Monthly Archives: September 2012

The Dream house Renovation Part II: Making an Entrance…

September 27, 2012 By in Homing Instinct Tags: , , , , , , , , 27 Comments

I posted here about the first stage of our home renovation; creating a huge family kitchen and living space what was originally a formal reception room for visitors.  We’ve now turned our attentions to the hallway; a  vast Gone With The Wind style affair, which previously looked like this (below).  Our house was built in the early 18th Century as a sizeable ‘Gentleman’s Residence’ in the countryside bordering London.  It changed hands several times and has served many purposes, including a brief spell as a military hospital during WW2, and even a film studio in the 1950s.  As property prices escalated and families shrank in size, this once grand residence was divided into two, and the hallway shows the most evidence of this; the staircase below originally swept up once side of the hallway and down the other, and the chimney breast was centred in the main entrance hall.  The floor, though striking and a period feature itself, is not original to the property, but was added after the subdivision.  In the half of the original house we now own, we wanted to preserve as many original features as we could, whilst toning down the overall colour palette and working with the scale of the property.

Here’s where we’ve got to so far; we uncovered part of the original stone floor in the porch area, and sourced a near-exact replica to lay in the main hallway.  In a rare contemporary touch, we found this huge chandelier (it’s around 1.5m wide but weighs hardly anything, fortunately…).  Arguably the most dramatic change is to the chimney breast, which we’ve opened up top-to-bottom and filled with logs.  The previous owners had created a sort of floating shelf for dried flowers and ornaments, but we felt this was a bit incongruous; we didn’t have the option of a ‘real’ fireplace due to oddities about how the chimneys and flues are arranged, so opted for a striking, floor to ceiling feature which echoes the real fireplaces in other rooms around the house…

The logs are kiln-dried and sanded, and we spent a comical evening wobbling on ladders arranging them (and glueing them in place, for safety reasons).  If you’ve ever attempted one of those jigsaw puzzles where all the pieces look the same but fit together only one particular way, you’ll have some idea of how tricky it was…

The long, shallow console table is almost 2m and holds a constantly changing display depending on the time of year and whatever junk shop or ebay finds I’ve dragged home.  Currently in pride of place are these Indian temple bells which make the most beautiful and ethereal deep chiming noise when they move; I need to find the right place to suspend them properly, but in the meantime they wait patiently for inspiration to strike.

Bob (below) is one of my oldest possessions and was one of my first purchases after leaving university and moving into a shoebox-sized rented house.  Over the years I have occasionally flung yoghurt over him and left him outside for a few days, creating the aged patina you see here – but mostly he’s lived in the many different hallways I’ve owned since then.  It’s a testament to my husband’s devotion that he’s done most of the heavy lifting in recent years…

The chest (below) was given to me by my mother when I was fourteen, as a junk shop find for my bedroom.  More recently I’ve changed the handles and used transfer decal paper and turps to add lettering to each drawer (please, French readers; break it to me gently if my spelling is all wrong…).  It now holds the keys, junk mail, single gloves without soul mates and general clutter that tends to accumulate in a hallway, and hides it from general view.  The old typewriter – a personal passion – was an antique shop find which I’ve just sourced ribbons for via Ebay; hallelujah!

This olive tree is a faux one, rescued ex-display from a shop which was closing down; it looks beautiful at Christmas time bedecked with tiny silver baubles and white porcelain bells.  Once in a while a branch drops off, which is why we keep SuperGlue and gaffer tape in the aforementioned chest of drawers…

We’re far from completely finished; as you can see, we lack stair carpet and are pondering whether to keep or replace the wall lighting – decisions, decisions – but the biggest and most dramatic changes are done, and the dust is settling; time to pause once again and enjoy the temporary calm…

A Coastal Escape

September 25, 2012 By in Homing Instinct Tags: , , , , , , 9 Comments

Last Thursday we played hooky from work, nursery and all things domestic and took to the skies for a short hop over to the island of Jersey, where my wonderful brother and sister-in-law live. With the Summer season drawing to a close, we had the beaches to ourselves and spent the days roaming the sand, collecting shells, driftwood and seaweed and building castles and kingdoms.

