Feeling like the end of an era...

Six weeks ago after a busy Saturday in the salon, (for those of you who don't know I am a hairdresser and continue to work weekends while studying) I took myself off to Bishop Aukland for an interview for an internship. With no real idea where Bishop Aukland was, and a stomach full of excited nerves I did however manage to wind up on the doorstep of Gillian and Tim Arnold. 

So Bishop Aukland is a Town undergoing HUGE REGENERATION, and Gillian Arnold is a key part of that. (I'm working on cutting my posts down a bit, but what is going on in the Town is just amazing, so I urge you to read all about it and next years amazing Night Show plans here.)

In a lovely old square, not far from an old castle, sits an old supermarket building with the new name of "POD". POD is a creative hub that supports artists/ designers/ makers. The idea is to not only to allow artists to exhibit work, but to share advice, experiences and knowledge to enable businesses to grow and succeed - amazing don't you think?! Gillian Arnold are the main business doing this here to date. Again you can read all about that here.

Back to the interview...

Instantly put at ease with a charming greeting from three curious children, I could tell this was going to be a positive experience from the off. Upon meeting Tim, the techy brains behind Gillian Arnold took me to their business premises within POD.

OH MY WORD. 

Talk about inspiring, I was hit by a big old ton of heartfelt inspiration. Right there, built by a very normal, very dedicated and very passionate man and wife, was a creative business set up in its exciting infantry stage. I instantly felt like I wanted to be part of it. 

So my internship began, I was thrown straight into production, making my first ever lampshades; from cutting the fabric, to printing it and actually creating lampshades - for actual orders. How exciting! I then learnt their jewellery making process, which again I was making up for orders (I think that was my favorite thing, despite what it has done to my hands!)

I printed mugs, coasters, cushions, dress and skirt fabrics. I saw insights into every aspect of their business, and it was just BRILLIANT. Coming to the end of my placement, I'm sad to be leaving but I will most definitely keep in touch and I will be back to Bishop Aukland!

                    

                               

Not only have I learnt invaluable new skills, I've met some fab people, but more than anything I have learnt to believe that it is achievable.

Despite always trying to be an outgoing character and pushing myself, I'd be lying if I said that the prospect (and even just the word actually) of an 'Internship" didn't scare the living daylights out of me. I mean as much as I love what I do, I constantly tell myself "I'm not really an artist, or a designer" "I can't draw." "My designs are alright', blah blah - you get the picture - I struggle to have faith in what I do. 

THIS HAS CHANGED THAT.  IT'S CHANGED ME. 

I would urge anybody unsure about their own future to gain experience, I don't think that there is anything quite like it. Being around likeminded people with vision and drive can only impact on you positively.

My time with Gillian Arnold has shown me that it is possible. This dream we are all chasing, it is within reach. You just have to work really, REALLY hard. 

P.S

Here are a few links should you be interested to read a bit more about Gillian Arnold and what is going on in Bishop Aukland...

http://www.gillianarnold.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/GillianArnoldArtist?fref=ts

https://www.facebook.com/bishoppod?fref=ts

https://www.facebook.com/pages/We-want-a-better-Bishop-Auckland-Town-Centre/348177305220299?fref=ts

http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/eleven-arches-project-bishop-auckland-9378306

http://aucklandcastle.org/community/plans

My Kinda Gardening...

After a busy weekend (when I say weekend I mean Sunday) in the garden, I'm late again with posting. Nonetheless we have major improvements going on around our existing patio and soon to be raised decking area - yay!

Craig is DONE with the house now the sun is shining so we're moving into the garden.

OKAY, SO I CLEARLY HAVENT HAD AN AWFUL LOT OF PHYSICAL INPUT IN THIS ONE, BUT THE IDEA WAS ALL MINE, I ASSURE YOU!

From our patio we lose the gorgeous view due to our conservatory being in the way, so I suggested we extend the patio area out over what is now garden (mainly a bush and plant area - don't tell my Mam I said that). This is hopefully going to create a lovely seating area from which the view can be really appreciated; this area gets the evening sun too which again the patio doesn't (it's not sounding a great patio here is it!) so I'm picturing an idyllic little fairy lit abode. 

