One Hundred Days - no. 77

I'm so lazy today I can't even be bothered to clean this one up.

Elspeth Thompson

I made a quick search yesterday for more railway carriage houses and came across the beautiful home crafted by writer, gardener and all-round amazing lady, Elspeth Thompson. It was created on the Sussex coast from two dilapidated Victorian railway carriages and her ambition was to turn it into an eco-home, complete with a sedum roof, greywater recycling and solar panels. It truly has been a labour of love, and is more beautiful for its green credentials.

Sadly, however, I discovered on her blog that she passed away less than two weeks ago, having suffered from severe depression which resulted in her taking her own life. I really don't know how to express what this made me think - that life isn't about having the most amazing home, or an apparently enviable lifestyle. Thompson wrote beautifully and lived her life with such honesty and joy, and goodness - it makes me quite sad to think how it must have been blighted in the end by her illness, despite outer appearances. It makes me grateful for my own health and what I have, which is a wonderful husband and a beautiful home, exciting possibilities on my horizon and a lifetime ahead of me, I hope. I would love to conduct my life with as much grace as she did.

Read her obituary in The Telegraph here.

One Hundred Days - no. 76

I'm sorry, I have nothing to say for myself today. I am already tiring of estate agents. Can't someone do it all for me, please?

One Hundred Days - no. 75

Gosh, suddenly I'm on 75!

I'm so listless today. I feel like we have a million things on our to-do list but have done none of them so far. I also sound like I'm talking about myself in plural, but I mean the husband and me :-)

upholstery

I would love to be able to upholster my own chairs, I see so many at fairs and auctions that would be magnificent if only I knew how to fix them up. I have so far managed a piano stool - not difficult :-). I think I could do a few other things too, but when it comes to chairs like these from The French House (do take a look around their site for some lovely farmhouse tables and some nice industrial chairs), I wouldn't have a clue. I am sure they would turn out all saggy and wrinkled and then fall apart after the husband had been at them (he has a particularly damaging way of sitting, I think!). I rather like them in this skeletal, raw state, but how lovely would they be, covered with a nice stripe or a plain linen? I like simple fabrics from shops like Tinsmiths and Ian Mankin, and have a weakness for ordering free samples just so I can coo over them.



Anyone else fancy going on an upholstery course like The Traditional Upholstery Workshop in Wales? I think it sounds like the perfect way to spend a week.

One Hundred Days - no. 73, 74

Two for the weekend. I was busy cleaning and painting the outside of the house with the husband, making more soup, eating curry. It was hard work :-)

Railway carriages

I would love to have an outbuilding in my garden to use as a studio and hideaway. I would make it my own space, paint it pretty colours, furnish it with things I love. Right now I work in our spare room, which gets precious little light even on a bright day and is usually also occupied by a rack of drying laundry, piles of paperwork (I'm in the process of selling my London flat and I had NO IDEA how many questions I'd have to answer for the solicitors!), and plenty of electronic ware, all at risk from damage if I were to tip over my painting water. It is a chaotic dump. If I had an amazing space where I could have two desks and somewhere nice to lounge for frequent tea-drinking maybe I would keep it much better. Or maybe not. I'm an incurably messy girl and I hate to admit it.


I have seen a fair few old railway carriages in interiors magazines mostly used, like this one, as an outbuilding or summerhouse. They are always utterly beautiful, surprisingly spacious and ooze a very special vintage railway charm. This would do very nicely as a work space, but could inspire any interior with its loving preservation of detail and simple decor. From Light Locations.

One Hundred Days - no. 72

More from the football.

I'm so sad

I am at a loss. I am bored to tears with work right now (animating tiny figures warming up for a game of cricket is soul destroying). But at the same time I appear to have vacated all interesting thoughts from my head. Perhaps I shouted a bit too hard last night and my brain fell out or something. Anyhoo, with nothing particular to tell you, I thought I'd have a play on Polyvore and collate a few bits of clothing you might wear on the hallowed terraces of White Hart Lane if, unlike me, you don't want to look like a fledgling thug in your Spurs scarf and shirt, wax jacket and lace-up black boots. OK, maybe a skirt is a bit soft for football - after all, I think you should go dressed like you want to karate kick someone in the chest. Your choice!

I had to, however, include an obligatory piece of chav bling (the SINGLE earring - I mean, really? Is that for a man to wear?), just to lower the tone to the right level. After all, part of the experience is eating dodgy fish and chips whilst watching the ticket touts and apprentice hooligans pass by. It wouldn't do to be too well turned-out. And of course the whole thing needs a pop of canary yellow to reinforce the message. My god, I'm sad (and bored).


I even gave it the title Come on you Spurs just to make things worse.

Items in this set (as usual with no regard for whether or not one can buy them): Stripe Jersey Dress by Rare**, $90, Handbe-T Navy Vest, 40 GBP, Gemma button-down cotton skirt, $170, Striped cotton skirt, $165, Shoes - Forever21.com, $20.

Now I'm going to bury my head in the garden for shame.

One Hundred Days - no. 71

(click image for larger version) Some of the characters at the football last night, including the husband (I declined to draw myself in my wax jacket and thug boots... we looked like a pair of yokels come to town to pick a fight). COME ON YOU SPURS!!!!!! (sorry, I can't help myself)

vintage school posters

I'm a sucker for scientific collectables, from old microscopes, prosthetic eyeballs and medical equipment to opticians' charts and educational posters. I don't own much stuff like this because of my innate miserliness but I still like to look.

I was browsing Present & Correct this morning and spotted a few good things, including these posters. I especially like old charts that you imagine might once have adorned school science labs and classrooms, teaching the children, as they daydreamed and stared at the walls, about the life cycle of a frog, or what their urinary system looks like or how to use correct grammar. Speaking of grammar, I'm not too sure about Peter's Eggs there (£30, above) - I would always say 'fewer' eggs myself or am I wrong? Were they lying to me in English lessons at school? Whatever the case, it bothers me :-). But there is a good selection of these kind of posters at P&C, as well as lots of other papery goodness.



Fruit chart, £75.


1950s eye chart, £100.

If your budget doesn't stretch as far as that you can get some pretty good ones on eBay sometimes, or try your luck haggling at antiques fairs. If you happen to be in Paris, I have seen some good stalls in the flea market, Les Puces de Saint-Ouen. Here are two I found on eBay just now:




Right, I'd better get on with some work!

One Hundred Days - no. 70

A quick one from yesterday. I am busy animating people throwing balls today... then I'm off to the football again. Since we will be moving north before September, I am cramming in as much White Hart Lane action as I can (sob!) while we live relatively close by. Pity me and my sad, boyish ways.

One Hundred Days - no. 69

Reverse graffiti

Ever heard of reverse graffiti? I hadn't until I came across it yesterday on the Salvoweb blog and followed a link to this example in South Africa (above), inspired by other projects around the world, including this one in California (image below). I think it is a really beautiful way of making street art - I like it better than regular graffiti, which doesn't appeal to me a lot of the time. It just seems more organic and natural.


In the UK you can even commission your own, perfectly legal, reverse graffiti as advertising or whatever - from these people :-)