apologies for my absence today: i’ve been busy working on a client proposal…

i’ll be back on board tomorrow!

happy hump day…

happy monday again all!

i hope you enjoyed this morning’s edition of country kitchen alchemy…

now i’m back with something a little different for you to ponder this evening…

so last week i kicked off a new series called new home inspiration & i’d like to continue each monday with a different theme {there’s lots, so stay tuned}…

the plan initially is to share my inspirations for each space as i take you on a virtual tour, of sorts, through the new home…

so far we’ve covered the entrance & how my dreams for a dedicated entry were dashed…

now it’s time to shuffle a few paces down the hallway & head into the very first room we encounter along the way: the master bedroom…

when it comes to designing the master bedroom, my mantra is simple: less is more…

which is just as well as, despite our master bedroom extending to nearly 5 metres long & 4.5 metres wide, our furniture placement options will be limited…

along one wall sits the room’s entrance from the hallway, on another are the two front windows & on a third are my beloved french doors {the ones i’ve always dreamt of incorporating leading off from the master bedroom into a private garden beyond: except our “private garden” will be little more than a strip of side access}

the idea of lying in bed on a hot summer’s night with a fragrant breeze drifting in is one that i can’t seem to kick…

in addition to these access points, there will be a further two doorways leading from the master bedroom into the walk-in robe located behind the bed…

a little like this…

the walk-in robe will not only negate the need for much freestanding furniture in the bedroom itself, but it will simultaneously create the perfect wall upon which to ground the bed &, potentially, incorporate a feature wall…

i love the idea of cladding this space behind the bed in something textural…

such as wood…

leather…

or even tiles…

or perhaps creating a feature mural using either wallpaper or paint…

another option is to use this space as additional storage, negating the need for bedside tables…

as far as the overall look & feel of the space goes, i keep coming back to two key looks & i don’t think i’ll know which way i’ll go until much closer to the time…

my default position is {& has been for many, many years} keeping it light, bright & airy…

natural elements like linen, leather, wool & wood are, for me at least, key components to this look…

but i must confess i’m equally drawn to the dark & dreamy look i’ve been seeing a lot more of recently…

because, quite frankly, it’s dark & dreamy…

&, of the few rooms in this house where i think i could get away with going dark, the master bedroom is the more forgiving of them…

regardless, i think the trick to a successful bedroom is, above all function…

closely followed by some kick-arse layering & lighting…

{ps: a short blogging break tomorrow, but i’ll be back on the wagon on wednesday! see you then!}

images via:  my paradissi, decorpad, sacramento street, sarah klassen, travel files, hege in france, desire to inspire, houzz, travel files, dwellers without decorators, eclectic revisited, style files, my paradissi, unknown, aubrey road, elle decor, rue mag, abigail ahern, house at heart

apologies i’m a little late with this month’s edition of country kitchen alchemy, but hopefully it’s worth the wait…

we’re mixing it up a bit this time around & instead of bringing you one ingredient two ways, lisa has been inspired by her recent travels & in turn is hoping to inspire you with the tastes of a tropical paradise…

enjoy, wherever you are!

not sure about the rest of you, but this makes me want to book a trip to the tropics prontisimo!

until then, you can download this {& all of lisa’s recipes} from the my features tab where i have saved these recipe cards in a more printer-friendly format…

enjoy & be sure to join us in june for our seventh instalment of country kitchen alchemy…

previous editions of country kitchen alchemy: one, two, three, four, five

{this is not a sponsored post, just two friends sharing the love!}

there is something so wholly delectable about today’s nook that even though the sun is shining & i should be linking to deck chairs by the water’s edge, i feel compelled to bring you this instead…

hanging proudly like a harvest moon in a cloudless sky, the simplicity of this ‘art’ only adds to the intrigue of this nook…

layer in some staggered height tables & a sheepskin upholstered lounge chair juxtaposed with the sleek lines of a simple concrete floor &, for today at least, i’m ready to forgo to feeling of sun on my skin & bask in the moonlight just a little longer…

image by billy coleman for ad españa via: arkpad

because i do…

here’s a quick look at some of my picks from paola’s new range at anthropologie {sadly it looks like this is currently only available in the usa stores at the moment}

