My Friend's Dad Had A Bad Accident

I just spent a long time in a hospital waiting room and I just have to say why can't they make some kind of effort to decorate them so they aren't so depressing and neutral. 

I absolutely appreciate that emergency rooms serve a function, but for those who are ill and waiting, or those just waiting for news of loved ones its a pretty dreary place. The only splash of a non-ugly colour was the red on the chair near the entrance with the blood-soaked towel that sat on it for three hours. 

Its very crowded and the chairs were set up theatre style so you were always straining your neck to talk to anyone with you. There is no comfort to be found in the hard plastic chairs. I was thinking some cheery wallpaper or even some of those amazing cutouts you can stick on walls nowadays to create scenes. Something to look at that. 

My Shabby Chic Easter Gifts From My Mum

My Freezer Stopped Working - there is nothing pretty about soggy cardboard and bloody meat

Something Shabby Chic

A Very Aussie And Pretty Trifle

So my uncle's partner Beth made this awesome trifle for his birthday a few weeks ago. It was practically a work of art as far as trifles are concerned.

Scrapbook Shabby Chic Style Framed French Picture

A couple of summers ago I was in Paris and fell in love with these posters of old vogue style advertisments. They all easy to get, they sell for 5euros in most of the tourist traps around Paris. The picture itself was a little small to put on the wall by itself, so I decided to use one of my scrapbook frames and make it a little more interesting.

I love old vintage floral wallpaper, and I collect scrapbook paper which has that kind of look. This faded pink floral is a perfect compliment for the french print. I cut the white border off and put it on the paper but kept it positioned off centre.

I used some vintage style wallies which I have had sitting around for ages. The style and colours really coordinated with the picture.


I used two medium sized 'letter' cut outs and a few flowers.

I must admit I don't love the stark white of the frame at the moment. I think I will try and find something with a warmer tone to complement the picture more.

However it absolutely does the job of coordinating with my new small size cushions I got a few weeks ago at a thrift shop for 50cents ea so I am pretty happy with the final result.

Featured Decorations At Shabby Chic Birthday Party

Here are some pics of how I transformed my parents pouch shabby chic style (continuing on from my previous blog) for my sister's birthday.

So my parents have had this swinging pouch seat for at least 10 years and it is definitely a little worse for wear. 

Now the staples of shabby chic are clean, comfortable and pretty (IMO) so I rummaged through the sheet cupboard and grabbed every floral pillowcase (and pillow insert) I could find. 

Considering my time constraints meant I only about 20 mins to spend on this I quickly covered the padded green cover with a floral sheet and then put floral covers on all the other cushions. I placed these on the seat and against the back to make it more soft and welcoming. 

I used a lace curtain and a soft rug to drape and hide some of the frame and also to soften the look.  

The final effect

Decorating for a Party Shabby Chic Style

BEFORE

AFTER

For my little sister's birthday I decided to try and create a shabby chic theme. This was inspired by my reading of Rachel Ashwell's books on shabby chic decorating for events at the time.

It was a last minute decision so I only had around two hours and the contents of my parents house to use but I think the end result really worked. Sheets, fabric, curtains, nic nacs were all used to create a scene that was just as shabby and pretty as I could have wished (except for freshcut roses - mum forbad me from borrowing some from the neighbour's garden). 

I will go into more detail on the different elements I used to create this setting in my next post.

My Shabby Chic Vintage Look Rose Sheets

I got these fabulous Rachel Ashwell for Target Simply Shabby Chic sheets (what a mouthful) on ebay for $10 in brand new condition. I love them. The simplicity of the border of roses on pure white cotton really does make them seem vintage and pretty. 

The colours in the roses also coordinate with her other bedding range which I use, the Belle Bedding Collection. 

This is how the top and bottom sheets look when placed on the bed, you get a delightful double border of roses. It is almost a pity to cover them up with my quilt. 

The pillows are my favourite as you can see them all the time!

Adorable Baby Finds at the Market

My little sister is pregnant at the moment and I find myself looking at all the adorable baby stuff you can get. She doesn't know what sex, though she claims it will be a girl, so I am looking for neutral baby stuff for my new niece/nephew. 

