grumpy old woman

A tour around my sitting room.

As I really enjoy looking at the interiors of other bloggers' homes, I am continuing the tour of mine.

I have posted below pictures taken of my sitting room and dining area. I have split the whole thing up into not one, not two but NINE separate posts - I don't know if they will all fit onto one page, you may have to hunt for the lower ones in the archives or something. That's if you haven't died with boredom before then.

I have a lot of 'stuff' in my home. I pay very little for each item, which is usually a boot fair or charity shop find, but I treasure each thing for as long as that item is meant to stay. When the time comes I will let it go, to live with someone else, so that I can make more room for more recent finds.

As you will notice if you read the text, Dons is the BEST person with whom to go treasure hunting. She can see a tiny bit of something poking out of a load of rubbish and she'll just know that that is the very thing which will become a much loved and cherished possession.

~(:o})=

One of nine posts

The dining area - the table and chairs are originals. The table cost £1 at a local auction. It was pointed out to me by the eagle eyed Dons :o}

The record cabinet, housing some of my precious vinyl. It used to be my Dad's. I shabby chic'ed it with old looking cream paint, boot polish and gold. The claw feet at the bottom are clutching balls picked out in gold.

Part of the seating area in my sitting room. The leather 30's furniture used to belong to Dons. She saw the suite advertised in the local paper. A lovely find.

A closer side view, showing the fab shape of the chairs.

The settee -

Two of nine posts

This 50s/60s chest of drawers was spotted by Dons in a local charity shop.

She bought the larger set of drawers but eventually passed them on to me :o}

My favourite coffee table, bought from a charity shop in Bromley.

Another coffee table, bought from a charity shop in Barnstaple. I didn't think I had room for any more furniture but Dons talked me into it!

Three of nine posts

This is a 50s drinks cabinet, bought at a boot fair - spotted by Dons.
The black panels slide back within the interior to show the contents inside -

Which is a large collection of the old glasses that pubs used to use before 'health and safety' made them obsolete. They all have fab motifs on them - 'Cherry B' etc. I love them and use several of them for day to day use.

My 50s 'hostess trolley'. When Dons was little she used to wish I was the sort of mummy who used a trolley. Ahhhhhh ..........

Four of nine posts

A 50's occasional table - red formica top.

A 50s sewing box

A fantastic find - a 60s ice bucket made of teak (oops) created by the Danish designer Jens H. Quistgaard - iconic Scandinavian piece, bought for £2 - worth over £100. Pointed out to me by Dons.

Fab orange lining inside the ice bucket

Five of nine posts

A collectable table lamp from the 60's with a 'cracked ice' resin base and fiberglass shade. Can't get enough of them :o}

Another 60's base with a modern retro Habitat shade.

A lovely 60s clock given to me by Dons.

50s wall clock and 60s coffee pot given to me by, well, you-know-who .......

Six of nine posts

This is one of the three special 'made in Germany' pots that I have. The other two are in my office and have already been uploaded to this blog. This one was given to me by Dons this Christmas (or was it for my birthday?)

This is a Portmeirion storage jar without it's lid that I use as a plant pot.

And here is another example of Portmeirion pottery. Both of these pots were designed by Susan Williams Ellis and were either given to me or pointed out to me by the lovely Dons :o}

An original, vintage coffee pot and sugar bowl

And an arrangement of pots - love the shapes ............

Seven of nine posts

I made the curtains myself with fabric I bought from Ikea. I had wanted some Cath Kidston fabric but it had sold out, so I bought this stuff in a panic. I am so glad that I did - they go with the room, reflecting the colour scheme and use of circles. They are quite thick with a kind of canvassy texture.

The rug is an original from the 60's.

The oval dish is more contemporary and was bought from Habitat.

The magazine rack is an original 50s one, bought for me by Dons.

Eight of nine posts

And here are some pictures that are on the walls. The first two were painted by a talented friend. They cheered me up when I was going through a bad time in London.

This following one is vintage 60's fabric stretched on a frame.

And this was a boot fair find - a huge old book had been rescued from a fire. The book had fallen apart and all the illustrations were being sold off separately. I bought quite a few - they are quite remarkable images.

And the last - at last! Number nine.

This beautiful throw, which is made up of strips of coloured felt on a brown felt background (it opens up to a decent size) was a present from the lovely Dons :o}