Home Tour - Part I

Now that the Style At Home magazine that we were featured in has hit the stands I can post the pics that the photographer Brett let me have and do a little home tour of my own.

The house is a semi and was built in 1970, so perhaps not the most attractive of houses. This pic is actually one of my own as the picture used in the magazine was taken before we added the wisteria and baskets - the house looks much better with those simple additions.

I've wanted a wisteria for years, and finally got one this year. It seems very happy in its pot and has grown like mad. Fingers-crossed for flowers next year. We have large flower beds either side of the path and we tend to favour the "wildlife" look!!

We had a "new" front door this year - when I say new I mean it was out of the skip from the house across the road!! They had all new doors and windows and so we asked to have their old door.

One of our favourite changes to the front of the house this year have been these vintage 1930's garage doors:

Our garage door was a sad, broken, up and over and we looked for a set of secondhand doors like these for a while. They were going for silly money on eBay but I found a two sets being sold together on Gumtree so we bought both. We kept this set and sold the others on eBay for almost as much as the two sets together had cost.

Mr G and his Dad had to cut them down a bit to fit and then was under strict instructions to paint them in Farrow & Ball's Green Blue - I really am just addicted to all shades of duck egg blue, I didn't really realise how much until I saw all the photos together and I think some shade of duck egg/aqua/eau de nil makes an appearance in every room!!

As you come into the house you enter the little porch:

You've seen my patchwork wall before, all made from wallpaper "samples" (ahem) I procured from a DIY shop and so (other than the paste) the wall was free.

Previous to this we had a nasty, dark 1970's door - this one was from the tip (it's one of my favourite places to shop!!) and is painted in my own mix of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP).

The blanket is a lap blanket (didn't have the stamina or money for any bigger!!) in Jane Brocket's starburst flower pattern. I'd love to do a huge blanket but I have very little patience.

The standard lamp was given to me by my Stepdad - I was meant to do it up and sell it - and painted in Old White ASCP, the shade I recovered. Same goes for the hexagonal mirror but that found its home here as well. It looks a lot tidier in these pics than it ever does IRL!!

You can see my duck egg fetish continues indoors!!

The sofas don't really go with the decor but they are comfy and practical - they were a cast off from my Mum (who is obsessed with changing her suite every five minutes!!) I'd love a velvet chesterfield one day.

The pressed flower picture is actually my wedding bouquet and it hangs among floral pictures found at car boot sales and some embroideries done by myself and my Mum.

The sideboard (or "Mouse Organ" as we call it due to its resemblance of the same from Bagpuss!!) houses all the the TV and media gubbins and is painted own Duck Egg ASCP and gilded with a bit of gold Rub And Buff.

The footstool/coffee table was a plain orange pine coffee table from the tip. Mr G sawed down the legs and I added foam and fabric to upholster it (since this pic was taken I decided the fabric was too wishy-washy and I've redone it in pink tartan wool).

The stool under the window was kind of found on eBay - I was looking for a stool to paint and crochet a cover for and found what looked like the perfect one on eBay. As I looked at the picture I thought "I recognise that kitchen" - it was my Mum selling it!! So she of course gave it to me....

This sideboard is a 1930's one which we got from the tip for £8 and is painted in Old White and Duck Egg ASCP. The lamp base was £1 from a boot sale and I covered the shade in vintage fabric. The clock belonged to my beloved Granddad (who you can see with my Nanna in the photo next to it). The portrait is of my horse TC - Mr G had it done one year for Christmas.

The other end of the lounge is a bit of a non-room now. Before we had the conservatory across the back of the house it was the dining room. It's now a bit of a walk-through but does house the computer (to the other side of this pic) in a hideaway cupboard where our eldest H spends most of his time.

The radiator cover was from eBay and the chairs from the tip. The book wreath I made out of a copy of "Gone With The Wind" following a tutorial I found on Pinterest. Mr G made the shelves from MDF and moulding and I had to wait 9 months for them!! I added the little "shades" to the fairy lights by covering plastic shot glasses with scrap booking paper.

