Frills 'n' Spills

Moving home is the most stressful thing that Mark and I have done this year. I never knew how much stuff you could cram into a flat until I had to sort through it all! I managed to get rid of about 10 bags of clothes in total and we also managed to declutter all the useful paperwork (a.k.a. Dominos leaflets) that we had accumulated. Our new flat is also a 2 bed flat but it is slightly smaller so we had to be really brutal and use our space more carefully but I'm really pleased by the set up we have now. We have a real mix of furniture and homewares but it really feels like home which I think is the most important thing :) The fact that it is only 10 minutes walk from town and has plenty of room for house parties is just a bonus really! ;)

We had some really lovely cards when we moved in and I didn't want to take them down as they really cheer the place up! This table was in our old lounge but has now been folded down and moved to act as a hall table. I was really pleased to be able to use my shell letter holder too. I picked it up in a charity shop in Stow-on-the-Wold three years ago (!) and I have never really had a home for it until now...

Our living room is one of my favourite rooms, it is so light and bright. It is a really unusual shape as it is on the outside curve of the building but we still managed to fit our furniture in which I am quite impressed by...

I love how bright our footstool and cushions are, they really help to brighten up the magnolia colour scheme! These pictures were a gift to Mark on his 18th birthday and although neither of us have been to New York, we will make it there one of these days...

We are definitely not the minimalist types, every side is filled with knick knacks, photos and far too many owl trinkets- what can I say, I am obsessed! This canvas was a gift from my parents last Christmas as me and my sisters loved the one that they had in their kitchen and so we all got one for Christmas which I love. It also reminds me of all the good times we had in Rome too which is no bad thing...

Buttercup, our cow canvas was a birthday git from my friend Matilda to make up for the fact that we had to leave the cows behind when we moved- isn't she lovely?! My parents have always been fans of Ercol furniture and I have inherited their love of the clean lines and 1960s shapes, even if Mark isn't so keen!

We unwittingly managed to create a turquoise theme throughout our house and even the ironing board matches! Until I sort the spare room out, this is the closest thing I have to a library corner and now we have a footstool over here (ILU Tiger!) I couldn't be happier to curl up with a good book!

Our balcony is probably the best part about our new flat and although the view is slightly less pretty than our old one, the novelty still hasn't worn off! 

Our new kitchen is lovely and we even have a DISHWASHER which is the most exciting news ever. Hooray for snazzy kitchen appliances!

Ahem. We will brush over this room as it is our current dumping ground and graveyard for all of our empty boxes. I will sort it out at some point, I promise...!

Our bedroom is my favourite room in the house- it is absolutely huge and has enough built in wardrobe space to fit all of my clothes in which is a minor miracle! We also have an en suite which I love- I have been properly spoilt with this room!

God bless IKEA and their wonderful storage solutions, I don't know how we would store my shoes otherwise!

How do you make a rented property feel like home?

You know I can't resist fun accessories and when Out There Interiors offered to send me something from their website, I couldn't resist. I have worked with them before and as I was so impressed last time I knew I was onto a good thing! I had a pretty hard time choosing what I wanted to review until I saw this wonderful mannequin. I have always wanted one but never had the space until now so when I saw it, I couldn't order it quickly enough! I was super excited when she arrived and Maisie (as I have christened her) is happily ensconced in the corner of my living room. 

She arrived in a big box in pieces which Mark and I put together on Friday night (who says I don't know how to party?!) Thank goodness my Grandad takes in my parcels for me as the 2 ft tall box this came in would never have fitted in our letterbox!

It has been just over a year since Mark and I moved into our flat and although I promised some more photos I never got round to it! We have managed to make the flat out own in the past year or so and I thought now was a good time to share a few more photos. As we are only renting, we can't change too much so accessories are the only way we can introduce some personality into an almost entirely magnolia flat....

Since last year we have swapped our turquoise sofa for something a bit more tasteful and stuck to bright cushions to lift the grey colour slightly...

These photos were a birthday present from our friends for Mark's 18th, we clubbed together to buy the two on the left and I bought the final one in the set. We have never been to New York but it is definitely on our list of places to visit!

I'm sure you know by now that I am a massive fan of owls and my parents gave me these cuties for Christmas. They live on top of our TV guarding my selcetion of trashy TV box sets....

I love unusual glassware and the Russian doll carafe was inspired by Helen at Afeitar. I found these two bottles at a jumble sale a few years ago and I love the fact that they have a proper place to live now, rather than being shuttled back and forth in boxes to uni! You can also see the little terracotta owls which my mum bought me, they are supposed to bring good luck and are another beloved owl trinket! 

The lamp itself is pretty heavy as it is made from porcelain but apparently you can mount it on a wall ( I haven;t been that brave!) The lamp has been getting a lot of love and you can see why, I couldn't be happier with it! 

I am a big fan of the BBC Food website and when I saw this recipe featured last week, I knew what I was making this weekend! I have to say, I used shop bought pastry (boo hiss!) as I find it impossible to make [blame my warm hands!] but I bet it would taste even better if you made your own...