Deco

I am not a big fan of wood. I cannot stand looking at cupboards in dark wood so I have decided to give my kitchen a new makeover with a nice rustic touch. It took two hands of undercoating in a mat white color and two more of soft satin-finish white paint for wood. I did not go for water-based colors because kitchen cupboards often require scrubbing so they need to be durable..

and I liked it very much...

And I have decided to move on to the WC that had once looked horrible:

 after alot of mess....

really alot of mess....

Tadaaaaaa.....

 I think it was worth it!!!!!! And it is actually a tiny 95x190 cm that fiited everything. I have designed the whole thing and it cost around 800 euros in total.

I have also created a small bathroom rag with leftovers from jersey T-shirts.All you need is this plastic net thing that we usually wrap around balconies to keep toddlers from throwing things over! At least that is what I have used. It's cheap and available in many stores. I also added an old curtain underneath to avoid tearing. It looks funky!!

And the newest additions are these:

This year I also tried a different kind of wreath. It gets heavier but looks fab! I used a bjd that I had created earlier, dressed her in a Christmas outfit made from a blouse and gave her an antique looking bike that actually came from a broken toy. I re-painted it red and added small miniature packages and polymere cupcakes from my endless personal collection. They look adorable...

then I put the wreath together making sure everything was well tied in place...

I also added some christmas spirit in the bedrooms since my bjds put on season outfits and went shopping..

Christmas time is a special time of the year for all. I really enjoy spending them around my family. But families grow larger so this year I went for something really BIG...so I gave a try with a gingerbread christmas cake.....with a twist!

I have come up
with the idea
from a promotional
page in Pinterest
with Peggy Porchen's
Christmas ideas
and inspirations for
2017.







Although it
initially looked
hard, it wasn't.


Time consuming,
yes it was!
You need to bake quite a few
gingerbread cookies as you will
need some.
Then prepare the glaze and patiently
glaze them. I have added a helpful
video in the "gift" section
so you can check it out.
Then you stack three cakes.
I think two cakes will also do the
job if you don't want it too
tall.
Alternatively, add two houses
on top to make up for the
third layer of cake.
Your call!
Add marshmallows, candy canes 
and anything else you might find
fitting! I will give it a try next Easter.....stay tuned!

Decorating using fairy lights is easy and inexpensive, plus you get to use all the Christmas light you would otherwise have to store hoping they would still be working next Christmas. Now you can enjoy their warm light anytime...

My personal fav of all times has to be sky blue. It can decorate anything, from offices to kitchens and balconies....even Christmas! This is my office space. An on-going project actually!

Of course I am a firm           
believer that white and
light blue are the
best colours to
use for the summer house.
Even if you are lucky enough
to enjoy it all year round.
(Yes, there are
people that  can do that
or so I have
been told!)

You can add blue hues all 
around the house starting from the entrance to the  rooms, kitchen and even the bathroom. For the brave ones I have some suggestions:

1.Paint the doors and casings a different colour

2. Add cushions

3. Prefer white furniture or
Paint the furniture white.

4. Paint the kitchen cabinets, tiles and closet doors white.
(no matter the material, start with two layers of undercoat in matt finish. Make sure to use the proper undercoat for the type of surface. Then, go for a satin
finish paint. I do not prefer
water-based colours because
they are not durable enough
when it comes to tiles and
scrubbing them clean)

You can paint just about 
anything you do not like.

The best part is the balcony.
Also light blue!

I have discovered
over the years that
proper preperation and
treatment of the surface
you are about to
paint, saves you time
and money. Mostly, time.

Use bold colours and stick
to a two-colour palette.
It's safer!

Besides, it will be alot easier to find curtains, carpets, bed covers, towels and all sorts of decorative objects if your colour palette is not over compicated or overwelming.
Most companies update their lines and you may find yourself having a hard time finding exactly what you need. And because your favorite colours may be discontinued, you may need to buy a couple of soft furnings extra in case you may not be able to find them later on. I used to love kiwi as a colour. I mixed it with pale yellow and touches of peacock green or fuchsia (depending on the season). You can imagine how hard it was to get linen in those colours, let alone bed covers and curtains. I should tell you that it was my favorite colour palette 20 years ago. It may seam easy to find them nowadays or source them on-line. It wasn't so 20 years ago! My husband had great laughs when we went shopping...

Lessons learned.........

and when it comes to my summer house balcony, I only have one suggestion....

When it comes to decorative objects, I like antiques (the real deal) especially chandelliers, candle holders and china.
Everything else I can create using materials I can find around me, extra paint and ideas from (again) Pinterest.

I can paint on walls using a projector pointing an image on the wall. Trace out the basic lines and then paint over. It's easier than it sounds, but then again I have done so many times that it looks easy...

I like earthy colours, they give a sense of serenity. But with Pops O' Colour you can do sooo much more!
Don't be afraid to add logos, quotes or paint over!