Clever cookie

Looking for a cheap, inspiring and effortlessly chic decorating solution for your kitchen splashback?

Especially when you're not sure what you're going to do yet - be it tiles, stainless steel, granite etc but you can't stand looking at that hideous wallpaper/bare wall/mustard tiles a minute longer?

Look no further than concrete & honey for the best idea I've seen in ages!

The clever girl has lined her once ugly blue kitchen splashback with pages of beautiful magazines - using the easy-to-wipe mag covers down the bottom where splatters will land from the stove top.

Genius!

Imagine if you pasted all your favourite recipes up there - would make working out what to have for dinner SO much easier!

See here for her post.

Windsor ways

Totally in love with Windsor Smith at the moment. I find I'm pinning her stuff at every chance! I found pics of her house in House Beautiful and fell head over heels in love with it all.

The kitchen, in particular, took my breath away. A cook's dream! And I love the dramatic black and fact that it looks lived in - you can actually see her utensils and tea towels hanging on the oven handle! This is no display house - it's a home. This whole 'lived-in' look is something I'm definitely mad for at the moment (yep, mentioned it in my last post aswell!)

I love the idea of sitting in a wing-back chair at the kitchen table. How decadent! It's my dream to be able to entertain guests in the kitchen and have them settled and comfortable while you can still potter around at the stovetop or chopping board. I hate having to always duck out to the living room and leave my cooking unattended, just to make sure my guests have a drink and are cosy.

So yes, quite possibly the most perfect kitchen I've come across. Hits mine for six!

Oh, and I just had to throw in a pic of the sitting room. Those pink walls! Gush!

For more pics, check out the interview and full gallery in House Beautiful

A delicious duo

Colin and Justin are the best things to hit TV screens since Trinny and Susannah. They're so outrageously fabulous, I just can't get enough of them.

One of the joys of housesitting is Foxtel IQ - I had series linked 'Colin and Justin's Home Heist' and spent most of last weekend catching up on episodes (how sad!)

They are crude and honest yet deliciously creative - pushing the boundaries yet always delivering the best in style and taste.

Their designs are full of colour and personality.

And how fabulous are Justin's corsages!??!!

It's amazing what a white base can do as a solid foundation.

And this kitchen!?! It speaks to me . . .

Oh to sit back and enjoy cocktails in this lovely space

Go lose yourself in the wonderful world of Colin and Justin here

Blackboard beauty

If only I had the guts to do something as drastic as this and paint all the cupboards!

Letitia's inspiration for my kitchen door. Love the way the door provides a self-frame for the blackboard.

This one is most like what I'm going for - my door too leads from the kitchen to the laundry. If only I had a glass panel in it though. Am tossing up whether I paint just a section of the door, or go the whole hog and paint the door completely. It could look kind of cool to hang a frame around a large square of paint?

I am giddy over how much I love this pic. That floral chair and gorgeous polka dot shopping trolley. Too much, I love it! Oh yes, and great blackboard panel - the white door frame and skirting board really helps it stand out.

This is a good option - maybe I could paint a separate panel of wood and then hang that up on the door?

Wow, what an impact!

I'm still on Cloud Nine after my brainstorming session with Letitia from The White Shed on Friday night. One of her fabulous ideas was the paint the plain old door in my kitchen with blackboard paint.

What a fab idea! I've been hunting for examples all night to help me decide whether to paint a small section or throw caution to the wind and paint the entire thing.

I think I'll take the plunge and do it all. Why not? It's a talking point, if nothing else! And with a new housemate moving in, it'll be an easy way to stay in touch, write lists, recipes and important phone numbers and dates.

I just need to work out where to buy it from now. Any ideas? Perhaps Lincraft?

Pics from here, here, here and here.

Kitchen heaven

I would lurve a kitchen like this. Big, open, full of light and great for entertaining. Writers Tom Dolby and Drew Frist open their doors to Lonny readers this month and share their STUNNING Hamptons weekend house with wannabes like me.

Can you just imagine the joy of cooking in a kitchen like this? To have your friends camped at the island bench, wine glass in hand, sharing tales over sticky balsamic and ah-mazing goats curd snacks. Bliss!

Off to Canberra this weekend for an engagement partay - as much as I love the e-friendly online Lonny, it's times like these I wish I could drool over the hard copy pages in the airport waiting lounge (not on the plane, oh no, not with my pathetic history of travel sickness!). Thank goodness for Masterchef Magazine x

PS. For all you lovelies with a relaxing long weekend planned, make sure you fit in some hard core Lonny indulging - new issue out now!

The white answer

I spend a lot of time in my kitchen and am in that terribly boring but oh so sensible position where my workspace doesn't need any work done to it, but I'd love to make some changes. As a result, I can't justify spending any money on it and I'm stuck in no man's land.

Sometimes I think it'd be easier if I'd bought a run down place so that I'd be forced to take some action and actually make it a home, not a house. But no, that would be tough. Hard work on your own. Instead, I have to admit I am very lucky and bought my little place about 15 months ago without having to lift a finger. Everything's in working order - the kitchen's practical, the floorboards are polished, the shower works. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, isn't that right?

Well, I'm bored! I so desperately want to put my own little flair on the place and feel proud to call it home. At the moment, I just feel like a lodger going through the motions.

So back to the kitchen - I want to be inspired! I want colour and flavour and a scene to excite the senses! My cooking's gone to the dogs and the slow cooker can't even get me out of my frump.

I need a change. But that all seems too hard at the moment though - kitchens are spenny! So I'm starting with the family room. The orange feature wall I loved at the first open inspection now gives me a headache, and although I adore my brother's Year 12 handiwork, the coffee table and bookshelf don't really shout 'style'.

So I'm seeking inspiration from Anna Spiro at Absolutely Beautiful Things. I. AM. IN. LOVE. Her house is exactly what I'm after - a white canvas upon which she's built layer upon layer of gorgeous colour, texture and pattern. I am PINK with envy! Her pics above completely capture what I'm after. And can you get enough of those pink bar stools? Ah-mazing! Just imagine the colourful salads, decadent desserts and precious canapes I could prepare in that environment!

So now that I've settled on my white base - just how on earth do I choose the right white? They talk of warm whites, cold whites, sterile whites and off-whites, but what's the right one for me? Any tips? Let's hope a coat of paint can help me find my blogging 'mojo' and get me back in the kitchen.

Pics from Absolutely Beautiful Things - check out Anna's 'white' collection. Heavenly!