& for those of you who know absolutely nothing about ms navone & this line, here’s anthro’s blurb:

“italian artist paola navone emerged from the male-dominated design industry of the 1980s to become one of the first female pioneers of avant-garde style. in her latest collection, navone brings the beauty and richness of india to life through beyond-bright hues, playful shapes and her signature unbridled spirit”

images via: anthropologie

our recent sojourn in the english countryside tied in nicely with some of our 3*6*5 for 2013 plans {particularly the best of british bit} & having availed ourselves of a hire car we took the opportunity to stretch our wings that little bit further…

on a crisp spring afternoon we checked out of our hotel in hurley & headed north to visit claydon house…

despite its austere facade, claydon house, as promised, affords “splendid 18th-century english interiors in an idyllic country setting”…

by far the highlight of the trip for me was the exquisite & famed chinese room…

& though i had read about it before {having researched the chinoiserie style as part of my design studies}, i was nonetheless taken aback by what i saw before me…

an intricately-carved white pagoda, supposedly built for partaking in the esteemed practise of taking tea, stands crisp against a deeply-hued backdrop & fills the most part of an entire wall…

flanked by equally-intricate doors, this is the work of master craftsman luke lightfoot, one of the more esteemed carvers of his time…

& with such attention to detail it’s no wonder this venture tested the verney family’s fortunes…

especially, as it’s reputed, given mr lightfoot’s rather light-fingered tendencies of substituting quality materials with cheaper alternatives & pocketing the difference…

but i dare say history has forgiven him {if not sir verney’s heirs}

for few surfaces have been spared such beautiful elaboration…

a superb level of craftmanship is evident throughout…

as is the much-favoured colour pairing of china blue & white {so prolific is its use that at one point in proceedings i wondered if i’d somehow been swallowed up by an oversized rabbit hole & spat out the other end in a giant wedgwood trinket box}…

the saloon certainly follows suit…

right down to its decadently-flocked walls…

as does the similarly-hued library {though you might be happy to know there is some deviation: an aptly named rose room & a brilliantly sunny yellow north hall dare to be different}

as was the intention of its creator, sir ralph verney, claydon house both dazzles & delights…

& i can highly recommend spending a splendid spring afternoon immersed in its elaborate contribution to this country’s architectural history…

{please feel free to use any of the images included in this post, but do kindly attribute & link back to a nomadic abode}

but i did find this gem…

this is a photo of our lounge room as it looked when the flat was advertised for rent…

& this is what it looks like now {well, actually, it looked like this up until a few days ago but i’ve changed everything around again since then}…

not too shabby for a simple furniture reshuffle {out with theirs & in with ours} & opening that camera aperture a little wider…

that my friends is what i like to call “seeing potential”…

happy hump day!

every now & then i clean forget i’m not actually, really a nomad…

there’s no gypsy blood running through my veins & i don’t keep ponies in my back yard…

but none of that stops me from readying my imaginary gypsy caravan in preparation for my summer-time escape…

by day i’ll collect wildflowers in the surrounding fields & house them in simple glass vases both inside & out…

i’ll sip gallon loads of kusmi tea made in my porto teapot whilst musing at the irony of the vintage sign hung proudly over my door which states “no access for fairgrounds and travellers”…

rules were meant to be broken, no?

in the background the fragrant aroma of a fig-scented diptyque candle & the hum of some edith piaf playing on loop on a nearby vintage gramophone will fill the room {it appears i’m a french gypsy}…

when i’m in need of more intellectual pursuits, i’ll pull up a tam tam stool, pluck a tome from the juxtaposed religions bookshelf & read by the light of my shaggy palm light {when the horses are generating enough power to use it, that is!}

later, as part of my bedtime ritual, this raffia lampshade will softly illuminate the caravan walls whilst i recreate spellbinding tales with my beloved moulin roty shadow puppets…

there’ll be talk of far off kingdoms, fairy godmothers & love-torn kings: hearts will be won & lost, spells cast & the world put to right…

& once the day is done & my head is heavy with dreams to come, i’ll mix a heady brew of sleeping tonic in some vintage apothecary jars, slip off my slinky kiku gown, climb into some washed linen bedding & wrap myself tight in my vintage kantha: ready for another day’s adventures…

what would you pack?

