My Best Bid

Sideboard envy has been noted in the case of this auction find. Bought for £10 and in need of nothing more than a good clean and a loving home. The perfect place to store my collection of retro Zambesi by Jessie Tate dinnerware. Don't know about you but it makes me want to put my lippy on and do the jive.

Big Print, Low Budget

I'm always a bit nervous using oversized prints but this one has been a winner. It looks way more expensive than its B&Q price tag and was well ahead of the grey trend when it went up a couple of years ago. Still makes a striking feature in our entrance hall.

Magic Orange Cake

No work done today. My little Charlie is at home with a temperature which means the only thing he will eat is my homemade orange cake. It will also ease George's pain at having to go to school whilst his brother has a duvet day.

Mary Berry I am not, but honestly this baking tip from my mum works every time - weigh the eggs and match their weight with the same amount of sugar, butter and flour. If you want a bigger cake - just use more eggs and increase the formula. Who knew? In this recipe also add the grated zest from 2 oranges and some nice thick drippy icing, using the leftover juice. Guaranteed to put a smile back on poorly little faces.

The new (old) sofa

TaDa! This antique sofa has been cluttering up my parents garage for years. I took it round a couple of re-upholsterers who wanted to strip it of its original horsehair stuffing and replace it with modern foam. I'm so pleased I found an old school upholsterer with a love of antiques. He kept the original craftsmanship in tact and re-covered it in this plush aubergine velvet. It's the perfect low level window seat and in contrast to the modular Habitat sofa at the other end of the room, it helps bring a bit of grandeur to the place.

Shiny, happy hallway

It's six months since I pushed the boat out and lavished our hallway in Farrow and Ball's lattice wallpaper. It's such a big job that can't be easily changed so I think this was my bravest move at The Dandy Townhouse to date. Our large hall and stairway links the upstairs and downstairs spaces so it had to be just right. I tried all sorts of samples before I decided on this one - which of course was way over my agreed budget. So instead of a new carpet we had our old one cleaned and treated it to some plush new underlay. It was an easy sacrifice. Downstairs the paper, teamed with Farrow and Ball's Pigeon Modern Emulsion, brings the original tiled hallway to life. This paper has a lovely metallic sheen to it that is both modern and luxurious. I love it and it never fails to get the wow factor from visitors either. Now what to do with those spindles....

The dogs of table lamps

These fab new table lamps from Next pay homage to our four legged friends. This is the family room. Here the boys watch DVD's and play video games and we generally lounge about. (Maybe in a onesie). Often Betsy the dog gets in on the action so I couldn't resist these little beauties. Kids love them, adults laugh at them...  Love, Life, Laughter ... that's my kind of light :-)

Hard working workspace

It's so much easier to sit down to work at an inviting work space. Okay, so it's not always this tidy. This is actually the dining room but with clever storage and the wonders of wirelessness it can do both jobs quite satisfactorily. I tend to spread out over the dining table when things get messy and can quickly clear things away when it's time to eat. Both tables are old and imperfect and that's what I love about them. I think plain white walls work best with antique pine. 

At the other end of the room, an old painted armoire stores all the files and stuff that busy families gather in abundance. This used to be mahogany, but somehow it is so much prettier in manly matt black!

I'm a sucker for a bevelled edge mirror. This one is supposed to be on a dressing table but until I find something better, it does the job of an over mantle mirror very nicely. It also reflects my lovely Heals chandelier. A bit of extravagance in an otherwise budget scheme. This is my girly hideaway in a houseful of boys. The dog curls up by my feet or at the patio doors and I do all my writing... with copious amounts of tea.