Puke-fest happiness rant.

Sorry to brag, and you may dis-agree but I think my fella is the best-est ever.
I don't normally talk about my relationship on this blog, I stick to less personally and more arty stuff usually... but you need to know how awesome he is. OK?

This man is seriously amazaballs and if I were to list all the perfect things about him it would make you puke. And that would be gross so please resist the urge for the remainder of this post. :)

Mark and I have had a really awesome 12 months together, it's flown by. In a good way, and I'm already looking forward to the next. We took some time out of life to go on a day trip to the beach this weekend past, a chilled out day of strolling, eating ice cream, vintage shopping and just enjoying each others company. It's a well known fact that it's very easy to enjoy Marks company, he's just so darn easy to get along with!

Last week at work I received this ENORMOUS bunch of flowers from him.. what a legend! I think having a florist Mum has helped give him an understanding of how much ladies love flowers :)
Ok, ok, puke-inducing post over! Thanks for listening, I'm off to gaze adoringly at Mr Mark as he practices the sax-a-ma-phone (said in a Homer Sipmson esque voice).
XSteph

Spring is in the air

At last. Spring is in the air and it's bringing a spring to my step along with it.
We are still having our fair share of cool, rainy days but with the occasional beauty thrown in the mix I'm not complaining.

Our chilly town is defrosting and coming out of hibernation and so am I.
This past weekend has been full of all stages of the gardening process, sowing seed, potting-on seedlings, fertilising veggie patches and preparing to build window boxes.

As well as that I have been building the mother of all display cabinets for the many little bits and pieces of vintage and antiques I love... I can't wait to share some pics but I'm saving them until the process is finished.

Spring is such a productive sort of time don't you think? It seems to take ages to show up, and then 'boom' it's all go!

It's not only the garden which is enjoying some long planned invigoration but this weekend we had a huge day of Spring cleaning at home too. Little by little my dinky house is feeling fresher and cleaner and prettier. One project at a time, each DIY getting me closer to the vision of loveliness I know this quirky little home has been hiding under years of neglect.

A hello from the Motherland

Hello!

In case you were wondering where I had disappeared to I am currently sitting at my Aunts kitchen table in England. I have been thinking about this little blog and dying to share what I have been up to but as my lovely fella has pointed out... I can blog any day, but it's been 7 years since I saw my family and that's waaay more important.
Of course, he is right and you will be very proud to hear I haven't checked the work email account once! (Don't worry, Marcia is still there holding the fort, more capable hands than mine that's for certain.)

What I have been doing is geeking out at ancient stone circles and burial mounds, whizzing around tiny country lanes, gobbling up formation on Roman built structures and drinking lots and lots of tea.

We have been blessed with the most AMAZING weather, after weeks of rain Britain has finally busted out the most magnificent sunshine, there is something so perfect about an English summers day that I just can't describe.

I have been immersed in memories as well as new experiences, I never realised how all my senses would be stimulated by coming 'home'. England smells so different... so fresh and 'green' and the soft sounds of British birds are taking me back to my childhood. And the colour... well, lets just say my kinfolk know how to use flowers... I am overwhelmingly inspired to create window boxes, hanging baskets and cascades of flowers and colour when I get home.

It's so hard not to bombard you with photos so I have selected some moments from the past few days that have been a real highlight. I shall check in when I can, after starting in the Southern county of Somerset, today we head North to my hometown, via Sherwood Forest near Nottingham. My Mum is waiting with 7 years worth of motherly love.

Wherever you are, stay well, stay cool (or warm) and plant flowers!

X Steph

Floral Friday 2.

Ok, so I know it's no longer Friday but I haven't quite got the hang of scheduling posts yet!
 Following on from last weeks Floral Friday I will be showing you how to use readily available blooms to produce on-trend floral displays giving you some hints and tips along the way.

This weeks design trend is SUCCULENTS.
Succulents are popping up everywhere in garden and floral design, from informal centerpieces to bridal bouquets.

Alongside the blooms and foliage I used last week I also cut some succulents from my little garden to make this cute, textural display

A handy little trick to keeping strong forms within small arrangements is to make little posies, tying them in place them with string or ribbon. By allowing these little bows to show you can also add interest and texture to your arrangements.

  

 I used jute twine to secure the succulents, and using short stems of flowers I made a 'dome' shape which I also tied. Pop these little arrangements into your vase or jar ( I used a sweet little milk jug) and make sure there are no spaces. A snugly packed arrangement will draw attention to the forms you have created rather than the spaces between them, in the same manner keeping to a simple mono-chromatic palette (in this case shades of green) will highlight shape over colour.

 Finish the arrangement with a little bow of ornamental grass around the vessel.
With smaller arrangements you will need to top the water up more frequently, so keep an eye on your display and you can enjoy it for at least a week. Once the other blooms fade you can pop the succulents in well drained soil and they will grow for future arrangements!
X Steph

Floral Friday 1

Welcome to Floral Friday!

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing with you some hints and tips in floral design and arrangement. I adore having fresh flowers around my home as well as in the gallery and shop. In this series of 3 tutorials I will show you how to use three bunches of store-bought blooms to create three different looks, demonstrating three different floral design trends. I will also be sharing some simple hints and tricks to make the whole task a little easier!

TREND 1 : Colour clusters.

For want of a better word I'm describing this trend as 'colour clustering'. In researching this project I had a lot of fun making a very inspiring pinboard on my Pinterest and I think these images I pinned demonstrates this trend beautifully.

(See Pinterest board for image sources)

Traditional arrangements often spread colours and blooms throughout an arrangement, interspersing them with other blooms and colours. This trend sees blooms of the same type and colour clustered together, often graduating in tones (purples spreading into pinks, morphing into whites, growing into greens).

