The most festive, least effort, cheapest Christmas idea!

You know that as well as fabulous and lovely, we also love cheap and easy, right? Well, this has got to be the cheapest and easiest idea for the Christmas season.

Lots of magazines and web sites are packed with ideas for lovely new Christmas decorations (cobalt blue seems a popular colour for lights this year). And lots of them also have hints for revamping old decorations. One that we saw suggested decoupaging existing baubles to give them a new look. Another was to revamp them with glitter and stick-on gems. But that seems to imply that old decorations need a new look - and although we have a firm policy of 'each to their own', we have to offer a respectful disagreement on this one!

Christmas decorations aren't meant to change each year. They're not meant to be fashionable. Half the fun is getting out the old, sagging cardboard box and seeing the decorations that were carefully packed away last year, and in some cases, each year for many years before that. They come out every year and the memories come out with them. The best decorations are not the newest but the ones that were given by someone special, made by someone special or come from a special place. (Although let's be honest, sometimes we enjoy the memory and discreetly leave the actual decoration in the box!)

So here is the most festive, least effort, cheapest Christmas idea - your old decorations are great and you don't have to do anything to them. Not one thing. Reuse what you have and enjoy them and then do exactly the same next year! Add to them if you want of course, but don't feel under any pressure at all (there'll always be something else at this time of year to feel under pressure about). Your tree might not be in this year's latest colour or design theme, but it will be original and full of things that are special to you. And we think that means it will be pretty fabulous and lovely.

Christmas Pudding Spiced Rum Recipe

We decided to test this recipe for Christmas Pudding Spiced Rum from the current Waitrose Kitchen magazine - isn't that nice of us? You're welcome! No really, not too much trouble at all...The recipe takes two weeks to infuse, so if you start today it will be ready by Christmas!


The ingredients are:

70cl bottle dark rum 

2 vanilla pods

2 large cinnamon sticks

2 star anise

3 whole cloves

75g light brown muscovado sugar

1 orange

First of all, a disclaimer. We didn't have quite the right ingredients, but decided to go ahead anyway. We didn't have any light brown muscovado sugar so used some dark brown soft sugar that was in the cupboard (it's a moist sugar like muscovado, so it should be OK). And we only had one cinnamon stick so decided to just add an extra one in the next day. 

The method is:

1 Pour 100ml rum into a small saucepan. Using a small sharp knife, split the vanilla pods down their length, then add to the pan with the cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves and sugar. Using a vegetable peeler, pare thin strips of peel from the orange and add to the pan. Slowly  warm the rum over a low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar; do not allow it to boil.

2 Pour the contents of the pan into a large, sterilised jar, then add the remaining rum. Once cool, tightly seal the lid and shake vigorously. Leave the rum in a cool, dark place and give it a good shake every day to muddle the spices.

3 After 2 weeks, strain and discard the whole spices and orange peel. Decant the rum into small new, sterilised bottles (or a larger one, if you prefer) to give to your lucky friends. 

So that's it. The rum is in the cupboard being muddled; we're trying not to get muddled preparing for Christmas. We'll report back on the rum when it's ready, by which time we may be more or less muddled than now!

(Just so we're clear, Waitrose owns the copyright to the recipe - although we take full responsibility for the pictures other than the one of the magazine itself.)

Very easy Christmas cushion covers

Now you know that we know Christmas is coming, but as far as we are concerned it doesn't start until after Thanksgiving. Now that Thanksgiving is over, we can go all out on the preparations!

This year, we decided to make some special Christmas cushion covers and have to share how - so easy. No zips or buttons or anything tricky like that. Just promise that you won't show any people who are serious about their sewing and might be upset if things aren't done properly? We love beautifully crafted items just as much as anyone else, but sometimes - for something that's only going to be used for a couple of weeks a year - all that's really need is a quick hack. So if you can keep a secret and use a machine to sew in a straight line, you can make these envelope-style cushion covers with minimal expense and effort:

Here's how.

