Things I'm Loving Around Our Home...

Today I thought I'd share with you a few bits and pieces around our home that are making me happy right now...

This sweet vintage children's book illustration was initially purchased for Sophie's bedroom. However, the more and more I looked at it, the more it seemed suited to Grace.  And so before Christmas, I had Paul hang it in our big girl's room above her bedside table.

Grace is a huge animal lover.  One of her favourite weekend outings is a visit to the pet store with her Daddy.  Upon returning home, she tells me about all the animals she got to see, the python being the one that seems to intrigue her the most.  As I tuck her in each night and catch a glimpse of the picture above, it really does make me smile and I know its found the perfect spot in her room.   

For Christmas, Paul bought me a Tivoli Audio Model One radio, something I have had on my wishlist for a long time.  I love it!  Taking up a prominent position on our kitchen bench, it looks great, has amazing sound quality and I love being able to switch it on each morning as I make my first cup of tea for the day.

On the topic of tea, this new brand I picked up before Christmas from a health food store hasn't disappointed.  While it was its cute packaging that initially drew me to it, it also tastes delicious, so nice in fact that I find I'm not as eager to reach for an accompanying sweet treat, instead preferring to enjoy its taste alone.

Is there something new in your home currently making you happy?

On The Hunt For...

For the past two weeks I've had intentions of visiting the local Sunday morning swap meet but things have popped up that have stopped me from going. Fingers crossed I can go for a browse tomorrow (if I can work up the motivation to head outdoors in the chilly morning weather). Paul has had a big day today so I'm sure if I sneak out with Grace, he'll appreciate the sleep in. There are a few things I’m on the hunt for at the moment, certain pieces to add touches of character to our place and to help create that homely feel. Here's some examples of treasures I'd love to find...



One thing I'd love to get for Grace's room is a little open shelf display similar to the one above. Young children always collect bits and pieces and I'd love something to be able to display all Grace's little trinkets and treasures on and where she could change little collections around as she pleases.



Next on my radar are some little glass bottles to use as vases. I often save old jars for this purpose but something cute like the bottle above would be lovely to put a single bloom in. I like to have small arrangements like this dotted in different spots around the house or on the table when I am entertaining.



A few weeks ago, Grace snuck into our pantry and broke my salt shaker. It was never really my style anyway so I wasn't overly fussed and now I have the excuse to look for some cute salt and pepper shakers. Mum has some tiny ones from my grandparent's house which I love. Hopefully I can find something similar one day.



Last up, I'm looking for old, decorative picture frames which I will possibly paint white. I love the detail in the one above and the way it is still a simple design.

Sometime in the next few months, we're planning a little holiday down south where I'm looking forward to browsing in the various country town antique shops so if I don't find something at the markets, fingers crossed they can be found on other travels.

What treasures do you mainly hunt for at second hand stores or flea markets?

If you wish to purchase any of the items above, you can visit their Etsy stores:

#1 dovetailvintage #2 AMradio #3 Midwest Finds #4 Maude and Lola #5 AMradio

New Things Around Our Home

We haven't really done a lot of renovating or decorating around our place recently. Between me not feeling as energetic as usual and most of our focus being on our outdoor project, my decorating enthusiam disappeared for a bit. However, in the last few weeks, I've been getting excited about homely projects again as we plan on making changes to Grace's room, have talked about perhaps renovating our main bathroom and as I begin picturing in my head how our new nursery will look.

So today I'm sharing with you a few smallish additions to our home I've made over the last week. In the top photo is the new front doormat I bought on the weekend. As we walked out of the house on Monday Grace remarked 'nice doormat'. Apparantly it's very hardwearing and can be 'hosed off' if it gets grubby.




Today I added the second little frame above to my laundry which is an Irish blessing I found on a Tumblr page. I still don't know if this the right spot for it but for now it fills in the space a bit. As for the ugly security screen, I'm hoping to sew a simple curtain to cover this window soon and hopefully my little pot plant will eventually grow bigger to hide the power point a bit more.

The bottom artwork in a simple Ikea frame I especially love. It is a sketch of a scene in Holland by my Pop who was a draughtsman by profession. I never met my Pop but I had a few of his sketches in my family tree file and thought it might be nice to frame one. I know my Dad would have loved to have seen this up on our wall.

How about you? Have you made and little additions to your home lately?

On My Table

On Friday night, one of my best friends Kylie gave me a belated birthday present which I absolutely love. It is a gorgeous Willow pattern teacup and saucer which has been recycled into a soy candle and it smells absolutely divine. It has found its new home on our kitchen table along with some flowers still going strong from the other night.

I love that this candle has been fashioned from something someone no longer wanted or needed. It's wonderful that people can find creative uses to reuse old bits and pieces. Do you own something that has been 'recycled' in a similar way or been adapted to find a new use?

A Few New Things

Early this morning, Grace and I headed off to the church fete I blogged about during the week. Unfortunately, when I arrived, I discovered I’d left Grace’s pram at home and which meant browsing was a bit difficult with Grace ‘on the loose’ so all I managed to scoop up was a pot plant and some cakes. Hopefully I’ll have more luck at the upcoming craft fair. Seeing as I didn’t have any finds from this morning to post about, I thought I’d share a few new bits and pieces around our home.



