Trying a 3D wooden puzzle

Trying a 3D wooden puzzle

Thursday, 31 October 2024

My family and I went to our local garden centre a few days ago to buy a Christmas tree. We don't do real trees - personally I think they're too much hassle, though they look gorgeous - so we got a lovely pre-lit one with nice spruce branches for a touch of realism. I can't wait to photograph it once it's up and decorated. We've picked up a few new baubles too in recent weeks, I even got some cute glass ones from the V&A.

Just before you get to all the Christmas gubbins, there's this little display of 3D wooden puzzles. There's all sorts from globes to Ferris wheels to book nooks. I've noticed them before, but during this visit I decided to pick one up. I got the Rolife Merry-Go-Round to start with, it was small and reasonably priced so I thought it'd make the perfect beginner project.

I finished it in about 1.5 hours and it was a lot of fun to work on. It felt satisfying building it and putting each little piece together. I felt very accomplished afterwards, but there was a hiccup...

One of my horses suffered a grave injury. The poles that connect the horse to the merry-go-round were very flimsy and thin, and you kind of have to push the connecting pieces together quite firmly, and unfortunately the pole snapped at the bottom. 

I then super glued the pieces back together and held them close with a bulldog clip, but then the bulldog clip glued itself to the wood so I had to yank that off, resulting in the above mess. I managed to reattach the horse but it now looks like, uh, that. But luckily for me, I can just spin the merry-go-round around and put the unsightly horse at the back. No-one needs to know! (Except for you reading this.)

This is the finished product! I think it's very cute. I reckon it would look fantastic painted, but there's no way in hell I'm deconstructing this thing.

My mum has since bought me the Japanese Sakura book nook for Christmas, so expect more disasters in the future.

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Three ways to style 'True Joy'

Three ways to style 'True Joy'

Tuesday, 29 October 2024

Last month, Dulux announced their Colour of the Year 2025 - True Joy, a bold and uplifting mustard yellow. This warm, sunny shade evokes feelings of happiness, positivity, and energy, making it an ideal colour to use in interior design.

 

Via The Nordroom.

There's plenty of ways to incorporate yellow into your home. You could go all out and saturate the walls, or if that's not your cup of tea, you could start small with a statement piece of furniture or some soft furnishings - the image above shows how you can still play with yellow without drowning in it.

I have put together 3 colour schemes with complementing homeware all based around Dulux's True Joy to hopefully give you some ideas on how you can play around with this cheery shade.

Candy Pop

Interior by Beata Heuman / 1. Inverse Palm Grove Linen Box Pleat Lampshade by Alice Palmer & Co, from £95.00 / 2. Kairi Pink Stripe Ceramic Vase from Oliver Bonas, £32.50 / 3. &Klevering Candle Holder from Courthouse Interiors, £13.35 / 4. Set of 4 Chinoiserie Prints by Diane Hill, from £200.00 / 5. Block Check Herringbone Blanket by Dunedin Cashmere, £26.28 / 6. Gingham Lumbar Cushion by Poppy and Honesty, from £37.00.

Earth & Fire

Interior from Sight Unseen / 1. Etta Cushion by Stevensons Home, £30.00 / 2. Large Candle Holder from Melody Maison, £16.95 / 3. Reactive Glaze Vase from Marks & Spencer, £29.50 / 4. Vintage Mid Century Gents Wardrobe from Vinterior, £530.00 / 5. Le Champignon Doré Table Lamp from Lior & Clé, £127.00 / 6. Fara Velvet Throw by Idyll Home, £115.00.

Pack a Punch

Interior from Homes & Gardens / 1. Pack of 4 Fringed Linen Napkins from Borough Kitchen, £49.00 / 2. Original Gluggle Jug from The Gluggle Jug Factory, from £19.00 / 3. SO'HOME Abstract Line Cushion from La Redoute, £39.00 / 4. Stell Paper 'Paper Garden' Art Print from Drool, from £24.50 / 5. TipToe Lou Wood Stool from Lamp Twist, £118.69 / 6. Mediterraneo Fruit Holder by Alessi, £62.00.

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Cold weather bedding

Cold weather bedding

Sunday, 27 October 2024

Yesterday I decided to upgrade my bedding.

I currently have a mid-range pair of pillows (that were described as 'firm' on the website and arrived as flat as pancakes) and a duvet I bought from a supermarket for under £20. I haven't even had them long and I'm sick of how flat and ill-fitting they are, so yesterday I bit the bullet and bought a fresh new duvet and pillow.

I knew in my heart I had to spend some good money if I wanted something quality and to last me longer than a few months. I purchased mine from The Fine Bedding Company in the end, but I came across some beautiful bits and pieces while browsing. 

I have put together a small collection of beautiful, high quality bedding that will keep you sufficiently toasty this winter.

