I am not sure if I have shown you some photographs of one of our guest bedrooms which is still a work in progress. We are in our home six years but never had any furniture in this room until before Christmas when we had family staying over. I do have another guest bedroom fully decorated but hadn't bothered with this one until now. It was about time too after six years! I need to add some finishing touches like pictures/wall art, perhaps a radiator cover as it looks awful in these photographs. I would also like some prints for the bedside tables as the current ones with the birds don't match the decor. If you have any suggestions for me, I would love to hear from you as I really don't know what type of pictures/wall art to get that will tie in with other bedclothes I have. To see some more images of my home, take a look at my instagram

This weekend was a bank holiday weekend here in Ireland which was great to get the extra day off work. I still have a lot of holidays to take so hopefully the weather will pick up again and I can enjoy the sunshine. Apologies for the lack of blog posts, pop over to my Instagram account to see what I've been up to around the farm and garden. Below are a few images from around my home this week...

Hope everyone had a nice week. In my last post I shared some photographs of my walk at the Farnham Estate in Cavan. Here are a few photographs of the interiors of the hotel which includes the original estate house. It has beautiful woodland walks which we really enjoyed. Following our walk we had tea and scones. I have also heard great reviews of their spa and infinity swimming pool. If you would like to find out more visit Farnham Estate Golf & Spa Resort website.

I haven't read any books in ages. Part of the reason is that there is such a wealth of information available online coupled with beautiful images. As a result, it is difficult to engross yourself in a book with what seems like endless pages of text... There are just too many distractions. For example I think to myself, Oh I must look up how to make the perfect flower arrangement... so online I go... click, click and next thing I  know  I'm on Pinterest.  This leads to other websites, blogs, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc, etc.  It just keeps going on and on until I can't remember what I was actually going online for in the first place. You know what I mean... Has it happened to you too? And then I never get round to that book that is sitting on my bedside table for over two weeks just gathering dust.

Don't get me wrong, I still think that reading books is important for developing our concentration skills, understanding, imagination, memory and creativity. I feel that this is something younger generations may be missing out on. The sense of discovery in a new book is great and the sense of satisfaction and completion when you reach those last pages.

I have so many books, I have a small library room upstairs in my house and I only have my favourite books downstairs. Lately I am drawn to books with lots of beautiful illustrations and photographs. One of which is this fabulous book Homespun Style by Selina Lake which takes pride of place on my dresser. It's an interior design book which couples both my love of books and interior design...  Have a look at the beautiful photograph and if you would like to find out visit here.

Finally my living room is almost complete. I just need a few items to finish the room including an over mantle mirror, TV, ceiling light fitting and curtain tiebacks. I'm thinking of painting the inside of the unit a crisp white, as it is ivory and looks quite cream next to the white marble fireplace. What do you think? Have you any ideas for my over mantle mirror or the light fitting? I hope to use this room over the Christmas season. I am now on my holidays from work so have lots of time to decorate the house for Christmas, I just need less rain so I can go pick ivy, moss and berries in the hedges. I will keep you posted on my DIY Christmas decor.

Hello everyone. This weekend we were at a wedding. It was a lovely day, so today we are taking it easy and relaxing. In the snug we have the wood burning stove going. Meanwhile in the living room, things are coming together well. The carpet was fitted last week and I have started to put some things into the room. I have to choose some curtains and furniture now. I bought the fluffy throw in penneys (primark). The blue vases on the fireplace were both seperately at two car boots sales. I was delighted to be lucky enough to get the matching one- a real bonus! I would love suggestions on furniture and other accessories for the room? Please do give me your opinions/ideas?

It's the bank holiday weekend here in Ireland and I am just catching up on my blogging. The weather is still hit and miss here but I'm still living in hope that the sunshine will come later in August. Here are just a few pics from around my home... I will update you on my holiday plans later this week....

It's beginning to get a lot like winter at home...
The snug in my home is nice and cosy with the log fire burning away, my fairy lights sparkling and candles burning.What else would you want apart from a warm mug of tea.... The days are getting dark so quickly.
Hope you are warm and cosy where ever you are...

What can I say, I love shabby chic interiors, so feminine, pretty and romantic. There are so many gorgeous images on pinterest of shabby chic interiors in homes across the world. Rachel Ashwell is synonymous with Shabby Chic- just take a look at the images below and you will understand why. They are all from Rachel Ashwell who is a designer, author and entrepreneur of all things Shabby chic. She even opened her own shabby chic hotel The Prairie.

My home on the other hand is more country cottage with natural wood and textiles than shabby chic. While I love shabby chic and vintage items, I only have pops of it about the place. Shabby Chic is basically where you choose your furniture and accessories for their appearance of age and signs of wear and tear. Some items can be distressed to look like they are antique and this is a big trend in home furnishings in recent years. The colour tend to be soft muted tones. Feast your eyes on the images below from Rachel Ashwell- aren't they stunning!

