Christmas present...

...stop press!! my lovely friend Linda has just emailed me to say her Siamese cat Florence has had FIVE Christmas kittens this afternoon - now that's what I call a Christmas present!

Wintry poems...

I shared a couple of my favourite poems the other day and I was inspired to add some images to them...

The image below came via Greige interiors website which I follow and love...

hope you enjoy...

Oh Christmas Tree....

...now I have a blog I have a chance to share my Christmas tree with others! I always have a white dove at the top and, although you can never see him, nestled inside the branches is a tiny white cherub which is all I have left of my childhood Christmas ornaments. One of my very few Christmas traditions is to always make sure he is near the top of the tree. The little sign says 'may your Christmas be bright and full of delight' and Father Christmas is at the base of the tree...

...and just because I love vintage, here is a sepia version of the photo....

Merry Christmas one and all!

I love this time of year...

...I know it's easy to get fed up with the cold/rain/wind etc but I love the fact that the world is slowing down and going to sleep ready for next Spring. It reminds me to slow down too and notice what's around me. The other day I drove through the woods and saw herds of beautiful deer cropping the frosty grass and, in the midst of them, a fox trotting along purposefully. I love living in the country and seeing the seasons change - it feeds the soul...

Here are two of my favourite poems which make me think of walking in the woods at this time:

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

BY ROBERT FROST

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. 

Robert Frost

keep warm!

a little teaser....

I often forget to take 'before' photos, so here's my next project in its raw state. It doesn't look much at the moment but I think it'll look spectacular when it's finished and given a little of the 'I Love My Home' magic! 'After' pics coming soon....

If you like what you see.....

If you would like to discuss or buy anything you've seen on the blog please email me at  kerry.ellins@btinternet.com

At the moment I do not offer a delivery service but I Love My Home is easily accessible from Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Hertfordshire and collection can be arranged to suit your needs. And, after all, you will have something unique to take home with you!

Just go to the 'What's in Stock' button on the right of this page ->

Christmas is coming...

...I picked up this really nasty, dirty, gloss painted doll's bed and wardrobe not sure I could really do anything with them, but - thanks to the Graphics Fairy - 

...here they are!  So cute and ready for some lucky little child's Christmas stocking

...then I got in the Christmas mood and made these decorations from bits and pieces I had...

...then I got REALLY in the mood and went back to my childhood with glitter and glue...

..at least it's a good way to use up old pot pourri cones that have lost their scent! See you soon

The 'Suzanne' cupboard....

...named in honour of Suzanne Hearts'n'Kisses (check her out on Facebook) who found this lovely cupboard and knew it had my name on it!

I used crackle glaze and lots of clear, dark and then clear again wax to bring out the crackles and grain 

and added a French gilt handle that I salvaged off something else and knew would come in handy!

here it is halfway through and here's a detail of the top complete with crackles

(I'm in love with crackle glaze!)

and here it is before I started, looking a bit sad ...

Hope you like it! Let me know

Ready for the next project...

.... well, here we go, my contract has finished in London, MLH starts a new job in January and I have cleared the decks for my next big project. I have chosen to give up my therapy business of twenty-something years and to concentrate on making more of I Love My Home. I don't make plans, partly because they never seem to turn out the way I expected and partly because I like the spontaneity that life brings, so I don't know how it will develop yet - but that's the exciting part!

Last week I looked at a 16th Century farmhouse for sale. This is it, I thought, perfect timing for a new start. Holes in the thatched roof and rotting timbers were a slight concern (!) but when I saw the two inglenook fireplaces and vaulted, beamed ceilings I could see the bares bones of a beautiful home. It was very dirty and neglected and I know it would have been a money pit but I was still disappointed when the estate agent told me an offer had been accepted and it was off the market - booooo! I'll just have to keep the faith and hope my house is out there somewhere waiting for me to love it and make it beautiful...

Just between us - and don't tell anyone I showed you - here are a couple of sneaky pics of the farmhouse...

given some love and care, these could be gorgeous!

Hey ho - I'll keep looking...

Counting the days....

