How To Make A Springtime Table Runner

This easy-to-make springtime table runner will brighten up your table for Easter, or on any other Spring day for that matter. 

What you'll need:

Felt in various colours for the leaves and flowers

An oblong piece of felt in a pale colour for the runner

Embroidery thread in various colours
Buttons in various colours

A hot glue gun 

Step 1: Begin by drawing a leaf pattern on the green felt. Then cut out the leaves using a very sharp scissors to give them a neat edge. I used two shades of green.

Step 2: Using the green embroidery thread, sew a vein up the middle of each leaf, as shown in the photo below.

 Step 3: Draw petals on the coloured felt and cut them out. I used a star shaped cookie cutter as a template for the outer petals and the lid of a bottle as a template for the centre of the flower.

 Step 4: Assemble your flowers as shown in the photos below, placing a button in the centre of each. Sew each flower together using embroidery thread in a contrasting colour.

 Step 5: Lay the oblong strip of felt out flat and arrange the leaves and flowers on it in a pattern of your choice. You could bunch them all together in the centre, lay them in the form of a wreath or in a straight line down the centre of the runner. I chose to scatter mine about at random, leaving room to add dyed eggs as an additional decoration on Easter Sunday morning. 

Once you have decided on your arrangement, use a hot glue gun to fix the flowers in place. Alternatively, you can sew them into place. 

Then simply spread the runner along your dining table and admire your good work!

What Lies Beneath

Generally speaking, tiles would not be my choice of flooring for anywhere other than the bathroom. Even at that, I found it very hard to find tiles I really liked when we renovated our bathroom a couple of years ago. We settled on these wood-effect tiles in the end and I am still very happy with them.

Our wood-effect tiles in the bathroom

The only exception to my no-tiles-outside-the-bathroom rule is if the tiles are beautiful, original vintage tiles. I love the look of 1930s or 40s hallways - a plain border and a geometric pattern in various colours along a narrow hall with the staircase on the right. 

When we were making some changes to our house before moving in, we had a toddler, a newborn and a tight budget. We painted the hall and left the laminate floor as it was, since it was in good condition. 

Soon after we moved in, our neighbours mentioned in passing that it must be nice to have a tiled floor. We, puzzled, said we have laminate. "Oh, they must have put that down over the tiles" they said of the previous owners. Apparently, there once was a nice tiled hall floor in this house. 

Mid-renovation. The floor stayed.

In my grandparents house, which happens to have been built around the same time as ours, there is still the original tiled hall floor. I keep imaginging that there is something similar underneath our laminate. Something along the lines of these patterns would be fantastic.

   

The curiousity has been gnawing away at me for years now. Every so often I bring up the subject of ripping up the hall floor with The Bavarian. He is curious too, but practical. The laminate is well attached. There is no option of pulling out a slat or two to see what is underneath. It is an all-or-nothing job.

What if there is just a concrete floor? Or ugly  or damaged tiles? Do we really want to risk it when we haven't the budget or the time to deal with the disaster that may result?

For now, we have decided to leave the floor till the boys are older. It is the sensible parent thing to do, isn't it? The laminate is warmer than tiles and there is less chance of things breaking if they are dropped that if they were dropped on tiles. 

So for now I will dream of my double doors and original tiled floor and save for reproduction tiles in case there is nothing to discover beneath the laminate. 

If you are interested, pop over to Pinterest and have a look at the looks I am currently swooning over. 

Schau dir Fionnualas Profil bei Pinterest an.

In Search Of Hall Doors

Our house was built in the mid 1950s, a time when Germany was still receovering from the second world war and when people had to make do with a lot less than nowadays. 

This house, like most of the houses on our short street, was built as a small house with a good-sized garden for growing fruit and vegetables. Attached to the house, when it was built originally, was a shed for housing animals. 

The previous owners of our house renovated the former animal accommodation and made a bathroom and two bedrooms out of it. The hallway was extended by about 90cm in length in the process. 

Where the front door was originally is now an doorway. The hinges and doorframe remain. For a few years we used to talk about putting a curtain across it but we never got round to it. The more I think about it, the more I see that it would block out the light that comes in from the windows in the front door.

Lately I have been thinking that what we need to finish off the hall is a set of narrow double doors. I'm thinking wooden doorframes painted white or a light grey and with bevelled glass panels to let in light but keep out draughts.

Photo Credit / Source

I really like the look of this set- shabby but incredibly elegant. I can imagine them opening inward, letting the sunshine our into my sparklingly clean hall, something like the scene in the picture below. 

Photo Credit / Source

As I say, in my imagination. My hall is never this clean.

For the moment I'll have to keep dreaming, of the doors, of the sunshine and of the sparkling hall. Glass doors and sticky toddler hands don't pair well. 

I've begun looking for inspiration on Pinterest, so pop over and take a look at my board to see more of what I'm hoping to one day have.

Folge Fionnualas Pinnwand „Hallway Double Doors“ auf Pinterest.

