How To’s

Cushions! We all love them. They are the finishing touch to a room. Adding not only comfort but texture. They somehow bring a scheme together. And make a room feel finished. But what if, like me, you don’t have an endless budget to achieve the look that’s in your head? It’s much cheaper to make your own. Fabric can be bought very cheaply on the internet. And you can often pick up an off cut of designer fabric on Ebay large enough to make a cushion for a fraction of the cost from the manufacturer. So today I’m showing you how to make an easy peasy envelope (no zip required) cushion. I mean these are so easy my dog Buster could make one. Well if he had thumbs that is!! Continue Reading…

POST CONTAINS GIFTED ITEMS. Now you all know by now that I firstly love making stuff for my home. And secondly am always on a budget and so when Christmas comes around I have to think outside of the box when it comes to my decorations. I love all the fireplace garlands I see on Instagram but they are normally way out of my budget. I mean people seem to spend hundreds of pounds on them whether real or faux. So I’m going to share with you how I create my DIY Christmas fireplace garland (actually I made 2) dress my staircase and create a display for the kitchen all for less than £30.00! Continue Reading…

No, not that kind of pro! I’ve had a few interesting jobs in my time but that was not one of them! In fact one of my favourite jobs was seasonal. Living quite close to Torquay, known affectionately as the ‘Turkey and Tinsel’ town I used to dress hotels professionally for Christmas. So for 2-3 weeks in November we would decorate trees, bedeck the halls and generally faff to our hearts content. And get paid for it!! I think now, in reflection that’s why I love decorating my home for the festive season. So I thought I’d share with you how I dress my Christmas tree for maximum effect with a few hints and tips on how to make your tree look its best. I’m lucky enough to be working with Balsam Hill this Christmas too. They have kindly gifted me a tree along with some baubles so I can share with you how to dress an artificial Christmas Tree like a pro! Continue Reading…

Long, long ago, many moons before sheepskins ever became popular again as rugs I had to learn how to clean them. Owning a horse comes with the benefits (or not) of keeping your kit clean. One of these items that not only cost a small fortune but are much needed are sheepskin numnahs. Sitting underneath the saddle their benefits are twofold. Firstly they make wearing a saddle more comfortable for the horse. And secondly they keep the underneath of the saddle clean. Now sheepskin numnahs are not cheap, they are an investment and as such you need to know how to take care of them. Here’s my ultimate guide on how to clean a sheepskin rug, the secret way that only horse owners know. Continue Reading…