The Fabulous Times- Lifestyle Blog - Sharing #FabulousTimes with good food, travel adventures, wellness, business and inspiration for the home and garden!

June 17, 2018 by Christine

Master Bedroom: Classic Navy Paint Obsession

Master Bedroom: Classic Navy Paint Obsession: Following my previous post ‘Master bedroom furniture inspiration’ I thought I’d update you on my latest obsession for our master bedroom. Thus far we are still in the process of decluttering with the KonMari method, so no decorating has actually taken place. Thankfully the time it’s taking to declutter means the more time we have to bat ideas around for the eventual redecoration! I thought I’d continue to update you on my ideas by sharing my Classic Navy Paint Obsession…

Little Greene – Royal Navy

Little Greene Paint Company are based in Manchester and offer a range of luxury paint and wallpapers. The Royal Navy Paint is a blend of royal blue and navy so could be a lovely rich neutral for our master bedroom. I love the sharp contrast of bright white and navy and would look great against our existing walnut wooden furniture.

Ralph Lauren- Club Navy

I couldn’t really discuss navy blue without mentioning Ralph Lauren home. The Ralph Lauren Club Navy is a slightly darker navy which is elegant and timeless. I imagine if we choose to go with a slightly darker paint option we will paint one accent wall behind our bed and add a painting or framed photographs to break up the dark wall. I love the wooden flooring with the white skirting boards offset with the dark navy paint colour.

John Lewis- Paint Range

John Lewis have a great selection of paint colours form a variety of interior brands including Sanderson and Designers Guild. The Designers Guild do a colour called Moonlit Night which I have my eye on. The next step is to get a couple of tester pots and start making some decisions!

“Home is the nicest word there is” -Laura Ingalls Wilder

Stay fabulous

Christine

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June 3, 2018 by Christine

Kitchen Wishlist

I thought I’d share a little kitchen wishlist complete with swoon-worthy kitchen accessories and fabulous storage solutions. Admittedly our flurry into home improvements has almost ground to a halt, with the weather being so incredible it seems silly to be stuck indoors knee deep in paint and plaster!

So that I don’t lose motivation entirely with our kitchen renovation, I thought what better way to keep on the right track than a little window shopping?! Here’s a look at my current kitchen wishlist…Storage: Throughout the many discussions about our kitchen renovation we have been set on open shelving, although we haven’t exactly got a pristine copper pan collection (yet) Mr T and I love the idea of having everything hung and ready to use. The Mera shelf unit from the Cotswold Co. is ideal and not too large so would look great in our smallish kitchen.Copper: Mauviel copper manufacturers date back to 1830, hailing from the Normandy village Villedieu les Poeles aka ‘the city of copper’. Ernest Mauviel set up the Mauviel company creating copper pans that have become synonymous with quality loved by both professional chefs and home cooking enthusiasts alike. The price tag on copper pan sets is often pretty eye-watering however the life expectancy of Mauviel copper pans will definitely justify the investment!Food Processor: KitchenAid is an American brand that dates back to 1918, one of the first ever stand mixer producers renowned for making quality machines for home use. I have it on my list of ‘goals for 2018’ to invest in a KitchenAid as most of the recipes I read require a food processor! I love the classic look of the KitchenAid and the cream colour would compliment our existing kitchen accessories.– I’m ready to become a regular little Julia Child!

‘The kitchen is a sacred space’ -Marc Forgione

Stay fabulous!

Christine

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May 28, 2018 by Christine

Natural Recipes, Remedies and rituals

The Hedgerow Handbook is packed with Natural Recipes, Remedies and rituals from the unusual to the traditional. I picked up my copy of the The Hedgerow Handbook on our recent trip to Hay-on-Wye. I wanted to share a little about the book as I’ve been reading it every evening and can’t wait to get out foraging…

On my list of ‘Goals for 2018’ is to go foraging, so The Hedgerow Handbook is the perfect tool to have on hand to inspire my foray into Natural Recipes, Remedies and rituals. Each page of the book is beautifully illustrated by Lizzie Harper, making it easy to identify the wide variety of edibles growing in the British hedgerow.

Author Adele Nozedar describes beautifully the many varieties of edible plants living amongst the hedgerows of Britain. Nozedar goes into the history, the fascinating facts, the medicinal uses and provides a wonderfully creative culinary use for each plant variety. Seriously, who knew that Birch leaves could be used to treat urinary-tract infections? – mind blowing!Bursting with fascinating facts, each plant has its own history, like the common Nettle- Did you know? During the First World War, nettle fibres were used to make the uniforms for the German Army when cotton was scarce?

The recipes in the book are every bit as creative as the illustrations including delicious sounding treats like Elderberry and Almond Pie, Chesnut Brownies and Blackberry Sorbet.

Published by Square Peg Books the book cover is beautifully illustrated. The illustrations on the cover first attracted me to pick up a copy and browse, in this instance judging a book by its cover actually paid off (there’s an exception to every rule, right?)

I’m pretty besotted with The Hedgerow Handbook and can’t wait to get out and pick some ingredients to try out new recipes with. It’s so important that this knowledge is passed on as I fear that as society becomes so far removed from the natural world that we will lose the confidence, knowledge and trust in the healing benefits of nature.

‘this book is for everyone who understands the simplicity of living in the moment, and who can appreciate a nice hedge when they see one’ -Adele Nozedar

Stay fabulous

Christine

(You can buy a copy HERE)

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