This is the other side of the room. The sideboard and computer hideaway were both from eBay and are painted in Paris Grey ASCP. This chair was also from eBay and I reupholstered it (badly) in patchwork - it actually lives in the conservatory and was just popped here for a picture.

In the background you can see a gramophone that belonged to my Dad, he had always wanted one and when he bought a pub he finally got one.

In this photo you catch a glimpse of my vintage tea trolley which was from Freegle and I sprayed in cream.

I was going to continue with the rest of the downstairs but this post is already rather long so I'll leave it there for now!!

Thanks (as always) for reading

Hugs,

S x

All photos (except first two) courtesy of Brett Charles Photography....

 

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The Instagrannies Big Day Out....

Last Saturday the lovely Ashley from Country Rose and I set out on a road trip to Alexandra Palace for The Knitting and Stitching Show and to meet up with some of the lovely ladies we have met online via our blogs and Instagram.

Ashley is now glowingly pregnant and so naturally we had to stop en route which suited me as there was a Starbucks and I got to have a huge Pumpkin Spice Latte.

Dear Ashley looking radiant....

It took a couple of hours to get to Ally Pally and then a while to find a parking space, we thought for a moment we were going to have no luck, but we eventually managed to find a spot in a side street.

We hiked up the hill, and I was glad Ashley was preggers as it meant I could have a rest now and again too - I am soooooo unfit!!

The view over London from the top is spectacular:

You could see the Gherkin and the Shard....

We all met in the foyer and there were hugs all round before we headed into the show - it was huge, really busy and hot!! I didn't take many pics inside as we kept getting split up and there was a huge urge to just stand about and natter.

We did all manage to get together at lunchtime:

And afterwards, we nabbed a passerby to take a group photo of us all:

Please ignore my Johnny Vegas-esque chin(s)....

Kate from Adventures From A City Girl Country Girl; Ashley from Country Rose; Nicki from Homebird; LissyLou from Lissy Lou & The Two Little Boys; Gemma from Little Gem's Diary; Gemma from Musings Of A Gem; Gemma from Gem's Country Life Dream; Julie from Pretty Little Jewels; Cuckoo from Tales From Cuckoo Land; Kmmms from Things Learnt The Hard Way

I couldn't miss the opportunity to join Cuckoo in one of her trademark silly face photos:

What do we look like?!!

In actual fact Cuckoo is every bit as gorgeous IRL as I knew she would be:

I, however, am not....lol....

We all parted feeling even more like old friends with plans afoot to meet up again soon for a whole day of crafting and nattering.

Naturally a few purchases were made, which I must show you:

Sock yarn and Alpaca DK that was going to be for a shawl - indeed since Saturday I have crocheted 3/4 of it, and realised that:

a. I thought it was a bit prickly (I detest prickly wool/garments as my Mum used to make us wear horrid itchy jumpers in the '70's).

b. I didn't have enough yarn.

So it's been frogged.

I also got some pretty ribbons and trimmings:

I also got some cute stitch markers:

It was a really, really good day - some of the ladies had felt a bit nervous about meeting up with people they had met over the Internet but I can honestly say it was very successful indeed - we truly all got along as though we had known each other for years - and not one of us turned out to be a 50 year old fella, eh Cuckoo?!!....

Hugs,

S x

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Monday Musings....

Hello all!! Have you had a nice weekend?

On Thursday, just after the engineer delivered his verdict on our fridge freezer (more about that in a mo) I got a surprise package in the post:

Isn't it wrapped beautifully?

Inside was this:

It's from the lovely Cuckoo over at Tales From Cuckoo Land (I've tried to do a linky but Blogsy is being a pain, Google it, it's a lovely blog, written by a lovely lady) - she had seen the book and remembered how I was excited to be getting a meerkat from Compare The Meerkat. How thoughtful is that? I was so chuffed, it really made my day.

We spent yesterday clearing the side of the house which had become a dumping ground for umpteen bikes and stuff that was waiting to go to the tip.


It needed to be done as today we had our new fridge freezer delivered - this is a really dull purchase because up until 11 days ago we had a perfectly good American style fridge freezer. Then we awoke to find it not working. It's four years old and cost a small fortune (Mr G's Mum and Dad had treated us when we had the kitchen done) so we were not best pleased.

