Collector

Can you imagine designing and building a house around the vintage items you had collected over a decade? Including kitchenware? I can. In fact, I dream of it... daily. Sadly, I have collected a total of four items that would make it onto my architectural blueprint, but this mind-blowingly beautiful Cornwall home, designed by Kathryn Tyler, is motivation enough to keep up my daily eBay trawl and stalkerish tendencies around Op Shops. You can read the full article on Kathryn's incredible home here.

Images via Dwell, Kathryn Tyler

Memory Lane

I've been feeling a little nostalgic lately; missing family, itching to travel and wishing my sons could play with their European cousins on demand. So when I started shuffling through some treasured cards and other stored memories, I came across our wedding invitations and was taken on a trip down memory lane. How life has changed since this lovely day! I thought you all might take some interest in the finer details of our day, so here goes...

We were married in the Loire Valley in France and were lucky enough to be able to hold the reception at my husband's family home. The invitations and maps I designed myself and had debossed on cotton card. I've always loved the whimsical feeling of different printed elements to an invitation, but we also had many lovely guests traveling from the UK and Australia to join us on the day, so a map was essential.

My husband's family home, La Grand Motte, in the quaint village of Ligny-Le-Ribault, made for the perfect woodland setting. Everything from the wine to the food to the flowers was sourced locally from Loiret producers and vendors. // Photographs Patrice Lariven Photographies.

A local from a nearby village owned this vintage Citroën 2CV. We literally approached him outside the Boulangerie the day before the wedding and offered him EUR50 for a ride from the church to the house. Here we are, still freaking out about the seating plan... // Photograph Patrice Lariven Photographies.

We drank French Champagne and feasted on local delicacies, most notably, a dessert buffet of Praline Gateaux, Tarte aux Framboise, Opera Cake and a tower of Macaron. We're pretty sure this is how parties go down in Heaven. The paper butterfly place cards I found at Etsy store Timeless Paper. The scene of 100 paper butterflies in the early evening light was truly beautiful. // Photographs Patrice Lariven Photographies.

I decided I'd be damned if I was going to endure the discomfort of heels on the day so opted for custom-made ballet flats by artisan shoe makers Salvio's instead. They were butter-soft, fit like a glove and kept me on the dance floor til 4am. My dress was sublime beaded chiffon, custom couture by Karen Willis Holmes. // Photographs Patrice Lariven Photographies.

This is us filled with joy - and relief that no one tripped... or objected. This remarkable photo, our most treasured from the day, was taken by our dear friend and talented photographer Laurent Faucher.

A Good Vintage

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I love a vintage vibe in a home. An eclectic mix of old and new finds, with interesting tales of travel, bygone eras and urban thrifting legend. I'm currently obsessed with Midwinter Pottery and am waiting for a new addition to arrive after a recent eBay success. I'm also super impressed with the mid-century inspired Winter Collection from Freedom, they have really nailed the colours and shapes. Oh, and knitted cacti? Definitely.

Lately

It's been a busy start to the year at Casa M&K - Note: moving house over Christmas is not recommended. But there's nothing like a new home to breathe life into all your old belongings, to fall in love with them all over again in new spots, on new walls and in new configurations you never thought possible. The boys' bedrooms have enjoyed the most attention so far, undoubtedly because they're the most fun of all the rooms to decorate. I'm still enamored with the heirloom rug crocheted by my Mother, so much so that I'm planning on putting in an order for another - 'kay, Mum? Other heirloom items I plan to never be apart from include the kooky animal prints by Ryan Berkley and Finders Keepers flyer print by the lovely and most talented Andrea Smith. While our new home has carpet that I find somewhat "disagreeable" (is it wrong to put rugs on carpet?), there is much about our new space that I love, and much that is still evolving. Stay tuned. 

Colour Code: In Rainbows

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As much as I'm mesermised by all the monochrome interiors sweeping the interwebz at the moment, I must admit, I'm a magpie for colour. I've always loved pops of it around the home but lately I've been craving more generous helpings. Why are there so many songs about rainbows? Because they're just so dang irresistible.

Found

I've been finding some cute things around the traps at the moment and, as all the colours play together so nicely, I felt they deserved some air time. The uber cute trainers I found at MUJI and they have become a fast favourite - so comfy and the washed-out salmon pink just seems to work with everything. I found the amazing beach-retro gift cards at the Manly Art Gallery & Museum in Sydney. If you're ever in Manly, make sure you drop in - well worth a visit for all the vintage goodness on display. I plan to frame these beauties as a quartet. The kraft paper trains are another MUJI find and come in a flat, pop-out booklet of 6 different automobiles (Note: the construction of these is pretty advanced so be prepared to put your model-making hat on. But the end results are all superb.) I thrifted the old wooden house blocks, which make up a little scene of Venice. This is just a few of them here. Divine. The charm bracelet is one that was given to me on my 7th birthday, and I've recently adorned it with these beautiful script initial charms from Palas - the initials of my sons. The chocolate, by most excellent choc-conoisseurs/Fair Trade champions Alter Eco, is my current favourite, and not just for its conscious creation and fabulous packaging. Dark chocolate and crispy quinoa? Definitely.

Etsy Scout: Flavor of the Month

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Scouting around the limitless time-sucker that is Etsy today and I found myself adding all things ice cream hued to my never-ending list of favourites. Oh, and a little wooden toy camera that was just too lovely to leave out here.