One of these days I'll be taking measurements and keeping my eyes peeled for doors to salvage or pick up at a flea market. Where there's a will, there's a way. 

A Long Overdue Patchwork Quilt

I am a born hoarder. As I type I am wearing a skirt I bought in 1997. I am not stingy, I just have trouble parting with things I like. 

So it follows that I am not a natural de-clutterer. The January clear out bug has never hit me. That is until this year. It is probably because I am at home and I see the amount of, well stuff, for want of a better word, that is around the house. 

A few days ago I attacked my wardrobe. One big bin-bag got filled. Obiously a few older pieces survived. Next up was the guest room, which doubles as my hobby room. As I cleared and sorted and binned stuff, I came across one of my unfinished projects - a patchwork quilt.

This project has been around for three or four years. I am not quite sure why it didn't ever get finished but I am determinded to finish it, and soon.

Back when Number Two was still sleeping in a cot (he is now 5 1/2), I decided to sew him a quilt for when he would move into his own big boy bed. 

I thought up a colour scheme (greens and greys) and a theme (leaves) and I bought the fabric in Ikea. I even got as far as sewing all the patches together and got started on attaching the wadding and backing material. And there it ended. Why? Who knows.

In the meantime Number Two has not only moved from a cot to a bed but has moved from that bed to another bedroom and a set of bunk beds. The quilt no longer matches the colour scheme of his room.

Nevertheless I am determinded to finish this quilt. We'll find a place for it somewhere. Perhaps Number Three would like it given that he sleeps in Number Two's old room. It is more suited to the colour scheme there. And it is not really a hand-me-down if no-one has ever used it, is it?

Creating a Play Area For A Toddler

Number Three is a full blown toddler now. There is no denying it. He has been walking for six months and he is getting more and more independent with playing. 

When we got back from our post-Christmas holiday in Ireland, I realised it was time to re-arrange our play area so that he could have his own space. 

Up till now, what would normally be the dining room end of our long, narrow livingroom has been the boys' playroom. The floor was always littered with Lego, Playmobil and toy cars. With Number Three wandering round looking for something to play with, we couldn't go on with this situation.

Refreshed after the 12 day break from home, I got stuck into the playroom re-organisation last week and I am so pleased with the results. One week in, I can tell you that it is much easier to manage and to keep tidy. 

Basically, what I have done is fence the older boys in (I'll elaborate in a moment) and set up a toddler-friendly area separate from the big boys' realm.  

We have a fantastic room-divider that is like a massive stair gate. It is one of the best things I have bought since having Number Three (you can see the edge of it on the far left of the photo above). I've used it to cordon off half of the play area. The bookshelf and all teh toys with small pieces have been put in there. Number One and Number Two can go in and out of it as they please by opening the toddler-proof gate. Number Three can't get in, unless the gate is left open.  

But back to the toddler area itself. Back in 2010 I picked up a gorgeous red vintage bench, chair and matching red and white table at a flea market for the bargain price of €30. It was money wel spent, I can tell you. Number One and Number Two got a lot of use out of it and it has very few marks to show for it. This set has become the basis of Number Three's section of the playroom. 

Both the table and the bench have storage space built in, which makes tidying up really easy. The drawer of the table is shallow but wide and is the perfect place to keep crayons, pencils, paper and colouringbooks. 

The seat of the bench lefts up to reveal a surprisingly deep toy box. At the moment we have all the soft toys in there as well as some books. The older pair have grown out of the Punch and Judy puppets but Number Three collapses into fits of laughter as soon as I do a little bit of improv for him. 

When I was expecting Number Two in the very hot summer of 2010, I hand-sewed the navy gingham cushion for the bench. The car cushion covers were present for the boys a few years ago. If I remeber rightly, they are from the German chain Butlers. 

Of course, no room is my house is complete withouta salvaged chair and this playroom is no exception. The metal chair with the woven red seat is one of three I salvaged from our local kindergarten. They would otherwise have been dumped. I love the, literally, old school look of them and the chipped paint. Luckily there is no rust on them and the pain doesn't flake off, so there is no danger to Number Three.

The walls were already decorated with a large map of Germany and our Little Linguists' alphabet chart. The new furniture arrangement is low enough as not to block them out. All three children can access them.

There are, of course, too many toys to accommodate them all within the bench. This red basket holds all the bulky cars, trucks and Lego Duplo pieces. It is made of rubber rather than hard plastic, so it won't crack or break as it takes abuse from a boisterous toddler. 

I bought it in Aldi a year or two ago, attracted by the cute cloud-cutout pattern. Since them it has had various roles around the house - first as a toybox for Number Two them a basket for throws and blankets beside the sofa. I think it fits into its new home here in the play area very nicely. 

Overall I am really pleased with how the new arrangement has worked out. So far Number Three has spent a lot of time pottering about, discovering his toys and climbing on his new-to-him furniture. 

The way I've set things up, I can keep an eye on him from my desk, the sofa or while I iron. He can't get to the big boy toys and is happy with what he does have access to. So, so far, we are on to a winner. 

