Another Project

Ok, here is my latest project: recovering a pair of BEAUTIFUL vintage chairs I picked up at an auction earlier this week. The chairs themselves were already amazing, but look how incredibly they turned out once I re-upholstered the seats!!!....

Seriously, how could I resist these? Of course I was so excited to re-do the seats, I had already taken off the old, rotting, needlepoint fabric that used to be on them by the time I realized I should have taken a photo. But here's a shot of the old fabric...

It's kinda old an cute, but totally gross and filthy, so out it went!

Be sure to swing by Relish to have an up-close-and-personal look at these chairs!

New Vintage in the Shop!

Guess what? I've been vintage hunting this past week, and have found some really great treasures that are in stock at Relish right now. I've only included a few here - if you want to see the rest, visit my online shop at Relish Vintage which includes photos of pretty much all my vintage.

I mean, seriously, what can I say except hand painted yellow and orange flowers?!

Possibly the coolest barware set I've got in the shop right now.

Except, of course, for this one, which is a very close second!

This is only a small sample of the awesome new vintage in the shop, so come by and have a look. And I will warn you, I'm on a shopping expedition this weekend, so be prepared for even more great finds next week!

And just in case you haven't seen this table yet, I just had to include it - refinished by yours truly!



Back to the Garden...

Have I ever mentioned how much I love all those alleyways in the old parts of Hamilton?

I'm lucky enough to live in a neighbourhood that has these alleys between every single street - they're just so charming and quiet. This photo was taken just down the alleyway at the back of my house. One of my favourite things...

And back to the garden - as it turns out with clematis, the third year really IS the charm. This plant has looked VERY unhappy ever since I've planted it, but this year it just came right up and started growing and put out these stunning flowers. They are literally glowing they're so bright. Amazing!

And these yellow daisy-like flowers were some of the first blooms in my garden this year. So cheerful!

Busy Weekend...

Such a great and busy weekend - Art Crawl and Open Streets all in one!

Art Crawl was a great night, and the weather even co-operated!

And Bertha spend Saturday hanging out with the neighbour's kitten....

And me and Ilya and Bertha worked very hard all day (enjoying the sunshine and festivities) at Open Streets on Sunday. Phew!

New Art!

Well I just have to gush about the latest additions to our ongoing collection of Hamilton artwork....

Ilya accidentally did some shopping at Mixed Media last week and came home with the new Paul Elia print below (find out more about his Hamilto Strip work here). We LOVE his images, and this one speaks to us because it's of Locke Street - our 'hood!! It's so cool the way these are just a snapshop in time. There's already at least one new storefront on Locke since this was taken.

And just the day before buying this, Ilya came home (finally!) with this painting of the Pigott Building by Amy Kenny that he won at last year's Timeraiser (which is an awesome event, by the way, so be sure to check it out!). Let me tell you, we've been waiting for this one to come home for a LONG time. So excited!

Thank you Hamilton artists - you're the best!

Tea Treats

Well now that I'm all set up at Relish, I get to really make myself at home and move in a couple of my teacups. Believe it or not, I 've been very excited for this moment ever since I found out I'd be getting a shop of my very own! I know, it sounds very granny-esque, but I do have a weakness for teacups. Probably has a lot to do with being British/Irish.

And here a British secret: tea in a teacup ALWAYS tastes better than any other way. I'm serious. It's a tried-and-tested theory!

Relish Has Taken Over The Sidewalk!

In an attempt to spread some summer sunshine and cheer, I've started to take over the sidewalk here at Relish. I was able to finish painting and planting my flower box last week, despite the chilly weather....

....and (weather permitting) I've have some of my lovely furniture pieces spilling out onto the sidewalk.

Now doesn't that just look so nice and welcoming? So if you're walking by on James or on Cannon, swing by to say hello and admire the flowers!