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Christmas Style #5

25 Sunday Dec 2016

Posted by lotales in Show & Tell

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Chic Christmas, Christmas Decor, Christmas Style, Christmas Tree, Festive style, home decor

Hello again, welcome back!

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So for my second and final inspirational Christmas Style post I’m sharing with you super stylish gorgeous mummy friend Chloe (aka the magpie mother) and her babe of a daughter Miss Iris

 

 

 

img_1790My Festive Style- I would describe it as simple and chic with a lot of different metallics and a mix of modern and vintage inspired decorations. I think I have discovered the perfect style for our home and tastes which is a reflection of our families’ overall style. It feels more grown up and edited with some fun quirkiness still thrown in for good measure. This is mine and the hubbys 10th Christmas together and our 9th Christmas tree. We have gone through the over excited buying of decorations in the first few years to now finding a style that we love and a collection that I am excited to add to each year.

Fave decoration and why?

This is hard as I am such a magpie and I love many of our decorations for various reasons.

Am going to cheat and share a few of my faves. This silver martini glass, the Swarovski Crystal bauble, and the Posh Poddle – img_1778 img_1777Chicness, Sparkle and Quirk.

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Did you DIY?

Not so much this year. Christmas has caught us by surprise a little bit this year. It has snuck up on us. I do have these fab pussy willow branches that I brought last year and my mum told me not to put them in water so they last and a year on they still make a fab, simple-yet effective display.

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Who does the decoration?
It is a joint effort. Mr K is sent up the loft and does the heavy lifting. He normally does the lights then I go round after him and tweak them. I do most of the decorating and he does the lights outside. Iris has her own little tree in her bedroom so the girls decorate that together which they absolutely love to do.

 

 

 

 

 

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On a scale of 1-10 How much do you love Christmas?
Oh we are way over the scale. We are completely in love with all the magic of the season and since having children this has just exploded. Iris is a true believer and the way her face lights up when we talk about Father Christmas, I cannot wait to see her on Christmas morning. We have brought her a wooden playhouse in the garden that Mr K has been styling up. We have a ribbon with a key that starts in her room and trails through the house into the garden until they find the house. Eeeekkk cannot wait!!

 

 

Anything else you would like to share-

Miss Iris saw me taking photos of our tree and decorations and I told her what I was up to she wanted me to ask about her tree so here she goes…

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Describe your tree- it is pink and has a snowiness to it. The lights are pink which are very cool and I get to choose a decoration every year with Mummy. We just brought this doughnut and ice-cream one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My favourite decoration is my Elsa one and mummy likes this reindeer one. Matilda takes them off though and we have to put them back on.

img_1783 img_1784So there you go… I hope you’ve enjoyed this little series I know I have so I’d love to do it again next year (maybe a bit earlier next year too! haha)

Wishing you all a wonderful day and a HUGE thanks to all my gorgeous girls who shared their stunning festive styles with me! You’re all fab!

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Christmas Style #4

25 Sunday Dec 2016

Posted by lotales in Show & Tell

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Christ, Christmas Style, Christmas Tree, Festive Decor, home decor, Traditional Christmas, unique style

Happy Christmas!!!!! I hope you’re all having a magical day surrounded by those you love most. I’ve been all organised and lined my posts up for today so fret not, I am chilling out with my loved ones not stuck at a computer!

I thought it would fun to spoil you (it is Christmas after all) and give you a double whammy of Christmas Style posts today!

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First up is my gorgeous friend Miss Kelly Hayden, super cool london gal pal and all round beauty. (plus her fab fiancé Charlie too of course!

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 theme: The Nightmare Before “Fan-tacky” Christmas.

 
Describe your festive style: A mish-mash of traditional red and gold pieces, thrown together with some Christmas holiday souvenirs we’ve collected on our travels.

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Favourite decoration and why: Tough question…But I think it has to be our Jack Skellington bauble. We picked it up while on holiday in Florida, along with Jack and Sally which sit on top of our tree every year, like little angels! However, we’ve recently come back from New Orleans where we picked up a beautiful Christmas “Merman” looking buff holding a daiquiri. Yes…a MERMAN with a DAIQUIRI!

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When does your tree go up? Early as possible. Ideally the 1st December!

Every year we get a real tree & we love the smell of a real tree throughout the month!

We loving celebrating Christmas…so any excuse to get the decorations up early.

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Do you DIY anything? We made our personalised Christmas Stockings a couple of years ago, and next year I’m determined to breakout the cross stitch and create something festive for the house.

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Who does the decorating in your house? Realistically, I’m a “Christmas control freak” when it comes to decorations. Charlie will “hold” and I will “place”.

I think I have Obsessive Bauble Placement Disorder.

