A New Year

My blog is about to have a revamp but as I'm hopeless on computers i need to get a Little help so i gave it a temporary new look! (you had to see my attempts ewe...) anyway its a whole new-year and i have to say its my most favourite time (besides Xmas) as you get to set new goals and try again with new years resolutions! i get to start a new diary and journal and plan an exciting year ahead because for me 2008 is going to be the best year ever!!! this week i have decided to post a few pics on coffee table decorating, personally if you have the space buy a large coffee table as it allows you to be more creative, stacking lots of books on a coffee table its an inexpensive way to decorate. I often use in my decorating a silver tray (like the picture above) and add interesting pieces such as a collection of shells, a large piece of coral, add interesting vases and candle holders that add interest to the tray and also allows for hand cut flowers from your garden.

A time to give to others.....

Yesterday i visited my grandmother who is 97 at her nursing home she is in the Alzheimer's section (defiantly where I'm heading!) as soon as i arrived my heart skipped a beat there was my grandmother and other elderly men and woman singing xmas carols and having a great time, my sister was with me as we also sang the look on all there faces was appreciation that two young girls were singing with them, one older man told the nurse how my sister was a spitting image of his daughter and he couldnt take his eyes off her, i sat there wondering how many grandchildren or children bother to see them, and how desperate they are to be heard and not forgotten! i have told all my kids that on xmas day after pressies we are going to take platters of homemade xmas treats and we are going to visit all the Oma's and Opa's at the dutch village (where my grandmother lives) for just an hour! I think the experience is going to touch there hearts too and make our xmas even more special.

Inspirations....

I have used this gorgeous DG wall-paper in my daughter Lexi's room on two walls and the other walls i painted in a mustard yellow, its such a beautiful colour and her room looks young, fresh and girlie (which was her request, strictly no pink,thankfully i have 3 other daughters to at least use pink) i covered her bed-head in a beautiful aqua linen piped in white, ill post some images soon! but the real reason i posted this photo is the use of scattered vases with hand picked flowers, this is by far my favourite (in-expensive) decorating tool, the fun of raiding granny's cupboard, hitting the markets to find vintage bottles and antique crystal vases is so much fun and looks great on a coffee table, sideboard or in my case my little lily has a collection and we collect flowers together to put in the vases and she just loves it (and she is only 3, okay on the odd occasion she has plucked off every petal!)

Every year i buy a new journal, it may just be to note a great book i've read or my goals for the year, motivational quotes,something funny lily did or simply my ideas and inspirations both personally and in my work, i have just ordered for the store these beautiful Designer guild journals and notecards, they are just so beautiful! (in-store soon)

just some ideas!

I have put together some ideas that i love using for Xmas, buying plain white or silver bon-bons and adding fabric bows or using gorgeous gro-grain ribbons, even adding pretty paper to the centre. This Xmas i have had my family names put on to silver heart decorations as a keepsake that they can re-use every year and hopefully keep for-ever i place one on every place setting in a special box, i love beautiful vintage pieces so i decided this year that would be my theme lots of crystal, silver and white.

A white xmas

Christmas is definitely the best time of year at lily-g our store comes alive with Xmas shoppers buying pressies, decorating there tree and planning there Xmas table even buying a party dress or Xmas day out-fit!This year our decorations were stunning so much so they sold out in the first few weeks, beautiful silver and mercury decorations, mouth blown glass balls were a huge hit! i often tell my customers that if you keep the decorations silver, glass etc..by just changing the ribbon you can create a different colour scheme on your tree every year whether you use aqua and white ribbon or navy and hot pink or simply just white and silver! This year I'm doing a white colour scheme and making Xmas stockings out of left over designer fabrics like the picture above!

the other side of our newsletter

With out a doubt Ralph Lauren made Navy and White fashionable, personally in my opinion its stylish, classy and timeless and i can honestly say i never get tierd of it, so i had to feature it one more time, our ginger jars ,navy and white beach towels and deck chairs have finally arrived (at-last i'm sorry for the delay) I have been asked by so many customers if they can purchase on-line especially our interstate customers, next year we definately will provide our customers that service by logging on to our web-site you will be notified of all up-coming events happening in the new year and there are plenty!