The Art of Accessorizing Your Kitchen

When you think about accessorising, your mind probably goes straight to a great pair of sunglasses, a statement necklace, or a handbag. But guess what? The same ideas you use to complete an outfit can totally apply to the most important room in your home: the kitchen. Accessorising your kitchen isn't just about filling empty spots; it's about pouring personality, usefulness, and style into the heart of your home. It's that final touch that turns a room full of appliances and cabinets into a space that truly feels like yours. Accessorising Beyond Your Wardrobe Just like a simple black dress gets a whole new vibe with the right accessories, a basic kitchen can be jazzed up with carefully chosen details. The trick is to think of your kitchen's permanent stuff – the cabinets, countertops, and flooring – as your main pieces. The accessories are what add character and flair. These finishing touches are easy to swap out when your tastes change or the seasons shift. It's a ......

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How to Make Your Kitchen Feel Warm This Winter

In the middle of winter, everyone wants to return to warm kitchen after being outside. There’s nothing quite like taking off your boots, sitting at the table and taking that first sip of hot tea after a chilly walk. Whether you’re decorating your first home or planning a renovation, it’s worth putting time and effort into the kitchen and it's an area of the home I have priortised myself. There has been a lot of learning curves and I've learnt a lot along the way so I thought. Below, we’ve shared some of the most practical and stylish ideas for a cosy kitchen this winter. Introduce warm colour palettes Rich, warm hues make for an inviting kitchen atmosphere, especially during the colder months. From deep terracotta to mustard yellow and forest green, earthy tones can be paired or used as statement walls to evoke a snug, characterful ambience. Whether applied through ornaments, fixtures or textiles, green kitchens are versatile, refreshing spaces . Why not change your kitchen cup......

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5 ways to declutter & refresh your kitchen

If you keep up with current trends you may have already heard about the fantastic positive effects of minimalising our clutter and getting rid of anything we don't need or use while at the same time creating more space and a calmer living environment, I've written a post about how it can improve your life. The kitchen is a room that all of the family use and because of this can attract a lot of clutter and mess which adds to the chaos, especially at meals times. I am still in process of getting my kitchen to exactly how I want it but it's not far off and I thought I would a few tips on keeping your kitchen feel more spacious, organised and a place to enjoy good food or have a quiet moment rather than chaos.  1. Firstly reduce what you have It's so easy to hold onto things we don't use or accumulate gadgets that never see the light of day, so it's worth having a really good sort out as that alone could free up a lot of storage and surface space. You......

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How to take a white kitchen from cold to gold

As you may already know when we are not traveling or exploring somewhere new outdoors I am usually indulging in my love of interiors. At the moment we are just doing a few finishing touches to our house before we sell and I have been focusing on the kitchen this past week. White kitchens have been on trend for over a decade or so, and with good reason. The cool clean look is perfect for hygienic kitchen areas, white goes with everything and just doesn’t date if done right and can be a good investment for your home. However, there’s one obvious flaw in the logic that kitchen designers up and down the land are spending a lot of their creative time addressing. How do you inject some warmth and personality into a space consisting predominantly of hard white surfaces? How do you take the edge off a stark white kitchen ? Is it possible to achieve a cosy, comfortable and welcoming vibe in a modern white kitchen to create the beating heart of the home? Here are 6 tricks to show you ......

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Turn Your House into an Oasis

Being able to have a beautiful house that you love coming home to is important. In order to have a home you love, you may want to customize it so that it feels warm and welcoming to you. The guide that follows provides a few ways you can make a house feel more like your home. Create Curb Appeal The first thing you’ll see each day when you pull up to your house is the exterior. Take the time to create a lawn that is well-manicured and looks great. Keeping the grass and the bushes trimmed can make a home look great. Add a flower bed to create a bit of colour to the exterior of the house. A walkway can add visual appeal and also provide you with a place to walk when entering and leaving your home. Perhaps you also want to show some personal flair and fly a rainbow flag or country flag to really grab attention. Of course, you will need to make sure you have the right flagpole mounting hardware in order to do this! Add Flowers to the Interior of Your Home Seeing and sm......

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Radisson Blu Edwardian Hampshire Review

On our recent trip to London's West End as part of Kids Week we stayed at the beautiful Radisson Blu Edwardian Hampshire Hotel in Leicester Square, even though I briefly mentioned it in my post about our weekend, I wanted to do a separate review as this place really warrants that.  We love visiting London as a family but the one thing I have learned is if you have planned an action-packed day then staying somewhere which is well-located is key in reducing the stress that comes with carting kids from one side of a city to another. Also having somewhere comfortable, welcoming and family-friendly to rest your head at the end of a busy day makes for a happy family in the morning and luckily The Radisson Blu Hampshire is all these things. Located on Leicester Square and only a stones throw away from all the theatres of the West End, the National Portrait Gallery and Trafalgar Square plus plenty of places to eat you really have everything you need. We arrived e......

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Kitchen inspiration - finding the perfect fridge

When you think of your kitchen the first thing that probably comes to mind is worktops and lighting but what about the one appliance you use daily? Ours is built in but when we move later this year we don't plan to take it with us but rather opt for the Smeg fridge we have been craving for for years, even if it's not the most practical. Putting aesthetics aside it can actually be quite a hard decision finding one that fits both the needs of you and your family as well as the style of your kitchen and is often something that is overlooked. Being a really important purchase and an essential to your home it's a really good idea to know what to consider before you make the purchase. Here are a few tips to make the process as easy and as stress-free as possible.  Size and capacity The first thing you need to consider is how much food you need to store in your fridge/freezer. The storage capacity is usually managed in cubic feet, and generally co......

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Simple Dining - Interior inspiration

Wether you have a separate dining room or a small kitchen diner it should be a place that is versatile and can be used for casual gatherings with friends and family but also be dressed up for dinner parties and special occasions. We are currently decluttering our house in a major way and trying to simplify all our living spaces including where we eat and relax each evening. The most important aspect of comfortable dining, whether it is for breakfast, lunch or dinner, is having a dining room you enjoy spending time in and is welcoming and warm. This ensures that meals eaten there are eagerly anticipated in a space that is as perfect as you can make it. Here are some ideas on creating the perfect dining space The Table Getting the size of your dining table right requires careful consideration of the size of your dining room and how many people will use it. For a family of four, you can use a round or square table to help you save space. However, if you entertain regularly ......

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Homemade Cypriot Potato and Leek pasties

As I've said before I find cooking and making wholesome family meals very therapeutic and I love to try new things. In general our meals have a healthy focus and I have never been a big fan of shop bought pasties and pies but I did like the idea of making my own and cramming them filled with lovely veggies and creating a portable snack when we are outdoors on our adventures. So when I was set a challenge to create something tasty and would hopefully be a hit with the family, using in season Cypriot New Potatoes from Tesco's, I thought it was the perfect time to try out some cheesy leek and potato pasties - the perfect vegetarian family friendly snack. Of course you can use any potatoes in this recipe but I have to say the Cypriot ones are very tasty and versatile as you can bake, roast, boil or steam them and they are only available in stores until March. I also used Tesco's lighter shortcrust pastry, I have in the past made my own pastry for a variety of differe......

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