Modern Country Style in House Of Fifty

Have you heard of the scrumptious online magazine

House of Fifty? 

Well, I'd say it's just about time you did,

so let me introduce you...

House of Fifty is edited by the uber-glamorous Janell Beals. 

For some reason, which is utterly beyond me, she has suffered from ageism. When the producers of a television show that Janell was potentially going to front, found out that she was all of 49, the door of opportunity suddenly closed. 

Outrageous, no?

Spurred on by that rejection, Janell launched House of Fifty a little over a year ago. Having just launched its sixth gorgeous issue, the online magazine is a big yah-boo to all those who think younger women don't need aspirational figures, and that older women don't have anything to offer. That's just total tosh. Grrrr..... Janell is exactly the kind of woman that I look up to. I've found her to be always encouraging, always welcoming and always admirable, as well as having incredibly good taste. Here's a couple of images from her home so you can see what I mean:

Each issue of House of Fifty manages to positively drip with great ideas...super-stylish but not exclusively so, these gems are ones that you just know would work for you in your own home.

Oh, and did I mention that Modern Country Style has been featured in this issue as one of two British blogs, in celebration of the London Olympics this year? 

The feature is on pages 131-135. 

Click on the image below to have a read...

{and click again to make the image nice and big...}

If you're viewing this in a reader, you'll need to click through to my blog as it's not showing up....

Thank you so much for having me, Janell. 

Enter your email address:

to subscribe to Modern Country Style

Book Review: The Perfectly Imperfect Home

When preparing to decorate any room, there are always a few go-to books that I pick off my shelf and immerse myself in. One of those books is The Perfectly Imperfect Home by Deborah Needleman.

This will probably be the weirdest book review you've ever read. I start off by slating it and then get all lovey-dovey. Confused?

 Read on and all will become clear...

You see, The Perfectly Imperfect Home (published by Jacqui Small) is the antithesis of most of my other favourite interior books. When I'm browsing Amazon, it's usually the pictures that I devour and the text receives only a cursory skim. {fully aware that makes me sound about three years old.} And luring me in is where this book fell right down.

 The Perfectly Imperfect Home is illustrated with beautiful water-colours by Virginia Johnson but the pictures, in my humble opinion, are wrong, wrong, wrong. While they are exquisitely put together, they leave me utterly cold. Is it just me or is there more than a sniff of the gawdy eighties about them?

{I should add that this disagrees with all the other reviews I've read of this book, 

which raved about the paintings so I'm bracing myself for a tumbleweed moment.

Hello? Hello? Anyone??}

Yup, if I hadn't seen this book over on Gg Notes On The Journey, 

I'm not sure that it would have caught my interest at all

and my picture-prejudice would have cost me dearly.

The Perfectly Imperfect Home has become one of  my very favourite interior books. The text is outstanding and more than makes up for the rather not-my-taste-at-all illustrations. Comforting, warm and gentle, Deborah Needleman guides the reader through the process of decorating their home. Chapters include Nice Lighting, A Bit Of Quirk, Delicious Scent and Dinner With Friends.

Her writing style has the tone of a best friend, who also happens to be an expert in making your home the very best it could be....and is able to convey that information....over a cup of tea and a home-baked slice of gooey cake.... 

{that was the lovey-dovey bit I promised you...}

When do you ever get that feeling in normal interior books, I ask you? Gorgeous photos, yes...they come as standard. But sparkling, lively text that draws you in and makes you feel Yes! I can do this!!? Nope.....that's not normal.

The Perfectly Imperfect Home has that in spades.

You want it? Come and get it...

Buy it now over on the Amazon Widget in my sidebar...

And to be stretched to the limits of temptation,

check out my other favourite book reviews: just click here...

Enter your email address:

to subscribe to Modern Country Style

Girls' Bedrooms: Bunk Beds

Now then...

where we before we were so rudely interrupted 

by me swanning off to have a baby?

;-)

Let's get back to our girl's bedrooms series, shall we?

If you cast your minds back to my pre-baby-yabbering, 

we're in the middle of decorating this room:

I got as far as sharing that we've split the space into two bedrooms

and have painted what will be the girls' bedroom in 

Farrow and Ball's gorgeous Middleton Pink.

Two of our girls will be sharing the bedroom. It's a small double room so bed-space is an issue when you also factor in the need for copious amounts of toy-storage.

We're big fans of bunk-beds for children's rooms.

They just look so much fun!

Sleepover, anyone?

Images: Winchester Whisperer, Mine, Summerour and Associates, House of Fifty, Eve Robinson

Enter your email address:

to subscribe to Modern Country Style

Curvy Grey Wicker Chairs

Today, I'm over at the Relics of Witney blog 

for an in-depth look at the new breed of wicker: 

colonial-style greyed rattan.

{Swoon}

So yummy.

I LOVE these rattan chairs from Relics....

I've been enamoured with this design for a while now. 

Curvalicious, baby.

They call to me every time I visit Relics.

I decided it was time to claim one for my very own.

It arrived just in time for the weekend!

And is even more lovely than I'd hoped.

Don't you love it when that happens?!

Come and join me in the 

greyed-rattan love-fest 

over at Relics...

Enter your email address:

to subscribe to Modern Country Style

Can you watch this and *not* cry? I dare ya...

Goose bumps

...every time...

Happy Friday!

Enter your email address:

to subscribe to Modern Country Style