{ever wanted to stay in a real gypsy caravan? me too! canopy & stars offers some sweet-looking options in the uk that i’d love to check out one day!}

image via: urban optimist

we’re still tweaking our house plans so not a lot of progress to share with you on that front just yet, but i thought it might be fun to take you on a virtual house tour, of sorts, over the next few weeks/months showing you some of my ideas & inspirations for each space as i go…

& i guess it makes sense to start that process today at the beginning: the entrance…

planning this space was one of the first {& few} disagreements my boyfriend & i have had with our house plans to date…

for such a tiny space you’d wonder what all the fuss was about, right? it turns out it’s all a matter of prioritising!

i’ve always envisaged having a big, lofty lobby in which to officially welcome house guests: a space befitting the importance of the act itself…

not only is the entrance the first glimpse visitors get of your home & your style, but it also plays the often under-appreciated role of acting as a repository for much of life’s day-to-day paraphernalia…

done right, a properly-functioning entrance allows the rest of your house to function better too!

having a dedicated entrance way in our new home would have the added advantage of allowing us to position the front door centrally on our narrow frontage & flank it with large windows, thus getting the symmetrical facade we both really loved {option a}…

the alternative would mean having the front door located on the far side of the facade with a long hallway leading directly off it {option b}…

integral to my lobby vision is a centre table {perpetually topped with fresh flowers or foliage, of course} & a feature chandelier/pendant light hanging overhead…

{this image above is probably where the dream started for me: take this table, that chandelier & even those baskets & plonk them in the middle of the front entrance & it’s virtually job done for me}

& it seems i’m not alone with this approach…

there would, of course, have to be provision for plenty of storage in this entrance: some tucked away…

& some on display {it adds to the more casual vibe i covet}…

alongside the obligatory hallway bench to facilitate wrestling those shoes on & off…

{i think these simple benches add a sweet, homely touch & the addition of panelling in some of these hallways adds yet another layer of interest}

& finally, what entrance way would be complete without a mirror for that last minute preening session {i wouldn’t say no to that tiled floor either, but that’s for another post}

perfection, right?

sadly it looks like my little, big entrance dream could come off second best in the fight for square footage…

you see, to go with this option we’d need to allow at least 2-3 metres on the floor plan which ultimately would have to be taken from somewhere else…

additionally, having a dedicated entrance means rehousing the master bedroom further along the corridor & away from the front door, thus losing the light those two large front windows would provide…

& it looks like my fall-back plan, a welcoming front porch {as seen on my dream facade here}, loses out on the same basis: simply not enough space…

another option we’re consequently considering is installing a recessed front door…

this way your guests have somewhere undercover to wait whilst you answer the door & it doesn’t take space from the rest of the floor plan…

in fact, it’s a bit of a win:win situation…

because the lobby is effectively inset into the hallway it has the added bonus of making that long, narrow stretch of space appear visually shorter…

i’m not hating this option at all actually…

especially if we installed a similar glass-paned front door & used some clever drapery and/or planting out front to shield the entrance from the street…

which one gets your vote?

images via: space for inspiration, the design files, desde my ventana, bjd haus design, greige design, this is paper, greige design, indulgy, home and delicious, finders keepers market, little blue deer, interiors porn, greige design,

fashion designer john rocha’s holiday home in the south of france is an essay in simplicity…

as this pared-back nook proves, a light touch can go a long way with some carefully chosen furniture & accessories…

simple pieces with fabulous lines & smattering of texture really is all that’s required…

the perfect escape, no?

{ps: happy mothering sunday one & all}

image by richard powers via: heart and design