There’s something profoundly lovely about the British coastline on these bright sunny days of early Autumn; the end of a day at the beach calls for hot chocolate and log fires rather than ice cream and barbecues, and is just as magical as a result.  For Harry, it’s the first time he’s really experienced the sea and the coast (amazing, in our island nation), and he was utterly captivated.

We collected a small but very heavy bucket of the treasures that Harry couldn’t bear to leave behind… pebbles shaped like whales, tiny shells for listening to the sea, and tufts of brightly coloured rope from fishing trawlers.  Creative instincts twitching, we’ll be turning these into something crafty in due course to remember our heady few days on the shore.  First though, there’s the next stage of our house renovation to share later this week – just as soon as I blow all the sand out of my camera…

Self-Assembly with Harry the Friendly Pirate

September 20, 2012 By in Making, Paper Paper! Tags: , , , , , , , , 33 Comments

It’s been a chaotic week here chez nous, with builders in residence, my husband travelling, and flat-pack-tastic furniture from IKEA covering every surface awaiting my amateur attempts at self-assembly.  Harry has been angelic throughout, only occasionally becoming stuck in near-dry cement, chewing on innapropriate pieces of hardware (‘these nails taste spicy Mummy’), or dragging still-warm power tools into his den.  As a reward for his forbearance, I decided to use all the leftover cardboard packaging to make a pirate ship.  It’s been a darn sight easier than assembling a LeftvigKlemtangerArkleHeinig filing cabinet, that’s for sure….


I used a square cardboard box as the base, then stapled long pieces of cardboard either side to form a boat-shape.  I covered these in leftover wood-effect wallpaper for a nautical touch, though paint would do just as well.  The sails are made from sheets of standard A3 paper, printed with a skull and crossbones, then lashed to bamboo poles with an old washing line, before being tucked into a silver-sprayed cardboard tube.  I punched holes in the paper first and reinforced them with eyelets.

I threaded spare curtain rings on string through the cardboard to simulate life-rings (not very pirate-esque, but let’s call it artistic license…)

Harry’s telescope is 3 empty toilet rolls, wrapped in black paper and edged with glued-on ribbon.  I tucked them one inside the other and used a glue gun to secure them.  Apparently you can use it either way around to spot ships and bounty…

I made the treasure map by printing out the text on a sheet of paper, scribbling on a rough ‘map’, then daubing with used teabags.  Here comes the exciting bit; stand far away from smoke detectors (outside, preferably), and singe the edges, blowing out quickly each time.

The ‘anchor’ is the doorstop from my office, threaded through with a length of chain we rescued from a neighbour’s skip.  It threatens Harry with juvenile hernia every time he gamely attempts to toss it overboard; I may replace it with a cardboard model before social services arrive.

Even pirates need to eat once in a while, so I constructed this fishing line from a slotted wooden spoon, ribbon and fish shapes cut from coloured card stock.  I used buttons for the eyes and reinforced the holes with eyelets, in the hope that these wee fishes manage more than a single outing from ocean to boat.

And so, as the sun sets we will sail off in our cardboard ship to seek our fortune on the ocean wave, and turn a blind eye to the 648 pieces of pre-drilled swedish hardwood which are scattered throughout the house.  Let’s hope we spot my husband and his screwdriver on the horizon sometime soon…

Mantelpiece Makeovers

September 16, 2012 By in Making, Paper Paper! Tags: , , , , , 8 Comments

Having just installed a couple of beautiful stone fireplaces, and spent months painstakingly painting numerous walls and woodwork, I’m finding for the first time in my life that I’m becoming a little hesitant about bashing nails into every surface and applying sticky tape liberally to fix my latest garland / project / Harry’s artwork, etc.  Who knew that domesticity could strike so late?  As a result, I’m left with a huge pile of things I still want to display, so this week I have been experimenting with alternative  - but temporary – ways of doing so.  I made these cheerful display clips (above and below) by filling individual cereal boxes with rice and then sealing and decorating, with a clothes peg added for the clipping of artwork, letters and cards which can now adorn the mantelpiece and be moved around at will….

