Big Ideas: A pastel pink kitchen

I seem to be having a pink phase here at the moment, with three of my last four posts definitely having a rosy theme to them. Which bizarrely is completely unplanned. These type of happy coincidences are the kind of thing that completely fascinate me, strange how they can happen unexpectedly and then suddenly you’re very aware of them.

I’m back sharing the Big Ideas from the Ideal Home Show last year, when I stumbled across the extra room sets. So here’s the big ideas for this pastel pink kitchen:

1. Neon lighting: a fun way to add atmosphere and highlights to dark areas

2. Pink walls: a way to add warmth, and easy to make the change in your own space

3. Wall art: because kitchens deserve pictures too, and provide a great space for a personalised picture

4. Stylish sofa: oh, velvet, need I say more…

5. Grey cabinets: a modern handleless design, which provides a sleek line.

What I like about this is the mix of textures, from the natural warmth of wood through to the classic marble and what looks like the modernness of corian for the worktop, something that works really well on these large types of islands. And a material that we seriously considered for our kitchen, but as you know, opted for a composite and glittering worktop instead, and one that was influenced in the end by the price. But it is gorgeous.

I’m also a fan of handleless cupboards, while there’s plenty of handles to choose from and the handles you choose can change the feel of a kitchen, not choosing handles also does that and allows for your eyes to skim over the cupboard uninterrupted. The other thing to bear in mind is the drawer-line. We opted not to have the drawers on show as our kitchen designers suggested having just two drawers would mean having faux drawers all around our kitchen. Which sort of goes against the clear, sleek lines. We have ‘hidden’ internal drawers, in just two base units, and those drawers have very defined uses, so our drawer of junk has migrated elsewhere! Everyone has one right?

What else is nice is how kitchens are becoming more social spaces, with furniture to match. We spend so much time in kitchens - there’s a reason that they’re the heart of the home - that it makes sense for it to be comfortable as well as practical.

And I’m a fan of those side tables too; the colours, the shape, especially the lip that prevents things being knocked off easily - but also their style and the fact that it looks as if the smaller one slides under the larger one for easy storage. Practical and pretty, that’s a win for me - what about you?

A She Shed - yes please!

She Sheds, garden pods, home offices, or whatever you want to call them - they’ve become a big thing haven’t they? It’s easy to see why, the idea of having somewhere dedicated for a specific activity, work or fun, definitely appeals. Having that outside the house appeals too, unless it’s the worst (or best) kind of snow day which means being cut off from your crafting, I guess.

They’ve come so far, that at the Ideal Home Show last year, this quadrant pod, was alongside the infamous ‘houses’ - and I think it’s definitely a She Shed in the making.

As its name suggests, it’s quadrant shaped so cue curved walls which almost cocoon you from the elements, but yet provides a window on it too.

Yes, those lights - aren’t they great? In fact the whole space is full of great lights and fantastically furnished. It’s definitely the type of space you’d be happy to work in and which should provide just the inspiration you need.

I’d love my own space like this, but know it’s not practical for us. The thought of getting it into our garden, where it might go and even just getting electricity to it and the disruption and redecorating this will most likely bring with it, rules it out. But never say never, it’s something that in the right space could really work all round.

And everyone needs an escape space, right?

Reflecting on my week #69

The snow did arrive. Sort of. But like for many in London it fell overnight and had turned to slush by the next morning, which made for a wet walk to work Friday morning. Saturday morning there was some more but by the time we arrived home on Sunday, this was all that was left.

Saturday turned into a morning of post-Christmas admin; a couple of the presents I’d ordered hadn’t arrived and so I’d asked for a refund. What could have been troublesome turned out to be pretty straightforward in the end, with two refunds already paid. One is easy to replace, it’s a monthly gin subscription so they’ll be another bottle along next month; the other less so, it was hard enough to find this in the first place!

But in the meantime there’s crochet. Both my t-shirt yarn basket and the Vintage Hearts blanket have had an airing this week. It’s the former that has me captivated though and has grown since I last shared it here. It’s fascinating to see how the t-shirt yarn, which I’m cutting up old t-shirts to make, turns out.

The latest creamy yellow stripe is actually from a bright yellow t-shirt with daisies on. It looks much more mellow here, but it’s working well I think. The pink you can see on the navy stripe is the interlocked seams. Everything I’ve seen on the internet says to use seamless t-shirts, which would have been much more useful to know many years ago when these were bought, to make your own yarn. I don’t have these and as these baskets are destined for practical storage, I’m using what I’ve got, and it seems to be going ok, although I’m not convinced it will stand up on its own.

We’ll see, or actually maybe we won’t as I’ve got quite a bit earmarked for these so I think they’re going to be pretty full so most likley won’t have the opportunity to stand up on their own in any case.

I did get that massage, and it seems to have done the trick as I’ve a lot more mobility in my lower back. It was one of those massages that’s painful, and you’re never sure when you should breathe or if moving is considering wimpish behaviour. By the end of it I was completely zonked, and dehydrated too so spent the afternoon taking it easy and drinking water.

The therapist said my back was quite knotty - not a surprise to me - and that at times she’d needed to use her elbows - yikes! No wonder at times I was wondering what was going on. Apparently I need some more, and despite the pain, I think I’ll book with the same girl again.

What it has highlighted though is that I don’t drink enough water, so I’m trying to make amends for that. I’ve discovered a new-to-me app -HabitShare - which is likely to appeal to my list keeping self, and I hope help in the longer term too.

USA 50+2?

Conversations here have turned to holidays, and I know I’ve said it before, but this year we could finally be heading off for our big States trip. And I’ve a month in mind too. There’s still a lot more planning to do, but our big holiday to celebrate our big birthday could turn into a big birthday +2 holiday, but better late than never, hey?

More homework, and planning - and perhaps even a nice new notebook - is definitely needed.