DIY Project: Foot stool

I started a small DIY project over Christmas and thought I'd better finish it! We inherited a foot stool with a colourful printed base and cushion when bought the Bach but it now doesn't go with our decor and it needed a little TLC.

I thought I'd paint it white for starters.

Then I took off the old base fabric and replaced it with part of the leftover hem from ready-made curtains from Freedom. And my 12-year-old daughter (with not much help from me!) made a new cushion cover with the leftover fabric from Yardage Design used for the cushions on the cane chairs.

Now it all co-ordinates beautifully and I feel quite chuffed as it was my first dabble in upholstering (which was quite easy, really) and I had to delve back 20 years to remember how to sew a zip into a cushion!

Sunset at the Bay

Was going through photos we've taken recently and had forgotten about these I took over Christmas up at the Bay. Who doesn't love a sunset?

 

The colours take my breath away.

What's the best sunset you've seen?

Beauty in Nature

We're spending the long weekend up at Hardys Bay and guess who came to join us? Two beautiful owls that sat on the tree outside the back door. Not sure of their variety but I think one could be a Tawny Frog Mouth Owl (don't you just love the name?) They're kind of ugly and beautiful at the same time and from certain angles they blended in so well with the tree branch that you wouldn't have known they were there.

Wha'chu lookin' at?

But what they most made me realise was, as Lao Tzu once said, "nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" - something I must remember when our house build starts on Tuesday!
 

Framing Summer Memories

I was scrolling through some holiday photos taken over the past couple of years and discovered some that might just be perfect for the recycled timber frames I bought at the South Bank Market in Melbourne last month.

One frame I photographed outside and the other inside with me in the middle!

They're made by Mulbury Gallery ...

I wanted some photos that were scenic rather than family that could go in the beach house.

This old seagull was taking a break on some nails (!) while we were having a lovely early dinner at a cafe on Waiheke Island off the coast of Auckland during our visit last Christmas. He reminds me of summer, my family and lazy days in the sun.

My footprint in the sand at Byron Bay.

The beach at Byron Bay before the storm hit.

Not sure if this works - perhaps the pebbles aren't designer-looking enough, if you know what I mean?

Not very summery, I know, but quite dramatic.

The Great Aussie Surf (which just has to be in capitals!)

Who's never cloud watched? These were taken at Hardys Bay one trip when we were sitting on the deck wiling away an afternoon when we noticed the clouds transforming themselves into pictures.

It was an endless feast for one's imagination.

What do you think? Would any of these, blown up, suit those frames?

Now, before I go I have to give a mention to the lovely Julie-Ann over at the Decorating Forum who mentioned the post I wrote on the colour gray and opened it up for discussion here on the Decorating Forum. Pop on over if you're looking for any tips or inspiration.

Happy weekend!

Mid-Century Recliners

It's been more than a week since I mentioned the impending arrival of my two S.H.E Lifestyle chairs and side table (not requested - but couldn't resist!).

Covered in fabric by Cloth, they are true retro - mid-century recliners that have been spruced to perfection and look and feel brand new. And it's all thanks to the girls at S.H.E, Camilla, Nicole and Sarah.

As you can see the colours pick up those on the ducks at Hardys Bay that inspired me a few months ago.

I'm afraid my photos don't do the chairs justice at all - which is more to do with the poor lighting at our new house that is very dark even during the middle of the day. I really needed a big white studio backdrop, studio lights and a photographer's assistant. I tried to fiddle with the exposure and colour on Picnik which helped a little but they still look weird. Never mind, you get the picture, so to speak!

Had them next to my self-dusting ostrich feather light by Haldane Martin but have since realised that something wasn't quite right and they didn't go together - maybe it was the long silver stem ..? Anyway, a new light is now in its place.

I did enjoy colour-coordinating my books and popping some crysanthemums in my new vase - a Coke bottle! Who would have guessed? Or maybe you did but it looks pretty good, I reckon, and think I might start collecting them. Except I don't usually drink Coke ...

I've also sent off my inherited wooden rocking chair that must be at least 40 years old, if not more - Mum, perhaps you can verify? - to the S.H.E girls for a bit of reno. It had been in storage and I'd forgotten that my old dog had nibbled the ends when she was a puppy and I'd never done anything about it. I virtually grew up on this chair - progressing from my mother's lap to sitting in it myself through my teenage years, until Mum gave it to me when they moved house. It's a sentimental old thing and should look great once it's buffed and newly cushioned.

Kookaburras at The Bay

There are kookaburras everywhere down at The Bay and lots of blue sky! What better way to spend Easter Monday than gazing at the sky and watching the birds do their stuff. Except I'm still painting ...

Ruby on Deck via Phone!

I am very excited as I have just worked out how to blog via the fancy-pancy phone I've had for a few months but had been too scared to fiddle around with and figure out how to do it. But since having such features was the whole point of getting it (as well as the fact that my old phone died), I thought I should really learn how.

The only problem is I accidentally published the post before I'd written any text. So here I am now back on the computer!

Nevertheless, I feel quite proud to have mastered this wee piece of technology. I can see how useful it will be on my future travels both near and far when I find something I want to share with you all.

By the way, the photo is one I already had on my phone of Ruby - now four months - being nosy on the deck at Hardys Bay. Isn't she cute?

Our bach at the bay

This Australia Day weekend we spent it up at Hardys Bay at our new little beach cottage - or as we New Zealanders say, bach. It was hardly relaxing what with moving furniture and doing all those nesting things one does with a new house or holiday home, but was well worth it. So, on a misty, muggy morning at the bay when the mercury rose to 40 degrees ...

we hung beachy mementos ...

put the S.H.E chairs and table on the deck ...

hung beach towels on the S.H.E door handle hanger ...

smelt the frangipani in the garden ...

and watched Ruby explore ...

and never once thought about fixtures and fittings!

Inspiration in the most unlikely of places

Who wants to think about house building on a weekend away? I didn't think I would but I seemed to find inspiration in the most unlikely of places. We took a trip up to Hardys Bay last weekend which is a one and a half hour's drive north of Sydney, near Killcare surf beach ...

Where boats bob in the bay and people are ingenious with their letterbox design ...

It is a place where original meets new, traditional meets designer but one thing will always stay the same as long as motorists pay attention to the road signs ...

The 'ducks crossing' road sign not only looks quaint but, as we found, is very necessary - ducks are everywhere and they have no road sense! It wasn't just duckling season either but Jacaranda flowering time. These trees would have to be one of my favourites and the mauve colour is so striking against the green foliage. It would be a great colour for a girl's bedroom.

The ducks not only like to cross roads but traverse lawns and even ride in boats ...

But I never thought ducks would provide inspiration for the colour scheme of a house and yet, after this weekend, I think they just have! I love the colours of these ducks: the chocolate brown and white bodies (I'm thinking white walls and dark timber floors), and the teal and forest green heads (perhaps for accent colours in cushions, lights, even wallpaper) and the caramel body of the third bird (for a sofa colour or light wood coffee table or dining table). Mmm ... could I add these pictures to a mood board, I wonder?

I then started thinking about the deck and how wonderful duck-egg blue coloured deck chairs would be - like these from Ici et La. The company not only has a beautiful range of deck chair upholstery fabric from France but striped textiles for cushions and lampshades.

Finally, on the topic of places to visit, I don't profess my photos to be anywhere near as good as Louise Hawson's on her 52 Suburbs blog (where she is visiting one Sydney suburb a week for a year and documenting it) but I try! Louise's photos are amazing and her captions fantastic. It is definitely worth checking out.