1. Get your cushion pads. We used some we had already had in the cupboard.

2. Measure:

We had two that were 23 inches square and one that was 17 inches square. (They were only whole numbers in imperial measurements, so that's what we went with.)

3. Calculate:

For the big cushion we needed a height of 23 inches, plus 2 inches for seams, and a width of 23 inches x 2 plus 6 inches for overlap (this is the most complicated bit). So that's 25" x 52". For the small one it's 18" x 42". That makes a total we needed of 68" x 52".

4. Choose:

This is Fryetts Fabric 'Vintage Christmas' in Rouge:

(To be honest, we saw it ages ago - but didn't buy it because Christmas doesn't start til December, right?)

Furnishing fabric usually comes in widths of 54" so we needed a length of 68" (or 1.8 metres).

5. Cut:

Because furnishing fabric usually comes in lengths of 54", we cut two lengths 25" x 54". That meant for the larger cushions the overlap of the 'envelope' would be a bit bigger, but the hemming would be easier, because of the selvedge, the self-finished edge of the fabric, which doesn't fray. For the smaller cushion, we cut a length 19" x 42", because otherwise it would end with too much fabric wrapped around the pad.

6. Sew:

We put each piece face down turned down half an inch along the top and bottom, pinned and sewed. 

(Always put the pins in at right angles like in the picture - that way you can sew straight over them and remove afterwards. If they are in lengthways, the needle will hit them and break - annoying, time consuming and possibly dangerous if you get a piece of needle in the eye.) The proper thing would be to fold the fabric over on itself, tack down and then sew, but for our purposes doing it this way was fine.

Then we turned in each side edge (selvedge) and did the same.

On a smaller cushion, you have to turn each side hem that isn't a selvedge over on itself because otherwise it will fray and the strands will shed.

So now you have, for each cushion, a flat piece of fabric with all the edges turned in and sew down. At this stage, don't be surprised if it looks a bit big!

7. Fold:

We laid it down, folded the left side in and then the right side on top with an overlap. The width should be the same as the width of the cushion pad. Then we pinned the top and bottom edges in place and sewed. 

8. Turn:

We turned the cover inside out, slipped the pad through the gap and plumped up the cushion. The results are in the picture at the top of the page.

So that's it, Christmas preparations have begun! 

Holidays are coming, holidays are coming...

Happy Thanksgiving!

We love Thanksgiving - and even if you don't live in the USA, it's one to celebrate. What could be better than a chance to reflect over a good meal on what really matters? We're thankful for friends, family, health and good fortune, obviously. We're also thankful for original ideas and artwork (see above) and all the amazing, creative people who help make our lives more colourful and interesting. If you are reading this, we're thankful for you too!

And shells and sea glass, picked up on the beach.

And guilty pleasures like French's Fried Onions. In catering packs.

And always, a glass of champagne. Happy Thanksgiving!

Trevor Jones

Last week, we went to the Edinburgh Art Fair, which is Scotland's largest annual art show. One of the highlights was seeing the work of (and getting to meet) Trevor Jones, a Canadian artist who lives and works in Edinburgh and whose work combines oil painting and augmented reality. Scan a painting with a special, free, app (Junaio) and a whole other world is revealed. So, for example, scan the cherry blossoms on his business card with a phone or an iPad and a slightly unsettling walk through the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens unfolds. Scan the painting of the mechanism of the Eiffel Tower and the see in action the mechanism that takes the cars to the viewing platforms.

It's a bit difficult to explain, but visit his website trevorjonesart.com to see the work in action. Trevor uses technology to enhance the viewer's experience of his art, but his work isn't technology-led. He has a degree in fine art and teaches drawing and painting at the Leith School of Art. His slogan is 'where art meets technology' and it is clearly art that comes first, with the technological aspect helping to explore what we really see in front of us. The paintings are beautiful in their own right rather than just being a vehicle (and check out the lovely tree drawings on the site).

So it's exciting stuff and we are looking forward to seeing where Trevor's art takes him. He takes commissions, so if your decor is missing a truly original artwork, he might be the man to help!