Luxury Cashmere & Wool Duvet by Ava Innes, from £346.00.

A blend of 65% cashmere guard hair & 35% British Wool, free-flow of air and insulation thanks to specialist carding and signature S-stitching, greater power fill within the duvet due to the flat-lying properties of cashmere guard, encased in high quality organic cotton for a luxurious finish, even layering using traditional methods, and designed and made in the UK.

Luxury Wool Pillow from the Chatsworth Estate, from £84.99.

Made using wool from 100% traceable British wool from the Chatsworth Estate, fully adjustable to suit your preference whether you sleep on your front, side or back, machine washable, naturally hypoallergenic, and the only pillows to hold the Allergy UK Seal of Approval.

Morris & Co Honeysuckle & Tulip Quilted Throw from Peter Betteridge, £220.00.

One of Morris & Co’s most iconic designs, Honeysuckle & Tulip was originally produced as a wallpaper in 1876. 100% cotton velvet.

Pure New Merino Lambswool Mattress Topper by Ciora Scotland, from £100.00.

100% free-range, mulesing-free, pure new Pyrenean Merino Lambswool filling, hand-filled and quilted for perfect support and comfort, temperature-regulating, moisture-wicking, climate-adaptive to individual sleepers even when sleeping with a partner, dust-mite repellent, mould, bacteria and mildew resistant, odour inhibiting, 100% OEKO-TEX® certified fine Cotton Sateen woven covers with Aloe Vera for it’s skin soothing, antimicrobial and hypoallergenic properties, completely renewable, sustainable and 100% biodegradable.

Totterdown Waffle Blanket by The British Blanket Company, £120.00.

Crafted in Yorkshire from pure sheep's wool.

Pure Linen Duvet Cover by Cuddledown, from £101.50.

100% pure French-Belgian flax linen, garment washed for a 'lived-in' casual look and feel, packaged in a matching linen carrier, OEKO-TEX® certified, considerately woven by a BCI (Better Cotton Initiative) member, milled and carefully crafted in Portugal.

10.5 Tog Hungarian Goose Down Duvet from The White Company, from £230.00.

Goose-down design for everyday affordable luxury. Filled with 90% white goose down and 10% small feathers.

The Cotton Quilt by Bedfolk, from £199.00.

Made in Portugal from the finest quality cotton.

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A return to blogging

A return to blogging

Saturday, 26 October 2024

I haven't blogged in a long time. 

I've been itching to write a blog alongside my portfolio for years, but I could never make my mind up about which website builder/host to move to. I find WordPress too complicated to use, Squarespace too expensive, and Wix... well, actually Wix was my favourite out of the three, but I still thought I could do it without having to fork out £19+ a month. I certainly don't mind the modest £10 a year it costs me for a domain, so it was all about finding a platform that was either very cheap or free, and so I landed back on Blogspot.

My previous blog is long gone and I do miss it slightly, but here's to a new start!

Let me talk you through my month.

Top row: I went to see Macbeth at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London on Saturday (19th October). It was a breathtaking production, a performance I will never forget. I noticed they were selling vinyl at the bar and told myself I would pick one up after the show, and obviously I forgot. I only remembered while I was at King's Cross, 20 minutes from catching my train home, so I desperately emailed the theatre. They got back to me a few days later and offered to send me one. They told me to purchase the vinyl through their Order At Seat service then send them a pre-paid postage label and they would send it to me. I was floored. That money left my account at lightning speed. The beautiful vinyl pictured above arrived on my doorstep 3 days later.

Middle and bottom rows: The week prior to Macbeth (couldn't combine the trips because of work, grr) I was in London for my biannual shopping and sightseeing trip (7th - 11th October). I like to save up a big chunk of money and blow it all in my favourite shops (Choosing Keeping which is pictured above is one I always make time for, to me it's the most magical place on earth). This trip included my first time seeing the beautiful Great Bed of Ware at the V&A. A magnificent piece of furniture built around 1590 by Hans Vredeman de Vries. It's such a cool thing to see in real life. I took some really rubbish and slightly grainy photos of it but we'll not dwell on that.

I love exploring bookshops in London. This might be a basic choice, but my favourite is the Waterstones on Piccadilly. Six floors of unadulterated joy. I love their Shakespeare section because they stock the No Fear Shakespeare study guides by SparkNotes - they have the modern English translation on the opposite page so you can follow along and understand the plot more easily (it made seeing Macbeth even more enjoyable). During this trip I picked up Want, a collection of anonymous sexual fantasies of women from all around the world compiled by Gillian Anderson. I'm only around 10 or so pages in but it's a wonderful read so far. Also the cover is magnificent and I want to frame it.

Not every month is going to be quite as exciting as this one. I don't have any theatre trips planned until March, but I'll go into that in another post. I'm hoping to have a very quiet, very slow, very frugal end to the year.

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