Flying through the months

Mar11

Can you believe we are already in March? I can’t believe how fast the last few months have gone, it doesn’t seem five minutes ago that we had Christmas to look forward to and now we are faced with lots of cold weather and a long wait until Summer.

Christmas countdown traditionally begins on 1^st December with an advent calendar. Advent calendars were first used by German Lutherans in the 19^th and 20^th Century. Advent calendars have moved on a lot in recent years, with children no longer content with opening a door to reveal a Christmas picture or poem. At the very least they expect a chocolate now and some calendars give toys such as the Lego calendar. Being a big kid, I have never tired of an advent calendar and thankfully I am clearly not alone as there is now a large market in adult advent calendars offering candles or beauty products. This Christmas I decided to try a beauty advent calendar. These range quite a bit in price with the Liberty one costing £250! After some research I settled on the reasonably priced House of Fraser one at £25 as this also had all 24 doors, rather than the 12 some calendars offer – presumably to represent the 12 days of Christmas. It was quite exciting to see what beauty product you would get each day and by far my favourites were a glitter eyeliner, a blusher and one of the lipsticks, all of which I have been using regularly.

What really got me in the festive mood was the Dickensian Christmas celebrations in Rochester on 3^rd December. For this I wore skinny jeans from Oasis with a white pussy bow blouse from Oasis and my trusty New Look faux leather biker jacket. I accessorised with the gorgeous blue velvet flats and handbag which are also from New Look and my subtle take on the velvet trend for Autumn/Winter 2016.

Rochester as I have mentioned many times before in my blog is one of my favourite places. It was also a favourite spot for Charles Dickens and the cobbled streets and old style lampposts make you feel you have truly been transported back in time as you watch the costume parade. We took the opportunity to watch a street performance of Miss Havisham’s story before warming up in the pub over lunch.

Santa’s reindeer even popped down!

There was a photo opportunity with Fagin.

We then made our way to the Christmas market and fun fair. The market was a bit of a let-down if I am honest as I had been expecting the Bavarian style wooden huts you see in London when instead the stalls were in marques and a lot of the items for sale were quite tacky. The funfair was good though and forever the kid I had to have a ride on the carousel.

20161203_145353_resized

I have wanted another piercing ever since I had to let my nose piercing close up earlier this year after an infection so I went and got my rook pierced – part of the ear. It was quite painful after so I went and recovered with a latte and a large piece of cake in Fleur de the.

Number 12 or 13 is the rook

We ventured out into the cold and darkness just in time for the evening costume parade with lanterns. The snow machines were on and we all walked up to the castle where the carol service was held. It was a magical evening and totally set me up for the festive period. We warmed up and lubricated our tired voices with mulled wine in a local pub before heading off home.

The following weekend, my husband and I took our niece and nephew to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. This year marks ten years of Winter Wonderland and each year it seems to get bigger and bigger. It was another cold day and unfortunately turned into quite a wet day too. I had bought a new hat, gloves and scarf set from Oasis and wore a long padded coat from New Look which although less than flattering, is extremely warm – it gives you the feeling of being wrapped up in a duvet!

We visited the magical ice kingdom which this year had the theme of an Arctic Adventure. This is an awe inspiring sight whether it is your first visit or not, with incredible detail on each of the ice sculptures. There is also a slide made of ice which once again brought the kid out in me and ice thrones which of course kids love due to the connotations with Disney’s Frozen.

The boys enjoyed the bumper cars whilst my niece and I went on the swings. Later my niece wanted to go on a roller coaster. There was an extremely long queue but the wait was made slightly more entertaining by a kind of fun house along the way. The ride was a disaster as she was so scared and I felt so helpless when she asked me to make it stop. You would have thought that would have put her off rides but she still wanted another go on the swings before we left!

Putting up the Christmas decorations is always for me traditionally accompanied by listening to Now that’s what I call Christmas and sipping on snowballs. This year I finally persuaded my husband to put lights outside – something I have always wanted.

We hosted Christmas day this year for the first time and had my parents and my husband’s parents over. I wore a black lace dress from Oasis and sparkle tights also from Oasis and accessorised my hair with a flower band which I got at London Fashion week and is by Her Curious Nature.

We had a really nice day. I really enjoyed setting out the Christmas table. Dinner was lovely and I got some wonderful presents – my favourite being a shoe design course! Look out for a blog on that in the next month or so. We played Cranium which was a laugh and watched the Christmas tele and before you knew it, it was all over for another year!

