Category: interiors
The Hall x
The kitchen still hasn’t arrived – some hold up at the spray painters. I wait for it with baited breath because I’m desperate to know the colour as it will have such an impact on what happens next both in the hall and in the sitting room.
I have the empty pot sitting on the fireplace as a colour guide..and it looks a greeny grey.
And the colour samples on the wall…which look grey.
But I swear when it was painted it was a seventies brown.
The stairs up to the first floor are already painted this colour (not a picture of them – too covered in dust (another ceiling went this week..the last one) (over our temporary kitchen mind you!)…but does it stay? I’ve also noticed that all the staircases that tick the box have no runners….not an option for us. And if a staircase is dark, the walls are white. Not great with kids. And what runner works on a dark staircase?
There’s always the option to go lighter..
I was going to use a kilim runner as a stair carpet down to the cellar/underworld. Maybe I’ll move that idea and use it in the entrance hall instead..add a bit of much wanted colour and texture..
I think I’m going to run with it (hoho)..and see what happens…
Nothing ventured, nothing gained…
Laters, Kate x
Procrastinating aloud..
No more this. Begone..
Or this. All dark thoughts to be obliterated (or possibly left to the cellar underworld to (hopefully) fulfil..we’ll see..)
Welcoming this.
And this.
Clean, calm, tranquil. Spilt tea, homework, functional, practical..
And this.
No. Not this. (Must learn..)
This. Which could be approximately the colour the units will be (despite having painted the whole room – I still have no idea what colour it is – officially it’s called Umbra grey)..But it’s what it’ll look like in photos..the actual colour is more earthy? (How could I have chosen such a non-colour??)..
This picture has made the cut because of it’s contrasting pale colour – I think I’ll need one..(will it be a green, grey or cream?? Depends on the colour of the units…)
Contrast colours..
Subtle contrast colours.
Not sure I’m very good at subtle.
Laters, Kate x
Disaster..
So here’s the thing: This weekend I finally started to paint the kitchen..
I pulled out the big drums and polyrhythms and went with what my heart said..dark. On the sample it looked grey – in my tin – grey. On the wall – brown. In pictures – black. My mother (who saw it) is still convinced it was green. To be honest..once it was on, it just looked promisingly awful. Not at all what I had imagined.
If you’re an uber cool couple with no children..then it certainly makes a statement. Sadly our space is less flickering candlelight more spilt tea and homework. I even unwrapped the mirror to see if stuff on the walls made a difference – and like the skidmarks of a bad crash, that’s when I discovered the next tragedy – the mirror had woodworm…great with a brand new oak parquet floor..
I know I’m not the only one to be suffering colour sample polymorphing..the truth is – the only way to know if you really like a colour is to paint a whole wall..or if you’re mad like me, a whole room. Sigh. And then be prepared to stand back and admit you’ve made a mistake: I like to believe I have adventurous taste but to have kept this just to prove a point would’ve made it the worst fake since…well, Madonna. So whilst I lament that it’s the wrong story…and it breaks my heart – the salient fact is it’s only paint and we all make mistakes: Nobody has died. It’s just my very own, very sad bad….that will be paid for in blood and sweat..
There was no time to faff with new samples – it needed to be finished by this morning (Monday) as the kitchen was due to arrive back for fitting. The only option was to go big and go white..
Have you ever painted over black before?
I gave up at one o’clock this morning..
The whole design now needs a new re-think…and I’m suspecting that only way to make this work is to embrace everything Scandi.
Never thought I’d write that..
Laters, Kate x
Just Because..
Ceilings x
Probably the coldest morning of the winter today – the perfect conditions for clearing the garden of Molly’s now solid brown presents. Makes me wonder if someone has invented a poo-freezer yet…no! not somewhere to store her daily offerings! but something Ghostbuster-like to make the job even slightly more fun..a bit like the paint I tried on the ceiling this weekend. I hate painting ceilings..but there’s more of a twinkle if it’s an ever-so subtle shade of bubble gum pink..
What do you think? A design step too far??
Good job it turns white after an hour…hehe!
In principal it’s a great idea..but does make you realise how hard/long it takes to paint cornice properly..
Laters, Kate x
House update..
It’s becoming like Christmas here with something new every day…another major part of the build – the floor – is going down…
It’s ticking all the boxes…the choice had again been a step away from the norm as I’d asked them for as many knots/character/colour variations as possible..basically a posh design that feels rustic.
