Friday, December 31, 2010

Ten things...

I have loved about 2010! These are not in any particular order nor are they meant to be deep and meaningful, just some things that have made me smile!

One:  

Image via here

Speaking of smiles, my new camera ( mine is a little more modern than the one pictured above!). A surprise pressie from my lovely hubbie. Although I am by no means a photographer, I love that I can take some half way decent shots and use them for my work and blog. I am actually interested in taking photos now and I love it - I hope to get better in 2011!


Two:

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“When everything was quiet. I went up to the corridor and the curtain of the living room was open just a crack….I could see outside. I watched, only for a few seconds.”
He had not seen the outside world for twenty-two months. There was no anger or reproach.
“How did it look?”
Max lifted his head, with great sorrow and great astonishment.
“There were stars,” he said. “They burned my eyes.”

I am not much of a reader (something I am working towards rectifying) but this book is amazing and I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it. My favourite book for this year.


Three:


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My new kitchen. No! This isn't it!  It's not quite finished yet so I am saving this as a post for next year. I am so happy with it and can't wait to show you.


Four:

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Our trip to Melbourne. Just wonderful, I got to eat at the Press Club - chocolate fondant how I love you - and once again my hubbie surprised me with a gift for no reason - my awesome boots!


Five:

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Rocking out to the amazing George Benson at the Opera House. Sixty seven and he's still got it! I loved too that my son enjoyed it. You know what teenagers are like - difficult to engage at the best of times!


Six:

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The surprise picnic my husband organised for our wedding anniversary. Under the harbour bridge with my favourite bottle of bubbles - what more could a girl want? I am very spoiled!


Seven:

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 Starting my blog! I never thought that anyone would read it - but they do! Not only do I have followers, TEN at the moment!, but I have made many friends from all over the world. It has been a fantastic experience and I can't wait to see what next year brings on the blogging front for me and all my internet friends too!


Eight:

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That I got my husband front row, yes front row, tickets to see Neil Finn as a surprise for his birthday. I don't know what he thought but I was like a schoolgirl! We were so close I couldn't believe it!


Nine:





I know that I have blogged about this before but it is my all time favourite song for 2010! I love it - cool band and cool clip too - enjoy!


Ten:

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 Being able to be a part of some wonderful celebrations with family and friends. I hope to share many more in the New Year!

So there you have it, my last post for 2010. I hope you can look back on your year fondly as well.  I look forward to seeing you in 2011 - a new decade - how exciting!

May your new year celebrations be wonderful,
Stephie x

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Oh my goodness...

where did Christmas go?!

I hope that you all took some time out to relax and enjoy being with friends and family. Please tell me that I am not the only person who now needs to go on a diet! What is with all the food at this time of the year?!

I have finally gotten myself organised and sorted out my decorating photos so, without further ado, here are some snapshots of Christmas 2010 at ChezB.

Our lounge room was vintage and foresty and also featured an Advent calendar- yes, I did finally get around to organising one!



We were very lucky this year to get a real tree as the poor Sydney weather made them very hard to come by-



Even though it wasn't the best looking tree we've ever had, I loved it's quirkiness and fairy lights make anything look good! Having that pine smell in the house more than makes up for its shortcomings anyway!

Next up, I found some gorgeous illustrations in a cook book (yes, that's right cook books are for looking, not cooking for me!) and copied and framed them. I added old bottles, some wooden and stick on numbers and flowers from the garden to create a "Twelve Days of Christmas" display in the dining room.


Our family room was a little more contemporary with a lot of red and white and an owl, of course!


Finally some presents under the tree -


and that completes Christmas for StephieB and family!

Happy Wednesday,
Stephie x

Friday, December 24, 2010

Have yourself...

Photo by me, StephieB!


A merry little Christmas!

Stephie x

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

And we have a winner!

Say "hello" to my lovely assistant Niamh all ready to go in the special Christmas dress I made in honour of today's giveaway. I have never made a dress before so I am really quite pleased with myself!




Here we go...



Drumroll please...


And the winner is...



 Victoria! Congratulations and here is what's coming your way....

Made by me, StephieB!

A bunny in honour of 2011 being the Year of the rabbit. I hope you like it! If you can email me your address, I will get it away to you in the New Year.

Thanks everyone for entering, it's been fun to read your guesses! I put everyone who commented in the draw. As things have been a little more hectic here this week than I had anticipated,  I have decided to post my Christmas photos a little later on when I have had time to sort them properly. And just in case you were wondering, ChezB has ended up being a little bit of all the themes posted so I put everyone who commented in the draw. I hope this is OK with you!

Have a wonderful Wednesday,
Stephie x

Monday, December 20, 2010

A message...

for you on a Monday!

At this time of the year it can be so easy to get caught up in the chaos that is the lead up to Christmas. So here is my pre-Christmas mantra. I hope that if you start to feel a little overwhelmed, these words can be of some help to you too!

Image via here

Don't forget to ENTER the give away. I have decided to extend the deadline to midday Wednesday but I will still announce the winner on Wednesday evening. See you then with some decorating pics from ChezB.

Stephie x

Friday, December 17, 2010

And finally...

some Christmas decorating that's a little bit left of centre!

Why not make your Christmas a little bit quirky?!

I LOVE anything by JunkerJane and this ornament is no exception! Emma's "Little Creature"prints make "creepy" so cute! How about some Grinchiness for your walls or,  this amazing rocking chair? If only I lived in America, it's available for local pickup only! These ornaments are so retro! Reindeer herd available from here and you can pick yourself up some elf baubles from here!