This type of arrangement is high-impact and really allows the colour and texture of each bloom to shine.

Gather your supplies:

You will need....

Some cute vessels, mason jars are all the rage and make excellent vases, raid the china hutch and select vessels with pattern, colour and texture for an on-trend display.

You will also need some secateurs or sharp and strong scissors.

Jute twine or string is handy and adds texture, while stickytape is my top tip for larger displays.

Flowers - I chose chrysanthemums in magenta and vibrant green as well as some velvety sliver foliage (I think it's silverbeet!) to mix it up a little.

 Prepare your vessel.

I wrapped my huge jar in jute twine using a bit of stickytape to secure it. This adds interest to the vase as well as hiding any unsightly bits that might fall into the water through its lifespan. A variation on this might be to use ribbon or ricrac.

Next, using your sticky tape, create a grid over the top of the vessel. (Thin tape is better but I was all out.) Inserting your blooms into the grid will hold them exactly where you want them and stop them flopping all over the place.

Adding a bit of sugar, or bleach to the water will help your blooms last longer, as will keeping them in a cool spot. Strip off any leaves that might sit in the water as this will make it yucky and cut your blooms to length at an angle, this will help them soak up water and removes any stem with air bubbles inside it.

Add your stems in layers with flowers that will sit lower in the arrangement first adding each type of flower at a time.

 After tweaking, turning leaves and adjusting blooms I added some structural loops of an ornamental grass that grows in my garden and sat back with a cup of tea to enjoy my new floral display. It's now 3 days later and they still look as great as when I first made them!

X Steph

Fresh Faced Online Space!

You may have noticed that we have been featuring heaps more DIY's lately. That's because we have been super-inspired lately to make more of this online space... to not only share our own passions, hobbies and creativity's but to inspire others to do the same.
You may also have noticed our new lay-out, although our posts will still be listed chronologically, the aim is to make past-posts more accessible and to allow you to brows the blog more like a magazine. So, that's what we are calling it... the Red Brick Magazine!

We will be featuring content on art, craft, fun projects to try at home, our take on fashion and beauty as well as content from local creative people we know and love. I can't wait to share with you all the exciting articles we have coming up and we are working hard to get it to you fresh off the virtual press!
Here is a sneak peek at what we have coming up!

Who doesn't love flowers? Tomorrow is Floral Friday when we will be beginning our series on floral design. We will be sharing with you hints and tips for successful arrangements as well as looking at contemporary trends. Over the next 3 weeks you can expect 3 ways to arrange the same 3 flowers.
I will also be doing more work on our pizza oven so stay tuned for the next step towards yummy wood-fired pizza!
It's a brisk 8 degrees in Ballarat today so stay warm!
Love Steph.

A perfect season

I love an Australian Autumn. The season brings it's share of cold, blustery and rainy days but there are some gems in there too. Those clear, blue-skied, sunny days that are just perfect in every way, warm enough for shorts and tshirts but no need to crack out the sunscreen.
Being from a colder climate I call the season here 'English Summer'. This year I am excited to be having two summers, and Australian and an English one... Well, at least part of one.
It's been six and a half years since I migrated here and it feels like a lifetime... In a good way. But I am still inspired by my British roots in so many forms, my mother is the worlds most amazing gardener. With the greenest of thumbs and much hard work she fed our whole family on home-grown, organic fare... Year round. Twenty years before it became trendy, back in the days when growing organic food was considered mildly nutty!
This perfect season has inspired me to do some serious work in the garden before the ground gets cold and the days too soggy.
At the Red Brick we love our Secret Garden, a magical and tiny courtyard surrounded by huge red brick walls, coated in wisteria, ivy, rambling rose and jasmin it's an absolute sun-trap in winter and a shady haven in summer. We were lucky enough to inherit an established and beautiful garden from the previous inhabitants and it's my all-time favourite spot for cups of tea, chatting with friends and nurturing its flowers, succulents and mosses. These past few weeks I have been a busy little bee building a new picket gate, laying red brick pathways, sowing, pruning, feeding and mulching.

One of the best parts of being in this part of town is our neighbours. We have built a great and supportive network on our little corner and are always there to help eachother out. There is a little stretch of dirt which joins the rear of the buildings shops and homes and we are beginning to create a shared garden space where we can relax on summery evenings, grow veggies and pretty stuff and share a wood-fired pizza or two!
This past weekend myself and my enlisted helper Mark have been mixing concrete and laying bricks begining 'project pizza oven'. We are using recycled red bricks from Marcias renovations at her Victorian cottage and Im a true sucker for free materials. We have a long way to go, but a few more afternoons of work and we should be there... Let me know if you need an invite to the Red Brick pizza night! X Steph

Flower love.

I adore flowers. As well as enjoying nurturing our pretty garden here at Red Brick I love having fresh flowers in the gallery so you can imagine how delighted I was when a talented lady we know asked if she could provide a floral display for us!
Rachael is an accomplished artist who as well as exhibiting has made a beautiful picture book. Recently Rachael began working at a local florist and has fallen in love with flora... I, in turn, have fallen in love with her floral creations which, just like her drawing style are beautifully classic and elegantly simple.

 Over cups of tea and candle-light (very romantic I know!) Rachel and I had a really fun consultation session where we discussed colours, textures and light. Knowing our passion for window displays Rachael suggested building a window installation.

Taking the brief of  'feminine, ephemeral and un-fussy' I couldn't be happier with how well Rachel used simple elements to create strong shapes alongside pretty blooms and textures.

 I LOVE what she created for us! Rachael is working at Stems florist in Ballarat... tell her we said hi!