Five Items Of Note
A list of things for discussion this October. Demolition carnage, bedroom cat litter trays, excellent hair, appealing Italians, discovering treasure, making choices and vaginaesque wine cooler - tick.
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Ah it is GOOD to be back! I have had a couple of weeks off for reasons that I’ll hold back on for now, but rest assured, I’ve missed being here. I am a woman of routine and structure and not bashing out my posts for the last fortnight has not sat well with me (although tbf, it was admittedly beneficial) so I am SO GLAD to be back in the game. Things here in my house are rather hectic, to say the least. I am sitting in my new office (AKA bedroom, TV room, kitchen and cat litter position) with a chopping board on my legs as a keyboard desk, whilst trying to stop the animals from eating each others food. The entire house is covered with dust (they are currently taking out a fireplace) and when I went downstairs just now to talk to the plumber about radiator positioning, I thought I was entering a war zone as everyone was wearing face masks. Thank GOD it’s Friday.
I was in Sorrento last week with my sister, Annabel (more of that below) and drank lots of delicious wine and ate plenty of delicious food. Which is lucky, because we now are surviving almost entirely on a diet of salted fish crackers I brought back from Italy, individually packaged pain au chocolate, Perello almonds (keeping the standards high, even when the bathroom towels are coated with grit) and Tesco Express chicken and bacon microwave ready meals (don’t knock until you’ve tried). Last night, Leo and I settled down on the one sofa (in the bedroom, next to the Mac computer and beside the workman tea and coffee station) to watch the seventh episode of Monster: The Story Of Ed Gein. This was not conducive to pasta eating. If you’ve watched this, you’ll know it’s outrageously hardcore (the glorious Charlie Hannam was paid $2m to play the part of Ed and woah, you can see why) and I can’t really say that I’ve enjoyed it that much. I love a horror, don’t get me wrong, but even I draw the line at a box of dried vulvas. Also, I have struggled to view Charlie as anything but Jax from Sons Of Anarchy so when he’s boiling hearts on the stove and digging up old ladies, it’s blowing my mind and not in a good way. One more episode to go, thank God.
But back to the point and I’ve been doing quite a lot since I last wrote so have plenty to discuss with you. Here are five items of note that I have been contemplating this month and that I think you need to know about.
1. Building Site Chic.
The builders started mid September and for some reason, in my head, I didn’t think I was having THAT much work done. A sorely wrong assumption, as it turned out. ‘Knock out a chimney breast! Reinstate a fireplace! Knock down some walls!’. Hmm. In my head, it was a fairly easy job. The reality is that knocking down walls is a dirty, dirty job. Knocking out chimney breasts containing soot from the Victorian era is even dirtier. Even taking out a bathroom is super grubby. Anyway, my house is looking full on renovation chic and there is a layer of dust on everything. Even the cat and dog are not unscathed by developments. They’re restricted to one room during the day which is not making them very happy but to allow them to leave the room would mean a high risk of escape, either through window or door. Or chimney. Currently there’s a hole leading from the bathroom to the kitchen which, although handy for chatting to the builders, would basically be a leap of death for Buddy and Flo. So much responsibility, particularly when your animals are as poorly trained as mine.
The kitchen is now in the spare bedroom (previously Max’s bedroom before he moved to Manchester two weeks ago to start his new job) and houses a microwave, Instant Pot and my abundance of lampshades, piled high. The animal eating area is on the landing, positioned on a vintage Turkish runner (they have NO appreciation of it). As I write this, I have just ordered the builders and bathroom fitters drinks from Starbucks as there is no water. But, godammit, I LOVE IT.
I have never entered into any real renovation other than a bathroom before and I know that it’s messy and there’s upheaval and all that stuff, but it’s so exciting to see it transform into something that works perfectly for me and my family. Being able to create a space that entirely reflects my own design and thoughts is, for me, just the best project. Our previous home was lovely, albeit three times the size, but it had been renovated by a developer prior to buying and many of the changes I made were cosmetic only. This property is a Victorian terrace, even taking up a floor or knocking plaster from the wall can bring up hidden gems. When I was in Sorrento last week, my builders messaged me to say that the chimney breast wall in the middle room had had the plaster removed to reveal the original brick arch from when this room would have been a kitchen. Not only that, it was stuffed full of newspapers from 1977! This sort of reveal brings me much happiness, bringing out the history of the house so I can take full advantage of how it was before - will be reinstating the brick arch and tiling within it, returning it to its original glory.
This week, the demolition work will be finished and the plastering, electrics and plumbing can be done and planned. And then, my friends, the fun stuff will start. Decorating, kitchen and bathroom installation, flooring, ALL THE THINGS. Even though 90% of what I own is in storage, I can still see the builders looking in exasperation at my 83457849 house plants - which are going to need a full on shower outside when this is done - as they attempt to knock out fireplaces whilst being batted by a giant monstera. But it won’t be forever. In fact, it’ll just be a few months. And this time next year, Rodney, I’ll be sitting in my little tiled courtyard with a large glass of Whispering Angel feeling pretty happy with what I’m going to achieve. The renovation life is definitely for me.
