Monday, April 30, 2012

[ happy monday! ]

I HOPE your weekend was a good one and you enjoyed a bit of fun and relaxation!



Today, the lovely Barb at hodge:podge has featured me in her Loving Your Rental series. Being a fellow renter herself, she knows what it's like to try to create a warm, stylish home in a space you can't make many alterations to {although her landlord is very sweet and does allow her to express her wonderful creativity ~ I'm not so lucky!}. If you're not familiar with Barb's awesome blog, be sure to check it out. It's filled to the brim with wonderful inspiration and her amazing DIY projects. Come on over!

Thanks for having me Barb!

lisa

Friday, April 27, 2012

[ jokes and such ]



MY GOODNESS! Who would have thought a joke would hit a nerve? Most of you saw the humour in yesterday's post. Have I ever left  a card like that on someone's car? Of course not. But that doesn't mean that words like a-hole and other expletives haven't crossed my mind when someone has dinged our brand new car, or parked on an angle so there's no way to back out, or parked so close that I have to crawl through my trunk to reach my driver's seat.

I'm happy to hear that not everyone can relate and that fellow citizens are much more considerate in some parts of the world. But sadly, a lot of 'Be Considerate' chapters seem to be missing from the Basic Manners handbooks everywhere and jerk parkers are a daily occurrence. That's a heck of a lot of people just having a bad day. Of course the term a-hole was a bit mean, but that's why it's funny {as I'm typing this, I'm wondering why I'm trying to explain a joke}.

As for Anonymous, telling me you're going to stop following my blog just because you don't see the humour - was that mean? I think so. But that's ok - I have my big girl panties on. And maybe you were just having a bad day.

Happy weekend everyone!

lisa

Thursday, April 26, 2012

[ genius? ]


How many times have I wished I had some of these in the car?


lisa
[pinterest]

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

[ spring green ]

I LOVE the bright green of little buds and sprouts in the spring. Isn't this spring green a fresh pop of colour in these rooms?


Do you have any spring green in your home?

lisa

[1,3,6,7 better homes and gardens; 2,5 thomas dahl; via theenchantedhome]

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

[ pinwheel pretty ]

I'M A huge fan of tiled walls in bathrooms. Remember all of those homes from the 50s ~ they all had tiled walls, just up to below eye level, capped off by a single row of accent tile? It was just the standard thing to do.

Nowadays, we often only see tile on floors and shower walls. But look at how pretty some wall tile can be...


These pinwheel marble tiles add such character to this bathroom and give a white bathroom a bit of subtle colour. While they may be a bit busy for the entire room, on an accent wall they really make a statement. I love the antique mirror sconces and elegant mirror as well. Do you have tiled walls in your bathroom?

lisa
[houseandhome]

Monday, April 23, 2012

[ gaga for aga ]

FOR MOST of us, the kitchen is the heart of the home ~ it's where we spend the most time, preparing meals, assembling lunches, gathering as a family. And it's where company always seems to congregate when you're entertaining.

To me, nothing says cozy kitchen like an English country kitchen, complete with an AGA. While I loved my Wolf cooktop and wall ovens, there's just something about an AGA that has me smitten.


Aren't they great? AGAs were invented in 1929 and originally were heated using slow-burning coal and were on all day, providing heat to the entire kitchen on cold winter days. Nowadays they are programmable and run on natural gas or electricity. They're certainly not cheap but they are a true workhorse in the kitchen. I love the idea of their multiple ovens, warming plate and wide range of colours. 

If you're looking for something with a little more warmth and personality than an industrial stainless steel range, I think investing in an AGA is worth every penny. What do you think?

lisa
[all pics: housetohome]

Friday, April 20, 2012

[ happy weekend! ]



SOMEDAY I'd love to have a cute little cottage with a vintage front door like this and a beautifully painted porch. What a lovely way to say Welcome. Have a great weekend everyone!

lisa
[historiskefliser]

Thursday, April 19, 2012

[ diy travel pillow pillowcase ]



I DON'T know about you, but I wish they sold pillowcases to go with travel pillows. Whether it's an inflatable pillow, or a polar fleece one, I always prefer the feel of a normal cotton pillowcase against my face.

I decided that I just don't want to go another flight without one so I whipped up this one using some Amy Butler fabric I had in my stash.

I started with my polar fleece pillow...


... and chose 2 coordinating fabrics to make it reversible.


Place the pillow on the backside of one of the fabrics and estimate how far up the sides it needs to go {don't forget seam allowance}...


... then trace around the shape with a pencil {double-check to make sure you have made it large enough ~ you don't want it too tight ~ you need to be able to get the pillow in and out}



... cut it out, then trace it onto the coordinating fabric with right-sides together to cut out another...


... start pinning the pieces right-sides together with the pillow in between to help with fit then mark with a pencil along the pin line ~ remove pins along the top end and remove pillow...


...sew zipper in along the top end and then sew all around...


... turn right-side out and insert pillow to check fit ~ make any adjustments if needed then trim seam allowance...


...zigzag the edge all around if you like, to prevent fraying from numerous washings...



... and that's it! Done!



If you want to avoid the whole zipper thing, you can use ribbon ties, velcro, buttons or snaps to close the opening or slipstitch it closed if you don't mind that it's not washable.




I like that it's reversible and much cuter than what I started with. Now all I need is to go somewhere so I can use it!

lisa

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

[ colourful vignettes ]

STYLING a side table to create a pretty, interesting arrangement can sometimes be a tricky thing.



I love everything about this vignette, especially the mix of colours that have been used. All from the cool side of the colour wheel, they work together beautifully. While at first you wouldn't necessarily think that the chartreuse boxes would pair well with the kelly green of the teacup, mixing in some turquoise in the art and a pretty mauve teacup creates a gorgeous combination of colour.

How do you style a table? Do you go by colour, shape, theme...?

lisa
[girlathome.tumblr.com]

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

[ have a seat ]

I'M REALLY loving this dining area - isn't that banquette lovely? The tall, padded back on it would be so comfortable and the pretty shape is such a nice detail.


Banquettes are such a great idea, especially when space is a bit tight for pulling out chairs around all sides of a table. This entire space is so charming - the gallery wall, those little corner display shelves, the chandelier and Louis dining chairs... 

I'd love to have a banquette in my next home - how about you?

lisa
[southern living] 

Monday, April 16, 2012

[ from my passenger seat ]

HAPPY MONDAY! Gee, that was a quick weekend! I actually didn't end up spending any time by the pool as I had planned, but we did go on a little road trip on Saturday to Fujairah, one of the other Emirates.

Come along with me and I'll show you what I saw from my passenger seat...


As you can imagine, Dubai is surrounded by lots of sand...



... we saw a few goats...



... a coffee shop...



... some random camels...



... gradually the sand became a deeper cayenne colour {apparently each of the 7 Emirates has a different colour of sand}...




...and the landscape began to change to mountains...



...we passed elaborate buildings in the middle of nowhere...



...and random people of the side of the road...



...and more camels...




...and soon it was late afternoon and we were on our way back...



... and could eventually see Dubai's skyline on the horizon...



... and we were back.



There you go! A little taste of what you see around the outskirts of Dubai. What did you see this weekend?

lisa

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