House renovation project Cardiff - kitchen*

The first two photos of our kitchen project in Cardiff. There is still a bit to go to make it a home, but the structure and finish is there. Now for the fun furnishings and accessories bit.

House renovation project Cardiff - bathroom*

We've finished the bathroom at Cardiff whoop whoop! It's small but stunning, who says a family bathroom can't look good

Vintage meets industrial*

There is a lovely house featured in this month's Living Etc July 2010. It's a mix of original industrial features and vintage pieces in pop colours and graphic style - a quirky mix and not one that's easy to achieve. I take my interiors hat off to them.

Materials - Lovely Cork*

My friend showed me a stunning sample of some recycled cork last week and it got me thinking.
We should use more of it in our interiors. I think people just don't know about it.
But when they find out they love it's warmth, insulation [heat and sound], the fact that it's hypoallergenic [not full of nasty chemicals] and is hugely environmentally friendly.
Use it as ceiling and wall panels [giant moodboards!], flooring and in detailing. I love the Float Pendant light Benjamin Hubert SCP.

Lovely British fabrics from St Jude's*

I need some fab fabrics for my new west london house - if i ever get there. Why do solicitors take so long? I think I might find them online at St Jude's. Everyone is talking about provenance, so finding a supplier of beautiful, quirky fabrics on your doorstep made in Norfolk makes me very happy. I love Hedgerow design by Angie Lewin and Doveflight by Mark Herron, both in linen.

Facet chair* [yes please]

Hot pink chair in lovely textured finish - what's not to like?!!!!!!! Facet chair by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec.

I heart summer*

I don't know where the time goes I really don't.
In an attempt to take my brain away from imminent house purchases, and all house renovations I am loving these pop seating options.
Mostly because the shape is so fun, like an ice cream, and the colours are all cheery and June.
Pluto Bench by British designer Simon Pengelly.

Day 9: House renovation*

The kitchen is moving on. The bi-fold doors are in, giving us sight of the garden [rubble!]. The skylight is pulling in sunshine from above. The plasterboard is on, bringing smoothness to the walls and some order to the chaos. The kitchen structure is showing itself, but the rubble on the floor seems to be getting higher! Next step - the base units.

The Garden Room by bentheim*

In between dust and exposed wires I just had to write about The Garden Room, a new interior design by bentheim. This cafe uses stainless steel and timber to give a warm, industrial canteen feel, but it's the quirky use of metal buckets as light fittings that made me smile. The foliage wallpaper adds to the garden theme.

Day 8: House renovation*

Time to order the flooring. This kitchen looks contemporary so to give it the warmth it needs to stop it becoming too stark, it needs a wood floor. So which type to choose - solid hardwood flooring or engineered wood? Engineered wood is less expensive, more environmentally friendly [because the sublayers are often made from junk or scrapwood], and can be installed in kitchens and bathrooms because it can withstand moisture, buckling and rippling.

If it gets damaged you can sand it. You'll be able to get three to four resurfacings from most engineered hardwood floors. To help keep the modern look, choose wide planks. As the kitchen is 8m long, I've specified long planks aswell as wide. Solid Floors had the modern look we wanted but only as solid hardwood and not engineered. So we found a simliar grade at Timeless Floors, a White Oak Natural oil, £29M2. I will post photos once it's installed next week.

Day 7: House renovation*

So the clever builders keep knocking things down...and putting things up. The first fix is done, the plumber is updating the heating and boiler and the new kitchen skylight is in! The bi-fold doors are coming next week and then we will see the garden. I can see how the L shaped kitchen will work in my head. Only 2 weeks until it is real.

Day 6: House renovation*

When we ripped the kitchen units out we found these lovely patterned tiles. There is something so thrilling about pulling a house apart, peeling back it's history, wondering who laid these tiles and if they had a happy life here.

Day 5: House renovation*

Look - they knocked the kitchen down yeeeeeee ha!

Day 5: House renovation*

The walls are coming down!!! Oh, they are going up too. How fast is this Welsh builder?

Day 4: House renovation*

You could spend your whole life looking at wall tiles - pop ones in candy colours, geometric ones, metro ones, understated ceramic ones, porcelain floor tiles. How to stop??! The answer is when you have builder's knocking down walls, a looming deadlines and a brief to stick to, then is the time to stop...The brief for the bathroom here is 'contemporary eclectic'. We have dark, dramatic floors, white neutral walls and so some bold feature tiles in a geometric pattern or a bright colour will make the whole room pop. For geometric and patterned tiles I saw some stunners at Fired Earth, Emery & Cie, Dar Interiors, Motif Tiles and Bisazza. But to get the intricate pattern effect we wanted was going to take some serious dosh. So the bold colour option seemed more viable - I found some amazing large format glass tiles in red, pink and orange which fitted the bill, but glass tiles in the shower area = high maintenance in hard water areas [who wants to scrub walls tiles every day?]. So cue some large scale wall tiles in ceramic - Johnson Tiles and Surface Tiles were my saviour. In the end 'my client' went for Milan Blue ceramic tiles 300x600mm by Original Style.

