1001 apologies to 'Demanding Anon', who requested a post on my 'interior decorating/house' all the way last year...I had taken these pictures shortly after her request, but was not happy with them, and then my house changed around quite a bit with the addition of hubby's surround sound system - (not happy with how it looks!), the addition of a new/vintage sofa, and most recently, complete reshifting of furniture to make room for a 'nursery'.
My house is an old (1900's) double-fronted cottage, and as cute and homey as it is, we are finding it to be a little too small nowadays (how does one accumulate so much in just a few years?). Since it will take another long period for me to take updated photos, I thought I would share these old photos in the meantime...
The hideous grey couch (barely pictured) has thankfully since been replaced by a Danish midcentury chocolate leather 3-seater. LOVE my alpaca rug under the coffee table...it is incredibly soft! Everyone who visits loves taking their shoes off to feel the rug under their toes...we came across alpaca rugs in a fancy furniture store, with a fancy price tag, so hubby & I scoured the internet and saved a few hundred dollars by ordering it from Peru. I am not a fan of the ugly old gas heater in our sitting room, but since it is functional (and oh so great in wintertime), we will not be replacing it until it 'conks'. On the coffee table you may see my Agate & Rosewood coasters from Brazil. The 'TV cabinet' is from IKEA and I was SO happy when I saw it in the catalogue, as I did not like a single cabinet I had seen prior to that...love the glossy red colour and simple design.
The chocolate leather midcentury modern Danish sofa has a large Ikea striped pillow on it, and the most gorgeous satin embroidered pillow I bought from London Convent Garden store 'Koh Samui' (before it closed down, boo hoo!).
LOVE our Hans Wegner Y-Chairs (aka Wishbone chairs) - we bought six of these in Oak from Denmark, and it was a nightmare to get them over here...but worth it in the end.
Also designed by Hans Wegner, we bought his 'Andreas Tuck' coffee table (ours is the 'oak' version of the one pictured above) from my uncle's store (back when he stocked Danish furniture, now he focuses purely on his own amazing designs).
I bought this painting on Ebay and love it, nothing fancy/pricey...but I absolutely love cherry blossoms and 'gold' gradient background...
I am not a fan of mirrors, but hubby really wanted one for the house, and I could never find one I liked...he came across this mirror by a local designer, and was so excited to show it to me...all 9 squares are angled differently (yet fixed), giving it an unusual reflection. Reflected in the mirror is the painting I bought in Parati during my last trip to Brazil (same artist as the one who painted the picture further below).
I have lots of cookbooks in my kitchen...not that I use them all (usually I only cook a couple of recipes from each, if that...I mostly cook recipes from the internet/food blogs!). Also, due to lack of storage space in our kitchen, we store a lot of items in big Ikea baskets on top of the kitchen cupboards...when we moved in we had planned to renovate the outdated kitchen & bathroom...but 5 years on, and we have not lifted a finger in that direction.
Ikea placemats
Instead of saying "dinner's ready" like most families, I grew up with my family saying: "comer, comer"! Which essentially means "eat, eat"...Even though hubby does not speak Portuguese, he has picked up on my 'family tradition', and we thought we'd spell it out on our kitchen wall...The painted wooden letters look crooked in the picture due to the angle it was taken.
I have already posted a picture of this painting of Parati (my favourite place in the world, on the coast of Rio de Janeiro) with a midcentury Danish oak filing cabinet, teak candlesticks and pottery (gifts from my uncle), here is a bigger picture of it all, which sits in my 'corridor'. I am only babysitting this painting for my parents while they live in Brazil, but absolutely love it...here is a picture of the actual place the painting is based on.
I am a fan of interesting pieces that come from around the world, reflecting our experiences and travels...this one was given by our friends who spent a few weeks in Africa.
Danish lamps we have as on our Arne Vodder bedside tables (also purchased from my uncle's store), we meant to have them wired to the wall, but the electrician said it was incredibly tricky to do...such a shame! Hopefully we still get to mount them in the near future...
Thanks again for your lovely well-wishes! Still no baby (as from the time this is posted), but I have my brother-in-law's wedding tomorrow, so perhaps that is a good thing...
