Wall Art Wonder - Vintage Inspired Wallpaper Designs by Deborah Bowness

Every now and then you come across a designer or artist that revives the best of the bygone era with exact precision. The amazing Deborah Bowness is one such person reinventing images from the past and making them work for modern interiors through her stunning range of wallpaper.

I love that her product range gives everyone the opportunity to decorate with vintage collectables without actually having to hunt around, shift furniture and or find space in their homes - it's all about wall decoration.

Here are some of her offerings - I think you'll agree they are brilliant!

Website

Deborah Bowness

Book Shelf Wallpaper

Floral Wallpaper

Wallpaper - Lamps

Private Residence

It is all wallpaper!

Easy Upcycled DIY Vintage Trunk / Chest Coffee Table

A good family friend, in the process of downsizing, was getting rid of this vintage steamer trunk / chest and I was the lucky recipient. I adore the hardware on the trunk and set about turning it into a functional coffee table with added storage. 

Adding castors to the trunk was so simple, rather than just adding table legs to the chest, castors provide elevation, maneuverability and an industrial vibe which are all ticks in my book!.  

The image above is the simple how to guide to making your own DIY Trunk coffee table. I'm thinking a piece of glass for the top would also work nicely or perspex/ lucite... will add this soon.  

Shopping List

Vintage Chest or Steamer Trunk

4 x Castors (with or without locks)

16 Nuts, Bolts and Washers

Tools required - Drill

Craft Time - DIY Flying Ducks and Vintage Inspired Lattice Artwork

Sometimes you just want to roll up your sleeves and get creative without having to think dollars, well I do anyway. 

Influenced by the recycling of cardboard in home wares and art I thought I'd make some pretty vintage inspired flying duck wall decorations for my home.

This would also make a great accent in a child's room and gives a  bit of a vintage nordic vibe to your space.

All you need to do is find some scrap cardboard trace two larger duck silhouettes and one smaller, transfer the outline to your cardboard scrap, cut around and your done!.

You could easily jazz the whole thing up by using foam core and some vintage inspired paper and creating a patterned set of flying ducks... would look great in the kitchen and is renter friendly just use an adhesive that's removable without marking the walls.   

Felt Co - Stunning!

Cardboard Safari  - Cardboard Animal Trophy

 Basic Lattice Artwork

The lattice artwork was the second part of my budget friendly vintage crafting day!. I really needed something to fill the wall near my egg chair and wanted to incorporate some pattern, so I created this lattice effect artwork using bits and pieces I had lying around.

This is a great task for someone who wants to create their own art but can't draw... it's so easy!. You simply use thick tape (I used cloth tape) a canvas and paint. I didn't measure out my design hence its wonky and naive but next time I will... thinking of painting a matt with a chevron herringbone pattern.. something like this 



Amazing work by Aesthetic Outburst

Here is a similar technique used to paint an entrance hall by Jennifer - Fric Frac Shop and the tools of the trade needed to complete the work.

Jennifer via Design Sponge - LOVE the owl vase in the corner!

Honey Comb events have posted a great lattice how to here

The Art of Display - How To Group and Display Your Vintage Homewares Collection

Here are some great display ideas for your vintage collectables. As your collection grows and diversifies it can be difficult to display your favourite items around the home without looking like a hotchpotch mess, hopefully the following images will give you some great ideas to combat your vintage decorating dilemmas!  

Use a Glass Cloche to highlight and group collectables and above install floating shelves to house and highlight similar items - easy to install and look great anywhere. 

Arcadian Home

Colour blocked Vintage Milk Glass Collection. Group items of the same colour and display together on a shelf or table top. This collection by Lyn Garnder (Empire Vintage) is housed on very the top shelf in her kitchen, this is so often an unused storage/ display space, not any more!

S.HOP Talk

Apartment Therapy - Brilliant! 

Two in one, displaying vintage photo's and bottle collection all in one... a mantel is the BEST place for displaying collectables, but make sure it's balanced.

Talented Artist David Sequeira - Collection 2 Detail. Grouping items by colour tone following the rainbow spectrum. 

Creating interesting shelving to house collectables, these were made using wooden wine boxes, can double as a bookshelf and display unit - fantastic! 

Real Living Magazine

Eco Living

Creating a small vignette using side tables, elevating and highlighting items by placing on top of a stack of books works well. 

Heather Nette King - Real Living Magazine

Utilising the top shelf in the kitchen and grouping vintage items by colour.

Heather Nette King

See right Chinoiserie and other blue items grouped by colour and pattern

Happy Decorating!

