Celebrity House Tour

So today we are going on a celebrity house tour into the home of Six Feet Under star Rachael  Griffiths. The modern LA house was built in 1962 & has 3 bedrooms and bathrooms, 2 living rooms, a study, and open-plan kitchen/dining space, a covered indoor-outdoor area and an art studio in the basement. To create the illusion of height, tongue and groove walls have been used as well as opting for white paint in most rooms for a fresh, crisp & airy feel. It also boosts large french doors and a covered outdoor area that flows together perfectly. The couple have also installed eco friendly tiles through out the property. 

So what are you waiting for lets go & be nosy shall we?................

This low level home feels spacious & makes a dramatic statement with its home accessories like the gorgeous zebra print rug & the large piece of artwork on the wall that adds a bold pop of colour to the white walls.

The home office overlooks the garden & painted in this soothing green colour gives a tranquil feel to this work space. I love the light fixture.

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A luxurious living area boosts comfortable sitting around a fire place a wonderful place to relax & unwind with a newspaper or good book at the end of a hard day.

The open-plan kitchen is a free standing design from Ikea. As a kitchen designer I prefer a more solid built in kitchen but I have to say this industrial feeling kitchen does catch the eye.

The family room is a relaxed space. It is simply furnished with a statement orange modular sofa that is upholstered with practical wet suit material (sounds perfect if you have kids doesnt it?) & a mixture of inexpensive items and investment pieces. The house sees lots of bold pieces of artwork brightening the walls.

I love the 1970's feel of this little girls bedroom, the perspex vanity table & stall are actually 1970's originals. The bold pink rug is a fun pop of colour & the enlarged family photograph above the bed is a lovely finishing touch.

Lets take a step outside now to the sunken patio area at the rear of the house complete with a 1955 design fire pit. It's certainly a wonderful place to either relax or entertain on a warm summers evening.

I adore this family garden that features a treehouse, a rope ladder, a kids patio, a vegetable garden & a haystack to provide hours of playtime fun. I would love a garden like this for the our kids. We have a small garden not enough room for all this fun, its also presently under rubble from the wall & patio being smashed about. But one day this would be my perfect garden, hours of fun for the kids & a comfortable patio area for the adults. Well I hope you enjoyed the house tour. Have a wonderful weekend. I am off to Toys-R-Us this afternoon with a bit of birthday shooping to do.

As featured in living etc

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Vintage Child's Bedroom

The simplicity of this little girls vintage feeling bedroom is beautiful. The chipped paint on the metal bed makes me think of war time or of an orphanage but its still feels heart warming. Its incredibly thought inspiring to look at. What are your thoughts when you look at this image?

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Paint A Pot Party

This week I have been sharing with you some of my friends business's. Well today I am going to tell you a bit about my friend Alice & her business Paint-a-pot-studio. Alice holds parties & workshops for both children & adults in which she brings a selection of ceramics to your home for you to paint. Then she takes them home to glaze & fire them for you. You can paint anything from mugs & bowls to something a bit more adventurous like a vase. I recently had a paint-a-pot session with the children where they all designed their own mugs using a variety of stencils & sponges. They really enjoyed themselves & it was great to see the finished glazed results.

As well as parties & workshops Alice also specializes in special gifts for christenings & anniversaries or birthdays with personalized decorated plates. 

She also sells some of her own handy work at craft fairs & is hoping to open an etsy store very soon. My favourite is the zebra design plate & mug set. 

I was lucky enough to win one of Alice's creations at Saturday's charity evening. This gorgeous cupcake designed cake/cookie jar. Cute isn't it? visit Alice's website for more details
                                                           www.paint-a-pot-studio.co.uk/

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Shabby Chic Vintage Tea Parties

I mentioned to you yesterday about my lovely friend Katie from www.katieschaircovers.co.uk who is expanding her business from hiring wedding chair covers to now also hiring vintage tableware for not only weddings but vintage tea parties for anything from baby showers, birthday parties, retirement parties or really just because you fancy afternoon tea with the girls. She has the most beautiful items for hire from these gorgeous bird cages to vintage vases, tea cups & saucers & cake stands

I do love the 50's feel of vintage tea parties. Only recently my lovely friend Joanne had us girls round for tea & cakes in the glorious sunshine. Bunting hung around the garden, tea served from a quaint little tea pot into cups & saucers. It was all so lovely. There is something so quintessentially English about afternoon tea don't you think? So if you want to be taken back to a more genteel era Katies most definatley your girl. She provides everything from beautiful vintage tea sets, linens, fresh flowers, dainty finger sandwiches, fresh scones & delicate pastries & cakes. She will come & set up your tea party & leave you to enjoy it & then return to tidy away again. She also does tiny time for tea for birthday parties with dressing up for those little girls who love to play with thier tea sets.

