Renovation inspiration.

With a house sold and a house bought it’s time to start thinking about new interiors. The new house currently doesn’t have much of an interior, it’s mostly a shell of an outside with some interior walls and the occasional floorboard but there are plans and I have plans for those plans!

Firstly the kitchen which will be similar to my current one.

Except with storm lanterns or something a little more industrial hanging as pendants over the island bench.

A nook at one end of the island with shelves for my cookbooks, one of those big restaurant kitchen taps that are more hose than tap, perhaps some brick pattern white tiles for a splashback like the Paris metro (only without the urinal smell!)

And if I’m really lucky… a duck egg blue AGA. Or better yet the spotty Emma Bridgewater one. Bliss.

Also on the wish list- I’m loving this sewing cafe in Paris where you can take your projects and rent the machines by the hour. I have a little sunroomy nook with a big picture window and lots of light- and I have a little daydream about a space that will look like that cafe.

Another little daydream of a house that’s full of homemade quilts, made in my little sunroomy sewing shop nook.

(Bottom two images discovered in the current issue of Australian Vogue Living).

Creative Lull.

You think you haven’t done anything much. Nothing worth writing about (literally!) And then you think, oh well I’m gonna write anyway, it’s been a while, something will come to me.

And then you realise how creative you’ve been all along. It’s in your blood, you know.

For example…

…I’ve been creating easter boots with chicks AND ears for the Year One easter boot parade.

…creating a diversion to bust my boys out of the back of the divvi van (just kidding, they were enjoying the thrill of being arrested at the local street carnival).

…creating order out of chaos in my pantry (and yes I did take a picture because it’s never looked that good!)

…creating a beautifully styled and somewhat unrealistic representation of the tidiness and clutter free-ness of our life while putting it on the market to sell.

…and most importantly creating another person to assist in my plan for world domination. It’s really been rather exhausting.

Greek food and bike rides.

Another lovely Christmas gift from my husband was the latest Tessa Kiros instalment. I wonder if he’s trying to teach me how to be a good Greek wife? Not so bad if I get to dress like the super cool Kyria above!

I think who better to teach me the ways of Greek cuisine and home life than a Finnish/ Cypriot born in London and raised in the UK and South Africa, who married an Italian and lives in Italy? That’s got to be some delicious food. Looking forward to making him Skordalia and Keftedes. I hope I make them as good as yiayia.

Last night we took the boys for a run/ ride along the Yarra. The big one got to try out his new wheels- a proper big boys bike, this one will do him through to his teens. Scary thought.

Wishing you a Happy New Year. xx

Elba.

There’s this little speck of an island off the coast of Italy…

…with the prettiest port, fancy stores…

…seriously fancy yachts, brightly coloured bunting strung up everywhere.

Where the beaches are white pebbles and the water is so clear you can see the bottom. Where my boys, goggles on, duck dived and swam with the fishes (but didn’t “swim with the fishes” if you know what I mean). It was one of the nicest days of our trip.

Merry Christmas.

It’s a funny old thing, Christmas. I’m not little anymore so it’s not quite so magical. There’s been some tricky stuff going on in the past 12 or 18 months too. The kind of stuff that takes the shine off things. Still, sometimes things happen that make you realise life can still surprise you. In a good way. And that just because nice things arrive from unexpected places, it doesn’t make them any less special.

Like the doorbell ringing on Christmas Eve and someone you don’t know , but who knows you- bringing you and your boys a gingerbread house. Just because they thought you might like it.

And spending the afternoon making lemony cupcakes with lemon frosting to take for Christmas day with your four year old who loves to bake.

Or the same four year old who’s over the moon with his new sewing machine (the one he asked for I might add!)- although a little dubious about the fact that santa bought him a girl’s sewing machine. So excited he went to my sewing room and helped himself to the Japanese kei spot fabric. Expensive taste, my child.

And finally the husband who knows you well enough to know how much you love Kirstie and her homemade home. And how you’ve had something of a creative blockage recently and maybe a crafty self help book might assist to get everything moving again.

These are the little things that make tricky stuff better. I hope yours was an awesome Christmas, but if not I hope you had lots of little things to help make your tricky stuff better too. xx

European Vacation.

Six countries in four fun, stressful, exhausting weeks with two small children. The big highlight for the big one was seeing the first home he ever lived in. For the small one, it was noticing how traffic lights are different in different countries! For me, it was revisiting familiar favourite things.

Four.

Last week was the week of Four. Four years old and there are no more babies in my house.

On Wednesday we had kinder duty. Chocolate cupcakes with yellow flowers and the Happy Birthday hat.

Thursday was the day and we had a chocolate swirly frosted love heart cake with glace cherries and a vat of spaghetti sauce. Because they are his favourites. Four articulates demands. Loudly and frequently.

Saturday was party day.

I was pretty heavy handed with the icing and sprinkles.

And I was totally insane as far as the cake was concerned.

