Secrets of a Butterfly

Pretty boutique finds

Some prettiness i found at these lovely online boutiques...
1) Quilt at Velvet ribbon boutique 2) Noa Noa at The Bohemian Wardrobe Company 3) teacup candle by Bow-boutique 4) cushion by angel-lifestyle
Love and butterflies

A thankyou card

Just wanted to share the thankyou card that i made to send Selina Lake, to thank her for her book Romantic Style which i was lucky enough to win a couple of months ago.
When i set about making the card I was inspired by the book's cover and roses of course!

I used vintage lace to tie the card.

For anyone wanting to see a peek inside the book, Selina shared a fab post with a clever clip of flicking through the pages,find that here

Here are a few photos of Selina's styling that i love...

love

Touches of vintage style

This was a guest post i did over the summer at Rachel's beautiful blog Lovely Clusters. Just thought i'd re post it here, incase you havent seen it before and also so i can refer to it for all the links in the future.

credits for the top mosaic: 1. anniversaryselfportrait, 2. vintage, 3. ., 4. Rest)

So I thought i would talk about one of my passions today as thats always a good place to start isnt it.
One of my favourite things is collecting interiors books with vintage or flea market styling. I am sure we all have our favourites, among mine are Bazaar Style, Shabby Chic Interiors and Easy Elegance I dream of decorating in this style someday and like to be inspired by the vintage decoration i see in people's homes.

Inside the pages of our favourite interior books, we see a complete look. Sometimes its a little daunting to achieve the same. Maybe as its not practical, affordable, or the items are hard to come by in the area we live. Maybe too, the people we live with, wouldn't be too happy with a full shabby-chic-d abode!

Luckily the thing about vintage, is it can find a home quite happily amongst any style you may already have. You don't have to spend a great amount and add much, to still bring the essence of vintage to your home.

Little touches such as old china,(like this set i got from Scotland lately) crochet throws, or repurposed fabrics can blend into your rooms and add a unique touch. Think of it like fashion where there has been an ever growing trend for mixing vintage with modern pieces. The secret is always to follow what you love and by adding only that, well, you can't really go wrong.

1. miniature, 2. I love cooking.... , 3. part of drape..., 4. Guest Bedroom

I have gathered together some images here that inspire me with ways to add in touches of vintage. Old books, cushions, a pottery jug....china, bedding and postcards.

1. sofa, 2. Cath Kidston roses, 3. Handknit socks, 4. windowsill

But where to source these items, especially if there are no local flea markets or antique shops to hand....luckily we now have the wonder of online shops! Clever people who can come by the most special of old treasures and we get to browse them from our sofas!

Rachel has done a beautiful job of highlighting just the type of shops we are looking for in the decor section of Lovely clusters. Here you'll find sections for wall decoration, cushions, ornaments and linens.

As i live in England i wanted to include some Uk based websites that have vintage homewares, but here are also some in the States. I'm sure all will be happy to cater to international buyers.( Just bare in mind the postage cost for weightier items and any import duties.)

Sources for vintage online: Uk based shops

This Vintage Life

Vintage Home

Vintage Lifestyle

Live Laugh Love

Happy Loves Rosie

Decorative Country Living

Hen House Emporium which is where these Union jack cushions are to be found...

And US/Australia based online shops:

Looking Glass House

Gathering Vintage

Dottie Angel(closed over the summer)

Le Vintage Maison

Tiny Happy

Happy browsing...

The girl with the bow in her hair

1. Thursday [Explore #260], 2. Untitled, 3. .sweet teeth, 4. {film.256}, 5. Ginny + Ed's Wedding, 6. Untitled, 7. Untitled, 8. shop update, 9. remembering my birthday, 10. cards printed by hand, 11. lace love, 12. shoes, 13. Magic

Hello my friends, this is a mosaic i made a little while ago of all things vintage. I love the colours in the rooms and the little touches...the frames and the china. Thought it'd be nice to share with you today.
As for me, I've not been so well for a bit, just one of those things but its meaning i have even less energy than is normal for me. So taking things gentle and not able to get any new posts done for the moment.

For the time being i'll rely on my pre-made posts. I have a couple in my drafts folder (luckily!)
So you'll still hear from me at Secrets, but don't worry if you don't hear from me personally for a while (like responses to comments or by email) and i wont worry either as i know you understand,
peaceful wishes,

p.s. i did a guest post for the lovely Heather at Gathering spriggs last week, its swedish interiors, if you like you can see it here : Less is sometimes more

Romantic style postcard collage

If you are a long time follower of Secrets you'll know my favourite interior stylist is Selina Lake. Who's new book Romantic Style is out very soon. (i Can't wait!)
Selina is hosting a competition at her blog to win a signed copy. You have to enter a photo that represents romantic style to you. This photo (top) is my entry.

It's a vintage postcard collage on my wall. I made it up last month,on a day i was feeling up to it. I'd wanted to have a go, since being inspired by one Selina did a while ago. I used my Elena Deshmukh cards (who i mentioned last post) along with some vintage ones i had collected and there's a photo of my grandma, holding my mam when she was little. The hearts are lavender filled and made from vintage fabrics.

