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!...

What a hoot!...

...well, here we are again, some of the gang from the MK Handmade and Vintage Fair, this time it was a Street Bazaar with street entertainment, music etc and we all had such a good time, so much laughter and not like work at all! Bandannas in the hair have become the official fashion along with home made pinnies for all our bits and bobs keeping everything close at hand....

..next Fair is September 8th and 9th and I've been shopping already! Lots of lovely new items to lovingly restore and refinish, now I just a little bit of free time to get started!

EXCITING NEWS....!

...This week I have been able to take I Love My Home into some new retail space!

I'm very excited to announce that I have joined many other crafters, makers and doers at

 Wollaston Home and Garden

In the beautiful Northamptonshire village of Wollaston 

it's set in an old stable yard and with many interesting shops plus the all important tea shop for a break in the retail therapy and my furniture will be in the interior design and kitchen design shops.

if you're looking for a gift or something for yourself or your home, spoil yourself and take a little trip out to see what's on offer. 

You'll find us in The Yard, High Street, Wollaston, Northants, just off the A509, quite near to Olney, so come and say hello to the lovely Clare and Sharon and have a look around!

It's a tough life.....

....we just don't know what to do next...chase mice...eat...play...or...

...oh that's right...sleeeeep.....zzzzzzzzzz....

SAVE THE DATE!!


July 10th/11th/12th (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) I Love My Home is at the Street Bazaar in Middleton Hall, Central Milton Keynes. Lots of unique, one-off items, not just vintage but allsorts.
Come and say hello - I'm there from 9.30am to 6pm every day!

Travelling Trunk Coffee Table....

... and, as usual, I got over excited and forget to take a 'before' picture - duh!, anyway, this trunk was in a neglected state when my friend Jo gave it to me. I set to, and polished it up with metal polish (lots of elbow grease), sanded back the wooden parts and waxed them, added some feet and waxed them, lined the interior with vintage sheet music in a lovely creamy shade, repaired and refinished the handles, and.....

Ta Dah!

 ... pretty as a picture and really useful. These old trunks seem to have become really popular lately and this one has become a coffee table with loads of storage inside - perfect!...

...here it is with the lid closed to show you how perfect it is as a coffee table. I do love it when I can turn something unwanted into something I want to keep! What do you think of it?