Cabbages & Roses Giveaway

Loving this tent right now made from Cabbages & Roses fabric.

By the way, stop by their blog to enter a handmade giveaway which is going right now =0)

...I did!

Ness xx

At Home With Country - C&R's Book Review and a winner!!!

I am so honoured to have been asked by Christina Strutt and her wonderful crew to review her 5th book, At Home With Country. I did feel very nervous doing this, a a little like I was handing in a paper at school (except everyone gets to read it not just the Teacher!). So, when the beautiful book arrive the other day and I managed to pry it from my Mum's hands, I sat with pen and paper and started to write. Then it struck me, what was I doing, this book is amazing!!

Christina was a Stylist at Vogue before starting her very successful fabric company Cabbages & Roses!!! This book doesn't need a review, it speaks for itself.

So, I just immersed myself in it, coffee and cake in hand and soaked up every beautiful country image...this is where I stopped...and thought.
I love country, and so many people say they are 'over it' and it has been done to death...yeah, the mass produced country style with ducks in hats and mice and wheat in the kitchen etc...not this country style - THIS will never die or be done to death. The real country home is full of comfortable, beautiful, practical pieces. Lived in, loved in crumpled, washable fabrics - you know the stuff....and Christina has shown this perfectly. Not only is this book a journey through gorgeous homes, but different styles of homes all with a 'real country' feel. It is a look that can fit anywhere, from an 11th century home to a loft in Manhattan, a house boat to a English cottage...and when done well, will never date.

This brand is stunning regardless!

The whole way through you are taken on a visual journey with the C&R's range of stunning fabrics and shown how versatile florals, stripes and checks can be.
I loved that there are references with each home as to the name of the fabric, and a sample section at the back to see the ranges together and how they all work together.

The homes Christina has selected are beautiful and this one called "Bridgehampton Cottage" shows the C&R's fabric so well. The white walls give the fabric center stage and it goes so well with the antiques and quirky vignettes.
This is what being at home with country should be about. Casual, yet thoughtful arrangements that will be moved frequently, nothing that is overly precious and all having a function.
I was extremely happy to see that my favourite designer Tricia Foley's Manhattan Loft and her equally stunning Long Island home made an appearance. I also loved the Langton range of fabrics she has used in both homes.

As my scanner was playing up I couldn't get an image of the Paris Rose fabric Tricia used on this sofa in her loft, but you will just have to buy the book and see for yourself as well as Christina's stunning and so homely "Brook Cottage", where the Cabbages & Roses label was started. Her amazing tent is something to be bookmarked for future reference and the first time I had ever seen her tent was also the first time I had seen the C&R's fabric.
If you are looking for an inspiring book, something to look at over and over again, then At Home With Country will not disappoint - I promise you! =0)

Thank you so much for letting me review your book Christina, I LOVE it!
{all photos by Edina Van Der Wyck for Cico Books}

NOW TO THE GIVEAWAY WINNER!!!

let's get straight to it!

According to Random.org, the winner of the fabulous shopper tote and amazing scented candle, both by Cabbages & Roses is.....

http://thewickerhouse.blogspot.com

Congratulations Emily. If you could send me an email with your details please, I will get your goodies out to you =0)
...and thank you to all who entered.

Ness xx

Guest Blogger, Cristina Strutt...and a GIVEAWAY!

Today I have something special to share with you all. The amazing Christina Strutt from Cabbages & Roses has been kind enough to do a guest post on my blog, share some tips on decorating and also sponsor a beautiful GIVEAWAY for you all!!!

Take it away Christina!

------------------------------------------
DEAR NESS,
I WAS THRILLED THAT YOU ASKED CABBAGES & ROSES TO MAKE
AN ENTRY FOR YOUR BLOG. HERE ARE 10 SMALL TIPS THAT WILL
HOPEFULLY MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE:
1. FAIL TO PLAN IS TO PLAN TO FAIL. DO WHAT PROFESSIONAL
DECORATORS DO AND MAKE A BOARD WITH PAINT COLOURS,
FABRICS, FLOOR COVERINGS AND FURNITURE PLAN.

2. GET SAMPLE POTS OF PAINT COLOURS AND PAINT AREAS IN
THE DARKEST PART OF THE ROOM AND IN THE LIGHTEST THE
COLOUR WILL VARY GREATLY, SO MAKE SURE IT WORKS
EVERYWHERE NOT JUST BY THE WINDOW.

3. IF YOU DON'T ABSOLUTELY ADORE THE PAINT COLOUR -
CHANGE IT - YOU WILL NOT LEARN TO LOVE IT/LIVE WITH IT - IT
WILL ANNOY YOU UNTIL IT IS CHANGED, AND BETTER TO
CHANGE IT WHILST THE FURNITURE IS OUT OF THE WAY RATHER
THAN WHEN YOU HAVE PUT THE ROOM BACK TOGETHER AGAIN.