If you'd like to enter as well, the details are all here, and the closing date is 31st August.

Thankyou to everyone who's left comments lately its great hearing from you, and i hope to be stopping by your blogs soon,

Love

Vintage china and roses

These roses were right at home in my new little jug. I found this Taylor and Kent vintage china tea set on ebay. A scottish seller named Posy Green. It dates from pre 1891 and has been handpainted. It caught my eye as i like the delicacy of the pink floral design along with the shape and the lightness of the porcelain.

Being Victorian and so old the glaze has a few little marks upon it and yet the imperfections add to its charm for me. I am amazed at how it has lasted so long and wonder about its story over the past 120 years! Where it has lived, who's shelves has it nestled upon, was it loved and kept for best or loved and used everyday. There is obviously a strength in even the most fragile of things.

I am always so taken with the photographers that incorporate vintage china into their flower photos and felt this set would enable me to have a play and create some prettiness of my own.

I love the way seeing people creating what they love, inspires my own creativity and makes me want to continue to express through photography and develop a style.

Some of my most favourites have fine art photography shops of their very own at etsy:
Yvette Inufio,
Georgianna Lane
City of blackbirds
Gabrielle Kai
Kristybee
Lynda Naranjo
My Fine Garden
Bella Luce
Vintage chic images

I may currently only use the auto setting on my Nikon but i still feel i am developing, especially when it comes to compostion. Its something creative i can enjoy even with limited energy, so i think thats why i love it so. That and the fact that i get to focus on roses and flowers, another big love of mine.

Thankyou vintage china for finding a new home with me,and thankyou friends fo looking at my photos today. Do have a spot of tea and a little treat before you go...

Cabbages and Roses for summer

The Cabbages and Roses new lookbooks for spring summer 2010, arent the images just gorgeous! I really like the tunic dress in the third photo with the cropped white trouser. Just want to thank you for all your comments and visits lately, you're all stars, kat xx

I'm loving Cabbages and Roses

Winter SALEs post:
Cabbages and Roses a dreamy english company that produce the most beautiful faded floral fabrics. Similar in style to Rachel Ashwell. There range focuses on white linen with muted pastel designs of roses and vintage florals, along with some ticking stripes. They do bed sets, cushions, toiletry bags and my favourite the linen bags. I spotted they have some items in the sale section which are up to half price at the moment. In that section i recommend the linen bag in Beehive design, which is something i'm hoping to get for my birthday in a couple of weeks. You place an order and someone (who turned out to be a lovely) rings you back to confirm and take payment.

They also have a clothes range, drawing on inspirations from old English fashions in tweed and soft cottons. I saw a gorgeous floral maxi dress in Glamor this month but its not on their site. Maybe they'll have those in the summer.this is the page in Glamor...

Here's my package which came in the mail wrapped in pretty paper. In time i'll have other pictures to show but the fabrics can be seen in the photos beneath. Do you like? what vintage floral type things are your favourites? love kat x

Fabric journals,little knitted fairies and the cutest pink booties!

i just love notebooks, especially when they are coverd in vintage fabric like these ones above. As i mentioned on the earlier post, here are some further goodies from Amanda's online store Decorative County Living



 

She has some really pretty things! Before i go just had to mention I got some vintage china in the mail yesterday, its from a seller on ebay that i found. She has some gorgeous pieces and gives all the date and history details too. Will hope to share them with you soon, as i think, like me, you all love vintagey china with a history and a uniquenes don't you

I'm really glad you liked the Red Riding hood pictures,a new Butterfly girl should be coming up shortly. love K x0x

Rooms,treasures and trinkets

There are a couple of things lately that i have been looking forward to sharing with you. This is the 1st, my new favourite book. Its a Rachel Ashwell, 'Shabby Chic Interiors - my rooms, treasures and trinkets', and features some rooms from her own home as well as the house Marilyn Monroe once lived in and some others. I just love the softened effect of the furnishings, the worn and reused furniture, trinkets and vintage mementoes. She has a way of styling that makes it look unstyled, just natural and lived in. There is something comforting about that. Maybe its because to Rachel, Shabby chic is not a contrived look, its something that she grew up with, her mother was into restoring antique dolls, and this partly gave her the interest in re purposing old fabric and trims. Its what she loves and that comes through in all her books including this one.

 




The title for this post treasures and trinkets comes off the subtitle to Rachel's book, but it is also one of my favourite things to say.I just love my own treasures and trinkets. As you can see i couldnt stop sharing some of the many many treasures to be found inside the pages of Rachel's book. I have a couple more things to post about from it in the coming days and weeks too. I hope you have found the pages inspiring, i know i always enjoy peeking inside a book that a blogger has reviewed because it gives me a better idea of whether to buy it or not. Rachel shares what she loves and its something i dream of doing too, and maybe i already am, in a small way by keeping my little blog and sharing my loves with you. Thankyou for reading me dear friend. till next time tc kx