Tagged: Vintage
White on..
There are some things that even science still can’t explain..
Past bathroom trends: Curiously overstated, flamboyant, slapstick and in your face.
But maybe it wasn’t so bad…maybe we’ve now gone too much the other way – found the plot but lost the fun?
Because yes, there was holy chaos…but take away the shag pile carpets, soften the saturated colour..and the essence of something special is in there..
Hidden in plain view, the traces are lovely…
(All pics Pinterest)
This is the Maida Vale sink by Fired Earth, available in aqua, yellow and navy.
Wide-eyed bewilderment in this goofy praise of avocado? Keep watching – the tide marks are turning…
Laters, Kate x
The New Art Piece x
The nostalgia of vintage is that magic of re-discovery, the knowledge that with a tiny twist, anything can be re-invented so it doesn’t lose character but effortlessly slips into something more avant garde.
That veil-lifting moment when something previously scorned suddenly turns into a fully fledged, royal owning swan.
I’m having that rush with live edge coffee tables: What once was regarded as seventies back of the throat kitsch is now looking the wobblies du chien.
Naturally (no pun intended) the biggest, gnarliest trees produce the best slabs and if colour and size are what you want then purchasing from the States is your best bet. But this isn’t a cheap option – the cream sell for thousands of pounds because these are natures own works of art, cultivated at the pace of a snail over centuries of toil.
But there are other ways.
(All pics from Pinterest)
The creative alternative is to make one yourself, like this blogger did: A large cut of native wood carefully chosen, combined with hairpins legs readily picked up from Ebay and a bit of elbow grease.
How hard can it be?
Laters, Kate x
Snow Babies..
I’ve read that personalities can be divided into two camps – cowboys and farmers. The cowboys are the restless ones, always roaming and seeking new pastures whilst the farmers solidly plough the same field over and over again. Our ski holiday embraced everything cowboy: Constantly on the go, incredible scenery, crisp air, the smell of wood smoke, peace (piste…and pissed as well) as well as a true sense of wonder.
A fusion of manmade and natural – an icicle chandelier.
We were in La Rosiere on the French side of the Aosta valley, ski-able into Italy. And by all accounts, were lucky to have snow.
They were using snow cannons when we first arrived, but as the runs were in full sun it still made for great conditions. And then it snowed.
I’ve never seen this before – three rainbows, one on top of the other, made by the sun refracting through ice crystals in the air.
It always amazes me how slopes look flat in pictures!
We decided Charlie is really a secret snowboarder!
And what did I wear?? John’s old two-piece from the eighties! Maybe not quite pure vintage swagger, but on a ski slope..the joy is no-one cares!
And now I suppose it’s time to return to farming…and wrestling with the Einstein quote that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
The silver lining is our holiday proved that perfectly decent wheels can aways be reinvented..
Laters, Kate x
Wonderland x
We’re taking the kids to the slopes for the first time this Christmas – well, I say this Christmas – we leave on the 30th. But that’s not much time to move from turkeys and tinsel to long johns and salopettes..
(All pictures Pinterest)
If only I could pack this little lot in my suitcase…
Laters, Kate x
A Christmas Tale x
Not into rubbish? How about re-cycled? – It’s the present that keeps on giving.
All these joys are from Re-found Objects, the royalty of quirky finds.
(All pics from Re-found Objects)
Just make sure you’re buying presents for others hey.
Laters, Kate x
Jewels x
Clip Art x
Sometimes it’s the little things in life that make the biggest impact: Take the Tiny Homes movement sweeping across America quietly proving that small can mean freedom. They’re also icons of great design where every square inch counts.
This is a Tiny Home from Portland that just sings with love and clever details.
Just because it’s compact, doesn’t mean it has to be modern.
It puts a smile on your face.
Laters, Kate x
Charlie boy..
It was two years ago I wrote this post about my Charlie. To briefly re-cap it was to honour his sense of self and lack of inhibitions, particularly when it came to clothes..but I wondered how long it would last – there’s a big difference between 5 and 7. However I believe the photo above: Charlie holding a shell he found himself on an exploration round a rocky headland whilst illustrating his love of a fine sarong proves that nothing has yet changed..