 
On a scale of 1-10 how much do you love Christmas? Certainly a 10…We love the run up to it and and the excuses you can use, just “because it’s Christmas!!”

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Anything else you wanna share? I don’t think I’m on my own when I say I love the “smell” of Christmas. I stock up on lots of Christmas Candles (spiced apple & cinnamon are my faves!) and buy in lots of Christmas flowers, plants and foliage. Along with a traditional Poinsettia, this year I’ve gone for eucalyptus and red berry stems, which smell amazing!!

img_1747Gorgeous huh?? I’ll give you an hour to go off and enjoy another mince pie then I’ll be back with my last Christmas Style post! Ho Ho Ho xx

 

Christmas Style #3

24 Saturday Dec 2016

Posted by lotales in Show & Tell

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Christmas, Christmas Decor, Christmas Style, designer, Festive Decor, home decor, home style, kroma, tropical christmas, Uk Designer, uk style, unique style

Another day and Christmas is very nearly here…. Today you’re in for a real visual treat….

You may remember back in September I had the honour of dressing the reception of Mr & Mrs Reid, well if their wedding was anything to go by, I just knew their festive style would be equally amazing, and I was not wrong.

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As soon as I spotted the first festive Instagram post from Kate she was on my list of people to contact, and I’m so glad she did, so here goes, let me introduce the beautiful Mrs Reid and her equally beautiful Christmas Style.

 

 

 

Describe your festive style:

This year it seems to be a modern tropical twist on traditional festive decor with lots of green and gold with hints of pink.

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Favourite decoration and why?

I think my favourite decoration is probably the pink and gold pineapple I got this year as a gift from one of my besties Tassie, it’s just so cute.

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When does your tree go up?

1ST December if possible!

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Do you DIY anything?

There are a few spray painted baubles that we did ourselves last Christmas.

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Who does the decorating in your house?

We decorate the tree together then I tend to gradually add other bits and bobs throughout the month!

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On a scale of 1-10 how much do you love Christmas?

10! I have always been lucky enough to spend Christmas with family and friends so it’s a happy time with happy memories.

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Stunning huh??? Huge thanks to Kate for the pics and I’ve got 2 more posts lined up for you which I’ll share over the next couple of days. ekkk!!

Christmas Style #2

23 Friday Dec 2016

Posted by lotales in Show & Tell

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50's, Christmas, Christmas Decor, Christmas Style, diy christmas, Festive style, home decor, kitsch, retro, style blog, vintage christmas

For today’s Christmas style post I’d like to introduce my beautiful friend Mrs Anna Zizzou…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 Theme:

I think you could sum up our festive home decor as ’50s kitschmas!’

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Describe your festive style?

A white vintage tree with original 50s pastel and bright baubles mixed with a few modern kitsch ones. Most of the old ones have come from charity shops and car-boot sales. (*Buying out of season is a great tip for getting vintage ones super cheap)
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Favourite decoration & why?

Every year I fall back in love with with my decorations and unwrapping each one fills me with so much happiness.
I love all of my baubles especially all together (even off the tree) so would be hard pushed to pick a favourite although I really love the collection of colourful 50s snowy trees that belonged to my grandparents! I love to think how many trees most of the baubles have adorned before and how many presents they’ve seen unwrapped.

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When does your tree go up?

The past few years our tree has gone up on the 1st of the December. My brothers birthday is on December 17th so growing up we always put our tree up after that so his birthday still felt like his birthday rather than Christmas.

Instead we used to drive around in the evenings looking at other peoples trees and decorations to feel festive and I always knew that as an adult I would want to put my tree up in the beginning of December for others to come and marvel at.

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Do you DIY anything?

This year I made some bauble wreaths for the first time using a mixture of old and modern baubles bought from our local charity shop.

I really enjoyed making them and working out the perfect composition. They aren’t everyone’s cup of tea but I love them!

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Anything else you want to share?

My most treasured and delicate baubles always live at the top of the tree, where as the stronger or newer kitsch ones hang lower down to try and survive another year in the hands (paws) of the cats.

I also had to share Anna’s amazing wrapping paper skills this year… would you just look at them?!? She got black paper and drew on decorations in pink, green and white! They looked just stunning under her retro white tree!

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So there you go, another day, another stunning festive style! I don’t know about you but I am loving this series and wish I’d started it early… I think I’ll definitely be doing a follow up series next year!!! I’m just about to draft tomorrow’s post which will be a tropical explosion…. I can’t wait!

