Sommaire pour March/April 2023 de Ideas

I am surrounded by artists, but I am a painter. I have always loved painting my house myself, room by room, slowly but surely. In this way I paint away the quarrels and ghosts of previous residents and a worn-out space gets a fresh, new look. And so I make the house my own. Before I can pack up and enjoy a break (yes, I write my letters that far ahead of time), there's a massive wall in my passage waiting for a bit of love. I had to have a section of it replastered earlier in the year and the builder's paint colour didn't exactly match the existing colour. The old panelwork was also too hastily put back in place and now looks ugly. The question is whether I…

Looking every bit the suburban housewife's vintage dream, flamboyant and successful Australian fashion designer Alannah Hill is devastatingiy glamorous in a little 1950s-inspired apron and slippers, with cakes in the larder and a fire crackling in the grate. But don't be completely seduced by the sugary coating – Alannah is just playing house. In a quiet tree-lined Melbourne street, her colourful and feminine home is more like a surreal 1950s film set than a suburban residence. She lives here with her young son, and after a busy day at work comes home to ‘bake cakes and play’. ‘Real food’, apparently, comes from elsewhere. As for the fire in the hearth, in the spirit of an oldfashioned romance heroine of the 1930s, Alannah has developed an evening ritual of gazing at…

DIFFICULTY: fairly easy TIME: half a day YOU WILL NEED 1 x 750mm length pre-made wooden leg (we found ours at Gelmar) 3 000mm length of 20mm x 150mm pine 40mm panel pins or nails wood glue cabinet hinges 20mm and 50mm wooden drawer knobs with screws sandpaper (100 grit) varnish (or stain or paint) 2 x 30mm mirror hooks with wall screws (for attaching to wall or surface) jigsaw or circular saw, screwdriver or drill, hammer TO MAKE 1 We found the idea for a ‘flamingo’ bedside table on Pinterest and simply had to make our own version. To start off, cut the long length of wood into segments, ie 2 x 400mm and 2 x 150mm for the larger horizontal box, 2 x 300mm and 2 x 150mm…

how to DIFFICULTY: average TIME: weekend project YOU WILL NEED ♥ stencil of your choice ♥ suitable water-based undercoat (we used Plascon Multi-Surface Primer) ♥ chalk paint in three colours of your choice (see colour note below) ♥ wide and thinner paintbrushes ♥ stencil brush (or just a wider brush) ♥ sponges ♥ masking tape ♥ fine sandpaper ♥ suitable sealant (we used Woodoc 45 for tiles and cement) Make sure the tiles are clean and dry and then paint them with a suitable water-based undercoat that will ensure the paint adheres better and won't peel off. Leave to dry completely. COLOUR NOTE For the base colour of the tiles, we used Tjhoko in Da'vid, the darker Simply Siphiwe for the border and Pebble Light for the stencil. Now take…

how to YOU WILL NEED ♥ stand mixer or an electric hand beater at least ♥ sugar thermometer (optional, but more accurate) ♥ 2 piping bags ♥ 2 large round nozzles ♥ 1 prepared baking tray, lined with greaseproof or wax paper and sprayed with non-stick cooking spray MARSHMALLOW Makes: about 12 Preparation time: 1 hour, plus drying time ♥ 20ml gelatine powder ♥ 300g castor sugar (100g set aside) ♥ 2 large egg whites at room temperature ♥ egg yellow food colouring ♥ flavouring, optional (we used fudge; available at baking shops) ♥ 300g good-quality baking chocolate ♥ decorations like chopped nuts, sprinkles and chocolate to drizzle over Sprinkle the gelatine over 30ml water and set aside. Heat 200g of the castor sugar with 100ml water in a small…

