Styling the Seasons – December

It’s December – yay! Surely this is the month Styling the Seasons was made for! I’ve been so excited about this month’s edition because I worked on it during our wonderful Crafting the Seasons afternoon at Liberty; a partridge in a pear tree, all made from beautiful Liberty fabric.

Even though I’ve been looking forward to putting together this month’s styled surface, the reality didn’t quite work out as I had hoped. I spent all of Saturday in an absolute tizz shouting at myself, at Jules and threatening to throw my camera out of the window; I just couldn’t seem to get the ‘perfect’ shot even though it looked good in real life. I had set up my ‘tree’ on the hallway table that sees very little light and the table top is dark wood. The branches were in a very large glass vase and they were very tall, strewn with lights. I had placed a little stack of pressies at the bottom of the tree on the table. Hours later, I still couldn’t make it look nice on camera. I went for a dog walk and a drink, came home and tried again. Still no good shots. I began to question the styling, as well as the camera (and my rubbish photography skills!). I settled on the best of a bad batch of shots and felt thoroughly unsatisfied – I HATE that feeling, especially after working so hard on something that I’ve been really excited about.

I then sat down at about 10pm and went through some of November’s blog posts and shots on Instagram trying to choose my favourites for my November Review. I began to notice that my favourites all seemed to have something in common, which is a bright, fresh, white background, something I am more and more drawn to theses days – thank you Heather, Soumya, Emma and Teri for the inspiration! I got all excited (does that make me sad – it was Saturday night, after all?!) and realised I had to change my styled surface as it wasn’t balanced enough in height and colour – I needed a white background, surface and vase to allow the Liberty print to shine. I also added some nature at the bottom of the tree to balance out the branches and removed the presents. I have never been one for nature around the home but how could I not feel inspired by nearly all of the Styling the Seasons shots this month, as well as Lou’s #natureinthehome series, Emma’s #gatheredstyle and Sarah-Lou’s use of Eucalyptus around the home? So, I added the pine cones that I collected in the park the other day and wove Eucalyptus around some candle jars. I also moved the tree to the top of a cupboard in our sitting room after loving the same idea in Tamsyn’s November post.

The point is that I love this styling challenge because I learn so much from everybody who takes part and I hope I am able to pass that on to others, especially those who don’t have the confidence to style their homes in the way that they would like to. Here’s what I learnt from this little project:

– Don’t slog a dead horse! If something doesn’t feel or look right, change it up.

– Try to balance your styling in terms of height, texture and colour.

– Ask someone else’s opinion.

– Get inspiration from others and make their ideas your own.

– Don’t give up until you are happy with the results.

– Mess around with different options as you can find something that looks good by accident; the worse thing to do is just stare at it.

– Don’t spend your Saturday nights playing with stuffed birds and pears – it’s not cool.

Anyhoo, this is the end result of my Liberty print makes and December styling; it would make my year if it gives any of you a bit of inspiration…

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

A partridge in a pear tree.

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

My partridge is made from Hera and Mauverina Tana Lawn. I also added some Betsy print to the underside of the peg, after seeing Alexis do the same at Liberty (I’m going to make more of those to use everywhere!).

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

I collected pine cones from the park, whilst walking Otto.

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

My pears were made from my Liberty scraps box. This one is made from Phoebe and Wiltshire Tana Lawn.

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

The jug is from Habitat.

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

I wove small Eucalyptus stalks through twine tied to the top of jam jars for tea lights (I’m in love with the smell!).

Styling the Seasons - December | Apartment Apothecary

I am so excited to see everyone’s styled surfaces this month! Please do share yours on any social media, using the hashtag #stylingtheseasons and tag me and Lotts and Lots so we don’t miss them. Another huge thank you to the Liberty team for having us all and giving us the chance to play in Tana Lawn for hours – as if I needed an excuse!

Katy x

 

November – A review

November has been the best month of 2014 for me. I’m sure this is in part because it has been in such stark contrast to the previous month’s bout of illness, but this month has seen such exciting times for my blog so it really stands out as a highlight of this year.

I was beyond thrilled to win at the Amara Interiors Blog Awards this month. It came at just the right time, when I was beginning to feel slightly stressed about the fact that I had had to put my blog on pause as I was out of action for most of September and all of October. The acknowledgement of the judges, as well as you lovely people who voted for me, is such a wonderful feeling and has spurred me on to work even harder on my blog. It was also a really lovely evening as I got to see some blogging pals that I haven’t seen in a while or had never met – it always makes the blogging world seem more real when I get to see other bloggers in ‘real life’. The awards were closely followed by another blogging highlight, which was our first Styling the Seasons event that we held in Liberty. It was the most perfect day and I transcended into a somewhat dream like state, surrounded by beautiful Tana Lawn. It doesn’t get better than that. I’ve also had my home photographed twice this month for magazines, which is always fun, and I finally feel like I’m getting there on the DIY front at home – just the bedroom floor to be done now and then we’ll probably have to move because I will have run out of projects to do here! On top of those exciting events, I’ve had loads of opportunities drop into my inbox, which I’m very excited about and therefore, I’m really looking forward to December.

