I don't think I have had a guest post here on my little slice of blog land..
I think I will do some more over time..
as I've been very fortunate to make some lovely friends through blogging
and its nice for them to strut their stuff on other blogs too..
you see, you may have heard it all before..
such talent
such personality
such creativity
out there
in the world of blogs
Its all true,
I can confirm it
and this lady is a one of a kind
with a wonderful eye for all things gorgeous
so...
With much delight I would like to introduce you to a
friend of mine whom I was very lucky to meet via the wonders of blogland and the internet
sometime ago now..
All photos taken by Kirstie
of our lynchgate and its beautiful setting underneath
here at Greystanes..
A few months back I visited my dear friend Alicia of Time Worn Style Mountain Studio, upon driving through her lynchgate with only just enough room for my car to fit, I was thinking how beautiful is this! it was like driving into a secret garden.
Weeks had gone by with many mornings waking from a beautiful dream,
dreams of this lynchgate that I couldn't get out of my mind of what
and how I'd like to decorate it with a table setting for that lazy summer afternoon luncheon.
So I thought the only way I'm going to stop these dreams is to contact Alicia, and tell her about my dreams
about her lynchgate, and of course to ask her if I can come up one day to set it all up and have a styling shoot,
and for Alicia to assist me in the styling, to my surprise Alicia loved the idea.
This is where it began ~ Adeline Country Cottage goes to
We had played around with a few stylings that I had in mind, this is exactly what I envisioned...
A place hidden away under the lynchgate, a place where you feel taken away from the busy life one leads, a place to share with friends on a lazy summer afternoon lunch, with delicious food,
fine wine, great company with laughter echoing through the garden...your mind wanders! lets bring you back!
I love traveling around to opp-shops, antique stores and online to find that perfect piece, with a love of all things blue, pale pink, white, cream, silver, gold, silver grey timbers, crystal class, dried pink roses, vintage tins and of course chandeliers. I also like mixing old with the new,
so styling this setting came very easily, a place where I dream to be.
I love layers of white vintage table cloths, the freshness and the feel of luxury, I think Rachel Ashwell once said "like old hankies'...vintage table clothes can be found in many places garage sales, opp shop (thrifty stores) antique stores etc, I don't pay anything over $25 for a large size,
I had thought about buying new french linens, but there is nothing nicer then an old soft well worn table cloth, that you can pick up around the corner from home that doesn't cost too much, that's if your'e on a tight budget of course, don't you agree?
The vintage cream plates with the tatted gold rims can be found for a few dollars per plate, you can be lucky to pick up a set, but in my case it was one at a time and at different places and of different sizes,
here I have used 2 napkins, vintage white and pink, you can never have too many napkins at the table, the thought behind this is the large white one for your lap and the smaller pink one for those little bits of food around the mouth to be wiped away...as I laugh!
vintage napkins can be sourced everywhere, the white napkins here, a set of twelve were $15 and the pink 99c each, I have used a very sheer vintage ribbon to hold the napkins together and placed the fine silver cutlery inside,
now silver cutlery sets can set you back quite a bit but with a little resourcing you can be very lucky to find them at a good price, the set I have used here for a place setting of 12 came in the box for $50 ~ great find if you ask me,
The clear crystal wine glasses I find most familys have, whether they're handed down, given as a wedding present or buy them, they are a dime a dozen in thrifty stores, couple of dollars I've seen them for, and who said they all had to match as long as they all have the same size?
Dotted around the table are some odd glass jars to add tea lights in. Well they're nothing really special, just find some that works for you for a few cents,
The blue drinking glass are a reproduction, now these glasses Alicia was so happy to assist me with, they have the cut of a crystal glass and had been put into a dish washer and lost some of it's blue, they look like they have the vintage fadeness, but you know I think it adds to the appeal of the table setting, Oh and did I mention Alicia gave them to me as a gift...I love them!
The tall blue water bottle can be found in kmart for $1.99, the small vintage bottle dotted around the table are an easy find,
prices range between $2 to $12, they come in different shades from clear to a tint of blue.
The two gorgeous blue hobnail vases, they are the most vibrant Greek sea blue with a white rim around the top very had to find, if you see them grab them, they are worth a lot of money, lets just say anything under $100 is a bargain, the two here where under that price.
I love fresh flowers, but didn't want to much here after all you're in this beautiful secret garden that provides such natural beauty,
I went with some dried pink roses, placed here and there, and an old silver grey bucket that housed some blue hydrangeas,
A sweet little table crystal drop candelabra, and blue chairs found in one of Alicia's junket runs.
I love the idea of hanging my milk white chandelier, and liked the idea of having a white picture frame hanging, but I wanted something different so we hung both of them,
the whiteness of the frame and the chandelier as the focal and brought the outdoor room all together, the vintage frame cost $50 and had nothing but a slap of white under coat paint,
the milk white chandelier was my bargain of the century cost me $5 yep your reading right $5 dollars, I just happened to be at the right place at the right time!
Well I'll let you scroll down and view the rest of images
I had such a wonderful time with Alicia, thank you so much Alicia for opening your home and garden for me to fulfil my dream...And thank you too Sonia for publishing this photo shoot in
Kirstie.
