea and chocolate fingers imagining I was in any one of these reading corners....

1. A very grown up, professional corner, somewhere you could write your journal by the fire. Love the old school photos above the chair, it makes it a place to reflect and remember (possibly!). Flickr

2. More of a summery reading corner with bright colours and deep wool carpet. Simply Stoked

3. I am just in love with this reading corner- its got the colour coding going on (which I'm a massive fan of), the textured leather and wood and that great circus style pillow. Bright Bazaar

4. This is just the most amazing space with the mixture of textures, patterns and soft neutral colours and all those fluffy pillows. Convoy

5. Salmon coloured, retro chic, grandma's armchair made inviting and fresh! Design Files

6. That armchair looks like it could swallow you up and the colourful pillows and flowers makes me want to go get my book. Houzz