I called Samsung and they said it had a five year guarantee on this, that and the other but naturally after waiting a week for the engineer it was none of those things that had gone and they wanted £325 to fix it. The engineer said as it also seemed "low on gas" it wasn't worth it.


So we have had to fork out £550 for a new fridge freezer and are actually worse off as this one is a basic model whereas the old one was all singing and dancing. We had to get another American style one as the wall to the side is not plastered and so had we got a (much cheaper) regular freezer the bodged up wall would have been on display.

We've just switched it on and I must confess, dull as it it, I am delighted to have a fridge again!! How people managed before they were a common household feature is beyond me. We have had to buy meals just a couple of hours before cooking them (I won't leave anything out of the fridge for more than a couple of hours due to my vomit phobia!!) and haven't had a cold drink in over a week!!

This weekend I've also been working on my sunburst blanket:

It's a pattern from "The Gentle Art Of Knitting" by Jane Brocket (though it's crochet obviously!!) in Debbie Bliss Amalfi. The little squares are soooooo therapeutic to do, in fact I think it may well be the first blanket I actually finish ( and don't just get bored with and turn into a cushion!!)

I also recently finished a machine embroidery of MIL & FIL's little bungalow for MIL's birthday:

If anyone would like an embroidery doing of their home, I am thinking of taking commissions - initially I'll just charge a nominal amount for materials as I want to practice. If you fancy one then leave a comment or click on "Contact Me" in the header bar to email.

Finally, a reminder to come and play at Shabby Chic Sarah's own forum/message board - we have 10 members and a few conversations on the go, but the more the merrier!!

The URL is: www.shabbychicsarah.forumotion.com - come and join us!!

Hugs,

S x




 

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Young Love and Shabby Chic Sarah Gets A Forum!!

Hiya my sweeties!!

24 years ago today I sent my friend Dawn to ask Mr G out for me, I was 15 and he was 16:

I know you've seen this before but I couldn't resist!!

*gush alert* I awoke early this morning, for a while I watched Mr G sleep and marvelled how blessed I was to have found my soul mate so quickly.

In other news, I've created a forum/message board so we can all get to know each other better:

Please click here to come and join us, there are just a handful of people at the moment but don't let that put you off, it'll be a lovely intimate place we can chat and you can show me your projects....

My current WIP is the lovely sunburst blanket - these squares are so therapeutic to make and after doing just one you don't even need to look at the pattern:

I've run out of yarn now after 39 squares so have ordered more - maybe this will be my first ever completed blanket?

Hope you have a lovely weekend....

Hugs,




Sarah x

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Sweltering and Crafting!!

Phew!! How are you enjoying the heat? Isn't the British weather so mad? Last week I was curled up on the sofa with my quilt and fleecy dressing gown and this week I am roasting and have the fan on!!

I am not good in the heat. Mr G and I once went to Singapore and I spent the whole 10 days moaning about the heat in the manner of Karl Pilkington!!

Yesterday, I made myself a little haven in the garden:

I sat there all day, listening to catch-up TV on my iPad and crocheting granny hearts:

Naturally, they are going to be made into bunting. I used a pattern I found on Ravelry here  if you fancy a go yourself.

We were delighted to see that our peony has at last flowered - we got it off Freecycle three years ago and in previous years it has budded, but they've never opened before now. But, wow they were worth waiting for!!:

I've remembered to take pics of the embroidered cardi, I've finished it - here's Dolly (my duct tape dummy) modelling it for you:

Many thanks to the lovely Cuckoo for the inspiration....

I have also been painting roses on anything that stands still long enough!! The reason I wanted to learn was to be able to paint some roses on my Fugly-To-Fabulous furniture so I tried a few on a cute nest of tables:

And I've made a sign for one of my Instagram friends:

And I did one for us:

I'm toying with the idea of selling these, as I really enjoy making them.

A couple of weeks ago the lovely LissyLou gave me an award:

Unforgivably, I keep forgetting to mention it - I have to answer a 10 questions:

Favourite colour: Pink of course!!