Boxing day was spent at Mum’s with my brother and his family. For this day I wore an Oasis jumper with a basic black mini skirt from Asos and purple Uggs that I got in New Zealand a few years back.

Between Christmas and New Year my husband and I visited Scotney Castle and decided to become National Trust Members.

New Year was spent with friends. I always find New Year rather depressing as it is another reminder of what you have not achieved and a time to set resolutions that you invariable break way before the end of January! I guess I can at least remember 2016 as the year I finally got promoted to a PA. We also finally finished decorating our bedroom. It was so nice to get rid of the grey striped wallpaper that was there when we moved in.

As with every other new year, I once again set my usual resolution to lose weight and decided to try the milk diet which was the diet of choice for 2017. The full diet suggested you eat nothing and just drink 4 pints of full fat milk a day. That seemed rather extreme so I went for the modified version where you drink a glass of milk before each meal with the aim of then eating less. I did see some positive effect from this, loosing 3lbs in the first week but as per usual it was the same as most fad diets and I had given up within 3 weeks.

January always seems to drag so I was glad when we got to the end. The final weekend in January; Saturday evening was spent at a Fawlty Towers evening which was a great laugh. For this I wore a black pleated skirt from Asos, a gold stripped crop top from Kiss Kiss Heart in Rochester and accessorised with shoes I purchased at London Fashion Week by Alexander White and an Aldo clutch.

That Sunday we had a trip to London to see the Play that Goes Wrong. The end of January of course marks the start of the new year for the Chinese and this year is the year of the Rooster!

February saw a return to my early twenties with a night out at a club on Tottenham Court Road for a friend’s birthday. I must be getting old as I was quite taken aback that they wanted to scan our ID before letting us in and by the fact there are now bouncers on McDonald’s on the Strand! I am also way too old for the torturous 2 hour journey home on the night bus! Having said all that though it was a fun night. I reworked the outfit I wore to the Fawlty Towers evening this time accessorising with gold Oasis t-bar shoes and a gold clutch.

So now 2017 is well underway and we have certainly seen some cold weather. Easter is late this year meaning that Summer feels even further away but there are some exciting things coming up so keep looking out for future blogs.

Embellish, Embellish

Jan15

Ever since I did my first shabby chic furniture course at the Vintage Dove, I have been keen to do the advanced class which goes into decorative techniques rather than just the painting. Many times I had been signed up, only to hear the course was cancelled due to lack of interest. Finally I got on the advanced course at Paloma in Rochester last October. Rochester as I have mentioned before is my favourite place and what makes it so are Kiss Kiss Heart, Rocket and Paloma – three shops all run by the same people. Ruth at Paloma, is trained by Annie Sloan and runs the courses at Rocket in Rochester. Annie Sloan brought out a range of chalk paints in 1990 and has gone on to write many books on decorative techniques. The Telegraph describes her as one of ‘Britain’s most influential female designers’.

We started with a blank plank of wood and painted a third of it in a colour of our choice, I chose Old Violet, and the rest white.

The first technique we were shown was gilding. We painted Gold Size onto the coloured part of the board. I chose to create letters and hearts with it but we could have just covered the whole section in it. We could then try gold, copper or silver transfers or leaf. I used the silver transfers for my letters and hearts and then added more gold size to form a border and applied copper leaf to this. I found the transfers much easier to use although the leaf gave a better vintage effect.

The next technique was decoupage. This was the technique I was most interested in and why I was so keen to take the course. Decoupage involves cutting out medium (usually paper) and pasting onto an object before covering with a lacquer or varnish and the name comes from the French word, decouper which means to cut out. It is thought that the craft originated in East Siberia where tombs were decorated with cut out felt.

Annie Sloan Decoupage is a water based glue and varnish. We painted it onto the wood in the area we wished to apply the image to. We cut our image out from wrapping paper and then pressed it onto the wood. We then built up layers as a varnish over the top. It needs about 5 coats to properly seal it and you need to allow 20-30mins between each coat. You can get images from anything to use for decoupage – old pages from books or cards for example. Ruth also showed us an option with napkins though which was very effective.

Image transfer is another popular technique and there are some great websites out there to download images from, particularly ‘The Graphics Fairy’. Images need to be printed out on a laser jet printer rather than an ink jet as the ink needs to resist water. The front of the image is painted with Decoupage medium and then placed face down on the board. Once the glue has dried, use a sponge to put a small amount of water over the back of the image and then rub away the paper with your finger. Remember that if you are image transferring text – it will need to be in reverse to start with in order for it to come out the correct way around.

