Hey guys, Nadine here with a guest blog post from my mummy! Craftiness runs in my family, so when my mum showed me pictures of her recent livingroom makeover, I thought it would be fun if I could share here. So today I'll move over and let my mum takeover with her makeover!!
Mad(eleine) About Fabrics
After living with ‘drab’ plain navy curtains for over 10 years I decided in my wisdom that it was about time for a change! Which colour, plain or with a design, readymade or make my own? Decisions, decisions! I had a good look on the internet and shopped locally in Belfast, Northern Ireland which resulted in a few options. I couldn’t find anything that I really liked in any readymade ranges, so thought I’d have a go at sewing my own curtains and if I hadn’t gone mad in the process, possibly run up some cushions to compliment them.
I found a fantastic shop with a nice easy to navigate web site called Mad About Fabrics http://www.madaboutfabrics.com/ which was just on the outskirts of Belfast in the Duncrue Industrial Estate. Brilliant!! On visiting the shop I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much choice of fabric in one place and excellent customer service too. They had various Orla Kiely fabrics by the metre, which was nearly the fabric of choice!
Isla Fabric by Porter and Stone
In the end, I decided on ‘Isla’ fabric in the colour Pewter from Porter and Stone http://www.porterandstone.co.uk/isla-collection (£22.95 a metre). Although described as classic Chenille Jacquard, it is by no means what I would have thought of as ‘old fashioned’ chenille, as it has a slightly distressed texture and is a nice weight for curtains so I thought this would make up well for a warm and cosy feeling in my living room.
Minty The Sewing Machine
When the assistant carried the large roll of fabric out to my car I was slightly concerned that I’d taken on more than I could chew and worried that the material was too thick to go through the sewing machine and could turn into a nightmare!
Out came ‘Minty’ my trusty sewing machine from John Lewis (a gift from my daughter Nadine), which is currently on sale for £99 (20% off). I needn’t have worried about any problems as this was a dream to sew and the pattern turned out great to use as a guide.
Out came ‘Minty’ my trusty sewing machine from John Lewis (a gift from my daughter Nadine), which is currently on sale for £99 (20% off). I needn’t have worried about any problems as this was a dream to sew and the pattern turned out great to use as a guide.
Plumping for some Cushions
I had ordered up an extra metre in case I felt a cushion coming on! So, I made some cushions in a very easy pillow case type design with pompom edging purchased via EBay, how-to guide easily found on YouTube.
I also purchased via EBay some material with a fox design: Fryetts “Foxy Fox” in Teal to add a different element into the room and 2 plain cushions from TK Max, which I have always found to have good quality cushions and feather pads at a reasonable price. Result – one awfully fancy living room and one very pleased seamstress!
Dulux Slate Grey Paint
To complete the room I have finished it off with a new coat of paint. I used Dulux paint in Slate Grey, on two walls which was mixed by Dulux in Homebase to provide some extra protection against marks but still providing a nice matt finish. I used Crown paint from their Period colours range in Palladian on the other two walls.
Guest blog post by Madeleine Scott - Nadine's mummy!
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