free tickets, a blog birthday and that day

Hello thrill seekers! The blog had a birthday yesterday. We celebrated (the blog and I) with a cheeky little sauvignon blanc, being ignored by the vampire slayer (naturally) but nonetheless quietly basking in the knowledge that the past two years have been so much fun; it’s Valentine’s Day today....(not that it means a lot around here) and I have free tickets. There was another significant thing that happened yesterday too but I’ll tell you about that next week J

Now, on to the real point of this post. Do you like Better Homes and Gardens? Me too!

Did you know that the BH&G Live Show is on in Melbourne between 24-26 February? No? You do now.

Would you like to go? 

Or if you don’t live in Melbourne do you know someone who does and would like to go instead of you? On your behalf? A very cheap but terrific birthday present for someone? Get in early for Christmas? A Valentine gift to yourself? Yes? Excellent.

I've been given twenty tickets. Yes, twenty...that's generous isn't it. Just let me know in the comments if you'd like a couple and make sure I can contact you by email and I’ll send you the secret ‘getting in’ code and full instructions to get those tickets in your/their hot little hands.

I’m a bit partial to Fast Ed...his work I mean. How about you...do you have a Better Homes and Gardens  favourite? 

all images better homes and gardens

 

a peek inside a much appreciated giveaway win...

Those who know me well know that a book is one of the best things you can give me...so I was really chuffed when last week I was lucky enough to win this one...

from the fabulous Posie (aka Jennie) at Posie's Patchwork.  That woman is a marvel...she exhausts me just reading about the things she manages! Go and say hi if you don't already know her.

So for those who weren't as lucky as I was...I thought I'd share some of the pages...

Given that this book showcases nine Swedish homes I expected it all to be very white on white...and there was definitely that...

but also masses of colour...

which suits me down to the ground (although I do love looking at those all white heavenly spaces)

This is such a fun book...witty, pretty and wise :)

I'm going to have lovely dreams of this balcony...

Thank you Jennie...you rock.

And because I haven't posted one for a while, here's the slayer doing what she does best...being on perpetual holiday...and looking decidedly unglamorous (just the way I like it!!)

all images by a tranquil townhouse from the book Beloved Homes published by Ikea Family (except for the slayer of course...no way she's making it into a book!)

we have a winner...and I have white walls

Wow, the painters finished a day early and I spent most of last night putting things back in their place...or changing it up just a little bit. These white walls take a bit of getting used to but I am thrilled! Once I get the the big square hole in the carpet repaired where the fireplace was pulled out I'll be one happy little vegemite! I promise to show you some pictures next week once the chandeliers go up (that's today) and I'm satisfied that I can take some decent photos.  But enough about me...what about you?

Thank you to everyone who entered my little giveaway. 

I'm very pleased to announce that the winner is Ange from Chair Up...

a Kiwi girl living on the Gold Coast...and an awesomely good upholsterer. Now there's a combination for you.  Fling me an email Ange, and let me know your address and I'll pop your things in the post just as soon as the chandeliers are up! For those of you disappointed not to win a knitted dishcloth, I'll be making some more over the holidays...which start at the end of today...yippee :)

last chance to enter the giveaway...and a potential Christmas wreath

Hi everyone. I'll be finding a winner for the totally tranquil bag of gifts later tonight so if you haven't entered, please do...there's vicious competition for those dishcloths :)

My energy is completely sapped at the moment...perhaps it's the smell of paint fumes from the emerging 'almost all white' living room! Only two days to go before I can move my things back in...this is the study at the moment...hmmm. Do you like my irises though? I painted that...well, copied it from a picture in a magazine...but still :)

I am finding myself a bit short of festive cheer and a bit sad that there'll be no decorating here this year what with painters, electricians and a trip north to visit my parents...but I think I can manage a wreath on the door...something like this...

source

I have some bits and pieces that may include a white feather boa and a hot pink peacock...stay tuned!

a totally tranquil giveaway...

I know it's getting perilously close to the holidays and I should have done this a week ago...but...you know how it is! Well, the disorganised among you (welcome to my world) probably do.
There's a giveaway here this week for two reasons:

1. Mostly, to thank you for your friendship, your humour, your care...your all-round awesomeness, and
2. secondly, to tell you that my friend Chris (the chandelier fairy) and I have opened an etsy shop called Totally Tranquil (well I think we have...hoping that I have pushed all the right buttons and filled in all the correct forms!)

