Humble abode

As discussed here, I think the a person's home - in my case bedroom - can reveal an awful lot about them.  

I took these pictures yesterday, after a quick cleanup and once I had unpacked the enormous suitcase brought home from Devon a week ago. I have also included a slightly older picture of my dressing table with some flowers (in case you're confused by the magical disappearance of them in later pics). 

My bedroom window doesn't have a particularly exciting view, but I can see trees and greenery and on a Sunday morning I hear the church bells. That, for me, is happiness and when you consider that previous London views have included a granite covered garden, a wall, and a main road, I feel I have earned it. 

I am hugely lucky to live in a flat owned by a friend of my mums, who has incredible taste and some beautiful antique furniture.  None of the furniture is mine, but the 2 pictures on the walls and the art on the dresser is. 

The tree collage was made by my mum, it hangs above the fireplace in my room and reminds me of the countryside and towering trees of the woodland at the bottom of my garden in Devon. The print of the birds was bought on my recent trip to Edinburgh. The message on the print reads "Sleep, we will wake you up to a new day" and it appealed to the sleepaholic in me, as well as being just the right side of whimsical. The fabric bird that sits on my dresser was a gift from my beloved, I like how silly it is, I call her Flora and for now I use the picture frame to hang jewellery on.

 

I have also included a staged photo of a few of my favourite items including a ceramic brown and polka dot cookie jar which I use as a piggy bank, a red and gold jewellery box gifted by my best friend and bought in India and a small black box decorated with a frog which I use to store my rings.

 

I am fortunate to have a large wardrobe, meaning that for first time in my adult life I haven't had endless Ikea boxes filled with clothes stored under my bed. The bookshelves are also a great treat, and one of my next tasks is to organise my collection of books by colour. I know it's sad, but it looks so good.  

The fabric covered pin board was an ebay purchase which is now part mood board and part memory board. It is covered in notes from friends, photos of loved ones and images that I find especially gorgeous. It is also home to my two favourite images that capture cross animal love, Themba the Sheep and Albert the Elephant along with Rex the dog with his rescued joey.  This is something I shall come to another day. 

I could go on for hours about my bed, more precisely about the time and money that has gone into picking just the right duvet covers and sheets which make it my favourite place in the world. I find Muji a great place for good quality, simple and beautifully designed linen. The sale is always good and on several occasions I have found the pieces I have been coveting all season in the end of line sale. I change my bedding weekly and always, always iron sheets, duvet covers and pillow cases. 

I am sure many of you will think this is an utter waste of time, but for me the joy of getting into a perfectly made and creaseless bed is sublime. A little taste of high end, boutique, indulgent comfort in your own home. 

A piece of me

Since the age of 5 right up until this very day there has been one hobby, habit, time-passing exercise (call it what you will) that has given me more pleasure than most.

It can take a few minutes or several days, and by the end of it you might not notice anything much has changed or you will be in awe of the catastrophic differences you see.

I remember when I was at school and I would spend whole weekends hidden behind my bedroom door getting on with my favourite task, that of re-arranging my bedroom.

Living in London and now having inhabited 4 shared flats, a bedroom is that little piece of solace that you can make your own. Often in rented flats there isn't a huge amount you can do to the decor and I fantasise to an unhealthy level about the little home I will one day have, and all the wonderful ways I will decorate it.

But, mainly to keep my scrap booking and the time I spend surfing interior blogs and websites in check, I have tried to keep focused on the bedroom. The oasis that you return to at the end of a long day or a big night, the space that is entirely yours and yours alone, the few metres square that show those lucky enough to be invited in a little bit of what you love. I believe a home, or in my case a room, can reveal so much about the person who inhabits it.

I will post pictures of my little London home later, but for now take a look at some other rooms that I love and which I can't wait to take take inspiration from when I have a home of my own.

I don't have credits for these pictures, as they have been saved in my "Room makeover" folder for so long. But I believe some came from TinyK and Loveology which are both fantastic sources of design inspiration. If you know who took them please let me know and I will credit.