Handsome beasts

This handsome gentleman arrived yesterday:

He doesn't look too happy, but he seems to have made himself at home on the sofa and we are delighted to have him. He'll make several friends here, including this foxy naval officer whose hanging around:

What is it about pictures of creatures with animal heads and human bodies, often in uniform? They are undoubtedly charming and very popular at the moment - but why? Because when you think about it, it is a little curious...

We think it can all be traced back to Charlotte Cory, who is now the Artist in Residence at the Gilbert Scott Bar at the gothic St Pancras hotel. In 2007, she held an exhibition in London called 'Charlotte Cory's Cabinet of Curiosities'. The idea behind it was to create photographs using Victorian photographic visiting cards and stuffed animals, which she calls 'visititorians', so as to avoid describing them as people or animals. This led to a book 'The Visitors' and subsequent projects such as an exhibition at the Globe Theatre and an installation at Haworth Parsonage (home of the Brontës). She also produces furniture with some of her designs - have a look on our Pinterest board. You can see Charlotte's work on her web site. We don't like to gossip but apparently the Queen has two of her pictures...

In the last few years, creatures bearing the clear influence of her work have started appearing on cushions and prints all over the place, making visitorian charm available to a wider market. Evans Lichfield have some lovely cushions and our fine naval man came from Fab Funky, where there is an amazing selection of prints (and great customer service).

A moment about lightbulbs!

The clocks have gone back, Halloween has been and gone, Bonfire Night is over and the nights are getting dark and cold... a lightbulb moment!

The lack of natural light outside means it's even more important to have good lighting  inside. There are three kinds of lighting: background lighting, lighting for specific tasks and and lighting to highlight the particularly lovely things in your home. It's important to have good shades for all of them to look good and do their job. 

After the lightbulb moment, a moment about lightbulbs. For background lighting, there is a place for the exposed bulb look but it can be quite industrial and not the cosiest on winter evenings. Plus, a gentler light can be kinder, if you know what we're saying. You don't need help from good lighting, but we'll take it happily! Have you noticed how most restaurants use ceiling lights with some kind of diffuser shade? That's because the softer light makes everyone look better. Really. If your dining companion looks at their best, and they think that you are looking at your best (because you are so happy to be with them) and everything is lit with a warm glow, the scene is set for a great evening.

And here's another reason for using diffuser shades. If your ambient lighting involves ceiling lights the bulb is likely to be in your sightline when you sit down. There was something quite attractive about the the old-style incandescent bulbs, but they are being phased out (they are already banned in some countries, like Mexico) and replaced with more energy-efficient but frankly unattractive ones, like this fluorescent one:

So a diffuser shade gives a softer light and hides the bulb. Here are some examples. This is the classic diffuser - a disc at the bottom of the shade so that light shines through. This one fits flush to the ceiling with the bulbs at an angle inside so that the light is directed through the sides:

This one is suspended from the ceiling and uses pleated fabric to create the diffused effect:

And this has a smaller fabric diffuser but obscures the bulb with crystal drops to give soft lighting and a bit of sparkle:

So - no need to look at those bulbs anymore. They can just go about their job making us look fabulous in secret!

Happy Halloween!

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It's nearly Halloween! We love this mantel display because fun as it can be, Halloween is not always the most stylish or tasteful festival. Orange and black is a difficult combination to pull off, even without spiders, severed limbs and chocolate eyeballs!

So why orange and black? The black bit is straightforward - black means night and darkness. One theory about the orange is that it is the colour of undyed beeswax candles, which were used for church services on All Hallow's Day to commemorate the dead. Another is that it is the colour of harvest and that with the black, it symbolises the end of the agricultural year, the 'death' of the earth and the darkness of winter. The reason that orange is a Halloween colour though is probably nothing to do with pumpkins...

