Month: October 2015

How do you store your loo roll?

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The lovely people at Utopia Furniture (who, if you don’t know will provide you with the most beautifully made bathroom furniture I’ve seen in a long time) asked me to have a bit of fun, and write a piece for their blog on different ways of keeping your loo roll so it doesn’t fall from the top of the cistern and roll under the bath…. There are many paper holders that are standard things that screw to the wall but what can you do that’s different? Lots of things – so read about them here and decide which your favourite is. Personally, I think bathrooms benefit from a bit of quirkiness or humour so can’t decide whether to have a dinosaur or a skateboard…

I’m the Guest Stylist on UK Flooring Direct!

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Have you ever struggled to find beautiful wood flooring that’s not going to break the bank? If you have, then you haven’t discovered UK Flooring Direct! This is a great website where there’s a huge range of styles, colours and prices so there is bound to be something that you love. You can get samples sent to your door to try out at home to help you make the right choice and right now there’s an amazing up to 40% off with an extra 10% saving – what’s not to love? I’ve been the stylist on several shoots for the company so have seen quite a few different woods close up so can honestly say there beautiful.  Some of the shots are below so you can see for yourself. .    I was delighted when UKFlooring Direct recently asked me to be Guest Stylist on their blog and come up with some ideas about getting your home ready for Christmas. I know, I know, it feels a long way off but it’s not really, and if you start thinking …

Add some zesty orange to your home – don’t be scared of this wonderful colour

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Days grow shorter and it’s getting dark earlier but that doesn’t mean your home has to follow suit. Lots of homes with a neutral decor will benefit from a little pepping up and, inspired by the pumpkins all around at this time of year, I thought I’d have a look at what orange can do. Orange doesn’t have to make you think of the 1970s (though actually a dose of retro style will cheer most people, me included), it can be smart, crisp, and utterly contemporary. As you’ll know (or not, it doesn’t matter), grey is the new cream as far as interiors are concerned and lots of homes will be decorated this colour. And orange looks ah-mayyyy-zing with grey – take a look…. You don’t need to go mad – look how a simple chair and lamp lift this room from a flat storm grey to something rather special. And if the chair was velvet that would add another layer of loveliness.    A knitted footstool pouffe looks really lovely too (there are lots of …

Make a home office in the smallest of spaces

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Need a home office but don’t have a spare room? Don’t worry – there are ways to to carve out a perfect place to do paperwork from the smallest corner. Working with a computer on your lap, or sitting at the dining room table to do paperwork or anything with a laptop isn’t great long term. Not only is it uncomfortable but constantly having to clear things away or move somewhere else is a recipe for getting in a muddle. If this is you, have you thought about trying to create a corner somewhere in your home dedicated for such tasks? It’s not as difficult as you may think especially if you start by the looking around and seeing if you really really need all furniture you have as so often we get used to our possessions being there and add more to a room without removing anything and this means rooms are often more cluttered than they need be. Alternatively shuffle things along a bit to clear a little space – I’m not talking about …

All about wallpaper and it’s bold beauty

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This week is wallpaper week so I’m celebrating this wonderful thing that can change a room beyond belief. It can add a block of colour or pattern upon which you hang pictures, though some are like a work of art themselves – huge florals, landscapes and pictures that would be impossible to achieve any other way. Wallpaper is easy to hang and good quality papers are lovely to work with (you generally do get what you pay for – rolls under £10 can tear easily when being hung so you need to be careful but once they’re up they are ok). Some are simple plain (ish) prints that aren’t a million miles away from a painted finish, but others are incredible, dramatic and dynamic pictures that completely change a space. You also get murals – a giant picture that will cover a whole wall  – and these are put up like wallpaper and can be a huge map, photograph, or view across a beach or anything in between. If you fancy a mural, look on WallpaperDirect as they have a …

Revamping an EBay bargain to create a sumptuous velvet footstool

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When relaxing in the evening on the sofa I like to have my legs stretched out and feet up. Although a coffee table is ok it’s not exactly ideal, so for a while I have had an EBay search for a footstool nearby and was delighted to pick one up for the grand price of £12.50 a few miles away. Granted, it wasnt to my taste upholstered in a rather dated wine red fabric but it was nice and big on attractive turned legs. Unsure what I would cover it with, the decision was made when I grabbed a large piece of blue velvet fabric in the charity shop for £1.25 (yes really). So then it was just a case of arming myself with a staple gun with a couple of hours to spend covering it. Now I have to say, I am no upholsterer, so the quality of the work isn’t perfect but I was confident I could make it look good – certainly better than it currently did. I didn’t want something so …