A new start and a fresh outlook

I’m sorry it’s been so long since I last wrote a post on here, hopefully you all understand. Things have been on the up for me and I am happy to say that I am back on the blogging band wagon and cannot wait to get started.

A lot has changed since I last did any blogging and I feel like I’m in a better place in terms of life, relationships and my career. I’ve moved house, started a new job and feel like my life is on a good path at the moment. I feel invigorated and confident in myself and am looking forward to sharing all my exciting finds, travels, inspiration and general bits and bobs with you all through Studio Habitat.

Over the next few weeks I’ll be getting back into the swing of things and you should expect some exciting new posts coming this way.

Speak soon, love Studio Habitat

My Favourite: Interior Design Books

 

Ever since I became interested in Interior Design I have started collecting design books. Perfect for those moments when you need a bit of inspiration. I now have quite a large collection, but there a few books I always go back to that inspire me the most and provide me with new ideas and tips.

And because I’m always trying to expand my knowledge and improve on my interior styling I always go back to A Place Called Home  which has some very beautiful spaces and step by step guides on how to achieve your own beautiful space. The topics include getting inspiration from around you, being clever about where you spend your money, embracing colour and being creative with what you already have. The photography in the book always captures my imagination.

The second book I always find myself going back to is Creative Spaces. It is a visual treat and ventures in to the homes of various individuals and families across the world. It is a great book for opening up your eyes to different styles and is jam-packed with quirky, contemporary and individual spaces.

My final book is etc. It is packed with tips from the interior stylist’s trade and beautifully photographed interiors which demonstrate a clear and easily replicable principle that will help transform a room without the need for expensive alterations. Perfect for the cash strapped individuals amongst us.

All three are a great source of inspiration with varying styles found within and perfect for some relaxed weekend reading!

What are your favourite design books?

August Pinterest

Its been a busy month, but i’ve still managed to fit in some pinterest time. Here’s a round-up of everything that I’ve been loving during the past month…

 

1. beautiful white kitchen with bright accessories

2.Yummy bowl of spaghetti

3. A stylish Smeg Fridge, my dream fridge!

4. Marble kitchen, with a dash of lemon & lime

5. Chambray 

6. Perfect retreat

Links to original sources can be found above. Follow along with Studio Habitat on pinterest for more!

When in Rome. Do as the Romans do.

I’m back after a lovely, and much needed holiday to beautiful Roma.

Rome is a city that screams happiness. People take their time to enjoy life and stop to chat in the middle of the streets. The Italians value good food more than most other things and drink wine before noon. Whilst exploring the streets, passing colourful buildings on my way, I lost track of all the times I received a warm and welcoming smile.

After spending a week admiring the ancient buildings and neighbourhoods, eating an obscene amount of pasta and gelato, drinking lots of wine and soaking up the sunshine, I was convinced: I’m moving to Rome. Not just because of the beautiful language, but because of how happy everyone is and their way of life. So much more relaxed than life back in the UK.

The hotel we stayed in was called the Marcella Royal, which was situated on Via Flavia, about a 20/30 minute stroll to the main tourist sights such as the colosseum. The hotel was just superb and the interior was clean and full of Italian character. The selling point for us was the fact it had a roof top terrace where you had breakfast in the morning overlooking the rooftops of rome as well as offering a selection of pastas and pizza for dinner and cocktails, coffee and a piano bar for evening. Just perfect.

Summer Blues

 One. Chambray Samantha Womens Shirt Dress Two. Breton Striped Sweatshirt Three. Olivia Burton Big Dial Watch    Four. Stella McCartney Pyjama Shorts Five. Atlantis Gem Ring Six. Arizona Blue Birkenstock Seven. Longchamp Le Pilage Bag

Since I can remember I have always loved the colour blue. When I was quite young I went through a stage where nearly everything I wore was blue! I have since moved away from the blue obsession and now have various other colours in my wardrobe. However, I lately saw these beautiful Stella McCartney pyjama shorts in John Lewis and instantly fell in love with the bluey green tones found in them. They remind me of the ocean. It was these that got me thinking about other blue pieces that I might like to have in my wardrobe.

Aside from jeans, blue can often be a slightly neglected when it comes to clothes and accessories, unless perhaps in the cooler months. For me, blue is a clean look and it is a great colour to layer because there’s so many different shades to choose from.

Stripes are a timeless classic and it’s always good to have a few simple sweaters in your wardrobe for those  days when you want to go for that Parisian chic look. I have a few striped jumpers in my collection and my favourites are from Petit Bateau.

