Patch y cintas

Este es mi actual trabajo de cintas. He hecho alguna variación del modelo original que ya os enseñaré cuando tenga terminado. Aún no he hecho nada para mí en cintas y patch y estaba desenado trabajar con las de Mokuba. El trabajo que hice fue para regalárselo a Auxi y



Desde luego lo tendré listo este fin de semana... es que estoy deseando verlo terminado.

Operación : un hogar más agradable

El miércoles pasado fue imposible realizar lo que tenía previsto. Los preparativos para la feria de Creativa ocuparon el tiempo libre del que disponía.
Pero ya he podido sacar un ratito y continuar haciendo algo para conseguir mi hogar más agradable.
De forma fortuíta fuí haciéndome con una colección de jabones. De aquí y de allí, de viajes, de regalos.... la cosa fue creciendo y entonces hice ánimo de añadir alguno más cuando tenía ocasión.
Los he tenido guardados hasta que encontré esta bandeja . Me pareció perfecta para el estilo que quería darle al baño y además de no ocupar mucho espacio podía ser útil para la pequeña exposición.
Ahora le he hecho un tapete a juego con la cortina . Las telas son de Mary Rose, que le dan cierto aire shabby chic. Añadí algunas puntillas, madroños y el resto que tenía guardado de una toalla blanca de tela.



Colocadito sobre la bandeja....


Con la colección de jabones y algo más.....


Detalles con encanto....


..... Y aquí una visión del conjunto....¡¡ hip, hip , hurra!!¡ Prueba conseguida !



Creo que lo próximo será algo en el dormitorio.
Me encantaría ver tus propuestas , las de esta semana o las anteriores. Si dejas un comentario podremos visitarte.

Mimmi O'Connell

White walls, symmetry, tufted ottoman used as a coffee table, ticking used for upholstery, black iron accents, seagrass matting: elements used over and over again.

In the 70’s - there was a designer in London who started a trend that lives on, 35 years later – the cornerstone of this trend was oriental furniture imported from the far east. The young designer combined these eastern pieces with large accessories: wooden boxes that doubled as coffee tables, bowls, blue and white porcelains, and eastern baskets, to name a few. She used mostly cotton tickings and rolled up mattresses instead of bolsters. Her beds were made of black iron and they usually were four poster. Her look was one of high contrasts: lots of darks and lights. She used red as a neutral, her walls were always white, her rooms always had black accents. Her look was new and fresh and very innovative. It still is today. Her name is Mimmi O’Connell.

Mimmi was never a household name in the United States. Most images of her work come from English books and publications. Through the store she owned, Port of Call, she started a look, the fusion look, that is still going strong today. She combined relatively inexpensive eastern furniture that she imported with inexpensive fabrics to produce a look that was strongly visual and rich, texturally. Through her design work, O’Connell was the force behind using seagrass and bamboo blinds in settings other than orangeries and sunrooms. Her look has spawned hundreds of imitators, her business helped launch others: OKA in England comes to mind immediately. Her use of cotton and linens and tickings is oft copied today – you would never see a room that O’Connell designed using chenille and mohair and brocades. It’s just not her style. Despite the enormous impact she made on design today, O’Connell rarely receives press or recognition for her work. Apparently, she’s still active, still in business, but it’s been a while since any current work of hers has been seen. So, take a look at her portfolio and keep in mind, many of these images are from years and years and years ago. And remember, the next time you see a room with an iron four poster bed swathed in tickings or oriental chairs mixed with bespoke upholstery on seagrass, give a nod to Mimmi O’Connell, wherever she is today.

An iron four poster bed, hallmark of Mimmi's style. High contrast black and white.

Traditional Mimmi: white walls, eastern chairs, blue and white porcelains, large, spare accessorizing


The previous room seen from the other side. Large, tufted ottomans are often used as coffee tables.


Heaven to Mimmi: rolled bolsters, blue and white ticking, plaids, iron furniture, seagrass. The striped poles seen in the corner are frequently used in her designs.


High contrast black and white, iron furniture, highly edited spaces.


Red is another favorite, as is wicker.


Outdoors styling: black iron, oversized votives set a romantic atmosphere.

Quintessential Mimmi: black iron canopy, white walls, ticking, plus white bedding.


Her Italian country home in a restored school house.


Mimmi at her best: symmetry, black iron, high contrasts, oriental furniture, tufted ticking, oversized accessorizing, baskets, corner poles, black iron curtain rods, and white wallss.


Italy meets Zen.


Port of Call merchandise: antique oriental furniture and accessories.

Mimmi: iron day beds used as sofas, ottomans used as coffee tables, iron bistro chairs, ticking, tufting, garden seats, symmetry, oversized accessories.

Again and again - her recognizable design.

Here the architecture becomes the design: high contrast black paint vs. the ever present white walls, seagrass matting, reds mixed with black ticking.

A Mimmi kitchen: eastern influenced chairs and table, eastern baskets and buckets, the plates provide the usual symmetry and black color, iron drapery rods, white walls, red checks for curtains.

A departure for Mimmi: aqua painted chairs!!!!

This room looks Rose Tarlow-ish to me. Notice how even in a library/dining room, the ticking is present, the walls are white, the symmetry is intact.

Creativa 2007

Y llegó el día tan ansiado por muchas de nosotras. Emoción de encontrar a viejas amigas y conocer a muchas otras que son habituales en este mundillo bloggero.
Como habéis leído y visto fotos en otros blogs, la feria fue más el lugar de reunión que de encontrar novedades. En mi caso fuí a tiro hecho de lo que iba buscando y creo que me quedaron algunos stands por visitar.
Nunca pensé que asistiríamos tantas costureras que ya forman esta gran familia. Seguro que el año que viene podrán asistir aquellas que se quedaron sin poder venir por unas causas u otras. A todas las echamos de menos y en numerosas ocasiones os hemos nombrado.
Este año llegué en avión casi a media mañana y después de los saludos , las charlas, los besos y abrazos, nos dimos una vuelta para tomar algo de contacto , para dedicar la tarde a hacer alguna compra .

