Homewares, Italian-style

When we were away recently in Italy we stayed on the outskirts of Todi, a relatively small hill top town in Umbria, with a population of almost 17,000. That might sound a lot, but in comparison even Greenwich has a population of quarter of a million (and that was in the 2011 census), so you can see why it felt small to us. But even so, my knack of stumbling across a fantastic homewares shop still managed to find its way, which really is quite something…

And so was the silver sequinned pumpkin. I’m not much of one for celebrating Halloween - I’m the type of person that pulls the curtains and doesn’t open the door, if the doorbell is rung by trick and treaters - but I could have made allowances for the sparkly pumpkin. The smaller plush fabric-ed pumpkins were also cute, but after seeing the sequinned one, there really wasn’t any comparison.

But the pumpkins were a bit of a distraction, once I saw these pots. By now MOH was looking concerned, as there was no way these would fit in our suitcase and I’m sure he was already planning his excuses for not having these in hand luggage either, and I have some sympathies.

My reason for giving these such a close look over was more than that. I was keen to know what they were made of - small wooden discs painted white - and how we could replicate them at home, and if we could use the small mountain of corks that seem to multiply at home.

I mean, I have no idea where they all come from…

But the real star of our visit was these exquisite bowls.

Aren’t they gorgeous?

They’re rustic wooden bowls with a smooth floral patterned interior. I don’t need any more bowls (but please don’t tell MOH) and I was very tempted, of course it helped that they were yellow, but I resisted. I didn’t even get as far as looking at the price, however I did take a picture of the label and the base and hope to be able to track down something similar online.

I’m pretty sure that the floral pattern, which I’m hesitating to call vintage, featured in my childhood wardrobe at some point!

The Italians are shy of using yellow as these zingy scalloped bowls show. They’ve a bit of a kitsch feel about them, but they’re fun too. And we’re getting in on the yellow scene here in the UK now too, although we’re most likely to see a pop of mustard in our homewares, and in our wardrobes, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.

I think after all the browsing, and especially the pausing to inspect closer MOH was relieved to leave the shop empty-handed, but that’s partly because we’d already bought a ceramic momento, but more on that next week.

The one with the redecorated loo

Last weekend we celebrated my MIL’s birthday with afternoon tea at Alexander House Hotel in West Sussex, and it wasn’t our first time there. Our previous visit, also for afternoon tea (they’re good) was a couple of years ago, and then I shared how my outfit seemed to match the painting in the loo.

When thinking about what to wear I remembered them matching my yellow dress before, and thought I’d wear something different this time. I’m a fan of colour, often wearing, at least one bright colour but nothing really jumped out at me as I recalled my wardrobe. So, as often is the case, I chose the shoes I wanted to wear and went from there, thinking nothing more of it.

After eating more than I had in a while, and yet still not managing to polish off all the cakes - I know, I was shocked too - and drinking a pot or two of “sparkling white” white tea, a trip to the loos brought a good excuse for a break and a wander. Remembering the loos from before, and knowing I’d already shared them here, I almost didn’t take my bag with me…

It was obvious though, that something had changed.

I noticed the wallpaper straight away, it’s similar to the bamboo wallpaper we have on one wall in our living room, but with more sparkle. Had I known I could have got some sparkle in my wallpaper then maybe I’d’ve had some, as it would bring an element of light to the wall. I was less sure though if the basins had been changed, so later I checked my earlier post and they had. In place of white traditional sinks where these countertop basins, which as you can see bring another metallic texture to the space.

The wallpaper was different too, more metallics and with a geometric pattern - the light in the photo below seems to have played havoc with the colour, but I couldn’t resist showing you this wall, isn’t it great?

In the lobby area, you can see a truer colour of the wallpaper, and it was great to see the picture still hanging in the same place. The padded bench seat though was the star and this is my favourite view of the loos - I know, how weird is that, I mean how many people have a favourite loo view?!

But you know what I mean, it almost seems wasted in the loo (but it was too large for my handbag!)

So that’s another first for the Loo Series, this is the first loo that’s been redecorated and therefore featured twice. I think I much prefer the updated version, but what about you?

Post Comment Love & Blogger Showcase 26 - 28 October

Hello there and welcome to this week’s #PoCoLo the place for you to share any post you’ve published this week, that could do with some extra love. If you were here last week it was great to see you, if you’re new here this week then hello, you’re very welcome. Both Morgan and I are sure you’re going to find some fantastic blogs to read.

