The Boy in Striped Pajamas

Once a month, Gallery Stratford has a movie night at our local cinemas as a fundraiser.  The movies are always really good - much more to my taste than the geared-to-high-school fare usually on offer.

 

Last night it was The Boy in Striped Pajamas and the theatre was packed.

It's always a friendly crowd, the same faces every month, friends saying hi to friends and chatting in the aisles before and after the show.

I didn't know much about the movie, except that it was about two young boys on either side of the barbed wire at a concentration camp.  Which is a bit like saying that Titanic was about a boat.  LET'S JUST LEAVE OUT THE ESSENCE, SHALL WE?

It's a fantastic movie, with great acting and beautiful scenery.  And it moves along at a measured pace, toying with you the whole way.

I don't want to spoil the ending for anyone.  But I was shocked when the credits rolled.  I just sat there in silence, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

And then I realized that the whole audience was feeling the same way.  We all sat there in stunned silence as the credits continued.

And after a few minutes, we got up, in stunned silence and walked, in silence, up the aisle and out the door.  Silently.

You should go see this movie. 

It won't make you happy.  It will not renew your faith in humanity.  It is not the feel-good movie of the year.

But really?  You should go see it.

 

Book Review: Restoration Home

I bought Restoration Home by Mark and Sally Bailey last week and I am inspired!

These two have made a life's work of rescuing old stuff and old buildings and then letting them speak for themselves. They also have a shop and website that I've been drooling over for ages.

So what's so great about the book? Photography by Debi Treloar, for one.

And a "let it be" philosophy that is a perfect antidote to the New Year's "roll up your sleeves and get busy" attitude. I mean, what's not to love about a book that tells you not to varnish wooden furniture ("have you ever seen a shiny tree?"), and suggests that you leave a few scars and dings in your flooring and walls so people can see what your home's been through?

I'm guessing these two have never lived in a house whose interior walls are entirely faced in drywall, but if you take on some of the attitude and let the photos inspire you, you'll end up with a wonderful space, full of character, for a lot less effort than you're thinking it'll take!

A Picture for Harold's Room

One of the books that has influenced my approach to interior design, possibly more than I should really admit, is Crockett Johnson's "A Picture for Harold's Room", in which Harold decides that his wall needs a picture on it and, armed with his trusty purple crayon, he draws one.

I love the approach...

And, come to think of it, this book's influence goes way beyond design in my life. It's just such a great philosophy: use what you have to get what you want. And never underestimate the power of imagination.

But, to get back to the decor side of things, through the years, I have used stencilling, handmade paper, paint and even black magic marker to achieve the effects I want.


A Stencilled Fence

It's a cheap and fun way to add architecture to your house. Most of these effects won't make people gasp in amazement, thinking you have real stone walls or real dentil molding or an antique quilt on your wall. Most of them are frankly fake. But there's a sense of humour to it. A sense of not taking anything too seriously while still giving yourself the home you deserve, even if you can't quite afford the real thing.

A Painted Floor - Harold Would Approve!

Book Review: Junk Style

Whenever we move to a new house and I find myself in a hurry to get it fixed up and furnished RIGHT NOW, I curl up with my copy of Junk Style by Melanie Molesworth and calm the heck down.

This book celebrates junk and decay and all the signs of wear and tear as a design element in its own right.

The photography by Tom Leighton is absolutely gorgeous.

Where some "junk decorating" books have interiors that look cluttered and probably dusty, these look clean and bright and relaxing. It's been a huge inspiration in my life/decor/business.

There are no projects, as such, but the photos and descriptions give a lot of great ideas for using junk in your home. From old metal teakettles as planters to a cable wheel as worktable, there are endless ideas for letting a little junk into your life.

A Picture For Ursula

Book Review: The Thrifty Decorator

I bought this book years ago, and return to it again and again for great, inexpensive decorating ideas. Though some of the projects are dated (does anyone do rag-rolling these days?), others, like the basic paint how-to's and cheap alternatives to wallpaper are still quite fresh(hello, kraft paper!)

The step-by-step instructions for such projects as painting a chequerboard floor make me want to give it a try.

Chapter Headings are: The Thrifty Formula; Walls; Floors; Windows; Furniture and Storage; Chair Covers adn Cushions and Finishing Touches. In other words, how to pretty much do over the house and still have money left to actually live.


All in all, I would recommend this one if you need a good, basic reference book.

If you'd like to buy it, just click the picture in the right-hand column....

Book Review: Decorating JunkMarket Style

After updating my link list and finally getting the Alibris stuff set up, I needed a bit of a break....

But now I'm back, with my first book-review!

The Alibris thing is a way to make a little more money through this site, which can send up red flags to readers, I know.

So, in the effort to be Honest and Above-Board in all my dealings with my readers, I'll make this promise: I'll only offer for sale books that I'm really familiar with and believe to be truly helpful. So that would be either books I own myself, or books that I've taken out of the library so many times that the librarian is starting to roll her eyes and mutter "why dontcha just buy a copy?"


Decorating JunkMarket Style is one of my favourite Junk Decorating books, ever. Sue Whitney and Ki Nassauer have an incredible eye for rusty old crap and are fearless about going after it.

The book is divided into style categories for every taste - Traditional, Modern, Cottage. The projects range from simple repurposes, like: use an old metal ice-cube tray as a handy desk-top organizer, to more complicated things like the table leg coatrack.

There are full-colour photos on every page, step-by-step instructions for many projects, handy junking tips and enough inspiration to make you look at the stuff in your basement in a whole new way!

I've used a few of the ideas in my own house and will show you pictures in the next few days.

If you'd like to buy this book, click on the handy icon in the right-hand margin.


If all you see is the heading: Buy This Book, you have the same problem that I do. Your security settings are up too high. If you're running Norton security software, it may need to be temporarily disabled to be able to use the link.

This was why I had so much trouble loading this onto my site. Can anyone tell me what the use is of a program that then requires you to take ten extra steps to do anything on the internet? I want to be protected from viruses. I don't really want to be protected from shopping! My bank statement offers me enough protection from that!