4. PERIODICALLY RE ARRANGE YOUR TREASURES - PUT THEM IN
DIFFERENT ROOMS OR SETTINGS - I FIND THIS INSPIRES ME AND IS
A CHEAP WAY TO GET A NEW ROOM.

5. FLEA MARKETS AND ANTIQUES FAIRS ARE HEAVEN FOR
ANYONE DECORATING A HOME. ONE MANS TREASURE IS
ANOTHER MANS JUNK SO THERE IS ALWAYS ROOM TO
MANOEUVRE ON THE PRICE.

6. WHEN LOOKING FOR A SUBSTANTIAL PIECE OF FURNITURE AT
A FLEA MARKET, IMAGINE IT PAINTED WHITE - THIS WILL BRING A
PIECE FROM HEAVY 1940'S TO 21ST CENTURY SHABBY CHIC IN AN
INSTANT.

7. FLOORING SHOULD BE A NEUTRAL AND AS NATURAL AS YOU
CAN AFFORD. ALTHOUGH A LAMINATE WOOD FLOORING IS
CHEAPER THAN THE REAL THING, IT WONT LAST OR AGE AS WELL
AS REAL WOODEN FLOORBOARDS.

8. IF YOU CAN’T AFFORD TO RE DECORATE A ROOM AS WELL
AS YOU WOULD LIKE, PAINT IT WHITE. A CLEAN WHITE ROOM IS
A BLANK CANVAS WHICH CAN BE LEFT STARK AND MODERN
AND MINIMALIST, OR COSIED UP WITH FURNITURE, RUGS AND
PAINTINGS.

9. WHEN INVESTING IN ANYTHING FOR THE HOME BE IT FABRIC
FOR DRAPES, OR A PIECE OF FURNITURE ASK YOURSELF WILL I
LOVE THIS UNTIL I DIE CAN I HAVE IT IN FRONT OF MY EYES FOR
THE REST OF MY LIFE AND STILL LOVE IT IF THE ANSWER IS YES THEN
GO FOR IT.

10. HAVE FUN

XXC

---------------------------------------------------------

Thank you so much Christina for guest blogging for me. Your images are gorgeous and your advice priceless!

GIVEAWAY TIME =0)

Christina has been kind enough to offer one reader a gorgeous scented Cabbages & Roses candle, which comes in a beautifully labeled glass jar and box, and also a lovely shopper tote in the beautiful Cabbages & Roses fabric, Hatley in Cherise.

All you have to do is leave a comment and if you would like another entry head over to the lovely Cabbages & Roses blog and leave a comment there - simple!...just let me know in your comment.

The giveaway will be drawn on Monday 5th July, Australian time.
Ness xx

Thanks to Kathrine and Suzie to for all of your help, and of course Christina xx

C&R Book Review and a recipe...

Firstly I wanted to say thank you all for your lovely comments and emails about our $5 sideboard. It was very nice of you all.

Next I wanted to tell you about this as I cant contain it any longer.

I have been asked to do a book review for Christina Strutt's amazing new book...

At Home With Country.

The photo at the top of the post is a sneak peek at the book...it looks amazing and I am now awaiting my hard copy in the mail. Every day I have been checking the mailbox in anticipation of this book. I have Christina's other books and they are just beautiful. If you don't know who Christina is or have never seen any of the Cabbages and Roses fabrics, you are in for a treat. They are all based on vintage prints and have a faded quality to them which is so pretty. Christina's outdoor area which looks like a huge canvas tent has been in my favourites file forever and the interior of this space is superb.

While I wait on the postie to deliver this gem I have been looking through the Cabbages & Roses website, and found these...

This French grey set of drawers is circa 1870 and is just perfect. There are so many beautiful pieces on the C&R website and if I was able to, I would have them all!

Especially this stunning Armoire which is circa 1890. It looks wonderful filled with Christina's fabrics which are also on the site.
But, I would be happy with one of her deckchairs to remind me of Summer. As soon as I have the book I will be sure to give it a thorough going over and will tell you all about it...I cant wait!

After yesterdays post I have had lots of emails about the recipe for these Raspberry and White Chocolate Muffins I made, so here it is....I never put all of the following in, especially the butter and sugar, I always use less and put loads more raspberries and white choc in instead =0)

170gms (about 1/2 cup) of Caster Sugar

2 eggs

200gms Butter

2 cups of sifted self raising flour

80 mls of milk

1/2 cup of Raspberries

1/4 cup of white chocolate chips

Method

-----------

1. Whisk eggs and sugar until thick

2.Add butter, flour and milk

3. add raspberries and chocolate

4. Stir gently until just combined

5. Spoon into muffin trays and press extra choc and raspberries into top.

6. Bake in moderate oven (about 180 C) for about 30 minutes or until golden.

Easy! Enjoy.

