Displaying posts labeled "Sponsored"

Anyone else out there with no Christmas mojo? I’m at a loss this year when it comes to how and what and why bother. Thank goodness for Freedom who have come up with the cutest little videos to help and inspire! Lisa Tilse, designer, crafter, and maker from the red thread has gift wrapping nailed with simple and stylish solutions. I’m already folding gift bags for presents I haven’t even bought yet. Lisa you are so clever!

Stylist Eliza Ashe shows us how to set two simple but super Christmas tables after the jump. I’m loving the coastal theme, just perfect for an Aussie Christmas.

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Freedom.

With the warm weather my garden is shooting away. I swear I can almost see the plants growing. Up until now my backyard has been a little hit and miss. A cutting stuck in here. An overgrown houseplant liberated into a garden bed there. It’s time to get serious. It’s time to channel my inner gardener. My husband and I don’t want to be weekend slaves to the lawn mower. We are lucky to have old brick pavers but as they were once a driveway they cut through the space with surgical precision. It all needs a little softening. We would love rambling groundcovers or meandering paths of crushed granite. Perhaps vines and stands of bamboo. Definitely overgrown. Somewhere shady to sit. Maybe we’ll break up the paving into a checkerboard of plants and bricks and gravel. Something graphic but still casual with space for a veggie bed. I’ve started collecting inspiration. Here are a few ideas from two of my favourite Australian landscape designers… Eckersley Garden Architecture and Brendan Moar. I can see a trip to my garden centre very soon.

Eckersley Garden Architecture

Brendan Moar

 With over 200 years of horticultural heritage, Hayes Garden World attracts over a million visitors a year. Set in picturesque Ambleside in the UK, the centre stocks an extensive variety of interior design, and garden features.

Oneflare.com has just launched an Australian-first design inspiration tool called Oneflare Scrapbooks, to help Aussies design and build their perfect home. It’s an exciting new tool that helps people find and collect inspiring photos of their favourite home design, ideas and improvements.

To celebrate the launch, Oneflare are giving away 12 iPad Airs valued at $598 plus a $200 Oneflare voucher that can be spent on any of the hundreds of services through oneflare.com. A cleaner, a removalist, a gardener or even an interior designer – the list goes on!

Enter the draw, simply visit Oneflare Scrapbooks here, and click on your favourite image, share it on Facebook and tell us in 25 words or less why you like the image! Don’t forget to also ‘like’ the Oneflare Facebook page here.

With Oneflare Scrapbooks, you can now start planning the look of your dream home, and find the right trade professional to build it – all on one website. It’s essentially like a Pinterest for home design that is powered by over 37,000 qualified Australian home service businesses, guaranteed by Oneflare. And of course, just like finding a local service on Oneflare, it’s easy to use, and totally free!

Why use Oneflare Scrapbooks?

• Be inspired: You can pin images of your favourite design ideas from the web or their own device to their personal Scrapbooks account

• It’s social: You can share, like and comment on other people’s pictures and scrapbooks

• Connect to design experts: You have access to thousands of design/building/renovation experts who can collaborate with you to plan your dream home

• It’s transparent: Scrapbooks allows businesses to upload their portfolios. You also have access to past customer reviews and recommendations to you know how good they are.

• Save time and money: From inspiration through to choosing suppliers – the entire process takes place through the Oneflare site, taking the hassle out of planning any home improvement project.

What is Oneflare?

Oneflare.com is Australia’s fastest growing local services marketplace that connects Australians with over 37,000 businesses across Australia. Oneflare helps you find reputable local businesses, who are fairly priced – saving you time and money. All service providers are checked for licences, insurance and qualifications so you know they are reliable and trustworthy. Our key feature is our Oneflare Guarantee. Should something go wrong with your job, we’ll pay up to $500 to send another Oneflare business to repair your job and set things right.

How does it work?

1. Post a job you need done (posting a job is totally free)

2. You receive five competitive quotes from local businesses interested in your work, along with their full business profile, verification status and past customer reviews.

3. You simply hire the best!

Brought to you by OneFlare

Is the thought of the Christmas invasion getting you in a fluster? Family, friends we love them all but it can get a little overwhelming preparing for the big day. I was lucky enough to ask Freedom’s Homewares Buyer, Vanessa Rothery for some timely advice.

It’s only a few weeks until Christmas. What are your top tips for getting my home guest ready?

