tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56779139017386323122024-03-19T06:19:45.436+00:00Paint and StyleI'm Emma Kate. I've been a decorative painter for 25 years and now I'm trying my hand at DIY. I live in a picturesque market town in Hertfordshire, England. I have a passion for upcycling vintage furniture, home decor and secondhand shopping. Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.comBlogger239125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-81208407878955167912020-07-31T19:38:00.000+01:002020-07-31T19:38:39.452+01:00Life goes on...I'm not sure where to begin. I guess the last time I wrote we were some months into Connie's devastating diagnosis. Her disease is Friedreich's Ataxia. It took me a long time to be able to use the F word on social media. <div><br /></div><div>It's a cruel disease. Now we are about 3.5 years post diagnosis. What has changed? </div><div><br /></div><div>I accept it all. The disability part, the death part. All of it. Connie says she's accepted the death part but she can still be floored by glimpses of how her disease will affect her future. We're working through it and she has a lot of specialist support. Her main response is denial but denial doesn't work forever as reality will always creep in. </div><div><br /></div><div>Physically, she has declined a great deal. She can walk only with someone taking her arm and a lot of her weight and it's very slow. Mostly, she uses a wheelchair. She's still in mainstream school. We chose a wheelchair friendly school. </div><div><br /></div><div>Her heart is stable, her scoliosis is severe, her speech has worsened and her sight and hearing have been adversely affected. She has all of this to deal with as well as just being fourteen. </div><div><br /></div><div>Socially it's isolating. Her difficulties make her uncool. To avoid being hurt by people she's decided not to make new friends. She has only one friend at school and it breaks my heart. This is the hardest part of the disease for me. Watching the way it chips away at self esteem until it's gone. </div><div><br /></div><div>But it is the new normal for us. A phrase which I'm sure you all understand and are familiar with. Life goes on. We have ups and downs. It's not always easy and I know the future is bleak but we try not to look too far ahead and we try to get a lot out of life and the time we have. </div><div><br /></div><div>In 2018, Connie spent 10 days in Florida with an amazing charity called Dreamflight. She went to all the parks, swam with Dolphins and was treated like a visiting dignitary. I defy you to watch this film without sobbing...</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yv70gV1v9dw" width="320" youtube-src-id="yv70gV1v9dw"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>That was a life changing moment for Connie. Whereas before Dreamflight she struggled to say anything good about herself, afterwards she acknowledged she was brave.Without hesitation. And she made a great friend in her roommate Mollie. They are still in touch. </div><div><br /></div><div>Last summer saw us build a ground floor extension for Constance because reaching her upstairs bedroom and bathroom was not going to be a long term possibility. We had help from a DFG grant, another discretionary payment on top, help from our families and a charity. We built a huge side extension (wheelchair users need a lot of space) with a separate entrance, carers room/sitting room, a large wheelchair friendly bathroom and a large bedroom overlooking the garden. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bb7yIfml0KY/XyRWBBsWP2I/AAAAAAAAG_s/JMHe3IxT0DgB9fDy9SxW7Bzyl9Ui_xr2ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1944/70938968_10215032938483681_3646497474199158784_o.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1458" data-original-width="1944" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bb7yIfml0KY/XyRWBBsWP2I/AAAAAAAAG_s/JMHe3IxT0DgB9fDy9SxW7Bzyl9Ui_xr2ACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/70938968_10215032938483681_3646497474199158784_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>I knew I wanted Connies bedroom to be bright, light and bringing the garden in. My inspiration pictures were; </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sl9rs-gsPP4/XyRXOWu4ecI/AAAAAAAAG_4/e4ui_BGrWzIwdBBJpZ_kWlKNqh82NcgagCLcBGAsYHQ/s751/76615066_10215527124918033_5437919202260287488_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="751" data-original-width="563" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sl9rs-gsPP4/XyRXOWu4ecI/AAAAAAAAG_4/e4ui_BGrWzIwdBBJpZ_kWlKNqh82NcgagCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/76615066_10215527124918033_5437919202260287488_n.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T7KE-riyBt4/XyRXX8-vggI/AAAAAAAAG_8/tP62cb4rG_MPVv63F0tf4HItfPe7fgrggCLcBGAsYHQ/s846/f9b25ba8804d873e58ee086583f95612.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="564" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-T7KE-riyBt4/XyRXX8-vggI/AAAAAAAAG_8/tP62cb4rG_MPVv63F0tf4HItfPe7fgrggCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/f9b25ba8804d873e58ee086583f95612.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>So that was the plan. And that's what we built. </div><div><br /></div><div>However...</div><div><br /></div><div>Connie is a bit of a Goth... </div><div><br /></div><div>And her hearts desire was this photograph... </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rIitfgFpTUI/XyRYAnI2HAI/AAAAAAAAHAI/5_zkIYwQmXkanf_rlOFx0PTx9BNYpompACLcBGAsYHQ/s578/75196468_10215527129198140_552943886507442176_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="563" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rIitfgFpTUI/XyRYAnI2HAI/AAAAAAAAHAI/5_zkIYwQmXkanf_rlOFx0PTx9BNYpompACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/75196468_10215527129198140_552943886507442176_n.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So plans changed. And not having so much as looked at a paintbrush for a few years, I embraced the challenge and got to work....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-995YnBbj9dA/XyRaJFo3woI/AAAAAAAAHAU/-UQgXyiCTaYfcO4blep04Tr4m3k5xeMEACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/82450065_10215918464061267_8134862517563293696_o.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-995YnBbj9dA/XyRaJFo3woI/AAAAAAAAHAU/-UQgXyiCTaYfcO4blep04Tr4m3k5xeMEACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/82450065_10215918464061267_8134862517563293696_o.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WIyyyBH7Tqc/XyRaM1yzPII/AAAAAAAAHBA/y1epNB0SGJ0LOkR4spTkXpQTyyfNOGojwCPcBGAYYCw/s1824/82261677_10215931220380167_6927423545664339968_o.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr1l8VJgVX4/XyRadMe9ZQI/AAAAAAAAHBM/H61ma5h98RMktkKm5l0rkUPVxiADu67KQCPcBGAYYCw/s1944/83780278_10216129006524697_3461635308615892992_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="1456" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Sr1l8VJgVX4/XyRadMe9ZQI/AAAAAAAAHBM/H61ma5h98RMktkKm5l0rkUPVxiADu67KQCPcBGAYYCw/s640/83780278_10216129006524697_3461635308615892992_o.jpg" /></a></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J7WGi5BK4eY/XyRafVwA6TI/AAAAAAAAHBQ/jTDxEVOhMHQlOX2_xiAC5UXX1AqIbNIYwCPcBGAYYCw/s2035/94711090_10216829786003746_2689061161256615936_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2035" data-original-width="1488" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J7WGi5BK4eY/XyRafVwA6TI/AAAAAAAAHBQ/jTDxEVOhMHQlOX2_xiAC5UXX1AqIbNIYwCPcBGAYYCw/s640/94711090_10216829786003746_2689061161256615936_o.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LAk6oroOy0Q/XyRaguyOpaI/AAAAAAAAHBQ/u9xMMadAlqUZCwZ6tPUUwB4BJwRsMyq9QCPcBGAYYCw/s1944/93886955_10216823227559789_860074412274089984_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1944" data-original-width="1456" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LAk6oroOy0Q/XyRaguyOpaI/AAAAAAAAHBQ/u9xMMadAlqUZCwZ6tPUUwB4BJwRsMyq9QCPcBGAYYCw/s640/93886955_10216823227559789_860074412274089984_o.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div> So Connie has taught me, DIY is not all about adding value to one's house. It's not about adding kerb appeal and maximising potential. It can be all of those things of course, but now, for us , it's about having the bedroom of your dreams because sometimes, life is short. Creating a magical space is where it's at for us. </div><div><br /></div><div>The bedroom, or Goth Towers as we call it, is not finished. There's still furniture to paint and far too much white in there. We don't always see eye to eye, Connie and I. She reigns me in from full on Disney Haunted Mansion. She explains that Old House is ok, Haunted House is not. I have been put in my place. But so far, I think we have fullfilled the brief which was ''I'd like a bedroom that no other teenage girl has.''</div><div><br /></div><div>We've enjoyed it. </div><div><br /></div><div>So much so that I'm thinking of hand painting emerald green Chinoiserie walls in my bedroom. Why not? You can see where this is heading. We are going to be one of those houses that goes viral if we ever put it on the market! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BD9QO3vDgvY/XyRizZgH93I/AAAAAAAAHBw/v8RXu527dhQdbAIep-yHJ7QBAjL6s0LjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s749/91565563_2873219712766137_7560580486205014016_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="749" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BD9QO3vDgvY/XyRizZgH93I/AAAAAAAAHBw/v8RXu527dhQdbAIep-yHJ7QBAjL6s0LjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/91565563_2873219712766137_7560580486205014016_o.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div>But I don't care. We all deserve a fantasy room.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>With the help of our families and one very kind stranger, we were lent a flat just minutes away from The London Eye for the New Years Fireworks at the beginning of 2020. Connie always said she'd like to go but there's no way she would cope with the cold as she cannot control her temperature due to her hear disease. Luckily Mollie from Dreamflight was able to join us so we made dreams come true for them both. Our windows looked out onto the Thames and the London Eye so we spent a relaxed evening in a restaurant before the fireworks. No need to claim our spot in the cold. </div><div><br /></div><div>It was incredible. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mM6TZuKAtjU/XyRTXy9U98I/AAAAAAAAG_g/pvuFv9r814EGLg_KfPZaD8WfVJX5dd7BwCLcBGAsYHQ/s960/81397924_10215874050710961_9202611015349436416_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="528" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mM6TZuKAtjU/XyRTXy9U98I/AAAAAAAAG_g/pvuFv9r814EGLg_KfPZaD8WfVJX5dd7BwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/81397924_10215874050710961_9202611015349436416_n.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Little did any of us know then what 2020 held in store. We've been shielding Connie for five months now. Jason's work has all but dried up. I nearly lost a dear friend. She survived Covid but will never be the same. </div><div>I hope you and yours are safe and well. </div><div><br /></div><div>Until next time, dear reader, stay safe. </div>Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-12590035304770077512020-07-26T23:13:00.000+01:002020-07-26T23:13:29.468+01:00Hello!Hello! Is anyone out there after all this time? I know some of you are as I've just found some messages. Thank you for those.<br />
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I've decided to blog again. A lot has changed. We have a lot of catching up to do. I didn't really intend to stop blogging. It wasn't a conscious decision. But life shifted gear and blogging stopped. Lots of things stopped. But we are all still here. <br />
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So hello dear reader. We will catch up very soon.<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-15032154511598458572017-04-15T18:19:00.000+01:002017-04-16T09:41:56.523+01:00An explanation...It's been almost nine months since I last blogged. I need to get this post over with and tell you what's been going on.<br />
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In August last year, my daughter finally got to see a paediatrician after almost a year long wait. She was referred because she had coordination problems (nothing new) and we thought she might be Dyspraxic. In the year that we waited, she saw a Physiotherapist and an Occupational Therapist who assessed her strength and coordination and gave us exercises to do at home.<br />
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Within ten minutes of being with the Paediatrician, things got weird. He found she had no leg reflexes. He made her do peculiar things like stand still and close her eyes. She couldn't do it without falling. He found a problem with her back that we didn't know existed. And he was really interested in her feet.<br />
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The doctor was concerned. I was there to find out if Connie had Dyspraxia. He said he wanted to send her for blood tests, a brain and spine scan, a nerve test and a muscle test. He was going to refer her to Great Ormond Street Childrens Hospital. My world shifted.<br />
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You know how doctors don't want to alarm you? They say they just want to rule things out. I was too shocked to ask him what he was looking for. He mentioned that maybe the coordination part of her brain just hadn't grown properly and that was as far as he'd go.<br />
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Leaving the doctors with my mind reeling, we then had to go and see a bloody film. I even let her buy actual sweets at the cinema instead of smuggling them in. I just felt so overwhelmingly sorry for her.<br />
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The minute she was in bed that night, I set about googling the tests the doctor had done. They had names. Failing them meant one of half a dozen things. So I googled them, one by one. There was this one condition that ticked all the boxes. It was also the worst.<br />
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My husband and Dad (my confidantes) wouldn't listen. They didn't understand that I hadn't just been randomly googling, but that I'd googled the specific neurological tests the doctor did. Their response was, ''Don't worry.'' I threw myself into building the wardrobe. It was my therapy but my heart was breaking.<br />
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Lots of tests followed and after five months, during which time every other thing had been ruled out, we got the DNA results back and she had tested positive for that one rare and horrible condition.<br />
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I'm not going to name the condition here. I don't like saying the word. I also have to protect Connie's privacy. This is a condition which is degenerative, disabling and life shortening. There's no cure and no treatment. It's going in one direction and we have to be careful who we share that with. You guys are fine because you don't know our real names or where we live. You won't find my blog by searching the condition.<br />
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Our worlds fell apart. The hardest thing was knowing that we had to make the best of things and be fun parents when fun was the furthest thing from our minds. My husband had a nervous breakdown. He'd buried his head in the sand for months until the very last possible alternative condition was ruled out and he had to face facts. He cried night and day, didn't sleep and couldn't function. I was five months ahead of him emotionally and I was able to get him help.<br />
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It's been a difficult time. During the lead up to diagnosis we were looking at secondary schools, not quite knowing if we'd need wheelchair accessibility to be a factor. We applied for schools with the added burden that we had to get this right. Where other kids might put up with a bad time at school and go on to do amazing things with their lives, ours would not. The school situation added insult to injury. We were rejected on Social and Medical grounds TWICE. It was absurd and incredibly distressing.<br />