So, the giveaway is stuff we've made and a bit of a taste of what might be coming...provided I get my act together sufficiently to list some things! Full of ideas we are...it's the execution that might be slightly problematic. 

Chris and I both love to make things; we sew, we paint and I do needlework. She's been leading a life of leisure this year and I've had one day off a week...supposedly to make stuff. But again, you know how it is...not as much achieved as I'd hoped.  When I said I'd like to do a giveaway to thank everyone for the year you and I have had together (Chris isn't a blogger btw), she generously gave me the red linen tote she'd just made (and already wrapped!) for someone else and said...here you go, this is suitably festive! The woman is a bag making queen :) And she made this very cool apron as well...very difficult to photograph aprons without a model I've discovered!

In a little nod to some of the things I've been doing lately, I've provided the gift tags (2 sets), a tapestry bookmark and yes....you guessed it, not one, but two knitted dishcloths. Come on...you know you want one!!

So just leave a comment. I don't mind if you're a follower or not (see last Friday's post and all your fabulous comments about the perils of following and unfollowing...I loved reading them all) and if you wanted to let others know about it that would be great and I'd throw your name in the hat again.

The random generator will get cranked up on Thursday evening Australian daytime savings time so I can put these in the post on Friday with the faint hope that it might reach you by Christmas. I know that overseas readers haven't got a snowball's chance in you-know-where of getting anything by then, but it's only one set of the tags that you might need to put away until next year if you win!

Here's the link to the shop...I've only had the chance to list a few things so far...a small matter of the painters arriving today and the living room and kitchen needing to be packed up! 

And the banner was made by my very clever son Ben...in lieu of rent...that kid's got it good!

top ten pictures from the week ~ 23.11.10

Sometimes, but not very often, I wish I could theme these top ten posts...

say something incredibly clever and designer like about these images...

which might be something of a stretch...

and would involve a whole lot more effort than I am up for on a Monday night...

which is when I put these posts together...(just an aside: one day I'm determined to have a verandah like that)

so, I'm sorry...you'll just have to continue to put up with my rabbiting on...

maybe one day I'll have a clue...

...but until then...it's just things that catch my eye in among all the eye catching loveliness in this bloggy world...

I'm still quite bemused about all the white I'm choosing...

I'm blaming this lovely book...

...that I won as a giveaway at Simone's...packaged in white with a note in pink...perfect!

thank you Simone...there are many hours of viewing pleasure in these pages I can tell you. And it's not all white!
Hope you found something you liked today...if not, there's always next week :)
images today come from: desire to inspire; driftwood interiors; lou, boos and shoes; maison; mfamb; shannon fricke; the essence of frenchness; the selby

my weekend ~ peaceful pottering

Hello lovely tranquil people...I do hope you had a terrific weekend.

Due to a great deal of this...

There was a lot of pottering about...literally...

lettuce, cherry tomatoes and lemon basil (I know, I hadn't heard of that one either!

And Sarah, I promise to get the slayer a proper tag one day :)

I started to make a softie from a kit I bought at Spotlight...for the Softies for Mirabel Project 2010 (I do hope a kit is acceptable!). These are for kids orphaned or abandoned due to their parents' drug addiction...a really good cause. Softies need to get to Melbourne by 7 December if you'd like to make one...check out the link for all the details.

I've almost finished another pincushion...this one's hot pink...

and with the left over bits of the stuff you do the tapestry on (what is that called?), I made a couple of bookmarks...

and I tackled the huge pile of unread magazines that I have lying around...these are but a sample!

...which leads me to the subject of that ghastly wall colour that I've allowed you a glimpse of...which I am pleased to say will be no more by 17 December. Tiny came through with a reasonable quote and his team arrive on the 13th for a week. Yes, there will be before and afters!

And here are some scanned photos from one of the magazines that I managed to demolish...a fabulous Adelaide home in Belle magazine...love it to bits.

So I guess you could say I spent quite a bit of time sitting on my butt this weekend!! But (ha!) I was also a very lucky blogger and won a gorgeous book on Simone's blog yesterday...this one...

It will be very happy here I'm sure, especially when my walls are painted white :) Thank you so much Simone...go and say hi if you haven't already...Honey and Fizz is a blog full of gorgeousness.

A very warm hello and welcome to new readers. I really do hope you enjoy your visits. And lastly, but certainly not least...thank you so much for all your lovely comments about my post on Rose. She truly was special.