Archives for "Interiors"

Posted by Jettica on 19th May 2010
0

Interflora Voucher Code

Interflora have an official voucher code on their blog. As a lover of Interflora I thought you might all like to know. It’s for a delicious 7% off.

Click here for the Interflora voucher code

Posted by Jettica on 14th May 2010
0

The Warmth of a Fire Pit

You’ll probably know from previous posts that I love a good drink in the garden. In the summer that is, I’m not very good with the cold. However, we had a party a few years ago in December. We had woodburners, patio heaters and a fire pit. It was lovely. And no one was cold, I remember happily floating around in a pink sleeveless dress all evening. Even into the early hours.

I suppose choosing a fire pit could prove a bit difficult if you don’t know what you are looking for. There’s all sorts of things to take into account such as where to put it, what is suitable for your garden and so on. Do your research and make sure you know what you are getting yourself into. After all you are going to have a pit filled with fire in your garden. Safety is key.

You want a fire pit that you and your friends can sit around when evenings get cooler after the summer. Although in the UK you might find that a fire pit is essential even in summer. Not every night is warm and sticky. If, like me, you live by the coast then a fire pit is a good idea even on summer evenings. The wind coming from the sea is often rather chilly.

You will probably be using your fire pit on cooler evenings. consider a patio fire pit, especially if you patio is the first part of your garden you step out onto from your house. Having a fire pit so near the house will mean you don’t have to travel too farm from its warmth to get things like more drinks or to answer the phone.

Another upside to having a fire pit is the cooking opportunities. Marshmallows on toasting forks are my favourite. A very social and sticky way to to get your sugar fix. There are loads of options to the type of fire pit you can get, do you want a gas fire pit? Do you want to have to source wood to fuel it?

As with any purchase like this. Do your homework.

Posted by Jettica on 7th May 2010
0

Furnishing your garden

Garden furniture can make or break the look of your outdoor space. It is important that it matches the overall look of your house.

If you have a small garden then steer clear of large bulky items. You need small minimalistic items. Possibly that can be stored away. Our garden is tiny and you can barely move for the table and washing line.

For a bigger garden don’t feel you need to fill it with furniture. If you have a BBQ area or decking then keep furniture concentrated to that area. Also think about the type of furniture that might suit you house. Wicker furniture is very versatile and comes in various colours. There are also good padding options available. Wicker furniture can make a very comfortable and easy to maintain seating option for your garden.

Wrought iron furniture is another option. It is also very easy to maintain. It tends to be a lot more decorative than wicker furniture but also comes in various colours with various padding options.

Try to keep everything matching and make sure you don’t have any garish hand-me-downs in your collection of furniture. Always make sure you store away cushions and things that might get damaged if they get wet. Then just wait for summer and enjoy your outside dining/lounging area.

It is easy to get carried away with garden furniture, especially if you don’t have much room. Go for a minimalist look to begin with. Do you need ten seats when you are only ever going to have six people round at once? Think about practicality too. If you get really high maintenance furniture do you really have the time to take care of it?

Posted by Jettica on 4th May 2010
0

Wind Chimes

I’ve been interested in wind chimes for a while. I especially like the wooden ones, they give a gorgeously understated sound to a garden.  Wind chimes remind me of yoga, of relaxation and calmness. It’s probably something to do with the wind chimes that hang in the orchard at my mum’s house. I’ve often done yoga there.

The origin of wind chimes is interesting. They have been recorded as far back as 3000 BC and were most used to ward of evil spirits. That’s all good and well considering my large dislike for evil spirits after seeing Paranormal Activity. Actually, I can’t say I’ve ever had a love for evil spirits. Positive energy is also welcome to chime its way through my house. Some of the first wind chimes were made from bamboo, stones and even bone – it’s quite nice how things have changed, give me metal and wood over bone any day.

They are now commonly used in feng shui to enhance a room’s energy. They purify and protect the area they are in. If you want to direct energy in the most positive way possible then have a wind chime in your front garden or hallway. This will protect from those pesky evil spirits as well as keeping your home pure. Plus they sound nice, better than the rush of cars hurtling past your house.

You have to be careful what sort of wind chimes you choose and where you put them. Wooden chunky wind chimes are best suited to being outside, while smaller ones would suit a small hallway. Maybe pair a small wind chime with a dream catcher and hang near your bedroom window. You need the protection for a good night’s sleep full of fluffy dreams.

They also have a very practical use when hung near doors. They can alert you to someone coming into the house. This can help to protect you from intruders. They are also very pleasing to the eye and ear.

Take a look at Outdora for a stunning selection of wind chimes.

Posted by Jettica on 4th May 2010
0

AGAs, Weddings and Photoshop

Wow, what a busy few days its been.

On Thursday I was at an AGA launch event. Firstly, the new products are amazing. There’s a new colour called Pearl Ashes, based on a colour from Kevin McCloud’s Fired Earth paint range. It’s a very pale grey/blue colour. So, so gorgeous. There’s also some new Fired Earth tiles by Emma Bridgewater being launched. The ones with stars on just blew me away, truly stunning.

I also met the brilliant Harriet of Bite Me Blog, she needs a mention because we talked at length and the blog itself makes my mouth water.

The  on Saturday I photographed a wedding. My official working day was 8:30am – 8:30pm(ish) but as these were my friends I stayed on into the evening. I ended up getting home at about 1am.

Well, Sunday’s hangover was horrendous. There’s something about weddings that always mean I’m hungover. But I did manage to cook a gorgeous roast dinner for some guests. I also looked through and rotated all 1600 images from the wedding.

Now, the images are amazing. I’m so happy with how they’ve come out. I’ve now got the mammoth task of editing the 279 that I think are the best before Saturday this week. I’ve done 57, the really technical, artsy shots may have to wait. I do feel like the rest of this week is going to be spent staring into the depths of photoshop.

The teaser images will be up here once the brides have seen them on Saturday.

One week turn around for the majority of their wedding photos, I am spoiling them. All other ‘togs I’ve spoken to say they have a 3-5 month turn around to get pictures back to a client. Crikey.

On another note, Doctor Who! Still obsessed and still loving Eleven. He is marvelous. Plus Karen Gillan is amazing too.

Posted by Jettica on 27th April 2010
0

Do you know about Feng Shui?

I’ve never really thought about Feng Shui before. It’s something that interests me but I don’t know how to do it or how it can improve your life.

But I think it would be interesting to look into it for when we get a new house. Can’t hurt can it. I know that is is all about direction of energy. It’s supposed to make you feel more awake and happier. So I could be rearranging art on my walls to create an area of serenity. My bed should be pointing a certain way and my wind gong should be in a certain place in my garden. That’s it right?

First things first, it seems clutter and junk have to go, that’s in the house and in the garden. That might be tough. I need some of those big cube bookcases from Ikea. I like bookcases because I like organising things by height. That’s good for Feng Shui.

For the outdoors, any garden fountain should have moving water. As soon as the water goes stagnant the fountain won’t be helping. Water is a good conductor of wealth, so I’ll be having six water features, two fountains and a waterfall.

Good bedroom Feng Shui is ridding it of the things that you do when you are awake. This means no exercise equipment, televisions or computers. Well, we are already there with that one. Mainly because we don’t have a television aerial in the bedroom. It makes sense though, you don’t want to associate your place of rest with mind-stimulating games and programmes or body-stimulating exercise machines. It needs to be a place of serenity and relaxation – that means cushions.

It’s certainly something I’m going to look into. I used to be very into the spritual but I suppose I’ve grown out of it. However, I am more than open-minded to anything that can help me to relax and point wealth in my direction.

I might just have a small sea for a garden.