I live in a pink world

I have never been too big on pink. Despite being a girl, I have always preferred shades of blue, even when I was little. Pink to me was always regarded as a weak, too girly, colour. When I shop I am always attracted by greyish-blueish shades. The colour scheme in our bedroom is grey-aqua-blue; the second bedroom is white and blue, the main bathroom is white-lime green-blue and the en-suite bathroom is white and light blue. Things, however, are changing. 

Since I found out we were having a little girl, I started looking at pink in a complete different way. Don't get me wrong, I have always liked pops of bright pink here and there (we have pink buckets for magazines under the tv table, a fuchsia cover on top of our grey sofa and a few pink accents here and there, such as frames and vases) but I have never been particularly obsessed with it like most girls. 

Until now, my favourite colour for flowers has always been white. There is nothing purer and more delicate than white flowers, I think. Now, when I go to the local florist I always gravitate towards pink flowers. At the moment, for example, we have bright pink gerberas on our glass coffee table.

I have also bought a few things for myself in pink that I am sure I wouldn't have before. At the beginning of Summer, for example, I bought a pair of baby pink Melissa jelly shoes; the shoes were available in black and white too, an option I would have definitely gone for before the pink mania. Not to mention the fact that I have even bought a bright pink Clinique chubby lipstick. I don't really wear make up but if I do, it's going to be a red lipstick and that's it. Now, I also own a bright pink one. 

I have also redecorated the en-suite bathroom. It is no longer white and blue. It's now white and pink, of course. We are renting, so we can't do too much with the flat; both bathrooms have white walls and white tiles, a blank canvas, really. So I had to play around with the accessories to make them a bit more interesting. For the *new* bathroom I have bought a nice bath mat with rouches of different shades of pink, starting from white to fuchsia, new pink towels, a bright pink glass for my tools (nail file, nail scissors, eyelash curler...) and pink Savon de Marseille. I also used an old Whittard white mug with different shapes of pink hearts for our tooth brushes. 

And that's not it. I find myself pinning pink stuff all the time. Just a couple of examples:

Chupeta Paris shoes. Baby O will have them at some point!

Hanging bird from Urban Outfitters. Would like to get this for the pram.

Sequins Thank You cards. To buy or make.

Cotton candy as cupcake toppers.

Bright pink door and shutters. I just love this!

Stuart Weitzman’s resort 2013 collection. I love jellies.

Pink and Gray. Just perfect!

Onesie from Winter Water Factory.

Pink living room. Perfect for a West London small flat.

Joseph Joseph Index Advance Cutting Board

Back in June my wonderful colleagues gave me a set of John Lewis vouchers as a wedding gift. I was waiting to use them to buy something for the new flat and finally, last Saturday I was able to start using them. And one of the things I bought is this super cool "index" cutting board, which had been on my wish list for quite a while.

P.S. I can hear you Gareth, but you know, we all get excited about different things :)

Winter Comfort

It's only a matter of weeks before winter arrives and I am already thinking of all the comfy clothes that I will be wearing around the new house. These ruby bow slippers have just entered my wish list.

Brissi

It seems that all I do lately is looking for furniture...And I have just discovered a new shop that I absolutely adore: Brissi.

These lamps will have to make it to my new flat at some point...

I Want One

Amazing handmade ruffle rose cushions from That Funky Boutique.

Ball chair

I still don't know what the main style of our new flat will be. Most probably it will end up being a mixture of everything, as usual. I am looking at all sorts of furniture at the moment: french, retro, modern, Scandinavian, vintage...I am very curious to see what I will choose in the end and how I will mix all these pieces together. 

While flipping through magazines and browsing the Internet, I have discovered Bodie and Fou, "...a chic inspiring online boutique for design lovers in search of cool modern styling for the home...". I love the feel of the website and there are so many things I'd like to buy right away from it. But one thing attracted my attention in particular, the Ball chair. I am thinking to keep the colour theme of the decoration very neutral, I am a big fan of white in the house, but I'd love to put some pops of colours here and there and I love the idea of bright pink. I'll need to double check with Rob first though!

I {heart} you, Shad Thames

After weeks (months!) of moaning and whining about our failure in finding a nice flat in London, finally, Rob and I have spotted a lovely place that we are both happy to call home. In the last couple of months we have been searching for a new place to live in every bit and corner of the city; we explored new areas which we really like (see Parsons Green) and were open to move anywhere as long as it was a nice spot. Little we knew that our home was just around the corner from where we live now, waiting for us to notice it...