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We've dealt with shitstorm after shitstorm. We found out Connie has a heart condition. We found out that she's likely to be at the severe end of the scale. There was the time one of her friends asked her if she was upset because she was going to die young. (She wasn't aware of that.) The time the Senco at school said they would no longer support our choice of secondary school. The time Connie spent 14 hours in A&E with chest pains. We've had to figure out as we've gone along how much to tell Connie and when. You don't get a manual or counselling with a diagnosis like Connie's.<br />
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We're adjusting to a different path. It's not the one we thought we were on but it's Connies path and she's been on it from day one. She was made this way. The future we thought she had was never going to be hers.<br />
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We're working through a 'bucket list' of sorts. She's not going to die anytime soon but we have a lot of experiences to squeeze into what will be a short life. And this disease is progressive so she'll never be better than she is today.<br />
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It's funny but Connie has never been happier. The diagnosis means none of her inabilities are her fault. People are kinder at school and she gets chosen for things now whereas she never was before. She's ten and ten year olds tend not to dwell on things. She'll just grow up knowing about her condition. From time to time as she grows up, aspects of it will really hit home and cause distress. We have all those teen years to come.<br />
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On a practical level, we have to build a downstairs extension for a bedroom and a wet room for when she can no longer get upstairs. We may have to take some walls down too.<br />
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I've done nothing to the house, nor picked up a single tool for six months until very recently. I guess it's been like a kind of depression. I haven't wanted to do anything.<br />
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As for this blog, I will continue. This won't become a disability blog. We won't be the poster family for this condition. It's not MY condition. I have my support network in place now so I won't be bitching about it on here.<br />
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I WILL continue to share the walk in wardrobe and the little built in cupboard I'm just making in the living room. I've enjoyed EVERY MINUTE of that. Apart from the hinges. Hate hinges.<br />
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So please bear with me. It's good to be back.<br />
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One last thing; somehow I managed to delete my entire blog list. If you've gone missing from my sidebar please let me know and I'll add you again.<br />
<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com35tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-48324152666516792142016-09-05T13:56:00.000+01:002016-09-05T16:43:24.693+01:00Walk In Wardrobe Part 2...Even before the stud wall was built, creating the space for the wardrobe, I was planning its interior.<br />
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So many options!<br />
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Fabulously girly?<br />
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Sleek and modern?<br />
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One of those hanging systems?<br />
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Er, some of these are clearly ROOMS rather than walk in wardrobes!<br />
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All very lovely. But the vibe I'm going for in this house is cottagey. It's not desperately old but the rooms are not generous, the ceilings are not high and the upstairs rooms have sloping walls as they're in the roof, so I can get away with it. The house was devoid of any character whatsoever when we moved in so it's been great to work with a blank canvas in many respects but you also have to work with what you've got.<br />
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We aren't going to get away with grand. I have no interest in modern. And too girly isn't fair on the husband. Plus I'm not really a girly girl.<br />
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I like old.<br />
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Character.<br />
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A bit of industrial...<br />
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But most of all, I want to get this look without spending a fortune and I want to do it all myself.<br />
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So let's start with the brick wall. I decided to create one feature wall. I knew I wanted something more substantial than wallpaper so I started investigating Brick Slips.<br />
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To get a beautiful brick slip, cut from real reclaimed bricks you are looking at anything from £40 per square metre plus carriage. And they're not light. Or easy to cut.<br />
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I found these...<br />
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On eBay from <a href="http://stores.ebay.co.uk/ngtdesign/" target="_blank">NGT DESIGN</a><br />
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No this is not a sponsored post.<br />
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The beauty of these brick slips is that they are half the price of real ones, are flexible and easily cut with scissors.<br />
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They come in seven different colours and I wondered if I could turn them from this...</div>
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into something more like this...</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">real bricks</td></tr>
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So I had a little play with paint and went from this...</div>
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To this...</div>
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I'll explain how next time. </div>
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But I'll give you a sneaky peak of how it all turned out!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U3EmllFXyIE/V81gX3JHMGI/AAAAAAAAG0Q/mznS-bsQDtg_VruEg79PsmNqUmlOYeiQACLcB/s1600/DSC01990.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U3EmllFXyIE/V81gX3JHMGI/AAAAAAAAG0Q/mznS-bsQDtg_VruEg79PsmNqUmlOYeiQACLcB/s640/DSC01990.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my bricks</td></tr>
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I'm in love with my faux brick wall. I can never, ever move house again. Sadly I now have to give away most of my clothes so that they don't obliterate the feature wall in the wardrobe. </div>
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Back soon...</div>
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Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-3240249338177455292016-08-13T11:47:00.001+01:002016-08-13T11:47:35.463+01:00Walk In Wardrobe Part 1...Things in the master bedroom haven't run as smoothly as I anticipated.<br />
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I started to build the stud wall to separate off the end section for the walk in wardrobe. The ceiling has always been bowed in that room but it felt solid enough. I mean, my father in law and I pushed on it and it didn't move so we thought it was fine. The last thing you want to do is take a ceiling down! Ugh, the mess and devastation!<br />
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So I started to frame out the wall which was quite tricky when it came to the top. I looked on the Internet to see how to build a stud wall round a bowed ceiling.<br />
Nothing.<br />
That should have been a clue that perhaps this isn't a good idea.<br />
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To accommodate the ceiling bow I had to shorten the sides of my stud timbers to get the top sitting level. Then pack out the side gaps.<br />
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Parcel tape is the carpenters friend if you are working alone and don't have enough hands!<br />
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We got the electrician in to remove the wall light you see above and put a central pendant light in the wardrobe space.<br />
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Ta daa! But here's where it all started to go horribly wrong. As I'd had to clear the loft space just above the new light fitting, I thought it would be a good time to board out the loft. We'd done a half arsed job when we moved in but the boards didn't reach the edges so I could gain more storage by doing it properly.<br />
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So there I was, toiling away in the loft when I noticed something bad. The loft boards were sliding between the central beam and the ceiling joists below. They are supposed to be tight up to each other. The ceiling was actually dangling in mid air. The boards I had laid looked great but there was a dip in the middle of the floor that you could feel as you walked on it.<br />
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We called in a local builder who came highly recommended by a friend. He pushed on the ceiling with one hand and it moved. My husband when up in the loft above and you could see the ceiling bouncing.<br />
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Not good.<br />
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We decided the best course of action would be to take the ceiling down, insert a new wooden beam, hoist up the joists as much as we could, strengthen them and put in a new ceiling.<br />
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This meant emptying the bedroom and the entire side of the loft above. You can imagine the chaos. There was stuff EVERYWHERE.<br />
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Not to mention dust and fibre glass...<br />
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Here you can see the new beam across the ceiling and the shiny new strapping to pull the joists up.<br />
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The new beam is far more substantial than the old one!<br />
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It was cemented into a hole in the brickwork at one end and the other end rests on a solid wall that runs down the depth of the house. The new and old beams were bolted together.<br />
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We can jump around in the loft now. That's important.<br />
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The ceiling went back up...<br />
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And then before we could plaster, we decided to replace the window which was an old aluminium frame and very badly fogged. If we replaced the window afterwards, it would bugger up the new plasterwork.<br />
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The ceiling works and plastering came to about £1000. The windows (we did the landing one too) came to £1000. This wasn't the worst part. Oh no. There was worse to come.<br />
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The builder said he could put up my stud wall in about half an hour. I REALLY wanted to do it. I mean, when am I ever going to get an opportunity to do another one? Never.<br />
But there were things ALL OVER THE HOUSE and I was helping someone out with some childcare so I caved in. For the sake of progress, our sanity and family life I caved.<br />
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Rest assured, he put that wall up EXACTLY the way I was going to. But rather faster and without lots of painstaking research into how wide plasterboard is. The builder has all that information in his head as he does this full time.<br />
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We also battened out, insulated and recovered that lower end wall as it was very cold. I got the builder to leave the other side of the wall open so that I could reinforce the stud work where I'm going to need extra strength for hanging rails.<br />
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So. The room was built. Next was the fun part!<br />
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The prettifying! Back soon with that...<br />
<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-54392561552597341602016-06-30T12:02:00.000+01:002016-07-06T10:56:33.917+01:00Armoire reveal... and why you should avoid oil based paints.Gosh it's been a while! Is anyone still out there?<br />
We've been through some rather tubulent, uncertain times since we last spoke. And that's just in the master bedroom, let alone our great nation.<br />
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I have sooo much to tell you. But first I must get this Armoire post out of the way. I finished it in February so I'm a little slow. I first wrote about it <a href="http://paintedstyle.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/a-possibly-doomed-french-love-affair.html" target="_blank">HERE.</a><br />
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I'll remind you how it looked when I found it, unloved and wearing some very bad paintwork.<br />
Despite this, I fell madly in love.<br />
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Once I had accepted the fact that I couldn't keep it, (there was no way of getting it round the bend of the stairs) I decided to paint it in off white as white is the best selling colour for bedroom furniture.<br />
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I stripped and sanded, strengthened, de-wormed and replaced a missing trim and primed the bare wood. Luckily there was no bleed through so I got away with an ordinary primer.<br />
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I decided to use an 'oops' paint, a massive can of oil based eggshell I got for a fiver at my local paint merchants as the tint had gone wrong.<br />
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BIG MISTAKE! In the 16 to 24 hours it took to dry, it became a magnet for every airborne cat hair and dust particle I didn't even know I had. I married an OCD hooverer so I thought we were pretty clean. But no. It looked appalling.<br />
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I will never, not ever, use oil based paints again.<br />
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One good thing about the EU, love them or loathe them; they cleaned up our paints by taking out the toxic chemicals. This has caused problems with your average oil based white gloss yellowing in a matter of months, but the knock on effect has led to superior water based paints.<br />
My kitchen is painted in water based paint. I can scrub it, knock it and it doesn't absorb grease.<br />
My stairs are painted in water based paint. We walk on them. (Okay, they might be slightly trashed but, we have a LOT of furniture changes in this house which leads to more wear and tear than the average home. It would happen had I used oil based gloss too.)<br />
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Water based paints are the way forward. I'd certainly go for quality when you can. Ronseal for floor paint, F&B for cupboards, every time for me.<br />
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Anyway, lecture over.<br />
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A little more sanding, a new paint and hey presto...<br />
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It was finished.<br />