Halloween originated in the Celtic festival of Samhain on 1st November, which was effectively a new year celebration but also a time when it was believed that the souls of the dead could come back to earth. The early Christian church made the same day All Hallow's Day as part of an attempt to use existing celebrations to help spread Christianity and gradually the more Celtic elements of witches and ghosts found their place on 31st October - Hallow's Eve. But the ancient Celts did not have pumpkins. Carving lanterns is traditional, but the originals would have been turnips:

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Not only are they much smaller than pumpkins, they have a hard woody texture and are much harder to carve. So turnips might be traditional and there is something a it spooky about them, but for practical and aesthetic reasons we are more than happy to go with lovely orange pumpkins!

And of course, fast becoming a new tradition: novelty pasta!

Happy Halloween!

Blinding!

At least one good thing about the nights getting longer is that we get to pull the blinds and curtains and make the house cosy! Time to think about window treatments.

So, what to do about a big window - actually a trifold door - in the kitchen? Firstly, we didn't want curtains. Fabric in the kitchen collects smells and dirt like any other surface so needs to be washed/cleaned frequently and frankly, with a big window that could be a lot of work. So we had a look at blinds.

With horizontal blinds, the mechanics are the problem. The window is to big to have a single horizontal blind, so would need several next to each other. But then what about the gap between them? And what about the hanging cords or rods? So that led us to think about vertical blinds.

There are really two kinds of vertical blinds: ones that are fixed top and bottom and ones that are made up of panels suspended from the ceiling. We didn't want ones that were fixed at the bottom because we thought that when the blinds were drawn and the door was open, a track on the floor would be a trip hazard. So by now, we had narrowed it down to vertical panel blinds suspended from the ceiling. They can be mounted on a multiple track rail, which means individual panels can overlap and there is no gap where they butt up against each other. There's one cord to operate all of them and it is hidden away at the side.

And at that we were just expecting to look at some sample books and pick out a suitable vinyl fabric, but after a chat with the lovely people at Albany Blinds Edinburgh we realised there was another, much more fun option. They can print just about anything on to a panel blind. So you can choose any professional quality image and they can print it! 

Now we know you're too kind to mention it, but our photography is a long way from professional quality so whilst the idea of a favourite holiday snap on the blind was initially appealing, it didn't take too long to realise that it wasn't a good idea! Fortunately, there are whole libraries of beautiful, professional photos and images and for an appropriate (but not expensive) fee, you can buy the right to use them.  Two of the best are Getty Images and Shutterstock. 

So we asked ourselves: what would be a great view from a window? It has to be a nighttime view, because the blinds will only be drawn at night and a daytime view would be a bit odd. Nighttime in the country or at the beach is just, well, dark. The only thing that would really show up at night is a cityscape - and remember how great the view from Frasier Crane's apartment looked? 

Now we just have to pull the blinds and we're in Boston! 

Albany Blinds Edinburgh provided a great service and couldn't have been more helpful.

Happy teardrops

We heard about this the other day - a very cool concept caravan holiday home with sliding internal doors so that the space is flexible enough to provide bedrooms, dining space, a relaxing area or a cinema for 9! (We know: a cool concept caravan - guess you just never know what you are going to type one day...)

The idea is based on Japanese design and the idea that walls can be moved to change the internal configuration of a space for different occasions. As you can see, the design is as far from the traditional, dark and old fashioned caravan as you could want.

But do you know what? Even though we are not people to whom the idea of camping comes naturally, it just made us remember that we have always really wanted one of these: a retro teardrop trailer.

A teardrop is usually 4 feet by 8 feet and the main body is a sleeping area. Cooking is done outside the trailer from a galley concealed in a lift-up hatch at the back. (This gorgeous picture is from a website called oldwoodies.com which has lots of pictures of and information about wooden framed body vehicles.) Just enough room for two. So really the other end of the spectrum from a cinema room for 9, but still a beautiful design.

Wild peacock chase

We have been on a wild peacock chase that didn't end up on the high street...

We know you’re not the kind of person who goes round looking in other people’s cupboards - we wouldn't be friends if you were! But if you did look, you would find quite a lot of bed linen in ours. And there’s a reason why that coverlet is still in the dust bag it came in two years ago and has never actually been on a bed. It’s a good reason, too. Really. Just can’t think of it right now...