....my contract in London will finish soon and I will miss working in the heart of things, walking through the parks, past Buckingham Palace and into Westminster. I WON'T miss the tube trains, the bewildered tourists and being tired all the time! However, I've met some lovely people and feel really grateful for the opportunity - something I didn't think I get again at my age! It's also been a great insight into what MLH does in his work and proved to us that we can work really well together and have fun doing it.

Soon I will be able to concentrate fully on I Love My Home and producing more lovely, unique accents and furnishings for the home and I can hardly wait. I've got lots of projects lined up so keep watching and I'll keep blogging!

All the info...

...I got this really cool banner made to use at the vintage fairs. It's got loads of info and a QR code on it!

MK Handmade and Vintage Fair....

... wow what a great couple of days, loads of fun with the girls, huge thanks to MLH (My Lovely Husband) who provided muscle, sales technique, driving, a sense of humour and a great line in lattes.
We virtually sold out of all the furniture we took and people were almost mugging me for the vintage printers' trays I took as an afterthought - only one left! As ever, hard work but tons of fun, and a great boost to my confidence that people like my ideas enough to part with hard cash for them!

My latest find.....

...I walked into one of my favourite antique shops this weekend and the first thing I saw was...ta dah!... this fabulous antique corset. It's handmade in the most beautiful peachy cream silk with tulle and tiny pearl beads. This first shot is me being arty by antiqueing it and fading the colours out...

...this is a more realistic idea of the colour. I knew I wanted it just to hang on the wall and look at every day! It's absolutely exquisite and makes a lovely focal point at the end of my antique French bed...

pi

This time next week it'll all be over - don't miss it!!!

It's THAT time again!! the Biggest ever MK Handmade and Vintage Fair hits town again next weekend - 8th/9th September - this time there are 120 stalls, can you believe it? Masses of one-off handmade, vintage and, above all, affordable gifts, homewares, shabby chic and rustic furniture. Some of the things you've seen here and others that I haven't had time to post but which are simply fabulous including vintage toys and fabrics.

Don't miss out - see you there!

Sewing Box, 123 Cabinet and Bears in Chairs...

...another long post so make yourself a cup of tea...today I finished this little sewing box, so pretty and useful even if you don't sew you could use it for storage or as an end table....anyway, while it was still in pieces I lost Symi...and where do you think he was?

...you got it!...

...anyway, moving on, I also finished this cabinet today. I'm loving this and it may not make it to the MKHandmade and Vintage Fair in 10 days time!  I can think of many uses around here for it...

...you won't be surprised to hear I used numbers from the Graphics fairy once again (Hi Karen!)...

...I traced them on and then painted them freehand before distressing and waxing  - you like?...

...and finally, bears in chairs...I bought these millenium collectable bears recently but hated the tacky nylon clothes they had so gave them a little ditsy headband and kerchief instead and painted and distressed their little rocking chairs...

...hope someone will think they're cute at the fair and will take both of them...

Duck egg shelf and 'antique' shutter....

I picked up this pretty shelf unit and immediately I could see it painted in a very pale duck egg blue...

...so, I mixed some up to get exactly the colour I wanted and here she is...

...a little bit of distressing and some wax and she's ready to go! However, whenever I see this colour I always want to add pale pink, hand painted roses - I don't know why, they just seem to go together - but try as I might, I can't get the hang of painting them. Now bearing in mind I have sold my paintings at exhibitions etc, I should find this easy but they just don't turn out how I see them in my mind's eye. Maybe I'll decoupage or transfer some roses - we'll see...

By the way, in the background is my 'antique French' shutter made from an old louvre door picked up for a pound - that's the kind of recycling I like!

Pretty Garden Table redo.....

...so I bought this little folding table because it had the look of something weathered and worn from standing out in the Provencale sun (in my head anyway) and you know I love things that are useful AND beautiful (I'm channelling my inner William Morris again).

...in the photo above I've sanded it and it still looked a little boring so I painted the top in ASCP and waxed the legs and underneath with a dark wax to bring out the wood a little...