Thank you to everyone who has helped to make my November such a good one, especially everyone who has taken part in this month’s Styling the Seasons. It has been an exceptionally beautiful month and I’m secretly glad that the orange of October is over 😉 I do have a firm favourite this month and I knew it would be my favourite as soon as I saw it…

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Styling the Seasons – The Lovely Drawer

I am in love with Teri’s signature style of bright white backgrounds and pops of bright colour, yet she still represents Autumn so well through her choice of props. I always really enjoy Teri’s story behind each of her styled surfaces. Go and explore her blog for a while and you’ll fall in love too.

I had many other favourites for different reasons but I’ve chosen some to show you that have inspired me this month. I’m getting more and more into white offset with pastel blues, pinks and greens. Aqua has been my favourite colour for a long time now and I’ve noticed I’ve been using it a lot recently. I just love the freshness of a white background and that’s why I fell in love with these styled surfaces…

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Styling the Seasons – A Quiet Style

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Styling the Seasons – Growing Spaces

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Styling the Seasons – Made by Molu

I have to also mention Kerstin’s post from all the way over in Sweden – she even wrote the post in English, just for us. I’m such a fan of Swedish design and interiors so I am so excited that Styling the Seasons has made it’s way over there and that Kerstin has shared this lovely corner of her home, which is so creatively styled…

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Styling the Seasons – All tom kerstin

And a few more faves that have used my favourite colour and styled their surfaces so beautifully…

November - Styling the Seasons | Apartment Apothecary

Top left: @c_colli Instagram Top right: @capturebylucy Instagram Bottom left: The Villa on Mount Pleasant Bottom right: @lillekaninblog Instagram

And finally,

Here’s a list of all the wonderful Styling the Seasons posts from November…

MakelightThe Lovely Drawer / Allt om kerstin / Cate St Hill / The Villa on Mount Pleasant / The Planned AdventureLobster and Swan / Really Pretty Useful / Hannah in the House / Bradshaw and Sons / A Quiet Corner / Beak Up Crafts / Something I Made / The Vintage Good Life / The Ordinary Lovely / This Little Space of Mine / Claireabellemakes / Lapin Blu / Growing Spaces / Living in London / Wild and Grizzly / Made by Molu / Geoffrey and GraceLotts and Lots / Apartment Apothecary

I can not WAIT to see all the beautiful posts next month, especially the Liberty print decorations that were made during our Crafting the Seasons event. Can. Not. Wait. Drop by tomorrow to see my December post – lots of sewing has been going on here in preparation! Don’t forget, you can see all the September, October and November posts on my Pinterest Styling the Seasons board.

Katy x

P.S. If you’d like to take part in Styling the Seasons next month, all you have to do is style any surface in your home – window sill, hallway table, wall, dining table, sideboard – to represent what December means to you. Either blog about your styled surface and tell us what December means to you, or post a shot on Facebook, Instagram or twitter and tag me and Lotts and Lots and use the hashtag #stylingtheseasons. Keep the tinsel to a minimum 😉

 

Crafting the Seasons at Liberty

I have just had my dream day. It actually happened! Liberty of London, Liberty fabric, crafting, so many talented and creative ladies, a beautiful room, tea and lots of chat. My dream day.

Charlotte and I wanted to do something really special to thank the group of bloggers, that we contacted way back in August, who helped us launch Styling the Seasons in September. They wrote and styled beautiful blog posts and encouraged so many others to do the same. Charlotte and I would love to do another event in the future, open to others who have taken part in our monthly style challenge, as it’s so lovely to come together and be inspired by each other. We’ve got lots of ideas for the next event but more about that next season!

Our Liberty print creations will feature in our December Styling the Seasons posts, hence the Christmas theme, but in the meantime, I thought you might like to see some photos from the day photographed so beautifully by Katharine Peachey

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

Crafting the Seasons photographed by katharinepeachey.co.uk

All photographs by Katharine Peachey.
 

Thank you so much to the the lovely bloggers who came and made the day so special and a big thank you to Hannah and Anna at Liberty for their generosity and hosting us on the day in the beautiful Heritage Suite. Thank you, also, to Kate at The Homemakery for bringing along lots of lovely craft materials for us to play with.

This is a list of all the lovely bloggers who helped us launch Styling the Seasons in September. Make sure you check out their December posts to see their Liberty print makes…

Jeska at Lobster and Swan/ Lisa Levis at Betty and Walter / Emily Quinton at Makelight / Lou at Littlegreenshed / Sarah-Lou at Lapin Blu  / Heather at Growing Spaces / Teri at The Lovely Drawer / Hannah at Hannah in the House / Tamsyn at The Villa on Mount Pleasant / Ruth at The Planned Adventure / Soumaya at Made By Molu  / Emma at A Quiet Style / Amy at Daisy Fay / Lori at Wild and Grizzly / Melanie at  Geoffrey and Grace / Tina at Colourliving / Jo at The Only Place / Laura at Circle of Pine Trees / Alexis at Something I Made

Katy x

P.S. If you would like to join in the Styling the Seasons fun, all you need to do is style a surface in your home to represent what that month means to you. Share a shot of your styled surface on any day of the month, tag me and Lotts and Lots so we can see and use the hashtag #stylingtheseasons. Maybe we’ll see you at our next event!

