A Dash of Vintage for the Desk

On an exceedingly wet weekend back at the end of June, I was lucky enough to have an impromptu trip to the Terrigal Vintage and Antiques  Fair.  A quick wander around and I spotted a cute little stool with drop down steps that needed a tiny bit of love. From the moment I saw it I knew it was for me! 

 

She has potential!

 

My grandparents have a similar stool and I remember spending my childhood climbing up it to pretend answering the telephone.  Combined with the recent addition of a 1970's black dial phone from the Bargain Hunt Auctions, the stool makes the perfect addition.  There was one exception, the seat was adorned with fuzzy nineties cow hide print.  A little bit of my teenage years that I'm not keen on reliving (Rob didn't see anything wrong with it!).

 

I haven't upholstered before but a flat seat pad seemed to be a good place to start.  Finding the right fabric was tricky though.  Spotlight and Lincraft don't exactly keep up to date upholstery fabrics. So, it was Ikea to the rescue! The Ikea fabric range is gorgeous, I could have easily come home with a few metres of everything.  I chose two fabrics to try and this one was the winner...

 

TRÅDKLÖVER Fabric

The foam and seat timber were in great condition, so it was a matter of simply removing the old fabric and using a staple gun to secure the new fabric in place. The corners were a little tricky but after a bit of research I decided on box corners. The corners took a couple of tries but the result is super cute!

 

She looks at home now, but what should her name be?
 She did resemble a walking frame without the cushion, so Esther perhaps?

 

I used only a small corner of the fabric pattern to avoid replicating the cow pattern

The desk space with a dash of vintage

 

 

Ikea it Up!

Faced with the glee of a day off from being a mummy on Sunday, I heartily headed off to Ikea with my beloved sister.  We did have a bit of a laugh at ourselves, what would you do when offered a day of freedom from little people? A day at a fancy restaurant? The Bronte to Bondi walk? A day trip to the Hunter Valley?  Our bliss was to head to cheap homewares heaven, where the crowds are thick and the husbands whinge.

Beach Style Room - loved it but not

sure if it will work

with the house design

 

We planned our day in homeware heaven many weeks ago when I was going through a bit of a rough patch with the progress with the house and needed some motivation and something to look forward to.  Progress has been made with the house plans and I was not feeling glum in the lead up to our day out, instead I was rather excited at sourcing some inspiration.  Re-starting our house plans has meant that the design slate has been wiped clean and I am now floundering to find the sense of individual style in my new home that I have been longing for over the last two years.



This couch was a hit, very

comfortable and nice and compact



Upon entering Ikea I was not disappointed, the individual room designs were gorgeous, clever and affordable. I could walk in there and buy the whole room in one hit and still come out with some change (ok, maybe 20 cents). So that I wouldn't forget what I liked, I snapped a few pictures during our meandering walk of homeware heaven.  The greatest benefit of the photos has been to look back and try to decide which style I prefer and where to head to from here.  I have a bit of a passion for vintage furniture mixed in with everyday furniture, but after seeing some pieces in person, I am not so sure.





Cosy home office designed with repeated
bookshelf units.
 Black really set off the books



I was really drawn to the rooms done in green, grey and cosy homey style, and was put off by the ultra modern.  There were a few things that I can definitely cross off the list.  I was not impressed by the bathroom cabinets or the dining furniture.  I was impressed with the storage designs, small storage items and gadgets and the kitchen gadgets.  I think that I would definitely go back for the couch for our family room and will keep in mind all the gadgets and fittings which make it so cheap to fit out a kitchen.



If you wanted to order your kitchen or wardrobe through Ikea, I think you would need to have a high level of patience if you decided to tackle it on the weekend.  The counters were enormously busy and I don't think it would be fun to try and take that through the checkout!



Wardrobe Bliss



At the end of the day I left with some great ideas, a bag full of small storage gear for the cottage and a bit of a re-think of what I like and don't like in a home.

Nothing to something mantra:

Nothing:

• Lack of motivation following a re-design of the house plans
• A messy house!



Something:

• A fun day with my big sis
• Lots of ideas on how to get the most out of cheaper furniture and using small storage ideas
• Some direction for the next store to visit to get some ideas
• A very tidy looking desk in the cottage after using my new small storage gear
• A happy toddler when mummy got home!