2. Take Me To Italy And Leave Me There Shopping.
Last week, I went to Sorrento with my sister, Annabel, for a four day break. I had only previously been to Milan (work) and Lake Garda (1988, skiing with school and remember nothing but Advocaat) but the Amalfi Coast had always looked so beautiful. I was invited to go with Citalia and needed no persuasion whatsoever; Sorrento had been on my list for a while so I recruited Annabel, knowing she’d be the perfect companion to explore the area. And I LOVED it. For so many reasons. Firstly, it’s a super short flight from Leeds and only took 2.5 hours to get to Naples (another place on my list to explore). Secondly, there are views TO DIE FOR. It matters not where you are in Sorrento, there’s a photo worthy glance in all directions, mostly because there are no high rise at all and it’s almost all traditional buildings. But mostly, it was so, so peaceful. There are lots of tourists, of course. Multiple Netflix series and films have brought people from all over the world to visit and the majority that we saw were American. But if you are looking for a quiet break, without an abundance of noisy bars, loud music and drunk English people, then Sorrento is the one, I tell you.
Also, people were great. Italians have an air of not giving a fuck which I REALLY like. They are not pushy; no restaurant or bar that we went into made us feel pressurised to order yet service everywhere we went was prompt and efficient. Shops shut at lunchtime, no one tried to push you to buy things and you could sit and relax anywhere without being bothered. And most of all, the coffee was delicious, no matter whether you were buying it on the ferry or having it at breakfast in our Hotel, The Grand Hotel Capodimonte which was an utter DREAM. I’m going to write a full Sorrento round up with what we did and where we ate, drank, shopped and viewed next week but until then, I thought I might show you what I bought (I know my audience).
First of all, I found the massive oyster that I featured on a post a few weeks ago (I was doing a wine cooler edit). I’d originally seen it in Liberty (it was an Italian brand called Edelweiss) and was quite smitten, so when I found it for £30 cheaper, I had no choice but to immediately buy it. Not thinking how I was going to get a 2ft massive oyster (that looks startlingly similar to a vagina) home, obvs. But I did, in my hand luggage and what’s more, I didn’t even break it. Cannot WAIT to put this beaut on my new kitchen workbench.
We went to the MOST fabulous place for drinks called La Minervetta (thank you Mark and Keith from Mini Moderns for the suggestion) which had interiors to die for and which also had a shop next door. I bought two mugs with saucers for my new kitchen shelves, plus three plates that I’ll hang on the wall. They’re actually super heavy and I am so pleased with them. A good memory.
A tile. I looked for ages for some traditional tiles I could use as a backsplash in the new kitchen but to no avail, but I did find one with a dog on. Also, there were loads of Sicilian heads wherever you looked but they were pricey, so I managed to find a mini candleholder for five euro that I’m going to stick a paper on the bottom of and use for matches.
An oil pourer which is a little predictable, but I loved the shape of this and also the fact that it was red. It’ll go perfectly next to the range in the new kitchen and contrast well with the blue tiles. No Asda own brand bottles on display in my no kitchen, no siree. I’ll decant it into that. Perfect.
And finally, I bought some Marvis to style up my bathroom once it’s done, simply because I really liked the counter display. Never let it be said that I don’t go the extra mile. Ha.
3. Let’s Talk About Hair.
There are a few things that are annoying me about my hair at the moment, mostly the fact that it is becoming more and more of a struggle for my hairdresser to keep the roots the same colour as the rest. I have always thought that my hair would not go grey - my Mum has red hair and hers has faded as she’s aged and my Dad stayed strong brown right up until mid fifties. But my natural colour is dirty mouse, which is most disappointing. However, it’s generally quite strong. I lost my hair during chemotherapy twelve years ago and prior to that, I would wash and straighten it daily which did it no good at all. When it returned, I was much kinder to it and now wash it only three times a week with minimal heat drying and it really is so much better than before.
But recently, I have found that it’s falling more than it was previously, probably due to age and menopause (urgh). But also due to the fact that I highlight it regularly due to the onset of greys (annoying), I’m finding it drier and less bouncy and lacking in thickness. So I’ve been taking Hair + Me capsules daily for the last two months to see if it can improve the condition and strength and I can confirm that I can see a significant difference in both. Super pleased! So what is Hair + Me?
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4. Making Choices To Last.
