Friday, 23 May 2008

Happy Weekend!!


Oh, and do have a Happy Weekend! I feel like I need to have a hot soapy bath, lie in it until the water starts turning cold and then go straight to bed. It's been another hectic week and I just can't wait to sleep-in in the morning!! xxx Anna

Thursday, 22 May 2008

More Cottage Love...


I absolutely LOVE this gorgeous little 1920's cottage owned by U.S. designer Tia Zoldan as featured in Cottage Living. As she says in the article "The second I saw this house, I knew it was mine. It was love at first sight." I can certainly relate to that feeling!

Wednesday, 21 May 2008

Colour Connections



These three images were sitting in my picture file and they all looked so beautiful together I had to share them with you. Top image is from U.S. Vogue via All Things Bright & Beautiful, Middle Image is from Martha Stewart and of course the beautiful illustration in the bottom image is by the very the talented Patricia an Essche from PVE blog for Marnie over at MRR Design.

A Sweet Little Girl's Bedroom




Here is a bedroom which I have just completed for a little 2 year old girl. Sorry about the quality of the photos. We used a mixture of pink, turquoise and white to create a fresh, pretty yet simple room.

Tuesday, 20 May 2008

White Cottage Love!!


Two gorgeous white timber cottages via Martha Stewart swept me off my feet and took my breath away today...


Cute Tree Seats



I'd definitely love one of these gorgeous tree seats made if I owned a large country house with lots of beautiful land around me! So cute!
Image 1 via Nibs Blog, Image 2 via Matha Stewart

Blue, White & Vintage!!





I absolutely adore this Domino feature - full to the brim with a few of my favourite things - blue, white and lots of vintage!! I seem to be in a blue mood this week but then again I think I'm always in a blue mood and a pink mood and a white mood etc. etc.!!

Today I Love...


I'm loving this white room - white floors, white walls and a table full of beautiful things. I would love to see some beautiful bright cushions on the sofa but that's just me!!


Monday, 19 May 2008

Into The Blue



Some pretty blue inspiration above. I love how the girl's swimmers in the top image look just like the blue hydrangea in the bottom image!!

Top image - Cig Harvey Photographer, Bottom image - Madison Magazine

Decoration + Design Seminar Series


I thought I would let you know about the Decoration + Design International Seminar Series being held in Melbourne 17th/18th July 2008 in conjunction with the Decoration + Design Trade show & also Furnitex. Amongst a round up of International Industry leaders I will be hosting a 1 hour seminar about the Phenomenon of Blogging within the Design Industry. If you are in Melbourne at this time and would like to join us please click HERE to be directed to the registration form or for more details click HERE to visit the website. Kathryn Ireland (US textile designer) will also be holding a seminar. I have posted about Kathryn before here at ABT - how exciting!!

Happy Week!!


Hi All, I hope you had a lovely weekend! Instead of heading to the beach on the weekend I went out to the country yesterday with some friends for lunch. It was so lovely and so cold. I hope to share some photos later today or tomorrow so stay tuned!! I hope everyone has a great week. I am so excited about the posts I have to share with you all this week. There's going to be lots of gorgeous inspiration!!

xx
Anna

Sunday, 18 May 2008

Beautiful Villa Feltrinelli












Now this is definitely a place I would love to visit one day. Villa Feltrinelli sits on the shores of Lake Garda in the beautiful village of Gargnano in Northern Italy. Dating back to 1892 the villa was meticulously restored in 1997 and is now offered to travellers as a luxury hotel. By the sounds of it - Frette bed linen, croquet and tea on the lawn, a picnic for two on the property's wood-paneled boat, laundered linen arriving back wrapped in tissue and tied up with silk ribbon with a sprig of lavender - I really don't think I would ever want to come home!!!


All images via Trip Advisor

Thursday, 15 May 2008

Courtney @ 1st Dibs!!


If you haven't already seen Courtney's interview over at 1st Dibs then head on over. It is fantastic! Congrats my friend!! Click HERE...

A Winter Room




I love this room via House Beautiful and in particular the little pops of yellow! I think this room would be a lovely Winter room and I could imagine snuggling up on the sofa with a beautiful rug, a good book from that amazing looking library and a glass of wine!!

