This day I love.......: Paint

If you follow me over on Instagram you will know that I have not been very well this past week. In fact the house has been full of lurgy! So much so that Saturday evening saw Little Man rushed to hospital with breathing problems. The problem when you are a parent and you are poorly is that you still have to take care of the tiny humans you have responsibility for. When there are 3 of them to entertain, each with different needs it can be extra tricky.

First port of call for the youngest two was trying to make me feel better. This obviously involved listening to my heart beat and checking my temperature. Little man seemed to shove all the medical tools into my ear, which didn't help matters.

After my check up I really needed a little bit of peace and quiet. Lets face it I wasn't feeling well to start with and a 2 year old performing a check up who is not the most delicate did not seem to help matters. Entertaining 3 children and keeping them quiet can be tricky but I found a solution. Mess free painting!

Little Brian paint sticks provided mess free painting and kept all three children quiet. Win all round. The paint sticks were perfect even for Little Man to hold and he had no issues twisting the paint up to use. There is no need for brushes or water, so nothing to clean up and no accidents to spill. Even better they are non toxic and wipe off glass and wooden tables easily [don't ask how I know].

With the colours drying really quickly creativity began flowing and the children were busy with their masterpieces. The colours really bold and vivid and dried the same way too.

I managed to get some quiet time and the children got to spend some time using their imaginations and creativity. Even better there was no mess to clean up afterwards, except a quick table wipe were Little Man had got very creative.

The Little Brian paint sticks have been a huge hit all around and I can see us using them a lot more and not just when I am poorly!

The paint sticks were sent for review, all words are my own opinion

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When I told my husband I wanted to wallpaper all the walls in the front room he was not too keen on the idea. He was worried the room would look too dated and too dark. His other concern was finding a paper that was good quality so that it covered the rough walls underneath. The previous owners had left the walls in our house in a real mess, and to paint them would have involved finding someone to plaster them.

As it happened the chimney became damaged in the high winds recently causing rain water to leak down the chimney and damage all the ceilings underneath, the whole ceiling needed plastering and the chimney repairing. After finding a local tradesman on myjobquote.co.uk we had the repair work carried out and could begin decorating.

I chose a wallpaper from Graham and Brown which had a subtle shimmer pattern to it. The pattern keeps in theme with the rest of the house, but my husband was still unsure how it would look having all the walls, except around the fireplace, wallpapered. The Wallpaper is such that the pattern appears in the light, but when the room is in shade the paper appears plain, as if the walls have been painted. This is fantastic as we have given the room a new lease of life and by choosing a subtle pattern create a new feel to the room dependant on the time of day. To compliment the wallpaper we painted the fireplace in Dimity from Farrow and Ball. Whilst this is the same colour as the walls in the nursery the colour of the paint looks much more silver, perhaps this is due to the silver in the paper reflecting.

The wallpaper choice also meant that thanks to the pattern it can be used for a feature wall. To do this we painted the walls in silver feather from Johnstones paint, the almost white colour of the paint helps to bring out the pattern on the paper more than the same paper in the front room. This then creates more of a feature of the wallpaper in our bedroom.

The use of wallpaper in a room can give it a different meaning dependant on what it is teamed up with. Whilst the paper is the same in both our bedroom and the front room, the feel is very different. Our bedroom is much more relaxing and whilst the front room also feels relaxing it has a warming and calming property to it. I simply love how you can create a different feel to a room using the same materials but in a different way.

This post has been something I have wanted to write for a while. I have included some links I think maybe of use.

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We are very lucky that when we found out we were expecting Thing3 that we had enough bedrooms. It did mean that I had to give up my office, but this has now been relocated. My office walls were decorated recently in Graham and Brown wallpaper and it was decided that rather than removing the paper we would instead paint over the top to brighten up the room.

I wanted to keep the nursery neutral as we do not know if Thing3 is male or female and I settled on Ammonite and Dimpse, from Farrow and Ball, for the walls. These colours both have soft natural hints to them and as this is a little room I thought it would be perfect for adding in light. Dimpse has a subtle grey tone to it and Ammonite has more a natural fossil colour. I felt the two would compliment each other really well.

I was really pleased that the paint covered the walls well and only needed one coat. Farrow and Ball paint has a real luxurious touch to it, which you can see when you paint. I wanted to ensure a good coverage over the wallpaper and therefore Farrow and Ball was the paint of choice. In certain lights the walls change colour slightly, with the feature wall becoming darker and the other walls becoming closer to white and then sometimes grey. I think it depends on the light from the window and if in natural light or artificial light. I love these subtle changes to the room. The room feels really warm and welcoming, and the natural tones on the walls add a calming effect to the room.

The carpet in the room was the original black carpet from when we moved in. This has been in need of replacing for some time and converting the space into a nursery seemed the optimum moment to do so. I settled for a hardwood floor, as it is much easier to keep clean, plus it is then in keeping with the rest of the house. Once the flooring had been laid it was a case of adding in the furniture.

The room has a fitted wardrobe, so all that was needed was a cot and chest of drawers. The drawers I already had, and the cot we painted from a second had cot which I bought online. I made sure it met all current safety standards and had the required stamps before purchasing. It looks brand new and I am so pleased with it.

There was originally a sofa in my office and I decided to keep this in the nursery for night feeds. We all love superheroes in our house and I thought this, along with Dr Seuss would be perfect for the theme for the nursery. I came across a batman cushion online and knew the second I saw it that it had to be in the nursery.