You’ll forgive me though, as this is the last four birthday in our family. A fantastic afternoon was had by 30 small children riding wheeled things maniacally around the Traffic School. With mini Four on his brand new bike.

He has already started planning his Five birthday.

Party invitations and last parcels.

Just a quick note to say that all last orders will be sent out by the end of the week. There was a fantastic response to the sale, and there’s just a small backlog that’s taking longer than usual to catch up on (what with travelling spouses, gastro children and virus ridden little ol’ me trying to get everyone back into the swing of a new term at school). Apologies for the delay, you can always email me if you have any particular questions

A big stack of invitations. I can feel a party coming on!

Someone’s about to turn 4! I do believe there’s an “I can’t believe my baby’s 4″ blog post beginning to brew. This is a pretty momentous occasion, we’re going to celebrate with bunting and cupcakes and sausages in bread and lots of bike riding. The little guy’s been counting down the days. I hope it doesn’t rain. It is winter after all.

Nigella’s number biscuits.

Today we had a playdate at a little friend’s house. There was one 6yo, three 5yo, a 4yo and a 3yo. 5 boys and one girl. It was loud, rough and a bit boisterous. It was a perfect morning to take along a batch of Nigella Lawson’s iced biscuits. I used the number cookie cutters from her range- I think the numbers are fun.

mine.

As you can see from the photos, mine aren’t as tidy as hers, but what I lack in neat I made up for with embellishment. The sprinkles were just the thing to draw your eyes away from the messy edges!

Nigella’s.

They won the taste test. An empty plate dotted with a few sprinkles were all that was left, although after all that sugar I did have to peel my boys off the ceiling to take them home.

How to make a Wizard Cape.

This is a very basic tutorial- almost embarrassingly easy. But if you have (as I did) two small boys who had to get to a Harry Potter party first thing Saturday morning and you hadn’t thought about it before school pick up on Friday night, then this is about as complicated as you want to get!

Step 1:

Rush the kids up to Spotlight on a Friday afternoon with two grumpy, tired and hungry children (check).

Step 2:

I have a 3yo and a 6yo- so for me, 3metres of fabric was fine. I just purchased plain black cotton poplin at about $4/per metre. Now is a good time to purchase some ribbon to tie at the neck- I used grey grosgrain ribbon I had at home.

Step 3:

Cut fabric into 1.5 metre lengths. Along each of the short sides of the rectangle, make a hem by folding and pressing twice at 1cm intervals and then stitching closed.

Step 4:

Take your iron and press a 1cm wide fold down one of the long sides of the rectangle (see Fig1 below).

Step 5: Measure in 10cm from the same edge and press another fold into the fabric, making a hem (see Fig2 below). This will be the collar of the cape.

Step 6: Sew closed (along dotted line in Fig2.) so that you are encasing the selvedge edge inside the hem, all nice and neat!

Step 7: Sew a parallel line approx the width of your ribbon above your first. This creates the casing for your ribbon.

Step 8: Pin a safety pin to the end of the ribbon and guide it through the casing. Rouch up the fabric to make the collar ruffle and stand up. Drape jauntily around your small child and tie loosely at the neck in a big bow.

* I didn’t bother to hem the cape at the bottom as I figured these were one hit wonders and the selvedge edge is enough to stop fraying.

Accessorise with pointy wizard hats (simple enough to make, but I was really pressed for time- so I got hubby to pick them up in town) and wands and you’re ready for the party!

Did you remember to get the present?

I remember summer.

As we are now in the thick of the shortest days and the coldest and wettest, I am now reminiscing over warmer memories of longer days. Of a weekend spent on the mornington peninsula and a late lunch at Somers General Store. Delicious food in delightful country store surrounds with breathtaking views out the windows to the sea.

Warm weather and lazy afternoons, please come back soon!

The square where I lived.

I think it’s a widely known fact amongst people who know us that Belsize Square the store is named after Belsize Square the place. As I come to the end of the store, I find myself thinking about the street where we lived.

This is the street I would walk past on a winter’s evening when we lived around the corner. There was one fantastic winter’s evening I walked past the church in the freezy cold and thick mist . It was so still and quiet and suddenly a fox shot out of the church grounds, ran across my path and up a side street. It was one of those  magical moments you think “I’ll remember this forever”.

This is the street I was so happy to move into 6months pregnant and nest.

This is the street we bought our first baby home to. Where we raced outside when he was one year old to photograph him in the snow.

We are fortunate enough to be heading back to London later this year for a whistle stop tour of our favourite haunts with our two sons. My eldest at 6 1/2 is keen to see where he was born. I am a bit more hesitant to go back- afraid that I will feel like an outsider and the place which was at once home and adventure will not remember me. Scared of an rush of emotion that I might not enjoy. Aware that the passage of time will be more tangible and I will feel old. Another sad “so long” and an “I’m not sure when we’ll be back”.

A bit sad to say goodbye to the shop, too.