Stencilling was the fourth technique we were shown. Paint can be put on with a roller or a stipple brush and you can also mix paints as I did.

Finally we were shown the craqueleur effect. Annie Sloan Craqueleur is a two-step process. Once you have covered the area with step one and allowed it to dry; you then paint over step one with step two. You can vary the size of the cracks according to how thick you put step two on – the thicker it is, the bigger the cracks. To really enhance the craqueleur effect you can then apply dark wax over the top.

This course cost £75 and was great value and a fantastic way to spend a Saturday morning, I highly recommend it and it inspired me to transform some more furniture using shabby chic techniques.

My mum gave me an old pine dresser which had seen better days. I transformed the top half and then fixed it to the wall as a shelving unit to display some of my china. I began by sugar soaping the dresser to ensure any dust or dirt was removed. I then painted two coats of Annie Sloan chalk paint in Paris Grey. To make the piece more interesting and add a further vintage angle to it, I purchased a chic moulding from The Vintage Dove, Rainham and glued it to the top part of the dresser after the first coat of paint and then covered it on the second. Finally I had a mirror cut to fit between the middle shelves. The unit was finished off by applying clear wax.

dresser2

Over the Christmas break, I decided to transform a plain white Ikea chair using Decoupage. I purchased a book of old maps in a little shop in Holt, Norfolk. To enhance the effect I also used some vintage map stickers which I purchased in Paloma, Rochester.

chair2

The old saying ‘one persons junk is another ones treasure’ really is so true. There are no end to the transformations you can perform on furniture and it is a great way to make your home furnishings truly unique. So what you waiting for – get yourself on a course and then let your imagination run wild.

Genie Grant me a Wish

Oct30

Back in July the dreaded birthday came round again. I wish I could stop at 33, or better still be 30 again. It’s not a lie if I say I am 30 and a bit – just suggests a much smaller bit than may be the truth.

Anyway being that none of my friends had seen our new home – I decided a BBQ was in order to celebrate.

Now every year we seem to purchase a BBQ – use it once, not bother to clean it and it ends up at the tip. Now we have a garage to store it in, we decided to invest in a slightly better quality one. Turns out cheaper ones are best however as almost straight away the handle on the lid broke so guess what, once again we didn’t clean it but instead of the tip, it ended up back at Argos for an exchange!

We were blessed with nice weather on the day of the do so I wore a tropical design jumpsuit from Oasis.

Jumpsuits have been in fashion for a few seasons now and I love how flattering they can be. My favourite one is a navy one I purchased from Joy and I have accessorised this two ways to make it look like a fresh outfit.

Jumpsuit Joy, suede shoes M&S, clutch Oasis

Jumpsuit Joy, Clutch purchased in Hong Kong, Shoes LK Bennett

I was truly touched at the number of family and friends who came to my celebration, especially given some of the journeys involved. One friend travelled an amazing two hours – thanks to you all.

The key room I wanted to show off was our newly made over summer house. This was a miserable, cold, blue room when we moved in but I have taken great enjoyment in making it an ideal place to sit and relax, enjoying a glass of wine on a summer evening.

BEFORE

AFTER – Check out the homemade bunting (a joint project by my Mum and I)

On my actual birthday, my Mum and I went into Rochester which has long been my favourite town.

For my outfit on the day, I took inspiration from Fabulous Magazine and put my own twist on a denim/victoriana combination.

The Fashion Spread from Fabulous Magazine (free with the Sun on Sunday)

Shirt with bow Lookagain.co.uk, denim pinafore Oasis, white frill ankle socks and black quilted bag Asos, Shoes Faith

We enjoyed browsing the kitsch shops before relaxing over a delicious afternoon tea at Fleur de The.

I was really spoilt by everyone and got so many amazing presents that it would take far too long to list them all here.

Two presents that I feel must have a mention however were my sister in law’s inventive presentation of a wonderful cocktail set and my other sister in law’s notebook which couldn’t have been more perfect.

The evening of my day was spent with my husband and we went to see the amazing Aladdin musical in London. The best way I can describe the show is like a pantomime with a million times better costumes, props and cast. It is an absolute must for any Disney fan.

The show got me thinking, what would I do if I had a genie and could only make three wishes? This is a lot harder than one might think and definitely would take some careful consideration; assuming that is that one of the wishes couldn’t be for three more wishes! I already feel very blessed but guess I would ask for all my family and friends to remain happy and healthy as my first wish. Narrowing down the rest of my wish list might be hard although would be nice to be thin but be able to eat whatever I liked and to remain youthful!

