A Few New Pretties

Don't you love finding a few little additions for your home?

I do! 

A few blog friends and I recently enjoyed morning tea at Thea and Sami's screen printing studio and these beautiful linen place mats and fish design tea towels came home with me. 

Many thanks for your wonderful hospitality Thea.

Then this morning I popped into the sale at du Monde and found this gorgeous Buddha which will enhance our outdoor entertaining area (when it's finally completed!) plus a lovely floral cushion which jumped into my arms. A home can never have too many cushions.
It was a real pleasure to visit your store again Daryl.

Adding a new pretty into my abode gives me great pleasure and I just know I will be very happy with these latest finds from two very talented Brisbane based designers.

Annie xx

Kitchen Love

Gosh it's been a week since my last post..time does fly.
To kick off this gloomy winter Monday in my neck of the woods I'm sharing photos of my kitchen. Those of you who've been following this blog since the early days (a year this August!) will know my family commenced a major renovation on our little piece of paradise set in the trees. A few of my blog friends have suggested I show more of my home and so here we are, the kitchen was a major exercise and I think it deserves to make an appearance on this little blog.
I was intending to share before pics then realised they're stored on the desktop and if I shut down the laptop to start again etc etc this post will never get up darlinks, so you will just have to use your imaginations.
So imagine an original 1990 kitchen in varying shades of blue with a servery bench top the size of a airport runway. We totally gutted the space in February 2011. The result is a design which Mr red roses and I conjured up. We'd renovated the kitchen in our last house using white cupboards and black bench tops and found that aesthetic suited us brilliantly so it was a no brainer to run with that scheme again. I can't see myself ever getting tired of black and white contrast. Clean, clutter free surfaces in my kitchen make my heart sing..
All in all I am beyond happy with the design and functionality. I hope you enjoy taking a wander through these photos I took on the iPhone soon after we moved in after the renovations.

I am very proud of my house because Mr red roses and I toiled extremely hard and extraordinary effort was poured into transforming this house.
You've surely heard the saying..'Blood Sweat and Tears', well it applied to us!

Entertaining is figuring in our lives once more since the dust has settled (figuratively speaking).
There's still a laundry to build and exciting plans for the outside entertaining area. All the fun and joy of major works (fingers crossed) are to commence in the not too distant future and the testament to our optimism is the cement mixer has been uncovered and hauled out to be press ganged into earning it's keep once again.

Wishing you happy tidings this week and stay safe.

Annie xx

A Pleasant Saturday Afternoon

Mr red roses and I ventured out for a walk along the Brisbane River today. Sunny, warm, hard to believe it's winter.
Huge redevelopment of the commercial port area has seen mega expensive apartments springing up.
Our beloved pooch enjoys a stroll although her advancing years are catching her up so when she lags behind she is scooped up and carried. Bless her.
A stop for bruschetta and coffee afterwards was in order before heading home.
All in all a pleasant Saturday afternoon enjoying the delights of our city.

Annie xx

Time for a little Colour Change

Yes you're right...I've changed bits and pieces of my blog design.
Again.
Simplicity is always my aim and a lot of peripheral stuff on my own blog distresses me no end. Don't laugh it's true!
The fact I have an ancient qualification in Showcard and Ticketwriting (a form of signwriting/calligraphy using nibs, inks, sable brushes and paint before computer graphics came on the scene) causes me to be rather picky about my layout hence I'm never happy.

I get bored very quickly and like change. Will this layout stay?
Well I've said it before and I'll say it again...

Probably not!

Do you get bored with your blog colours, themes, layouts and want to change them up constantly or am I on my lonesome?

Annie xx

A Birthday Celebration

My darling son has celebrated his 25th birthday.
Birthdays are a big deal in my family and cake plays an important role in the celebrations.
Cake is Mandatory.
Complete with candles until one reaches the age when the amount of candles run the risk of burning down the house.

I rehearsed in my mind the post I would dedicate to my boy but truly no words can convey my love for my son. And my daughter.

Why is the number 25 a big deal to me. I can't answer this, it just is.

I love them both more than I could ever convey here.

More than life itself.

Mum xx

Morning Tea and a Pretty Chair

Today a friend and I enjoyed a lovely morning at the WAC.

Coffee, tea and cakes in the retro cafe were consumed after wandering through the myriad of shops looking for treasures.

 I purchased a sweet chair from Sandy's shop 'Paint me White'. 

I spied this telephone on my wanderings through the antique centre and remember when my parents bought one of these trendy (at the time) telephones when I was a child. I thought I had the grooviest parents!

And here is the quaint fold-up chair in the shade I'm loving right now. I placed it in my living room for now but do feel it is the perfect size and design to be situated anywhere in my home.

Much fun was had playing around with cushions and books and best of all it will be a versatile addition to my home.
Thanks Sandy, your wares are lovely and so very reasonably priced.

Isn't it fun bringing a new furniture addition into one's abode?

Annie xx

Wednesday Wanderings

With thoughts of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee still swirling in my head I decided a quaint photo of this iconic London sight would be most appropriate.

A red telephone box.

Need I say more....!

Annie xx

Tuesday and Instagram

Happy Tuesday all.

For some unknown reason to me my Instagram photos are not loading on my sidebar and while it's probably easily rectified I shall put on my lazy hat and wait for my IT literate son to sort out the glitch. 

Meanwhile if you click on the newly installed 'followgram' link on the sidebar all my photos are displayed. As I have mentioned before I am having the time of my life with Instagram taking visuals of fanciful things and just recently discovered a free app called Frametastic and now my addiction knows no bounds!

I shall leave you with a serene shot of the most divinely scented candle and the most vibrant red nail polish my nails will be sporting by days end.

What girl doesn't enjoy having gifts bestowed on her...I Love It!

Thanks A-M & FF 

High Tea and a Jubilee

Today was spent celebrating the Queens Diamond Jubilee by having a couple of friends over to raise a glass of bubbles and toast the health of Queen Elizabeth.

Cucumber and smoked salmon sandwiches, cake and chocolates. Even the precious Royal Albert tea set was hauled out in honour.

Experienced an almost catastrophe when the pineapple upside down cake split when I turned it out. Desperate measures call for what I affectionately call a cake girdle ie. whack a piece of ribbon around the cake and hope for the best.

Here's A-M, yours truly and Faux Fuchsia getting into the good stuff. Darling daughter took the pic.
The pooch is never far from the action.

A lovely day and isn't it nice to celebrate a happy occasion. Now if only I could throw myself on the sofa and the butler bring me a G & T!


Annie xx