A Sweet Vignette

Nothing much to say about this one except absolutely beautiful!!

Image via House Beautiful

Wednesday, 14 May 2008

Lovely Inspirations...





I am always inspired by other blogs and I often find myself saving so many images from my favourite blogs and also from magazine websites. Here are a few I have saved lately which I love.
Images from top - Image 1 & 2 Mollies Hotel Auckland via This Is Glamorous, Image 3 via Domino, Image 4 via So Haute, image 5 via House Beautiful

Monday, 12 May 2008

Today I Love...




What a pretty room via Country Home magazine. The gelati colours are very refreshing and look so gorgeous in this house. What a lovely and different colour combo for a Summer beach cottage!!

Groovy Granny Chic


Loving these two pictures from Daisy Cottage - so chic!!

Sunday, 11 May 2008

Back Again...


Hi, I'm back again. Hope you all had a great week last week. I did miss you all! I'll be back tomorrow with lots of beautiful things. Happy Mother's Day to all the mum's out there. I do hope you all had a wonderful day! See you tomorrow!!

Wednesday, 7 May 2008

Life...


Hi Everyone, I am a little run off my feet this week. I apologise for my lack of presence here over the last few days. Please bear with me and I'll be back very soon!! Love to all!! XX Anna
Room via Shabby Chic.

Friday, 2 May 2008

Happy Weekend!!


Wishing Everyone a very Happy Weekend! See you next week!!


Thursday, 1 May 2008

I am a Domino Addict...



Today my Domino arrived. I know, I know I'm so behind the eight ball compared to all my U.S. friends but I just had to say how much I absolutely LOVED this month's issue! It's gorgeous! I'm just about to head off to my bed, snuggle into my warm blankets (it's Autumn here) and read it from cover to cover as the quick flip through in the office today just wasn't enough to satisfy my Domino addiction!! Night, night!!

All images from Domino. Last image via Brown Turtleneck Sweater.

A New Blog


I thought I'd tell you all about a new blog on the block. 'The House That A-M Built' is filled to the brim with lots of gorgeous white timber house inspiration which I absolutely LOVE. I particularly loved these images which she posted today from Country Home magazine. If you haven't already visited this gorgeous new blog head on over and say hi from me! Welcome to Blogland A-M!!

Super Cute!!

How cute are these little dumplings??!! Love the colours in this picture and that tutu is just so divine and available for purchase from Ellie Bellie Kids!

Image found via The Collard Green Queen.

Wednesday, 30 April 2008

Straddie Flowers


Last weekend while my mother was arranging her Swamp Mahogany flowers which she picked from the seafood man's house (see Monday's post) I was arranging Banksia which Harry and I picked out in the bush down a sandy track in the middle of the island. The Banksias have all been in bloom over at Straddie over the last month or so which has made the 20 minute drive from the barge over to our house very attractive. I decided to cut some for an arrangement on my dining table and this is what I created.
**Note to my readers abroad Banksias are an iconic Australian native wildflower/plant.

Kitchen Love...


Usually I post white kitchens in my 'Kitchen Love' posts and today is no exception with Bunny Williams' gorgeous kitchen (bottom) but I have also included an ebony stained kitchen which I absolutely adore. I particularly like the contrast of the all-white china collection against the dark cabinetry. I personally wouldn't have this dark stained cabinetry in my own home as I would always have a white kitchen but I do think it looks fantastic and therefore I had to include it in this week's 'Kitchen Love' post!

Photo Credits - Top image - House Beautiful via Mrs Plain Jane, Bottom Image - Bunny Williams via Jen.

Mum's Late Night Emails

Sometimes late at night when I am up on my computer working I start to receive emails from my mother. It's often after she has had a long day at work, cooked dinner for my father and had a few glasses of wine. She too is on the computer working and scouring the internet for inspiration. I thought I'd share the emails she sent me last night as they brightened my day. Here goes...

The first email which I received from her at 8.16pm...

"Do you think Grandma could paint this (my grandmother is an artist)? It already looks a lot like a painting. I found it on Garden Rooms blog."

