A Place For Everything...

My goal has been to utilise every nook and crany of our loft space and I was in dire need of a closet.  We hired our talented friend and skilled carpenter, Ian Howell, to create a place for my shoes, jumpers and jeans.  I had seen some inspirational designs on Pinterest but what Ian built blew all of my expectations!

And he even made a special space that fit my wellies...  : )

In progress...

Check out the bottom boxes that have trap doors for extra storage underneath!

Summer in the City

First, what a gorgeous, hot summer weekend we're having in London!  The pollen is keeping me indoors but I'm not complaining since it allows me to finish my project...

Second...my project!  I needed a slim but wide toiletries cabinet to fit into a particularly funny shaped space in our new bathroom.  I found just the thing on eBay, an Ikea CD cabinet with glass shelves for £10.  I had a vision of a bathroom cabinet I had seen from Graham and Green so, I painted it black, purchased a few samples of Sanderson's Fern wallpaper, new door pulls and voila!  

Maybe a rougher version of the original but I absolutely LOVE it!  : )

The cabinet, as it arrived...

The finished product!

Unrecognisable.

Graham and Green's version...  : )

Busy Bees

This weekend, Mark's producing partner, Steve, and his family drove down from Yorkshire to stay with us.  Mark and Steve had the opportunity to master their new album at Abbey Road Studios so we had a very exciting Saturday morning!  We saw some of the equipment that the Beatles recorded on, just sitting in the corridors and the guys got to see rooms and original instruments used for their most iconic songs.  That night, we listened to the product of Rae & Christian's 4 year journey while taking in the London skyline from our balcony.  Couldn't have asked for a better weekend!

The bathroom is almost done, check out the progress below...  Sunday was dedicated to painting.  Some plants and colourful artwork are soon to come.

Another Day, Another Project

We've finally started work on our loft bathroom!  Dave the Builder is back in full force and is working his magic.  We had left over teak parquet bricks from the loft bedroom that we've decided to use for the flooring.  Teak is an oily wood that is good in wet areas and, if sealed properly, is impervious to water so we thought it best to recycle and save a bit of cash (plus, it's just so beautiful when sanded!).

Here's our progress so far...

A pretty sunset from our bathroom window tonight...

Pet Heads

I've been meaning to dedicate a post to my mom's amazing talents as a painter but I thought I'd wait a bit because each new painting she finishes is even more incredible than the last!  So I'm glad I waited to share some of her more recent ones...

She's been painting dogs but is open to other furry friends.  So far, its been mainly friends and family requests but she takes commissions and will work with the pet owner to customise each painting.  All she needs is a photo of the animal and a theme.  I have one she did of my dog Dyna, dressed in military regalia, hanging in my living room and my husband and I get more smiles and comments on it than anything else in our home (well, maybe not more than Dyna herself...but it's close!).  

In Bruges

Brugge, Bruges, Broodjes... However you spell it, it's one of the sweetest cities I've ever been to. My mom and I are here for the night and this place has stolen my heart. The architecture, the art galleries, the history, the canals, the shopping, THE WAFFLES. We head to the flea market tomorrow. I can hardly sleep I'm so excited...

"The Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets"

This week, we visited Mark's parents in Newcastle for the Easter break and they graciously indulged my flea market obsession by taking me to the various antique spots of the North East.  On Friday, we spent a lovely day up in Alnwick (famous for the castle that appeared in the Harry Potter movies) where I picked up an earthenware commemorative plate from Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887.  The plate bears portraits of Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales as well as statistics on the total population, size of the British empire and trade value of the time.  I bought it for £10 but after a quick Google search, found two sites in the US selling them for up to $450(?!).  Now, I absolutely adore my vintage plate which I intend to use for cookies and cakes but for $450, I'd happily hand deliver it to your home in the US, complete with British made cookies and cakes...