Despite not getting my 'hammer on' with this one, I did however spend most of Sunday pulling out what I thought were weeds (mainly everything - again don't tell Sue!) and planting in some new bits that will create a 'cottage garden' feel come next year. This requires patience apparently, which I most certainly don't have when it comes to creating visual change.

Anyway, back on topic. I've been sprawling the internet for garden inspiration on this one and thought I'd share with you some garden ideas and tips. Keep reading for a few tips and head over to my growing pinterest board for images galore.

MAKING YOUR GARDEN FEEL LIKE PART OF YOUR HOME...

It's so easy to forget about 'designing' our gardens, especially over here in the great British weather, but like our gal AA says, your garden should be designed and accessorised just like any other room in your house in order to create an alluring and enjoyable space.

1. TAKE THE INSIDE OUT. Dress your space with soft furnishings; throw cushions on your chairs, seek outdoor rugs for your patios, hang mirrors next to planters and string enough lights between trees to give Blackpool a run for it's money.

2. ACCESSORISE IN THE SAME WAY. Remember the post on accessorising the home? Read it again, then apply it to your garden. Mix plants at varying heights, mix up planters in different shape and sizes, combine shapes and textures of plants and flowers and ADD LIGHTING. How can anything not look good when draped in fairy lights?!

3.  HIDE THE HORRORS. Use big wicker baskets or distressed wooden chests to hide away any garden tools or games if you don't have a shed or garage to keep them tidied away- let the focus be on your gorgeous things.

4. REFLECT WHO YOU ARE. So again this is exactly the same as your interior spaces. Make your garden personal. If you lean towards clean, crisp lines, continue this through your pathways and planters - just don't let this wind up looking boring and uptight. To avoid that remember to throw in the odd surprise element, something you won't expect to see. Or again use lighting and texture to soften it up. If you lean more towards natural, earthy designs go big on chunky wooden planters and accessorise with piles of logs in wooden crates. If like me, you can't make your bloody mind up about anything, throw in a bit of everything. Don't be scared to eclecticise (yep I just made up a word) your garden as well as your home. I'm thinking boho hammocks, rusty vintage wrought iron tables, a touch of Mediterranean terracotta and oodles of fairy lights.

5. COSY UP. Nothing beats a Summer evening watching the sun go down cosying up by a real log fire with a glass of vino in hand. How much do you love that winter ideal of snuggling by a coal fire with a glass of red? Well basically you want to create that same home comfort of a fire in the sitting room with a fire pit or chimenea outside. If your garden is one open space, use tall plants like bamboo to create 'walls' which will instantly zone your space making it more intriguing and cosy. Don't pouch everything to the four corners of your garden, bring your entertaining space central and build your garden around it, factoring in your needs and the space you have to play with.

I'm well up for this gardening lark now I've realised it's just like decorating! I'll keep you posted with our progress on the decking.

XOXO.

Heavenly hallways...

Can you remember way back when I shared pics of our living room in a post and said ' wait until you see how my style is changing as I'm gaining more confidence?', here is the post to prove it. ( Read the post on the living room reno here - I'm chomping at the bit for winter to come and allow me to paint this room dark now!)

So I really need to get better at taking 'before' pictures, unfortunately this is the best I have of our hallway previous to it's reno. Between it's 'all white' walls, red carpet (which it NOT ideal alongside a heavily molting yellow labrador I can assure you) and broken lighting didn't have much else going on. 

We thought to leave this space to renovate last as we didn't want to destruct it doing the other rooms, yet somehow Craig managed to have this AND the bathroom going at the same time (typical Craig). So for quite some time now we have been juggling the two, flitting from job to job in room to room. 

But now, 4 months later, we have a bathroom, and I can happily say, a beautiful hallway space that is beyond what I ever could have imagined it to be...

Again we used Abigail Ahern paint on the walls and floor, this time in Bedford Brown and Hudson Black. The brown is so gorgeous, it's comforting yet still classy. In some lights it even has a hint of grey.

 This felt VERY dark at first, and we lived with no lighting for a while as I didn't want to rush into buying for the sake of it which I'm sure you can imagine led to lots of disapproving "oohhh its dark in here" comments. BUT last weekend something MAGICAL happened...

We managed to bag some Laura Ashley chandeliers at massively discounted prices as they were getting rid of them; I was like a kid in a sweet shop as the manager was reeling out boxes of discontinued shop from the 'back'. This is a prime example of being in the right place at the right time.

