Tory Burch Trike

Just spotted this over on Tory Burch's blog. It's her Tory Burch customized trike which is listed in this year's Neiman Marcus Christmas Book. Apparently there are only 2 available!

Friday Flowers

I just collected some beautiful November Lillies for the shop which I arranged into some blue and white ginger jars. This photo above inspired my choice of flowers for this shop this week.

image via pretty stuff

New Farm House

Here are a few images of a lovely client's house here in New Farm which we have been working on this year. This client has so many lovely things in her home and collects bits and pieces from her travels which she has incorporated into her home. I particularly love the curtains we made in her bedroom and her collection of pretty vintage paintings.

Bedside Carnations

I forgot to post my bedside carnations yesterday with my other weekend flowers! I went to Woolworths on Friday afternoon to collect a few bunches of their inexpensive roses but they had inexpensive carnations instead. I'm not usually a huge fan of carnations but have to admit I have been enjoying their pretty ruffling petals on my bedside table these past few days....

My Type of Wardrobe

Julie over at Shelter posted this wardrobe a little while ago and I must say I do love it. The thing I really like about it is that it has a combination of useful and lovely-looking pieces of furniture instead of very expensive cabinetry. I would so desperately love to create something like this in a room at home considering I am currently using the {supposed-to-be} linen cupboard for my collection of bags.

A Flowery Weekend

My weekend was filled with flowers. Everywhere I looked there were pretty flowers. I picked up some beautiful natives from my friend Phoebe Stephens on Saturday which I arranged in a glass vase on our entry chest of drawers and yes that is a glass of wine you can see in the corner of the picture below. After such a huge week last week I decided a few lovely glasses of wine were in order this weekend.


Whilst driving to Phoebe Stephens I drove past D.I.G. garden shop on James street and spotted a fabulous galvanised tub filled with geraniums. I couldn't resist it. I pulled over and snatched it up. It looks so pretty on the old white table on our front verandah.

One of the most exciting parts of my weekend was spotting these gorgeous little orchids growing in a crevise in our big old Jacaranda tree in our front garden. These along with the delicious cherry tomatoes we are growing make me so excited about having a garden!

I Love October

I must admit I love October for a few reasons. My birthday falls very early in October along with my husband's birthday which falls a few days after mine so there's always lots of giving and receiving for us in October...Even at 33 I still love getting presents in bed on the morning of my Birthday!!

I always seem to get a bit of a personal decorating bug in October. I think it has something to do with the pending emails from suppliers advising of their upcoming pre-Christmas order cut-off dates. The thought of them closing their books for the year without a few little tidbits for home makes me a bit demented. Every night this week I've trawled a boot-load of fabric samples home for consideration and let me tell you I'm not really the most popular person in our house at the moment as every time one of the boys walks past the lounge room I ask...."And what about this fabric?" They are completely over it.

I also love the buzz of clients at this time of year as they too recognize the fact that if they don't make a decision now then it will be all over red rover until next year.

The other thing I like about October is the weather and all the flowering gardens around the place. Even just driving into work is a pleasure as flowers are blooming everywhere. The Jacaranda trees are also just starting to bloom which puts a beautiful purplish haze over Brisbane.

There are just so many lovely things to enjoy in October starting this weekend. We must also recognize that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. For more information visit the National Breast Cancer website here. Mrs Blandings always posts pink in October so here's a little hint of pink above from a pink girl through and through.

Happy October Everyone!

image 1 - source uknown, image 2 - source unknown, image 3 - anna spiro, image 4 via moodboard blog {please let me know if anyone knows the source of images 1 & 2 and I will link back accordingly}

Black & Spiro Today

This morning I pottered around my garden at home and collected a few flowering things for the shop. I arranged some pink bougainvillea and some native gum leaves in a couple of shell encrusted baskets I picked up in Bali a while ago. There's something so Summery and vibrant about bougainvillea and I do love it mixed in with a few classic blue and white ginger jars.

Above is one of a pair of amazing hand beaded African chairs we have in the shop at the moment. I think these chairs are a favourite of mine right now. To think of the work that goes into them...

We just received this gorgeous geometric patterned rug in today. The girls and I couldn't wait to put it in place under our bright orange coffee table in our front lounge room display. I think it has added so much colour to the shop...I just love it and I am very tempted to take it home!

Just thought you might like to see a few of the new things we have in at the moment.

Need It Now

I'm completely loving these vintage Indian embellished shoulder bags Louise over at Table Tonic just got in!! I love, love, love the silver necklaces too!

Serious Undercushioning

Finding the time to work out a few little things I need for home has proven to be a bit hard lately with a baby in the house and a busy shop to juggle.

If my friend Faux Fuchsia could see my very undercushioned sofas right now she would be in shock as undercushioning {her very own term for not enough cushions} in her world as well as mine is a big NO NO. Actually, I think many of you would be in shock. So, late this afternoon I spent a few little minutes with myself and my collection of fabrics in our stock fabric room at Black & Spiro. I found a few old pieces of fabric I have been saving for a rainy day and let me tell you my rainy day has come. So I whipped them out and packaged them up and off to the workroom they will go tomorrow.

I can't wait to get some fresh cushions in the house. It really is amazing what a few new cushions can make to a room!! How's your cushion situation at the moment?

