THE COTTAGE AND THE CANDLE MAKER Once upon a time there was a little house in the Hawkes Bay called Kingfisher Cottage, home to Rebekah Burton, her family and her business, Annise Designs. Its story book quality just begs for something equally romantic to be made here and I will not disappoint you. The business is hand poured, scented, soy candles, made right in the heart of that little cottage; the kitchen. If anything could depict hygge and Home Envy
Annise Designs – Scented Soy Candles
THE COTTAGE AND THE CANDLE MAKER Once upon a time there was a little house in the Hawkes Bay called Kingfisher Cottage, home to Rebekah Burton, her family and her business, Annise Designs. Its story book quality just begs for something equally romantic to be made here and I will not disappoint you. The business is hand poured, scented, soy candles, made right in the heart of that little cottage; the kitchen. If anything could depict hygge and 
Simplicity in Sweden
SIMPLICITY IN SWEDEN Right that’s it I’m moving to Sweden! With just the right amount of design furniture, clever use of window spaces for storage and display, sumptuous use of fabrics combined with rustic wood I am in love with this home. Captured with beautiful images by photographer Jonas Ingerstedt it totally wins my heart. What does my little house have in common with this one? Simply not enough but I do have the two Vee Speers prints, the bamboo A Perfect Ten
A PERFECT 10 The Real Estate Buyers Agents Association of Australia (REBAA) recently posted a list of ten things that make up a perfect home. These results were obtained via survey and are titled The Top Ten Property Wish List. I was a little nervous about reading any further. What if I got it all wrong? What if the changes made at my little house were not what others would perceive as necessary let alone perfect? 1. Open
Londons calling
I came across this gorgeous home on this great site and just had to share. This double fronted Victorian Home located in Camberwell, London is full of light and white with splashes of colour. Totally my cup of tea! Perhaps its all those houseplants? Or the stunning lighting? The unique art? Or perhaps its the eclectic styling; the mix of vintage and designer? The amazing interior cornices, mouldings and trims? Or what about that flooring? Or is it the house itself? So far removed
Take a trip to Sweden
Gothenburg Sweden is renowned for its wooden homes, perhaps a little like us here in NZ. Typically they would have a stone basement floor and the next one to two stories in wood. Over half the population in the early to mid 1900s lived in homes such as this. The other half of Gothenburg seems dominated by large buildings that are divided into apartments. The architecture of these is just stunning with high moulded ceilings, feature fire places, large
A beautiful home in France
Visiting France was a must during our younger days; the big OE had to include this romantic country and the proximity to London made it an easy commute, which back then, was by Hovercraft then Train to the city of Paris! Maybe I was young and naïve but Paris was not the wonder I thought it would be. Yes the Louvre, the Eifel and the Arc de Triomphe were all stunning, the architecture striking and the River Seine the
Flash Back
Its time for a little blast from the past. Who remembers Lockwood Homes? Quintessentially Kiwi! I remember my mother dreaming of one of these prefab timber houses back in the 80’s, and then, well, things changed, there was not a piece of timber adorning any new homes during the next decade. We opted for paint in all colours imaginable; feature walls were a big hit and outside plaster, plaster everywhere plaster combined with untreated timber framing – hmmmm that didn’t really go well for us though