He’ll happily have flowers in his hair..
Or braids. (When the girls had their hair braided..so did Charlie..)
When we did a wander around Covent Garden and Soho, to both find the BFG dream jars..and do a sneaky vintage shop trawl. All Charlie wanted was his own bow tie!
We did another shop, getting ready for the new term…he chose and black felt cap with ears (which he then wore to the Oval for the England v Pakistan test match)
A bag with pink tassels, a polka dot shirt and a sheepskin lined embroidered jacket..
All from Zara girl! (far better colours than the boys section I was told)
I think he’s going to be OK – they haven’t subverted him yet!
Long may it last!
Laters, Kate x
Sitting room storage..
Sometimes I dabble, sometimes I dream through half-closed eyes looking at the offending room, or in this case, corner of a room wondering what trick will create the magic. The present corner in question is in the sitting room which is less hipster chic more family mess with the tv balanced on an unloved old side table, multiple plugs, leads and consoles plus a most unattractive plastic box filled with…tat. So instead of chaos I think of clever storage and chic solutions…..and it’s vintage wall units all gently glowing with decades of love and charm that focus into view.
(You can spot the offending item next to the yellow chair in the lefthand corner)
TV’s are always problematic – large, black, ugly they dominate a room. I sorted it in our cellar cinema room (aka The Underworld) by darkening the walls and designing a specially made fireplace that sneakily both hid all the cables and opened up to reveal the dvd player, set boxes as they were needed…the front has a grill that drops down for easy access but also works closed as you can change channels etc through the mesh. It’s been a revelation.
The storage needs to be practical and beautiful so the current thought is to go for a Poul Cadovius style wall unit. The appeal is the simple design and it’s flexibility – the shelves/cabinets can be arranged in any order.
I’m thinking the cabinet with sliding doors, like the one above, could sit with it’s back cunningly removed over the plugs on the wall and hide all the leads and house the dvd/etc (I refuse to get rid of my dvds..one day they’ll be like vinyl. Promise.) And then, because it’s deeper, the TV could also sit on top…even be angled.
The rest of the shelves could be then arranged above.
I think it’s a solution. Can it be a reality?
Laters, Kate x
Swedish Hasbeens x
So I’m running away to the sun today a week earlier than expected as my father has broken his elbow – there’s no time to write new blog posts, instead I offer you summer re-runs..some of the best posts from times gone past. Until we meet again – enjoy!
I was aware of fashion from a very early age …rolling down my hated knee socks in primary school in longing of cute ankle ones – and lusting over those nearly not there socks with the pom-pom at the back? Sigh. And there was the utter object of my desire..navy blue clogs. I’d watch those lucky girls nonchalantly flick them off to do cartwheels on the grass..before sliding them back on and jauntily walking off with that bone dry rhythm. I knew it was wrong to be fiddling with a buckle.
Time has made a difference..and I just got me some new summer shoes…CLOGS! A long held desire has been appeased and a wrong has finally been righted..Do you know the brand Swedish Hasbeens? They have a lovely story..(although it has given me visions of Anita lighting up a four-legged beast from the desert)..
The story |
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The designs are delicious…
A clunky shoe that’s elegant..want this one.
Love this colour – they also do in canary yellow!
Want these. And some more retro style ads from their website:
I went for simplicity and a lower heel – I’ve never worn Hasbeens before and I suspect a wooden sole takes a bit of getting used to, also I was ordering off the internet…and truth be told – I’m not too good on really high heels and I want these as regular day shoes..the colour is divine…not white, but a soft, buttermilk.. they’ll go with everything..
But if they suit…and they become my best-ever-summer-shoe-purchase-since-the-arrival-of-flatforms..guess where they’ve opened their first UK shop? Only in Hanbury street in Spitalfields…I hear a siren call..
Laters, Kate x
P.S. Tip from Anna, the half-Swedish girl who knows..to wear them in (the leather is good n strong) start wearing them in the house with extra thick socks!
Maison Bentley Style 