Avery Chanderlier

This quirky display started out as a Christmas decoration but when it came to taking down the decks I found myself not being able to part with these little guys. I do find myself forgetting it's there and that it's not a usual thing for people to have a big branch with artificial birds hanging above their dinning table and it makes for quite a talking point. 

Basically it's pretty simple and rather than show you step by step instructions I thought I'd just show the finished effect and let you figure out the logistics at the time. First you will need a big branch, we found one by the river bank near our house and left it to dry out for a few days. I've been collecting the birds for ages without anything specifically in mind for them but eBay is a good source for them. We used fishing line to hang the branch, it's perfect because it's strong and not very visible. We tied the line on in various places of the branch then used a staple gun to staple the line to the ceiling as this doesn't leave much of a mark (good for renters). You will probably need two to three people to hang the branch one to hold in place, one to staple and one to make sure it's in the right place. 

Voila! An indoor Aviary! 

Our branch did sag a little after it had been up for a couple of months but we just re-tied the fishing line up a bit and it's been fine ever since. 

Classic Chocolate Cake

225g Margarine

225g Sugar

4 eggs

1tsp baking powder

225g Self Raising flour

3tbsp Coco + 60ml boiling water

125g softened butter

250g icing sugar

3tbsp coco + 60ml boiling water

Whisk eggs and sugar until fluffy, add eggs and whisk, then self raising flour and baking powder, then add coco, give a good last whisk.

Divide between lined 8" round baking tins and bake 170 C for 30-minuets

To make the icing, whisk the softened butter and sift in the icing sugar gradually and finally whisk in the coco

Once the cake is cool spread half the icing on one of the cakes, place the other cake on top, make a swirly pattern with a fork and place chopped up flakes around the top to decorate. 

Simple and delicious! 

Bottle Vases

This is a super easy DIY. Basically collect a few mix match random bottles / jars. Ones with embossed patterns are the best. Yes, I'm one of those that will buy an expensive drink just because I like the bottle!

One of these is a coke bottle, one a pasta sauce jar and one a cider bottle. 

I used a white craft spray. This can be quite a messy job so probably best to do outside on a warm, dry, calm day. Shake the can really well first and spray in light, even stokes. Because the bottles are glass there was a little dripping but I didn't worry about this too much you cant tell once they are jazzed up with some flowers in. You might need to do a couple of coats to get an even coverage. Leave an hour or more between each coat.

They take a few days to completely dry so when they have been outside for an hour or so, bring them inside and leave to dry for a few days on some paper. 

I think these look great and are so simple. 

Hmm, what else can I spray?? I have a feeling a few more things might be getting the craft spray treatment! Hatty x

Little Trip to Northumberland

Earlier this week Millie and I joined my mum for a night at Driftwood Retreat, a delightful holiday cottage owned by Shelly and Jim in Boulmer, Northumberland.

The cottage is beautifully finished and just a stone's throw from the sea. There were lots of lovely, welcoming touches, the most wonderful being the note to Millie from her new friend, Blue Bear.

 

Her reaction was to reach out for him, give him a kiss and then pass him to me for a kiss. It was such a wonderful gesture, thank you Shelly!

 

The cottage is perfect, with a double room and a children's bunk room and has everything you'd need for a lovely holiday. As well as all your home comforts there are also great touches including your basic kitchen cupboard essentials, candles, toys and games and WiFi. For more details on the cottage visit: http://www.northumbria-byways.com/viewitem.aspx?id=398 or search for 'Driftwood Retreat' on Facebook.

 

 

 

 

We had a walk around Alnmouth, a lovely nearby village right on the coast. Obviously I now want to live in a cottage by the sea so I may have done a bit of Rightmove scanning while we walked around!

 

 

 



We were really lucky with the weather, the sun shone fabulously all day. In the afternoon we took a walk around Howarth Gardens. I wish you could smell how amazing it was and really my photos do not do justice to the riots of colour in this place. I'm not a good gardener (this is a HUGE understatement) but visiting Howarth has really got me thinking about my own garden and some simple changes I could make to add some colour.  

 

 

 



 



 Emily x

 

Our First Garden

At the back of our houses many years ago there used to be some allotments, unfortunately they built on them, however they left the few that were directly behind the houses for gardens. So each house rents their garden from the council, in the same way you would rent an allotment.

Last year we were so busy decorating the house that the garden got pushed to the bottom of the queue. So this year is our chance to attempt 'our first garden'.

I always fancy the idea of gardening, but when it comes down to it I realise I have no idea what I'm doing. So we went to a really good garden center a few miles up the road from us. They grow a lot of there own plants and really know their stuff. The lady that was working there was so helpful, she helped us pick out some lovely plants and advised us on the best way to deal with a boarder that gets absolutely no sun at all. 

So, off we went home with a car boot full of plants and spent the afternoon digging, planting and generally pottering abut in the garden. It was a lovely day and I cant wait to start seeing everything begin to grow (hopefully).

I have 6 painted outdoor chairs and I've ordered a big outdoor table. Mikes mum gave us an awesome kitsch parasol and I intend to go mad with solar fairy lights. I'm really looking forward to long summer nights in our beautiful garden. Ill post some more photos as things really start to take shape. 

Packing tape transfer

Anyone else got a small obsession with washi tape?! I can't help but by it every time I see some I have to buy a little roll. So when I saw this blog for making a DIY version I had to try it! 

Here are some examples of the ones I made. I have displayed them on clipboards along my landing.

To find out how to make them follow this link to this amazing blog by Emma and Elsie www.abeautifulmess.com , it's so easy! 

Emily's Home Tour: Living Room

Like many others our living room is a multi functional space. It's where we 'live' day-to-day, eat most dinners (if I'm honest), watch movies and generally hang out with Millie. It's also a place to house lots of my beloved items. It's a balancing act to make it a baby safe paradise in the day and an adult space quickly and easily after 7pm. Storage is key!

The IKEA unit and boxes holds a multitude of toys and its really easy to tidy them away at the end of the day = Happy Mummy! For the music/film buff I married the shelves and chest of drawers hold all his CDs and DVDs = Happy Daddy! Millie can easily get her toys from the boxes and the one cupboard not baby proofed under the TV = Happy Baby!

Items I love in this room include our framed Rob Ryan wedding cards and the candle sticks my Dad made me for my birthday (made from the same oak that he made our mantle piece from).

I'm a little bit obsessed with 'Lush Designs' - see lamp and cushion, truly LUSH!

I like to change things around and often rearrange items on the mantle piece and love my flexible gallery wall.

Emily x