El grupo fue creciendo a la hora de comer y como habéis leído, estuvimos nada menos que 28 entusiastas de la aguja. También fue el momento oportuno para intercambiarnos el regalo del amigo invisible.¡ Pero qué manos que tienen estas chicas !


¿ Y si tiviésemos un recuerdo del momento ? Se me ocurrió hacer unas tarjetas en las que colocar nuestra firma por detrás. La verdad es que fuí un poco a tientas porque no sabía realmente cuántas íbamos a ser. Asi que hice unas quince. ¡Uf, finalmente fuímos 14 ! ¡ Por los pelos !

Se puede decir que casi cerramos la feria.

En el intercambio Agusde Mar de sueños me obsequió con este precioso bordado navideño , que hizo con mucho cariño sobre un hilo de la trama.

A mí me tocó Aurora, que no tiene blog pero que seguro pronto se anima. Hice un acerico que tomé como modelo el que venía en el libro " True Friends" de Art to Heart.


Le hice un bolsito con estas telas navideñas para guardarlo dentro.

Lleva dos bolsillos delanteros forrados con las telas en cuestión y detrás mis iniciales estampadas con sellos de scrap.




Estas son mis compritas. Imposible resistirse a alguno de los linos de La couserie Creative , pero la combinación del rosa con el marrón oscuro me encantó y cogí estos fats . Ya veremos que queda de ello. También unas asas para bolsos, algunas cintas, un marco en forma de corazón que tantas veces he visto en otros blogs franceses y unos linos estampados que me parecieron originales.




El tiempo también se me fue en algunos encargos que llevaba de scrap ,pero ese tema aparecerá en Alterado así como la información sobre la tarjeta de recuerdo.

Muchísimas gracias por vuestra compañía , por vuestra amistad y por esos ratitos en los que compartimos una afición en común. Ahora ya os conozco un poquito mejor

Names Can Be Deceiving: Shabby Slips

Veranda's September 2007 cover story features Houston designer Renea Abbott and her work - a large, Provencal-inspired home built in California. The finished product is the culmination of years of toil: construction alone lasted over three years. This project catapults Abbott into the upper echelons of the design business, something she truly deserves. The "farmhouse," as it is referred to, is a study in timeless design - aged materials were used throughout and careful attention was given to the most minute details in order to ensure authenticity. The result of all this labor is a home truly deserving of recognition for its designer. Rather than doing interiors that are faithful to its farmhouse style, Abbott's choices are instead sometimes surprising and yet, always fresh. The front cover with the Cy Twombly over an 18th century mantel epitomizes Abbott's eclectic "look" - the modern mixed with the antique. Both ends of that spectrum are represented by sophisticated pieces. This type of design mix is familiar to Houstonians long aware of Renea Abbott.

Best known as the proprietress of the store Shabby Slips, Abbott has garnered much local press, mostly showcasing her own frequently changed dwellings. The store started out with a simple premise - slipcovers handmade to cover the plush, down-filled sofas and chairs that filled her shop. Everything was white back then, but things at Shabby Slips are different now. The walls are a deep, dark shade. Wonderful, period antiques have taken over floor space formerly reserved for the masses of cushy upholstery. In fact, slipcovers are no longer even offered to the public. The direction of the store, but not it's name, has changed completely and this is probably somewhat confusing to the uninitiated. Regardless of the misleading name, the changes at Shabby Slips could not be more gorgeous. Large, gilt chandeliers glitter over the gilded finishes of the antiques. Mid century lacquered pieces vie for attention with rustic oddities. Exotic lamps are fashioned from rock and crystal. The atmosphere in the store has taken on the air of an exquisite jeweled box. Elegance, certainly not shabby, is the key word here. Always in motion, Abbott has branched out with additional Shabby Slips in Austin and New Orleans. And in Santa Fe, her mother Barbara Carlton runs a store there with a decidedly different, more western feel. If visiting Houston, Shabby Slips should be a must stop on the antique shopper's agenda.

Sparse, yet elegant hallway in the Californian farmhouse.

The dining room.

The master bathroom with the double shower placed behind the tub.

Beautiful Californian garden with limestone table and Rose Tarlow chairs.

Shabby Slips: gilt antique furniture, contemporary fabrics.

More antiques with a surprising Global Views table.

Crystal obelisks on lacquered trays.

More gilt, more modern.

A lamp with a modern rock crystal base.

Another interesting lamp base.

Finally, a sofa meant for slip covers!

An unusual zebra upholstered chair.

A typically untypical Abbott tablescape.

The mix that Abbott is known for: slipcovered furniture, antique crystal chandeliers, rustic coffeetable.

The old mixed with the new.

Out back, behind a gate, through a back yard - Shabby Slips recently expanded into a neighborhood house.

In the house annex, things are definitely more casual.

Someone could move right into the shop's annex.

Notice the rug from Creative Flooring. This is my favorite 'skin' pattern.

Wonderful card table with a mix of chairs.

I love how the curtains are tied back in this room.

And lastly, Abbott's attempt at being hip: two pink, Palm Beach inspired chairs.

Shabby Slips in Santa Fe - more rustic than the Houston locale. Religious santos and crosses are popular here.

Antlers and horns are sold in Santa Fe with it's more western ambience.

Slipcovers are still emphasized in Santa Fe, unlike in Houston. Two Shappy Slips staples: club chairs with linen slips and down cushions -the best combination ever!!!