These are so straightforward that they don’t need a step-by-step tutorial, but here’s a few tips; I used individual portion cereal boxes like these (below), which are just the right size – small enough not to dominate shelves and mantelpieces, but big enough to hold enough rice/beans so that they don’t topple over when you hang things from them.  Fill the empty boxes with uncooked rice or dried beans, right to the top.  Avoid sand or other fine substances – you’ll suddenly realise just how many tiny cracks an apparently sealed cardboard box can have!  Wrap in gift wrap or craft paper, and attach a clothes peg or bulldog clip to the front using strong glue. Hey presto – you’re done!

I kept most of the boxes pretty simple, but some I wanted to use just in the playroom for Harry’s artwork and photos, so I decorated three clothes pegs with animal faces, shown below.  I keep a big shoebox full of small offcuts of coloured paper leftover from when we’re making things, and a quick rummage in there produced the scraps and odds and ends I used here.

I use these mainly over fireplaces, because we have them in most rooms, but they’d look equally cute on bookshelves or cupboard tops.  Or why not make one to package up with a drawing or painting to give to grandparents? I’m thinking a numbered series of these would look beautiful on a mantelpiece in white or natural tones at Christmas time to display cards and festive invites – but we’re going to have to focus on working our way through a whole lot of cereal first…

A berried feast for Autumn

September 12, 2012 By in Baking, Making Tags: , , , , , , 18 Comments



This weekend we went blackberry picking, or, as Harry would have it, ‘hunting and catching black strawberries’. Whereas strawberries are quite robust and able to resist the pincer-like grip of a two-year old, blackberries were something of a revelation to H, given their tendency to explode into purple mush at first grasp.  Our journey along the hedgerow was thus peppered by startled exclamations & chortling from Harry and much wiping of blackberry juice from eyes, hair, clothing and the occasional unfortunate passerby.  Our exertions left us suddenly hungry, causing us to eat almost all of our spoils – so we had to start again.  I now understand why supermarket blackberries cost so much; it can take hours to fill a bucket..

We added an apronful of windfall apples from the garden and some homemade lavender sugar to make these individual crumbles, which seemed to disappear in the blink of an eye, though doubtless will reappear on my waistline shortly.  I made up this recipe, I must confess, so feel free to adapt and experiment; we love a dash of ginger and cinnamon so you’ll see both here… and whilst purists use brown sugar in the compote, we prefer our white lavender sugar for a taste of sunshine.  My quantities make 4 individual crumbles, so just flex your quantities, keeping the ratios, for the size you need.

For the fruit compote:

  • 5 eating apples, or 2 cooking apples
  • 2 cupfuls of blackberries
  • 3 tablespoons of sugar (halve this if using eating apples, which are much sweeter and less tart). I used lavender sugar, made a few months before by stirring dried lavender sprigs into a jar of sugar and sealing tight; this gives a lovely hint of flavour and aroma to the sugar which is enhanced by cooking.
  • pinch of cinnamon

Peel, core and chop the apples into bite-sized chunks, and soften on the hob with a spoonful of water and the sugar.  Set the oven to 180c/350f to come to temperature whilst you prepare the crumble.  After 5-10 minutes the kitchen will fill with the delicious smell of caramelising apple; take the pan off the hob and stir in the berries and cinnamon.  Spoon into individual ovenproof bowls or a single dish.

For the crumble topping

  • 200g / 7oz plain flour
  • 100g / 3.5oz soft brown sugar
  • 100g / 3.5oz butter, at room temperature
  • pinch of ginger (optional)
  • handful of flaked almonds or chopped nuts

Stir together the dry ingredients and then add the butter, crumbling together with your fingers till you have a lumpy, sandy consistency; don’t work it in completely as you don’t want the top to be too fine and smooth.  Spoon this mixture over the fruit and sprinkle with the nuts, if using.