In Fashion

A couple of weeks ago we played host to a Spring fashion shoot at Black & Spiro for Q Weekend as above which was featured in the Saturday morning paper here in Brisbane last weekend. Thanks Elizabeth for wanting to use our new store.

A New Trend?

Could this pin wheel inspired design be a new trend similar to that of the chevron/zig zag phenomenon?

image 1 - fine little shop, image 2 - via this is glamorous

Beautiful Things Everywhere

It's true, sometimes I can hardly sleep thinking about all the beautiful things I see. Here are a few pretty things I have spotted lately. Everyone thinks I just like bold colour but actually I love subdued tones too as noticeable above. Isn't Brooke Giannetti's bathroom sublime!

PS. Thanks for all your encouraging comments on my last post...I am not stopping the blog {for now anyway}. I was really just saying how thrilled I was that my client was inspired by a few of my posts as I have been feeling like my posts haven't been up-to-scratch lately. To see that she actually created a leaf arrangement and purchased a lamp I posted was really satisfying!! I'd love to see any pictures of things you have created from ideas you may have picked up here at ABT...it would be really lovely!! Thanks for all of your messages!! xx Anna

image 1 via pretty stuff, image 2 - brooke giannetti's pink bathroom, image 3 - paul costello photographer for house and garden via moodboard blog, image 4 - source unknown {please let me know if you know the source}, image 5 - image source uknown {please let me know if you know the source}

Working On

This afternoon I visited some lovely clients who I have been working with for quite sometime. We are just finishing off the final bits and pieces in their home like framing and lampshades.

You may recognise the green vintage lamp on their antique entry chest of drawers which they purchased from the antique shop in Marburg I posted about a few weeks ago. Although I love the colour of the old shade, we are making a new one as this one is a bit too vintagey and also has a few dints. We decided today that the new shade would look best made in a very similar vibrant green silk.

We are also having a set of antique copper etchings framed and hung above the chest of drawers. The etchings are actually of entry facades which is so perfect. We have selected a gold bamboo frame to work back with the gold detail on the lamp base and handles on the chest.

Throughout the house we have used lots of blue and white and we have also added some green. I love this fresh palette. The blue and white plates pictured above are from Black & Spiro. We are hanging them on a wall in their informal dining area.

My client was also inspired by the post I did on green leaf arrangements the other day and has used some golden cane palm fronds from her garden in a blue and white umbrella stand which she placed on the antique oval table in their sitting room.

I know I have said this in the past but sometimes, lately more than ever, I feel I am writing this blog for no reason and I also question my ability to continue to inspire with so many other wonderful blogs out there nowdays. However, when I see that my clients are inspired by my arrangements, selections and finds it really does make me understand why, after nearly 4 years, I continue to write this blog.

A Vibrant Fireplace

I'm totally loving this brightly painted fireplace which belongs to Alexis from the blog Fern & Feather. I am so tempted to do something like this with one of my fireplaces at home. I think this is very cool!!

Tennis Anyone?

Wow, you guys certainly know your plants! I think we have identified the plant in question as Echium and it seems that I will be able to plant it here in my garden in Brisbane. How exciting! Thank you so much for all your wonderful comments and suggestions.

Having a spare block on the side of our house presents lots of opportunity. We have been dreaming of gardens, cricket pitches, trampolines, a cow {yes Harry thought a cow would be fun} and even the thought of a tennis court has crossed our minds. Of course I have my heart set on a {real} grass court but I can only imagine the upkeep. When I am out and about I sometimes snap photos of houses or fences or gardens I see which capture me. Recently I have found myself snapping photos of tennis courts. Here are a few {badly taken} photos of some I have seen around Brisbane which I love and a couple at the top taken by Sydney photographer Glen Allsop. I personally love the white painted timber tennis courts and I would love to grow a beautiful creeper all over one side which would back onto our neighbours but for the moment, I will continue to dream and consider all options...well, maybe not the cow!!

image 1 & 2 - glen allsop photographer via once wed blog, image 3 & 4 - anna spiro

A Weekend in the Garden

My plan for the weekend involves gardening gloves, weed removal, mulching and preparing my old garden beds for some new plants. I have been obsessing over these gorgeous plants in the image above and as I am completely not-in-the-know when it comes to gardens I wondered whether anybody could tell me what these are? I just love them. Would they live in our hot climate here in Brisbane?

xx

Anna

House & Garden

We are thrilled to be in House & Garden this month displaying our beautiful Stuart Membery furniture in our sun room. This room is actually about to become a dining room as all of the lovely bits and pieces we had in it have now sold. I can't wait to share with you what we have planned for the new dining room display...it's certainly going to be very vibrant!!

New Malene Birger Book

I'm certainly adding this new book Life & Work: Malene Birger's Life in Pictures to my book wishlist. The book is due for release mid-September 2010. I have posted images of her gorgeous home here in the past so this book is definitely one I am itching to get my hands on.

image 2 via space for inspiration

A New Thing for Purple

To be honest I have never really had a thing for purple but lately I have started to adore this colour when mixed with certain other colours.

image 1 via from me to you blog, image 2 & 3 sherbert photography via paris hotel boutique blog