Tagged: interior design
Going Glam x
I’ve been watching The Block on Amazon – an interior design competition set in Australia. The idea is 5 teams of two renovate a high end apartment each before flogging them at auction, any profit they make is their’s to keep, plus there’s additional prize money for the biggest winner. The programme originally started in the UK where it was a flop, then the Aussies grabbed it, injected some real money, upped the style criteria and produced a winner – I started at the 2015 series and was mightily impressed – considering it was five years old, all the decisions still stood the test of time. What makes it superior to other interior competitions is the authenticity and attention to detail – the contestants are given some serious wonga and are working on a genuine building site where their rooms have to pass code, overseen by structural engineers, foremen and architects; there are no glue guns allowed here. The addition of strict deadlines makes for a tense work environment between couples, between builders, between teams – it’s a rich soup of happenings and creativity that makes for compulsive viewing. I’m now on the 2016 series, where based on the building’s age the rooms are calling for art deco and Hollywood glamour, these were some of playing-along-fantasy-sofa-surfing-inspiration-picks…
Be still my beating heart….
Laters, Kate x
The Sitting Room x
Charlie, The Husband and I went to Twickenham on Sunday to see England v Wales (cr*p kicking but a great match). Before we left there was a huge discussion about the weather..hot? Cold? Rain? Snow? The general consensus was if the sun was shining it would be hot…but it wasn’t…so we dressed for winter. We got there…the sun came out…and we all fried like sirloin steaks on a barbie. Today, in contrast the heavens have opened and we’re probably getting the months rain in one day which means we’re all stuck inside as it’s half term. I’ve declared it a creative day, with my creative project being to paint the sitting room.
(I’ve been desperate to paint these velux windows white since they first went in)
The walls also need a lot of work where we had a leak (all fixed by the builders) and general 10 years of wear and tear.
I’ve surprised myself by sticking to brilliant white but it works on multiple levels: The ceiling with all it’s variation in height is blended together with the eye drawn to the highest point, the skirting board radiator that runs round the edge of the room disappears, and finally..there’s a fairly eclectic mix of furniture in this room that the white pulls together (spot the latest edition..my seventies table light..probably deserves a separate post).
I did all the prep work for half the room yesterday..I’m hoping I can get it all finished by tomorrow.
Not easy when the kids are off school for half term..for instance, I couldn’t find my phone yesterday – not a huge hardship as we’re not biologically linked. But it eventually turned up in Bella’s room, tuned to You Tube and a video about ‘Women making graffitti for the first time’ …if you’re mentally away..the mice play..
Laters, Kate x
Summer Blues..
The kids left for Greece this morning and it was my job to hug enthusiastically and wave with excitement. But my heart broke just a little bit. I’ll see them in a week..but it does feel as though they are going a long, long way away.
I was talking to their lovely Teacher yesterday who told me I’d be off to vintage markets and all sorts..and she was right – this time is a gift and I’d be a fool not to use it wisely. We actually have a vintage event on Saturday so I’m gathering my black coat of mourning and heading off to Stoke Newington to see what delights I can find. Taking my decorating mags on the train with me…
The idea of our renovation is to replace some of our internal walls with these Crittall windows..mi piace mol to…and now maybe I’ll get a bit further than just collecting pictures…
Then tonight the Husband and I are going to Regents Park Open Air Theatre (one of my absolute favourite summer venues) to be wined and dined and to see Hobson’s Choice..
But I will be looking up at the stars knowing that my two can see them also…
Laters, Kate x