Wonder Vintage Market, Paris

On Saturday I headed off to the North-East of Paris, to the Centquatre, which can be best described as a modern exhibition space that features culture and art (with restaurants, a giant charity shop and an enormous book shop thrown in). I arrived on a fresh Saturday afternoon to check out the Wonder Vintage Market, and it was, errrr... wonderful!

The event played host to some of the best vintage interiors displays I've ever seen, with some of the stalls feeling like real room set ups. The clothes were a little more expensive than I'm used to, but that was reflected in the fantastic quality. Winter capes, felt fedoras and even Betty Draper style night gowns were on offer.

I was a bit snap-happy at the event, so here is a selection of my favourite parts of the market!

Also, a quick shout out to the lovely Kat of Purrfect Kat Vintage, who recognised me from my blog! My first international recognition ;). Woo! You can find her blog here. I'm sorry if I came across a bit shocked - I was!

Sadie xxx

The Birds

Just before leaving home to come back to uni, I was lucky enough to spend some time in the company of a small flock of beautiful birds, all hand made by talented mosaic artist Kate Rattray. Quite unlike what the title of this post might imply, these birds were all very friendly and happy to co-operate for a photo or two!

Each bird has its own individual personality, and I can't quite decide which one is my favourite! They are designed to be hung either indoors or outdoors - don't they just look fantastic twinkling in the trees?

Kate produces her mosaic creations in a workshop at the bottom of her garden. Her pieces range from large framed works of art (have a look here), to wall sculptures (my personal favourite is this homage to Dali's 'Ruby Lips'), to smaller items like these birds, as well as necklaces, all available through Folksy. Flower brooches, eye brooches, and 'flying ducks' have been promised for the future, so keep your eye out for these!

It was a real privilege to borrow the birds for a mini photoshoot in the garden out in the winter sunshine. I hope you like the photos!

Kate also has a blog, so if you are interested in seeing how her mosaics are created, as well as background information on the inspiration for various pieces, be sure to have a look :).

What do you think of the birds? Where would you hang one?

Sadie xxx

Late Night Sewing: Cushion Cover

Last month I finally got around to making a cover for a plain cushion that I spontaneously bought at Ikea at the start of the summer (Ikea: the land spontaneous and unnecessary purchases). I thought I'd make use of some of my old scraps of material - you may recognise the lace from my shelves at uni! The dark boiled wool is from an old skirt that didn't fit, and the pretty retro green fabric is something I pulled out from the bottom of a pile offcuts at a carboot.

Cushion covers are probably the easiest thing in the world to make, the only thing you need to remember is leave enough overlap for the seams, and to sew the two pieces together inside out when you assemble them. Apart from that, the world's your oyster - it's a good way to upcycle old bits of material, and they make sofas and beds extra comfy (and pretty!).

What do you think of them? I couldn't resist taking some photos of them basking in the warm light from my lamp... makes me feel all wintery... and dare I say it, Christmassy? (I'm normally a bit of a Scrooge!)

Sadie xxx

My New Room

You may remember last year, I posted about decorating my room in university halls. Well, now I've moved out and into a house, into a room double the size and half the price! I've been busy decorating it since moving in, including pinning (yes, pinning) up a feature wall of Anagylpta paper, painted a rich green colour. I'm facing the same problem as last year in that I can't make any major changes to the room, but after a quick re-arrangement of the furniture, bluetacking some lace edging to my mismatched shelves, and of course, filling said shelves with all of my important junk, the place seems more like home.

I've taken a few snaps of my favourite areas of the room (again, as practise with my new lens). Please excuse the lack of sharpness in places - I'm a beginner!

Slightly wrinkled anaglypta! I got so much criticism for this from my parents, who can remember it the first time around, but I think its great! And I think I may have won my mum around...

A little retro hornsea honey pot and another little pot

Some rather dashing little 50s? 60s? 70s? Salt and Pepper pots and a highly flammable lightshade...

My retro sewing machine cover

Pretty little vintage makeup bag, picked up at Clothes Show Live last year

Although you can't see properly, this is a floor standing lamp, found in a local charity shop for £7.50!

I'll be back soon with a proper outfit post - a bit rushed off my feet at the moment with uni things. I'm trying to join more societies this year, and my diary is now full to bursting!

Sadie xxx

How to Upcycle a Chair

Way back in December 2009, I wrote a post about upcycling a chair and using it as a unique Christmas present. Upcycling cheap furniture has been at the back of my mind ever since, and so when I found this chair in a charity shop for £3, my thoughts turned once again to paint, sandpaper, staple guns and spare fabric.

This time, I wanted to avoid shabby chic and instead go for something more sleek. I had a sample tin of black matt wall paint left over from when I painted a black and white scene earlier in the year (shhh... wall paint is cheaper than artist's acrylic and basically the same!), and thought it could be put to excellent use on the chair. I had also just purchased a scrap of fairly thick material from another charity shop, which just so happened to go well with the matt black! So the project was born.

Upcycling a chair takes about 2 hours from start to finish. Here are some basic instructions!