I love handmade clothes for babies and these booties are just so dainty. 

The white ones are so small they fit my thumb, perfect for a new born. The sunny yellow ones are for when the baby is a little bigger. 

Now I know that babies like to spend their time kicking booties off but I don't care, they are just too cute for the two seconds that they are in place.

The other fabulous find was this beautiful and delicate knit top. I know its a little on the girly side of the spectrum but with the right boy clothes I think it could work for either sex. 

It is perfect for Aussie weather as its light but still warm.  And one of the other great things, the price, $1 for the lot.

Off to the Markets

I am off to the Farmer's Market that are just down the road from my house tomorrow morning. I am looking forward to getting some fresh fruits and veg and hopefully picking up some bargains from the bric a brac sellers.

Stockholm in the Springtime

I had a chance to revisit Stockholm in May last year. It is a city of bridges, 253 or something ridiculous like that but it has a lot more to offer than that. It has preserved (for the tourists most likely) its Old Town. Now Old Town is truly OLD, it is located on a little island and its most outstanding feature is the Palace. It still has the changing of the guard and plenty for tourists to see inside. The rest of the island is a maze of narrow cobbled streets lined with gorgeous old buildings which have been converted into delightful boutiques and cafes. 

Colorful Dublin in Springtime

I was able to spend some time exploring the beautiful city of Dublin.  It was a day balanced on the cusp of the change of seasons from winter to spring. The air still carried the chill of winter, and if you looked up all you could see was a soft grey sky through the still naked branches of the trees. But springtime had indeed arrived. It was lovely to see blossoming trees clustered around grey stone buildings and the vibrancy of the flowers in the parks in their carefully tended beds.

          

          

More Pretty Flower Pics From Pau in France

Beautiful Landscapes From My Trip To Ireland

The Prettiest Niece in the World

A Visit to Blarney Castle in Ireland

I had a chance to visit to Blarney Castle in Ireland last Easter. Home of the famous Blarney Stone, the legendary Stone of Eloquence, found at the top of our Tower. They claim that if you kiss it you’ll never again be lost for words.

http://www.blarneycastle.ie/ is the official webpage, and yes I did indeed kiss the stone, though considering I never shut up before it is hard to gauge the results.

It was a freezing yet sunny day and the grounds of the castle were gorgeous. There were daffodils blooming under the trees and banks of flowers surrounding the castle.

Pretty, Pink and Vintage - I'll Take Them

Meet the newest additions to my kitchen some pretty pink vintage style tea, coffee and sugar containers.

I found them on the discount shelf in Target reduced to half price, so only $15.

Now Target Australia doesn't usually have cute shabby chic kind of inventory so I was very pleasantly surprised.

Another thrifty bargain.

Best Thrift Shop Buy Ever! Shabby Chic Vanity Table

$7 BARGAIN

It isn't a typo $7 is all I paid for this fabulous shabby chic vanity. I have been hunting around on ebay for one of these vanity tables but they have all been in the $100 mark. I decided to pop over to my favorite Secondhand Shop in the Whole World in Red Hill, Brisbane.

This table was just sitting in a corner, surrounded by some old bed heads and stained mattresses. I couldn't believe my luck when the Thrift Shop lady told me the price. It was clear we were a match made in heaven when it actually fit (once the legs were unscrewed in the backseat of my 30 year old Corolla).

I brought it home and gave it a very good scrubdown and have to say it is looking pretty good. I now have to decide whether to leave it as is very Shabby Chic style or sand it down and paint it white as it is more of a ivory/cream colour right now and there are plenty of rough edges.

Of course I am now going to be hunting for a mirror and a cute stool to go with it - what fun.

Create Your Own Flower Food at Home

Flower food packets provide both sugar that the roses can use and an anti-bacterial agent but you can make your own (cheap) version at home.

Stuff you will need
1 litre distilled or rainwater water

1 tbs. sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice or vinegar

How to do it
1. Dissolve 1 tbs. of sugar in a litre of slightly warm water (which helps it dissolve).
2. Add 1 tsp. of either lemon juice or vinegar to the water and mix well.