Light And Airy Notting Hill Home

Let's round off the week with a little peep into designer Sam de Teran's Notting Hill home. It's rainy and gloomy here in Manchester today, but looking at this light, bright and airy home cheered me up no end. All photos are taken from The Telegraph magazine.

It was really the kitchen that drew me to this house. I love kitchens that don't really look like kitchens, but more like regular rooms (for another great example of this style, check out the antique mirror in this gorgeous kitchen by This is Glamorous). The kitchen-but-not-a-kitchen look is one that I'm definitely intending to replicate in our next casa:

And look at the fabulous colour on the wall at the end of the kitchen:

Here's the dining room - wouldn't you just hate to have floor-to-ceiling windows like that?

Here's the cosy living room - mmm, books (I bet the shelves extend all the way up to the ceiling too):

I saw a photo on Decor8 this week from someone who had turned all their books to face spine inwards, so they better colour-coordinated with the decor - personally I think this is taking things a bit far (it looked pretty, but how on earth would you find the book that you particularly wanted to read?). But then, I adore books, I have hundreds and hundreds of them, and they all live very happily on my Ikea Expedit (which you can see here) in our home office, arranged in a highly idyosyncratic and eccentric manner (by mood, if you're asking).

Finally, here's the bathroom - naturally I am very fond of the contrast between the Victorian bath fittings and fireplace as contrasted with the contemporary tiles and shower head:

So, this weekend I am planning on painting the wall in our home office, taking the terrible twosome for a walk in Tatton Park (in my new wellies, which have finally been delivered), having dinner at Pinchjos (our local tapas restaurant), reading In The Eye Of The Sun by Adhaf Soueif, and generally pottering around and not doing very much. How about you?

Psst! If you liked this, you may also like:

Interiors: French farmhouse

Family: A winter sunset walk in Tatton Park

Garden: The magical Nest by night

Antique Provencal Charm - A Glamorous (And Tiny) London Studio

Happy Monday everyone! I thought I'd start the week off with a peep into this gorgeous teeny tiny London studio. I was inspired to share these photos from my design file after Katie from Making This Home tweeted last week about this tiddly little apartment in New York - which weighs in (yes, I know I'm mixing my metaphors) at a majestic 14.9 feet x 10 feet. Blimey, that is one small space.

So I checked out the photos, and what struck me was not necessarily the size - but rather how, well, depressing the room is. Small doesn't have to mean dull, people!  

This is ably demonstrated by Rebecca Hill, an antiques dealer who transformed a one-room London bed-sit from a neglected seventies nightmare to a stunning mini Provencal palazzo. Ample proof that with plenty of imagination (and admittedly I suspect rather a lot of dineros in this case), small can be incredibly beautiful. All photos are taken from The Telegraph Magazine.

I adore the use of reclaimed wood - and the storage space created by the window seat:  

Love this carved armoire:

Amazing chandelier:

The bedroom is in a mezzanine:

Fabulous carved mirror:  

Do you like this casa? Could you live here? I've never lived in a studio before (although I have lived in some, ahem, bijou one-bed flats) but I think I could be tempted by this delightful casa.

Back tomorrow with another installment of my DIY Kitchen Survival Guide - this time I'm looking at how to DIY a kitchen design and layout. Au revoir!

Psst! If you liked this, you may also like...

Interiors: Romantic, contemporary, French-style London home

Outdoors: Our garden inspiration board

Family: A midnight outdoor autumn picnic

Room Design Based on Romantic London Home

This time last week I shared a glimpse into a romantic, contemporary, French-style London home. This week I'd like to share a room design inspired by this home.

As a reminder, here's the living room, kitchen and hallway of the house:

All images from the Telegraph magazine.

And now here's the room design:

Chandelier, vintage glass fishing floats, mirror

Picture frame, table, chairs, jardiniere, plant

Sideboard, candlesticks, cup and saucers, cushion, sofa

In order for this room design to work, you'd need to be living in a Victorian house, as this provides the vintage backdrop for all these modern pieces - with a few antique/romantic elements thrown in for a delicious contrast.

If you wanted to recreate this look in a modern house, you'd probably need the majority of your pieces to have a vintage, antique, romantic style, with some modern elements as a balance. It's the seamless blend of styles that works so nicely, I think.

Hurrah, it's the weekend! I'm going to be visiting the local Christmas festival in West Didsbury - XmasWestFest09 - and choosing our Christmas tree. How about you?