But anyway, we saw a fabulous duvet cover on Achica a couple of weeks ago. They don’t have them anymore because their sales only last a few days although they do have this rather lovely one from Kingsley

But the one we liked originally was a completely different thing with a very distinctive and dramatic design on it that included a peacock. Searching for ‘peacock duvet covers’ brought up things like this one from Sylvia Cook with a fantastic photographic reproduction of a peacock feather, available from here from Etsy. 

But the one we had in mind was a graphic design rather than a straightforward photograph. And we were sure that the designer’s first name began with a C and the second with an H… Clarissa Hulse  maybe? No luck with a peacock. The closest was this, in a colour called 'kingfisher'. But a kingfisher is not a peacock.

Do you know, she we thought about it, the designer was almost certainly Italian. A search for Italian bed linen didn't take us any closer.  Neither did a search for French bed linen.

Then inspiration struck. Once, when something was unavailable on Achica, we tracked down the same thing for sale on notonthehighstreet.com. And, do you know what? We searched for ‘bedlinen’ and there it was! The very one! The absolute same!

The design is called 'Arrival of the Birds'and it’s by The Lyndon Company, who are based in the UK. So that's why a search for a peacock design by an Italian or French ‘CH’ didn't get us far! 

(Really, if you look at the top, in the middle, there are some peacock feathers. Seriously.)

'At Home' by Bill Bryson

We’re all about lovely things and what could be more lovely than a good book? So today we bring you our first book review! And apologies for it not being a new book - it was first published in 2010 - but it is well worth reading by anyone interested in how our homes have come to be the way they are. 

A much read copy!

‘At Home’ by Bill Bryson is subtitled ‘A Short History of Private Life’ and is based on the idea that history is made up of people getting on with their normal activities, most of which take place at home. So, taking his own home (a Victorian rectory in Norfolk) as a starting point, Bill Bryson explores how our modern domestic life has come about.

For example, in the eighteenth century it became possible for people to have cheaper and brighter fabrics than ever before. It was also possible to produce fabric in greater widths and these advances combined meant more upholstered furniture. Now alternatives to leather, previously the best material for upholstery, were available. However, the custom was that meals would be eaten at small tables set up wherever was convenient at the time - and householders realised that this would lead to spills and stains on their new, fashionable, expensive furniture. The solution was to create a dining room, first mentioned in a dictionary in 1755. 

Maybe - and this isn’t suggested in the book - one reason why people don’t use dining rooms so much now is that spills and stains aren’t such a problem. Furniture is cheaper. We have washing machines, laundry detergent and a whole range of fabric protecting and stain removing products. And leather upholstery is fashionable again!

This book is full of information on many subjects: how domestic fridges killed the international ice trade; how construction methods can dictate room size and therefore use; Thomas Edison’s attempt to design concrete houses complete with concrete furniture… The 28 pages of index show the variety. Best of all, the writing is typical Bill Bryson so reading it is like listening to a clever and amusing friend and that’s one of our favourite things. He would definitely be on our fantasy dinner party guest list, wherever the table was.Available, as they say, from all good bookshops - the local, independent ones as well as the big on-line ones!

Fine feathers make fine blinds

Way back in July, we had a trip to V V Rouleaux and bought this feather trim to put on a blind:

Some weeks later, it still hadn't attached itself, so we just had to get on and do it. First thought was to sew it on, but that turned out to be a bad idea. The feathers are glued into a kind of 'ribbon sandwich' which means that the band at the top of the trim is very stiff. It also means that the needle picks up glue when it goes through, making it sticky and harder to use. When the blind still had no trim but had acquired a small bloodstain on the back, it was clearly time for a rethink...

Fortunately this was one of those times when the lazy solution turned out to be the right one (we love those) and iron-on hemming tape came to the rescue. We cut the tape in half lengthwise to make it narrow enough and then just lined it up on the wrong side of the blind, covered with a damp cloth and pressed with a hot iron for 10 seconds.