I had had a canvas shopping bag which the handles broke from Cosatto and by sticking velcro in the top I converted it to a cushion cover. Perfect for the nursery. The sofa has been used to create a reading corner. We have a real love for books and reading in our house and we are hoping Thing3 develops this same love. As this is only a small room I purchased a tidy books book case in white to help display all the wonderful books for Thing3. The girls both have tidy book cases which I have also purchased for them and they take up very little floor space, along with giving easy access to the books.

The girls have their scan pictures displayed on the walls in their bedrooms, and I found the hanging frame in Asda in the sale. It is the perfect size for adding scan pictures to.

The reading corner is finished with my beautiful wooden print from Imprify, which of course is of the girls in their superhero costumes.

I would love a superhero themed rug and blind to go in the nursery but have not yet managed to find one, but these can be added once Thing3 arrives.

I really love the nursery and the way the room has transformed from my office to a room filled with love ready for Thing3 arrival.

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I cannot tell you how happy I am at the minute. It feels like our bedroom makeover has gone on for most of the year, and I guess in many ways it has, At the start of the year we began the design process. Initially wanting a walk in wardrobe and then opting instead for full length wardrobes. We are so happy with this design choice as it gave us much more space. I wrote a post in October which walks you through the room and you can read it here.

For the past few months we have been waiting on paint delivery and decorator availability but finally this week they all came together. We purchased the paint used, except the paint for the wood work and used Wall paper which was left from an earlier project [a post to follow shortly]. I had intended the wallpaper to be used this way and we had just enough with no rolls left over.

One length of the room is the modern black gloss wardrobes. These in themselves are very powerful in the room and draw your attention towards them. However my husband and I felt that the opposite wall needed an extra something to compliment the wardrobes and we decided upon a feature wall.

We created a feature wall using paper from Graham and Brown and the design Spring blossom Mist. We wanted a design that was not too complicated but yet had a special touch to it. We also like paper that changes. By this I mean that it looks different dependant upon the light and where are you stood when you look at it.

I was looking forward to the challenge of wallpapering however the bump prevented me doing so and so we used a decorator. He did comment on the quality of the paper and estimated that it would be around £30 a roll, actually it is £12. The quality of the paper is stunning and the metallic patterns add a real touch of luxury. I love how the wallpaper works with the wardrobe and the blind without over complicating the room. The oak of the furniture really brings out the metallic sections within the paper.

We have kept the ceiling and coving white and chosen Silver Feather from Johnstones for the remaining two walls. Silver feather in daylight looks almost white but at night has a darker silver colour to it. The walls join the wardrobes so the colour needed to be light to offset the black of the wardrobe doors. Too dark and the room would have felt very enclosed. Instead of painting the wood work white we opted for Mesmerise from Johnstones paints. A bright white would have been too contrasting against the grey and silver tones in the room and we have found with two small children in the house show up the dirt far too quickly.

The whole bedroom has a real luxury feel to it, but we managed to achieve this using products without the luxury price tag. Silver, black and grey runs through the room as the theme and all the furniture is oak, The colour of the oak compliments the colour scheme and adds warmth into the room. You can see my design inspirations here

The room has been totally transformed and I love how the room feels different in day light than at night time.

With special thanks to:

Graham and Brown - for providing the wallpaper Spring Blossom Mist

Johnstones Paint - Mesmerise Wood paint and Silver Feather Matt wall paint

JYSK - Silkeborg Super king-size bed, bedside tables and chest drawers

Kilner Joinery - Wardrobes

Web blinds - Roman blinds

Lighting Majestic - table lights

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It has been a busy week this week for Thing 3. Last week the paint from Farrow and Ball arrived for the nursery and we are hoping to paint before Christmas. I ordered some flooring from Factory direct flooring and was really surprised when I had a phone call saying it was in stock and I could have it delivered the next day! We haven't yet unboxed the flooring as I cannot lift the boxes but as soon as we have painted we will be putting the flooring down. Things are slowly taking shape in the nursery. All we need in there now is a rug, which I am on the look out for. After Christmas I will be making a video room tour of the finished nursery which I am really looking forward to sharing.

Perfect Prep - Tommee tippee

The perfect prep from tommee tippee offers convenience for making formula milk. A hot shot kills any bacteria, followed by cooler water to make the perfect bottle in under 2minutes. I can see the perfect prep to be a life saver for those night time feeds. I attended the launch of the perfect prep a few years ago and was really impressed with it then. I remember at the time that it would be on the top of my wish list should we ever have another baby. I am really looking forward to putting the perfect prep to the test when Thing 3 arrives.

Mama Baby Bliss

Mama Baby Bliss offer nurturing and pamper products for Mums to be and their babies. They have a full range of classes including baby massage and baby yoga and also offer pamper parties. I received a sample of their 100% natural skin products to help soothe and relax.

At the moment I am in a great deal of pain and so sleeping is a huge issue. The Mama Baby Bliss products have been a little bit of a life saver for me. I can have a nice relax to help ease some of the pain I am in, which helps me to unwind. Whilst I am not a sleep those few minutes to myself are really helping.

The Ooooh Bath soak is really relaxing and it contains essential oils which will help after birth too. There is a wide range of products available both for antenatal and postnatal and some can be used on baby too.

Thank you Mama Baby Bliss for helping to relieve some of the pain I have been feeling recently.

Others

Finally this week I want to say a big thank you to my friends! My best friend has kindly given me a Moses basket and stand, changing mat and some clothes. This is amazing as now Thing 3 has somewhere to sleep when they arrive. One of my other friends kindly donated a play mat and another a baby chair. I feel really lucky to have such amazing friends and feel things are slowly coming together for Thing 3.

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