Archives for "Interiors"
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?
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.
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.





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