Goodbye 2010, a big 'Hello' to 2011!

Hello everyone!

I've been quite a lousy blogger the last couple of weeks. My posts have been infrequent and I've barely checked in on the other sites I so love to visit.

It's been an insanely busy downward spiral towards the end if this year for me, with trips to George for a wedding and a recent small holiday to Pretoria and Johannesburg. Work has not been without it's ups and downs, and in the interior design business things are always chaotic at the end of the year. (Why oh why does everyone want everything done by Christmas but only realise this at the end of October?)

But now I'm at home and loving the lazy days of summer. It's also been great showing the parents around town this past week. I've come to realise that there are teeny little towns all over the Western Cape (and probably also across the country) that have wonderfully creative spirits selling the most beautiful and unique products. Oh yes, and I really want to live in pretty small town like Riebeek Kasteel.

As is the custom with The Holidays, over indulging has been a big problem for me in the last 2 weeks. Firstly, I always receive either chocolates or cookies or nougat as pressies, then there is not only the Christmas lunch, but also all the left overs! Days of eating gammon and turkey and potato salad really does take it's toll on the waistline. Not to mention the trifle - and my trifle really was a winner this year! I'll share the recipe in a follow up post, you will not be disappointed! I believe that Christmas is not truly Christmas without a good trifle, and (sadly)therefore only make it for Christmas, once a year.

As the final hours of 2010 are ticking away, let's bid farewell to a year that has had it's Good, Bad and Ugly bits. A New Year always has the promise of great things ahead, and I for one am planning lots of changes, new adventures and fun times. Above all, let's make it a creative and inspiring year!

Enjoy the celebrations, don't drink and drive and travel safely!

Thought for today...

Random Prettiness

I bought a new dress on Saturday. It's blue and pink and has flowers and a bit of lace and even a bit of roughing. When I asked the fiance what he thought of said new dress he had 2 responses: "It looks like everything else in your cupboard" and "You seem to be going for all this cute housewife with frills stuff".

Huh?

Firstly, it's nothing like anything in my cupboard thank you very much. And secondly, it's romantic! I admit, I am drawn to anything in soft hues with lace and buttons and frills. Dresses are my current weakness. And pretty sandals and flowers in my hair and pink cheeks.

Currently, I love being a girl, that's all!

Love your planet

I'm not sure if you can see the trailer clearly - but it's helluva cute. I took this pic on my brief visit to Rocking the Daisies. The dude was trying to reverse the cute trailer into the camp, and I have to say that is the only way I would ever attempt camping ever again. I've had my fair share of tents, uneven ground, blow up matresses that always lose their air, icy cold evenings and the sleeping bag that just doesn't cut it. Ablution blocks are the worst - if there are any I might add.

But it was all in the name of fun and at least now I can laugh about those experiences (altough I was ready to do something seriously illegal back then because it meant I would al least have a jail cell to sleep in that night and not a crappy tent - yes, I am that against it).


Wouldn't you go camping if you had a funky trailer like this one?

Eight at Spier

I've lived in Cape Town now just short of 4 years. And - shockingly yes - I have never been to Spier Estate outside Stellenbosch. I've heard great things about Moyo, with the face painting and African drums and pots full of food. I've been told about the rolling hills and impeccable lawns and deli food and picnics and pond and ducks.

But, still I had not been. I've always had this feeling that Spier was a very commercial estate. tour buses and African crafts. No thanks.

Until a few weeks ago that is.

I am part of a monthly wine club, a very informal affair. We visit a different wine farm every month, and some time ago it was Mr M's chance to organise. And so we ended up at Spier.

Very briefly: the Barrel Thief wine tasting is worth it. Our host, Jacqui, taught as many new things about the tasting and preserving of wine, and was a hoot to boot.

Then on to the new restaurant of the estate: Eight. A purely organic, recycled restaurant with the concept of "from the farm to the table". But there is nothing 'platvloers' about this place!


We started with *heart* shaped boards filled with freshly baked bread, salted butter, olive oil and Balsamic vinegar. Then, even before really taking in the menu, espresso cups filled with butternut, honey and ginger soup for everyone. And it was a chilly morning, so it was perfect!