Unsurprisingly the chambray dress from Joules is sold out on-line.. I obviously wasnt the only one who thought it was perfect, however, it may still be available in your local Joules store if you’ve missed out online. Chambray dresses have been quite popular this summer so have a look in some other shops and I’m sure you’d be able to pick up something similar.

What are your thoughts on wearing blue in the summer?

A Wishlist for August

 

 

August is quite an expensive month for me because of holidays and those annoying things called bills etc, however, there a few things I’m wishing for . They include a world ma and a book to inspire me with some lunch ideas; I get so fed up with sandwiches. There’s also some beautiful jewellery by Monica Vinader who is a relatively new find of mine and I have yet to actually buy anything from her website, but the beautiful simplicity of her pieces really attract me to her jewellery. One piece I love in particular is her Fiji Chin Bracelet. It’s simple enough so that you could wear it everyday, but could also be worn to a fancy dinner or night out. Money well spent I think. See below for the rest of my August wishes and the links to the websites.

 

What’s on your August wish list?

1. Fiji Chin Bracelet 2. Olympus Pen Lite E-PL6 3. Vintage World Map 4. Frends Layla Headphones 5. Love Your Lunchbox 

Good to be home

As you may know me and my partner moved into our own house nearly two years ago. When we first moved in we bought the necessities and most of the furniture we bought was from ikea, now that we’ve been able to save some money we now feel that it would be nice to invest in some items that we’ll be able to take with us wherever we end up . Below you can see some of my home inspiration. 

1. Momo Saffron Yellow Fabric Armchair £250.00 2. Dillion 30x50cm Blue Patterned Cushion £4.50  3. Flopster Sofa £1195 4. Curved Basket £29.00 5. A Minds Eye Diamond Linen Cushion £75.00 6. Heal’s Geneva Aegean Cushion £30.00 7. LSA Lotta Vase Lantern Ash £42.00 8. Copper Leg Coffee Table £250.00 9. Homestead 2nd Edition by Beauchamp £54.97  10. Jute Boucle Rug £319.00 Main image sourced from my ‘Nest’ Pinterest board, originally sourced from planete-deco.fr

What would your dream living room look like? What would it mean to you to win £750 to spend on making your dream a reality? Good to be Home is a new online home and garden magazine that looks at interior design, home improvement, gardens and architecture, with regular posts from industry experts alongside how-to sections and plenty of competitions. They have recently launched a new competition to bring out your own design flair! The competition is to produce a blog post about your chosen room that details all the design elements you love. The winner will receive £750 in John Lewis vouchers to help make their dream room a reality.

 

 

Happiness This Week #9

Image sourced from stylemepretty.com

It’s Friday everyone, hooray! So glad it’s nearly the weekend after a busy week in work. I have spent a large amount of my free time making sure everything is organised for our holiday, doing pilates or watching the Commonwealth Games.  This weekend I’m planning on having quite a creative weekend so look out for some crafty/creative posts coming soon. One I’m particularly eager to start is a handmade camera strap. Heres a little list of whats made me happy this week.

1. Making the best spaghetti bolognese that I’ve ever made. Served along with bruchetta and lots of parmesan cheese, of course!

2. Watching the Commonwealth games and getting all patriotic when Scotland do well.

3. Having my Mum round for dinner.

4. Putting together a ‘new home’ gift set for my best friend. I got the idea from an Australian company called Bindle.

5. Spending Thursday night with Rory. He’s been working late every night this week and Thursday was his night off. It’s amazing how much I miss just seeing his face and hearing his news from the day.

6. Banana cake. Served warm with a cup of tea. The best!

7. Spending time at night-time before bed reading lots of inspiring and creative blogs.

8. Meeting the adorable bulldog puppy from next door. It is the cutest, wrinkliest, chubbiest thing ever. He’s called Winston. Bless 🙂

9. Getting to dress down to work. Its a lot nicer getting to wear jeans and a baggy sweater into work rather than formal work clothes.

10. Cherries. I am addicted.

I hope you have a great weekend lined up 🙂

Also I’ve recently joined bloglovin. Follow me via the link below

http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/12664941/?claim=jrj2vaabggu

July Pinterests

Below are some of my favourite pinterests from the month of July. During the summer I always tend to inject more colour and textures into my home  to reflect what’s happening outside. I love the bright coral pink bedding and the beautiful Moroccan style tiles are the epitome of summer time.

 

All images sourced from my ‘Nest’ Pinterest board. Originals from the following:

1.nordicdays.blogspot.nl 2. shopsweetthings.com 3. bloglovin.com  4. style-files.com