28.6.13

PRETTY LITTLE STARS

Hi all. Hope your having a nice evening and starting to feel weekendish.. I just wanted to share this pic with you all of my lovely clematis rambling up the wall of the haven. So pretty like little stars popping out. Some garden inspiration for the wknd if you can tear yourselves away from the tennis... Have a good wknd.
Emma.


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17.6.13

SAY IT WITH ROSES!

Emma Connolly


Hello, Just a little post of a few pics I took over the wkend of my vintage dresser shelf
that is hung in the kitchen above the work top.
As many of you know I LOVE my roses and I'm really loving these vintage glass bottles!
Just the odd stem or three, dotted about really brings the kitchen to life!
I'm a firm believer in flower power and feel flowers should be used in every room to make
it feel fresh and homely!

Emma Connolly


Tie pretty lace ribbons to keys and hang them as decorations.

Emma Connolly

Gorgeous blooms!

x

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12.6.13

GARDEN BLOOMS @ THE HAVEN

 Hi all, Just wanted to share some of my favourite blooms that are bursting into life in the cottage garden.
Its nearly full but we always manage to squeeze an extra something in!
I'm after more scent so will soon be adding a few Jasmin plants. Its the one scent I miss so much from my last garden and I believe all cottage gardens are not complete without one.

x








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11.6.13

GORGEOUS ROSES

By Emma Connolly
The Vintage Good Life

Just a little post today.  I just wanted to share my first garden rose with you all. It smells divine and I adore the pastel pink colour set off rather prettily in an antique green bud vase. Roses are my favourite flower of all time and I have spent this spring dedicating a whole bed to the +David Austin Roses I can't wait for the end of this month when all the buds burst open, I shall be there with my camera so you don't miss it! 

X 

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ON MY COFFEE TABLE THIS MONTH

FARROW & BALL, LIVING WITH COLOUR.

For any budding interior designer, home fixer or when you've just bought your first home this book is a must!
I've used +Farrow & Ball paints for years and nothing else comes close. The deph of finish of these paints is amazing.
This book is a real gem! Beautifully illustrated and full of inspiring rooms. It explains how colours work together and how they are different in every room. It gives plenty of advice on what works best in north or south facing rooms.
Always when your thinking of decorating a room buy a sample pot, paint a couple of coats on either a large piece of card or a thin sheet of mdf. This way you can put it in different areas of the room and always take note of how it looks throughout the day and on overcast or sunny days.
Paint will always change colour with the seasons and the lighting you have in your room so make sure you have lived with your sample for a week or so to make sure you really love it.
My living room is dual facing and is painted in Blackend, in full sun it looks the palest dove grey and when its cloudy and the sun moves around it takes on a very blue tinge. I adore it!

Why buy this book?.... Its worth it for the pictures alone of these beautiful homes, also it is a fabulous read and I can't put it down. A must for inspiration when decorating your own home!

x



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NEW VINTAGE LOGO

 
Hope your having a good week! I was playing around with some styling ideas over the wkend for the blogs new logo, I'd love to know what you think...

x

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9.6.13

ROSE BATH MELT RECIPE.

You will need something suitable for moulds either fairy cake tins (make sure you oil these first or they may stick) I like silicon moulds and I used a heart shaped ice cube tray which held 10.
The main ingredients in bath melts is pure cocoa butter and sweet almond oil. You can then customize with different essential oils and petals. Always make sure your chosen oils are non skin irritant. I used pure essential rose absolute which is expensive but a little goes a long way. You may like to change this for Lavender. You can also add petals to your melts.
My recipe to make 10 small melts is..
2 table spoons of cocoa butter and 1 table spoon of sweet almond oil, put in a pan over a very gentle heat. Stir until everything has mixed together and has gone clear. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly but so it is still liquid then add 15 drops of rose oil and a handful of dried rose petals. (note, do not put oil in hot mix as it will evaporate and you will lose your scent).
Pour into moulds and pop in the fridge until set. Then remove and store in a dry place at room temperate. Great for gifts or when ones feeling a little indulgent.
Find everything you need at www.thesoapkitchen.co.uk 

x


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8.6.13

THRIFT SHOP STAR FIND

Hi all, hope your having a lovely wknd! I just wanted to share a pic of my latest find.. Shade £3.00 the base was kindly given to me by a friend who no longer wanted it. I just love it!


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6.6.13

WINDOW BOX DIY UNDER £10

My daughter Chloe has been on at me to have her own window boxes at her bedroom windows for ages. So yesterday we took a trip to +B & Q, they didn't have much in the way of beautiful boxes. However with the ability to make things pretty we bought two ugly plastic orange ones. The plants were lots better! A pack of six mixed basket plants were £5.00.
The first thing we did when we got home was to see what leftover paint we had. Chloe chose the Dix blue by +Farrow & ball that i'd used on the Lloyd loom earlier. It took less then ten minutes to paint both!
When dry she weighted them with stones and planted them.
I have to say they look rather good and we can't wait to see all the flowers bursting into life.
It just goes to show it doesn't take much and need not cost the earth.
Ours cost under £10 each.
Have a go this wknd.

x





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DRESSING THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR HOME

Summer is coming and ive been busy pinteresting getting ideas on how to make the most of the outside of the house. Last year I wrapped it up in pretty vintage bunting which looked lovely! This year We're painting the woodwork in +Farrow & ball old white. Im also taking inspiration from the +RHS Chelsea flower show. Pretty up your home with flowers. Later this month I will blog a tutorial on how to make a door wreath. We will be installing flower boxes. And last but by no means least, adding new front door furniture. Look out for second hand letter boxes at salvo fairs. Hope you enjoy the pics I found from pinterest and I hope they inspire you too!

x






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5.6.13

STYLE IT PRETTY

 
 
It doesn't matter how small a space there is always room to add interest!
I love styling little pocketts of pastel around our home which has a very neutural background of chalky greys from +Farrow & Ball.
 
This picture of my mantle piece shown below changes constantly!
Everything on it has been found at thrift shops. I love the quirky vintage oil painting and thought mimicing a layer with the peonys in a pewter coffee pot works really well. 
 
 
 Photos by Emma Connolly
of The Vintage Good Life.
 
 
 
In the kitchen try grouping your cook books together in pretty shades that compliment each other.
This is a cheap way of perking up what may of been a dull space. I've finished the look off with some antique scales I found years ago in a charity shop, I think they cost me around £12.00.
Of course I have to paint everything and these were no exeption!


 
Dress shelves (or if your lucky enough to have one, a french dresser) with gorgeous antique china
in beautifull pretty shades.
My dresser brings life to our conservatory and looks great against the backdrop of the pale victorian brick.
 
Just one small area of each room can make such a difference. It brings your home to life and shows your personality!
 
Love your home, make it pretty and enjoy it.
 
x
 

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4.6.13

PAINT IT PRETTY Lloyd loom

It's no secret that im a magpie to vintage. I picked up this very old original +Lloyd loom years ago and it has sat happily in the corner of my bedroom ever since. I felt it needed a little pick me up and am mad on mint green this season. I chose the gorgeous +Farrow and Ball shade Dix Blue... Wow what a transformation.. I LOVE the colour! Im off to make a cushion now in my favourite +Kate Forman fabric, Roses, to finish the look.


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3.6.13

PERFECT PEONYS

Just a short little post today dedicated to the month of June. All hail the peony.. one of my favourite flowers and at their peak this month. I just couldn't resist these pastel pink ones. So pretty in a vintage coffee pot!


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