The glasses at Eight are made from recycled glass (that's my ice tea there - so delicious!). So are the light fittings, made from plastic bottles by the incredible Heath Nash.

Ladies and Gentleman, above you see the piece de resistance: Hot chocolate. A steaming cup of full cream milk, with a whole heap of Lindt chocolate shavings for you to stir in and make the perfect cup of heaven.

Sorry - the food was so good I forgot to take a pic. I had roasted pork belly on braised veggies and roast potatoes. Yum. There is no menu - only a travelling black board. See, depending on what they can source from the farm, it all dictates the menu. Everyone at the table raved about their options (from fish cakes to pork belly to chicken pie and more) and everything was reasonably priced. The average lunch was about R65 each.

I *loved loved loved* the interiors. Open, welcoming, innovative and damn beautiful. The interiors are a great blend of rustic and sleek, recycled and new.

Well worth a visit. Even 2.

Latest, and best to date, Visi issue

The latest issue of Visi is out, and you really should get your hands on it. Really.
The cover alone is simply amazing, with gloss detail and bumpy stuff over the statue. You'll have to see and feel it to see what the hell I'm talking about.

The last couple of issues were disappointing. I know I shouldn't say this out loud, but it was. I think there was a new editor, and they tried new things. Which didn't work. The collector's edition (50th issue) was trying to hard to be something special, it fell flat on it's face.

But now with number 51 Visi have redeemed themselves. Fully! Every single page is beautiful, filled with relevant info, pretty pics and GREAT locations.

The cover shot is by the utterly brilliant Dook, and can you believe is in Johannesburg? I won't say anymore, just that the building is filled with fantastic art, the structure itself is gorgeous and on my next visit to Johannesburg I most certainly want to get in there!

Get hold of your own Visi number 51 and enjoy. Promise you will not be disappointed.

Calendar from Visi

I love free stuff. Especially when it's from Visi, because it's bound to be good!

This clever *free* calendar pulls in your friend's birthdays from Facebook and adds them all in. Then, voila, the pretty calendar is emailed to your inbox. Print it out (A3) or just set to your desktop like me.

Go on, what are you waiting for? Go to the Visi site here and have some fun.

Thought for the day

Like sand in the hourglass...

Nope, it's not the Days of Our Lives! :) I've been spotting these gorgeous hourglasses in some shops, but really I'm looking for these with coloured sand in them. Anyone spotted them somewhere? The Space in Cavendish has white ones, these sexy black ones are from Cecile and Boyds.

I spotted lime green ones in a pic the other day, would love to own a set!

Right now, the week's time has run out (yippee!) and it's the weekend. I hope it's a relaxing one for everyone!

Overwhelmed

I have been slightly overwhelmed with work for the last 2 weeks or so - thus taking an unexpected (and not voluntary) vacation from blogging. It always gets extremely busy this time of the year, with clients wanting to get everything ready before the end of the year.

I have also been keeping myself very busy with some wedding planning and making of invites (not my wedding though) and hope to share these with you soon.

Some other things I have been up to that are worth mentioning:

• Sitting and sleeping (bliss!) on my sexy new couch
• Wondering about a paint colour for my bedroom - I am tempted to make it a DIY long weekend and start by painting the bedroom. It's long overdue
• Sleeping under my handmade quilt. Yes, moi can stitch! It's not finished (I still need to tidy the edge) but I love it already
• Been on the lookout for a nice shaggy silver rug. Why are they so expensive? :(
• Enjoyed a wonderful Sunday at Spier and lunched at the new Eight restaurant - so worth a visit!
• Mastered the art of hand embossing envelopes - It's not that difficult and the end result is worth it.

It's going to be rollercoaster ride until the end of the year, but then it's holiday! Yippee! I'm already counting the days...

Have to share

I love this collection of pretty fabrics displayed in embroidery hoops. Notice the way the fabrics are grouped together by colour and fade from blue to green to yellow to red and pinks? Beautiful!

