My Restoration Project

Restore the Awe...............

Sometimes you can visualise something in your head but are unable to find that item you see in your mind.
Don't let this stop you, as you can create, and have something that is truly personal to you.

I decided I wanted an Ottoman, a handy place to store my vast collection of shoes! I wanted something classic but individual to me. I started with the usual hunt for one,online stores, Ebay and second hand shops, but alas it just didn't seem to exist.

Then I went to a car boot sale and there sitting next to someones car was a Lloyd loom ottoman. Now a great deal of vision was required.It had a terrible paint job, thick coats of Matt white paint,clearly painted over years worth of previous paint. And the top had been recovered in a horrible pale blue vinyl fabric.

My Ottoman at the very beggining

I got the ottoman home,and decided to restore it to the ottoman of my dreams.
Preparation and love is the key. I needed to sand as much of the old paint off as was possible and also remove the horrible vinyl fabric from the top.

So I removed the blue vinyl, and underneath was some beautiful gold flocked fabric, but where the vinyl had been glued on top it was ruined. Also when I started to sand away the paint, I discovered the ottoman was in fact gold!!

Mr Pug decieded he would help me too, an extra set of paws is always handy!!

Mr Pug helping.

I had an image in my head of a beatiful,heavily embroidered fabric, covered in flowers in a mixture ivory,duck egg blue and dusky rose.

I went to a massive fabric warehouse and looked at rolls after rolls of fabric. Evey kind imaginable.

Rolls after rolls of fabrics.

But I couldn't find one I like, I think the problem was I was trying to find something that was in my mind.

But Never give up!!!!

I went to a second hand clothes store and there hanging up was the material that was in my mind, well I say mateiral when infact it was a silk kimono style 1970's dress!!! But why could that not become my fabric for my ottoman. There was enough fabric as it was a floor length dress and the embroidery was intricate,clasic and perfect for an ottoman in the bedroom.

My perfect fabric for my ottoman

I continued to sand my ottoman,and then I brought some white Matt spray paint,I sprayed it all over, it required two thin coats.

I decided to the keep the orginal horse hair foam that goes on the top underneath the fabric.

As I did not want to use new foam and make it look really heavily padded.

I set to work cutting the dress to allow enough fabric to cover the top, and then using a staple gun attaced it to the top.

And Voila the Ottoman of my dreams.

My finished perfect ottoman.

So if you know there is an item you want for your home but just can't seem to find,change something to make it look how you want. Don't limit your imagination or creativity as you can have an item that is truely personal to you.

Welcome to Lucy's Land of Wonders

Well here we go this is the first posting for my blog,I have decided to keep a lifestyle/interior design blog.
The main reason behind this is I am going to start an evening course in interior designer and have decided to show what things I see that I love and inspire me. There are so many moments when you stop, and look, and see something that makes you stare, I want to share those moments with you and explain why I think these certain things make you do this.
I even have my first one for you today.


Not Really Grey.................

A while ago I watched the film "Grey Gardens". Based on the life stories of the eccentric aunt and first cousin of Jackie Onassis (both named Edith Bouvier Beale aka "Big and Little Edie") raised as Park Avenue débutantes but who withdrew from New York society, taking shelter at their Long Island summer home, "Grey Gardens."
Well the house Grey Gardens inspired me, the beautiful shingled summer mansion built by Joseph Greenleaf Thorpe in 1897 at Georgica Pond in East Hampton, Long Island. The interior was flamboyant,plush,intense colours and somehow expressed the personalities of the people who lived there.
Which I think is what interior design is all about,being able to show aspects of you thru your home decor.

This is the living area from the HBO film Grey Gardens but they replicated this from photographs.

The thing I love about this room is the intense purple shade on the walls and they way your eye is immediately drawn to the picture above the mantle piece.

    

The Bedroom at grey gardens. I loved the shade of buttercup yellow on the walls and this is actually very on trend now, as the whole shabby chic look is ever more in demand. There is a mixture of colours and textures,it has a glamorous feel about it yet doesn't look unlived in. I do believe a home should show the lives going on there, and have some tasteful clutter (now i don't mean mess,there is a distinct difference between some clutter and mess!),

The idea of having a alternative living area that almost looks like two single beds from a bedroom, makes us break the rules a bit, and not always use furniture that is labelled as being for a specific room. By taking different pieces furniture and using them in a room you wouldn't normally you can create a truly unique space.

The reason for my last picture is because this is Edith Bouvier Beale, who lived at Grey gardens with her mother. I wanted to show you that if you look at how she is dressed and her dramatic pose this is expressed beautifully in the interior of the house. So express yourself thru your home!!! After all its you who lives there!


I think my first entry was just a little taster of things to come,I will be sharing with you things I have seen on my travels that have inspired me,things I see on a day to day basis and also all the other many hundreds of inspirations this world of ours has to offer.


Welcome to Lucy's Land of Wonders, I hope you enjoy the exploration!