Lilyfield Life Handmade and Vintage Homewares

That sounds so funny to me - Lilyfield Life Homewares - having my own range of homewares is probably not what I'm about but I have been making, painting and sewing a few small pieces and have wanted to list them together rather than dribble them out in individual posts. Our house looks like I am setting up for a market - I have one very patient husband!

I have already sold this beautiful set of hooks made with a piece of ornate timber left over from an old wardrobe and some of my lovely vintage porcelain hooks from Limoges, France. My daughter really wanted to keep this but we have old lime plaster walls in the front of our house where her bedroom is and it is very difficult to hang things on the wall with the crumbly old plaster so I thought I'd list it for sale and it sold within minutes.

SOLD

I also have several beautiful chalkboard in different vintage frames and sizes.  If you are not into chalkboards you can easily remove the chalkboard and insert your own mirror or painting. This first one is painted in Annie Sloan Duck Egg Blue and then the detail has been brought out with Dark Wax.  I love the moulding on this as it is at 45 degrees to the chalkboard. It really makes a statement and could be hung landscape or portrait. Dimensions are 147cm by 49cm. SOLD 

The next frame is a small lovely ornate vintage frame, painted in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Paris Grey and Pure White. Once again antiqued with dark wax. This is a lovely little size. Dimensions are: 50cm by 43cm For sale $45.

I am selling the white chalk board that I had hanging in my hallway for a long time - the "Love what you do, do what you love" sign. I have given the chalkboard a new coat of chalkboard paint so it is all fresh and new.  Dimensions are: 58cm by 68cm. For sale: $90. SOLD

Cushions - I have been doing lots of sewing lately and have several one off cushions covers available for sale.  

French Stripe 40 by 60cm Cushion: front top photo, the envelope back is bottom photo. $25 for cover only or $40 including good quality feather insert. I will post the cover only (postage $8 to anywhere in Australia)

I'll list the other cushions soon - I haven't got around to taking photos yet.

Table cloths:  I have three TWO table cloths left. The size is 250cm by 150cm. 100% pure cotton, a gorgeous heavy cotton. Everyone who has bought one has loved them.  $75 each. Postage $15 to anywhere in Australia.

This white painted timber framed mirror is a great size. It has a nice profile and has a strong hanging chain on the back. Dimensions are 102cm by 76cm $145

This little vintage stool has been painted in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Graphite (a lovely charcoal dark grey almost black) and has been recovered in a gorgeous Prints Charming fabric. Perfect for a little girl's room. Dimensions : 47 cm by 40 cm by 45cm tall. $65

I also will be doing something special with the gold frame I bought recently and will be listing that soon. In the mean time I still have the huge ornate gold mirror. Dimensions are: 100cm by 130cm. It is extremely heavy and well made. Lovely bevelled mirror. For sale $425.  

All items pick up from Lilyfield, Sydney, unless otherwise stated. If you are interested in any of the above, either email me or send me a message via facebook

cheers
Fiona xx

Paint Parade #5 - a furniture link party and features

Hi and welcome for the weekly Paint Parade. I'm getting back into painting now the school holidays have finished, and now I'm not coughing every two seconds.  I am looking forward to being inspired again this week by you all.

There were some lovely pieces linked up last week. I had slow internet down at Eden and it was impossible to comment on my iphone but I spent some time this week looking at and commenting on all the amazing furniture paint transformations. Thank you for taking the time to share your work.

This week I wanted to highlight these sweet French style bedside tables by Susan of Sunflower Hugs. I love the shape of these and the French country style that she has painted them. This is the sort of furniture that I am always on the look out for but it sells for a lot even unpainted in Australia. They are lovely Susan, well done.

I also loved this little side table by Hayley. The fret work on the table is so beautiful and the paint technique she has used is very similar to what my mother did on a cabinet in the 1960's. It has turned out beautifully Hayley and well worth the effort involved. Maybe one day your kids will be treasuring this like I do my mum's painted furniture.

Below is the furniture that my mum painted in a similar style. Good to see that this style of painting stands the test of time.

and the link most clicked on was The Weathered Door's Gauntlet Grey buffet  Yet another divine makeover by the talented Reeves.  I adore this makeover and I am so inspired by Reeve's beautiful work.

Now let's see what you have got. If you've got a facebook page or blog I'd love it if you could share this post and generate some more interest in this weekly link party.

Some logistics:

1. Please only link up furniture projects. Room reveals & built in furniture such as kitchens / bathrooms also count.
2. I'd love you to follow my blog
3. Please place my button from my sidebar or a link to my blog in your post.
4. Have fun. Be inspired. Visit other linked projects and leave some love.

Fiona xx

Painted French Console. Paris Grey with White Trim

I love that paint can transform this 

to this

The power of paint still amazes me (in the same way I love that flour can be transformed to bread, cakes and pastry). What can I say, I'm a fan of simple things!

I painted this lovely shaped French style console in Annie Sloan Paris Grey with some Pure White to highlight the details. I then distressed it and gave it a few coats of Clear Wax. I then sanded and buffed for a lovely sheen.

I think the painted details of this console are just very lovely and I'll be happy if this doesn't sell too quickly.  Dimensions are 1m wide by 80cm tall and 34cm wide. Send me an email if you are interested in purchasing it.

It was lovely to paint a piece of furniture that didn't give me any grief! It's been a tough few weeks with some tricky pieces, LOL.