Day 3: House renovation*

Sanitaryware

Things are moving on swiftly - bathroom walls going up, new windows going in. My client's builder has arrived 2 weeks early, so the planning phase has literally gone out of the new window. It's seat of pants stuff. We have to get ours hands on lovely sanitaryware - and fast. No time for online items with 10-day leadtimes. The man on the phone at Cardiff bathroom store is our saviour. He has a Villeroy & Bosch acrylic Oberon bath in stock. The white modern curves of this piece will suit the space perfectly. It looks double-ended [luxurious and great for kids] but isn't so space-greedy. He also has a semi-recessed Roca Senso basin - more curves that will add warmth. We get a shower too - a Hudson Reed model with stunning cross dial. And a Phoenix heated towel rail and Ideal Standard Concept wall hung toilet. Seriously good for two hours shopping...

Day 2: House renovation*

Day 2:
The bathroom.

It's day 2 and we know where the services will run and have decided on a layout. There is little time to ponder over a brew and a breakaway as the builders are busy knocking down walls ha ha. What next? It's time to think about the 'envelope' - what materials will we specify for the floors and the walls? Get these right and the rest is easy. Get it wrong and you'll be looking at expanses of cheap and nasty for years and years. For the floor there are clear favorites for a family bathroom - ceramic tiles, porcelain tiles, rubber flooring. [wood flooring was a no-no, not for messy little ones]. I don't love ceramics though [they chip easily] and while rubber is warm and tactile, it gives a very specific look [60's pop]. So porcelain is the best - it's impossible to chip or scratch, is super waterproof and can look expensive without taking all your dosh. Stontech 1.0 do a stunning porcelain tiled floor [pictured] in black/brown and it's suitable for bathrooms. Yummy. Available from Surface Tiles, £67 per sqm.

Day 1: House renovation*

I am redesigning my brothers interiors.

The bathroom is heading up to the stars, leaving room for an 8metre kitchen yee ha. This will be a challenge for the upstairs layout [we are effectively squeezing a bathroom into the third bedroom, while trying to keep that bedroom as a working space]. Nothing that some clever space planning won't solve. So before we can even really begin to think about concepts the walls are coming down! And the concept? Well, it's a family bathroom, so above all else the materials must be robust to splashing and bubbles. Robust materials don't mean we have to leave style at the door. The other golden room with family bathrooms - circulation. When you have 10 squillion bodies all vying for the basin, you need room to manouvere. Space is a luxury, but carefully locating basins, baths and toilets buys back valuable inches. So the concept? Bright eclectic. Contrasted with a dark floor. So you get a big fat slap across the face when you take your morning shower. And the colour shot is one for the kids too.

Blodwen* - new online store

Well, I haven't written for so long. Life takes over - new house, new interior design projects, my friends beautiful wedding at House for Art Lover. Before I can start thinking about our new house [new project!] I have to finish my brothers house, and drag myself away from new websites such as Blodwen. Strictly speaking, spending hours on Blodwen is interiors 'research'? It's so nice to see a Welsh online shop selling cool, handmade stuff. I am going to find space for their Carthenni traditional wool rug in our new home. Not sure I like their prices so much as their designs (£395 for a blanket, ouch). It may be beautiful but so far it ain't demographic.

Trincket cosy*

What is cosy? It's most certainly fabulous textiles, furniture that envelops you, open fires and tactile surfaces. But does it have to be warm colours? Can't it be cool hues aswell? Can industrial style be cosy? I love the contrast between the two styles. Think giant high back velvet winged chairs and open fires next to concrete surfaces. The challenge is to mix both styles successfully [as I am finding]. Shoreditch House London is a shining example.

Vivienne Westwood squiggle wallpaper*

My pick of the day is the amazing graphic print wallpaper by Vivienne Westwood for Cole and Son. Blue and white 60's style.

Arts and Crafts house, Living Etc*

I came across a wonderful Arts and Crafts house in Living Etc today. The owner has chosen a dark, cocooning effect for their living room. It makes such a nice change from white, light, bright which everyone is doing, I mean everyone. There is something very mock-baronial about dark pannelled walls and a stuffed animal on the wall.