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All fresh and lovely. And very much stranded in the dining room.<br />
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I did some light distressing as this is good for furniture that will be in transit. A little ding here or there won't stand out.<br />
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I kept the original hardware as it was so deliciously French...<br />
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The wonderfully mottled mirror was taped off as I couldn't remove it...<br />
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A new rail replaced the old hooks and my work was done.<br />
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By the time it left us, I was actually glad to see it go, not heartbroken as I'd expected to be. We'd been squeezing past it for over 6 months as it took over the kitchen or dining room. Sometimes love just dies and there's nothing you can do about it.<br />
It was clearly meant for someone else.<br />
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Back next time with the master bed/walk in wardrobe work which led to this...<br />
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Yeah.<br />
Not great is it?<br />
It was at this stage that I received an email from a journalist wanting to photograph the house for a magazine. Instead of jumping for joy, it just made me very very sad.<br />
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One day....<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-49383012835652764712016-04-17T21:23:00.000+01:002016-04-17T21:25:59.245+01:00The door headboard... for now.The headboard is done. Sort of. Let's recap how it started...<br />
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Here's the door that cost nothing but our dignity as we dragged it half a mile.<br />
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It weighs a ton.<br />
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I sawed off one panel so that it would fit our double bed.<br />
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Then stripped the paint as it was all peeling off anyway. If it was sound I could have just painted over it.<br />
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I got some special brackets from ebay. ( Headboard Wall Mount Fixing Bolt Bracket Kit.)<br />
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One part slots inside the other. The outer section screws to the wall...<br />
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Extra holes drilled here as I put them in the wrong place. Damn measuring.<br />
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The inner part goes on the back of the headboard...<br />
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Then, if you've measured it all correctly you should be able to slide your two brackets into each other and your headboard is firmly mounted on the wall. Yesss! It worked. I did leave one of the brackets screwed on the door a little loose so I had a few mm of wiggle room if I needed it.<br />
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Using this wall mounting technique, you do get a little gap behind the headboard to accommodate the depth of the brackets.<br />
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I didn't want a little gap.<br />
I designed a little pediment to sit on top of the headboard which would sit flush to the wall. I'd always planned on doing a fancy cornice to posh it up a bit but after extensive googling door headboards, I decided a very plain, MANLY pediment would work better.<br />
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Before pediment...<br />
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And after...<br />
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I wood glued and clamped the two strips to each other and stained them to match the original wood of the door. Then I screwed them on from the top, countersinking the screws so they could be filled and hidden.<br />
There's still a little gap around the side of the headboard, but with the top flush to the wall, it doesn't matter.<br />
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I attached the pediment whilst the headboard was on the wall so that I didn't have to fanny around, working out my bracket depth and the amount of overhang needed. I just positioned it and drilled.<br />
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Next, it all had to come off the wall again for filling and another coat of stain. I was planning on painting and distressing but I wanted the wood that shows through the paint to be a uniform colour.<br />
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Painting was a source of disagreement. I wanted to do Chinoiserie in the panels!<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-notcCbfNc7o/Vvw34bMKJeI/AAAAAAAAGrk/TE6tH9vCsMoOIl5xCvtQSAdj_ZD94TTeQ/s1600/3ec291112c6e004f9974f427ed12feff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-notcCbfNc7o/Vvw34bMKJeI/AAAAAAAAGrk/TE6tH9vCsMoOIl5xCvtQSAdj_ZD94TTeQ/s640/3ec291112c6e004f9974f427ed12feff.jpg" width="512" /></a></div>
<br />
Tasteful, elegant chinoiserie. Timeless and classical.<br />
<br />
Jason was having none of it. He said he just wanted it painted one colour. All over. Flat.<br />
<br />
My heart sank because I couldn't bring myself to do that. <strike>We discussed it.</strike> I badgered him until he said he really didn't care what I did.<br />
<br />
Top tip; Start these conversations when your other half is watching football. Mine will agree to anything to make me shut up and go away. Headboards, it seems, are not as important as watching Liverpool.<br />
<br />
But I compromised! That doesn't often happen.<br />
I accept that he is a heterosexual male and doesn't want chinoiserie. Mostly because I still get to do some in my daughters room.<br />
<br />
But I'm not bloody well painting flat solid paint.<br />
<br />
I had a Dulux Trade paint sample made from a bit of the grey velvet they scanned in. The perfect paint colour for only a few quid. Before painting, I rubbed hard over all the edges with a candle so that the paint would distress easily in these areas.<br />
<br />
And here's the result...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5hX76mPGbb0/VxPr_ovwDuI/AAAAAAAAGsU/LhCfR1s2g0A9Gdwg4ivTmJpl4xdTbEo1gCLcB/s1600/DSC01385.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5hX76mPGbb0/VxPr_ovwDuI/AAAAAAAAGsU/LhCfR1s2g0A9Gdwg4ivTmJpl4xdTbEo1gCLcB/s640/DSC01385.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sorry, I've not STYLED it properly with perfect pillows and uncreased bedding. Or the cellophane off the lamp...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Yes, it's very dark.<br />
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<br />
Certainly manly...<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8JQQvFWTtNc/VxPr_pRlRuI/AAAAAAAAGsQ/gFoNHZPAHUg1K424Q7RuSB3qZaDjN6IxQCKgB/s1600/DSC01387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8JQQvFWTtNc/VxPr_pRlRuI/AAAAAAAAGsQ/gFoNHZPAHUg1K424Q7RuSB3qZaDjN6IxQCKgB/s640/DSC01387.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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but perhaps slightly funereal?<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mEkuUI3Rj3I/VxPsCp1GoDI/AAAAAAAAGsg/Z-9wRSeaWRIoAA7BJ7t2ZBNDYILxyao1QCKgB/s1600/DSC01388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mEkuUI3Rj3I/VxPsCp1GoDI/AAAAAAAAGsg/Z-9wRSeaWRIoAA7BJ7t2ZBNDYILxyao1QCKgB/s640/DSC01388.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Since ''finishing'' this headboard, I've had a NIGHTMARE finding curtains and curtain poles for this room and I've finally found some that are going to work.<br />
<br />
But this headboard is now going to be repainted to match the curtains rather than the valance. And I will be much happier I think.<br />
<br />
Jason couldn't care less. He's been so appalled and astonished by the anguish it has caused me choosing curtains and hanging devices, and the amount of time I've had to spend in curtain shops, (I'm not bloody making 90'' by 90''!) that he has thrown his hands up in despair over his entire bedroom and no longer wants to be consulted or informed.<br />
<br />
Even if it involves Chinoiserie.<br />
<br />
<br />
In other news, the armoire has now left the building and I didn't even get round to showing you that yet. Next time...<br />
<br />
<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-62148959026883155382016-03-23T10:35:00.000+00:002016-03-23T22:29:16.734+00:00Next project - The Master Bedroom...There's been a lot going on around here. Don't mistake my silence for inactivity. Far from it. I've been so busy, it's been hard to stop and put finger to keyboard.<br />
<br />
I set myself a deadline of the end of January to finish working on the <a href="http://paintedstyle.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/a-possibly-doomed-french-love-affair.html" target="_blank">ARMOIRE</a>. (Post to follow...)<br />
I missed that by two weeks but I have a good excuse.<br />
I rediscovered the joy of tapestry! I found this...<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ooKNHcInqWc/VvJstOXOJMI/AAAAAAAAGqA/-s5CuBx_ml05oQWuBucV9C95yhCYlmEJg/s1600/DSC01235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ooKNHcInqWc/VvJstOXOJMI/AAAAAAAAGqA/-s5CuBx_ml05oQWuBucV9C95yhCYlmEJg/s400/DSC01235.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
...lurking in my sewing stash and thought it should be completed to add to the tapestry stash. You know it makes sense. If I'm going to be Britains leading <a href="http://paintedstyle.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/recycled-tapestry-bags-galore-and.html" target="_blank">patchwork tapestry bag-making-upholsterer-</a>extraordinaire when I grow up, it has to be done.<br />
<br />
I swear I lost two weeks and may have a slight hunch now but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. And of course it's not finished because I'm on the <u>background</u> now and that is very boring indeed.<br />
<br />
But what was the armoire deadline all about? It was the only thing standing between me and starting the WALK IN WARDROBE in the master bedroom. I was itching to get cracking.<br />
<br />
But what did I do instead? I built a bed. From scratch. I'm not sure if it was procrastination or fear of starting a bigger job but it seemed sensible. I bought a fancy (and scary) new saw so I figured I'd cut my teeth (no pun intended) on that, building furniture that would be masterfully hidden by upholstery.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Be still my beating heart...</td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
Jason was going away for a few days so I thought it would give me ample time to get it completed as a surprise when he actually thought I was building a walk in wardrobe.<br />
No, I didn't think that through.<br />
Who would rather choose a bed over a walk in wardrobe?<br />
Nobody, that's who.<br />
<br />
And why, I hear you cry, if it's not still the seventies, would anyone dream of building a bed from scratch?<br />
<br />
Well, I'll tell you. I recently replaced my silly little French bed with a proper English brass bed, and went from zero storage to 576 litres. It's a lot like having an extension! I can store so many boxes of fabric and wallpaper and tapestry and books and you name it. It's under there.<br />
<br />
Life changing.<br />
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<br />
Plus it's so high, you just need to swing your legs out on a morning and you're almost standing up. It's a beautiful thing.<br />
<br />
So in the master bedroom, (He snores. LOUDLY.) Jason had a king size divan bed from our last place that was too large for the room. It was low and had those crappy drawers that fall apart when you over fill them. And of course I over filled them. Plus the mattress was kind of sunken. That bed had had it's day.<br />
<br />
We wanted a very particular bed-<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>High. Most shop bought beds are lower than we liked. High equals more storage.</li>
<li>No headboard. Most wooden beds have them incorporated. I want to do my own thing.</li>
<li>Seriously sturdy. Most modern wooden beds look like sticks of firewood to me. I wanted something you could jump on without fear of it snapping. You just never know when you might need to jump on a bed. </li>
<li>No footboard. </li>
</ul>
<br />
I couldn't find what I wanted.<br />
My Dad always built beds at home. He built us bunk beds, then a double with built in bedside tables, then a kingsize.<br />
<br />
So I decided to have a go. Here's the design...<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VZdNQ7c-6OA/VvJbCKLnc2I/AAAAAAAAGog/b5czzDbzBF8Sgf2iYkfhwV9TIlpQZQKEQ/s1600/DSC01231.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VZdNQ7c-6OA/VvJbCKLnc2I/AAAAAAAAGog/b5czzDbzBF8Sgf2iYkfhwV9TIlpQZQKEQ/s400/DSC01231.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Technical drawing might not be my thing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
{Technical details - I needed chunky wood for the outside frame, stud timber for the two central supports, floorboards for the slats, timber for the battens at each end for the slats to rest on, and chunky wood for the legs. I used joist hangers to hold the cross braces in place and coach bolts to hold the frame to the legs. Cost = £110 which would have come in much lower if Jason hadn't refused to drive with wood sticking out of the boot. I had to get more short pieces with more wastage.}<br />
<br />
My lovely friend Jane came over to supervise my first cuts of the saw. I went from terrified to madly in love in the time it took me to do a few cuts. That saw is spot on. <br />
<br />
It all went swimmingly until one corner just wouldn't square up. I realised that the wood was a bit warped and it wasn't my shoddy carpentry. Anyway, as I said, this bed is not designed to be a thing of beauty. I was planning to make a fitted valance to hide the whole thing.<br />
<br />
This was my aim...<br />
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<br />
Costing squillions from the White Company, it was my inspiration. I wasn't planning on upholstering it quite like this but this was the look I was after. Except not that headboard.<br />
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Want to see mine?<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-srZqGdbF3Zw/VvJdRaaUIoI/AAAAAAAAGo0/kfEJ4QgHurU5TLKqLiWCygrMnpq7YbLPw/s1600/DSC01163.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-srZqGdbF3Zw/VvJdRaaUIoI/AAAAAAAAGo0/kfEJ4QgHurU5TLKqLiWCygrMnpq7YbLPw/s640/DSC01163.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
I've only one floorboard slat in place at this point. The rest were screwed on with gaps between as mattresses need circulation. I took photos but they vanished.<br />
<br />
I told you it wasn't a thing of beauty. It was also a little lower than I was expecting. Which, when it's made to measure is ridiculous. But measuring is my weakness.<br />
<br />
Another disaster; there was a slight cock up with the mattress I ordered as I got the date wrong by a week. So poor Jason returned late from Europe to find he was sleeping on the old mattress on the floor which wasn't quite the exciting surprise I'd planned. Oops.<br />
<br />
So the next job was the valance. This was a freaking NIGHTMARE. It took longer to make than the bed. I ripped seams out time and time again.<br />
<br />
Lessons learned - Never, ever under any circumstances work with velvet again. Right sides together, the pile makes it move. I had to hand tack all the joins and it still moved.<br />
<br />
It does look luxurious though. I got it at our local market, it's very thick and actually fire retardant so I can do a headboard with it if my other plan fails. I bought enough fabric just in case.<br />
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So here's a close up of the valance...<br />
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<br />
