Decorate for spring.

Hi friends. Are you as excited as I am? Can you feel it? The tingle in the air? The slight scent on the breeze? It is here- Spring has arrived. With tomorrow being the official 'sping day', I thought I would provide you with some inspiration and tips on how to bring spring into your home.

Spring is a time when nature awakens, when colours burst forth and blooms open.  It is a time for new beginnings and do-overs. Based on this, I have designed 'Spring inspiration'. This interior is a bright, natural and contemporary design featuring all the best the season has to offer; natural wood elements, bright pops of colour, flowers and fun. This look has been on the up lately, with many magazines featuring bold prints and colours as discussed in this post.

Scatters and floral art by Mariska Meijers.

Spring is a fun time and many people use this time to splurge on colour in their home. Yet, some of us tend to be partial to a more neutral, calm, relaxed or sensible palette. Does that mean that you are excluded from the fun of Spring decor? Definitely not! Here are some tips on bringing the fun in, while being true to your personal style.

http://www.inastateofluxe.com/

 A very easy way of adding colour is by displaying objet. This can be done on open shelving, racks, as vignettes, in the kitchen... the list is endless. Choose objects that are in the same colour family as your scheme. Yet try to add some fun by going a few shades darker or lighter (or a combination of both) with these objet.

www.arowantree.blogspot.com

 Here is an example of introducing colour to your kitchen. By displaying bright, print or decorated items that you already own, you are redoing your look for less.

www.beautybyveda.com

 Another easy way of adding colour is through scatters, flowers, books and even fruit! Pick these items in bright colours, pack them out and voila'! Your space has been transformed without major 'surgery'.

www.interioroom.blogspot.com

 If you are more adventures and happy to spend a bit more, you can consider reupholstering two chairs in a bright colour. Combine this with a few small accessories like lampshades and art (prints needn't cost a fortune) and your space has been transformed.

www.nskwood.net

 Floral arrangements are probably the cheapest and easiest way of welcoming spring. These blooms can be from the market or simply a few sprigs from the garden. Arrange them in a collection old glass jars and you are ready to go. If you want to be extra creative, buy mat white spray paint and spray old jam jars white. Can you say bespoke votive?

www.nskwood.net

 Lastly, consider bringing spring into your bedroom with indoor plants, a new throw and scatters. These small changes can have a huge impact on your inner sasanctuary; a room that should always be comfortable, personal and special.

www.trendhomedesign.com

How have you brought spring into your space? I would love to hear your ideas.

Ciao. x

Cafe' eleven forty five.

Good afternoon friends. Boy, have I got a lovely little gem to share with you. If you live in the Johannesburg area, you should really pop in to cafe' eleven forty five.

My friend and I had lunch there last week. This contemporary cafe' is located in Blairgowrie just off Jan Smuts Avenue, sandwiched between Sandton and Randburg. Off road parking is available, but gets full quickly. Their menu includes breakfasts, salads, pastas, panini's and many other unusual dishes; I had the sweet corn fritters. *mmm!*

 This cafe has a quirky decor style; with sky blues and burnt oranges taking the lead. A large Persian takes centre stage and makes the cafe' cosy. Quint antique cups, right up my ally, add to this vibe.

The cake table is laden with a selection of scrumptious cakes, biscuits, muffins, meringues and scones, as well as chocolate bars, all made on the premises.These can also be purchased to be enjoyed at home. Simply order a day in advance. 

A tip- make sure you plan your route before hitting the road. We got lost and missed out on valuable girl time. Not to worry, know we know how to get there and will definitely be back. 

Ciao. x

Tips for creating features.

Morning guys. Happy Tuesday to you. The weather is positively balmy today! I feel all spring inspired. Are you inspired? Have you started getting your house in shape for the new season? Well, here is some clever inspiration to get you going.

A while back I shared the Ikea 2012 small spaces catalogue with you. One of the elements featured is creating Architectural features. Today I would like to show you some easy ways of doing this.

You might be wondering why this important at all. Well, creating features within a room, that give the impression of being part of the Architecture, gives the room interests, it creates focal points, it ads depth and generally makes the space look 'fancier' or more 'dressed up'.

 Here, a fake mantel is used to create a focal point in a neutral room. The mantel has been touched up a bit, but retains its old world character and style. Paired with a few carefully curated pieces of objet and three empty, antique frames, this vignette becomes a talking point. Giving an otherwise plain room, an element of mystery and surprise.

 A much simpler way of adding interest, is by re purposing old items. These old glass bottles are given a new lease on life by placing old photographs in them. This is a clever alternative to photo frames.

