Dilemma

I always find that there is one item of furniture which is not officially recognised as 'furniture' but nevertheless always seems to take centre stage in our lives
and usually when we move house the one question always asked is  'where shall we put the TV?'


Although a great invention, and we couldn't imagine life without it

a TV is...how can I put this nicely .... ugly unsightly and it spoils any well thought out room decor unless you have a dedicated TV room,  where naturally it takes pride of place!


Apart from hiding it in a cold uninviting room  at the end of the house,  or perish the thought, getting rid of it entirely

What are the options?

 pop up TV stands

The distressed  picture frame look

The all in one wall unit

This is by far my favourite way to hide a TV

image from ACottageintotteridge




but what if your space is restricted and you don't have the option of an armoire or having a custom built TV cabinet like the one above...


One great way is to take a good look at your lounge and at the least prominent space, and if possible, move your TV in this space.
  
Don't place your TV over a beautiful fireplace mantel.
Make your mantel the focus point by adding a beautiful mirror or a painting, and place your TV in a less prominent spot, lower down and on a TV stand, or on a less prominent wall.


Another way to ensure your TV blends into the background is to paint or wallpaper the wall in the same colour as your TV, so if you have a black flatscreen TV, have it wall mounted on a charcoal or black wall.

Image from the book Decorate



When the television is not in use, it fades discreetly into the wall space.



*******

Has the rain finally stopped?

I suppose we'll find out soon enough!

Have a lovely week!


Sharon
xxx

Rain rain go away...

Thank you all for your lovely comments on my last post and welcome to lovely new followers!


As I write this post, the wind is howling away and the rain pelting down.  Far too windy to venture outside.  I've been in gale force winds before and I've seen people thrown off their bicycles and ladies, arms linked, wrapped around a lamp post!  

I have to smile, I'm probably the only person in the WORLD who loves the rain...
I figure we can't do anything about the weather, so we might as well embrace whatever it wants to do!  

image from here

As the weather is keeping me indoors today, I'm finishing up my sewing project - curtains.  

A cup of delicious Earl Grey Supreme blend should help me along the way...

I posted about this vintage French fabric I bought from eBay a while ago.

I wanted to trim a plain fabric with a more detailed fabric for contrast.
I've made four curtains and this is exactly how I wanted them to look.  

It's still raining, but I can't wait any longer, I'm going out!


What do you do when it's raining?

image from here

Sharon

xxx

Perfect ending...

Friendship ...there's nothing like true friendship is there?  The kind that picks up from where you left it, even after several years...friendships you've had for over 20 years and in one instance, known your entire life.


It's a time of reminiscing for me...lately I've come across friends I haven't seen for years, and the pang of nostalgia has hit me right in the heart.

In this ever changing world we live in, where we rush from here to there, where technology is changing so rapidly, and natural disasters are occurring the world over, it's nice to know that some things are constant...unchanging.  Yes, we've changed - we are older, a slightly more faded version of our former young and carefree selves...but we embrace these changes as they reflect the memories and time we have shared as friends.

This weekend was one such occasion.


Our dear friends from afar were in London on a visit.  They had brought along their daughter, who shares the same birthday as our daughter, born only hours apart.   As a fashion design student, a two week trip to London visiting all the famous fashion houses and enjoying numerous theatre productions was her 21st birthday treat.



Our friendship has ignited a natural friendship between our children over the years, and we smiled at each other knowingly as we watched our grown children laugh and chat about their childhood and their bright futures.   Having grown up with each other, they too are creating memories to laugh at and look back on with fondness.

Catching up was like being in a familiar place, a place so welcome and inviting, that you never want to leave...

We spent several hours at Laduree in Harrods, drinking the finest English tea, enjoying a delicious lunch and beautiful cakes...

A perfect ending to a perfect visit.

This post celebrates friendship - the love, the laughter, sometimes the sadness and the warmth that special friendships evoke.


To friendship!

Sharon

xxx

Flowers for the birthday girl

It's always nice to see new followers, so thank you for stopping by.

Down south we've had some welcome rain.  I know most people don't like the rain - it's wet and everywhere is full of dripping umbrellas and muddy wellies...but

I love the rain, it washes all the dust away, it refreshes the plants and the trees and leaves everything sparkling clean.

I've had a busy few weeks, full of family birthdays and lots of cake making...can you have too much cake?  

And I've been busy...

with stripping the old paint off these chairs and painting them with Annie Sloan Pure White Chalk paint...

So a piece of cake is very welcome in between coats...

(all photos by me)

So back to painting for now and a generous slice of cake.

Enjoy the weekend

Sharon

xxx

Ode to the Sun

Spring is here right? Even though it doesn't quite feel like it in some places...

So this week I've put together some eye popping colour to serenade in the Spring and the forthcoming warmer months...

Sun and heat always make me think of warmer climates, sand so hot you can't walk barefoot on it, cracked dry earth, cherry red tomatoes glistening on their stalks in the noon day sun, azure seas and the cool green leaves of the palm trees - lots of colour and lots of pattern.

Warmer climates tend to use a lot more colour in everything, from furniture design to crockery and cutlery.

So imagine you are in a warmer climate, can you feel the warmth of the sun on your face?

You're sitting outside relaxing by a glistening pool...

and you've set the table ready for an alfresco lunch or an early supper as the sun slowly sets...

The colours are vibrant and the pattern is energetic...

the birds, frogs and insects have all come out to play

,

All images from here

So, before you go pale, breathe in a little colour, add a little spice...

Enjoy the week

Sharon

xxx