Memories & Family Traditions

Interior Designer Sister Parish once said...

"Even the simplest wicker basket can become priceless when it is loved and cared for through the generations of a family."

As well as being a fashionable accessory to carry to the beach, a basket can be very useful as decoration in a beach house as shown above & below.

Brisbane Artist Claire Stening's painting of a wicker basket.

This is such a simple yet beautiful tradition to begin. I know one day I will have a barrage of wicker baskets to love which my mother has collected over the years. Ever since I can remember, she has carted her goods and chattels, groceries and clothing to and from our family beach house in wicker baskets - big and small, much to my fathers annoyance. He always insisted that they were such a pain to pack in the car.

Always finding an excuse to use a basket my mother {during our childhood} was often seen traipsing down to the beach from the house with the three of us in tow, a beach umbrella under one arm and a wicker basket over the other arm filled with sunscreen, magazines, buckets and spades, towels, hats, drinks and enough spare change for when the ice cream man turned up.

The life-long obsession my mother has had with baskets has rubbed off on me. Gosh, I hope Harry will be prepared for all the wicker baskets he will inherit one day...

Image 1 - Elle Decor, Image 2 - Toast, Image 3 - Clair Stening

Happy Thoughts

In stark contrast to last week, I have had the most wonderful, exciting, inspiring, happy week. So, I think I will finish this week today and then I can come back here next week refreshed, ready and roaring to go again. Wishing you all lots of hapiness until next time!!

xx
Anna


Image 1 - Flickr
Image 2 - Vi.sualize.us

Historically Inaccurate

Beautiful fabric is obviously a passion of mine. Mostly I love patterned linens. I also love embroidered/crewel fabrics. So when I stumbled across Richard's work over at Historically Inaccurate I was beside myself...two of my favourite things joined together in one fabric...embroidery and patterned linen.

Richard embroiders his designs onto Toile fabrics in brightly coloured cottons. I absolutely adore his work which gives fresh appeal to a fabric with roots dating back to the mid 1700's.

This might just be the perfect choice for a small vintage chair I have at home which desperately needs recovering.

Black & Spiro Today

Some of our beautiful new things, which we bought on our recent trips to Sydney, have started arriving into the shop. One of my favourite pieces is the vintage French Gilt settee above, although we have already sold it to a lovely client in Singapore. The girls are having so much fun unpacking our new things...it's almost like Christmas in March!!

*NB. Click on image to enlarge.

Accidently Pink & Yellow

It was actually an accident that these three photos landed together despite the fact that they are all connected by way of colour. I was searching through my picture files on my laptop today and stumbled across them sitting there together in a row and I thought oh my goodness they all match! So, I had to share them with you considering pink and yellow is a favourite colour combination of mine!!

The first photo is a snapshot of the table setting at my 30th Birthday party. The second image is one I loved from My Notting Hill's blog. And finally, the third image is my brother with my son at a recent family gathering at my Aunty's house, both fast asleep on a cane chair on the verandah!!

I Love Bows

I have this thing for bows. I can't help it. I just love them. So you can imagine how excited I was last month when I saw the new release Designers Guild fabric & wallpaper collection ...there's a bow fabric {see image below} in the new collection which I am completely in love with. We have ordered it for our windows at Black & Spiro...I can hardly wait for its arrival!!

Image 1 & 2 - Flickr; Image 3 & 4 - Designers Guild

Skillful Sailor

I didn’t anticipate coming back here as soon as this however, I also didn’t realize what an important job I have here. I knew there were many people out there who visited ABT on a daily basis but I had no idea of the important part it played each day in my readers life and also in my own.

Sometimes in this crazy, stressful world we live in we can lose sight of where we are going…the clouds can move over and the rain can start to pour down. Sometimes we question ourselves, our ability and what we are doing. It’s times like these we need a break away to reassess, review, rethink and make ourselves aware of what we really love doing. I love posting here on my blog and I love being a part of this amazing community of design loving people. I also love my career and I also love my family and friends. I don’t want to give up on any of these things even when the going does get tough {like it did last week} as these are the things which make me happy. I read a great quote this week which said…."smooth seas do not make skillful sailors". I realize now that I need to find a balance between my family and friends, my career and my blog so that when the seas decide to swell again I will be better prepared to cope with the onslaught.

Chelsey Turner from Philadelphia, USA sent me an email this week which, after reading it, I felt compelled to return here. It was my turning point. Chelsey agreed to let me share some of her email with you…

“I found your blog one rainy day. My mother had said "do something beautiful this weekend," but it was pouring outside. So on a whim, I googled "beautiful things," and Absolutely Beautiful Things came up. How truly serendipitous.

Ever since, when the day gets too hectic at my office in Philadelphia, and I need something beautiful for an uplifting moment, I take a quick visit. I've forwarded your Rodney Smith photos to my company's graphic artists, I've forwarded your interior designs to my mother in Atlanta, I've forwarded your vintage photos to my roommates' work e-mail boxes to give them something gorgeous to get them through the day...time and time again.

So, please enjoy your "Time Out," and I hope your "reassessment" brings you much joy and a true path for your life and career. And know that at least one yank in Philadelphia will miss your blog, and is tremendously appreciative for all the little joys you gave her...because little joys is what life is all about.”

Thank you for your extremely kind comments, emails, phone calls, hand written notes and blog posts. To say I am overawed is an understatement.

Like me, you all crave inspiration. Like me, you all get a buzz from seeing new/exciting/beautiful things. And finally, like me you all very much enjoy being here at ABT. So, from here-on-in I plan to be here, maybe not every day but certainly as often as I feel like it. I hope I can continue to inspire you as you do me.

xx
Anna