Holiday Time

Its hard to believe another year is about to pass us again, Christmas is over but the holidays are just beginning! As much as I love Christmas day my favourite day is also Boxing day, I resist the temptations to go to the sales, instead my husband and I have already watched two movies before 11am, had breakfast twice and now contemplating what book to read, a day in bed reading with my cup of tea is my idea of heaven and its definitely a day to stay in my pj's all day and be totally and utterly lazy!

Wishing you all happy and safe holidays xx

Image sources: refer my pinterest page

Creamy Whites

A casual Sunday for me is the prefect time to relax, its often my day that I spend the morning with my family and then allow some creative time for myself, to blog, pin away or just to read the latest magazines. Lately I have been drawn to simplicity, warmth, texture and whites, aged metals and woods, brick, sea grass matting, greys and earthy tones, I dont see dull or boring I see the complete opposite, it gives me total clarity! 

All images via my pinterest page with the direct source

Indigo Blue

It has been quiet a while since my last blog post, I think every post I have made lately has been about my busy work load, well nothing has changed its just stepped up with the pre xmas rush, I cant believe it only 6 weeks away, normally I would have present shopping already happening, my colour scheme planned and I would be eager to blog about Christmas but worried I might be to premature to mention it so soon, well this year its not planned at all so i'm going blog hunting for some much needed inspiration!

One of my projects next year is another beach house, it comes as no surprise that i'm thinking lots of white, worn timbers, natural coloured rattan, rustic oak floors, linens, denims, batik fabrics and touches of vintage china blues, I will never get bored with blue!

All the images above are from the new Ralph Lauren collection, you can imagine my excitement, eye candy thats for sure!

Caribbean Style

Its been months since my last blog post so I was thrilled to notice the new improved blog layout, how much easier to load and size photos!

In this months House Beautiful I feel in absolute love with the home of Amanda Lindoth. Her Caribbean home is located in Florida but you would never guess, its perfect coastal living!

Have a great weekend x

House Renovation

Today our home went on the market for sale, ready for the next chapter in our life, its hard to believe this yellow house with a green roof was only a two bedroom home on one level, we raised her to seek amazing, panoramic city views, more bedrooms and living spaces for our family. It has taken two years and most our weekends but it has been worth the hard work, now we finally can start enjoying our home for awhile anyway x

Family Spaces

My last post was weeks ago and I mentioned that our house renovation was nearly complete. Well I finally get to say after today it really is complete, isn't it amazing how long all those little tasks seem to take, like painting the fence, gardens you name it! with a very old house I don't think you are ever finished, little things just seem to appear especially with an all white house!

Next week our home is going up for sale, I have mixed emotions, our plan was to down size but instead our renovation grew to become a very large home, with six children we now only have two living with us and one planning to leave home next year, so our family of eight is now three, so it has made us re think our plans. Several of my friends are in the same position all planning to live the apartment lifestyle, in the heart of the city, I'm sure if I said to my husband yes lets do it he would in a heartbeat. The idea of living in the city, the beautiful walks I could do daily, the cafes and restaurants we could just walk too, a pool, gym all in our complex, the little or no maintenance, my apartment would take nothing to keep clean the list goes on BUT in my heart I'm not sure if its me. I'm also imagining a cottage style Californian bungalow with a beautiful back yard not too big but enough for a pool and terrace, I'm happy with one large living area rather than three that we have now, basically a smaller home but with loads of character. So the verdict is I'm not sure yet, we are keeping our options open, but one thing is for sure our next life plan is for living life to its fullest, I want a healthy life work balance, I want to see so many countries of the world both for pleasure and for my work and I have some exciting plans for Verandah House!

Enough of my ramblings...I have posted some photo's of my children's TV room/library, I have continued the blue and white but in a more casual way, as you can see our family dog Milko has his favourite spot here too! tomorrow I will post the exterior shots for you.

All images: Verandah House

Loving Blue

I have always loved blue and white, for years I have collected antique ginger jars, fabrics, tablecloths and books all that share my passion for blue and white. My mix match plates are used daily, nothing is too precious to use as most of the pieces have been collected over time from antique stores, flea markets and my travels. The room above is a place I love to escape in, previously dark brown timber panels and moulding, dark floors to match the room screamed much needed natural light, so I decided this very room with its ornate ceilings had to be brought back to life, so over many long weekends of sanding and painting walls and floors (I have a whole new respect for painters) our room was complete. Next was the Dining room, we found a very old table for a bargain price and lovingly had it restored back to its former glory, our table that we thought seated ten had hidden sleeves, making our table now fit 16 people! I went completely out of my comfort zone and wall papered the entire room in a divine chinoiserie paper, the white ornate ceilings and glossy white floors added the perfect contrast. I mixed up the seating by custom making a frilled long bench ottoman and painting my Chippendale chairs a light blue.

Images: Verandah House Interiors

Simply Neutral

In a world of so much beautiful colour sometimes just the pure simplicity of very little colour creates the feeling of simplicity, calmness and a place of contentment.

Have a lovely weekend x

all images via my pinterest page