Adding flexibility - and stools - to our dining table

You'll remember in our search for our dining table and chairs MOH was keen to have a bench seat as part of our purchase. That didn't quite happen, but his reason behind it - apart from liking the look - was flexibility. And he had a point, but we opted for six chairs to go with our white glass table in a mix of colours - and we forewent the flexiblity. 

Until recently that is, when Cult Furniture offered me two of their Grey Hatton Wooden Low Stools to give us that extra flexibility, in a most stylish way. I chose the Dark Grey finish, as these will work with our decor throughout the house, not just our downstairs - as while they're not in dining use, they'll be used in our conservatory and my craft room.

Although they work well without the table extended, and give a similar feel a bench would have done. I think they give more flexibility than a bench, as when the table is extended it makes sense to have the stools at either end of the table, like this:

It also means that dining for eight has become a much more stylish option. 

I like clean simple lines and these have that, and match well with our existing chairs. They're the same height too at 45cm, so no one will need to feel like they're on the "make do" seating option - in fact these are as far from "make do" as I think you can get!  They're very tactile, made of rubberwood and also come in a black and walnut finish, and if you're after a higher stool, there's also a 72cm option.

The curved seat also means they're comfortable - surprisingly so - but that's just what you want isn't it? 

Give me some cook books, a notebook, a to do list and washi tape and I'd be happy to sit here and plan away.  I'm glad they're comfortable as one will have a longer-term home in my craft room (or the study, as MOH is still insisting on making a part-claim) which means when it's not being used, it'll fit nicely under the desk making the most of the space available. 

Once I've got that craft-room-cum-study slightly more presentable I'll show you how it works up there too.  But that's for another day.

I'm really pleased with these stools, and the flexibility they'll give us and I've been impressed with Cult Furniture too.  One of the stools I received was damaged in transit and often you can tell a lot about a company by their customer service. I sent photos of the damaged box and stool and a replacement was quickly sent, but this time using a different carrier - and with better results.  I don't think you can ask for more than that.

What do you think?  And how do you cope with additional people for dinner?

* This is a collaborative post, and I received these stools for the purposes of this review, however all views and opinions are my own.

A folklore living room at the Ideal Home Show at Christmas

This room set is inspired by storytelling from days gone by and for me, that's easy to see. It's a room that draws on the traditional reds and greens of Christmas but with a modern slant. It combines rustic with style and screams Christmas doesn't it?  I think there's also a touch of Scandi-style for good measure too.

There are elements of this room I love, the neutral background which looks grey in my pictures is a paint colour called Celestial Blue and provides the perfect backdrop for the bright berry red sofa.

The black framed coffee table and open shelf unit were also favourites, which will no doubt shock MOH as I won't let him have a coffee table in our current living room. I don't dispute how useful the right coffee table would be, but I'm not budging on the fact that it will turn our space into an obstacle course. 

The frame of the table is simple isn't it, and it reminded me that I still need to buy some square metal tubing to repair our gazebo which suffered from pooling rain damage in the summer.  Another one for the to do list. 

I also like how the simple framed table is decorated with eucalyptus and pine.  Pine I've used to decorate our house before, but not eucalyptus and it's something that's on my list for this year.  It also reminded me I still need to buy some square metal tubing to repair our gazebo which suffered from pooling rain damage in the summer.  Another one for the to do list - and funny how you get those reminders when you least expect them isn't it?

We have a teak open shelf unit - well less open than this one - and if I'm honest when I looked at this one I was full of admiration and envy all at the same time.  The plan was for ours to look equally as stylish, but in reality it rarely is and often becomes a home for bills, important stuff and all manner of things.  Luckily we have some doors on ours so a quick tidy (aka shoving things behind the doors) can make it feel super stylish pretty quickly again. Unless you really are a no clutter kind of person I'd always recommend getting some closed space on an open unit, if you can!

No living room room set for Christmas would be complete without a tree would it? Infact I suspect many of us feel the same about our own living rooms. This year I'm contemplating having the tree in our conservatory as with six adults in our house I think the large tree may just prove one thing too many. The challenge will be of course to make our living space equally as festive without the tree, I have a plan starting to form and we'll see if I can pull it off.

The final element of this room I loved was these tiles. The pattern, their texture and how they're used on the floor and the wall to create a practical zone around the log burner.  They're ceramic but are called pressed pantina steel tiles and have that aged look that works so well here, the copper edging really does add the finishing touch.

So what do you think? Is the festive folklore style room for you?

The Christmas edition of the Loo Series

And it's only the Christmas edition because the photos were taken around Christmas and our afternoon tea had a Christmas theme, and not because there was a Christmas tree in the loo. Unlike yesterday's post where there was a Christmas tree in the bedroom - I still can't help but think that's a little bit decadent.

This is probably one of the softer bathrooms I've posted and it belongs to St Ermins hotel in Westminster. It's feminine too isn't it?

The pale pink walls, the fish scale lampshade and the mother of pearl inlaid mirrors.  The repetition works well too, doesn't it?

It was harder than usual for me to get photos of this loo as both times I popped along there was an attendant paying close attention to the tidiness, it was that kind of classy establishment. It was also the first loo I've covered that had an auto flush, not that we need pictures of that, but it's something to note.

The mirrors were beautiful, so I'm not sure why I'm looking quite so thoughtful or grumpy!

I'M NOT AS GRUMPY AS I LOOK, HONEST

Looking back though, I'm quite impressed at how the pattern on my dress echoed that of the mirror surround. Completely fluke as I'd never been here before, and well, it would be very weird to dress to match the decor wouldn't it?

Heading back up to the table, as the light fell outside, I was also captivated by the light reflecting through the glass. It's almost dancing, I think.

So what do you think, pretty and feminine - is that your kind of loo?