DIY distressed mirror frame

This is the first thing I’ve made specifically for our flat, we have a big space above our (electric) fireplace and it was in desperate need of filling. It makes the room look both bigger and brighter, but the best bit, is that it was completely FREE! I found the mirror in my parents’ attic and then used a piece of sandpaper I already had and then leftover white paint from my parents’ garage. Just to be clear I did ask them before I started taking and DIY-ing things!

You obviously don’t need a step by step guide, but one top tip I did pick up was that when distressing the painted frame wrapping the sandpaper around a block made it much weightier, this made it easier to chip the paint giving a more realistic distressed look. I really love how it looks close up.

Here’s the before shot (I forgot to take one before removing the mirror)...

And here’s after...

Our flat

We’ve been in our flat just over one month and it’s gone so quickly, there’s still plenty we need to buy and do – a dining table and shelves are the main items on our shopping list so we can actually spread our stuff out a bit and I’ve still got a few boxes at my parents house. With all that in mind I’m not exactly house proud yet so I thought I’d just share a few snaps of my favourite things.

The colours are mainly dictated by one of the kitchen walls which is a teal colour, luckily I love the colour teal and already have quite a bit of blue stuff to match with it so it worked out well. I love this kettle from argos, a moving gift from the boyfriend’s parents.

Also in the kitchen is our new clock from Marks and Spencer , after being unable to get it online I was over the moon to find it in our local M&S, ironically the bigger M&S stores I’d been to looking for it first were all sold out.

Our window sills are made tiles, not exactly my favourite feature but it’s growing on me, covering them with candles has helped.

My butterfly cross stitch matches the teal colour scheme very nicely.

As does this bath mat from h&m home – they have some gorgeous stuff but be warned delivery takes ages!

Finally, these are our latest bargains. We’re trying to buy second hand wherever possible – mainly for financial reasons (!) but also because of how wasteful it seems to go out and buy everything brand new. This small stand was £2 at a car boot and in the next few weeks will be sanded and painted (not sure what colour yet). The small plant pot was 50p from a charity shop and is similar to ones I’ve been eyeing in home stores for around £5, just need a plant now!

Recently I’ve been...

Eating - the blackberries growing in my Mum and Dad’s garden, whilst I’m staying here for the week cat sitting. This also means I’m without my trusty camera so I’m relying on phone pictures for now.

Reading – the latest issue of Mollie Makes outside in the sunshine. I adore the rose and heart cross stitch that came with it. Can’t wait to start that!

Painting –this old mirror for our flat. I found it in my Mum and Dad’s attic a few weeks ago and was given permission to paint and keep it – love free stuff! So far I’ve removed the mirror and sanded down the pine frame. It’s going to be white with a shabby chic finish; well that’s the plan at least. That’s the cat making an appearance there.

Loving – our new tea towels. I brought these in Marks and Spencer last week, just £4 for three in their sale! The colours match our kitchen perfectly and the plate and tea cup illustrations are so cute that I’m almost tempted to frame one.

St Michael’s Mount

This is the last post from my adventures in Cornwall earlier in July and I really loved our morning spent at St Michael’s Mount. It’s a castle on a very small island just off the beach – at low tide you can walk across the sand, but at high tide a boat is essential (the tide comes in fast too as we watched one couple discover!).

Like most historic buildings it’s full of amazing furniture and atmospheric rooms, my favourite pieces were undoubtedly a blue sofa, sat on by Queen Victoria on her visit to the Mount in the 1800s and a model of St Michaels Mount made of corks by the family’s butler in the 1930s and presented to the family. Can you tell I love objects with a story behind them?

After looking round the castle we stopped for tea and scones (well, I had scones the boyfriend had soup) at the cafe overlooking the mainland. Before browsing a few shops in Marazion, the nearest town, it had picturesque streets like most places in Cornwall and a good number of vintage shops – the best looking one was closed though – boo.

Speaking of vintage we picked up a few bargains for the flat at a car boot this weekend and I think I might have become slightly obsessed, but more on that in another post!

The Eden Project

Whilst in St Ives we spent a rainy Tuesday at the Eden Project, this it turned out was an idea had by pretty much everyone else in Cornwall. Nevertheless after a slight traffic jam and ticket queues that luckily looked worse than they were... we were in!

It had just stopped raining as we arrived so we spent some time looking around the outside of the domes, I don’t know much anything about plants but it was nice to wander all the same. We came across sculptures, interesting facts about the Cornish landscape and lots of wet flowers as well as some exciting views of those famous domes (biomes).

We headed into the rainforest biome first and it was definitely tropically humid in there, my camera lens went foggy and there were a lot of people. The Mediterranean biome was much calmer and there was space to sit and admire your surroundings (something you could do outside if you visit on a day without torrential downpours) they also had a really good looking restaurant.

It was an nice day, I wasn't overwhelmed but I did like some of the sustainability and fair trade messages you come across as you go around – it really made you think. They also upgrade your ticket into an annual pass if you gift aid, which is good as the entrance fee is fairly steep for a day trip.

Adventures and Tea Parties competition win

Firstly, don’t you just think ‘handkerchiefs’ is the strangest word – the longer you look at it the odder it seems. Anyway on to more important things... how cute are these handkerchiefs from the lovely Joanna at Adventures and Tea Parties?!

I was lucky enough to win a set of three in Joanna's recent blog giveaway. They arrived packaged in little boxes tied with ribbons (I’ll definitely be reusing that heart ribbon soon!) each handkerchief is personalised with beautiful embroidered initials or a date, the two heart ones were pictured but the blue dotty one was a surprise and is better than I could have chosen myself.

Joanna also makes necklaces and brooches embroidered with everything from birds and butterflies to sewing machines and anchors.

Now then, I'm off to have a tea party... or an adventure... who's with me?