We compromised on keeping the ceilings and woodwork white ( Craig was not having my Abigail Ahern inspired lust to paint it all out in the same colour), so I have brought white through into the scheme with accessories and lighting to keep it cohesive. I have to admit as much as I love her and agree that that 'knock it back' paint technique is visually brilliant, I am keen on how the white woodwork keeps the space looking timeless and crisp, and I'm possibly just not quite cool enough to pull off that dark, hunkered down feel anyway!

Pulling the carpet up in the hallway made the space feel instantly fresher. We decided to paint the floorboards and go with layered rugs to add different textures and pattern. I always thought floorboards required specialist paint, don't get me wrong it's out there, but I was advised by an expert in the field that as long as the boards were sealed with a varnish, plain old emulsion on the floor will do! So we did just that, two coats of emulsion in Hudson Black and two coats of clear, matt varnish on top. Bob's your uncle!

We also swapped out two naff white radiators that provided nowhere near enough heat to this space with one BIG DADDY of a cast iron number. The heat output from this geezer is literally amazing, and the smell you get from the  cast iron tops it right off! Again we got this from architectural salvage  in Tynemouth.

This little table was £15 from IKEA!!! I love the idea of having little occasional tables dotted around.  There is much more to be added to this space yet but we will hopefully collect pieces we love over time.

Rug above was from h and m. The white wall lights are Kartell, they act as a modern contrast between the classy glass chandeliers. The standard lamp below is Laura Ashley, I stole this from the living room to tie in the duck egg from that room scheme.

 This black mirror (which once was gold), was spray painted using plasticote spray paint in black gloss to make it much edgier. I am on with collecting art, pictures and anything else I fancy to create an interesting gallery wall along here, I've made a start with my bargain £10 zebra print and quirky MIHO Stag head from Liberty of London...

GORGEOUS, GORGEOUS, GORGEOUS!!! The cut glass just shines AMAZINGLY, photos do not do these lights justice! They add a touch of glam to the space - who doesn't need a bit of that!

Mirrors in round or unusual shapes add interest to spaces - look out for something different to your average and you'll have mirror envy from all of your guests I promise. Also think about where you position your mirrors. With the one in the above picture, I wanted it placed low enough so that the chandelier's reflection (below) was in full view. Unfortunately my INSANE husband likes things in lines and when I told him this was in the wrong place he told me that 'it is exactly in the middle of the wall and the beam above'

 WHAT ON EARTH!? Who in their right mind would look at a mirror and think 'That is out of line with that tiny stump of wall at the top' 

NO ONE- that's who! 

So that mirror needs shuffling to the right a little so it looks in the middle of the wall BY EYE, and shuffling down a bit so that when you can't see the actual chandelier, you see its reflection. This trick is good with artwork too, use your mirrors to your advantage, let them bounce your cool things around your space.

Placing mirrors near lights will also bounce the light around your space really cleverly too!

Craig laid Yorkshire stone at the porch end of the hall. This creates a separate zone for the entranceway and also adds another dimension of texture.

I really am in love with this space and I have surprised myself at how a hallway can actually feel like a room in it's own right. I hope this too has inspired you to be a little more creative with your hallway/ entranceway. I certainly never dreamed I'd have one that guests, and us, stop and linger in. If I can do it, anyone can! Please feel free to leave your comments, and if you have any questions I'd love to try and help in anyway I can.

Happy hallway-ing.

XOXO.

Finally Finished...

Happy Fathers day!!!

So it's been a while, sorry about that. Since finishing uni for the summer I've bagged myself a really exciting internship with artist Gillian Arnold (which I'll ramble on much more about soon), and despite it being amazing and really inspirational it is unfortunately taking up most of my days, hence the lack of LD presence on the social media scene.

Today I'm back though to FINALLY share with you our FINISHED - yep you heard me, FINISHED bathroom! And how excited I am to do so. So kick back after chilled Fathers Sunday with a full belly and cuppa in hand and enjoy this post as much as I am enjoying sharing it with you. I only wish I had before pictures ( no idea how we missed that bit, I think Craig was just so eager to rip the tiles off the walls!) so I will briefly help you conjure and image in your mind...

