Hi there! Happy Monday. How was your weekend?
On Saturday, we had great weather, so our friend Matt (Royal College of Art graduate, illustrator, and also part-time accountant - crazy, crazy talented!) came over for a barbecue. He gave us this card from The Printed Peanut with a sweet housewarming message inside and I loved it so much, I found a frame for it yesterday and plan to add it to my slow-growing collection of prints.
Isn't it lovely? It's from Louise Lockhart's book, Up My Street, a fold-out book containing illustrations of traditional British shop-fronts. Too sweet! I'm always inspired by Matt's creative circle - he's so tuned into the coolest art festivals and collectives in London. Recently, he sent me a list of his favorite illustrators and designers so I could peruse their work online.
Earlier that day, I dropped by Geo-Fleur's grand opening in Wood Street - a little shop that sells succulent plant hangers, gorgeous candle holders (plus hand-poured candles!), and the tiniest of cacti, amongst other, beautiful things for your home.
We walked away with this adorable little succulent and brass and leather plant hanger. I kind of love it. But! Even more exciting: Geo-Fleur is designing a bespoke terrarium filled with little succulents for us, which I'm picking up next weekend. Eeks!
I'm a plant-killer (seriously, nothing survives more than a few weeks in my hands), so I was relieved to learn that these succulents are really low maintenance and don't require too much attention or care. We're currently deciding where to hang it ... hmm ...
Yesterday, we stopped by Westfield to shop the sales and find some soft furnishings for our home. We're currently searching for the perfect area rug(s). (You know you've got a problem when you're watching Empire and you're too busy squinting at the rug in Empire HQ's foyer and wondering where they sourced it from rather than focusing on Cookie's fabulousness. I mean, #truth.)
If The White Company had a loyalty scheme, I think I'd be racking up some serious points by now, because I looked at my bank statement yesterday (don't even) and I think I shop there more often than I get coffees from Pret-a-Manger.
Anyway, we went in for a duvet cover and mattress protector ... and walked out with these too (plus a lovely, light grey robe for me):
They're the hugest, duck-feather-filled pillows ever. Ever. I've always been obsessed with the ginormous, unnecessary decorative pillows on hotel beds ... and how "finished" they make a bed look! These were a compromise because they're decorative but functional too: they serve as the perfect propping-up pillows when reading! I bit my lip at the price tag (they were in the sale, but still a little pricey for pillows), but went back to them because they were just so firm and comfy.
Now all we need is a painting to fill that space above the bed ...
One thing I haven't had in this whole home-ownership process is patience. I've spent hours combing through interior design magazines, searching Pinterest for inspiration (I've pinned more "guides to creating the perfect gallery wall" than you could ever imagine), and religiously scrolling through the websites of every single indie-design/homeware shop I can find. I keep forgetting that finding art, homeware, and furniture takes time, and that I shouldn't be in such a rush! (I also keep forgetting that the hotels whose interior styles I so admire have a team of professional interior designers and a seemingly unlimited budget, so a rug for £3,000 is like, NBD for them ... sigh.)
So, that's it, really - three little home improvements that have made the world of difference. Also, question: how many of you make your bed EVERY SINGLE MORNING? I am the WORST at that! The worst! It's embarrassing.
Aaah! I love the White Company too!! xx For our anniversary last year, I commissioned a charcoal portrait of the two of us from a friend's art company and he's put it over the bed. So sweet x
ReplyDeleteAlso super gushy. haha But just an idea ;)
DeleteGreat idea, Sarah Elizabeth! Thanks so much for sharing. And - isn't The White Company amazing?? I want everything when I walk in there! x
DeleteLol! I'm with you, I get all my sheets and everything from White Company, and my coffee from Pret every day...I need to have shares in them or something!
ReplyDeleteLots of love,
Angie
SilverSpoon London
So glad I'm not the only one with The White Company addiction, Angie - haha! I love their Genoa line ... John is super fussy and only sleeps on a high thread count Egyptian cotton sateen (eye roll) and theirs, as well as John Lewis', is one of the few that meets his standards. What a diva! ;) xx
DeleteI'm the same with plants - the only ones I seem to keep alive are those in the garden & weeds... love the succulant pot though! It's so pretty you'll never forget to water them...
ReplyDeletePhew, good to know, Emma! Yep ... I haven't watered mine yet ... really hope it's not dead by the time I get home. Because then I'll be known as the person who "killed a cactus". Basically.