If your looking for that tea party with a difference or wanting to hire chair covers & tableware for your big day contact Katies by email katies-weddingchaircovers@hotmail.com

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Absolutely Fabulous Ladies Charity Evening

Last night I ran a stall at The Absolutely Fabulous Ladies Charity Evening. The evening was a huge success &i would like to say a big thank you to the lovely ladies who arranged the event, Tracy from Baghappy & Sarah from Getgobooks. I was lucky enough to have my stall next to my beautiful friend Katie from http://www.katieschaircovers.co.uk/. Katie has recently expanded her business from hiring chair covers for weddings to also hiring vintage inspired tableware not only  for weddings but also tea parties too. Below is a sneak peek at her stall but I will share some more photos with you over the coming week as she really has got a wonderful collection of beautiful pieces from birdcages to vases.

Also another gorgeous friend of mine was there with a stall the very lovely  Alice from http://www.paint-a-pot-studio.co.uk/ I was very lucky to win one of Alice's beautiful handmade ceramics in the raffle.  Alice not only makes & sells handmade ceramics but she also runs workshops & does paint a pot party's for children & adults.The image below shoes some of her handy work but I will also share with you later in the week some photos from a paint a pot party we had for our children recently. So keep your eyes peeled over the next week. 

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Colour Inspiration Purple & Yellow

Leslie from Creative Mint recently posted some mood inspiration on lilac & yellow & it really got me thinking about the colour combination.

 
They are complementary colours which means they bring out the best in each other. They are  used together in Colour Therapy to give balance.  The balance of cool & warm colours are said to be needed for our wellbeing. Complementary colours are opposite each other on the colour wheel.



Lilacs, violets & purples are known "cool" colours while yellow at the opposite side of the colour wheel is a warm colour. Its the colour of the sun & when teamed with cool colours it balances it with warmth.

From subtle splashes of both colours to a bolder statement combination

purple finds.......

Chrome Milo Baughman Sofa

Luxfer Prism Glass Lamps

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COMPETITION TIME

Sorry ladies this ones for the kids!!
With the launch of the new boutique I will also be running a give away so you wont miss out but with the popularity of the products from The Kids Cooking Company I thought it would be fun to run a drawing competition for the kids to give them a chance to win one of the fabulous starter kits in either pink or blue  (dependant on the winner obviously.)

The kit includes a character bowl & spoon, A silcon bun tray & a recipy card.
So if you have a budding young artist at home all they need to do is draw or paint a picture & send it to me at the address below:-

'Drawing competition' 
Finishing Touch Interiors
Unit 1, No 5 Homefield Road
Haverhill
Suffolk
CB9 8QP
England

Please include your childs name & age on the back of the drawing along with your contact details, your full home address (so I can post the prize) & Email (so I can notify the winner)
I will happily accept scanned in pictures if this is easier than posting if you are out of the country. Please send these by Email to sarah@finishingtouchinteriors.co.uk

Good luck cant wait to see the entries :)

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Furniture Makeover

I am presently working on a make over for this piece of furniture my mother in law was about to send to the scrap yard. I thought it had such potential that I just had to rescue it. To be honest its been a bit of a long going project, I have had this piece of furniture sitting at work for a few months now & I try to spend some time on it when I have a spare second or two but this seems very rare lately.

 I gave it a rough sand & clean down & then put on a couple of coats of French Grey paint  from The Little Greene Paint Company. I then distressed it & now have to to add a top coat & was thinking I would line the drawers with some wallpaper also from The Little Greene Paint Company. It needs some new handles as well but I still have to make a decision on this but I will keep you updated on its progress.

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Create A Luxury Bedroom

Bring the luxury of a hotel style bedroom to you home with a bed of ultimate relaxation as well as sophistication. Add a stylish headboard like this smooth button-back tall headboard below that oozes luxury chic. Dress with beautiful silk cushions & a soft fur throw, a mix of textures for both comfort & style. The neutral toned wallpaper behind is subtle & classic feeling while complimenting the headboard.

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If large headboards really arent your thing or you are on a tight budget then why not add a panel of bold wallpaper behind your bed instead to create a feature wall , making the bed the focal point in an otherwise plain room. The bold wallpaper below really brings some life to the bedroom below & makes the bed stand out. The Little Greene Paint company do some beautiful bold prints that make gorgeous feature walls.

For a more understated look opt for a canopy style bed. Four poster beds drapped with silky white fabrics create a relaxed & tranquil feel. Voiles are perfect for drapping & with soft lighting make for a very dreamy & romantic feel.

 Image credits - House to Home

Right now stuck in the office watching the pouring rain tapping against the window I can only dream of being curled up in that first bed, snuggled in the fur throw. Wish this miserable weather would go away its July after all where is the sunshine. Its my mums 70th birthday tomorrow so please sunshine make an appearance for her special day

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A Step In Time

Ladders are making much more of an appearance lately as a funky alternative to shelving. Used in bathrooms as a towel rail or to display candles & fancy soaps to give a shabby chic feel. Also popular in kitchens & bedrooms too. I love the image below with the clothes hung on the ladder rungs & the carefully balanced vase & book. I think they look great in a bathroom with towels hung or folded neatly on each step with maybe a candle or two added. What do you think of these fun ideas instead of normal shelving?

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