Another fabulous birthday, courtesy of all my loved ones, thanks again.

February Freeze

Feb21

Being typically British my blog would not be complete without a good old discussion about the weather. It feels like a lot of the winter has been mild but windy and wet, however I did buy an exquisite umbrella, that almost, and I stress almost made me look forward to a wet day. It is by Lulu Guinness and has a birdcage design on it.

One morning this week as I stepped out early to walk to the station, my breath visible in the air, morning was starting to light the street, which makes a pleasant change from going to work and coming home in the dark. The fingers of Jack Frost had lightly caressed everything, from the early daffodils to the wine bottles left out for recycling. That time of the morning is incredibly peaceful with just the sweet melodious chorus of the birds and the milkman going about his round. The winter sun eventually breaks through and burns away the frost after bathing everything in a beautiful golden glow when the frost twinkles like diamonds.

So February has brought winter with it which pleases me immensely as I can wear the rather expensive pompom hat, which I purchased from a stall in London’s Hayes Galleria the last time it got a bit cold; only for it to warm up again a few days later!

Bobble hat

Pompoms have been big this season, with a real peak at Christmas, although the trend has continued into 2016. Many fashion writers have said they represent the ‘fun’ element that has been missing from fashion. There are some lovely pompom shoes available, especially this pair by Aquazzura which are sadly way beyond my budget.

Aquazzura shoes I couldn’t resist the hat as well as getting a bag charm. Fendi was the first to showcase the pompom bag charm with its ‘bag bug’ which was a pompom with eyes; and other designers and retailers have been quick to follow suit. A pompom bag charm can instantly update any bag for the season, which saves our pockets when we are still paying for the expenses of Christmas.

This pompom I bought from Asos is designed to look like a rabbit rather than being made of rabbit fur as some pompoms and other clothes are.

Rabbit pompom

Fashion and Fur has had a long and turbulent history. Back in the Stone Age furs were worn for warmth. In the middle ages, fur was generally used to line garments but the Victorians brought about the change of wearing it on the outside, with the fur coat as we know it. Fur has long been seen as a status symbol with the more exclusive furs being reserved for the upper classes. Fashion designers widely embraced fur in their collections and it wasn’t until the 1980’s that real opposition to it began. Activists would throw red paint at people in fur as seen in the Sex and the City movie when an activist throws paint at Samantha whilst shouting ‘fur is murder’. PETA have done various prominent advertising campaigns against the use of fur in fashion including the 1991 campaign ‘rather go naked than wear fur’ which numerous celebrities took part in, including Kate Moss.

About a billion rabbits are slaughtered every year for their fur. This is an issue particularly close to my heart, mainly due to the fact I have kept rabbits as pets for most of my life.

My wonderful rabbit Rufus

I would never eat rabbit and have even boycotted a restaurant because it is on their menu. I realise however that this is a small stand to make considering I still wear leather shoes and eat meat and other animal products, something Karl Lagerfeld was quick to come back with to the critics of Fendi’s use of fur.

I think the key is that animals should be treated humanely whether they are being used for food or fur and many so called fur farms just don’t do this and of course that is wrong. It seems abhorrent that an animal should suffer in the name of fashion; especially as faux fur has come on so much. Some would argue against the use of the faux fur though as it is made from an oil base which is not a sustainable resource.

Britain and the USA have quite stringent rules on the treatment of the animals used to produce their fur but other countries are unfortunately not so scrupulous and many of their exports are not clearly labelled so you may well be buying their products unwittingly.

It is a shame that in recent years fur has become more popular in fashion again and even some of the models who opposed it in that 1991 PETA campaign have since been seen wearing it.

Everyone is of course entitled to their own views and as I say unless you are a vegan being against fur does have some sense of hypocrisy to it but in my mind, cruelty to animals is never ok and I am quite happy to wear faux fur. I think that it should be law that things are explicitly labelled so that the consumer can make an informed choice about what they buy, whether it be food, clothes or cosmetics.

Political rant over, I shall get back to the weather and what I have been doing, whilst staying in the warm and the dry has appeared to be the better option.

I completed my first shabby chic project, following a course I did last year which you can read about here. My husband inherited a rather ornate but very old fashioned cabinet in a dark wood from his Grandfather. I must admit that it wasn’t something I was that keen on in its original state but was the perfect canvas for shabby chic. I used Autentico Vanille paint for the base and then used Autentico Pitch Green to paint the panels on the doors and bring out the detail on the drawers. I finished it off with Autentico clear wax and put new drawer pulls on. I was quite pleased with the finished result in the end but I did learn a few lessons for the next project.