 Creating architectural futures often requires you to think out of the box. Take this oar headboard for example. By simply mounting the oars on a wooden slat at different heights, the room is given an edge. The room could easily look stereotypical with the duck egg blue, stripes and daisies, but the oars add interest in the form of a feature.

 For those of you with studios, craft room or kids, this is just the ticket. Craft supplies can easily look chaotic and messy. Why not incorporate it into the decor? These console glass jars are mounted on wooden slats. The content is colour coded and add texture, rhythm and interest.

 A clever way of adding interest and depth to a plain wall without using wallpaper, is by incorporating frames. Paint them the same colour as the wall and mount them at 'random' angles. Remember: random is never really random. Draw the design out first or lay them on the floor to see how it will appear. Otherwise you might stick them all up, just to realise that the design is out of proportion or off balance.

 Similar to the oars mentioned above, this headboard is made from re purposed wood. The word 'love;' has been painted on it in cursive, bold yellow. A very cost effective way of adding soul and personality to a plain room.

If you are more adventures, consider using an old mantel as a headboard. The mantel is framed by a large mirror. A second smaller, round mirror is placed atop the mantle. This plays with the light and colour in the room. Fracturing images and creating visual interest.

Should you move house, or change your mind later on, all these options are easily changed or altered. No mess, no fuss. It is easy to add features in your space.  You simply need to see old pieces through fresh eyes.

All these images are from this Pinterest page.

Ciao. x

Renovate.

Hi there guys. How was your day? Monday has completely got away from me. It is now 8:25 pm and I am now going to write the post I was planning from this afternoon. Woops. At least I had a productive day. I managed to do a whole bunch of designs and renders for my latest project.

Speaking of designs, I would like to share some visuals with you. I have been helping a lovely lady finding her house's mojo. We started with the flooring. It was a combination of raw concrete, terracotta tiles, dated carpet and laminated wood. I suggested that they replace the whole lot with a powerful combination of Kilimanjaro tiles and carpet. This turned out o be the winning ticket.

They are blessed with a huge kitchen: this is wonderful in terms of space. Yet because of the open plan layout, the space looked huge and intimidating. But, the two of us spent some time in CTM's design studio and designed a tile inset for the kitchen floor. This has given the space a focal point, making the space seem cosier.

Next up was paint. The open plan space was painted in a rich cream, but the paint had been damaged in spots and needed to be redone. Because of the rich, yellow undertones in the tiles, we decided to go with a combination of a very flat beige (Milkochino from Eartcote)h and a moody blue (custom mixed for this project).

I am thrilled with the results. The space now has depth and focus. And wait until you see what is still to come...

Projected...

These are my suggestions going forward. I am so chuffed with what we have achieved so far. Next up is curtaining and lighting and what you see above. I can't wait to see the final product.

Ciao.x

Kamers vol Geskenke!

Morning friends and happy Monday to all of you. I hope you enjoyed your weekend? We had a busy birthday weekend, but today is work, work, work day! I have lots to do for my client and for the new site (big smile). Before I kick off with a gym session (gulp) and start with all this said work, I wanted to share a bit of exciting news with you.

Did you know that it is almost time for Kamers vol geskenke?!

Yup, it is indeed that time of year again. I can't wait to see what new and exciting things will be on display this year. One look at these great images from last year, will have you pre-booking your tickets today.

 Now this looks like an exhibition that I need to see. Can you say 'gorgeous inspiration'?

These images are all courtesy of their facebook page. 
According to their website, 'the ninth Kamers Vol Geskenke 2011 promises to be a colourful celebration of local creativity, innovation and talent. This year the Carousel of Creativity will showcase some 200 stall holders over six inspiration-filled days with the popular event taking place from 25-29 October 2011 at Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West.

From 29 November to 3 December 2011, the Kamers team will bring all the excitement of the local show to Irene in Pretoria, where the new and exciting venue - the Open Window School of Design will showcase local creativity.'

I am looking forward to attending. I have to confess- it will be my first. I will be sure to share my own experience, pics and purchases with you after the event.

Have you guys been? Will you be going this year? Hopefully I will see you there.

Ciao. x

Ending on a high note.

Hey guys! I hope you have had a great week. I'm pretty happy with the week that's past. I was (mostly) productive and even managed to squeeze in some birthday celebrations! Yesterday I celebrated a very special birthday with my hubby. It is his last year as a 'kiddie' (his words, not mine). So in honour of his inner child, I surprised him with an early morning ride on a hot air balloon over Johannesburg.

