Covering a lamp shade

I visited Signature Prints again over the weekend. The store now has a large wall-mounted rack with all the different wallpaper rolls hanging from it. So lovely to see the entire wallpaper collection in this way.

This is the best photo I could take of the shimmery gold outline of the wallpaper I mentioned last week

I picked up a large off cut of fabric some of which I used to cover this old lamp originally in my son's room and some of which I will use for another project. I followed this tutorial by olive & joy but I cheated and covered straight over the original shade instead of starting with a new base.

It is really quick and simple to do and a nice way of updating old lamps I think.

How was your weekend? Did you work on any projects around the home?

Tulle desk skirt

I have been toying with the idea of a tulle skirt for the desk in the study ever since I came across the photos of the Faire Frou Frou store I posted about a little while back.

Inspiration: Tulle curtains

In my mind the desk is covered in a layer of ivory fabric with tulle sewn around the bottom in ivory and pale pink layers and the desk topped with mirrored glass with beveled edges.

And then I saw Anna's office desk of Absolutely Beautiful Things and was blown away.




Black would ordinarily seem like a heavy colour to choose but in her light and airy office surrounded in white, the desk appears to be floating.

P.S. I am really enjoying the eye candy now that Anna has opened up shop again. Check it out.

(Images Absolutely Beautiful Things)

How to hang wallpaper

Thank you so much for your lovely comments on the wallpaper in my study! A few people wanted to see a step-by-step of the process so here it is. Please excuse the quality of the photos. My camera doesn't take very nice photos at night and I did work on this until quite late in the evening.

First I should start by saying that wallpaper hanging is not difficult but it is fiddly and it takes some practise and patience to do a good job of it so I suggest starting with small projects to get the hang of it before tackling larger jobs.

What you will need
Wallpaper
Tape measure
Level
Wallpaper paste
Pencil
Squeegie
Paint roller and tray
Small paint brush (to brush on extra glue if you didn't put enough or need to touch up areas)
Cutting knife
Bucket for paste
Wet sponge
Seam roller to smooth down the seams of the wallpaper (I didn't have one)
Ruler with a guard


Step 1: Prepare the wallpaper paste

I did this step first because the wallpaper paste I purchased came in a powder form that you mix with cold water and leave to set for 30 minutes. I believe you can purchase preprepared wallpaper paste.


Step 2: Check your walls

Fill in any holes, remove power point covers or other things on the wall and clean with warm water.

Step 3: Mark the wall for the first strip

Measure the width of your wallpaper and subtract approximately 2 inches. Take this measurement and use your level and pencil to mark a line where your first strip will be hung on the wall from ceiling to floor. You want to have about 2 inches of extra paper on all sides of the wall to make hanging easier. You will cut these extra bits when you finish hanging.


Step 4: Measure your paper

Measure the height of your wall. Lay down your first strip of paper and cut the length adding 2 inches to the top and bottom. Line up the pattern of your next strip and cut it as well adding 2 inches top and bottom. Repeat for all strips. I measured all strips first and numbered the back of the paper so that I could quickly tell which order they had to be hung in.



Step 5: Paste your paper

Lay your paper pattern side down and use a roller to paste the entire back of it with a thin layer of paste. There are some papers on the market that allow you to paste directly onto the wall so please check what kind of paper you have.


Step 6: Hang your paper

Line up your first strip with the pencil mark on the wall. Start from the top (leaving 2 inches extra from the top and side for the first strip) and smooth with your hand. As you work down from the top, check it still lines with the pencil mark and keep smoothing. Use a squeegie to remove any air bubbles as you work down. Keep working down to the bottom of the wall smoothing with your hand, then squeegie and so on to make sure you have removed all air bubbles.

Don't worry if glue seeps out the sides of the paper. You can wipe it off with a wet sponge (for most papers).


TIP: If there is a power point on the wall, switch the power off, remove the cover, lay the paper over it and cut out a hole to thread the power through. Then replace the cover again to hide the hole.

Step 7: Repeat Steps 5 & 6 for all strips

The trickiest part of this process I think is making sure the seam and patten lines up as close to each other as possible. It does take some practise so don't be afraid to lift part of the paper before it dries to re-do if it doesn't work the first time. Use your hand to slide the paper across, up, down to get it to line up as best as possible.

Step 8: Cut the edges

Wait until the paste dries a little otherwise you may rip the paper. Use a ruler with a guard and a utility knife and cut off the excess paper from all sides of the wall - top, bottom, left and right.

Step 9: You're done!


So that's what I did in a nutshell. I am not a professional hanger so if you have any suggestions for doing any of these steps better please feel free to leave it in the comments. There are lots of great videos around that I found helpful too.

Hanging wallpaper

I can cross one project off the list - hang wallpaper in the study. I worked on it over the weekend. I started at 8pm after Robert had gone to sleep and finished it at 1am. 5 hours.

Although I think I could have finished it earlier if I hadn't been distracted by the contents of the refrigerator.


This room also stores a lot of Robert's toys and there is this bookcase on the other side of the room. I have a few ideas for this space which I will keep you updated on as it is by no means finished.


What do you think of the pattern? I was a little nervous at first but I'm really happy it and in the mornings, the sun catches the gold outlines of the flowers and really brings it to life. I wish I could capture it in photos to show you.

Would you be interested in a little step-by-step of the hanging process?

P.S. If you would like to see a before photo of the room please see here.

Fashion Friday: Contrast

These shots were taken last weekend and if you are a Flickr friend of mine you might have already seen them. I also managed to take a photo of my son and I and it a new favourite of mine even though it is blurry.

The timer was set and in the last few seconds he quickly sat beside me, smiled, "click" and then he was off running about the house again. It is hard to get a good photo of us because he is always on the move and I will treasure this one.

I wore the outfit with flats because let's face it heels + toddlers = high probability of sprained ankles. Especially ones as high as these! I liked the velvet ribbon in my hair and might wear it more often just for something different. The white dress is the full version of the skirt I have worn in this photo and this one.

Thank you for your lovely comments and emails this week and have a fabulous weekend. Enjoy!