Displaying posts from July, 2010

I’m taking the easy way out today as it’s my first day back at work and I’m still pooped from the hoopla of the past week. So here is another home from my new favourite site, Period Living. Lynda and Peter Thomas bought a Victorian semi-detached house in Essex (a county in the East of England region of the UK) in 2004 and when the one next door went up for sale they snatched it up so they could create one detached home. Apart from the exterior walls, almost everything was redone to make it more of an open concept. I adore all of the vintage furnishings they have amassed and the casual and not-so-country vibe they have created. My favourite touch is the collection of bejewelled chandeliers over the dining table. (Photos by Brent Darby).

Let’s start the day (or end it if you are on this side of the world) with bright and cheerful loveliness snapped by Danish photographer Kira Brandt. Those bulbs just make me smile. Not too long now until winter ends in this part of the world and I’m gathering spring inspiration from Kira’s portfolio. These images tick all the boxes. Retro boho, real homes, gorgeous flowers, sunny yellows and blissful blues. The woman has a great eye!

Hi everyone! I’m back in business after a short break for my wedding (which was fabulous), and I cannot be happier to be Jeff’s wifey (he’s been calling me that since Sunday) and I am grateful to no longer have list after list of things I need to do for the big day. I had no idea planning a wedding could be so freaking exhausting. Anyway, onto today’s post…

Sometime over the past week or 2 I came across a website from the UK that for the life of me I can’t remember how I stumbled upon it. It’s called Period Living – Britain’s best-selling period homes magazine. Inside are some very inspiring homes that have required ALOT of work to make them the beauties they are today. For instance, the three bedroom cottage of Phil and Philippa Heath that they purchased in 1992, which would have been two homes when it was built around 200 years ago. They did all the work themselves, and it took almost 2 decades. They were very resourceful – existing floorboards were stripped wherever possible, and when the floors weren’t in good enough condition to polish, Philippa painted the stairs; and in the reception rooms, they laid flooring salvaged from a local school that was closing down, where they also picked up some useful furnishings such as the large cupboard in the dining room. It is now a beautiful home for this family of 6. (Photos by Brent Darby)

Quite some time ago I was approached by the folks of the website ucinteriors.com (their German counterpart is solebich.de) if I wanted to be a part of a book they were having published on some of the homes whose photos were submitted to their community. The main idea of the book is to show real homes of real people. They kindly sent me a copy and it arrived just now. I was so excited to see my kitchen on the cover, my living room on one of the cover pages, and then SEVEN whole pages of my home! I am so honoured to be included among so many other quirky and lovely homes and I cannot wait to devour the rest of the book (which I unfortunately cannot read a word but I’m all about photos anyhow 🙂 ). A huge thanks to Claire and Luise!

Simplicity of design and honesty of materials. Inspiring in its minimalism. It’s all about turning constraints into opportunities, of recognising the limitations then going beyond them. Honesty, responsibility and creativity. Welcome to the portfolio of Barcelona based architects Emiliano López and Mónica Rivera.