Shad Thames is an area in London we both absolutely adore. The cobble stone, the narrow streets, the Tower Bridge, the Tower Bridge Piazza, the cafes, the little restaurants and boutique shops and all those warehouse conversions are only some of the things we love about it. We looked in the area for a bit but then we gave up when we realised it was really a *wealthy city types* nest. Until, we saw this cute flat in the Vanilla & Sesame warehouse conversion (isn't the name lovely?), in the very heart of Shad Thames., that we could afford. Our new home is less than a minute walk to the Tower Bridge (where Rob proposed, remember?) and just behind the restaurant where we ate the night of the proposal. We like to think that this is our area. Panta Rei, said the Greeks...

All the pictures below are taken from this site. But soon, I'll be taking my own pictures and will document the move and all the new discoveries we make in the area. I can't wait!

Casa Dolce Casa

As house hunting is not going great in London, I am trying to focus my attention and energy on a different and more productive project: the refurbishment of my parents' top floor at their house in Pescara, Italy.

The house where my parents live now is not the house where I was born. We moved there when I was eleven and I have always had a sort of love-and-hate relationship with the place. I equally loved and hated the location; I loved the view, the sea from one side and the mountains from the other and I loved the garden that goes all the way round the house. But I hated the fact that it's a twenty minute drive to the city centre and you need the car to go anywhere. During my teenage days I complained with my parents on a regular basis on how far the house was from all my friends' houses and the fact that I needed to be driven everywhere by them. That until I turned fifteen and received a blue scooter for my birthday. And then, just a few years later, I had my own car, so it was no longer a big deal. 

The house was designed by my dad and I still remember all the sleepless nights he and my mum had discussing about the house. It was their dream and they were living it together. Only now I understand how important that moment must have been for them.

I started to appreciate the house only when I got a bit older and I was able to throw big parties in the big garden and invite lots of friends. My birthday is in July, so it really helped to have a nice garden to decorate and entertain friends in. My graduation party was probably the best: there were drinks in the gazebo, a live band playing and the atmosphere was simply magical. The graduation party was in July-2003 and in October 2003 I left for the UK. Living in student accommodation for three years and then in small flats in London really made me realise how beautiful my parents' house is and how lucky I am to have the opportunity to spend my holidays there.

Now that I am married and plan to have kids at some point relatively soon, I think of that house as my house again and how I can use some of the space to create a little nest for me and Rob and our future family. 

The house is on four levels, so after some discussions with my parents, we have decided that they will keep the ground floor and the basement and Rob and I will get the first floor as well as the top floor. This might be the biggest space we will ever have, certainly we can't afford that much space in London. I am excited to finally have a space to decorate and make it my own and have been looking at interior magazines and online websites and blogs for inspiration.

I have started from the bathrooms. The place will have two bathrooms, one of which en-suite. I am heading towards Bisazza, who wouldn't? But given their high prices, I may need to re-think things through a little...for now, I can dream of a super girly bright pink bath tub in the en-suite bathroom

and a classier green and gold main bathroom with lovely chandeliers and a white Louis tub....

How Will It Be?

As you all very know by now, Rob and I are looking for a new place to call home. We have seen quite a few properties and we feel that we are getting close (we hope!). Every new flat we see, I picture how our new nest will look and imagine all the nice furniture that we will finally be able to buy. This morning, while browsing the Zara Home website, I have found these lovely side tables that would be lovely in the master bedroom.

Where is the Catch?

Sorry folks, another post about our desperate house hunting. 

Last week I spotted this beautiful three bedroom, two bathroom cottage in Chiswick on the Foxtons website. I immediately fell in love with it. First of all, it's a house and not a flat; it has two bathrooms (very rare!) and a lovely back garden, and oh that kitchen! Now, the thing that surprised me the most was that for once, something I like was within budget. And in Chiswick, a glorious area. Too good to be true. So last Saturday Rob and I headed to the Chiswick to find out where the catch was.

While driving there with our estate agent I was picturing the neighborhood and thought it would be ugly. Yes, that was the answer, the neighborhood must be bad. Quite on the contraty, it could not be more beautiful. The little street where the cottage is is dreamy, with so many nice houses and very leafy. But there is more: the street is parallel to the river and you know my need to stay close to the water (I am a beach town girl, don't forget!). Now, honestly, what's up with this place? And then we realised...

The house is even more lovely in person and that kitchen that attracted my attention is even bigger than I thought. The whole place is superb and very sleek. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the house itself. Except, it's at the very end of the street, next to the busiest highroad ever. This means: noises 24/7 and zero relaxation and use of the garden. Sigh!

Now, how do we go back from this to tiny two bedroom flats?

Not For Sale

While looking for a flat to rent, I stumbled across this lovely cottage. Isn't it dreamy?

I can perfectly see myself living there, making strawberry jam and knitting all day!