Shabby Chic from Rachel Ashwell

Shabby Chic from Rachel Ashwell

On my travels I came across this very stylish coastal theme cafe and bar called Alley in Mykonos. I love the interiors and decor with the white and baby blue. It is really stylish and fresh. Outside is as nice as the interiors. Funky chairs and stools, rope lights and pretty flowers.. We stopped off for a drink to cool us down one of the days while out and about.
P.S. That is not us in the photographs, I don't know those people but it was difficult to get a photograph without customers in it. So it was a matter of wrong place wrong time.

Do you like these interiors? Do you know of any other stylish cafes or bars?

{Images my own aka All things nice...}

{Images from Alley}

Do you like White Bedrooms? I am always drawn to white interiors- the fresh, clean and crisp look of them. They look pretty too and very feminine. I tried to achieve a white guest bedroom in my home, but it was just too cold for me when I saw it in reality. It was lovely when the sun was shining but then when it was dull it felt cold and uninviting. For that reason I decided to add some pops of colour to liven it up and add some warmth. I know if you put different patterns, textiles and shades of white it works best but I just couldn't get it right. Then I thought it was because I have wooden doors, window boards and skirting boards so it wasn't fully the all white look. Even though I didn't go with the all white guest bedroom, it doesn't spot me from still loving white interiors and here are a few images of white bedrooms from the internet which I really like. I think they all are from Ideal Home. Do you like them? Have you a white room in your home?

Hope you all had a lovely weekend. I had an extra long one as I took Friday off and today was a bank holiday. I spent Friday with my parents and Saturday with my sister in law. Yesterday I did the shopping and today I just chilled out and did some housework.
Below are a few images from around my home if you would like a nosy. First up is my growing stack of pretty towels in our bathroom with a few Cath Kidston items thrown in too... The wee lotions I got for 50p in a charity shop, I will probably never use them as they are too pretty. As you may have noticed before my bathroom is very vintage style with lots of florals.

Here are a few more photos of the dresser in my living room. Some of my books are stored here including Selina Lake's Homespun Style, Lorna Sixsmith's Would you Marry a Farmer, Gisele Scalon's Goddess Guide, the rest of my books are stored in my library room in the attic. I also have lots of country inspired items. The card is hand painted silk from Swallow Yarn Barn. You might also spot my Rachel Allen Forget me Not candle and the pretty wildlife cards from Wrendale Designs.

And finally some more of my books in my library in the attic...

So I hope you enjoyed the sneak peek around my home...

As you know we moved into our new home two years ago. We have a kitchen/dining room, living room and sun room all decorated, furnished and finished. However we also have another living room, or here in Ireland we would call it "the good sitting room". Years ago most houses had a "good sitting room" which was never really used only at Christmas times and for visitors. Well I have one of those which we have not yet decorated. I can't decide on what colours and style to go for in this room. I was thinking a shade of grey for the walls and have come across some inspiration on pinterest. Below are some of my ideas, I would love to hear if you have any ideas or images which you think I may like.

{Classic Casual Home}

{McGill Design Group}

{Lee Ann Thornton Interiors}

Here are some inspirational interiors I took from my pinterest page- Interiors I like with a little hint of country to them from wood and stone to sheep inspired decor. 

The first image is from Baobab Interiors. I love the use of the wood and steel, it is quirky, contemporary and also warm and inviting. 

{Source: Baobab Interiors}

How about this cute country cottage look with the stone and wood. This is really pretty and homely looking. 

{Source: Houzz}

The image below is from Citizens of Fashion. It is from interior designer Dephine Krakoff's sophisticated New York townhouse that she shares with her designer husband, Reed Krakoff and their children. I love the sheep! 

{Source: The Citizens of Fashion}

Which is your favorite, which home inspires you?

My parents were visiting friends in Holland this week and my mother came across the Riverdale Brand. I had never heard of it before, but now I love it! There are only one or two stockists in Ireland but you can check them out online. With Riverdale home accessories, it’s easy to create a new mood for your interior again and again. Make it warm and cosy in the winter, and fresh and airy in the summer, That way, your home will always be in fashion! Here are some Autumnal ideas for your home.

{All images from Riverdale}

As some of you may have read on my blog previously, I was unsure what to do with the white guest bedroom. In the end I decided to buy fabric and get a roman blind, cushions and a runner for the bed made. I bought Forest Friends fabric from Prestigious Textiles and my aunt made all of the items. I think it looks good now. Apologies the light isn't good in the photographs, it's dull enough here this week. I will take some photos of the roman blind for you as well, but for now here is the finished room. All I need now is something nice to hang on the wall over the bed.

 

I just love floral patterns! In my opinion floral patterns never date, they are in all the time! Here are some of my favourite floral items taken from a range of online sources, sorry I don't have the link backs to them. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and you have lots of nice plans :)

 

I am currently trying to pick some fabric for roman blinds in my guest bedroom which I posted about here. Have a look at the images of the prestigious textile collections below and let me know which you think I should pick. The guest room is painted white with white furniture so I hope to get the blinds made along with two cushions and maybe a bed runner? So have your pick and let me know what one you like?

 

 

All images from Prestigious Textiles