My week hasn’t turned out quite how I thought it would, but more on that another day. It’s not been a bad week, just one with a last minute change of plan - just as well I’m flexible, isn’t it? The other thing of note is the weather, which I think is summed up with my photo this week.

There’s signs of autumn, isn’t there? The leaves are falling, the morning’s are damp, the heating is kicking in, but then the sun’s still out, it’s been relatively warm - last weekend was gorgeous - and I’m still hanging onto wearing sandals, although even I think my sandal days are numbered. But it’s good, it’s almost the end of October and tights haven’t even really been considered, that has to be good!

Blogger Showcase: Crimson from Crimson Talks Books, Mostly

1 Who are you?

Hi! My name is Crimson (or Lisette). Feel free to call me by either name. My pronouns are she/they (though you’ll often find me using they when I speak about myself in the third person) and I am currently in school, hoping to graduate in the summer with a Bachelor in Arts. I’m a HUGE NERD and currently run two blogs. One - My Fujoshi Life - is for me to scream about all my bishie loves, and the other - Crimson Talks Books, Mostly - is for book, movies, and lifestyle content.

My favourite colour is orange, fall is my favourite season, and I love to buy stationery! I have so much junk, I don’t know what to do with half the notebooks I own.

2 How did you discover blogs/blogging?

This was about seven years ago. I was just browsing the internet and I noticed that there were websites made by individuals with some great content, which was strange to me because websites were usually made by organisations. I wasn’t really sure what it was but I was curious to learn more about it.

3 Why did you start blogging?

I really liked the blogs that I had seen and I thought it would be cool if I tried my hand at blogging as well. I also wanted an outlet to fangirl at and to talk about my life at university.

4 What do you find most challenging?

Trying to keep an audience among the plethora of bloggers. I always feel like I’m the worst blogger out there and I often find myself wondering if I should just stop blogging. I also find it so hard to keep up with blogs for the same reason! There’s so many blogs out there updating at least once a day and I just can’t keep up with everything.

5 What is your favourite topic to write about?

I like to write about things I’m excited for, which can be anything really. A book, a movie, a TV series, an anime, a character, school, etc.

6 Are you blogging for fun or do you have goals?

I blog for fun but also I’m at that point where blogging is a hard hobby to maintain because I’m supposed to be adulting. So my goals are basically to make money off my blog so that it’s more of a part-time job. Unfortunately, it’s harder to do than expected!

7 What is your favourite thing about blogging?

The community. I really like talking with bloggers, especially when we’re talking about things we both love! After that I would say being able to just get all my thoughts and feelings out on the internet. Sometimes I just have an overload in my mind and need to declutter or I end up frying myself.

8 Have you ever attended a blogging conference and if so, what did you think?

Nope! Didn’t even know these existed. Now I want to attend one!

9 What are your 3 best posts?

I’m part of a blogging group called OWLS (Otaku Warriors of Liberty and Self-Respect) and I think all my posts that I write for their blog tours are my best. Here are some:

• Connections in Erased and How A Single Person CAN Make a Difference

• Kyoko’s Journey to Accepting Love and Acquiring Inner Sanctuary,

• Shirotani’s Mental Fortitude and Helping Hand (It’s OK to Need Help Sometimes)

10 Describe yourself in 3 words!

Sporadic, Nerd, and Fujoshi

11 Are you a tea and biscuits or coffee and cake person?

Tough question! A few years ago I would have definitely said coffee but lately I’ve been more of a cinnamon tea type of person, though I do crave a latte every now and then. As for my treat, I’ll go with a croissant!

12 What’s your idea of a perfect night out?

I actually prefer not to go out. I’m a hermit, lol. But I guess something along the lines of fall weather, casual setting, and going with someone I enjoy the company of. I swear, someone can take me to a fast food joint and I won’t mind as long as we have something to talk about.

13 Your perfect night in?

My attempting to do some blogging with my mom by my side as she watches TV. And I say attempt because I’d probably be watching TV with her, haha.

14 What would your best friend/OH/mum or kids say is your best quality?

According to my mom it’s being a good companion.

Before you link up please take some time to connect with Crimson on her social channels: Twitter - Facebook - Instagram

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