Forgive the floor. This room needs EVERYTHING doing to it.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ydKj1O5DscM/VvJgut453HI/AAAAAAAAGpE/QzOuYTanRFgMh2rUChkCyMrYneGDHVHgw/s1600/DSC01199.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ydKj1O5DscM/VvJgut453HI/AAAAAAAAGpE/QzOuYTanRFgMh2rUChkCyMrYneGDHVHgw/s640/DSC01199.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
It's not perfect but it serves its purpose.<br />
<br />
And the bed?<br />
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<br />
Underneath, it's suitcase city!<br />
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<br />
The storage is deep enough luckily but we could have increased that space by using a less deep frame. Doh.<br />
<br />
So next on the agenda is the headboard. I'm stalling because there's a lot of horrid measuring and spirit levelling.<br />
<br />
I'm using this door...<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dtTxZRrj_Dw/VvJ0QziQvZI/AAAAAAAAGqQ/MnJntaxmcRw7xWN53qIRdDeIH9upajELw/s1600/P1010187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dtTxZRrj_Dw/VvJ0QziQvZI/AAAAAAAAGqQ/MnJntaxmcRw7xWN53qIRdDeIH9upajELw/s640/P1010187.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I first told you about <a href="http://paintedstyle.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/door-dramas.html" target="_blank">HERE.</a><br />
I've already cut the door down as it was one panel too long.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-M8NSaUFRGJM/VvJlyvO8JtI/AAAAAAAAGpo/zMxQbqnbHCcg3GTieWzdWUYl9ijS9revA/s1600/DSC01232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-M8NSaUFRGJM/VvJlyvO8JtI/AAAAAAAAGpo/zMxQbqnbHCcg3GTieWzdWUYl9ijS9revA/s640/DSC01232.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<br />
And I stripped it because the paint was peeling off.<br />
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<br />
Huge improvement. Not! Watch this space to see if my plan works and I can turn it from a sows ear to a silk purse!<br />
<br />
By the way, UK residents, you might have heard of an American show called Fixer Upper with Joanna and Chip Gaines? I found it on ITV BE so you can catch up on there and DROOL along with me!<br />
<br />
Right. Headboard. Wish me luck...Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-70260114561497979102016-03-10T15:40:00.000+00:002016-03-10T18:29:00.467+00:00Great Interior Design Challenge Series 3...Hopefully better late than never, here is my look back at Season Three of The Great Interior Design Challenge. The telly highlight of the year.<br />
<br />
I got told off last year for revealing the winner when people hadn't watched it all yet, so this time I'm giving NOTHING away.<br />
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<br />
My daughter and I were glued to our TV for another year of harsh judgements, frightening wallpaper choices and shoddy paintwork. But who am I to criticise? It takes me 6 months to paint a wardrobe. I think that what the contestants achieve in three days is incredible. In three days I have just made a box valance for a bed. Three full days too.<br />
<br />
Which is why I am not on this show. <br />
<br />
From Peckham in London to castles in Scotland, Tom Dyckoff was <u>constantly,</u> ''Constantly taken aback by the huge variety of property styles in Britain.''<br />
<br />
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As I said last year, our own judging begins when we meet the contestants. I love the brief peep into their own homes. My favourite designers were the delightful Frankie who lives in chinoiserie splendour. Rob with his interesting facial hair and tweed jacket, Sarah; totally best friend material, Lucy-lovely-legs, Jamie, who I want to adopt, Anne with her exquisite Tyneside home and Craig who I want to move in with. His home was more ''me'' than my own home. Loved it. Some wonderful personalities.<br />
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Connie and I were enjoying the series so much that my husband even started watching. He became quite the expert. The Peak District episode led to the question, ''What was the brief? A bohemian drug den or a psychopaths kill room?''<br />
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I almost had to kick him out for daring to diss Daniel Hopwood. No. Not in my living room. Leave chiseled jawed Daniel alone or leave.<br />
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I think the designers did a remarkable job this series. The time constraints, some VERY awkward clients and the fact that the judges seemed to want revolutionary ideas over meeting the brief and creating coherent rooms, didn't help. Haven't they been on Pinterest? There's nothing that hasn't been done before.<br />
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We howled with rage as our favourites left the show. I was bowled over by Lucys stunning Scandinavian bedroom. Truly breathtaking. And we fretted for the finalists as they were judged by the fierce Kelly Hoppen.<br />
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I was happy with the winner. Were you?<br />
You can catch up on BBC i player if you're quick.<br />
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Painted wardrobe post coming soon.<br />
I promise.<br />
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Alicia Piper, your wallpaper is <a href="http://www.designerwallpapers.co.uk/cole-and-son/fornasetti-panels/nuvole.html?gclid=COXq-brvpssCFcFAGwodyKQFpw#black-white-wallpaper-tint-7" target="_blank">HERE</a>Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-4660920059913418062016-01-06T13:52:00.000+00:002016-01-06T13:53:09.566+00:00December... a little late!Hello old friends and Happy New Year to you. I'm sorry I fell off the face of the earth again. I've had lots of difficult family stuff going on which is draining and I've been not just a bad blogger, but a bad blogging buddy, having failed to keep up with other peoples blogs.<br />
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Poor <a href="http://hooklineandsinkher2.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">KATIE</a> has had to cope all on her own with the terrible news that her true love, Joe Manganiello has gorn orf and married another woman. And I wasn't there to give a sympathetic virtual shoulder to cry on. Bad friend. Forgive me Katie. The man's a fool. What on earth does he see in her eh?<br />
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December is always a busy time. It's a scientific fact that time speeds up in December. I've had a MASSIVE clear out and sold lots of things on eBay which has been very time consuming.<br />
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I took a few pictures of the decorations but they're pretty much the same every year...<br />
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The mantel clock is 'new' to me.<br />
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Ooh look, there's my new sofa, I'm almost showing you!<br />
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A bit of an improvement on the old...<br />
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Anyway, more vintage decs...<br />
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Bauble placement is NOT my own. I'm getting good at letting Connie do it without getting all OCD and frightening her about breakages! I was actually glad of the help as Christmas decorating is a huge task.<br />
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This is my favourite part...<br />
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...opening the boxes to see the treasures I've collected! It's more thrilling than diving into a new box of chocolates!<br />
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I found another vintage German Christmas pyramid, this one smaller than the one I had a few years ago, so I passed that one on and kept the small one... <br />
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I also found a shade for the lamp above. I only use one of the pair because using two looks like a sacrificial alter, and I was thrilled to find this shade. I mean, it's not beautiful but I like the unusual shape so will probably recover it at some point. At the moment it has a papery shade which I think is fibre glass.<br />
Jason says it looks like it's made from human skin and belongs on the set of Silence of the lambs.<br />
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So to freak him out, I drew a nipple on it.<br />
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Other naughtinesses have taken place...<br />
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Bad Bobby is a non believer.<br />
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And both he and Fat Freddy found their way onto Santas naughty list.<br />
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Christmas was quiet. And sad as my lovely Auntie passed away on Christmas eve.<br />
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New Years was more fun with some friends at a Turkish restaurant.<br />
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Now, I'm struggling to get used to the brutal alarm clock after a lazy school holiday. And struggling to get back into work mode. First job is THAT wardrobe which remains in the kitchen. As my husband likes to remind me on a daily basis.<br />
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I would make a New Years resolution to blog more, but I'd only break it...<br />
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Happy New Year to you dear readers! I hope 2016 is kind to you. Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-4608220972192410092015-11-17T12:31:00.000+00:002015-11-17T12:31:51.975+00:00Kirsties Handmade Fair...This post is rather later than I expected. Sorry. <br /><br />
Kirsties Handmade Fair...<br />
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We had a lovely day out. The sun shone and Hampton Court Palace is a wonderful place to visit.<br />
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The fair was just across the street from the palace.<br />
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So many treasures... <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Ragged Life</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Doily bunting. You know it makes sense.<br />
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Stunning fabrics by the metre... </div>
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Blankets begging to be touched.</div>
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I wasn't interested in paying retail prices for fabrics, but if you are, I must say I saw some truly exquisite textiles.<br />
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I like to look at other peoples ideas...<br />
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And spot celebs...<br />
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Terrible picture! We were on our knees peeping under a tent flap at the big top. There were plenty of craft demonstrations to choose from.<br />
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The most delicious food area. Something for everyone...<br />
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Even some vintage entertainment...<br />
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And a bit of pom pom making finished the day nicely...<br />
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I took my recycled tapestry bag... <br />
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and two people told me they liked it so I was very chuffed. It was even better than being mobbed by women wanting to stroke it. <br />
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There's a <a href="http://www.thehandmadechristmasfair.com/" target="_blank">HANDMADE CHRISTMAS FAIR </a>in Manchester from Fri 20th til Sun 22nd Nov (this weekend!) if you fancy a day out. You'll probably find some lovely Christmas pressies there.<br />
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I also attended the FESTIWOOL this weekend which I loved. It was only £3 to get in and had THE. MOST. AMAZING crochet and knitting I've ever seen. I felt like a dunce as I wandered round as I can do neither.<br />
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I forgot my camera but I'll show you what came home with me...<br />
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A wool necklace from <a href="http://www.woolstories.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wool Stories</a>. I had to get one and I'm not normally a 'had to get one' kinda gal. (Unless we're talking secondhand furniture.)<br />
I've never seen anything like it. Mine was the most muted. She makes them in really striking colour combinations. <br />
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We saw a fashion show with the octogenarian super model Daphne Selfe taking part...<br />
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I'll definitely be going back next year.<br />
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Last of all, our Hallowe'en Haunted House was a great success. We had a steady stream of punters and even queues at the door a couple of times. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It couldn't have gone any better. I'm still finding eyeballs around the house.<br />
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The next challenge will be how to create a different scenario next year using all the same props!<br />
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Reading your comments though, I must say I find it more shocking when people say that NOTHING spooky has ever happened to them than when they have a tale to tell! I thought everyone had SOMETHING!<br />
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Right, I must away. I'm not going to even say, 'Back soon,' as I'm terrible at finding time to sit down and write at the moment. So many blogs to catch up with too. So I'll just wish you all well until next time. Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-44393682362162068492015-10-30T18:01:00.000+00:002015-11-02T14:32:46.311+00:00Hallowe'en Ghost Story...We may have gone overboard this year.<br />
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We're not having a party, more of a Haunted House experience for our Trick or Treaters. We don't normally get any as we're on the edge of town so I have leafleted the area to lure people over here. Connie and her friends will have lines to say. Should be fun... if anyone comes. If they don't, we have a lot of sweets to eat. It's a win/win situation. <br />
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Shall I tell you my ghost story? It happened four or five years ago I think. It was between Hallowe'en and Christmas.<br />
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One evening my husband was out. My daughter was upstairs sleeping. I was in the living room with the cats. The telly was on.<br />
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Suddenly both cats jerked their heads up to look at something in the hall outside. There was nothing there. The cats were frozen as whatever they saw really caught their attention. And held it. They stared, transfixed for over a minute, then finally relaxed and looked away again, settling down. A minute can be a long time.<br />
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The point they were staring at was at the height where an adults head might be if they were coming down the stairs. But no one was coming down the stairs. I was a bit puzzled by their behaviour so I went out into the hallway. Just to check if there was anything there that I couldn't see from the sofa.<br />
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What I found in the hallway was an overpowering smell of mens aftershave. No mistaking the smell. It was intense. I went upstairs to check on my daughter and she was sleeping soundly. I wasn't frightened. I just thought it was really odd.<br />
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I spent two years with a man from Kosovo who thought it was a good idea to wear two aftershaves at once.<br />
You know, mix it up a little.<br />
Create a little blend.<br />
Yes, I did. Two whole years.<br />
