Fabric finds at Ginger & Smart
A pretty package of silk chiffon
I popped in to the Ginger & Smart sale today (which I read about on the fabulous, but deadly, Missy Confidential site) and found these gorgeous fabric pieces for a fraction of what they’re worth.
The two metres of pink I’ve earmarked for a willowy summer kaftan, and plans are underway to line my vintage Burberry trench with the black feathered silk satin on the chair below – a steal at $25 for five metres.
The silk chiffon above might simply become a scarf… possibilities are endless but, either way, stay tuned: I have a feeling they’re going to make their way into a book project sometime in the near future (fingers crossed).
100% silk chiffon with a fishy print
And bonne nuit from me... lovely silk satin
The inspiration? This kaftan from English Eccentrics
Daily Imprint – check it out
Natalie at home
I’ve mentioned this site before but Natalie Walton, brains behind clever website Daily Imprint and Deputy Editor of Real Living just sent me these images of her beautiful Bondi apartment – I just had to share them here. Most impressively, the renovation was completed on a shoestring budget.
For more images (first published on Apartment Therapy), click here.
Natalie came along to the book launch back in November, and contacted me recently about an interview for her site, which you can also read here.
Many thanks, Natalie!
A blissfully peaceful-looking bedroom
Deco sideboard
Love this beautiful display case - on the wishlist
Sneak peek at The Crafty Kid
Not too long now and the new book will be published… hurrah!
Here’s the cover image – a gorgeous craft table set-up by stylist Sarah DiNardi, and shot by photographer Franciska Rauwenhoff. I’ve been living kids’ craft for the last wee while, and can’t wait to hear what people think about these new projects.
The Crafty Kid: projects for and with children hits bookstore shelves this June.
The Crafty Kid - full jacket
Workshop fun at No Chintz
Upstairs crafting room at No Chintz Willoughby
Basket of goodies
Here are some of the images from the recent workshop held at No Chintz to construct a handmade apron… it was a really lovely morning, and you can see how inspiring the environment is – I wish my craft space looked like this (alas, I’m still doing all my crafting at the kitchen table or in the living room… maybe one day I’ll have my own craft space).
The next one’s coming up on Wednesday 31 March, and we’ll be making a tea and egg cosy. For bookings, please contact No Chintz. Future dates are listed here.
A handmade apron
Sewing up a storm
A finished apron
Next class - tea and egg cosies!
UK Vogue’s March issue
Check out the current issue of UK Vogue for an interesting article on quilting by former enfant terrible of the British art world, Tracy Emin.
There’s also a great fashion spread on the trend for head-to-toe vintage denim (yikes, I know, but it actually looks fab) and about a million other retro and crafty references which are now feeling bang-up-to-date… even Karl Lagerfield’s at it. Have you seen the latest crocheted skirt suits at Chanel? Or the flower-embellished 2.55s? The revolution is well underway.
Thought for the day
I just read this quote and loved it so much I had to share it: ‘Better Keep yourself clean and bright. You are the window through which you must see the world’ – George Bernard Shaw
Happiness is
…splashing about in a pair of canary yellow Hunter wellies. These are on my wishlist for Autumn.
We’ve just spent the entire day in the garden, weeding and planting and laying down mulch and generally remedying a month or two of neglect.
A while back, I found a three-piece outdoor cane sofa at a flea market and carted it home, sans cushions. James went to Clark Rubber to source some new foam inserts, while I stayed home sewing up the cases. Olive was content to simply play in the mounting pile of fabric scraps, god love her. They took all of three hours to complete and we’ve been enjoying them all summer.
This is our back patio, where we spend most cocktail hours, and here’s a few of my favourite things:
Lime blossom
New limes
A backyard bust
Olive's watering can
Potted plant
Luck over the lintel
Lawsons Menzies auction this Sunday
The Kensington fine interiors auction
Last night I went to a special preview screening of the Lawsons auction taking place at 12pm this Sunday at 12 Todman Ave, Kensington. It’s not an el-cheapo auction but there are some top finds here.
My picks? The Tim Storrier piece on the wall above and the zebra skin rug (I know, I know, but he’s long dead… better to be appreciated, otherwise that would be a complete waste) as well as the Paul Smith-esque striped parlour chairs, a rather fetching gilt bedhead that could do with a re-upholster, and any of the original vintage French advertising posters, amongst others.
For some canny auction house tips, click here.
Maybe the best market find… ever
My $70 find
Lordy I love a good flea market. For those of you in Sydney, I’ve unearthed some spectacular treasures at Rozelle Markets, the likes of which you’d be hard pressed to find even at Paris’ Les Puces.
But nothing beats this – a while back I woke up at the crack of dawn one fiery-hot Saturday, kissed my lovely husband and daughter goodbye and headed off. Stall holders were still setting up when I saw this black woollen dress hanging on a rack all by its lonesome. I swooped in and asked to try it on… possibly the only reason it hadn’t been nabbed already was the sweltering heat. But I purloined it early, and it fit like a glove. Joy.
I only hope there’s no bad karma attached… A gift from the former owner’s ex-husband twenty years before, the dress lasted longer than the marriage but she couldn’t bear to look at it any longer. Enter, me.
All it needs is a few stitches to the hem but it’s otherwise perfect. Sigh.
A spot of redecorating
The spare room
Ever since I bought a laptop, our study has become redundant. A guilty little secret, it was the dumping ground where we popped everything we had no cause to use often or, frankly, wasn’t pretty enough to have on display, and simply shut the door.
No more I decided recently (plus, we had James’ mother coming to stay from the UK so it needed to be sorted out, fairly pronto).
Here’s its new layout – the bed is a single Victorian enamelled number purchased from the Lewisham Auction House. While I was heavily pregnant, James and I ducked in there for a look. I pointed at the bedhead in a darkened corner, which was chipped, dirty and missing slats, and proclaimed it was the bed I’d always imagined for our future child. James said “me too,” and we had a soppy moment or two before buying it at the $90 reserve price. And yea, it will verily be Olive’s when she grows out of her cot.
We cleaned and fixed the worst of the chips, bought a length of pine for $30 from the hardware, which we had made into slats, and a super-comfy mattress. With the auctioneer’s commission it set us back just over $300 all up, plus an afternoon’s industrious labour.
The side table is a trusty Benjamin stool from IKEA, and the girly floral duvet set is a Queen size from Habitat – a remnant from my bachelorette days which I couldn’t quite bring myself to dispose of.
Wise advice indeed
The poster I ordered a couple of years ago from the UK, although you can find them all over the place now. You might recognise the frame from the collage page of my book… it was a pinboard for a while but I re-purposed it for the poster, as its greenish patina just seemed to work really well with the red and white.
Next weekend, we’re installing a cavernous built-in wardrobe to house all those ugly odds and ends. Hurrah.