Package Of The Day

It's no surprise that I enjoy shopping online and if there is a good deal out there, you can be sure I am on it. I receive packages on a regular basis at work, certainly more than any other colleague. In fact, if the others receive a package, it's usually work related stuff or at the very least a book. My latest purchase comes from my very beloved Orla Kiely. I may not live in a wonderful flat but that doesn't mean I shouldn't try to make it nicer!

Next package on the way!

House Search On Hold

After three months of house-hunting Rob and I have decided to put the house search on hold for a little while. With the wedding approaching and a series of other things to take care of, our search for the perfect house was becoming a bit too stressful, especially because it's proving to be impossibile to find a *perfect* house here in London. Well, first of all, when I say house, I really mean flat and a very small flat even. With our budget, which by the way I don't think is that low, we are finding it quite difficult to find a two bedroom flat with possibly an extra WC room or shower room in a decent location. 

Over the last couple of months we have been looking, almost every Saturday and almost every weekend we got very frustrated thinking of what London offers us in terms of accommodation. Don't get me wrong, I love London, I think it's a fantastic city but unless you have a budget of at least 700,000£ you can't really afford much! 

So the options are:

1) accept the London standards and buy a tiny two-bed flat in a dodgy area

2) keep renting but moving to a bigger and better place

3) keep renting where we are

4) move outside London

5) move elsewhere

None of these options is ideal. Number one is not even an option, really. We certainly don't live in the best of areas already but we are renting and it's not forever! We have no intention whatsoever to put our lives, and perhaps the life of our children, in danger. Option number two may be the best option really but this means paying almost double in rent of what we are paying now, so no chances of buying anytime soon. Option number three is scary! I am done living where we are. Originally, we thought we would stay in that flat for just a year and then we, somehow, got lazy and stuck. When we were looking for a place to rent more than four years ago Rob had just started his new job in London and I was still a student, so our monthly budget wasn't really high. Now we live quite confortably there as the montly rent is affordable but we are running out of space, I am bored with the place and we are not super happy with the neighbourhood. Option number four: a one hour-two hour commute? Are you kidding me? Not me, I am just not able to wake up and function early in the morning. Plus, if I had to live outside London in the countryside, what would be the reason for being in London then? I would miss all the vibe and all the good things that attracted me to London in the first place.  I am a city person, not a suburban housewife. Out of the question! Option number five: where then? Rob and I are incapable to find an alternative, a good alternative. We have been exploring our options but nothing seems too intriguing.

We have a pickle here, as you can see.

What would you do? Any wise advice?

For a Stylish Bathroom

Remember my post about my love for the wonderful Mademoiselle Chair? Well, sometimes, blogging helps! My best friend Ilaria who will be my witness at my wedding has expressed the desire to give us a Mademoiselle Chair as a wedding gift! I just have to choose the print! How exciting is that?!

Since the big news landed into my brain, I have been thinking and imagining where to accommodate Her. I thought that perhaps the living room or the bedroom, or maybe the study room or even the nursery (in an imaginary house!) would be the best options. I would have never thought to confine Le Mademoiselle in a bathroom...but then I saw this photo on Apartment Therapy and, let me say, I love it! Perhaps I need more than one chair??? One for each room? Of course, I would pick different prints...

What do you think? Would you ever put such a lovely, and expensive, chair in a bathroom?

Sweetpea and Willow Chaise Lounge

I have always loved chaise lounge chairs, since I was a little girl I dreamed to have one; I think they are very beautiful and classy. I would not dine leaning on one, Roman-style, as I would be afraid of a) messing it up and b) choking, but I think it would look amazing in a neutral, simple and elegant living room. I am saving this for future reference (we will buy a house one day, right??).

Wood Basket

I don't have a fireplace in my flat in London but if I did, I would like to have one of these beautiful wood baskets!

Mademoiselle

As soon as we move to a bigger, and better, place, I want one, or two, of these Mademoiselle chairs by Kartell!

Christmas Feeling

I am finally starting to get into the Christmas feeling...
I wandered around Covent Garden at my lunch break and loved all the Christmas lights and decorations. There is nothing cosier and warmer than a Cath Kidston inspired Christmas!

How are you going to decorate your tree this year? I am thinking vintage and glittery decorations and lots of colourful and dotted candles!

Plumo

I receive many catalogues in the post these days, some I just ignore as they are not at all close to my taste, others I eagerly await for and enjoy flipping through. Today, I have discovered a very cool catalogue and online shop, Plumo. The catalogue is very well done, much more than the website, the photos are superb and I quickly fell in love with the style.

These are just a few of my favourite picks, some of which I hope to own soon!

Mono lace dress, 339 GBP

Chime earrings, 30 GBP

Mica bracelets, 18 GBP each

Cibollo candlesticks, 39 GBP each

Viola flower quilts, 119 GBP each