I remember my mom doing cross stitch and using one of these hoops - I thought it was the best invention ever!

Image via The Purl Bee

Best of the Catalogues

New Season = new catalogues! With Spring officially here (although I'm not sure if Mother Nature got the memo - Cape Town is a little chilly this morning), I for one love to add a bit of colour in my apartment and accesorise with fun things. Perfect to chase away the winter blues.

I'm sad to say that the various catalogues are not all the exciting, except for @home. Woolies and Mr Price have loads of lovely glasses, plates, linen and that sort of thing. For vases I always head to Woolies first though.

Here are just a few of my favourites from the @home catalogue...

Maybe because my big brother is a pilot, but I love these bookends for R250.

This screen is perfect for hiding my desk inthe lounge, which is always overflowing with bits of paper and ribbon and odds and ends. At R1100, not badly priced either.

The yellow coat rack would look perfect in my entrance against the grey blue walls!

The sun is coming up earlier, setting later. The days are warmer and the birds are singing. Summer is on it's way darlings!

Surprise Surprise

I was surprised by Boardmans this weekend - and in a good way! M and I hit the shops on Saturday in search of the prefect couch. Well, perfect within budget that is.

For weeks now I have frequented the same shops, hoping they have new stock or a sale. You see, the comfy couches I liked were way out of my budget, and the ones that were in my budget were just down right ugly. Or too small.

Then, on another mission to find dining chairs, I said "Let's just go and look at Boardmans". Not thinking for a minute I have any better luck. Ha! They had a bit of a revamp, wouldn't you know?

M and I fell in love with a certain grey couch the minute I lay on it, and even more so after I heard the price. Tada! I was sold! Or, the couch was. ;) It's being delivered today (so excited!) and finally it feels like my little flat is coming together. I've lived there for over 3 years, but never really put in any effort.

I've decided not to post any pics until the transformation is complete, I'm hoping to have it all done and dusted in the next month or so.

As the couch was quite a bit less than what I had expected to pay, I indulged and grabbed the Arco lamp. Designed by Achille Castiglioni (that's him in the pic with the Arco lamp) in 1962, I love how this piece has survived just about 50 years and is still used in stylish homes all over the world.

Now mine is obviously a knock off, and I know that's a huge debate amongst designers and architects; one which I'm not going to enter right now.

Castiglioni drew inspiration from street lamps when designing the Arco: a ceiling lamp that needed no connection to the ceiling. The lamp casts it's light about 2 meters from where the base is, making it ideal to illuminate dining tables without having to have a pendant hanging right over it.

I say: "Sia la luce!"

Hang your hat

I'm an absolute sucker for Design Classics. Eames, Jacobsen, Le Corbusier: I want to own it all.

This coat / hat rack is from the design duo of Charles and Ray Eames. Who said coat racks need to be boring!

And at a little over R1000 for the original, this is everyone's opportunity to own a piece of design history.

Available from All Office.

I love...

..Peonies in plain, simple glass containers. Vases, milk bottles, empty jars....anything really.

It might have to do with the fact that I have never ever seen Peonies for sale in South Africa, or am I just shopping at the wrong places?

I love the softer than candy floss quality these blooms have. And the light pink ones are my favourite.

This is how I feel right now

I can't remember where I found this, but today, of all days, this is how I feel. It's been a little crazy here in the office (and at home) so I've been more absent from here than I would have liked, but I'm hoping after today things settle down a little more.

I have so many pretty things to share with you!

112,640...

That's the number of Post-It notes that were used to create this temporary installation at Grand Central station in New York.

The installation forms part of the Post-It notes celebration of it's 30th birthday.

I somehow don't think the random Post-It's I have stuck up on my computer screen at the office qualify as art...

Have a blooming good weekend!

This utterly gorgeous chair, from Weylandts nogal, is sure to make anyone wish Spring was here already!

This was the winner of the "Coup de Coeur" award in Maison et Objet Paris last year, and I can see why. Designed by Kenneth Cobonpue, who is responsible for most of the better Weylandts pieces. (Also love his Voyage bed for little babies)

Hope you have a blooming good weekend everyone!