One of the most popular questions that I receive on my Substack Design Dilemmas is HOW TO CHOOSE. And choose anything, really. Making decisions in our homes is hard work, particularly when you are deciding on things which cannot be changed once in. I’ve found this one of the most challenging things when making decisions here in the new house - flooring, tiling, hardware; these are things that once they are in, you’re stuck with them. They can’t be moved, unless at vast expense. And as I’m sure you know, just GETTING those things into the house using trade expertise is equally pricey. But watching it improve, bit by bit, is well worth the effort.
Anyway, this week someone asked me how I have decided on colours for the house and if there was any cohesion throughout. Is each room different? Is there any - as my friend Kate would say - ‘red thread’ running through? Planning a colour scheme for an entire house isn’t easy, that’s for sure. Previously, I have kept to a neutral base and then added colour willy nilly but our previous home was significantly bigger than this one. This one needs to be approached differently - for example, if you’re standing at the front window, you can see all the way through the house for the rear. I have rose coloured Togo sofas. Therefore, the colours I add have to gel throughout this long space, not just in the one room. So I need to think about it more.
So what have I done? I’m keeping to the same wall colour throughout the house (Beata White from Mylands). This will be the cohesive neutral that will tie together the spaces throughout. Then I’ve painted the front door and exterior frames in a soft brown (Millbank) and masonry in cream (Cadogan Stone). From there, I’m going to paint the stairs and under stair frame in a darker brown to blend (Cigar). Then I’m carrying the exterior Millbank through to the rear doors that lead to the garden. So there’s flow here - cream, soft brown, darker brown. It will be pleasing to the eye, basically. The wood flooring will be the same throughout the ground floor - this has multiple benefits, firstly that it expands the space and makes it feel larger but also that it ties the spaces together as they’re all open plan. Multiple ticks.
When deciding on colours for the living room, middle room and kitchen, I have tied them together in an earthy, warm palette. Keeping with the browns and creams, adding terracotta, dusty pink, mineral blues, soft yellows. This base works together and to that, I’ll add art and accessories which will add the interest and the colour pops. But I had to think about it, hard. I was keen on red for the middle room bookcase, but had to consider the fact that the sofa colour wouldn’t work with it. I thought about a coloured sink for the cloakroom, but it wouldn’t have worked with the other colours leading off the space. Decisions decisions! But let me tell you now that unless I had moodboarded the lot of it, I would never have got there. You can see moodboards for almost all of the spaces that I’m planning on the My House In York tab.
But, of course, the proof is in the pudding so whilst I am currently sitting bedroom bound with a massive chopping board on my lap as a keyboard desk, by Christmas it should have come together so we shall see if it all works. Pray for me, people.
5. Move Aside Sandals, It’s Time For Boots *sobs.
This week, I got the boots out. Although tbh, holding out until 15 October is pretty good, I think. In order to reach my boots, I had to move a 4ft chest of drawers, then stand on an IKEA step stool to get them whilst surrounded by empty cat food sachets and Dreamy squeezies (IYKYK). Honestly. Anyway, out they came. Everyone has their favourite pair of boots and mine are ones that I’ve had two (maybe even three) years from John Lewis. They’re simple Chelsea style, pull on with elasticated ankle, unassuming yet they go with EVERYTHING. Dresses, short skirts and tights, jeans, all the stuff. These are the sort of boots that everyone needs in their arsenal. They’ve done them again this year in brown too, I’ve shown below.
I struggle quite a lot with finding boots that really work for me. My natural habitat is fleece lined UGG. I cannot tolerate a high heel of any description (unless I am ‘out out’) so the sole height is very important. My second favourite pair are some black Nanettes from Grenson which I picked up in the Sale about three years ago and wear solidly throughout the winter months. Again, they’re comfortable, solid and can be worn with absolutely everything. An investment, but worth it. Boots, I believe, should be for life and not just for Christmas so I tend to always buy leather in the hope that they’ll last the course.
Anyway, in the interest of public service I’ve had a peruse to see what is currently out there in the low leather boot stakes and have listed my favourite finds. These are all super versatile and can be worn multiple ways, ranging in price too but you know, you get what you pay for tbh when it’s footwear I think. You can grab them for thirty quid but they might not last as many years and also, buying less, buying better and all that.
1.Purcie boots, John Lewis £89; 2. Cowboy boots, Zara £79.99; 3. Ankle boots, H&M £119.99; 4. Tammy suede, Grenson £152 (Sale); 5. Tassel boot, Penelope Chilvers £379; 6. Chisel toe boot, M&S £76; 7. Remi Khaki boot, FatFace £79; 8. Suede leopard, Anonymous Copenhagen £250.
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Saturdays feel right again. Always enjoy your posts with a cuppa first thing. Adore the interiors colour palette - very inspiring. Have a great weekend x
Welcome back, I’ve missed your posts. I used to live on the Amalfi coast and I bought the exact same tile from Pompeii 35 years ago! what did you think of the ceramics?🇮🇹🍕😊