DIFFICULTY: easy TIME: 27-30 hours YOU WILL NEED 6 x 50g balls of Elle Cottons 4ply in colour Natural 3.25mm crochet hook needle to weave in the ends 4 stitch markers soft fabric, to fit the finished curtain FINISHED SIZE 120 x 53 cm (Size may vary due to personal tension, different yarn or hook size.) The size can easily be adjusted by doing fewer or more rows of blocks. ABBREVIATIONS (US TERMINOLOGY) MR magic ring ch chain stitch sc single crochet hdc half double crochet dc double crochet (YO once) tr treble (YO twice) dtr double treble (YO 3 times) YO yarn over dc3-tog double crochet 3 together st stitch slst slip stitch ch-sp chain space cnr corner cnr-sp corner space SPECIAL STITCHES * First dc3-tog of the round:…

Thanks to a new TikTok trend, ‘cash stuffing’, I am very enthusiastically on a straight and narrow financial road. Treatment for my irresponsible bank-card swipe attacks. On my desk there's a cute new budgeting journal that I put together with the help of Pinterest. In the front there's a budget that is now, hopefully, set in stone. In it there are expense categories and amounts for every week of the year that I will have to balance faithfully. Of course there are also blank pages for doodles, mind maps, plans and projects. All focused on my finances. At the back of the journal I have filed several plastic envelopes. On them are the names of my various expenses for the month: groceries, petrol, stationery, coffee shops, treats, clothes, hairdresser, pharmacy,…

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IF YOU FIND YOUR ATTENTION BEING PULLED BY THE SOUND OF BIRDSONG, LET YOURSELF BE PULLED. AND THEN, NO MATTER HOW HURRIED YOU THINK YOU ARE, STOP WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING AND LISTEN. LISTEN AS IF THIS MOMENT IS ALL THERE IS, AS IF EVERY ANSWER TO EVERY QUESTION YOU HAVE EVER ASKED RESTS IN THE RHYTHM OF INHALE AND EXHALE. LISTEN AS IF ONE DAY YOU WILL RUN OUT OF TIME TO LISTEN. LISTEN UNTIL YOU ARE SO FULL OF SONG YOU CAN'T HELP BUT SPRINKLE IT LIKE SEED TO EVERY HUNGRY HEART, AND WHEN BIRD LIFTS HER WINGS TO FLY, GO, PLEASE — GO FLY WITH HER. ©Julia Fehrenbacher…

PREPARING YOUR CHAIR Put in a little time and effort, and extend the life and usefulness of a broken chair. DIFFICULTY: medium TIME: a day YOU WILL NEED chair leg (we bought ours from Gelmar) heat gun or sugar soap putty knife or scraper 80 – 120 grit sandpaper wood glue 2 elbow brackets per chair leg screws wood filler (we used white) TO MAKE 1 Clean the chair: Start by removing the old paint or varnish from the chair by using the heat gun or sugar soap and a scraper. This is a tedious job but makes a huge difference. Smooth the surface out with sandpaper. 2 Sand any rough and broken edges with sandpaper. Wipe off the dust. 3 Add the leg: Place the chair on a flat…

NEW COVER FOR AN OLD CHAIR To give a beautiful chair a makeover, we covered roughly it in white linen and calico. DIFFICULTY: medium to challenging TIME: one day YOU WILL NEED fabric matching machine thread images, numbers and words fabric paint in the colours of your choice transfer method of your choice (see tip on page overleaf) fabric marker TO MAKE 1 Use your existing upholstery as a template, making sure to add about 2cm all around for seam allowances. Cut the pieces you need from the fabric. 2 Transfer and stencil numbers and words to the fabric. 3 Hand sew the pieces to the cushion and back rest. This look is very make-do-andmend, so the rougher it is and the more the edges are fraying, the better. QUICK-SEW…

The entrance area of my house feels peaceful. Not so much because I have become calmer over the years, but because you see the gigantic Madonna on the wall as you walk in. That is how she made me feel when I saw her for the first time at the Tierlantynkies market in Pretoria six years ago and so many of my guests feel the same when they see this artwork by Alma Thomas hanging in my house. If I should ever move, I can simply fold her up and take her with me. Just so, packed in with the clothes in my suitcase. Lots of people visit La Grace, Alma's shop in Parys in the Free State, to buy furniture, European jackets and overruns of clothes from well-known brands.…

