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Wednesday 30 November 2011

Room update



Small but perfectly formed is how I'd describe it. Actually, forget the perfectly formed bit....let's just say the spirit level came into it's own when this room was being boarded!! 


This is how the space looked beforehand.


Before we even began stripping the room we knew we wanted to use traditional style fittings throughout. It's been great unpacking the boxes as they've arrived, like Christmas has come early! 

Who'd have thought I'd get so excited about a basin too?!


As we're working on creating our very own family home for the first time, every little decision, no matter how small has felt huge as we really want it to be the right one! Our decision with the shower room has been whether to keep it light, or make it dark and sumptuous!


With small, box-like rooms, I'm always tempted to go with their small proportions, paint them deep rich colours and embrace the cocooning effect they can have, rather than trying every tactic to make them appear bigger. 


However, the sunlight in this room first thing is lovely and we figured a morning shower in a light and breezy space would be far more invigorating. Perhaps the darker option would have me sneaking back off to bed for an extra hour or two!...(there's always the other bathroom!) 


I know most of these images are not shower rooms as such but each one has an element which I like. I love the simplicity and freshness of the image top left and the classic design to the floor, top right.  The basketweave tiled floor to the room above is a nice decorative touch.


We stopped by one of our local tile showrooms last week and I fell in love with these straight away... although didn't quite love the price as much!! Typical! I am very much of the thinking though, that in certain situations you should invest in items you truly love, rather than using something just because it's the cheaper option. In the long-run you'll get far more pleasure out of that item and will appreciate your initial expenditure.

That said, we have a huge list of items and fittings which need to be picked for the house and we'd prefer to invest a little more money in pieces that will hopefully be with us forever, such as classic furniture pieces and decorative light fittings.


So, after all that,  here's the latest...not set in stone but pretty much the route we'll be going. 

Elongated subway tiles in a soft grey marble-effect gloss, which rather than a matt tile, should help to bounce a little extra light around the space. Floor tiles - I'm veering towards the hexagonal mosaics with a darker grey grout. I think the black and white would feel more 'Deco' and as much as I'm a big fan of the Art Deco style, I'm now hoping to create a more tonal feel to the space.

I know you may think blaagh....but by keeping everything simple, I feel I can switch up the space easily using different accessories when the mood takes me. 

You might notice the snakeskin effect wallpaper in the background. This is a great hard-wearing paper from Tektura which I'm looking to use on one or two small areas. Can't wait to get it started!

Will keep you posted! xx

Opposites attract!


First things first....hands held high, I'm a terrible blogger!!

For those of you who have been asking recently how things are going, here's a little snippet for now and I'll be posting more this evening. Whilst I'm liking what's going on on the ground floor, Steve enjoys seeing the polar opposite, creating the mess you see on the left upstairs! Admittedly, I do like a spot of demolition but it's so nice to see some smooth plaster after all these weeks.

Tuesday 22 November 2011

Kitchen update


We've made quite a lot of progress in the house since my last post. Woodchip has been stripped (urrgh!), the sanitaryware for the shower room has been delivered (more on that tomorrow) and we'll be ready to order our kitchen by the end of this week. Just the small matter of choosing a tap in the meantime! 

This lovely kitchen above has all the elements of our proposed design which I'll be sharing with you in more detail on Friday. x

Image via: The Aestate

Monday 14 November 2011

On the cards...


A ridiculously fantastic kitchen by Windsor Smith!

By the end of this week we should have (hopefully!) finalised our shower room and kitchen fittings!! More to come with regards to our decisions...but why is it so hard when you're doing it for yourself?!!!!

Image via: Duchess Fare

Thursday 10 November 2011

Decision time


Next up, the shower room.

Images via: Lonny, Elle Decor

Wednesday 9 November 2011

Inspired


Here's hoping the stairway of No.8 will end up looking something like this classic beauty!

Michele Bonan is the creative force behind this work and an architect & interior designer whose work I admire and find incredibly inspiring. The JK Place in Capri, JK Place Firenze, Florence along with the Heidelberg Suites in Germany (from which this image is taken) are just some of his notable projects.




...sigh!!

Tuesday 8 November 2011

Cocktails anyone?


A diversion from the house today to focus on this stunning interior, The Livingston Restaurant & Bar in Atlanta.


Fusing classic style with modern touches, seamlessly.

I love the continuity of soft shades from the marble-clad columns and tabletops, chrome fittings and the pearlescent upholstery, all punctuated with a burst of deep berry colour through the striking floorcovering.


Easily one of my favourite commercial interiors I've stumbled on in a long time.


Found here.

Thursday 3 November 2011

Relaxed celebrations


I put this image aside a while ago as inspiration for our wedding. Yes wedding Steve!! I have to keep reminding him of this little fact (...and I am smiling as I write this, don't worry!!)

In amongst the renovations, we're also meant to be planning our big day and believe it or not, we're hoping to say our "I do's" exactly a year today.

We've both always loved the idea of a cosy Autumnal wedding with a relaxed vibe and I think this table setting achieves this. I love the use of the simple bentwood chairs and the candles placed along the length of the table at varying heights.

Aren't the possibilities for table settings just endless?!!! x


Wednesday 2 November 2011

Olivier Gagnère


This stunning image of designer, Olivier Gagnère's Parisian apartment graces the cover of the April 2010 issue of Elle Decor and sits permanently on my desk in the office. It was also this image which encouraged me to start experimenting with colours I would not necessarily use in my own home. 

Red was one of these colours, and lilac the other. Both of which I was never very fond of with regards to decor. However, I think they both work fantastically well here alongside the orange, a really unique colour combination.

I do believe the secret to making rooms like these work, is choosing the correct shade for the walls...a solid base from which these individual colours can come into their own.

Farrow & Ball's Elephant's Breath is one of these colours in my opinion and hugely versatile.  It seems to work with a wide variety of colours and is the shade I've managed to combine with red accents in our current hallway without cringing!


It's currently at the top of the list to paint our living room in the new place as I love it that much, so all that's left is the exciting task of choosing what to pair it with. I'll keep you posted. x

All images via: Elle Decor

Tuesday 1 November 2011

Creativity zapped!


Just thought I'd share with you the view from my desk today!!!

Oh and November, 
.... seriously, how did you come around so quickly!