My Water Feature - Exterior Decorating

When we renovated our house about 18 months ago, we had a water feature built in the area leading off our dining room. It took forever to get the water feature properly waterproofed and working, but when it was all up and running, so to speak, it was time to decorate the area.

After

Before

I had begun collecting bits and pieces to place in the area long before the water feature was actually working.

I found this plant stand at a junk shop

I thought this old burglar bar would come in handy as a trellis

I still need to add some more pots to the stand. I planted ivy in pots on either side of the plant stand which will eventually climb up the burglar bar trellising

I accumulated these various wire hearts and hanging candle holders

This lantern needed....

...some painting

I hung the wire goodies from the tree and stood the lantern on a table in the corner

The pots shown here were filled with plants and placed....

...on either side of the water feature here

This fake wood look cement paver was painted and used as a table top on a wrought iron base

This rusted chair was jazzed up a little bit (not too much)

They were both used to create this little vignette.  The tea cup has a tea light in it. It creates such a pretty glow.

This was another junk shop find

I added some glass tea light holders

I love the little fleur de lis at the top. Some ivy has been planted at the base of this.

So take a look to the right....

And a look to the left...

Now I have to wait for the plants to grow to give it that lush look that I'm after. I've learnt that exterior decorating requires a lot more patience (which I don't have) than interior decorating. But when we are sitting at our dining room table in the evenings with the French doors open, the combination of the trickling water out of the copper pipes, the shimmer of light from inside the water and the flickering candle light is so calming that I feel I ought  to be patient for the fledging plants.


Till next time



Sharon x

I am linking up to Savvy Southern Style W.U.W.

Retail Therapy

One of my favourite shops in Cape Town is called Block and Chisel. They have a showroom quite close to where I live and, every so often, when I have time to kill between fetching and carrying children, I pop in for a good dose of inspiration. Their styling is always so beautiful. They arrange their furniture into different room settings and I can easily switch into dream mode and imagine myself living there. I'm sure when you see the pictures below, you will understand why I love to linger there!

Pictures via here



I hope all the mothers out there had a wonderful Mother's Day!


Till next time


Sharon x

My Patio and other things

Since summer is on its way out here in South Africa, I though I'd show you some pictures of my patio (or "stoep" as we call it in South Africa) before the sun disappears and the cushions get packed away.

I love these Adirondack  chairs. They are so comfortable. I think they might have been one of America's best inventions! (Maybe a close second to sending men to the moon!)

So that is my patio. For now.  By next summer, it might have been changed or at least rearranged. I do that a lot!

ooOoo

I went to Decorex on the weekend which is a showcase for interior designers and manufacturers of various products for the home. I sadly didn't take my camera, but took a few pictures with my phone. The quality isn't great so please bear with me.

The stand that caught my eye was of a little girl's room (maybe because I don't have any of these in my house). The whole focus was recycling and upcycling and the effect was just so appealing.



This wire locker has been repurposed into a wardrobe and the containers on top painted in a pretty green for storing bits and bobs.



This chair has been made from a vintage vanity case and the ottoman from a zinc tub. Aren't they too sweet?

This old bookcase was filled with pretty, pastel coloured things. Did you notice that tea cup candelabra?

The curtain rail was made from a branch - so clever.

Do you remember those awful flying ducks from the past. Here they have been given a new lease on life painted in pretty colours.

                                                      ooOoo

And finally, whilst browsing the web for something, I stumbled across this little footstool. Isn't it just adorable? You can buy it online here. (It's based in South Africa but they might ship internationally)

Till next time


Sharon x