Favourite number: 8

Favourite animal: Horse

Favourite non alcholic drink: Diet Coke, I drink way too much. I'm also partial to a "Muddy Puddle" - OJ + Coke, the name comes from the colour!!

Facebook or Twitter: Facebook, though I've just joined Twitter @shabbychicsarah - please follow me!! I love Instagram best.

Recieving or giving: Oooooh, tricky!! Both!! I love giving something I know the recipient is going to love, but I love, love, love presents too!!

Favourite pattern: Floral, Cath Kidston style, gorgeous!!

Favourite day of the week: Friday, I love the anticipation of the weekend to come.

Favourite flower: Stargazer lilies - I had them in my wedding bouquet and the smell takes me there instantly. I also love wildflowers, and roses, and peonies, and spring flowers, and, and, and....

I'm meant to pass this on, but I really couldn't choose five as I love so many so I am going to be rubbish and politely decline to pass it on!!

hugs,

S x

Unsettling News And A Couple Of Ta Dahs....

Hello, my dears - I've stolen Mr G's laptop to post as I find blogging on my iPad a bit "painful" - I can't figure out how to add links and it's all just a whole lot slower. My laptop was OK just for blogging until I dripped tea on the keyboard and now the "M" and "N" keys don't work *rollseyes*

We had a bit of unsettling news this week, Mr G has been working hard on a project for work which is now all coming to a head (he's normally so laidback he's horizontal but has been stressed and a bit snippy of late). 

Mr G was updating his boss on the phone and at the end of the conversation his boss said "BTW messaging will be operated out of Cairo or Paris only by the end of the year so your job will no longer exist. If you have other opportunities I advise you to explore them".

Mr G has worked for the company for ten years and is highly thought of, so the boss said he didn't want to lose him - he hopes a role can be found within the company. 

I asked Mr G if I should be worried, and he said no something would come up. Ironically, he was asked to apply for something else just after Christmas but it was then put on hold and Mr G hasn't chased it as he is happy in his job as it is.

At best it probably means the working from home every day will be a thing of the past which will be a shame as it suits us very well - I guess I knew it wouldn't last forever though....

Anyway, onto more cheery things - I had a go at making some vintage style signs:

I thought I had originally seen the method I used on Pinterest, but a quick search of my boards and I can't find it to link for you so I shall tell you what I did.

First of all, I got a two scrap bits of wood and gave them a couple of coats of my Annie Sloan paint. The "Keep Calm" had Provence under my own Duck Egg mix (I find AS's duck egg a bit too green so I add a touch of white & blue to it) and the "Coca-Cola" had Paris Grey under Emperors Silk.

Now for the text, I used the Keep Calm app for my iPad (69p from the App Store) which allows you to create the iconic poster using whatever words you like. I then emailed the completed "poster" to myself so I could pick it up on my laptop.

I opened the poster (which comes over as a .jpg photo) in Photoshop and zoomed in until it was the size I wanted. I then placed some regular paper up to the screen and traced it off (the laptop screen acts as a lightbox). 

The Coca-Cola text was done the same, having Googled for the logo.

Of course, you could use your printer, but some of the words were bigger than A4 and I have to wait for Mr G to muck about with ours as it makes you jump through hoops before it works - have you seen this about Why Printers Are Sent From Hell To Make Us Miserable? It's hilarious because it is sooooo true....

I then positioned the paper on top of the painted wood and using a ballpoint pen and with quite heavy force traced around the lettering - this kind of etched the text into the wood and I was then able to fill in using AS's Old White and a small artists brush.

After it dried I began with a light sanding and then went a bit heavier to get the scratchy look and some of the under-colour showing through:

They took all afternoon but I so loved doing them, I am on the lookout for more wood so I can do some more!! 

What would you put on a sign if you were to make one? I thought a "Hovis" one might be nice....

I also finished my little stool:

I had been hankering after a wooden stool to crochet a top for and was doing a search of eBay when I came across the perfect one - I peered at the picture thinking the kitchen looked rather familiar and realised it was my Mum selling the stool!! Needless to say she gave it to me for nothing!!

That's all I have to report today, so I will love you and leave you with warm Easter wishes....

hugs,

S x

Wanties - Fulfilled and Created....

