MY DOILY LOVE

I adore paper lace and have recently been delighted to see the humble doily transform a range of dining settings in innovative and affordable ways.  It’s enough to make me contemplate squeezing all my friends into my tiny apartment for New Years Day lunch (almost).

Image One & Two MarthaStewart.com

Image Three Rebecca Newport
Image Four Real Living Magazine (as scanned by me) 

THE WRAP UP

This Christmas brought many new treasures to my apartment including these thoughtful gifts from my partner and family.

Bone China Owl from a selection at Douglas & Hope

Bone China Dog by Have You Met Miss Jones

AcApulco Scented Candle by Sohum

Spaces by Frankie Magazine

Coco Chanel, The Legend and the Life by Justine Picardie

My boyfriend was the lucky recipient of this 1920s tin globe from Chad & Alley, which I sourced from eBay (Australia is looking a little pointier than it does these days), and a beautiful vintage map print.

Vintage Map Print from a selection at Zetta Florence

APARTMENT THERAPY

I had a beautiful Christmas and look forward to sharing my photos in the coming days.  Over the past week I have been eagerly following the Apartment Therapy blog as they review the most thought provoking interiors of 2010.  I was particularly inspired by their feature on anchoring frames to a bookshelf.  Being in procession of a tiny apartment and a rather large bookshelf this is certainly a space conscious idea to consider in the new year.

See more examples of this trend at Apartment Therapy

WELL HELLO DOILY

With the shopping finished (and not a second too soon) I've finally turned my attention to the Christmas wrap up.  This year I drew inspiration from natural fibers; brown paper, paper doilies and twine.  I also got my hands dirty personalizing gift tags with an alphabet stamp set found at a local discount store.  As a point of difference, I had fun wrapping a number of gifts in red rimmed Ikea tea towels.  This re-usable wrap is a practical and environmentally conscious alternative to traditional paper and will (hopefully) find a home in the recipient’s kitchen post Christmas day.  

My lovely boyfriend also makes an effort when wrapping my Christmas presents (as pictured in the final two images).  You have to admire his skill with a sharpie!

KRAKVIK & DORAZIO

The juxtaposition of diverse elements characterizes the aesthetic of Norwegian interior design duo Jannicke Krakvik and Alessandro D`Orazio.  The pair’s festive editorials are among their most celebrated and demonstrate their passion for contrasting traditional and contemporary pieces. 

Images taken from Krakvik & Dorazio's full portfolio 

LILLA BLANKA

Mia, of Swedish blog Lilla Blanka, has an enviable backdrop for her festive bunting.  This Christmas she has decorated her charming 100-year-old wooden cottage in the minimalist vintage style that typifies her look.  Below are my favorite offerings.
 .  

LIVET HEMMA

Anyone who has ever visited my apartment will instantly appreciate the extent my affection for Ikea.  The Ikea blog, Livet Hemma (Life At Home), recently featured a number of unconventional and inspired tree ideas for those short on space this festive season.  

See more at Livet Hemma 

SPRUCING UP THE PLACE

With the festive season underway my thoughts soon turned to the annual Christmas tree.  I recently relocated to a petite one bedroom apartment and lack of space now precludes the cut trees I always enjoyed in the past.  A plastic pine seemed an uninspired option and my boyfriend baulked at sticks in the vase.  Thankfully our local florist provided a beautiful and aromatic alternative in the form of cut spruce sprigs.  

Spruce sprigs Flowers Vasette

Ceramic owls The Works, Bed Bath N' Table (03) 9810 6600