...Think pale blue and yellow STRIPEY wall tiles, complete with large blue bow motifs FROM FLOOR TO CEILING ON EVERY INCH OF WALL, complete with a yellow painted ceiling. There was only a corner bath, toilet and sink with built in cupboard underneath in here previously. That was pretty much it - old school as you like.

I wanted to create a grown up, laid back room that would make me want to never leave the bath tub. Nothing majorly structurally went on in here, but here is a quick run down of what we have done:

- Ripped off wall tiles (much to Craig's delight)

- Knocked out a small cupboard that was in the hallway and blocked up the door to create enough space for a shower cubicle.

- Moved the corner bath from right hand corner and replaced it with a new one directly under the window

- Moved toilet from under the window to right hand wall so that the toilet and sink sat along one wall creating more space.

- Used an old free-standing pine unit to house a countertop basin- replaced the wooden knobs with white ceramic ones from h & m

- Tiled behind shower cubicle - shower and cubicle were new additions

-  Created an oak shelf to sit on top of boxed in bath pipes
- Painted the walls in Abigail Ahern by Craig and Rose 'Overtly Olive'
- Replaced old yellowy vinyl flooring with new black and white vinyl

Voi la...

The wall colour felt really quite dark when it went on and stood mainly alone, but plenty of lighting and the white touches brighten it right up. (Look out for a post soon on lighting tips.)

I love this alternative style chandelier from John Lewis, I wanted a feature light above the bath and this adds the touch of black that I was looking for. It also casts really gorgeous shadows...

All of the accessories here are from h and m. Plants and pots all Ikea.

 We sourced this lovely reclaimed radiator from a salvage place in Tynemouth, it came fully finished as in the picture.

The mirrors were complete bargains from TK Maxx! I liked the idea of not going for the typical one mirror above the basin and using two means I get to have my own at the perfect height for me, and Craig gets his own too. We are toying with the idea of hand painting 'his' and 'hers' in black scroll above them - haven't quite decided on that yet!

We sourced the shower, basin, bath and toilet from James Hargreaves in Stockton. I couldn't recommend them enough. We looked around loads of bathroom places and they were either totally overpriced or seriously bad quality. The stuff we got from them is really good quality which is obviously totally important when it comes to the technical stuff! They had a nice showroom too so you can sit in the baths and try them for size rather than just picking from a catalogue - don't judge me if I'm laying in it it needs to be comfy, right?

I was really keen on using marble in the room somewhere as I knew it would bring a touch of timeless glamour. These beauties were from Topps Tiles, placing them in a herringbone pattern adds a touch of needed pattern to the blocks of wall colour. Again the lightness they provide the room with lifts the depth of the olive paint colour. Despite wanting gold/ copper fittings, I was talked out of them by Craig. I do wish I had put my foot down on that matter though but it was going to work out more expensive so I gave in. That is probably the only thing I regret about this room- maybe in 15 years when we do it all again!!!

So there is still some finishing touches to add, I want to hang some art, get some rugs and add a little stool by the bath but for now I'm so happy to this room pulled together. It is EXACTLY what I wanted it to be. I hope it has inspired you to take a few risks with your own bathroom, even if just a lick of paint.

I'm off in the tub!

XOXO

P.S if you didn't catch the last post on bathrooms, click here to head on over. Please feel free to comment, would love to hear your views or about your own bathroom projects! Don't forget to follow LD on Facebook and twitter if you don't already!

Battling with bathrooms...

Good morning world, well actually I think I have missed the morning today I am quite behind the usual Sunday morning schedule - since hand in at uni I have not really stopped and I think it has finally caught up with me.

Anyway I'll quit winging now and get back to the blog, I realise I've lost touch a little in the last few weeks but the truth is I actually have no excuses. I have simply been busy living. Which sounds ridiculous but seriously life is time consuming isn't it? When I was busy with Uni work the little things would go out of the window, like mopping my floors and ironing, and now I have no stressful deadline to work towards, somehow I have upped the anti in completing the day to day jobs stakes, and quite frankly it's neither exciting or rewarding so I'm intent on applying myself to the things that make me happy and feel productive - like blogging. 