 It was amazing, with a 25km bird's eye view over JHB, but pretty scary too. Both of us are a it scared of heights.... This was followed by a breakfast at Cafe' Flamingo on the water's edge at the Monte' Casino Bird park.

 We had a super morning, lounging around in the sun, appreciating all nature's beauty and being treated to a 'Flight of Fantasy' bird show. (Worth a visit!)

The park is manicured, gorgeous and the animals are all tame and very well looked after. It was a great day.

Tomorrow is the big shindig with friends- a kiddie party none the less! If I survive all the sugar rush, rides and madness I will be sure to blog about it next week.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Ciao. x

Spring special and le secret revealed!

Hi friends. And a happy Friday to you. I have some good news, just to brighten the day up even more.

Number 1: I can finally reveal what le secret is all about! Drum roll please: drrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Well, of beauty and love is (finally) getting the redesign that I have been talking about and dreaming of for months. It has been a long process, but my designer friend is working on it as we speak. It will still be a while before we go live, but the ball is rolling so to speak. I cannot wait to unveil the masterpiece. :)

And number 2: I am happy to announce that I am offering a bit of a Spring special. Since it is the time for updates, redos, sprucing up and general feather ruffling, I would like to offer all my special followers the first consultation free. Simply make sure you either follow the blog with google, are subscribed to the newsletter or like the facebook page. Any of these will qualify you.

So, if you need any design work, send me a mail to info@ofbeautyandlove.co.za and claim your free consultation. If you would like ano overview of what I offer, view the 'My services' tab above.

Not a fan yet? Well, subscribe, follow or like of beauty and love and you will also qualify for the Spring special. Make sure you tell your friends the good news.

This offer is valid for the whole of September! Don't miss out.

I look forward to hearing from you.
Ciao.

le secret.

Morning friends. I hope you are all firmly tied down, at least if you are in JHB. The August winds might have started a bit late this year, but they sure are putting a lot of effort into the blowing. The wind has been howling non stop for days now. Irritating thought it may be, I actually welcome the wind. It blows away all the dust and grime from the dry winter months and ushers in Spring. Something that I have been anxiously waiting for. :)

Yesterday, I did a bit of a sneaky and mentioned a 'secret' project. Well, I am going to be horrible and mention it again. Only because of these....

http://www.danielas.co.za/

Aren't these macaroons just delectable? I have been doing a bit of research for le secret. And boy, did my research lead me down a gorgeous road. Yesterday I shared all my purple, mauve, violet, magenta, fuchsia and lavender finds with you. Today, I want to share the rest. These are all pure beauty.

Etsy

I love the old world element these books bring. This would look great on a shelf, in a library, in the lounge... basically anywhere.

The perfect palette.

You all know I am a sucker for Paris. As scared as I might be of birds in real life, I love bird ceramics and illustrations. Is this a crowned blue Robin I see?

The perfect palette.

This wedding mood board is whimsical and cute. I love the colours in the Ferris wheel, bunting, icing flags and Ms. Cheri's balloons.

What is it about ccollections? I adore groupings of odd objet. Or shall I call it quirky vignettes? The brightly coloured cotton is as sweet as candy.

Etsy

Tiny purple flowers, nestled in a mass of green. Bring on Spring! 

Etsy

 More old world beauty.

Etsy

 This book heart photography is to die for.

Etsy

 These are to cute for words. I love the colours of the umbrellas. This glass dome reminds me of a mall in Finland. It was -2 degrees outside and the snow lay thickly on the glass. We sat under the dome, admiring the snow while having ice-cream.

Etsy

Paris adorned in Fuchsia. Le sigh...

 You might wonder why all the macaroons? Not only are they delicious, but I am mad about their colours. It is as if you there is a whole range of colours kept exclusively for these.

 This is more or less the palette I amafter for le secret. The only thing missing is a dusty, grape purple. (See the macaroons above.)

 Who would think that Macaroons and Marie Antoinette's shoes came in the same palette. Suddenly the world makes sense again.

 And lastly, my motto/ anthem for Spring: Ms Dior Cherie. I love everything about this image.
The scene: Paris.
The girl: Gorgeous.
The theme: whimsy, ethereal, fun and cute.
The outfit: fab.
The colours: Divine.
What more could you need to inspire you for Spring and le secret?

I have been working towards le secret for quite some time. I suppose it is apt that it should come to fruition in Spring. I cannot wait to share it with you and I promise I will divulge as soon as I can.

Have a lovely day.
Ciao. x
PS- All the Etsy images can be found on my Favourite page on Etsy.