I am an incredibly tolerant human being.<br />
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When I smelled this overpowering fragrance I actually wondered if he had died and come to say goodbye. You know, apologise for being a total dick. Something along those lines.<br />
(Our love did not end well.)<br />
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He hadn't died according to his facebook account a few days later. It wasn't him.<br />
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I have my suspicions about people who used to live here. I've heard stories from several sources. I wonder if it was one of them.<br />
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It's never reoccurred. I have occasionally felt afraid when going to bed but I tend to be rational and practical for the most part.<br />
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I had an odd thing happen in my last house too. Every night I'd shut my door, get into bed and turn out the light and the door would open, just a little. The door mechanism was one of those little roller ball catches, you only had to push the door open or closed, not turn a handle. But still, it was odd. Was it an ill fitting door frame do you think? Or some spirit who liked the door left open? Who knows? Again, that was never frightening either. Just puzzling.<br />
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I'm definitely a believer in the supernatural. I've had many experiences. Known things I've had no rational way of knowing but known them nonetheless. Like I know that blue is blue. An absolute certainty. <br />
I have a friend who has felt the same thing. Once, we might have been burned at the stake as witches. Nowadays, we'd be medicated. Times change but understanding hasn't moved on a great deal.<br />
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I'd love you to share your spooky stories in the comments below. <br />
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I must away, there are pumpkins to be carved and fairy lights to unravel. I wish you all a fun filled Hallowe'en with more treats than tricks. <br />
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Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-78823471420583810132015-10-08T09:19:00.000+01:002015-10-08T16:15:13.453+01:00Down at the bottom of the garden...I've been taking advantage of the mild dry weather to work on the shed. Like a woman posessed.<br />
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Are any of you familiar with the childrens book, ''If you give a mouse a cookie,'' by Laura Joffe Numeroff?<br />
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It goes, ''<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">If
you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass of milk. When
you give him the milk, he'll probably ask you for a straw. When he's
finished, he'll ask you for a napkin. Then he'll want to look in a
mirror to make sure he doesn't have a milk mustache. When he looks in
the mirror, he might notice his hair needs a trim.'' etc</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Well, that was the story of my shed. My shed WAS that mouse. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">The parts where the rain were coming in were growing in number so I decided to re roof it. I did my internet research and trotted off to Wickes for all my supplies. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">I had one day to get it watertight before rain was due. Nothing focuses the mind like a deadline. </span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">I had to strip off the old felt before I began and the minute I got up the ladder to begin, I could see why it was leaking. What little roofing felt that was up there was very patchy. </span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Inspect your shed roofs occasionally people! </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">The roof guy in the film I watched...</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">... mentions nothing of the woodlice, spiders and spiders nests you will find when stripping a roof! Eew.</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">My biggest fear was finding the roof boards completely rotten and having to replace them. Fixing an entire new roof on is probably beyond my capability. Luckily it was sound apart from one spongey corner. The best tool I found for the job was an upholstery tool called a tack lifter...</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text"> It totally sped the process up.</span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">So here I am, well stuck in. My roof is a single slope. I did 2 layers, going in opposite directions. The first from one side to another, the second from the bottom up. Like tiles so the water will run off. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">You seal the edges with the bitumin adhesive and use clout nails to hold it down. It's like wallpapering except you need to overlap the edges. As I was doing it solo I opted for the heavy weight roofing felt so I'd be able to weild the sheets onto the roof without them ripping. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">The bloke in the roofing video also forgot to mention the need for gloves and long sleeves. I got bitumin under my lovely new nails and had to soak them in white spirit to get it out. Also I skinned my knuckles until they bled and got a rash up the underside of my arms. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Once my two layers were on, I had to cut and fix down the edges. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">A typically wonky picture. I was seriously flagging at this point having been at it for 9 hours. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">The rain came the next day and there wasn't a drop of water in the strategically placed buckets inside. Result! </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Next I had to put back the fascia and bargeboards. Seeing as one snapped in the stripping process and they were a bit yucky I decided to get new ones. Finding the timber was a nightmare. In the end I used feather edge boards from a timber merchant to get the length I needed. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">So I thought, instead of just putting back straight ones, why not make them pretty? </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">I made lots of measurements and divisions and drew round a glass to get a scalloped edge. I should have used a pencil and not lazily grabbed my daughters gel ink pen. The gel ink bled through my paint and I had to use a stain stopping primer over it. Lesson learned.</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">The cutting proved to be not so easy. I could manage one side of each scallop,</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text"> but not the other so I flipped it over and re drew the line on the back of the board...</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">and Bob's your uncle...</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Wehey! Obviously, it needed painting now. But I couldn't paint it until I'd fixed the missing putty in the windows! See how it's becoming a massive job? </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">So back to youtube I went, watching hours of puttying videos until I felt I was a fully trained master glazier. </span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">And boy, was I wrong about that! In the end I gave up on the putty knife and opted for a chisel, perhaps because the rebate was so tiny as these are shed windows, not house windows.</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">So where am I now? </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">I painted the trim and window frames (apart from the new putty which has to cure) a white colour and the rest of the shed Willow Green for a change from Country Cream. I like the contrast with the trim. It's never going to be a beautiful shed but it's a bit prettier now. And having watertight garden storage is novel. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">I spent a day emptying and hoovering the inside and reorganising the space. </span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">All because it needed a new roof. </span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">So, beware of what you start!</span><br />
<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Now those red gingham curtains are not working with the green... {sigh.}</span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text">Back soon with a post on The Handmade Fair. </span><br />
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<span class="ya-q-full-text" id="yui_3_17_2_3_1444292622633_1328" itemprop="text"><br /></span>Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-92016565340546391782015-09-15T12:33:00.000+01:002015-09-16T13:52:25.875+01:00Recycled Tapestry Bags Galore... and a tutorial. Of sorts.Alrighty. I have completed not just one tapestry bags but TWO!<br />
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And here, for your viewing pleasure, is a glimpse of the journey I undertook. This might not be 'the' way to make a bag, but it's my way.<br />
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1. Play about with your tapestries until you have a layout that pleases the eye. This may take several days.<br />
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Ignore any funny looks you may get from your family during this procedure.<br />
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I personally like having the plain background pieces next to the busy background pieces.<br />
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2. Press them flat under a damp tea towel, fuse some fusible interfacing on the back (I think this might add strength to the flimsier bits and also hold it together better when you start cutting.)<br />
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3. It's unlikely that your pieces will be square. Square them up with a try square from your toolbox.<br />
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4. Do not use marker pen to do this as you'll get marker pen on the ironing board. Oops. <br />
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5. Zig zag those raw edges. Twice. Because you don't want the whole thing to unravel.<br />
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6. For the next piece, repeat the steps above and make it the same height as the first then pin them, right sides together...<br />
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This is really just a gratuitous shot of my fingernails as I've been growing them and for the first time in 27 years I have hands like a laydee!<br />
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7. That makes it sound like I'm 27 years old. I'm slightly older than that. Stitch together with a generous 2cm seam allowance and press seam open...<br />
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Yes it does look wonky.<br />
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Better from the front thankfully.<br />
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8. Carry on with your next row pressing the seams open. If you offset the joins it will stop the back getting bulky and will run through your machine better when you join your rows.<br />
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9. Join your rows. Press seams open.<br />
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10. Check for squareness again. Mine needed re squaring for some reason. If you chop bits off, zig zag your edges again. You can add a strip of the bag backing on to the top if you need to, to give you a decent fold over so you're not losing too much of the design.<br />
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11. Ignore the voices in your head, nagging you about the ironing pile that needs doing. Don't stop. If you stop you'll NEVER pick it up again. This is a scientifically proven fact. Stop taking photos of your work to save time. Who needs to see a photo of a seam pressed open anyway?<br />
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12. Cut a back piece the same size as the front. Zig zag edges, place right sides together and stitch 3 sides together leaving the top open. Clip corners and zig zag over them. You can also add a gusset at this point if you have nothing better to do or like a roomy bag.<br />
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13. Turn inside out and fold in top hem. Stitch this down.<br />
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14. Add your handles.<br />
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Ta DAA!<br />
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And the other one? I took off the handle to use on the bag above and found a leather belt in a charity shop to use as a handle. My local independent and quite attractive cobbler riveted it on for me and I left the ends of the belt on for added quirkiness. That jangly buckle is going to drive me insane though...<br />
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Do come back in a year or so when I'll be finally attempting to LINE the bags. I have now earned a much needed break from sewing and I have to tackle the ironing.<br />
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I shall be taking my bag to Kirsties Handmade Fair this weekend where I will no doubt be mobbed by women wanting to stroke it. It's very tactile.<br />
Kirstie will want to commission one and I will tell her I did all the tapestries myself and charge her hundreds of pounds. In spite of this we'll become best friends. We'll go to Magaluf together where we'll get up to all kinds of mischief.<br />
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So I'll let you know how I get on with that. <br />
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Linking with...<br />
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/www.savvysouthernstyle.net" target="_blank"><img alt="Savvy Southern Style" src="http://i1212.photobucket.com/albums/cc454/pianoprincessdesigns/buttonone_zps78e61b85.png~original" height="200" width="200" /></a>
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-74881261952303368912015-09-11T19:49:00.000+01:002015-09-12T08:53:08.811+01:00Obsessive? Moi?I seem to have a new collection. It's a great thing to acquire. It's storable and cheap. Dirt cheap. My tapestry love might have turned into an obsession.<br />
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Slightly.<br />
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I've still not finished my first bag. But what I like to do when I'm part way through a project is down tools and start another one.<br />
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Some of these I already had. The bird above came from a stool I wrote about on here.<br />
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Some of these I actually stitched when I was going through my cupid phase MANY years ago.<br />
Oh come on! We all went through a cupid phase didn't we?<br />
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Birds and roses... <br />
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Cottages and gardens... <br />
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Ships and castles...<br />
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Even York Minster. And why not?<br />
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It's like all of English history is here! <br />
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The most I've paid for these is £2. I've removed them from dusty old frames and they're ready to be transformed into bags. I like to place them together to see what goes with what as I design my next bag. My husband gives me strange looks. <br />
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Look what happens the minute my back is turned...<br />
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Bad Bobby has no respect for precious textiles. <br />
<br />
