Mix match fine dining set for the impoverished (kinda)

Image from Martha Stewart, Gold-edge eggcup and butter dish, Legle Limoges. "Constance" bread-and-butter plate (below eggcup), sugar bowl, and coffeepot, Bernardaud. "Illusion" teacup, saucer, and dessert plate in endive, Haviland. "Derby Panel Green" bread-and-butter plate (with knife), dinner plate, and vegetable dish (with flowers), Royal Crown Derby. "Olivia" tumbler, Juliska. "Fairfax" silverware, Gorham.

Many of us these days cannot afford the $400-500 price tag for a gorgeous dinnerware set.

I so want to have pretty plates too, but because I don't have affordability, I only can gaze and lust.

But I have been inspired to a different, yet as enchanting end!



Two gorgeous plates here, two fine bowls there and suddenly you have a mixy-matchy-but-still-an-expensive-set look that is cohesive!

Now let's see. I have my beloved white Heritage White by Johnson Bros set gathered through the years.

Image from Replacements

I've been on the constant search for a contrasting pattern in pinks or yellows to liven things up. Any suggestions?

I've also found this gorgeous photo below:

Image from Style Me Pretty

How sweet is this?

I think I'll go hunt for two pieces of this and two of that, just because two pieces of good china, I should be able to afford.

Oooh! I just found this image and had to share! I thought I'd leave you with this extremely striking dinner setting. I love the green tablecloth and the vibrant oranges!

Image via Rex and Regina

According to interior designer Martha Angus, the tablecloth is actually remnants of de Gournay wallpaper, draped over a classic Parsons table.

I have to get meself some of that verdant green tablecloth!

Update (a few days after preparing this blogpost):

Oh Hang On! Today I found in my forgotten stash of fabric this gorgeous verdant green silk fabric remnant. Not large enough for a tablecloth, it makes for a striking table runner! But I allowed myself an hour of play with my china, trying to decide on shape and pattern of the contrasting china I'm hunting for:

Sorry about the un-ironed fabric, this was just play after all!

Instead of a setting for tea after dinner, I tried preparing a setting for coffee instead, with one of my favourite black and white polkadot coffee sets. I maintained my Johnson Bros saucer underneath it all just to maintain the octagon shape.



I had another two patterns to try out... both were pretty!





I think of all the options available to me, I preferred the Royal Albert Serena above the others.



But what of just coffee and cake?



Or coffee and ice cream or apple and rhubarb crumble?



I had fun playing and know at least, I want a round contrasting plate for my setting. I also know I definitely want to source some pretty dark green fabric.

Do you have photos of your pretty fine china to share?

Halle Berry's ex-gorgeous tiny palace

Halle Berry bought this small jewel in Beverly Hills in 2001. She recently sold it, but what a romantic Mediterranean-style place! Small by Hollywood standards, it boasts only 2 bedrooms and 2 baths but oh so beautifully and simply put together.

According to the sale listing (Already sold), Ms Berry's pied-à-terre is a "one-of-a-kind rustic & private Old-World Mediterranean graced by magnificent gardens, fountains, al fresco dining & seating areas, fire pit and sumptuous stone spa in a verdant canyon setting. The vibe is majestic, yet casual with vaulted heavy wood-beamed ceilings, wide-planked wood floors, detailed custom-made ironwork, stone-carved fireplaces, a dramatic staircase, banks of French doors/windows & a master suite tub carved out of stone."

Enjoy!

Front entrance

Inside

And out the back door:

Images from Hooked on Houses

My new tacklehug doll

My husband runs the coffee cart at the local farmers market held here once a month and because I'm the official baby sitter, I get to spend hours there. I do my rounds around the market and believe me it's hard to keep my pennies in my pocket.

But this time I got to spend AUD$35 on Milly.

Milly's my new Tacklehug doll. I don't normally like dolls. I find them creepy, particularly the real-looking-dolls. But this doll was charming, un-scary-whatsoever (and that's saying a lot!) and utterly enchanting.

Meet Milly:

Let's be clear. Milly's not for play. It's for me. To grace my bed.

I did a Google search for Tacklehug and I found her blog!!

So now I can happily share with you her ETSY SHOP!!! No tacklehug dolls yet but I can start pestering her!

Meet Milayna and Sydney:

Image taken from tacklehug's blog

Esp since my daughter loves my Milly, I might have to buy her one of her own! At only $35, it's a great Christmas present for your loved ones! Contact Tacklehug via her Etsy store... I know she doesn't have her dolls on her Etsy store, but trust me, I met three or four of her other creations!

Bedroom: sleeping or....?

Aren't these bedrooms gorgeous??













Room. Space. Big windows. Bathtub in space. Big windows. Big wardrobes. Big space. Big chairs. Big ottoman. Big desk. Big secretaire. Big windows.