Ness xx

The bird in me...

Debbie Floral - Calico Corners
I have always had an obsession with beautiful fabric and this one above is no exception. It has been saved in my fabric file for quite a while now. I just haven't found the right project for it yet.
For the last year or so, I have really enjoyed the amount of bird inspired fabrics that have come on to the scene...they have been everywhere and I am loving it! Birds and things with birds keep popping up in my life...I will show you...Mulberry Muse
These postcards, which have been made to look like an old French letter, are gorgeous...and not so much for the beautiful script writing or the sepia tones of the paper...but for that Peacock!!! There are some at The Gorge (an awesome swimming, dining and recreational spot in Launceston) that I would love to take home. They just wander around and amaze me every time I see them. Declan, our 5 year old, split his knee open when he was two trying to 'catch' one...he still bears the scar!

LYoung Studio
This lovely art work with its blazing red Cardinal has also been in my wish list file for some time now. The whole range of prints for that matter!!

Marley & Lockyer
How could I not do birds on my own cushion covers?!
A silhouette of this one is also above our French doors in the living room in black.

Ness Lockyer
This canvas of mine, which is based on the Sid Dickens tiles sits wonderfully with 3 others above our kitchen bench. It is my favourite thing to look at...besides the real birds outside the window...while I am waiting for the kettle to boil.
Black & Spiro
Back to fabric...this beautiful piece was hanging in the window of Black & Spiro and I love it. The Cockatoos remind me of the Australian Galah (called Ozzie) we had since he was a little chick with no feathers (I was about 4), until he passed away from old age(when I was 25). He was the only Australian bird I know that had a Scottish accent like my Parents...and he was my best friend as a child.

See what I mean...they are everywhere. As much as I love them, I will never cage a bird again. They deserve to be free!

Ness xx

Loving...blue & white anything!

via porchlight interiors
Anything to do with a blue and white scheme has me captivated. The colour combo is so fresh and seeing that we here in Australia have just started Spring, I thought some blue and white fancy was in order. This first image above shows how well these two work together to create a fresh interior, especially when teamed with wicker and dark wood....my faves!

hound hill design
Which brings me to other blue and white items I love to feature in a room...especially the Ginger Jar!! I am more taken with the patterning like the ones above over the Chinese images you can find quite easily. I think this is why I am having such a hard time tracking them down for my collection.
ralph lauren home

Then I spotted this! This gorgeous fabric by the master of blue and white, Ralph Lauren I recently spotted on Anna Spiro's website in her Portfolio on a chair and some cushions she had done. It is the perfect scale (much larger than this shows) and the perfect patterning to remind me of the Ginger Jars I so love. This is the fabric I want to put on the cushions on our sofa against the ticking I showed yesterday.

anne harwell
In the meantime, while I search for more jars, I have just purchased this beautiful print from uber talented artist and blogger Anne Harwell of Annechovie. I can't wait for its arrival.

etsy.com

So, I went on a hunt for prints of blue and white items and found this little print...not quite me, but it is just so sweet. I am sorry I can't remember who the artist was.

room service
As much as I love Ginger jars, I am really not fussy as to what it is, like these little china balls and pots...

victoria hagen interiors
....and I can settle for plates...and Hydrangeas! I just have this long obsession with this combo as much as the white obsession I have. My wish though is to have a collection like...
anna spiro
THIS!

How can you not admire a grouping like that?

Ness xx

Pippijoe

These delightful fabrics come from the online store Pippijoe, which I first spotted some time ago in one of my favourite stores Cocoon here in Launceston.
Not only are the fabrics beautiful, they are also Eco friendly. Caitlin is the owner and brains behind this surging Melbourne business and it seems everywhere I look, Pippijoe is.

There are wonderful things on her site, and she showcases other creative types who have made beautiful things with her wonderful fabric. These baskets would make a wonderful carry all for the Farmers Market's .

You can buy the fabric by the meter.


There is even a Children's range, which is too cute!

Caitlin also has a blog which she shares upcoming designs and creations. For something stylish and Eco Chic visit her site now!

Ness xx

all images-Pippijoe

My Curent Wish List...

My wish list is constantly changing, but I would like one of these Louis XV style Bergeres chairs...

and some new linen from Carina Sherlock...
definitely a Lounge with kid friendly fabric (that looks stylish as well)...
this outdoor setting by Patricia Urquiola for B&B Italia, which is like the Fat Sofa range.

Go to www.bebitalia.it to see more
and finally (for now) some ''Monchique' wallpaper form Osbourne & Little from www.mokumtextiles.com This I would like for the feature wall in the shop, maybe behind the register area....who knows! I am sure I will have a new list next week, Ness x