When I wrote the post before last, I couldn't recall what it was that set me off on an exhilarating google journey into recycled tapestry.<br />
I have now remembered.<br />
I saw this cushion cover in a charity shop, liked it but didn't need a cushion cover and thought it would make a nice bag.<br />
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<br />
A seed was sown. (Or should that be sewn? )<br />
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Here is my very much still unfinished bag. In case the suspense has been killing you...<br />
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It will ultimately have two handles...<br />
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The handles are leather and pre drilled for ease of sewing them on. I got them <a href="http://www.bag-clasps.co.uk/leather-bag-handles-c102x2597306" target="_blank">HERE.</a><br />
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They were £13.95 with free postage which isn't bad at all for leather. You could alternatively use an old leather belt and have your local cobbler rivet it on for you. I think I'll do that next time.<br />
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The cows are worked in petit point which is laborious to do. (Not by me.)<br />
<br />
I thought that stitching the handles on with a contrasting embroidery thread and doing a running stitch round the edges in the same thread would funk it up a little.<br />
<br />
I think that was a fail. <br />
<br />
But, here's the thing. Next weekend I'm going <a href="http://www.thehandmadefair.com/" target="_blank">HERE.</a>...<br />
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So I'm going to need to finish my bag, (or another one) to take with me!<br />
I've got a week.<br />
I'm highly productive under pressure.<br />
So watch this space.<br />
<br />
If you're going to Kirsties Handmade Fair next weekend and spot me, come and say hello. I'll be the lady with the recycled tapestry bag.<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-22185636057398906862015-08-20T11:40:00.001+01:002015-08-20T11:47:48.381+01:00A possibly doomed French love affair...My name is Emma Kate and I'm a furnitureholic. The other week I decided,<br />
<br />
No. More. Furniture.<br />
<br />
I thought it might be nice to be able to walk around the kitchen, pass through doorways without having to turn sideways and use our dining room for actual dining. Our lives would run smoothly in our new uncluttered surroundings. We could invite people in to our home without any of the embarrassment that a wardrobe in the kitchen can bring.<br />
Yes. This was to be our future.<br />
<br />
The problem was, the very next day I went to the flea market. As I do every week. Just to look, you understand.<br />
<br />
And I saw this. This stunning French-esqe wardrobe. I've never ever seen one like this in the flesh before.<br />
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<br />
(Just imagine the top and bottom are the same width. I'm no photoshop genius.)<br />
<br />
Okay, someone had had a bash at painting it, really, really badly. It had a few lumps taken out of it. But nothing that couldn't be sorted. I couldn't believe it hadn't sold already.<br />
<br />
I asked the price. ''Forty quid.'' What!??? That's insanely cheap I thought.<br />
<br />
So I frowned and said, ''Would you do it for £35?''<br />
It was probably immoral of me. He agreed. ''I suppose you want me to drop it off for you?''<br />
<br />
''Oh yes please.''<br />
THIRTY FIVE QUID! How could I leave it there? <br />
<br />
So I wandered round the flea market, had a little mooch about but kept returning to stroke my wardrobe. Why did no one else buy it? Did the crappy paint job put people off? I was flummoxed. It was only painted on two sides as it had obviously been up against a wall and the owner wasn't able to move it.<br />
<br />
I felt slightly sick as I wondered how to break the news to my husband. I phoned him up when I got to work.<br />
<br />
''I accidentally bought something.''<br />
<br />
''Oh God. It's not another bloody wardrobe is it?''<br />
<br />
He knows me so well. I quickly pointed out that this was a wardrobe unlike any other. If I fixed it up and sold it, I would make a healthy profit. I reminded him that he's always banging on about me not making money. This wardrobe, no, not even a wardrobe, an ARMOIRE, was in fact key to our future happiness.<br />
<br />
The wardrobe turned up just as I got in from work and was stashed in the dining room. No problem.<br />
I went off to York for a week and the husband seemed happy. When I got back I started feeling overwhelmed at the amount of things I have to do and wanted to start on the wardrobe. To do this it had to go in the kitchen.<br />
I can't strip things on the nice oak floor of the dining room.<br />
<br />
Well, Jason was really angry. He bitched and bitched and shouted at me. Of course I couldn't listen to him or even PRETEND to be sorry as the thing was THIRTY FIVE QUID and it was a done deal. There's no point crying over spilt milk is there?<br />
<br />
Look at the mirror!<br />
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Foxed to perfection. <br />
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The beautifully carved panels!<br />
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The wooden mouldings! Yes they are actual wood.<br />
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The handles...<br />
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<br />
It's a beast of a thing and it's not easy to walk around it. But it was THIRTY FIVE QUID!<br />
<br />
It's taken me three whole days to strip the main body of it and the cornice. I haven't started on the base.<br />
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Here's an interesting thing. I thought it was French but inside I found a little brass label saying ''S & H Jewell'' and it was made in Holborn in London. So it's not French at all. Come to think of it, if it were French, the base would have little legs, no drawer and the top would be more elaborate. This is a Franglais armoire with the typically English large drawer in the base and a squared off cornice. The best of both worlds I think.<br />
Anyway, these guys were in business from 1830 to 1840 so this is OLD! If it were in fab condition it would be valuable.<br />
But if it were in fab condition I wouldn't have got it for £35 at the flea market.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ze tyically French modele...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
So, I was merrily stripping away and I started to think. I'll never find another. I'll certainly never find another for £35. So perhaps I should keep it. Trouble is, it doesn't really fit anywhere.<br />
<br />
Perhaps it would go in the dining room instead of the dresser? I could shelve the inside and have TONS of storage. But would it look daft or too grand? And would I have to swap out ALL the furniture in the room to make it work?<br />
<br />
So on to the upstairs. Too wide for the hallway.<br />
My bedroom? It's incredibly deep. I'd have to squeeze in between the bed and the armoire to reach the window. But do I need a double bed? Do I need a bed? I could just lay an old blanket on the floor in a corner and gaze at my armoire as I drift off to sleep. Like some aristocrat who has become hooked on crystal meth and lives in grand squalor. It's a romantic notion. I'm sure you can see the allure. <br />
<br />
How about it lives in the shed in case we ever build an extension? I could hang a chandelier in there and win 'Shed of the Year.'<br />
<br />
Or I incorporate it into the dressing room/built-ins I'm yet to build? Build around it. The husband is appalled. He doesn't want a mish-mash of styles. Such a spoilsport.<br />
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So what do I do dear reader? Ditch the husband and run off into the sunset with my armoire? Buy a bigger house? <br />
<br />
Gah. I just don't know.<br />
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But what became of the passionate love I was feeling last time I blogged? Turning tapestry into bags? Well, I'm pleased to tell you that I'm not all mouth and no action! I started planning a bag and took all my bits up to York with me. There's a great sewing machine at my dads and I figured that if I sewed in the evenings it would save me from watching Ice Road Truckers or shows about Building Oil Rigs.<br />
<br />
Best plan ever.<br />
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Here's a sneaky peak at my bag so far...<br />
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<br />
I still have to finish and line it before I show it to you properly. I'll save that for another time.<br />
Er, along with the sofa. <br />
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Finally, the eagle eyed among you might have spotted that I've been nominated for the Amara Interior Blog Awards. Thank you to those who nominated me. I'm truly flattered.<br />
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This year however, I won't be begging for your votes. I've realised these things are designed to bring bloggers to the attention of sponsors and that is an avenue I've decided not to go down. I'm bored of American blogs taking forever to load because they're so clogged up with ads. I'm fed up of commercials blaring out at me whilst I try and read. And I've seen many a good blog go down the pan with sponsored posts. If I wanted to hear about steam cleaners and homewares I'd watch the shopping channel. It's tedious.<br />
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Also I'm all about second hand shopping, saving the environment and upcycling. Why would I want to share with you the new range of sofas from a high street store? It's not me. I have no hidden agenda. I'm not prepared to sell out for a £20 sponsored post payment.<br />
<br />
No. I'm here to bleat on about things I like. Cheap things. Old things. Painting things. Making things. Improving things.<br />
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You seem to ''get it'' more than my friends and family and for that I'm very grateful. I love sharing with you. Thank you for reading. x<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com40tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-21480640620128967042015-08-04T10:50:00.000+01:002015-08-04T12:02:21.919+01:00Recycled tapestry love...So, um, I was totally tidying the living room to show you the new sofa but I accidentally started with the inside of my filing cabinet. A whole day and two sackfuls of shredded paper later, the living room isn't any tidier. In fact it may be worse. But at least there is some semblance of order in a small part of it. When I get around to taking pictures of the living room you can rest assured that it'll be lovely inside and out. <br />
<br />
I have developed a new love which I'd like to share with you today instead of my sofa. Well, strictly speaking it's an old love but it's used in a new way here.<br />
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Tapestry. I love the texture, the warmth and the meaning it holds for me. My mother was a keen stitcher and I used to spend a lot of time at it too. We made pictures to frame and cushions galore. But those tapestry pictures have fallen out of favour and I just can't cope with too many cushions. I even have a pile of completed tapestries that I never made into anything. So what to do with them all? Hmmm...<br />
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Here are my beloved vintage tapestry handbags.<br />
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<br />
They're very pretty but won't hold much more than a lippy and some keys. I'm a big bag kinda gal.<br />
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As luck would have it I stumbled across these amazing bags on the web, all made from upcycled tapestry!<br />
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Cool or what? Anyone could do this...<br />
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<br />
The bag above makes me think of <a href="http://madeinamuddle.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Fiona.</a><br />
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I love that it's something grannyish used in a new and practical way. No point having a pile of tapestries in the loft right?<br />
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Oh my word, someone's been busy!<br />
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But what if you don't have a stack of them in your loft?<br />
I picked up two large framed tapestries for £2 each at the boot sale on Sunday. Er, just to add to the pile in case I run out. I'm sooo making one of these bags. There are some great bag sewing patterns to be found on ebay...<br />
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But why stop there?<br />
Have you ever seen a tapestry lampshade?<br />
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How sweet are they?<br />
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If you have a little more time on your hands, how about covering your sofa?<br />
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Embellishing a coat?<br />
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There are some very creative people out there. I love these ideas.<br />
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An entire coat made from vintage tapestries?<br />
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Stunning. I'd be smiling too.<br />
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Skirts?<br />
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What about this inside out deconstructed tapestry skirt?<br />
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Certainly different! I hope you've enjoyed this post and you've found something that inspires you. I know I'm not the only vintage textile junkie. I will no longer be passing up those old tapestry pictures and firescreens that no one wants at the boot sales any longer.<br />
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If only I could find my bag sewing pattern. It's somewhere in the living room. Better crack on with the tidying...<br />
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Most of the sources for these pictures can be found <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/paintedstyle/tapestry-love/" target="_blank">HERE</a>Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com34tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-4205359734858673122015-07-04T14:01:00.000+01:002015-07-07T18:48:06.660+01:00My Barbola mirrors...I've spent one and a half days re painting the hallway wall and hanging my Barbola mirrors. They're very pretty and would be perfect in a bedroom but sadly I don't have the wall space so my hallway is getting a bit of a girlie feel.<br />
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There's no point having lovely things and not using them. Mirrors are no good in a box. And I do like to see collections displayed.<br />
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None of my Barbolas have cost very much. Even the large one was under a tenner. I had to remove some stands from the backs as they are often designed to sit atop a dressing table. When you take them apart you can sometimes find dates inside.<br />
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Look at the original colours inside this one...<br />
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Much more vivid than they are now but the muted colours are what I love about them.<br />
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This one above is dated 1946 inside. I believe they can date from the twenties to the forties and they're English.<br />
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They're often cracked or damaged. That's good. It means they're original.<br />
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I'll show you the before picture of the hallway...<br />