Shoe Cabinet

This weekend I braved the weather and headed up to London for the Vogue 100 – A Century of Style exhibition which you can read all about in my next blog. In the meantime try and keep warm and dry and roll on summer!

A Lesson in Vintage

Jun28

Shabby chic – a term most of us are now familiar with, was coined in the 1980s by an interior design magazine. The style originated in Britain’s country houses in the early 1900’s, when the economic state of affairs meant that people were less able to spend money on the up keep of their stately homes, leading to faded and tired interiors. Popularity of the style probably started in the late 1970’s with the modern bohemians and it has certainly been top of the interior fashion stakes for a number of years now.

In 2014 eBay reported selling over 3000 shabby chic items every day. The term essentially refers to old furniture which is showing signs of wear/age; often with many layers of paint and those underneath showing through; sometimes this can be natural aging but at other times items are distressed after purchase using various techniques. It is a kind of romantic, French chateau, relaxed, cottage style mainly using white and pastel colours, with a popularity of the rose print (think Cath Kidston) though Italian influence has led to a greater diversity of bright colours.

Some of this popularity has been down to our general fascination with vintage. Once celebrities began wearing vintage fashion, old suddenly began to be equated with fashionable. Television has also played a role through the period dramas it shows. The internet has made finding vintage items far easier than trawling local charity shops –although find the right area, and the charity shops and markets, can still furnish you with very original pieces along with being an amusing way to spend an afternoon.

Another influence on the growing popularity of shabby chic has been the awareness of sustainability with a drive to recycle as well as upcycle. With recycling, an item is broken down into its parts and then made into something different whereas upcycling is simply renovating the original item.

One Sunday this month, I attended a beginner’s furniture painting class at The Vintage Dove in Rainham, Kent. I want to upcycle a dining table and chairs but was reticent to try without some advice and practice. The class was £55 for 4 hours which I thought was very reasonable and we had to bring a small piece of furniture with us. I took a vintage wine crate which we found in the shed.

The shop is inviting as soon as you walk through the door, with a country cottage feel. It is split over 2 levels and has a lovely range of home accessories, small furniture items and gifts. The shop is a specialist in Autentico products with a comprehensive range in stock and the option to order others. If the thought of painting Granny’s dresser is all too daunting – they will also paint items for you for a fee.

Stephanie, the owner of the shop welcomed us with a much needed coffee before explaining a bit about the range of Autentico paints which they stock. Autentico are chalk based paints which come in a number of finishes and a multitude of colours. The paint is water-based and made with natural ingredients. It will stick to almost any surface meaning that there is no need for extensive sanding and primer before applying it. The only preparation required is to clean your surface with sugar soap.

Picking from the 140 colours proved difficult for the four of us that attended but as I had just been to Crete – I picked a shade of blue called Crete and a white called Corfu white.

Stephanie advised us to paint in only one direction to avoid rubbing off what you had just painted and also to paint from the middle out so that you didn’t end up with a big blob of paint on the edges. The painting was actually very therapeutic and I can see how it can become addictive. Stephanie explained how the shop had been born; simply when she couldn’t find a suitable dressing table for her daughter, so got an old one to upcycle and has been painting ever since. She commented how lucky she is to have a job she loves and her enthusiasm is certainly infectious.

When I had painted the box white all over and dried it off with a hairdryer, I then set about painting the outside of the box blue. Once this was thoroughly dry – Stephanie explained the different methods of distressing, these are dragging a wet sponge over areas you want to look faded; dry brushing which is generally used when you have a light base coat and you then dip your brush in a darker colour – dry it off and then drag it over the item. The final method was to use very fine sandpaper on the edges and other areas that would be likely to show signs of wear. I went with the sandpaper option and just used it to highlight the engraved wording on the box. The box was then finished with a coat of wax.

Stephanie also gave us a preview of the things you would learn on the advanced course and I will certainly be back for more! This follow on course looks at paint effects such a crackling and applying transfers.

I really enjoyed my day and would highly recommend the class to anyone with an interest in vintage furniture. The class was accessible and fun and was a small number of people so you got plenty of opportunities to ask questions and get some one on one tuition. I will be trawling eBay, the many charity shops in Rainham and the pop-up shop behind the White Horse pub in Rainham for future pieces to work on. Happy upcycling!

blahnikgirl

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