December 16th, 2009
Source: Victoria and Albert Collections
A small region of Christchurch central city is taking on a quality of design inspiration and maturity. Two doors apart are the Fabric House and Bolt of Cloth. Each do something slightly different - the former specialising in furnishing fabrics at wholesale prices from around the world but with a European bias , the latter in finer fabrics from America and Japan and with an emphasis on NZ design. Both sell online. Bolt of Cloth’s site is particulalry well designed and their Madras Street showroom also incorporates a workroom for soft furnishings.
I have been frequenting these stores in small bites while a son is at music lessons and slowly reaching resolution of fabric choices for the old house.
The commitment of each store to colour , pattern and creativity that emphasises originality rather than slavish fashion makes browsing uplifting. It is rekindling an old part of myself and quite literally drawing a thread back to my passion for textiles.
Last week I saw a shirt with peasant embriodered yoke that look frighteningly like a dress I embroidered in 1976! Cost $495… and the supply chain hardly bears thinking about.
Is the passion for and collection of lengths of fabric a gendered activity? Well, I have yet to meet a bloke who hoardes a collection of woven and printed dreams folded carefully in a box with a few mothballs, but I suspect an adage heard long ago “She who dies with the most fabric wins…” seems to speak to a certain sorority. Once, we all used to sew. Or supposedly we did - some were masterful at it ( whipping up a flouncing ball gown from a set of table napkins) some couldn’t and some didn’t. Now, as global labels cost the earth and all look the same some of us are thinking about dusting off the machine again.
Yesterday I bought a skirt length from the Tree Top Range by an American designer Tina Givens range at Bolt of Cloth. From the plethora of colour I have managed to deciphre her signature and am completly inspired by it. Many of the designers represented in the Bolt of Cloth collection are well known in their country of origin…. just makes me want go places but at least we can travel design worlds on the web.
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December 13th, 2009
“More is more. Less is never more - less is obvioulsy less. Who wants less? ”
Michelle Nussbaumer in Elle Decor , Women in Design.
Now that the ghastly process of managing the less than ideal build is nearing an end I can pay attention to the pleasures of design and colour! The latest Elle Decor read in the balmy shade of the garden or curled up on a winter evening with a glass of read has been an enduring constant!
Tags: design
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December 13th, 2009
After the farewell chapel
The last haka
I have often wondered ( particulalry around the 20th of each month when fees are due) what the worth of a private education has been and will be for our boys. Last week , participating in the rights of passage of the leaver’s ceremonies I was encouraged to think that the balance is towards benefit. As a boys school run, in the main, by men it has it’s flaws. As an institution with its roots firmly planted in an English tradition that seems outdated even in England, there are times when the incongruities of its practises might exceed good sense. But it seems that belonging to a small community, with clear lines of connection and high expectations for participation for both students and staff has been, and continues to be, the worth of the place to our family.
Beards and long hair are now the committed goal for summer….
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December 6th, 2009
Peonies are out and they look fab against newly painted “Den” wall. (Den named courtesy of Ruth Zanker)
Peonies - Baroness Schroeder is amongst them
And for the context …. none of the boys had noticed them… Rugby and Cricket on all day….
Tags: peonies
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November 22nd, 2009
Last night David, Tom and I went out with many of the neighbours from up and down the road with torches and vehicles and tried to round up two stray yearlings. You don’t get to do that in town!
The two rabbits David has been trying to shoot have not been around - he is frustrated by the sight and the distance limit on the air rifle. A proper weapon is required. But he is not yet old enough for his own license.
And today I finished the hall ( well bar the touch ups).
Door
Many thanks to Jono Inkster of JMI Construction who ‘gets’ what I am trying to do with the old house and who opened the old door. Jono was introduced to me by Steve Jeff . It is truly tragic that we did not know him earlier! And thanks to Bob who crafted new and restored the old glass into it.
I thought I had blogged about this door - it was closed over on the inside but always apparent externally. Jill Minson remembers when it was closed for good and they got more space. For me, opening it was part of reclaiming the spirit of the house . I have wanted to do this ever since we arrived.
Jono rebuilt the wall and restored the original hall, procured new mathcing skirting and made a wonderful job of matching it. The day Jono pulled off the lining and confimed it was indeed a solid door was more of a milestone for me than anything else in the whole build… and it remains so. Three new hinges was all it took to hang it.
I have left all the old chipped paint on it and just added more. Layering back some and covering over other coats of time seems the right treatement. The ewindow above it I stripped back with citrus stripper and now the light comes in.
I breath deeply everytime I step in and out of it.
In process
Tags: door
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November 17th, 2009
This post is basically for the designers/builders. Excuse the formatting.
However, while I am here a few answers to some FAQ’s. I have been amazed how many people feel free to challenge the design of things. Mostly they ask about things that were not done due to compromise ( probably an error is retropsect) . Maybe they watch too much Grand Designs. But often they are not giving us credit for knowing or thinking about how it would be done. Whatever, if these don’t answer your queries then come and visit - bring wine. It’s not over yet but I am over it!
( And of course some of the those who might have challenged for the sake of improvement during the process unfortunately did not)
FAQ’s the deck:
Why is it so high? To keep our feel wet in the 1/50 yr flood. ( last year we had one and it didn’t - but it could)
Why is it so big? Its not that big really - just the height make it seem so.
Will you keep the pebbles ? - No it will be concrete cut to look like pavers.
Will it have garden in it ? - Why would you if you have 3 acres of garden?
Steps? - yes there will be - come back later - - Kwilla.
Edges ? They meet council requirments - Murray knows them inside out.
Sleepers -? Yes they are. Didn’t Murray do well.
The bit in the corner ? Fish pond.
Tags: deck
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November 17th, 2009
Good news on gas. 2/3 of a bottle over two weeks. This is a huge saving from teh origial 2 bottles a week. But then : all the thermostats were connected to the wrong room! Now - solar boosts in the day , only heating the bathroom floor and the rest come on only when set back falls below 5 degrees. Radiators boost only when needed. Yes, gas is dearer wer KW/h but efficiency is greater. Boys shower is now on this system also. Just need to get the pool onto a self sufficent regime and we are ‘cookin’.
the system
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November 5th, 2009
My father raised me on Roosevelt. I like this advice. It’s on the fridge now.
We are gearing for the final stage on the code of compliance.
The Irises are magnicent.
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November 5th, 2009
We had the final inspection last week. The builder was away - the junior builder came.. six pages of reconciling inspection notes not followed through later we await paperwork ….
My questions around this are as follows:
Where is the clear and concise instruction from counil that inspections are our responsibility - when I asked the builder for a schedule of these he told me they’d look after them…
How does it happen that they can proceed without them being checked .. what to notes like “ok to proceed once… ” really mean?
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August 24th, 2009
We’ve been having some trouble with the floor… the block out under the dining room isn’t heating well. We know there are pipes there : see below:
pipes under the dining room
We tried setting it on all day ( on the basis that bit of the slab might never have gained enough momentum with various staged applications of manifold and timing and thermostats then my attempt to reduce gas consumption as the weather warms…. )
This resulted in me discovering at 1.45 am that teh ambient temp was 23.5 and teh radioators - althogh showing off… were on! Research continues. Double glazing is good an certainly teh slab does hold the heat.
Turns out tehre is some marvy new product out and noe Red Dwarf rotinely insulate the exterior of the slab. Cold comfort….
The range hood doesn’t draw very well…..
Mantle in in and looks good …
We await the builders to do their stuff.See final inspection
Old house awaits ripping out of old kicthen and rendering and painting and … I am a bit over it all today!!!
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