But.

Recently I've come to realise that because my husband is the "bedroom is only for sleeping and I can only sleep in total darkness and silence", that our bedrooms from now on will always only be for sleeping.

So really all we need is this:



(But I prefer to have plenty of room around the bed to make the bed!)

Maybe a tad more space .... just this!



Not TV watching or reading or writing... all the things I love doing in bed!

Oh well. I give those things up for him... for me, I'll need a room just for dressing up and a large walk-in closet/change room.

Green Interior Design ala Lori Dennis

I received a lovely email from fellow blogger and award-winning interior designer Lori Dennis.

Images from Lori Dennis' website

She is soon to release a book worth reading: Green Interior Design. I must remember to get it from Amazon this Christmas :)

Images from Amazon

Promising to be a beautiful book with gorgeous photos, projects and extensive resources who practice green behavior and business strategies. Of course, Lori includes plenty of inspirational and cost-effective tips to creating glamorously green interiors in almost every aspect of creating a beautiful house and home, from furniture and accessories, window treatments, fabrics, surface materials, appliances, plumbing fixtures to the outdoor living.

Images from Lori Dennis' website

Make sure you tour Lori Dennis' home!

Images from Lori Dennis' website

Lori shared some simple and zero-cost eco-green tips for us all:

1. Clean often (and vacuum) with non toxic products. That layer of dust in your home includes dead skin from humans and pets (no so bad) and a breakdown of walls, fabrics, paints, plastics which probably contain carcinogens. This is why interior air is often more harmful than exterior air. Keeping it clean is one of your best Green Interior Design strategies. A proper green clean arsenal includes:
• white vinegar, baking soda, peroxide and rags for cleaning
• vegetable oil with a few drops of lemon for polishing
• a hefty portion of elbow grease

2. Remove shoes when entering your home. You wouldn’t believe how many toxins your shoes pick up from the streets, driveways and gardens. Taking off shoes before entering a home helps to prevent these chemicals from coming inside. Yay, being from Malaysia, I'm glad I was brought up taking shoes off at the door and keep it to this day even in Australia.

3. Open the windows and let the sunshine in. Sunlight is a natural disinfectant. Even if you live in an apartment, you can place pillows, blankets and mattresses in front of an open window to allow solar rays and fresh air to help sanitize them.
It’s a lot easier than steam cleaning them too! Yes I can't stand being in homes where the windows are always closed, four seasons, 365 days around. Sunshine is the best feeling. While I don't like being in the sun directly, I almost NEED sunshine in the home. I also don't like using a dryer. I much prefer the sun beating down on my linen. I love whitening my white linens with sunshine rays. Beats harmful bleaches.

4. Reuse what you already have. If you are inspired by a space you see in a magazine, look around your home or office. What pieces do you have that are a similar look, scale, color? Arrange existing items in the same way as the magazine spread. You’ll be amazed by how you old things take on a fresh, new look.

Images from Lori Dennis' website

5. Next time you’re going to buy cut flowers, consider a flowering plant instead. If you take care of it, it can last for decades. An added bonus is that plants help to clean the air and produce oxygen. Gerber Daisies, Peace Lilies and Bamboo are cool looking plants that do this well. Studies have shown that plants improve your mood. Market cut flowers are expensive and usually grown with copious amounts of petrochemical pesticides, insecticides and herbicides, plus they often travel across continents to get to you. That’s a lot of poison production and wasted energy.

6. If you really want or need something entirely new, comb through what you have. Sell something that you aren’t using on Craigslist or at a yard sale to offset the cost of the new item. Preferably buy the “new” item used. One man’s trash is another’s treasure.

7. If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down. Arid states like California are familiar with this drought time slogan. In an attempt to use less water only flush when absolutely necessary- or when guests arrive. Yes. hehehehe we have done this for years hahahaha

Images from Lori Dennis' website

Shoe storage

I want to share something very close to my heart with you, my precious blog readers.

I've grown to love shoes.

Not mine, of course. From Bust Clutter

In a oh-dear way.

Since slowly falling in love with shoes, I have garnered a few pairs. But most of these shoes have to be piled on top of one another in a most unappealing fashion, either on an everyday-use, by-the-door rack or in their boxes above our closet.

I'd like to display some of my shoes... as chic-style storage. (Also so I remember what I have!)

I have some criteria for my shoe storage:
1. Must be chic
2. Must be practical
3. Must fit into current space requirements (until we have bought a house and have a walk in closet)
4. Must be something easy to maintain for my less than neat household
5. Must be portable

So while I'd love these shoe storage solutions:

Via Apartment Therapy

Via House to Home

I have to admit to space and budget requirements... and these are at the top of my choices:

Via Living Etc

Via House to Home

Via House to Home

Via Deliciously Organised

Via Apartment Therapy

Now this is also nice!