WINNING LETTER HEART BOXING ‘Exercise will save you,’ said my guru, Souet, who has taught me many things that have both grounded me and propelled me forward in wonderful ways in the 10 years I have known her. On this particular day, in chilly July 2022, she found me stuck – sinking in quicksand, in fact – as I grappled with being a newly-feathered empty nester. My class-of-2021 son had just left South Africa for the emerald shores of Ireland, to join the Irish Defence Forces. My husband's Irish heritage meant that our son has both an Irish and a South African passport, which enabled him to leave our shores for good. Did I mention that he's an only child? A stint with cancer – Hodgkin's Lymphoma at the age…

In 2019, a story about seven young Chinese women went viral on the internet. Unusually though, it wasn't about celebrities, or TikTok dances, or even something with international political relevance. Rather, it was the tale of the women's joint purchase and renovation of a large house – in which, they declared, they intended to spend the years of their retirement living together. In short, it was a heartwarming and charming story about friendship. While it's a long way from the leafy suburbs of Guangzhou, Zelma Kriek's home in the small town of Calitzdorp is a rather similar sort of space. Here, Zelma lives with her Labrador Retriever, Fifi, and four cats: Rumi, Fatso, Royal and Ice Cream. And also regularly resident in her three-bedroom house are one or more of…

DIAMOND PATTERN ON WOODEN FLOOR This requires patience, but it's definitely worth the trouble. DIFFICULTY: challenging (you need to work very accurately!) TIME: a week YOU WILL NEED suitable water-based undercoat (we used Plascon Multi-Surface Primer) water-based enamel paint in the colours of your choice (we used Plascon Velvaglo in white for the base colour and a light turquoise for the diamond design) paint rollers and brushes measuring tape and long ruler pencil masking tape spirit level TO MAKE 1 First prepare the floor, if necessary, by sanding off any old varnish or paint, thoroughly brushing the dust off and washing it so everything is clean and smooth. Leave the floor to dry properly. 2 Now paint the floor with the undercoat and leave to dry properly again. 3 Open…

DIFFICULTY: easy TIME: weekend project YOU WILL NEED sturdy fabric (we used bull denim) fabric paint paintbrush embroidery thread embroidery needle eyelets eyelet tool TO MAKE 1 We found our inspiration for this kitchen storage bag on Pinterest. Cut your fabric double the desired length you want your holder to be. 2 Grab a few of the utensils that you want to store in the bag and lay them a few centimeters away from the top of the fabric to determine how deep your pockets will be. Fold the fabric up over the utensils and mark the place where you are going to cut off the fabric from the top part of your pocket. 3 Fold open the fabric and cut off the top part of the pocket at the…

SIMPLE SEATING A pretty cushion on a pallet makes handy extra seating, or you can use it as a footstool. And a loose cover is a great way to freshen up a worn sofa. YOU WILL NEED Small pallet acrylic spray paint 2 vintage flour sacks cushion inner of about 60 x 80cm TO MAKE Spray paint the pallet in the colour of your choice. Put the cushion inside one flour sack and hand stitch the opening closed. Unpick the side seams of the second sack and hem them. Sew the top and bottom together, right sides facing, to form a tube. Slip it over the cushion. SOFA COVER Take a piece of linen big enough to cover your couch and hem all the sides. For the trim, take another…

Sleep has become a global obsession. Activity trackers and smart watches, sleep and meditation apps, cannabis oil, adjustable mattresses, sleeping pills, turmeric milk, even robots that rock you to sleep – everything is being roped in to help with insomnia and poor sleep patterns. I fall for each and every new pillow advert that promises me and my neck a peaceful night's sleep. Last time I checked, I had a butterfly pillow, a memory foam neck roll, a memory foam ‘cloud’, curved pillows, and several down pillows in various shapes and sizes. Alas. But perhaps I shouldn't be seeking my salvation in pillows. Rather in my circadian rhythms or cycles, which include the timing of exposure to light, instead of just the number of hours you spend in dreamland. A…