So today we have the bathroom guy in finishing off what we started around two months ago. I'm not complaining as he is a friend doing us a favour, which is brilliant for saving up the pennies, but it does require a dose of patience. I'm so excited to share this reno with you guys, although I am a little gutted that we don't have proper before pictures as this room has had a good overhaul. Hopefully it will be done within the week so I'll pop up a 'Voi-la' post then, but in the mean time it has made me do some reflecting on the bathroom journey.

Bathrooms are hard. Period. 

They can be so standard can't they? Like seriously when we started looking I just felt completely uninspired. We shopped around the usual bathroom places, the majority of which actually made me feel quite nauseous and frustrated at the time we were wasting. They were full of the same plastic-y looking fixtures and fittings that sparked no lust whatsoever. Why are bathrooms like this? I mean I get that they have to be functional of course, but would you kit your bedroom out in white clad plastic units? Didn't think so.

Fuelled with strong hatred for standardisation (I've never really been into standard- just you ask Craig) and armed with new insights into design, I made it my mission to design a bathroom that looked like it belonged to us. It's a hard thing to fight is standardisation, because unless you have the audacity to question the norm, it's so easy to be swallowed up by the sea of what seems to be the only possibility.

I'm telling you this, YOU MUST CREATE YOUR OWN POSSIBILITIES.

The bathroom designer from the standard bathroom showroom will tell you that you couldn't possibly  put those extra large taps over a sink, and the bathroom fitter will tell you that you need fitted cupboards for all of your essential bathroom items. 

SOD THEM. 

YOU KNOW HOW BIG YOU'D LIKE YOUR TAPS TO BE AND I'M PRETTY SURE THAT YOU CAN WHITTLE DOWN YOUR BATHROOM CLUTTER IF IT MEANS YOU CAN HAVE A BEAUTIFUL FREE STANDING UNIT TO HOUSE YOUR SINK.

Your bathroom does not have to look like every single other bathroom in England. It is simply another room in your house. Treat it like you would your bedroom or your living room. Fill it with all of your favorite things, hang pictures on the wall, house it with accessories and furniture. 

MAKE IT A SPACE THAT YOU NEVER WANT TO LEAVE.

Clearly this is a subject I am passionate about (sorry for the rant I told myself this would be a short post), I feel I have a lot a personal experience in this department - our bathroom guy even told me I shouldn't be painting the walls the colour I have! But it has really opened my eyes into bathroom design, I feel it's such a shame when you visit a lovely home with welcoming decor then you visit the bathroom and it looks just like every other bathroom you have been in. 

I'll follow this post up with pics and a write up of exactly what we have done in our bathroom, but in the mean time get shopping for some lovely homely pieces for your own bathroom, dig out some artwork and hang it by your shower, and fall in love with your bathroom.

Happy Sunday

XOXO

P.S if you really are going to shop, H & M have some fab cheap accessories, as do Urban Outfitters and the gorgeous online shop MiaFleur

Our kitchen...

So since I've been sharing our home reno's with you guys I'm not entirely sure how I've missed out the kitchen - although I think it could possibly because its not my favourite room in the house and in 'reno' terms we haven't actually done any really. But anyway, I thought I'd share with you a few snaps, the biggest thing we have changed in here is the flooring. The kitchen is completely solid wood and is really beautifully made however, for me, THERE IS A LOT OF WOOD. You can imagine how it was when the flooring was in the same wood too - wood overkill! 

We have toned it down a little with a stone effect tile and most recently replaced all of the cupboard knobs to add a bit of glam. We have given it a lick of paint but it's way too safe and I don't really feel like there is much very cool about this space at all. There is little wall space to hang art or accessories which makes it difficult to introduce colour that way too. I'm working on bringing in some pattern and texture through rugs but even that's difficult with two mucky pup's - are you feeling my dilemma here?

Lighting will definitely change this space and I'm after a feature over the island but again we just haven't gotten around to it yet. 

I WOULD ABSOLUTELY LOVE TO PAINT THE WALLS BLACK. 

This sounds drastic I know, but hear me out. Number 1. There is hardly any wall space to paint and Number 2. The space is very well lit with natural light so I think it could handle it. I think it would make it feel lovely and expensive and tone down the warmth of the wood if I picked the right colour. Now all that there is to do is convince Craig...

...that may take a while!

XOXO

P.S I've pinned some black wall spaces to a board if you need convincing too.