The two glass decanters on the top of the console are vintage Kluk Kluk Decanters designed in the mid 1960s by Jacob E Bang for Danish designers Holmegaard. They are also called Glug Glug decanters, for the sound they make when pouring. They are hand blown and show the skill of a master glass-blower. Each column is hollow blown and there must have been a large failure rate where the upper part of the decanter collapsed. I had given the clear one to Mum and Max for their wedding and so when we were dividing everything back I brought it home. And then a few weeks ago Dad gave me the green one which had been his and Mum's (probably a wedding present for them also) and I had always loved it as a small girl so Dad thought I should have it also. It's funny how things happen like that. To have both of them here now together.  I've teamed them with a vintage soda syphon that was mum's. The clock was a birthday present from my sister in law (you can buy it at The Works or Bed Bath n Table) and the lavender is in a beautiful old pot I bought from Sandy of Paint Me White.  I could have sold this pot a hundred times over but I'm not parting with it. I love it too much.  The gumtree painting you see in one of the above photos is by artist John Downton. It's a little damaged and I've got to sort out how to fix it, hence it's out of it's frame. On my huge to do list.

Have a good day. 

Fiona xx

Shared here: My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Savvy Southern Style, Dedicated house, the 36th avenue, Miss Mustard Seed, Redoux interiors, French Country Cottage A Stroll thru life power of Paint My Repurposed Life Fabulous Furniture  Coastal Charm  transformation Thursday Shabby Nest Natasha in Oz

Life Lately

Last week I drove to Eden with the kids (and of course our travelling companion, Charlie our cavoodle) to meet up with my sisters and their kids for a little holiday. 

The countryside of the far south coast is so beautiful. We stopped at Tilba as we always do, to take photos of the sunset and dusk over the green field. This is the area where Hugh of River Cottage fame has bought a property for the Australian version of the show. You can see why - prime farming countryside.

There is something about the vivid green countryside that makes my heart soar and mind relax. 
Maybe because I know I'm nearing my home town.

Our time in Eden was lovely although Jonty and I spent most of time sick - a long way to drive to spend 3 days in bed.  We missed out on a whale watching trip and a rock hopping afternoon out at Haycock in Ben Boyd National Park but Sasha and her cousins and aunts had a great time.

I did drag myself down to the main beach one morning - I just had to take in some of this beauty before I headed back to Sydney.

and to the wharf and lookout

The view above used to be almost the same as the one out of my bedroom window for several years in my teens. Isn't it magnificent. I wish I had a view like that now!

Nothing like time with cousins for happy play.
lots of running, kicking footballs, nail salons, making movies, and laughter from these kids.

As is tradition, my step sister's mum came over one night to make gnocchi with all the kids. Man it was delicious.  Such good simple food.

It's great to see the kids so interested in the making of the gnocchi, well most of the girls anyway, the other kids had all gone on a hike along the beach and rocks so came back with a great appetite.

Next time I head home I'm going to make sure I don't get sick and miss out on most of the fun...

The kids are back to school this morning so I'd best get on with making the lunches and helping them shine their school shoes.

Fiona xx

Life is Butterful

About a year ago a neighbour gave me an old filing cabinet that had seen better days. I painted the outside in white paint and the drawer fronts with chalkboard paint and listed it for sale. 

It sold pretty quickly and Joni, and her fiancé Nick, came to pick it up. We got chatting about blogs and Joni said she had just started a food blog. I checked it out at the time and fell in love with her recipes, her styling and her photography. I've been meaning to share it with you ever since. Joni contacted me last week to see if I would be interested in hiring out some furniture for events and it prompted me to let you know about her beautiful blog.

Life is Butterful

Joni only blogs about once a fortnight but each post is definitely worth waiting for. A visual feast with recipes for an actual feast. She is one talented lady.

Joni is passionate about food styling and photography (you can hire her for freelance sessions) and also runs an event styling business,  Autumn Avenue.

I still haven't made it to the Grounds for lunch or even coffee, but looking at Joni's beautiful post about it I am definitely going to have to go soon and take my camera. Perhaps we should all have a meet up there together? Anyone else in Sydney who is interested in exploring it? We should make a date.

Delicious recipes for all occasions

This post about Nick's pancakes caught my eye when I first looked at Life is Butterful. I have a major thing for the union jack. I am inspired by Joni's layout and photography. So good to learn from watching what talented people do.

You can follow Joni on facebook here also.

I hope you enjoy hearing about other blogs that inspire me. I get blown away sometimes by the beauty of other people's creativity. It's so good to hear about people doing interesting things. I love the Internet for making that all so freely accessible.

If you have a blog that you'd love to share, either your own or someone else's, then please leave a link to it below in the comments.

Fiona xx

Paint Parade #4 - a furniture link party and features

Today I wanted to feature Restyled Vintage's coastal coffee table. Rachel Ashwell would be proud - check out that gorgeous photo below. I thought you might all be interested in how Karen achieves this weathered wood effect. It's quite different to the effect I used on this driftwood effect cabinet but it looks wonderful and definitely is a major improvement to orange pine! Karen loves all shades of green and I also love the soft minty green she has mixed for this table. See Karen's tutorial on how to turn orange pine into french willow grey if you want to recreate this look. 

I also love Alison's, from Rubylicious Bespoke, sideboard. Such a great look for a retro piece. She made her own chalk with bi-carb of soda. I'd be very interested to hear how this wears, especially if it gets wet. Alison, you'll have to let me know how it fares in a year!

So many great projects being linked up, I love seeing all your creations. Make sure you click through and see each others work, it sure is hard choosing features each week!

Now let's see what you have been up to. If you've got a facebook page or blog I'd love it if you could share this post and generate some more interest in this weekly link party.

Some logistics:

• Please only link up furniture projects. Room reveals & built in furniture such as kitchens / bathrooms also count.
• I'd love you to follow my blog
• Please place my button from my sidebar or a link to my blog in your post.
• Have fun. Be inspired. Visit other linked projects and leave some love.

Fiona xx

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