Welcome To The Street...

What a lovely welcome we've had from the neighbours in our new street!! After the container arriving on the front foot path last week, I wasn't sure we would be the most popular people in the street however, I was wrong. Over the weekend we found a lovely card in our mail box from the neighbours next door and to my huge excitement this morning, Joy from over the road arrived at our front door with a humongous bag of fresh limes which she had just picked from her lime tree. I immediately pulled out one of the baskets we will be selling in the new shop, threw the limes in it and placed it on our dining table. What a nice feeling it is to be living in such a lovely, quiet street with kind people all around us!!

The Ship Has Landed

The 40 foot container arriving at the front of our house earlier this week.

I don't think our new neighbours could believe their eyes seeing us unpacking the container in the front of our house!






Here are a few of the pieces which I had to place inside our house as our storage facility is overflowing!

We've had a very exciting week with the arrival of our beautiful Stuart Membery furniture from Bali. I first visited Stuart at his divine home in Bali late last year at which time we put together a stunning collection of his furniture for our store. We are so thrilled to be launching Stuart's furniture in Australia at Black & Spiro on our re-opening night in a couple of weeks time. The quality of the pieces is outstanding and I must admit I am going to find it very hard not to keep a few things for our new house!! Stuart will be making a very special trip down from Bali to be present at our re-opening night and will also be in the shop the next day to talk to our customers about his beautiful pieces we are now stocking. We have lots of work to do in the coming weeks. I'll be sure to keep you all up-to-date as everything unfolds.

xx

Anna

PS. Stuart's furniture will be available for purchase in our store from the 22nd July, 2010. For all enquiries, please call our office.

Clever Gambrel

Another lovely home by Steven Gambrel. Imagine sitting there on the water's edge like that. So gorgeous.

My Life Right Now

My life has been pretty hectic with the arrival of little Max. The life I knew which was that of a working woman with one child, a husband and 2 dogs has changed. I used to purchase my favourite magazines and be able to sit down on the sofa and read them that night. I used to have time to do my own thing. But not these days.

I have had the new Country Style magazine sitting on my bedside table now for a few days and I haven't even had the chance to open it.

I actually glanced at my bedside table tonight and thought I would take a photo of it to show you.

It consists of the Country Style magazine which I am dying to open. It also consists of that pink fabric which, even though I had ordered the yellow colourway on Friday, I changed it today to the pink. I don't usually change my mind once I've made my mind up - what is happening to me? It also consists of a book I purchased on Amazon which I think is very applicable to my life right now - Just Let Me Lie Down Necessary Terms for the Half-Insane Working Mom by Kristin van Ogtrop. I also love the colour of it's cover. Today Harry made me the origami swans which you can see sitting there. I love them. Brad and Harry brought me in a bowl of Harry's favourite treat - ice-cream with coke bottle lollies on top just now to try to cheer me up. It worked.

I'm sure tomorrow will be better. Tomorrow our container full to the brim of Stuart Membery furniture will be arriving on our doorstep. Tomorrow is going to be a very exciting day.

xx
Anna

Friday Flowers

It's been a while since I have posted some Friday Flowers. Mum arranged this foliage for me last weekend and in amongst our lovely old garden we found a passion fruit vine so we picked some and plonked them in another vase as above. I'm planning on a quiet weekend pottering around the new house. Hope you have a lovely weekend.

xx

Anna

Absolutely In Love With...

I am always on the hunt for new, exciting, beautiful fabrics as fabric is my starting point for the rooms/homes I design. We have just received some absolutely beautiful new fabrics in and I must admit I am completely smitten with this orchid fabric. My favourite colourway is this one above but it doesn't work with my current wall colour at the new house. As painting the house {which is going to be a mamouth cost} is not yet on the agenda I am going to have to work with the existing colours which are all very heritage!! So I am going to cover a couple of old chairs I have in the yellow colourway which you can see peeping through underneath...it's very beautiful too but that pink is just to die for, don't you think?!!

Birkdale House Circa 1888

We enjoyed a lovely first weekend in our new house. Family and friends dropped in all weekend. Lots of wine and fabulous food cooked by my brother, Sam and my friend Annie was consumed. Brad has become obsessed with lighting the fireplaces and cutting the wood perfectly with his new axe. My mother is transfixed with all the wonderful things in my new {old} garden. She created a couple of wonderful arrangements. For me the house has all of those things I associate with my dream house...fireplaces, claw foot baths, big verandahs, large block of land, lovely swimming pool, history, a name, a wonderful garden . This is the place we will stay with our beautiful boys for a very, very long time and if Brad has his way, we will never move. I am looking forward to my new project which will probably keep my busy for the rest of my life!!