Hello all, have you been having a nice weekend?


I've been playing with my new toy which I love, love, love already!!:

My laptop has been playing up and so I sold everything that wasn't nailed down on eBay to raise money for an iPad and found a new one for a bargain price (with full Apple warranty) and so didn't have to wait too long at all. 


Mr G bought me the pink cover as an early Valentines gift- it's a Tuff-Luv and you are meant to be able to throw your iPad out of a second floor window (there's a video of them doing so on their website) and not damage it!! Great for people with "slapdash-a-rea" like me.


Of course, me being me no sooner than one wantie is fulfilled than another one takes it's place - thanks to Homebird I am now hankering after a polka dot retro leather satchel from Zatchels *rollseyes*


As you can also see from the piccie above my daffs are now in full bloom:

They smell lovely too, subtle, but very much the scent of spring.


I thought I would show you my current crochet WiP too, a giant granny square which I hoping will get big enough to be a blanket (it's too big to be turned into a cushion now!!):

It's just done in good old Stylecraft DK and I am trying to do a couple of rounds each evening in front of the TV.


I'm sat here smelling like a bonfire because we had a go at the garden today. We are not gardeners, but in the last few years have become a little more interested and this is the time of year that we pull the dead stuff out of the front garden and borders.


Mr G did his caveman thing and lit a bonfire in our bin thingy hence the smell - it so remind me of my late Dad, he had a big tweedy pink "gardening jumper" that my Nanna had knit him and it (and he) often smelt of woodsmoke on winter weekends as he spent much of his time in the large garden of the house I grew up in. Smells are soooo evocative....


What have you been up to this weekend?


hugs,


S x

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas....

Gosh I've been a bit slack about blogging this last week so now I have to a huge post to catch up.


We've put the decorations up her at Shabby Chic HQ, when I say we, I mean that W and I started to put them up together, he lost interest after an hour and I did the rest myself whilst he complained he couldn't hear the XBox over my Michael Buble Christmas album!!


Now, I apologise in advance for the quality of the pics, my camera is really rather hopeless. I guess I could have had a new one for Christmas, but I was more keen on a fancy new sewing machine!!


The tree in the lounge:

With a lopsided star, why do they make them so heavy?

Next to the tree on the windowsill is the Nativity scene that my Mum knitted for us a couple of years ago - it was before I could knit, and even now I can I don't think I would have the patience:

Aren't they fab? My Stepdad even made them a stable....

We are hoping that Bear (one of our Tonkinese cats) is going to leave them alone as he is obsessed with wool and anything made of it (whatever the fibre) to the point where he was trying to drag my Mum's cardi off her.

He has also been hoolying around the trees in the manner of Simon's Cat - if you haven't seen the Christmas one (or indeed any of the Simon's Cat cartoons) do follow the link, they are hilarious, especially if you are a cat owner.

The "library" as we jokingly call it (it was the dining room before we had the conservatory along the back of the house and is now a bit of a none-room) looks all frosty and winter-white:

I collected fresh holly and ivy from the stables to decorate and also traipsed around the woods to find some sticks that Mr G spray painted antique white and gold for me to put them in a vase and I love, love, love them, I think they are going to have to stay after the festive season:

I'm thinking crocheted hearts for Valentines;  eggs for Easter;  flowers for summer, etc....

The snowflakes need starch really....

The tree in the conservatory is all blue and pink, but you can't really tell in this dreadful pic:

The dresser has had the treatment too:

I've also been inspired by (or is it I have just shamelessly copied?!!)  the lovely Vanessa over at Coco Rose Diaries and made some crochet covers for jars to create lovely votives:

And I have been making trees - a book page one:

 And one at my ceramics painting group (this starts out plain white bisque which you paint and it's then fired) - it's waiting for a light fitting and then the little bulbs will glow:

I've also been enjoying my Advent swap gifts from Sandie my favourite of which so far is this fab birdie paper garland:

In my sewing room so I can keep it up all year round (look at the condensation from the blummin' tumble dryer!!)

So, I think that is all I have to report for now - hope you all have a lovely week....

hugs,

S x