Christmas Style #1

22 Thursday Dec 2016

Posted by lotales in Show & Tell

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Tags

Christmas, Christmas Decor, Christmas Style, decorations, Festive style, home decor, Noel, style

Anyone who knows me knows I’ve got a bit of a thing about Christmas… Putting up the tree, dressing the house, unwrapping all the decorations… I love the traditions you make and the way it makes you feel. Corny yes, but who the hell cares…

I had planned to do this series throughout December but got a bit delayed but I thought better late then never, and who knows, maybe I’ll continue the tradition next year when things are a bit calmer and I’m a bit more prepared!

The idea is simple, I’d share with you all not only my Christmas style but the variety of festive styles adopted by my very stylish friends… from Kitsch to tropical I think I’m covering all grounds.

I asked my girls to share a few pics and answer a few questions and it only seems fair that I get the ball rolling…

So here goes:

2016 Theme:

This year I’d describe our theme as beautiful & classic. We’ve got a very limited and warm colour range including mustards, metallics and whites with wood, glass and brass. I think it’s my favourite ever!!!!

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Describe your festive style?

I like to think over the years my festive style has evolved and changed as I have. I believe it’s now quite refined and a true reflection of what I love most. I’d say I’m quite classic with our festive decor but I include a mix of vintage and modern items which sit harmoniously together. I don’t have a lot of colour but it’s very warm and inviting… crisp white clean lines alongside warming brass and mustard pieces.

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Favourite decoration & why?

Oh now that’s a tricky one as I have so many. I brought some gorgeous new baubles this year including a huge etched rose gold one which I adore. There’s also our hand blown Mickey Mouse bauble which we brought last year at The Magic Kingdom when we got engaged so that’s pretty special and as I lost my granddad a few weeks ago I also brought a granddad star for him so sentimentally that’s really special now.

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When does your tree go up?

1st of December if possible, then I can spend the rest of the month fussing and tweaking things! haha

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Do you DIY anything?

Yes, there are quite a few little DIY things around the house… my newest and most favourite addition is my cream and gold woollen tassels for the tree!

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Who does the decorating in your house?

The boy helps with the tree and the lights and maybe the first few decorations then is happy to sit back and let me get on with it (which suits me fine – haha)

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On a scale of 1-10 how much do you love Christmas? 

Oh a definite 10… I’ve always loved christmas and then my boy went and proposed last year on christmas day so made it even more special!

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Anything else you want to share?

Being away last year, as lovely as it was, has made being home this year even more special. I’ve gone all out this year and as well as the tree I’ve also decorated other areas of the house more then I ever have before, the fireplaces in the lounge and bedroom, the sideboards and the hallway… It’s like a festive wonderland in our home and I know it’ll feel so bare come January!

Plus who else adores wrapping presents??????

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So there you have it…. that’s me. Next up I’ll share my beautiful friend Anna Zizzou’s…. get ready for a 50’s kitsch explosion!

A simple crafted gift

15 Sunday Nov 2015

Posted by lotales in Craft, Make

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chirstmas gift, craft, craft gift, diy crafter, hand made gift, hand made present, home decor, paper craft, uk craft, wall art

So… I made this a year or so ago when funds were low but Christmas was approaching… In the run up to Christmas I thought it would be fun to share with you in case you are feeling crafty and want to make some handmade presents this year.

Now this isn’t my idea, I saw something similar on Pinterest and thought it looked really cute… so here goes!

You’ll need:

*Lots of sheets of coloured paper/thin card between square if possible (about 15-20cm sq ish…. no precise measurements here)

*A hot glue gun (and lots of glue sticks)

*reels of Double sided tape

*A square blank canvas

*sellotape

20150916-100918.jpgTo start with you wanna make a load of cones by rolling up your paper/card. You can secure at the small end with sellotape as you wont see them. Once you have a big old pile you can start stage 2!

20150916-100933.jpgYou wanna arrange your cones in a big circle on the canvas (again, just do it by eye, I don’t think you have to be super precise!) once you’re happy with the size start gluing them down!

20150916-100945.jpgOnce the first layer is in place you can then add the second and put these in the gaps between the first layer of cones…. secure with the hot glue gun as you go!

20150916-101000.jpgKeep repeating the process as the circle closes in and you start getting a real flower shape! When you approach the middle you’ll need to make smaller cones to fit (just start with a smaller square of paper/card) When I go the real inner middle part, I didn’t follow a pattern, I just kind on squished them in where there was space!

20150916-101028.jpgAnd there you have it! A really simple, effective and fun gift to give someone. I chose teal as it was a colour used in their lounge so i knew it would tie in!

20150916-101053.jpgSo I hope you enjoyed that little tutorial! super simple but looks fab! Happy Crafting!

Lotales

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Ami Lowman is a maker, blogger & owner of the creative brand Mia Mai who lives with her fiancé in the seaside town of Southsea, Uk.

Ami is currently planning the wedding of their dreams, loves all things vintage, takes too many photos and has a thing for the old, weird and forgotten.

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