The second email which I received from her at 8.18pm

"Wouldn't it be nice to find this spot for a glass of wine when you are in France. I really enjoyed the Garden Rooms Blog."

The third email which I received from her at 8.59pm...

"That's a spectacular ceiling."

And finally the 4th email I received from her at 9.26pm...

"I wish I was a princess and then I could have a bedroom like this. Imagine what havoc the Prince (my father) could reek with his TV Dinner tray. We would need Robyn (my mother's house keeper) x 10 just to do the washing."

As you can see by the time she sent me the last email her imagination was running a little wild! I actually laughed my head off when I received the last one because if you knew my father you would understand. As soon as he gets home from work he heads to his bed for the night where he eats his dinner (most nights spilling it all over mum's beautiful bed linen) and watches t.v. and ends up snoring by 8.00pm. No wonder my mother was up emailing me...what fun is a snoring husband!! As I keep on saying to her - maybe you should start a blog mum!!

Thanks for sharing my passion mum - you always continue to inspire me and I absolutely LOVE our night time email chats!!

xxAnna

Images from Top - Miles Redd via Garden Rooms, French Coastline via Garden Rooms, Image source unknown, Charlotte Moss bedroom via Peak of Chic.

Tuesday, 29 April 2008

Flowers @ Mum's


As you all know we go to Straddie most weekends. My parent's also have a house at Straddie and over the weekend my mum arranged these gorgeous Swamp Mahogany flowers which she picked at the local seafood man's house. She arranged them in one of her blue and white jars and I added a little cluster of her shells. It looked so pretty I thought I'd take a photo and share it with you.

Individual Sense of Style







Australian stylist Shannon Fricke's new book, 'Sense of Style Colour & Space' is gorgeous. I have photographed some of my favourite pages above. Some of the topics Shannon talks about in the book which I really enjoyed reading are style evolving over time, how to personalise the spaces we inhabit and the use of colour in our homes. Shannon says "My interpretation of a sense of style is that it's simply a confidence; the casual ability to bring what seem to be disparate objects together in a room and make them look cohesive, as if they are just made to be united." The beautiful photographs are by photographer Prue Ruscoe. This book, in my opinion is a definite for your design book library!

Monday, 28 April 2008

Pretty


A pretty workspace above via Shabby Chic. Love the vintage artwork leaning against the wall!
P.S. Thanks Jen for posting this pic which I found on your gorgeous blog!

Chairs for Jody


I recently had these chairs custom made for my friend Jody for her beach house at Straddie. They are slip covered in a Mokum fabric from the Australian Botanicals Collection. They look fantastic in her house which she has decorated in a very simple, neutral colour scheme.

E-Zine Inspiration

E-Zine Issue 2 Cover Photo - Melinda Crockett-Maples
"What inspires me? books, magazines,
random things like someone's outfit,
confident women, other
creative people, and so much more!”

VERONICA
Shoppe Owner, Petunia’s Place
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5331844

"What adorns the board inspires me daily."

ERIKA MCPHERSON POWELL
Owner/Designer, Urban Grace Interiors
http://urbangrace.com/

“Old things, looking at things from a new perspective, people who aren't afraid to do it differently, imperfection."

CORI KINDRED
Artist/Blogger/Shoppe Owner
http://www.corikindred.com/
" Being around environments, objects and fabrics
that have an abundance of
color."

MICHELLE RUIZ
Author, Cher Ami
http://cheramibird.blogspot.com/

I absolutely LOVE the monthly inspiration E-Zine provides compiled by the very creative Erin over at Design For Mankind. All of the issues so far have been jam packed with beautiful photographs and quotes. I thought I'd share some of my favourite ones so far as above (I've been meaning to do this for a while now)! Thanks Erin for providing us with this beautiful online inspiration. I very much look forward to issue 4!

Thursday, 24 April 2008

Happy Weekend!!

I'm signing off a day early this week as it is a public holiday here tomorrow for ANZAC day. I'm off to the beach again with my little family. I leave you with this beautiful picture of a 50 year old Wisteria tree via House Bea