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This is before we replaced the floor. The large monks chest is now in my bedroom and has been swapped for my funky table which used to live behind the sofa...<br />
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I liked the old mirrors but the big one is a bit grand. We are not grand. Our ceiling height doesn't allow for grandness. If we had high ceilings we would be as grand as grand can be. Oh yeah.<br />
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Obviously it's not like this in real life. The table is a dumping ground for keys and post. Under the table are a stack of boxes for ebay posting. School bags litter the floor. But this is how life could be if I really tidied up. Or had a porch. <br />
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Speaking of tidying, I haven't 'styled' the living room yet so no sofa pictures to share.<br />
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But as promised, here's the taxidermy our neighbours left out on the drive for anyone to take.<br />
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I'm not entirely sure where we'll put him. The lady said it had been in her family for 100 years and it had lived in her Grandads hallway. I don't know how she could part with him. <br />
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I'm working on a dining table for my friend so I'll pop back soonish with that. Stay cool in this heat! <br />
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Linking with <a href="http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/show-and-share-no269.html" target="_blank">Coastal Charm Show and Share</a><br />
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Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-32077774220052603452015-06-14T10:14:00.000+01:002015-06-14T10:14:56.900+01:00Turning a wardrobe into a pantry and secondhand scores...Thanks so much for your lovely comments on my last post. You really are lovely people and I really appreciate you all reading and commenting.<br />
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So... the wardrobe that isn't a wardrobe.<br />
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My friend wanted a pantry cupboard for her kitchen and fell in love with this one from M&S...<br />
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Nothing special from the outside, but on the inside?<br />
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Oh yeah. Imagine all the goodies you could fit into there. It's about £1800 though. Hmm, not so attractive now. The oak bits are oak but the 'painted finish' parts will be mdf.<br />
I love M&S furniture, I really do. But only if it's found on eBay for 90% less than it's original price. <br />
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So anyway, my friend thought she'd look for an old wardrobe to turn into a pantry cupboard. Which is where I stepped in. I happened to have had an old wardrobe living in the kitchen, awaiting a makeover, for what? Nine months? Too long.<br />
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Here it is with the door off and the inside painted white.<br />
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The first thing I had to do was to make sure I could build strong shelves inside. The inside was an irregular shape and a tight fit but once the first one was in...<br />
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I knew it would work.<br />
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Three shelves in.<br />
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Once the shelves were in I started on the door. I removed the heavy bevelled mirror and put a piece of mdf in its place, caulking all the joins. <br />
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I told my friend to get an F&B eggshell but she disobeyed me and got a Fired Earth eggshell.<br />
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Never again!<br />
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It was a lovely colour and a lovely paint to use but it's not what I would call an eggshell. It has a very chalky matt appearance and no resilience to marking whatsoever. Imagine matt emulsion and that's what it was like. It's going to need further protection like wax or varnish. Especially in a kitchen. <br />
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My photos aren't great because I couldn't get far enough away from it. Plus I have a wonky eye...<br />
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So here are my friends pictures...<br />
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Hopefully, what it lacks in M&S perfection and wine rackery, it makes up for with the fact that it's ALL solid oak (apart from one door panel and the shelves) and a has bit more character than modern furniture.<br />
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Beautifully accessorised with an overflowing bin. She's very happy with it and it looks much tidier than her open shelving unit. Job done.<br />
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But I know you're all only here for the secondhand eye candy. Brace yourselves people. This one will have you SALIVATING!<br />
I found this a while ago but it's been treated for woodworm and had to dry out before it was allowed in the house as it stank. <br />
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An old cotton reel chest from a haberdashers shop...<br />
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I'll treasure it. It was a fleamarket find. <br />
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And this very morning I picked up a pair of these Kashmiri/Kashmiri style papier mache, twisted wood, tole lacquer painted lamps for a fiver at the boot sale. I've been trying to find out about them without much luck...<br />
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When I was a nanny in London, the lady I worked for had a pair and she told me they were valuable. I suspect these are not desperately old...<br />
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But they are attractive and unusual...<br />
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If they're worth thousands DO let me know!<br />
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I have plenty more cool stuff to share with you. Including a piece of taxidermy which is over 100 years old that I found on the street.<br />
As you do. <br />
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But that will wait for another time...<br />
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I might also show you my new sofa but I'll have to tidy the room for that.<br />
So I might not.<br />
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I've also been working on the remaining kitchen cupboards.<br />
Yes I actually have!<br />
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So do come back next time... <br />
<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-48365852084213481542015-06-02T10:43:00.000+01:002015-06-02T10:44:42.390+01:00 Lost mojo...Wow, doesn't time fly. No excuses here, I just haven't felt like blogging so I haven't. Simple as that. I've been busy though so we've lots of catching up to do. But do bear with me if this post feels a little flat. <br />
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First off, I'll show you the pictures of the completed corner cabinet...<br />
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The before was quite nice but it had suffered some Rottweiler damage...<br />
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I had to replace a tiny bit of trim...<br />
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Finding this tiny bit of trim proved to be a nightmare and I ended up ordering it from eBay in America. I attached it with the teeniest panel pins and wood glue.<br />
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I decided to go for a very textured rough paint job, aiming for a Scandinavian look.<br />
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Dark wax enhanced the texture...<br />
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And I hand painted a motif on the lower door...<br />
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That missing trim?<br />
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Hopefully you'd never know it was replaced.<br />
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These cabinets hold an astonishing amount.<br />
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Which is good if you <u>have</u> an astonishing amount.<br />
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Anyway, that piece has gone to live in an exquisite new home, according to the fellow who collected it.<br />
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I've also finished the wardrobe that lived in the kitchen (for far too long, pateiently awaiting a makeover).<br />
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It has also left us. I'll show you the results next time, but it's no longer a wardrobe!<br />
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The post before last I told you about a fun chazzing find and never shared, so I'll do that now...<br />
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An original 1970's Ker Plunk game!<br />
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Isn't that cool?</div>
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It takes me right back. <br />
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I've plenty more secondhand crapola to show you and a new sofa too! Stay tuned. But don't hold your breath.<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-89754442076707066292015-04-12T09:34:00.000+01:002015-04-13T20:39:08.836+01:00Cinderellas house...I may have mentioned before that I'm a frustrated set designer. I can get terribly distracted whilst at the cinema by the furniture or the scenery. <br />
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But never have I been so utterly distracted by a film set as when I watched the new Disney film Cinderella.<br />
Oh. My. Word.<br />
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You have to go. If you don't have kids borrow someone elses. No, forget that. They'll just want a wee at the best bits.<br />
Go alone. <br />
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The interior decor in Cinderellas home is a decorative painters wet dream. Think Swedish Gustavian Chinoiserie Folk Art deliciousness.<br />
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I've tried hard to find pictures on the net. And I've not done too badly.<br />
Here's a glimpse of the stepsisters bedroom...<br />
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That's got to be hand painted right? I love how the mirrored candle sconces become part of the floral design on the wall.<br />
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This one is scraping the bottom of the barrel but you can see a glimpse of Chinoiserie on the walls here...<br />
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Here's a better look at the same room...<br />
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Wonderful bamboo friezes in the dining room...<br />
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<br />
But my favourite room of all was the entrance hall and staircase. It was breathtaking! And really hard to find a picture so I can show you what I mean...<br />
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I loved the muted green base colour and the spaces between the trees. Often these designs can be quite full on with many trees close together. I liked that here they were spaced out. <br />
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The trees were painted up the entire stairwell...<br />
You can almost see one here behind Cate.<br />
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And again here...<br />
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I told you it was hard to find pictures of it. You'll just have to see the movie. I cannot wait until it comes out on DVD so I can watch the walls frame by frame. I just might let my husband talk me into a stupidly large telly to view it on. <br />
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But that isn't all this film has to offer. Oh no. I'm talking Mora clocks, a folk painted armoire, a tiled Swedish stove, a dough bowl left lying around in the garden (was Cinders not aware what they sell for on eBay?) and an apothecary chest in the kitchen.<br />
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Even some chappie from Game of Thrones. <br />
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But back to the walls... <br />
I know what you're thinking. Where could the set designers have found their inspiration? I'm thinking that too! See how alike we are?<br />
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I think we can look no further than the exquisite interiors of Drottningholm Palace in Sweden...<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vMo_e5-Cnn4/VSmZVh1jpMI/AAAAAAAAGGI/DdAPlJfQbBw/s1600/Chinese-Pavilion-at-Drottningholm.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vMo_e5-Cnn4/VSmZVh1jpMI/AAAAAAAAGGI/DdAPlJfQbBw/s1600/Chinese-Pavilion-at-Drottningholm.jpeg" height="470" width="640" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OD8D6ByTTAw/VSmZVs1Fr1I/AAAAAAAAGGQ/lP0a6_IrXUI/s1600/drott.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OD8D6ByTTAw/VSmZVs1Fr1I/AAAAAAAAGGQ/lP0a6_IrXUI/s1600/drott.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Or our very own slightly more gaudy Brighton Pavillion...<br />
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Or possibly the dressing room of Estee Lauder heiress Aerin Lauder...<br />
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Oh yes. That's the one.<br />
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My daughter had expressed a desire for trees, birds and butterflies on her bedroom wall.<br />
I thought she meant something like this...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl6eAM9wRhXIacgigzGABlVE1n5E99flAHWUUM-RuIl-IEXKB5c-fjhmtlxMFH1vojE2Z6nktFSowkBK4IYztXD-kN97iZFTKpRnQPjHdJfZa7K7ORL5rKUIFWWRCFPXK-nvUBsdshs6Bp/s1600/tree-wall-mural-for-kids-bedroom-rialno-designs-utilizing-painted-wall-murals-for-your-best-room-1024x768.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl6eAM9wRhXIacgigzGABlVE1n5E99flAHWUUM-RuIl-IEXKB5c-fjhmtlxMFH1vojE2Z6nktFSowkBK4IYztXD-kN97iZFTKpRnQPjHdJfZa7K7ORL5rKUIFWWRCFPXK-nvUBsdshs6Bp/s1600/tree-wall-mural-for-kids-bedroom-rialno-designs-utilizing-painted-wall-murals-for-your-best-room-1024x768.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
It's a ''No'' from me. <br />
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But it turns out she's into chinoiserie too. I could have a bash at this...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EN2m6fBMXv0/VSopI2Sv6EI/AAAAAAAAGIU/iiXahauy9UE/s1600/dg24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EN2m6fBMXv0/VSopI2Sv6EI/AAAAAAAAGIU/iiXahauy9UE/s1600/dg24.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.degournay.com/" target="_blank">source</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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There's even a lovely little film on youtube showing how it's done. And doesn't she make it look easy?<br />
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Join me next time when I hope to have given my entire house the Swedish Chinoiserie look and we'll be finding out if you really can pull off this look in a 1960's semi.<br />
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Until then, go and see Cinderella!<br />
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Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-71055517050732749252015-03-30T23:09:00.000+01:002015-03-30T23:09:44.534+01:00Vintage office chair makeover...Remember this vintage office chair I found at the flea market? Yeah, it was ages ago...<br />
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The only thing it had going for it was its shape. I hated the blue metallic hammerite paint and the choice of upholstery. And I do not know whose idea it was to pair those two elements together!<br />