1. Find a chair with a seat that can be removed (test it by pushing up under the seat).
2. Use sand paper to remove the layer of gloss on the outside and to make a nice surface to paint on. You don't really need to be too thorough.
3. Wipe all of the sandpaper dust off using a damp cloth.
4. Paint all the wooden parts of the chair - you may need to give it a second coat, especially if you are using pale paint. Then leave to dry!
5. Cut your fabric to size so that it fits the seat area (remembering you need enough to wrap around to the underside and possibly fold over for a neater finish).
6. Hold it in place and use a staple gun or a hammer & tacks to nail the fabric to the wood on the underside of the seat. Mind your fingers!
7. Once the chair is dry, slot the seat back into the frame!
8. Find a nice corner to put your chair, for everyone to admire :).

***

I've just found a house to live in next year for uni (the most stressful thing ever!), and I'm looking forward to incorporating the chair into the room design - hopefully it won't be such a 'small space challenge' as this year is :).

Sadie xxx

P.S. Have any of you upcycled anything? I need inspiration for my next project!

P.P.S. I recently did an interview over at Dirt on Your New Shoes. I'd definitely advise having a look at Chloe's blog, which is filled with great outft inspiration!

The Sunday Carboot

Last Sunday I went to my first ever city-centre carboot. When you're used to carbooting in a huge grassy field set in rolling countryside on a warm summer morning, its a bit of a shock to the system to find yourself in a grey concrete industrial estate on an icy winter's day! Nevertheless, I found many a bargain - although admittedly, it took a while to find them amidst stall-upon-stall of wholesale household products and dodgy electronics.

The find of the day was this little leather suitcase, for... wait for it... 20p! I pounced on this case when I saw it - I don't know how it hadn't already been snapped up by vintage buyers earlier in the morning. It now resides on top of two other leather suitcases on my wardrobe; you think I'd have enough of these by now, but I'm not going to say no at 20p!

I was also lucky enough to find a working 1975 Roberts radio! It's a true piece of eye candy; the red leather panelling and wooden sides are reminiscent of an era that I so wish I was a part of! It's a shame that some of the buttons are missing on the top, but it still tunes in perfectly and has a lovely tone.

Sat next to my radio in the '70s corner' of my room is a Sadler tea (or coffee?) set. I loved the tall upright design and the retro styling, which, funnily enough, almost matches my gaudy curtains! The lady was selling a whole set - with pots, more mugs, and a jug, for £3, but I had to persuade myself not to buy them all as I'd never have been able to carry them home. I feel a bit guilty for breaking up the set...

And finally, a pretty sleeveless lace top with brown shell buttons. It really reminds me of something that Zara might sell! It needs a bit of taking-in, but I can foresee it being a summer staple of mine (yes... already thinking about the summer...). I can't wait to wear it buttoned up and tucked into my brown shorts!

Sadie xxx

P.S. I've got a brilliant giveaway coming up - open to international readers too! Keep checking back!

Interior Design in a Small Space: My University Challenge!

Before moving to University, I was thinking a lot about what my new surroundings would be like - especially my new room! I was half dreading the idea of leaving my comfortable space at home for a small boxy room in university halls, and half ready to embrace the challenge of decorating this new blank canvas.

Trying to jazz up such a small space when you're a) not allowed to paint the walls, and b) not allowed to hammer anything into the walls, was a difficult proposition, but I was lucky enough to be given a book about retro caravan interior design by my boyfriend for my birthday, and it has proven to be quite an inspiration! The book, My Cool Caravan, is filled with eyewateringly beautiful caravans decorated to reflect the owners' unique tastes - with the end result of a book containing both immaculate examples of the ever popular shabby chic trend, and slightly more unusual design concepts- one Frieda Kahlo inspired caravan was particularly attention grabbing!

I'd completely recommend the book for any lover of retro-inspired design - or indeed any university student who is in a bit of a quandary about how best to leave their own stamp on what can be a very small and oppressive space. The book has little design tips throughout, as well as hundreds of photos by the talented Hilary Walker (I would show you them but I don't want to break copyright laws!) and a nice little paragraph about the history of each caravan. Just a warning though: you will end up wanting to buy a caravan after reading it!

So... here are a few snippets of my university room so far! The photo at the top of the page is of a cushion cover I made from offcuts from previous sewing projects. Working to the colour scheme of blue and green, I selected materials with similar sized patterns in order to make a subtley matching cushion that adds a little homeliness to my space. The cushion filler was about 79p from Ikea!

My sewing box, material for my next project!, books, tea, and Eustace the owl...

Cheating slightly with these fake roses, but I think they're charming all the same, and add a nice pop of vibrancy to my bed side table. The vase was 10p at a carboot, and the roses were 3 for £1 on the local market.

Some friendly faces and... a cactus in a teacup. As you do.

This poster is possibly my favourite part of the room. It's an old school educational poster from the 40s (to the best of my knowledge) and its just oh so cute! I found it on ebay for under £10 - best purchase ever!

I've chosen quite a bold patterned duvet cover, seeing as its the only major thing I can change about the colour of the room. I absolutely love it - and for only £3 in a charity shop, you can't go wrong :).

I hope you've enjoyed my little tour-de-la-chambre! What do you think of it? Are any of you facing similar small-space design dilemmas?

Sadie xxx