The transformation is taking a bit of getting used to – after staring at it (for what was probably hours) I gingerly tried to balance my way round the unfinished edge to get to the stairs. ‘It’s a floor!’ The builders said, ‘Walk on it!’
Except I can’t!..
(Don’t think it will stop the kids though…)
Laters, Kate x
It’s all black and white..
The good news is I’m off this morning to pick up our platform ladder from my sister…which means the serious renovation decoration is about to start.
The bad news is it’s all going to get done by paintbrush wielding me.
The good news is I like to get my hands dirty: No pain, no gain.
(All pictures Pinterest)
The bad news is…it tends to be more than just my hands..
Laters, Kate x
Backsplash Recap..
From hero to zero: After the joy of last week, all that’s now left of the kitchen is an empty room with a few pipes in the floor as it’s all been shipped to the spray painters. I committed to the final colour yesterday…nerve wracking! Particularly when you’ve had your heart set on one shade since the start…and then you’re told it’s not possible. Thank God I’m a great believer in fate..but it hasn’t stopped my heart from pounding.
But more decisions await: There was this post on splashbacks a while back and the final look still needs to be pinned down. Loving all things metallic at the moment so I’m thinking why not?
So much to choose from!
But budget does come into it..so I took myself off to bog standard B and Q to see what I could find that could be man-handled into something different…and was surprisingly successful. There’s this woven brass sheet, reminiscent of French Bergere sofas and chairs..
Laid over a stainless steel sheet it would compliment and pull in the stainless steel from the fridge/freezer..
Then there was this design..if the design itself had been bigger I would’ve snaffled it up there and then..
And then they had this..hammered copper rather than brass..again, not sure as it was only in the smaller size..and all the accents are brass..would pink work??
(All pics Pinterest)
I was sensible..there’s no rush – yet. So I walked away and will let it all cogitate and stew down…
Laters, Kate x
Kitchen Update x
Oh Joy aboundeth! I got home yesterday to see the antique French bookcase sitting in it’s new home for the first time! The builders have done a sublime job incorporating it into the new kitchen..one day it will hold all our crockery and glassware..one day..to say I love it is an understatement. It’s always a dodgy time when you imagine a concept – and you’re pretty sure it’s going to work..but you never know until it’s actually in place. The relief!
The plan is now for all the big units to disappear off to be spray painted whilst the room is decorated and the floor is laid…which has bought on a major paint crisis.
I thought I was blissfully sailing along, all paint decisions for the kitchen made.
Except the spray painters want an RAL number for the colour so they can mix up their own paint with additional hardeners. And I’ve chosen a boutique paint that no-one knows – Madison Grey by Abigail Ahern.
I’m running off now to the paint shop to see if they can help me – the last thing I want to do is to start looking at tester pots again…and of course it’s the big fascinator poker night piss-up party tonight. Always the way…
Laters, Kate x
Bohemian Minimalist?
I’ve been reading Bea Johnson’s book ‘Zero Waste Home’ with interest – it’s fair to say it’s an eye opener. Whilst there’s no doubt she’s taken her chosen style of living to an extreme (her 4 member family produce just one large jar of rubbish a year)..( I confess that’s less than we manage in a day) and despite the fact the book is written for the American market, there’s no denying the hidden gold between the pages…..she genuinely believes that in our fast-paced, modern world we’ve disconnected from the true reality of our commercialism and the consequences of our voracious, unstoppable actions. By shining a light on something as simple as rubbish she aims to change people’s attitudes in a broader, rippling sense..and make a real difference both to the individual and the planet. Impressive ambitions.
The book reminds me of an article I read in the Times by Caitlin Moran where she admitted that as a poor person she was far more creative: No money to buy it equalled make it or fix it. But now with success, she just throws money at the problem…we think because we can have it all, we should have it all. We even deserve to have it all.
Bea thinks differently: She likes to simplify life right down to needs not wants, equalling less hassle, less waste..less stuff.
And that’s where she and I differ. I understand the simplicity of a clutter free, simplified life…but clutter and old stuff are fundamental to my personal lifeblood. All these pics represent interiors I aspire to with their sense of timeless style and soft edges.
A house without books? Soulless.
No artworks and bedspreads?
(All pics Pinterest)
Or knick knacks and beautiful rugs? It would break my little heart.
But I think there are grey areas where we overlap. And I’d really like to explore her world in little steps..doing something different every month. Watch this space…
Laters, Kate x
Maison Bentley Style 