So there you have, three different themes but which one belongs to me, StephieB?!

I do hope that you will play along. You have until midday, Tuesday to get your guesses in. I will post the winner on Wednesday and let them know what their prize is!

This weekend it's Christmas drinks at our place. I am so looking forward to catching up with friends and relaxing with a glass of bubbles, or two!

I hope your weekend is wonderful,
Stephie x

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

A Vintage...

Christmas decorating scheme for you on a Wednesday!


There is something magical about using vintage pieces for Christmas decorating, especially here in Australia where it is usually hot at this time of the year. Somehow these sorts of pieces make the season feel a little more wintery and special methinks!

From left to right: very sweet vintage noel banner from Stacey Winters. I love milk glass and have quite a good collection myself! These lovely pieces are from here. Plexiglass doily cutout reindeer. Vintage cookie cutters. Deer silhouette print. Lovely letterpress printing blocks. Cute vintage flashcards (have fun with the kids with these!). Wooden placecard holders from Woods of Narnia and last but not least these fantastic spoons which can be customised with whatever words suit your fancy. Available from Monkeys Always Look.

Here's to some woodland and whimsy this Christmas,
Stephie x

Monday, December 13, 2010

This week....

I thought I'd have a little giveaway here at StephieB!

I am going to post about three different Christmas decorating themes - if you can guess which one will be making an appearance at Chez B this year a little prize will be coming your way!

First up, a contemporary red and white theme -


From left to right: Christmas stocking by Chickadee Shop, super cute reindeer ornament, lovely wall stickers from Woody Bird Studios, one of my favourite Christmas finds this year, Christmas Busroll poster, a beautiful wreath for your front door and, if cooking is your thing, how about these sweet cupcake liners - find them here.

I will feature the other two themes later this week. To enter, you can just leave your guess as a comment after I have posted all three themes! I will select a winner next Wednesday, 22nd December.

I do hope that you will play along. I am so excited - it's StephieB's very first giveaway!

Happy Monday to you all,
Stephie x

Friday, December 10, 2010

This weekend...

Available from Etsy seller quitelikeit



































I need to, amongst MANY other things, send out my Christmas cards!

There are so many cool cards out there. Here are some of my favourites for this year -





Straight to the point! Available from Roll and Tumble Press

For a retro take on Christmas greetings, how about something from Etsy seller afavourite -









Love them, aren't the pennants just too cute?!

For the animal lover, you can't go past these cards by the talented Julia Pott -








and, of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without an owl or two -

from samsbuttontree

from TimeLessThings


via  forgetmenotshoppe

Mmmm owls under the Mistletoe, for someone at work perhaps?!

I will be at the Kirribilli Art and Design Market this Sunday. I would love to see you there. It's my last market for a while now. Here's hoping it's a good one!

See you next week with some Christmas decorating ideas,
Stephie x

PS Happy Anniversary for this Sunday lovely husband of mine! Getting married in December what WERE we thinking?!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

It's...

Image via here

I know that we are already a week into Advent and I also know that I am never organised enough to have an Advent calendar up and running so...

Today I thought I would share with you some beautiful ideas that I have come across in my travels from people who are actually prepared!

First up, this gorgeous idea from the lovely Victoria -



Some old bottles, white spraypaint, ribbon, tags and candles make for a simple, yet effective display, especially when the candles are lit -


One candle every Sunday during Advent with the centre candle being lit on Christmas Day. You can read more about it here. Thanks Victoria!

This is so sweet and doubles as a Christmas tree as well -


For full instructions head over to here.


I love, love, love this idea -



found via the wonderful  my black book. Who would have thought that cutout pictures of animals could be so Christmassy and fun?! Thanks Britta!


If cutting out isn't your thing, then how about this idea  from the talented Anetteshus -

Image via here


Grab 24 paper bags, stick numbers (1 - 24) onto the front of them. Add a treat to each one and tie off the tops with string or baker's twine. Add an old suitcase and some candy canes and, Voila!, a beautiful display!

Image via here 


So there you have it, one idea for each week of Advent! I hope to get my Christmas decorating done soon. How are you travelling?

Happy Wednesday,
Stephie x

Friday, December 3, 2010

Sneak Peek...



Reindeer



Sweet little angels




Cute birdies

These are just a few things that will be making an appearance at my stall at Mathilda's Market this Sunday! I hope you can make it. I would love to see you there!

Made by me, StephieB


May your weekend be wonderful,
Stephie x

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

It's official....

that  four days of next to no internet access ( thanks to somebody who shall remain nameless) makes StephieB a very unhappy vegemite! Hopefully all is fixed now and I can return to normal transmission!

In other "official" news, it's the first of December which means that it's summertime here now in Australia. To mark the occasion, I thought I'd leave you today with some hydrangeas from my garden -


































Aren't they beautiful? For me, these are such a symbol of summer and of Christmas.

My dear nan had them growing in abundance, from pale pink like mine to the most beautiful dark blue, and it wasn't Christmas until you had been to her place to pick up a bunch . I even had them at my wedding reception courtesy of nan's garden.

My nan would have been 99 next week if she was still with us. She died just over four years ago but I still miss her everyday. I like to look at my own hydrangea now and think of her and of how lucky I
was to have had such a wonderful grandmother for such a large part of my life. Happy Birthday, for next week, Nan!


Happy Wednesday,
Stephie x