One new addition is a cute antique Bentwood chair we bought for our entryway. I’ve been on the search for one to use as a resting spot for some time and had envisaged discovering a chair on the roadside or at a garage sale. About a month ago when we were browsing through some antique shops in North Fremantle, this one caught my eye and so a fortnight ago, I asked Paul to drive past the shop again thinking that if there were any left ‘it was meant to be’. Sure enough two remained and we bought one which I love. It has nice detailing on the seat and is perfect for the little empty space next to our front door.



Also, during the week, my lovely cushion I won in Deb’s giveaway arrived. She is very clever making something so beautiful and I really can’t decide where in my home it looks best – at the moment it’s on the armchair in our study where I think it complements my patchwork cushion nicely. I was really surprised when I won Deb’s giveaway as coincidentally, only the week before, she had won mine.



Finally, not related to homewares but new nonetheless is this floral summery dress I bought yesterday. I had errands to run and was on a tight schedule but this dress caught my eye in a shop window as I walked past. It is not something I would usually wear as my wardrobe consists more of neutrals and plain colours but I’ve decided I need to step out of my comfort zone a bit when it comes to fashion. As it was, I won forty dollars on a scratchie my Mum bought me last weekend so I figured I’d spend my winnings on this new item of clothing.

Hope you’re all enjoying the weekend. I have a quiet night planned of catching up on all your blogs and reading my book.

Vintage Etsy Envy

In keeping with the 'Vintage Modern' label I have decided suits the decorating style I am aiming for in our home, I am always on the lookout for a pre-loved treasure at thrift shops, antique stores and flea markets. Lately, I've stumbled across so many vintage pieces on Etsy I would love to decorate with. However, postage for these is usually within the US only and international shipping for such items probably wouldn't be practical anyway.

Fortunately for me, there's an annual jumble sale at a little church nearby where my mother-in-law always manages to nab a bargain, so on Saturday morning, I'll be going for a browse and hopefully find some treasures. Also, an upcoming Craft and Antique Fair in Perth is also home this year to the Polka Dot Vintage Market so I'm hoping to go for a look at that later in the month too.

For now, I'll share with you the Etsy pieces that have caught my eye...

Image #1 unknown
Images #2 & #3 AMradio

Image #4 harmoniepark

Images #5 & #6 ethanollie

Treasures From Nanna

Last week, my 89 year old Nanna moved out of her unit and into an aged care facility. While her mind is still active, sadly her knees aren’t what they used to be and several falls have led to this move. I’ve always been close to my Nanna and when I was teaching in the same suburb where she lived, I’d often call in on my way home from work to have a cuppa with her. These days she looks forward to my visits even more as I have Grace in tow who always brightens her day.

We visited my Nanna last weekend in her new home and I have to admit, I left feeling a bit sad. While the new place she’s staying at is lovely (it’s a brand new facility), I knew that our visits wouldn’t quite be the same again. Grace didn’t seem to mind though and discovered Nanna’s stash of lollies within the first few minutes. I’m hoping when we visit her today, she is more settled in.

My sister and cousin and I have each chosen a collection of pieces from Nanna's house. It is my Nanna who I like to think I got my love of all things homely from and I’m very excited with the items I’ve inherited as they are all pieces I love and will use and which will all bring back memories of happy times.

Do you have any pieces from an elderly relative that have sentimental meaning to you?

French Inspired

Here in our house, one of the things we like to watch on these cold wintery nights is the Tour de France. Paul enjoys watching the cycling while I admire all the beautiful scenery and historic buildings. So today I thought I’d share some French related items and images that have caught my eye…

By the way, those macaroons above are actually soaps!! I thought they were very realistic looking when I first spotted them.

Top photograph available for purchase from here

Images sources: #2 #3 #4 #5 #6

Weekend 'Window' Shopping

I was all set to do an ANZAC Day post over the long weekend but instead, tried to stay off the computer and use the time to rest.

I did squeeze in a little bit of browsing time on the Not On The High Street website though as I was on the hunt for some wooden printer’s block style letters. I would love to buy some of the blocks in the first image to spell out the word ‘home’ for the console table in our entryway (if only postage from the UK to Australia were cheaper!!) I’m wondering if I can make something similar myself.

I could spend hours browsing on this online store – there are so many lovely products. Below are a few things that caught my eye…









Don't forget to enter my giveaway on this post to win a copy of the book 'Recipe For a Happy Life' if you haven't already. I'll be drawing the winner on Saturday evening...

All images from here

Lovely Homewares Store

Have you ever been in a store and thought you could easily buy everything in sight? A store with so many lovely items for sale you don’t quite know where to look first? For me, one such store is Needle In Provence, a quaint little homewares store tucked away in the Kalamunda village.

Every now and then I like to take a drive out that way and head for this gorgeous store to see what new treasures they have. This shop sources the most beautiful pieces and there are always several things that catch my eye in the window before I even set foot in the store. Here are a few photos from my last visit…