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I fancied stripping the metal back to the bare bones and hoped I'd find some rusty metal under that paint. I read a lot of hoo haa on the web about people having trouble stripping hammerite. Since EU regulations on paint stripper changed, several people complained it wasn't up to the job. I tried my usual Wilkos multi purpose paint stripper and it was fine. In the olden days, paint would bubble up instantly and so would your skin if you weren't careful. Well, the newer stuff does the job but it's much slower.<br />
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I had to apply it and set the kitchen timer for 30 mins, reapply and wait another 30 mins. I used wire wool to remove the paint but I didn't want to scrub too hard and lose the tarnish on the metal so I let the stripper do the work. It was a very slow process to get all the metal work stripped as I worked in small sections at a time.<br />
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But eventually it went from this...<br />
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To this...<br />
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A coat of dark wax turned it from this...<br />
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To this...<br />
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Once the metal was finished I set about dismantling the upholstered parts. I hadn't wanted to do that before I stripped the chair as I have memory problems and didn't want a big gap between dismantling and reassembly.<br />
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I took photos so I'd know how to put it back together. Then I forgot I'd done that, muddled through and found the pictures just now. Doh.<br />
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Under that red was the original green...<br />
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And lots of dust. Eew.<br />
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I realised the foam was not only a health hazard but also pretty shot so I replaced it with some 1'' foam from Dunelm. I drew round the old foam and cut it out with my electric carving knife. I stuck it onto the wooden seat and back with spray adhesive and covered it with my fabric.<br />
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My favourite vintage cabbage rose barkcloth. I stapled it on.<br />
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I decided to cover the green plastic back you can see here...<br />
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I just used a bit of spray mount and glued the fabric around the edges on the other side, holding it with clothes pegs.<br />
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I'm really glad I did that...<br />
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I think it looks so much nicer than the green plastic did.<br />
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So here's the finished chair...<br />
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I love it! The new foam makes a huge difference to the chairs comfort. I like that it's not too pretty as it lives with my desk in the living room.<br />
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I did like this version that I found on Pinterest but it's a little too girly for me and my living room...<br />
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Of course if you paint the legs there's no need to strip at all. Just re-spray...<br />
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And I loved the idea of using old tapestry pieces...<br />
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<br />
but I had nothing the right size in my stash.<br />
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I thought about hessian grain sacks but I thought it'd be too trendy.<br />
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I'm happy with my choice and I think it's going to look good with my new sofa that I forgot to order today. Told you I have memory problems.<br />
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Another job is ticked off the list. I'm feeling so much guilt and anxiety at not getting on with the kitchen. I keep thinking that if I get hit by a bus, no one else will know how to finish the cupboards and my poor family will be left with half a nice kitchen, half a crap one. So no more fannying about. I need to get on with it. I can't believe it's April this week and I was planning on finishing the kitchen in the new year! Hopeless...<br />
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Back soon with more procrastination no doubt... <br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-36287514333723947752015-03-15T09:56:00.000+00:002015-03-16T16:33:44.987+00:00Everything stops for tea...I wanted to make something for the lady who works on the designs for the shop and decided to use this vintage tea caddie...<br />
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It's got this nice wired up corner thing going on and is lined with metal. <br />
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I know she's from Stafford so I googled old advertising images from Stafford. Not much I could use. Until I found this image...<br />
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Nice fonts eh?<br />
So I tracked down the fonts and printed them out. I positioned them on the box with tape and traced round the letters. It's like graphic design for simpletons. <br />
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Instead of painting the letters, I used a Sharpie. Colouring in is very therapeutic you know. Not that I'm suggesting you need therapy.<br />
Honest!<br />
If you're going to try this, it's worth testing an inconspicuous area as with old dry wood, the ink can bleed over the lines.<br />
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I sanded it very lightly with fine sandpaper for a worn appearance...<br />
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I stuck a plant in it. I think white hydrangeas are my absolute favourite flowers.<br />
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Ta daa!<br />
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Now here's the freaky part.<br />
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This was her milkman growing up!<br />
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I hope the mothers amongst you are being spoilt today and my thoughts are with those who have lost their mothers. <br />
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Connie was clearly very excited and came into bed with me at 6am with the best card ever.<br />
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The resemblance is astounding.<br />
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One to treasure. She gave me daffodils as is the Mothers Day rule in this house and a delightful butterfly necklace from Poundland. She always does her present shopping in Poundland. She's no fool.<br />
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Sorry I've had to turn on the comment verification thingy. I haven't got the time to be deleting 90 odd spam comments of a weekend. I'll try and turn it off again when the spammers have forgotten all about me. <br />
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Back soon with a really fun secondhand score. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. <br />
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Linking with....<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-67282910894751447982015-03-06T19:53:00.000+00:002015-03-08T17:51:37.065+00:00Patchwork mirror...Do you remember this exquisite piece of patchwork that <a href="http://vintagevixon.blogspot.co.uk/">VIX</a> sent me?<br />
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So what to make with it? It's a very fragile piece so cushions or a bed throw are ruled out. It just won't withstand being sat on. What is a girl to do when she's mad about vintage textiles but only has three beds to dress and a cushion hating husband?<br />
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Why a patchwork mirror of course!<br />
Er, yeah. A clue was in the title.<br />
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We loved this car boot mirror I found for my daughters room...<br />
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But some mirrors are just not flattering and this was one of them. What's all that about? Is it the bevelled edge that makes that happen?<br />
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Anyhow, I spied one in my charity shop that was REALLY flattering. It had a plainer frame that was covered in a faux brown leather which was peeling off. I bought it and gave myself blisters peeling the rest of the vinyl off. Underneath it was MDF which was now very rough and damaged.<br />
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I primed and painted it white so that the darker MDF wouldn't show through the pale fabrics.<br />
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I very carefully washed and dried the patchwork then I positioned it over the frame, mindful to avoid the holey bits and trying to keep the patchwork shapes square to the frame.<br />
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I stapled round the outside edge then cut the hole in the centre so I could pull it smooth and staple in the recess where the glass sits. <br />
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Ta daa!<br />
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Connie really likes it! Now, if I'd have told her what I planned on doing she'd have said it sounded disgusting. A bit like a husband might. So in future I'll just do what I like and trust in her good taste to like it. <br />
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I love that you can see all the little hand stitches. And I LOVE that we've all lost half a stone in this mirror!<br />
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There's plenty of material left for future projects, but in the meantime, I couldn't resist making a patchwork lavender bag or five...<br />
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filled with lavender from my garden. I'll have to harvest more this year. It's so expensive to buy!<br />
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I backed them with another fabric to make the patchwork go further. <br />
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I also sneaked in another quick project. All whilst I should be finishing the kitchen...More of that next time...Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5677913901738632312.post-43106501343432591642015-03-04T11:07:00.000+00:002015-03-04T11:07:02.420+00:00Finishing off little jobs and launching MY SHOP!I've been a busy bunny since I saw you last. I've put my trim on the dresser to stop the plates falling down and smashing everything in sight...<br />
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I went for a very plain square profile as the dresser is very plain and square...<br />
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So that's now 100% completed. Unless I make some doors for the top section later on...<br />
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I also finally put up a door frame on the pantry door...<br />
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I can't even remember why the old frame had to go.<br />
Oh well, it wasn't as nice as this one... <br />
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This was really NOT straightforward. It seems there's a world of difference between cutting piddly little bits of trim with mitred corners and huge fat chunky wooden door frames. Hand mitre saws have a slight wobble and I had to go out for replacement wood three times before I managed this. In the end I bought a mitre block and got my corners looking good.<br />
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Well, good enough for me. Once caulked and painted it's fine.<br />
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I also had to cut holes for the hinges and this was also complicated as I was cutting on the curve of the door frame. Slight wobble but I don't think it shows when it's painted...<br />
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At some point I'm going to have to do something with the rest of this wall. It's going to create a dust cloud. Which means cleaning everything in sight. I've put it off for a long time. <br />
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And that floor isn't staying. If I get paint all over it, new flooring will become as big a priority for my husband as it is for me. <br />
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Fat Freddy looking bewildered. ''Mummy, why do you take photos of doors? It's not normal.''<br />
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So what else have I got to report? I did some research on the alligator case and found this one on ebay...<br />
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This one is the real deal, a vintage Mark Cross...<br />
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It was on ebay for the best part of £250.<br />
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See how the skin has dried out between the scales?<br />
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Like mine!<br />
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So I've decided mine is real too. Result. It's really tactile. I can't resist stroking it.<br />
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There's a useful little film on youtube which will also help anyone work out if their alligator or crocodlie leather is the real deal...<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/45Y5YQfiXzM/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/45Y5YQfiXzM?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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Thank you to Anna who wrote to me recommending Urad polish from Lakeland for reviving leather bags and cases. I used Kiwi dark tan polish but I can see that might get colour on your clothes if this were a handbag so Urad is Annas top tip.<br />
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Keep your eyes peeled for hidden gems in the charity shops girls! <br />
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Last of all, the eagle eyed among you might have noticed a new button at the top of the page leading you to my very own shop BARTLEBY and SAGE.<br />
It took seven or eight weeks from having the idea to product manufacture and then TEN MONTHS to put the shop together.<br />
Which is ridiculous!<br />
But hey, we're there now.<br />
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Despite having no proper shop I've done well just from people randomly finding me through the blog and Pinterest pictures. I've got more designs in the pipeline and they are VERY exciting. I have not forgotten my giveaway competition promise dear readers but I'll wait until I have more products so you can have a choice.<br />
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These are the photos from our professional photo shoot. Clearly they aren't my photos as they are level. Fortunately I'm married to a professional photographer. Our kitchen had never been so clean!<br />
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And fear not, I'm not going to bleat on and on about the shop but I will show you our new designs from time to time mainly because I'll be overexcited and giddy about them and I won't be able to stop myself. <br />
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But do come and take a look at the shop. There's something for everyone I think you'll find.<br />
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If you like the colour blue and are into vintage style splashbacks...<br />
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<br />Emma Kate at Paint and Stylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14186765005284249653noreply@blogger.com16