...but of course it needed a little 'something' to make it special. So off I went to the Graphics Fairy (Hi Karen) and looked in the Garden images. I thought this glass cloche with plants was perfect and Modpodge transferred the image....a few hours and some waxing later....

...Tada! I'm loving this and you can't even see where the image didn't transfer and I had to fill in!

...this is such a sweet image, I'll put it in one of the shops that take my items or send it to the

Milton Keynes Handmade and Vintage Fair on 8th/9th September - SAVE THE DATE! - there are going to be 120 stands - yes, you heard me right - 120!!!

Okay, one  more thing (long post today, right?) a couple of weeks ago I showed you the ticking apron I made to wear when I do the vintage fairs. It advertises I Love My Home and has enough pockets for all my stuff. Sometimes MLH (My Lovely Husband) helps out on the stand so I made him one too! This is barista style and features a vintage bike because he is mad on cycling (image from the Graphics Fairy again!)...not sure he'll make it to the catwalk, I just told him to put it on and stand in the kitchen while I snapped so I probably could have posed him better but hey ho!

have a good day - see you again soon!

Final destination....

....do you remember the metal trunk I featured a while ago? It came to me in a sad state and I renovated it, lined it with lovely vintage sheet music and added some pretty little bun feet to turn it into a coffee table with storage inside...here it is 'before'.....

...and here it is (drum roll please) 'after', it has made the long journey to Southern France and now lives in my lovely friend Kim's house which she has renovated from an old barn - great huh?

...I think it fits in really well with her eclectic furnishings, she's done a fab job with all the decor and the soft, muted colours are so soothing and relaxing. By the way, the cream Knole chairs you can see also came from I Love My Home, Kim recovered them and I have the matching sofa which I covered in almost identical fabric - great minds think alike!

 ...It's so rewarding to see items refurbished and reloved, don't you think?

Chests of Drawers - before and after...

...I'm afraid you'll have to blame my bad photography for this one - here's the 'before' photo of this lovely old chest of drawers that one of my friends was going to throw out after she remodelled her bathroom. I swapped it for a massage so we were both happy! 

...now, in the next photo it doesn't look much different but, trust me on this, it does in the flesh!

Quite a lot of ASCP in Old White, some wax, a lot of elbow grease and all the pretty handles off and on again (some twice because I got them the wrong way round - Doh!)

 ...I lost the 'before' photo of this one but you I'm sure you can imagine it covered in dark brown varnish and rather boring so... I duplicated the method above and really love it now. I particularly like the 'fluted' details down the sides which you couldn't really see before...

...both these items were such solid, well made pieces that I couldn't bear to see them wasted. Hopefully someone else will use them for many years to come now!

One and a half projects...

...best laid plans and all that...I made this apron to hold all my bits and bobs at Vintage Fairs and used the Graphics Fairy's 'Carte Postale' image and 'Script' image combined with my I Love My Home logo on a homemade apron of French ticking with some toile and vintage lace. So far, so good. I got through all the sewing, printing on fabric without destroying my printer etc and felt really pleased with myself. Then I decided to photograph it to show you. Well, apart from the peculiar angle I had to use to show all the elements, it was all going well until I downloaded it and realised that taking a picture in the mirror gives you.....you guessed it, a mirror image....Duh!!

hopefully you can get the general idea!

This next photo is a project that's halfway through but it will feature a Graphics Fairy image so pop back in a few days to see the finished article.......

the next photo is the original, rather ugly, brown table with a few other goodies that are due for 'the treatment' and I'll show you those as I go along...

...so finally...drum roll please!  Here is the finished article, my Italian table painted, waxed, distressed and embellished with a lovely shell design - thank you Graphics Fairy!

...and here is a view of the top showing the design in detail...

...hope you like it, let me know...

Lazy days.....

...well, we have finally had a warm, sunny and dry day here but, whilst I had to wait in for the gasman, Symi took himself off to a rather nice French shabby chic painted crate and snoozed in the sunshine....

...and, from the look on his face, I'd say he was enjoying it, wouldn't you?

...and here is his brother, Raffy showing the same commitment to relaxation...

...jealous, moi?...non!...