Finally pop in the oven for around 20 minutes; they’re done when the top browns slightly and the filling begins to bubble.  Use this time constructively to decide whether you are going to accompany these with custard (the traditional British favourite), whipped cream, ice cream or – heart health be damned – all three.  When cooled slightly, pile these beauties onto a tray and find a nice tree in the garden under which to eat them, because food really does taste better outdoors, especially after all that hard work in the hedgerows…

Tea with a twist

September 9, 2012 By in Making Tags: , , , , , , , 14 Comments



Sometimes the simplest projects are the most fun, and these are certainly simple. When we have people to dinner, the evening inevitably draws to a close with coffee – for the hardened souls who can sleep despite any amount of caffeine – and herbal teas, for those of a healthier disposition.  I have a range of lovely different fruit and herbal teas, but all are pretty uninspiring to look at, especially when served bag-in… so here’s a way of pimping your teabags to raise a smile! I raided my stash of beads and charms, and simply replaced the original paper tags with something a little more interesting.  Ideas below…

Lovebird tea? Use a simple mini heart peg and tie the teabag string to the clip. These pegs came in a pack of about 20 for £1.50 / $2.

These neon rubber beads are a good accompaniment to zingy fruit teas…

How about making a set of these to tie onto Christmas tea as a gift – I’ll be enlisting Harry to help with punching these and choosing the colours as a simple homemade gift for relatives later in the year.

I used whatever I had to hand – it’s fun experimenting, and you don’t need a full ‘set’ of matching tags.  For the charms you’d be sorry to see go, just make sure you serve them at home – then you can craftily snip them off when washing up and start all over again…

Rocket Man!

September 3, 2012 By in Making, Paper Paper!, Reinvention & Renovation Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , 9 Comments

Today the house is once again filled with swirling brick dust as our renovations continue, though it is eerily silent as the builders seem to have downed tools in search of sunshine, and have not been seen since Thursday. I’ve been forbidden from stepping in to finish the job, glue gun and apron in hand, so instead have turned my restless energies into creating…. a rocket!



Harry’s current passion is rockets and outer space, having discovered Wallace and Gromit and their adventures to the moon in search of cheese.  With the challenge of only using items already around the house, I built this in a couple of hours and it has already been piloted on several missions (‘Let’s go whooshing Mummy! Put your seatbelt on and I will press the button!’).  Making the rocket capsule was easy enough – I used an opened-out packing box from our recent move – but the domed roof gave me pause for thought.  In the end, I used a fibre matting liner intended for the hanging baskets I never quite got around to planting this summer.  Sprayed silver and with empty yoghurt pots glued on top it does the job just fine…

I cut out the viewing window by drawing round a plate and then using a craft knife.  A polystyrene wreath ring makes a good porthole, especially when wrapped in scraps of brightly coloured paper.  Cotton reels give a countdown to launch, and also provide the basis for an external control panel (below; I added one inside too for proper piloting of the craft after take-off…).

On the side of the rocket is this fuel cap and general gadget bar, made from old plastic lids and some stick-on alphabet letters

The captain needs a proper entrance, of course…  Reels provide doorknobs on both sides, for pilot access and to firmly shut the door once inside, in case of aliens (or grown-ups).  See how to make 3D stars like these here.

And finally our accessories; a spaceman lunch box (for cheese sandwiches and milk; the food of champions), a range of plastic tools in case of spacecraft malfunction – always possible when Mummy is the architect – and space goggles; this cardboard pair of 3D specs I saved from an old comic.

If you fancy making one of these yourself, come fly with us!  Here’s a full list of what we used, though the beauty of these is there’s no ‘right’ way of doing it – use whatever you have to hand.  A word on technique; I found that hot glue (from a glue gun) is the best way of ensuring everything stays in place, and craft knives – rather than scissors – are best for cutting corrugated cardboard like this without squashing and tearing it.  Toys like this will take a battering if used to their fullest potential, so I’m armed with a big role of clear packing tape to add reinforcement and repairs when needed.



Like this project? If you’re a cardboard recycling fan, you might also like our cardboard train and our cardboard shop.  And now you’ll have to excuse us; we need to prepare for  a moon landing in 5…  4 …  3… 2….

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