Get busy and get decluttering! Pack away all those things that don’t need to be out – whether it’s the tower of ironing, the pile of bills, or even just the few random bits and pieces around the house – decluttering can open up spaces and give the illusion of organisation. Try some new cushions to freshen up the living room – and even the spare bed. I like to rotate my cushions around the home, and add a couple of new ones to add some colour or pattern to a space. This adds a freshness to a space and can bring in some on-trend colours on a budget. Fresh flowers are also an easy way to bring life into your home. I’m a fan of flowers all in the same colour, en masse. I love styling them all on the table in small votives/vases. That way they can stay on the table during the meal. Holly Hipwell of The Flower Drum did a great event for us recently, each guest had a bunch of ranunculus on their place setting. It was a nice way to set the table – and guests took home their posy at the end of the lunch. Such a simple idea – that can be done on a budget, and is memorable.

It’s my first Christmas, well the first time I’m having all the family over for Christmas Day. I’m excited and a bit frightened. I don’t have enough chairs. Don’t even get me started on plates, glasses. What if someone wants to stay? Help. What can I do to make sure things run smoothly?

Mix and match your dinnerware to avoid having to invest in a whole new set. Just buy a couple of new key pieces like servingware. Our Host range – oak timber boards look amazing – and Scandi-chic for laden with seafood, cheeses or even ham or turkey. I love handmade place cards – or try the flower setting idea using a luggage tag to write the guest’s name – or I really love the look of our Quintessential decorations acting as a napkin ring. Each guest could take their decoration home as a memento! If seating is limited, we’re fans of getting a couple of extra stools – like the Tapas, that can be pulled up around the table – and when not in use look perfect as a bedside table. Or our Jupiter chairs come in a fun colourful range, and are stackable – it’s a budget-friendly way to bring in some extra seating when you’re entertaining. If someone else wants to stay – and space is at a premium the Sleepover ottoman is great. By day it’s an ottoman, by night you can just flip it out – et voila, a comfortable bed that will make your guest feel perfectly at home.

I’m time poor and a little strapped for cash after all the gift buying and grocery shopping. What are the little touches I can do around the home to make things special for my guests?

Fresh flowers are a must, even if they’re just a cheap bunch from the fruit and veg shop. Even pots of herbs look good on the table – plus they’re practical! If you have some nice greenery in the garden – such as oak leaf or camellia, that looks beautiful too. Candles make dinner tables feel really special and intimate, but I’m also a fan of our string lights trailed down the middle of the table. It looks so pretty, a modern-take on the fairy light. And always, always put a fresh handtowel in the bathroom.

I’m in a flap. I’ve left it all too late. There’s only a day or two left. If I only had time to do one thing to make me look like the Queen of Christmas hosting what would it be?

Pop on the Christmas carols, put the champagne in a bucket of ice, set the table with your favourite pieces, add some flowers and paste a smile on your face. At the end of the day everyone’s there to see you – not to judge your home, so have a great day and don’t stress! Oh and pour yourself a glass of bubbles too. Happy Christmas!

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Freedom.

Brace yourselves. I have some shocking news. It is only 4 weeks until Christmas. Yes. Truly shocking. If you are anything like I am you have done nothing. Zip. Zilch. Zero. But never fear, Freedom is here – the perfect gifting and decorating hub with fresh new inspiration to be help you be the ultimate host this summer… and alleviate the stress of gift giving.

“Australians love to entertain in Summer – and the holiday season is no exception. This year Freedom has really focused on those months of long lunches with family and friends gathered around the table to celebrate the season. We’ve made it easier than ever to decorate your table and make it really stand out,” says Vanessa Rothery, Homewares Buyer – Freedom.

I love Freedom‘s bright summery take on Christmas entertaining this year. Sunny yellows and coastal blues, whites and natural woods with just a hint of silver and sparkling glass. A relaxed but stylish take on the Aussie Christmas and pieces that you can use over and over long after the the Christmas table is cleared. My favs? Anything from the Entertain range but especially the table runner in indigo and the custard jug, oh and the cake stand for the pud. Custard and plum pudding yummo! I’ll take the Wish champagne flutes and the Host chip & dip set. Got to have a chip & dip, it’s summer remember. You can see more of the Freedom Christmas tabletop and decoration range here. Lots of fabulous ideas!

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Freedom.