Fresh fonts

Just when you think you're over a fashion – as I did with the trend for typographical art – along come some new ones you just can't resist.

Oh, and (in the case of "gin" down below) some oldies that just don't fade.

I'd quite like this quote from Coco Chanel to be the first thing I see when I wake up. It's by illustrator Ros Shiers and costs just £20 (A3 size) from A Little Bit of Art.

La Di Dada is by Robert Rubbish. Kinda joyful isn't it? £50, also from A Little Bit of Art. 

Try looking at this without singing along. Go on. This comes printed on recycled board, using one of the last-remaining vintage Heidleberg letter presses. It costs £38 (A3 size), made by Wasted and Wounded Letterpress and available from Made By Hands of Britain. They do Bob Dylan and the Beatles too – look.  

I've long loved the simple message on this print by Robert Rubbish (see above). £50 (48cm x 64cm) from A Little Bit of Art. You could also try the lovely Outline Editions, which sells it in black; they have all sorts of other goodies by exciting illustrators on sale too. It's where I bought my cherished tower block squirrel print by Claire Scully.

Another good message, strengthened by the simple illustration, that would be good in a child's room (unlike, of course, "Drink More Gin"). Start em thinking as you hope they'll go on etc. It's 40cm x 50cm (nice standard Ikea frame size...), is printed on heavy paper and there are only 100 of each colour (yellow, blue and black) and costs £47.50. Find it at the Keep Calm gallery.

And why say "bye" when you can say "hi"? 40cm x 50cm print also from the Keep Calm Gallery – and a snip at just £20.

Introducing... Gaelle Monin and her lovely home

The stylish Gaelle Monin and I e-bonded over a shared love of Bjorn Wiinblad ceramics (see below). I featured a wall plaque (from the wonderful Pip's Trip on the blog a while back and Gaelle dropped me a line to say she was watching a couple on eBay – and, by the way, "nice blog". Which is always great to hear. 

So I was delighted when, a couple of months after that email, Gaelle got back in touch to say she'd started her own blog, Nice Day 4 A Sulk (in case you don't recognise the reference, it's lyrics from a Belle and Sebastian song). The blog shares her discoveries of loveable stuff she comes across, as well as snaps of her new and gorgeous done-on-a-budget home as she continues to decorate it. I've loved watching her chart her progress, and so asked her to share photos of and words about some of her finished corners and rooms here (and keep reading for her shopping tips, below).

I love clever details like the unexpected kitchen-style clock in the bathroom, clashy bedclothes and artfully positioned framed pictures. And I really now want some Papier d’Arménie!

Sitting room The high ceilings make the whole wall-dressing task very tricky. With daunting surfaces of white walls to fill, I have to be thankful to Ikea for selling such cheap frames. The ‘art’ was purchased from my comfortable couch, via Spineless Classics, A Little Bit of Art and Folksy. Her swish pendant lampshade is – gasp – from B&Q. Sadly they don't sell them anymore but this bamboo shade isn't a bad match – Kate.


Reading room (left) I’m cheating here. This is really a corner of my living room, so I should call it the reading ‘area’. My obsession for order turned these shelves into a meticulously organised library. From the bottom up: cooking shelf, art and French shelf, and Murakami and African literature shelf (and nearly out of the shot, my boyfriend’s comics’ shelf).




Bathroom Despite owning a £14.99 Argos drill, I am not one for DIY (and nor is my boyfriend). We were therefore very lucky to find a flat that had just been refurbished from top to bottom. The downside is that our bathroom does look like a hotel bathroom. This corner of the room is my attempt to ‘shabby it up’ a bit...

Bedroom A lick of paint and a few mismatching brass and ceramic knobs from eBay transformed this old Argos chest of drawers from my student days. Et voilà! And Bombay Duck has an inspiring selection of interesting new knobs too – Kate

Stove This stove is probably my main reason for wanting the flat so much. And when it’s not burning during milder months, I use a "firewood" scented candle from Henri Bendel to pretend I still have a fire going.


Shopping: A few of Gaelle's favourite things

(From left to right) Aluminium stag hook Another impulse of mine: hooks. I want them everywhere. This one is particularly Christmassy, but I like it up all year-round on my bedroom door. £9.95, Graham & Green; Invisible metal bookshelf The perfect solution for growing piles of books by the bedside: these invisible shelves seamlessly float above our bed and carry the mess that would otherwise clutter our small bedside tables. £14.50, Amazon; Papier d’Arménie The oldest, greenest and cheapest of home fragrances, it reminds me of my childhood in France. £2.50, Labour & Wait

Linen box I have recently developed a worrying obsession for old-fashioned linens. What better place to store them but in this French-style wooden box? £29, Caravan nb. not available online. (Left) huckaback linen bath towel: £17.99, LinenMe, (right) linen table runner: £7.99, H&M Home.

Retro style clip lamp I wish I could buy all the different colours available in this range and change them to match the seasons, or my mood. To please the banker, I settled for a sophisticated grey. £34.99, Kidsen

More affordable art

Yesterday I blogged about some gorgeous Panda-based prints for a child's room from A Little Bit of Art. Just after I'd posted it, I couldn't resist a bit more window shopping on the site and dug out a few more goodies. I wouldn't usually blog about the same shop or site twice in a row – but there was just so much more there and I needed to justify the very long time I spent thinking, "want that"... "want that"... "want that"...

For the small dog in my life, I had to start with this super sweet and slightly kitsch canine covered number under the banner Collection of Joy (£20, A3 size, open edition digital print).

And it's not only prints for walls that the shop sells. LOVE this plate! (It's £30 and 250mm diameter.) There are some tea-towels and other illustrated accessories for sale on the site too.

And these fishing boats are just great, aren't they? By artist Hanna Melin, it costs £60.

And this is just brilliant. Love the dayglo tinge. It's by Robert Rubbish, costs £50 (48cm x 64cm, signed, limited edition screenprint of 200). I really want it.