Here is the result:

The wallpaper is the very lovely Hackney Empire from House of Hackney - this picture shows more of it.

And here comes a tip of the kind that we only share with friends: For the last couple of years, House of Hackney has had a sale in the run up to Christmas with big savings on all their products, including wallpaper. There's no guarantee they will do the same this year, but we'll be keeping an eye out just in case. 

Oversize footstool - Leisure Footstools review

Do you remember a while ago we got new sofa covers? Well, what they really needed was an oversize footstool to set them off and above is the one we chose. Actually, we commissioned it - doesn't that sound fancy?

There are lots available and they are all very nice but nothing was quite right until we discovered Leisure Footstools, who sell through ebay (check out their ebay shop here). They came close to what we were looking for and a couple of emails, some fabric samples and a phone call later, the lovely Chris had agreed to make just what we wanted - 130cm x 80cm in pewter coloured crushed velvet with wooden legs and brass castors. About 10 days later, here it is!

We're delighted with the end result and the service was great - helpful, friendly and quick. The parcel arrived very well packaged to protect it in transit. (Oh, and let's not forget the price - excellent value for the quality of the product).

So if you'll excuse us, these feet aren't going to put themselves up...

Tiger, Tiger...

Tiger, Tiger selling bright

Lovely things for our delight

We couldn't resist this laptop case from Tiger! Who doesn't sometimes want to look busy and important and online? 

Tiger is a Danish company which opened in 1995 and now has shops all over Europe and in Japan. As they say themselves, 'Tiger is a place you go to explore, a place where it is fun to shop'. All their products are simple, colourful and reflect Scandinavian design but there are two important things that set them apart from other retailers.

The first is the range of things available. On our visit the other day we found stationery, kitchen goods, huge bags of herbs and spices, toys, batteries, dressing up kit, candles. door knobs, nail varnish, glasses, lamps... The second is the price - 80% of its products sell for £5 or less! All the pricing is in whole numbers, so for example £1, £2, £3, 2 for £3, 2 for £4 etc which could be why it has been described as a posh pound shop - and what's not to love about that? (The laptop case was a whole spendy £7).

It came in this carrier bag, which shows some of the herbs and spices Tiger sells (4 million bags a year!):

The shops  themselves don't look particularly exciting from the outside. To be honest, you can see Tiger's discount store heritage - but it's always worth popping in to see what's inside. Unfortunately, Tiger doesn't sell online but their website gives a good idea of the products available. Hundreds of new ones are introduced every month.

Chai latte or organic coconut water? Skinny flat white please - unless it's a double espresso day!

True colours of early autumn

So that's it then. September has started, summer is over. People usually associates this time of year with a subtle palette of browns, reds and golds, but we'd like to suggest a rethink, prompted by Smythson, the luxury leather goods people.

This picture is a mood board for the Autumn/Winter collection from the blog on their site (so just to be absolutely clear, Smythson own the copyright for it):

Love the purples and greens - always been a favourite combination of ours, but they are not the traditional 'autumn' (or 'fall' - we're bilingual!) colours. They do give a better reflection of what is happening in the natural world right now, though. Right now, the leaves might be starting to turn but it's going to be a long time before their colours really show. The vegetable shops are full of delicious seasonal produce in gorgeous hues of purple, acid green and sulphur yellow:

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They look good together and not just in the vegetable rack. So just for now, step away from the terracotta. Eschew the ochre. Leave the stone unturned. Summer might be over but there are plenty of vibrant colours and exciting combinations from which to take inspiration!

Gorgeous stair risers

First of all, an apology because we could just as well have called this 'The One With The Bad Photography Part II'. But here's the background...

We saw this lovely staircase at the Edgartown Bookshop in Edgartown, MA on the way to dinner one evening and had to grab a picture then and there because there wasn't going to be a better opportunity!

If you look at their website you can see a much better picture (turns out that good lighting, a decent camera and adequate time does wonders for photography - who knew?).

