Sometimes, even when the sun is shining, it’s nice to have a craft project on the go. Somehow sitting quietly and dabbing a bit of paint here and making a few twists with some thread there calms the soul and recharges the batteries of over-excited children – and parents – sufficiently for another round of tree climbing or bike riding. Go Create have come up with a wonderful…
It’s Summer and for once the weather is being kind, so planning a party outdoors might not be such a silly idea. Start with a gazebo, to give cover as needed and you’ll find you can dress it to suit an event for anyone from 5 to 95. Here are some tips to decorate your house and garden for Family Parties.
Make sure the gazebo goes up a couple of days prior to the event so that the…
A family home has so many demands placed on it that it’s a wonder any property stands up to the wish list we devise for our safety, comfort and pleasure. But believe it or not, it is completely possible to achieve a home that works for your needs without losing your sanity! The big thing is to be perfectly honest with yourself about how your home needs to work. Yes, you may be hankering…
Recently I was looking at wallpaper for a client and became engrossed in the number of animal motifs that feature in the collections of the big interiors companies – and these designs are not aimed at children. The designs I’m talking about were edgy, whimsical but definitely not ‘for the nursery.’ And this got me to thinking, as a pattern an animal motif crosses a lot of…
Easter Sunday is about more than Easter eggs but if your children are like mine, they have very little interest in anything else! To introduce them to the idea that Easter Sunday is a day of ancient celebration and feasting, why not create something special to decorate the Easter Table? I like to have all my old favourites on display that day and napkin rings made of felt are a pretty addition to…
I overheard a conversation some months ago that I’ve taken time to think about. A group of women meeting for coffee were discussing their interior designers and it seems, like car salesmen and estate agents, we’re not much liked: bossy and unbending, seemed to be the general consensus, not prepared to listen and highly-strung was another comment and the one that stung, anyone can do…
Television scheduling is a mystery of the modern age. How is it that I can sit at home on a Saturday night (err, because I was out on a Friday…) with nothing to watch and then bizarrely, a series by my favourite, Kirstie Allsopp can charge across the screens in the middle of the summer with barely a fan fare?
Fill your Home for Free wasn’t like any other design programme Channel 4…
Hands up who has memories of their mum, grandmother, aunt making things at home for the family? I would try to guess when we went to visit, if my grandmother was baking or making chutney – one I was more keen on than the other – but having access to this world of culinary creativity has been revived within me now that I have children of my own.
My mother would squirrel away remnants…
There is something so completely addictive about trims and buttons, ribbons, beads and threads that I really do think Kirsty Allsop said it best; ‘haberdashery is like a drug’. With her passion for vintage textiles and home decoration, she has reawakened an interest in embellishment of home decor and clothing that could be said to have spearheaded the revival in handcrafts –…