The Interior DIYer
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Out of this world


For husband’s birthday, I surprised him with an astronomical themed overhaul. I’ve never written about it here, but we’re massive nerds when it comes to astronomy {not to be confused with astrology}. We will sit for hours discussing, watching documentaries and debating infinity and beyond. Influenced by our most recent television obsession – the Stargazing Live series, I thought how better to celebrate than a space themed setting.

Above – I gave him the moon, or as best as I could draw it on our chalkboard wall …

Bacon sandwiches for breakfast with some added jazz. p.s. Spot the curious cat.

I should say, of what you see regarding decor, the only things I had to purchase for the day were edible items {that’s how much nerdy stuff we have}. I do find the best themed decor can be found within your own home. You just have to invest in some serious brainstorming, allow yourself to get carried away, and some hardcore rooting around cupboards.

In stead of a traditional iced birthday cake, I fancied up some crater cookies for hubby. This is where I can thank the Pinterest gods. I stumbled upon a painfully simple recipe – cookies and cream oreo bark. With its delightfully grey flecked white chocolate with Oreo chunks, it was a perfect fit and became ‘crater cookies’. Not to mention it took about 10 minutes to make. Sweet.

Leftover surplus of Oreos as well as some chocolate stars adorned the coffee table. I pimped out some vases with Mars and Milky Way bars, and finished it off with some of our Star Wars memorabilia. We went to Tunisia a couple of years ago and traveled to far-away abandoned Star Wars sets. The pink ticket you see framed is what I got for my use of the toilet facilities, which I had to pay for merely because I wasn’t a man.

So there you have it! Husband was very impressed and has stated a number of times that I can’t erase the moon for a good while. I’m okay with that. For now.

Happy Monday folks! I hope the weekend treated you well 🙂 xx A

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Tis the season

Happy St. Stephen’s / Boxing Day! I hope the festive season is treating you well. Although Christmas has come and gone, I like to think we’re still in the thick of the season. It can’t all be about one day. Pour example, hubby and I always have our own mini Christmas, as we’ve always spent the day itself with our own families. He spoiled me with some truly thoughtful surprises this year.  
Serious brownie points for a personalized present, even if in pen, and even if it’s only on the box. A hydrangea tiered cake stand. He makes my heart sore … 

At times I can’t look directly at the fabulocity of this present – a Royal Albert tea set also from husband. Dainty to the maximum. 

For me, you can’t go wrong with massive smelly candles, especially in scrumptious hues. They’re one of my simple pleasures. Candles make me feel fancy, as silly as that sounds, but there’s nothing wrong with the things that make you feel shiny on the inside. 
Plus some good coffee table reading, also thanks to the parental units – A Girl’s Guide to Decorating, by Abigail Ahern. Om nom. 

And from my broseph, some yummy skull goodness. It is perfection, and is now home to a moody spot on our shelves. Look at that furry face. I couldn’t not include it. Juniper kills me sometimes. 
On a side note, can someone explain to me why this time of year brings so much eating? I feel like I’m failing at Christmas if I’m not constantly shoving food in my mouth. But on the plus side, it’s making me look forward to kicking my ass in 2013.
Happy holidays homies 🙂 xx A
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Custom Christmas colours – part 3

Skulls, hydrangeas, tea cups and bling – that is what our Christmas tree and apartment are wearing this year. In tones of burgundy, aubergine, metallic and hints of lilac, this year I went with a custom Christmas to suit our living space – not our previous fire engine red and winter green. And I enjoyed nerding out by personalizing what we already had {check out some Christmas decoration revamp ideas here in part 2}.

Husband was very proud of himself when he pointed out the “mini bell jar is full of bells” … 

Thanks to the surplus of tea cups from our wedding this year, I had the idea to hang some dainty numbers from our tree with pretty ribbon. Note: I’d advise you only try this if you have a fake tree where you can bend the branches completely back on themselves to make sure there are no porcelain victims. This is especially vital if there are furry paws lurking.

The only decorations I didn’t revamp were my trusty, old seasonal switch place covers. You can check out my tutorial here on how to make them if you’re curiosa.

You can barely see it above, but this  pinecone garland deal is going on below our shelf this year. God bless Pinterest. 

And it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t get some hydrangea action going on this Christmas. These babies are made as simply as the picture shows below. No instructions necessary. I whipped up 6 of them in 20 minutes. Thanks again to Press Gang Supplies for the ab fab ribbon. Getting some seriously good use out of it.

Faux stag head from Marks & Spencer gets an honourary faux garland, and a close up of some of the delights on our tree. 

Yesterday we went to Farmleigh’s Christmas Fair where we royally stuffed our faces with the most incredible food, and I couldn’t resist picking up 3 of these decorative cabbages. These babies are 3 feet long. Each. It was quite the task mashing them into a vase last night. I must post a picture of them as they are incredible next to the faux stag set up going on on our shelf. 
Last but not least, below is a pic of our Toshi inspecting the Christmas tree. Now that I look at this picture, I realize how many baubles are now missing from this area … 
I hope you are all prepared for the Christmas season ahead! I can’t wait to do some serious baking, sleeping in, movie watching and general messing about the house. HURRY UP, CHRISTMAS. 
xx A
Custom Christmas – part 1, part 2 and part 3.