French Fancies {In Paris}

If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you may well have already heard what I've been up to this week! It was my long awaited trip to Paris to go wedding dress shopping with my bridesmaids! We had a fab day, and I have decided on my dress which is very exciting! The next day, we spent 'rummaging' - we tracked down some fab little shops mostly in Le Marais, and one of my faves which I'd found a few years ago. This is also a little hint to something which is coming up in the next issue of 91 Magazine! (out 11th Sept!) 

Au Petit Bonheur la Chance

Cuisinophlie

Mariage Freres

These are a few of the purchases I picked up! a notebook (my collection is getting out of hand!) a cafe plate, and some vintage paper bags which I plan to frame!

Do you have any favourite 'not to be missed' shops in Paris? Do share! :)

Cox and Cox - Autumn collection

We have had such a mixed summer here in the UK, from days when it looks like it could be middle of winter, to hot balmy days without a cloud in the sky! We've literally had to take that hot weather when we can get it! :)
Now, without putting a downer on things (!).... I don't know if you've noticed, but the nights are already starting to draw in, the summer sales are coming to an end, and the Autumn collections are starting to fill the shelves.... I'm always sad to see the end of summer, even if we haven't had a great one, so I console myself about its departure by indulging myself in the latest collections from some of my fave online stores, and as always Cox and Cox do not disappoint.  I flick through their Autumn catalogue, and wish I could just step into the pages, and move in. :)
Here are a few of my fave picks from their latest range....

Oak stool - £125

Cow hide patchwork rug - £400

Glass jars from £30

Vintage metal trolley - £145

Wooden ladder shelf - £225

Zinc log basket - £50

Spare bedroom style

from scandinavia with love

We recently ran a feature in issue 3 of 91 Magazine about styling your guest bedroom (see page 28) Gabrielle Treanor shared tips on how to make your guests feel comfortable and at home by adding vintage touches.  This is something quite relevant to me at the moment. As you may know our online boutique is closing, (or downsizing at least!) and for me this means that our spare room, that for the last 3 years has been a stock room, will now be transformed into an actual spare bedroom! Well, a spare bedroom cum office! I'm not sure when this will happen, as (a) we are saving for our wedding, (b) I still have some stock to sell and (c) the wall behind my shelving needs completely rebuilt. (don't ask!!) But in the meantime, all a girl can do is gather inspiration! 

For me, the guest bedroom shouldn't be too cluttered, as your guests should have enough room for their own things, and not feel swamped by your worldly possessions! But there should still be some personal touches, and things that will make their stay enjoyable, just as Gabrielle highlights in our 91 mag feature.  Books, magazines, some fresh flowers, an alarm and extra bedlinen are just a few things that should definitely be considered. What else do you think adds to the perfect guest bedroom?

via uktv.co.uk

Apartment Therapy

from scandinavia with love

Country Living

via uktv.co.uk

Today I'm loving...

Have you seen Plumo have just launched their latest collection?! On my wish list would have to be this Hare Wall Hanging.... Although sadly a bit out of my current budget at £235.  Check out their new Home collection here - anything you'd be putting on your list?!

Small garden style

Since we bought our house back into 2009, I've been trying my best to get to grips with gardening. It really is a fine art that needs time and dedication, and I must admit many plants have perished at my hands... And now we have the added issue of a neighbour with Japanese Knotweed. If you don't know what this is, it is basically a hugely invasive weed that can damage concrete, underground pipes and even house foundations. Many mortgage companies are refusing mortgages due to its presence in a properties garden. We are currently trying to deal with the problem so I will save a blog post on this for another time, as I feel I know so much about it now I should share it! But for now, I am just trying to make the best of our small patch of garden, and have been browsing the House to Home website for inspiration...

 With a small space, pots are great, and I love some of these as they give the garden a bit more of an interesting vintage feel.  And the old stepladders are great for displaying plants on different levels.

We are promised some good weather this weekend, so how romantic to hang a large piece of fabric and hang it over a picnic rug! And perfect for a little snooze under too!

I've also been planning to paint our shed since we moved in.... one of those jobs that I've yet to get round to! but this pic is inspiring me to get out the brush!!

And if you don't have much space, perhaps even just a small balcony, you can always just have a cute little bistro table, with added vintage accessories!

All pics via House to Home

The future for Patchwork Harmony

As you may have heard, I have recently made the decision to close the online shop, mainly due to too many commitments.  But its not the end! We are in the process of redeveloping the website, and we will be launching it very soon! So I wanted to give you a little sneaky peek today of what is to come....

The website will become a kind of creative hub, and along with providing inspiration via the blog and 91 Magazine, I will also be offering my professional services in terms of writing, blogging, picture research and design.  As my background is in media, specifically the visual side of things, I feel it is best for me to focus my business on this area.

Once the website relaunches, I will continue to sell a selection of items from the shop on notonthehighstreet.com until the stock has run out. There is not much left, so do pop over to the website while we still have some discounts, as the prices will differ once I move over to Not on the High Street.
I hope that in the future the shop will continue in some form, just on a smaller scale, and the plan is to run the occasional online pop up shop focusing on unique, vintage finds.

Of course, there will be more info on this when the website launches, which I hope will be within the next month or so.  Its been a huge and difficult decision for me to make, as its been something I've worked hard on and loved doing for the last 3 years.  I hope its the right choice! and that fans of the shop will still enjoy following what we are doing via the blog and magazine.  I'd love to hear what you think, and if you have any questions about the plans just drop me a line! xxx

the most sparkling of bulbs...

Next month sees London Design Festival open its doors again, and although I don't usually get a chance to go to much, and I am not hugely interested in 'contemporary' design, I do like to see the designers who are influenced by nostalgia and heritage.  Lee Broom is a relatively new designer, only setting up his company 4 years ago, but he has firmly cemented himself in the London design scene.
He is one of the designers who stands out for me and I just love the fact that for the festival he transforms his studio into an exhibition space - this year dubbed 'The Crystal Bulb Shop' - Lee's take on the traditional general store. The centrepiece will be over 200 of his sparkling crystal bulbs suspended from the ceiling which he collaborated with Cumbria Crystal to create.  Lee's ethos of working solely with British craftsmen is admirable and reiterates the fact he is not only a great British designer, but also one who supports Britain's heritage for manufacturing great products.

What I love about these bulbs, is that Lee has made a functional item truly beautiful - and while you may think £90 (special LDF price) for a bulb is a little extravagant - bear in mind that the bulb is the object here - not to be covered with a shade!  I often find lighting is one of the hardest things to get right, I generally hate many lightshades and fittings I see, so for me something this simplistic but beautiful is perfect.

Check out more about Lee on his website, I really love some of his interiors for bars and shops, my fave is this bar in Cardiff called 10 Feet Tall

Today I'm loving...

... this gorgeous chair from Folklore - a new shop in Islington full of quality design that has a simplicity about it as well as class.  I am just loving this current trend for dip dye furniture! what do you think?

 

Thanks to Rin Simpson for the tip off! See more on her blog about Folklore.

Leif Shop

I've come across some really cool little shops recently, and I just love the colour palette of the items in this Brooklyn based online shop - Leif.  I'm a big fan of pastels, mint green and coral right now, so I think thats what drew me to their products.... and yay, they ship internationally! They also sell some quirky fashion accessories too.

what do you think? if you've come across in fab shops recently do let me know!  

xxx