Anyway,  the idea is that the risers (the parts of the stair that go up, as oppose to the treads, which are the flat bits) are decorated like shelves. Their are piles of books on them and in a variety of suitable fonts are the department titles, like 'travel', 'mystery' and 'historical fiction'. It looks great and is a clever way to decorate a staircase which really dominates the view from the door of the shop.

Inspired by this we checked out Etsy and a search on 'stair decal' or 'stair sticker' brings up a few other ideas such as chevrons, numbers, inspirational sayings and patterns that look like ceramic tiles. There are also some clever people who can custom-make decals for you! But even just painting the risers in a colour that contrasts with the walls or different shades of the same colour could look good too. Lots of possibilities for one of the most used and under-decorated parts of the house!

Meet Luci

Sometimes you come across an object that might not be the prettiest thing ever, but the fact that it is such a good idea and so well designed gives it a charm of its own. And we were charmed by Luci, an inflatable solar lantern.

Deflated

Inflated

Such a simple idea from some some clever people at a company called Mpowered. The motivation behind it is to empower people with affordable light. This means that people all over the world who have no electricity, or whose supply is erratic, can study and work cheaply in a clean, safe environment (no toxic fumes or fire risk from kerosene lanterns).

The lamp can be used with the light source either at the top:

Or at the bottom:

Luci takes 8 hours to charge and should then give 12 hours of light on the lowest setting (there are two, plus a flash function). Unlike a lot of solar lanterns, there is an on and off button, so the energy from a charge is stored if it isn't needed. What you probably can't tell from the pictures (taking pictures in the dark is a job for the professionals - it's hard!) is that the light is enough to illuminate a square metre, so plenty of room to read, study or work. Not to mention that, sadly, light keeps a lot of people safer than the dark.

And those of us lucky enough to have a reliable electricity supply can have a useful and attractive lantern for our decks, patios and outdoor parties. Luci is waterproof, so you can float them in pools and has handles top and bottom for suspension. There is the clear version, which is shown here, or a frosted effect one. And as well as all that good stuff, they are bringing out a colour-changing version, the Luci Aura! There is no release date yet but you can sign up on the web site to be notified.

Mpowered work with all kinds of organisations all over the world to promote solar justice and have a scheme that lets people donate a lantern to those who need it. In the US the lanterns are about $15. You can also buy them in the UK for about £20.

Jonathan Adler - and 10% off!

Look what some lovely friends gave us. (And they really are lovely - not just because they gave us a present!)

These cute bottle stoppers are from Jonathan Adler - an American potter and designer whose company is committed to 'impeccable craftsmanship and irreverent luxury', something we support whole-heartedly. 

There are two Jonathan Adler shops in London selling his wonderful homeware, accessories and gifts. You can also shop online here. In fact, we just checked the website and got the chance to sign up for a 10% discount on our first purchase. That's worth harpooning!

The website also showcases some of the amazing interior design projects that the company has undertaken... read and drool!

Sea Fan

This picture is of a piece of black sea fan, found on the beach. (sea fans are protected under CITES but this is a broken piece that washed up and was left on the beach, so no international treaties were broken in the making of this blog post).

Anyway, we thought the pattern was fascinating (we do some of our best thinking after a lunchtime mojito...) Strangely for something found on the coast in summer, it looks like bare trees in winter. And the pattern and colour would be ideal for the new bedroom curtains we are planning - so if you know of any cream and black fabric with a pattern like this, please let us know!

Beautiful shelves

It's quite a simple idea to arrange books on shelves by colour, like this rainbow arrangement:

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(We've tried something similar but in practice, you are rather limited by the books you have available. And most of ours have pesky writing on the spines in a variety of fonts. Which is great for when you are trying to locate something but does affect the aesthetic!)

Anyway, this beautiful arrangement was in the Sunday Times Style Magazine 13 July 2014:

As you can see, it doesn't follow the spectrum strictly, but it looks beautiful and something that might - just - be achievable on a practical, domestic basis. Definitely an inspiration for when the nights draw in and the house needs a new look.