DeleteYou know, I blame blogging and social media (ha - what else is new?!) for our need to have a finished home 3 minutes after moving in. We don't want to share things that are incomplete unless we're sharing something that's clearly and beautifully/craftily in progress, and when you move into a new home it takes a while to figure out what you like, what fits in the space, what you can afford, and where that Venn diagram overlaps! The process isn't always sharable in a stylized way or even a way that you can blog about easily, and that's super frustrating. (We've been in our apartment since October 2014 and I'm still working in this!)
ReplyDeleteI've loved seeing your home posts on Instagram, Betsy! I like seeing your new purchases and how you move things around. I totally agree with everything you said above. I also think that I'm quite impatient in general and I want things to be "done" and "ready" immediately. While it's such a privilege to be able to start from scratch with this house, I also often find myself feeling bewildered and lost about the whole process ... and also lacking confidence in making decisions. It's been nice to share little parts of our progress along the way and to get some feedback on it all. Thanks for reading! :)
DeleteI love seeing your home come together piece by piece! You've made such great choices in decorating. Also: MAKE YOUR BED EVERY SINGLE DAY and you'll never regret it. It makes all the difference in your mood – I swear!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Robin! And ... I know, I know. I'm working on it. It was my New Year's resolution last year ... and I did pretty well until 2/3rds of the way through ... then I just thought, forgeddaboutit. Sigh. I think the new pillows will definitely encourage me!
DeleteI'm in the process of 'home-ifying' our apartment too and details like this make SUCH a difference, thanks for the inspiration! I'm a morning bed-maker purely because coming home to a well made bed makes your life 75% more satisfying at the end of a long day....try it for a week and you won't be able to go back :)
ReplyDeleteHi Carly! Thanks so much for your lovely comment! I totally agree with the bed-making bit ... I really need to make more of an effort. I did it this morning and it was so nice to look at those pillows on there, neatly made! It defintiely makes the room feel less chaotic, and would probably encourage me to keep everything else tidy as well. (So I hope!) :D
DeleteWe make our bed every day and now that we're in the habit of it, it's not so bad. It's nice to get into it fresh in the evening!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree, Kate - it makes such a difference getting into a "fresh" bed at night! Ok. I've got to do it. Every day!
DeleteI make my bed every day but this doesn't feel like anything to brag about, since I use a duvet and don't have decorative pillows or anything like that--so it just consists of pulling up the duvet and propping up the pillows. Sometimes in winter the cat is still sleeping in the bed when I do this, so I just pull the duvet over her. She doesn't seem to mind.
ReplyDeleteHahaha ... Marjorie, I'm just imagining a cat-shaped lump under the duvet. So adorable.
DeleteWhat a perfect housewarming card! I love your attention to details. Your home is going to look stunning!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Charlotte! I love the card and I just ordered a print from the same artist! Your blog and shop are a constant source of inspiration to me :) I love your aesthetic!
DeleteSo jealous of those pillows! Those are the next things on my list and they are just SO FLIPPING EXPENSIVE. I've started to make my bed every day now as a reminder to keep my room tidy, but once I go back to work on Thursday, I have a feeling that might go out of the window!
ReplyDeleteThey are the best, Jade - I highly recommend them! They *are* so expensive, though. I definitely think they're one of those things that are a "treat", rather than a necessity, though they do tie the room together! I'm now making my bed in the mornings and it's quite satisfying ... I think I'm just too lazy in general!
DeleteYour home so beautiful! You have such a good eye for exquisite, original pieces - I can't wait to see a full home tour, if you post one! Those pillows are beautiful - I didn't really know pillows could be beautiful, but those are!
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p.s. Matt has a good eye too - that card is adorable!
Apologies for all of the exclamation marks - I didn't realise how excited I could be about homeware posts until now...
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HAHA!!! Love so many things about your comments ... I'm American - we LIVE for exclamation points! !!! Thank you so much for your sweet words. I have a fear of being "unoriginal" or uninspired and feel like I'm just buying what Instagram/Kinfolk/Pinterest tells me to buy. But I know I like clean lines and minimalism, with a touch of luxe (or faux luxe, in my case!) here and there, so I hope that I can just slowly build on that! Thank you x million for your encouragement. I find the whole decorating thing a very daunting process. x
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