Cupcakes - The centuries old worldwide obsession

Amy Atlas via

 

Amy Atlas

Martha Stewart

Cupcake Cookie - Rumbles Bakery

Yesterday my sister visited while I was babysitting my gorgeous nephew Lenny, with her she brought the cupcake cookie above. It got me thinking about our fascination with cupcakes and the number of fortunes won by resurrecting this simple little cake and marketing it to the masses.

In 1796 the notion of a cake baked in small cups was featured in a cookbook titled American Cookery, so it is clear to see that this humble little vintage treat is steeped in gastronomic history!. Originally baked in mugs, cups and ramekins hence the name, cupcakes are available on just about every street corner today.

 So its seems everyone loves a Cupcake and we have done so for centuries. I love Amy Atlas (featured above), her cupcakes and desserts are works of art!.

Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart

Vintage Footrest Stool DIY Craft Revamp - ideal bedroom or lounge accessory

I'd been looking for a long stool to sit at the end of my bed for a while and to my delight this beauty turned up at Coburg Trash and Treasure for $35 - bargain of the century!.

The cons were the badly stained wood and tapestry cover, though cute for a country chic look, I had envisaged something with a bit of punch so I set to work.

DIY Revamp Shopping List

Sand Paper

Small pot of paint

Staple Gun + Staples

Fabric for covering

1.Remove the cushion from the frame work and sand the wood. 

2.Paint in colour of your choice ( I used an undercoat first which protects from future chips and grazes). 

3. While the framework dries grab the cushion and measure the fabric to fit around with enough to staple at the base of the cushion.

4. Staple the fabric to the cushion base

5. When the paint is dry refit the cushion to the frame and you are done!

If you have kids then Oil Cloth is a great alternative as it wipes clean and comes in many fantastic colours and patterns.

I like to change the fabric every few months, I'm thinking this would look great next time

Waverley - Lovely Lattice in Lagoon

or this 

Florence Broadhurst Circles and Squares - Signature Prints

Gorgeous Oil Cloth Project

Vintage Apothecary Bottles - From the laboratory to the home

I love the Apothecary / Chemist bottle craze, the bottles above were a bargain Ebay find at $25 for the set of 5. Apothecary Jars come in all shapes and sizes and range in colour from Cobalt Blue to Amber and Clear.

I was an unlucky early bidder on the large English Chemist Jar below. It was so beautiful and sold for close to $1900, a large sum given the damage but what an amazing antique find for the home!.

Used for centuries Apothecary Jars stored potions and medicines... some of the larger varieties stored leeches once used to treat ailments known as bloodletting!.

The Bromley Collection - amazing 

 

The David Bromley Collection

DIY Apothecary Labels Courtesy Amy Moss

When in Paris...Laduree The Must Visit French Patisserie

When you think Paris, amongst many amazing thoughts, you have to think pastries and whether you are a dessert person or not, Laduree is a visual and gastronomic feast for the senses!. 

I was fortunate enough to visit the Madeline store in 2010. First opened in 1862 as a bakery, later transformed into a Patisserie, Laduree Madeline is said to be one of the first Patisserie/Cafes in Paris.

If not to sample the sweets, which are absolutely DELICIOUS, you have to visit for the interior, meticulously crafted pastries and the old world charm.... as I sat in the downstairs Tea Room you can imagine women in draped over skirts and bonnets and suited men smoking pipes.

One of my favourite scenes in Sex And The City is below, remember that scene? Yep, that was Laduree... but I think it may have been the Champs-Elysees store.

And those decadent sweets featured in Sophia Coppola's Marie Antoinette - Also Laduree, so beautiful!

Wedding Inspirasi

  

Vintage Style Baby Craft Gift Idea

When I was little my Aunties hand made a number of gorgeous keepsakes for myself and my siblings that remain in the family to date. When my friends started to have babies I thought why not bring the tradition back so the next generation of little ones can have some handmade treasures to pass down the family lines.

I made this Vintage Inspired Baby Bird Door Hang for a little boys room. 

The Shopping List

fabric remnants (wrapped around a small hoop), a small ring or hoop (as the bird perch), ribbons (ric rac and candy striped), little bird, stamp set and a hot glue gun.

Basic Directions

Start by painting the bird (if needed), then tightly fold the fabric around the hoop and hot glue to fasten in place, Loop the ribbon to the hoop and again fasten with hot glue, Hot Glue the bird to the perch and finish by stamping the letters to the ribbon or adding a bow or two as above.

A great DIY vintage inspired baby keepsake for years to come!

This 50's inspired Stencil artwork by Audiobirth would also make a stunning contribution to a nursery or child's room.