Advent Decoration With Vintage Shutters

Advent is fast approaching and it is a big deal here in Germany. I've written about it before in relation to food.  But decor-wise, too, there is a difference between Advent and Christmas. I love that. A Christmas tree up before the 15th December is, to me, up much too early. Christmas decorations should be put up very shortly before Christmas or they lose their charm. 

Advent decoration is different. It is more about counting down and setting the tone, lighting a candle and enoying a little bit of peace. In most German households you'll find an Advent wreath, something I only knew from churches in Ireland before moving here, and Advent calendars. Both the calendars and the four candles, one for each of the Sundays of Advent, are often little works of art, lovingly homemade with attention to detail. 

Here's a selection of some of my favourite variations on the Advent wreath. I make a differnet one every year, but usually decide at the last minute what kind of style I want. On the Saturday evening before the first Sunday of Advent you can usually find me pottering away at the kitchen table with candles, ribbons, jars, pine cones and whatever else comes to hand, creating a display for the coffee table.

Folge Fionnualas Pinnwand „German Advent Wreaths“ auf Pinterest.

This year though, there is one element to my Advent decor that I have already decided on - a vintage window shutter. Isn't it gorgeous? OK, so imagine it without the cobwebs, dead leaves, ivy and the thick layer of dust. It certainly has potential. Regular readers will know that there are few activities I love more than salvaging furniture. When I saw four of these shutters left out for the bin men last week, I couldn't just leave them there. Heavy though they were, I lugged two into the boot of the car and took them home.  

Number Three and I had a quick go at cleaning them off and they are in pretty good condition considering they have spent their lives outdoors. The paint is quite flaky in places, but that just adds to the shabby chic look. No need to sand or blister anything. No need to get the chalk paint and wax out. This pair are true vintage and I love them.

My mind has been brimming over with ideas for how to use them. Initially I was thinking about using them in the garden. The more I looked at the shutters, the more I had visions of them with holly and fairy lights. A bit of a browse on Pinterest settled my mind to the idea of using one the shutters as the basis for my Advent decoration. You can view my pins here:

  Folge Fionnualas Pinnwand „Vintage Shutter AdventTheme“ auf Pinterest.

I am so excited about the next few days - finishing cleaning one shutter and finding a suitable spot for it. Then, depending on where I like the look of it best, choosing the look to go for. I am leaning towards something sleek, perhaps green with silver or glass. And candles of course. Four of them.  

My Long-Awaited Kitchen Blackboard

Chalkboards are in, apparently.  I didn't really realise this. Since we moved into our house five years ago I have wanted to paint one on the kitchen wall. But The Bavarian wasn't so keen. I still bought the paint and I renovated two old blackboards, one for the kids and one to hang in the kitchen. But after all that, I still knew I really wanted a large space on the wall for shopping lists, etc. 

Did you figure out who is drawn here?
Darth Vader and Yoda

So I bought more paint and got to work on convincing The Bavarian. We recently removed the kitchen door and this exposed the awkward wallspace between the fridge and the doorframe. It was terribly marked from five years of life with small children. It needed a lick of paint, so why not use the blackboard paint?  He gave in, I got my brushes out. 

I'd been oogling 'kitchen chalkboards' on Pinterest and had a few ideas of what would suit our kitchen. (Blackboard seems to be the not so cool term these days but I can't get used to chalkboard, sorry). While a full-wall blackboard would look great around our doorframe, it would darken the kitchen too much.

Folge Fionnualas Pinnwand „A Blackboard Wall“ auf Pinterest.

In the end I settled on painting the wall from the skirting board up to the height of the fridge. The plan is to trick around a bit and add a slogan or banner with a chalk marker at the top, but I have yet to decide on it. For the moment, The Bavarian and the boys have been attacking my blackboard and leaving me little space for my own notes. But since the kitchen is the heart of our home, I'll let them away with it. For now. 

Usually I am very tempted to skip preparation and get straight to the painting, but after waiting for so long to get this project started , I wanted it to turn out well. Here is what I did:

1. I washed the wall with warm water to remove any dirt or greasy marks.

2. Using the spirit level and a pencil, I marked the size and shape of the blackboard onto the wall.

3. I used masking tape along the pencil lines as well as along the door frame and skirting board to ensure clear edges and unharmed woodwork.

4. There were a few small dents in the wall, so I filled these up with wall filler and a spatula and left it to dry overnight. 

5. The following day I applied the first coat of paint around lunchtime and a second coat just before going to bed. 

6. Getting up the next morning I was so excited about pulling off the tape and seeing the lovely clean lines of my blackboard. 

7. I read somewhere, while doing all my research, that before using a freshly-painted 'chalkboard', you should colour in the whole board lightly with white chalk and then take one of those magic eraser sponges (dry) and wipe the chalk off again to give it that chalky look. It is so much nicer than the stark black of the paint. I did it and it turned out really well. The poor Bavarian got a giving out to from me when he washed the whole board with water while I was out later that morning and put his own message on it.