Craft party inspiration

We are so excited that Sunday sees the first Styling the Seasons event to thank the gorgeous bloggers who helped us launch the monthy styling challenge in September. And what could be better than a craft party at Liberty of London? Eeeep! So excited.

Charlotte and I have decided  to challenge our guests to make some Liberty print Christmas decorations that they can then feature in their December Styling the Seasons posts. So, I have been trying to find some inspiration today to help me decide what to make and I had to start with the Liberty Craft Blog, obvs.  There are going to be lots of crafty bits and bobs from the wonderful The Homemakery, as well as a big pile of Liberty fabric, so the possibilities are endless. I contributed to Liberty’s Christmas campaign last year (I made this advent calendar bunting) and there were also some other really beautiful projects so I’ve pulled them together for a bit of inspiration…

Liberty christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

Style the door with a beautiful wreath? Liberty print Christmas wreath tutorial 

Liberty print Christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

An easy sewing project to style the mantelpiece? (I wish I had that fireplace!!) Liberty print Christmas stocking by Sania Pell

Liberty christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

My advent calendar bunting to style the wall (that totally counts as a ‘surface’)? Liberty print advent bunting by Apartment Apothecary

Liberty print Christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

These really sweet Christmas tree decorations would look lovely on any surface in the home – hallway table, dining table, sideboard, windowsill. Liberty print Christmas tree decoration by Sew Magazine

Liberty print Christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

Something to style the Christmas table like this Poinsettia tea cosy? Liberty print Poinsettia tea cosy by Deedrie La Follette

Liberty print Christmas decorations | Apartment Apothecary

What about crafting some beautiful present tags and wrapping? Furoshiki Japanese fabric wrapping technique by Sew Magazine

What would you make? I might wait until tomorrow to decide and get some inspiration from the ridiculously talented group of ladies who will be attending. Watch out for the hashtag #craftingtheseasons to see photos of the day and we are very lucky to have Katharine Peachey photographing the event, too, so there will be plenty of lovely photos to follow.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Katy x

 

Styling the Seasons – November

I’m actually a bit in shock that today is November. It seems like yesterday that I wrote my first Styling the Seasons post in September, which was the complete opposite to this month’s styled surface. If you haven’t joined in yet, but would like to challenge yourself to give styling a go (it can be much harder than it looks!) Charlotte has written such a brilliant post over at Lotts and Lots with some tips.

And so to this month. For me, November is all about hibernation, cosying down, watching far too much dreadful TV and enjoying the long evenings. I have chosen to style my bedside table as it is a surface I often ignore and it is much more functional than anything else. However, it is the last surface I see when I go to bed at night and the first I see when I wake up in the morning and since styling it I have really noticed a difference. I have tried to make it ‘cosier’ by adding more ‘stuff’, in a restrained way because I do hate clutter. November is all about warmth, tea, books, blankets and candles burning non-stop (I light them as soon as I wake up). I have tried to inject a bit of colour in to the styling as I always associate November with fireworks, and Bonfire Night is always something we celebrate as it is my sister’s birthday. Aqua and turquoise are my favourite colours so I went on a hunt around my house to collect a group of items of that colour.

Styling the Seasons - November | Apartment Apothecary

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I was given this blue Hydrangea three weeks ago for my birthday. I can not get over how beautiful it is and still is, weeks later.

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The lovely cup is from Decorator’s Notebook and the candle is from West Elm – Geranium and Ivy.

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I love this vintage Burleigh plate and the flowers remind me of fireworks, which is always a night we celebrate because it is my sister’s birthday. I’m also big into match boxes (I know that sounds weird) and when I saw these Hay matches I had to have them.

Styling the Seasons - November | Apartment Apothecary photographed by Katharine Peachey

Photograph by Katharine Peachey

What does November mean to you? Charlotte and I would love to know and see your styled surfaces. It is such a lovely thing to stop, reflect and re-style a surface in your home, clearing what was a dumping ground – I promise it will make you smile every time you walk by or sit and look at it so please do join in! Tag me and Lotts and Lots and use the hashtag #StylingTheSeasons – either write a blog post or post on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

Happy November styling everybody!

Katy x

P.S. Charlotte and I are particularly excited about this month as we have invited the bloggers that we reached out to in August to help us launch Styling the Seasons in September. They all did such wonderful blog posts about it, which encouraged so many others to get involved. To say thank you, we have organised a craft party at Liberty next week  so watch out for the photos of the lovely makes. These are the invites we sent out for the event. Charlotte suggested the books, which work perfectly as they are great props for styling and most are connected to nature and the seasons. I made the little tags and packed them all off…