On Life and Lava

Roberts Radio

lavalotti — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:39:13 +0000

Perhaps the only (scratch that, the only) thing I have in common with Queen Elizabeth is that we both own a Roberts Radio, although I’m not sure hers is as awesome a colour as mine (duck egg blue, homeys!) I had been wanting one of these for a very long time as it’s one of the few digital radios available at the moment that fits with a vintage furniture sensibility (especially if you like 50s style) without sacrificing digital technology. Oh, and the Roberts radio is 80 years old. While I miss all the great radio programmes I was introduced to during my student years in the UK, I still feel like the start to my day isn’t complete without listening to the local news as I get ready (let’s hear it for hr-iNFO.) Christmas prezzies don’t get any better than this! While taking pictures for this post (laundry basket and chocolate packets hidden well out of sight) I realised that we really need to sort out some kind of bedroom curtain solution in here. I was going to channel my inner Scandi minimalist and do without (we have electric blinds) but something just feels off. I’d like whatever curtains go up to not compete with the view of the trees and the sky outside but still add a bit of balance to the room. Oh, and distract from the radiators and wall sockets. The most cost effective solution would be to reuse our old living room curtains (from the IKEA Stockholm line, although these particular ones have been discontinued): I still like the curtains, the colours should work with the shades of blue on the wall and the artwork we have up in the bedroom now, but I’m concerned that the chunky graphic stripes will overwhelm the small room with its lower ceiling height. Hm.

Pottery Pairs

lavalotti — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 07:44:23 +0000

The post-holiday season has been very busy for us, but we’re starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel now. With temperatures finally dipping into the icy cold range over here, fleamarkets are a while off yet, but some pottery additions have nevertheless found their way into our home… The huge, textured grey Carstens floor vase was one of my larger pottery finds when I first started collecting; my husband discovered its smaller twin at a fleamarket in autumn. Similarly, the large green and brown drip glaze Jasba vase had lived with us in two homes already when my mom found a matching piece in a charity shop in Berlin recently. There’s something visually pleasing about displaying glaze pairs in a collection of pottery that is often overwhelming in its variety.

In other news, our Wegner armchair has been at the reupholsterer’s for nearly two weeks and is due to arrive back home any day now, freshly upholstered and ready for a new era of armchair reign in our home…updates to follow.

House Plans 2012

lavalotti — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 10:14:21 +0000

In the 5 months that we have had access to our house (we have lived in it for 4), the following things have been taken care of:

the most dramatically overgrown bits of the garden trimmed and cut back
XXL King Kong composter set up
some of the electrical wiring jazzed up
master bathroom completely remodelled
master bedroom painted
guest bedroom painted
living room feature wall painted
ceiling lamps installed everywhere
outside basement stairs re-concreted in places (old frost damage)
all door locks changed
kitchen painted
fuse box updated to current standards
basement organisation started
basement wall repainted
raised planter project started

This is what we’re hoping to achieve in 2012:

Complete raised planters (1 remaining out of a total of 4)
plant vegetable and herb yumminess in aforementioned planters
paint living room
paint study
paint basement rec room wood cladding (I haven’t blogged about this yet; let’s just say it’s not beautiful)
paint garden fence
plant hedge
have front door refinished and made more insulation efficient
repaint iron entrance railings by front steps
source new/old/vintage bed for master bedroom
wallpaper dining area feature wall
source new or vintage furniture for terrace and balcony

Yikes! Unrealistic much?

Cynthia Rowley Pillows

lavalotti — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:14:16 +0000

image: cynthiarowley.com

I don’t usually (okay, I never) have an opportunity to buy or wear Cynthia Rowley’s beautiful clothes, but I can have a few decorative pillows. Especially when they’re on sale at TK Maxx. And feature colourful neon birdies and quilting, like pop art meets country (a description that did not endear them to my husband.) These psychedelic grouse are now gracing the bed in the master bedroom, a part of the house I haven’t revealed on the blog yet because it is very much in progress. Progress has stalled, of course, but in theory there is one. The hastily thrown on duvet covering the rest of the bed is IKEA’s ALINA, by the way, which is the only dark grey blanket in double size available in all of this land, apparently.

The blue paint colour on the feature wall behind the bed is “Sky” from German magazine Schöner Wohnen’s range, but the verdict is still out on whether or not it will remain.

image: obi.de

I had envisaged a much chalkier blue when I chose this colour, but some days the finish on the wall is a bit too baby blue for my liking. What’s your approach to wall colours for bedrooms? Minimalist white, soothing pastels, or dark, moody hues?

Old Year, New Year

lavalotti — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 20:00:20 +0000

Happy New Year! 2011 was a big year for us. It started off with a fiercely intense house hunt that saw us nearly buying a house in March, only to be pipped to the property post by other buyers. Somewhat deflated, we recharged our batteries in Sardinia only to resume the house search once back in exotic Kassel. In April we viewed the house that was to become ours for the first time, and on August 1st the sale had finally gone through and we received our keys. Pottery was hauled from one place to the next, a move organised and accomplished (with the last of the boxes cleared from the basement a week before Christmas), and the first winter holiday season celebrated in our new/old home. Phew!

The year in blogging was as enjoyable to me as ever. Many thanks to top commenters littleowlski, Brismod, Fat Cat, sevenstarsimages, Monica, and all new and occasional commenters and readers for your input and kind words and the glimpses I get into your lives while offering up some of my own. May 2012 bring us all good health and happiness, not to mention love, and continued joy in our homes, wherever they may be.

German Christmas Market: Goslar

lavalotti — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 20:20:19 +0000

Merry Christmas! We have been enjoying the holiday to the fullest over here despite the un-Christmasy mild weather and more or less constant rain. Undetterred, we travelled as far afield as Lower-Saxony town Goslar for their Christmas market. While I’m not a Christmas market grump, I don’t feel as though I’ve missed out on seasonal cheer when I skip going. This one won me over though, as the town is absolutely gorgeous to begin with and much care has been put into all the decorations. One thing we enjoy about Germany is how effortlessly Germans pull off a wealth of yummy Christmas foods and treats. Feuerzangenbowle, Kartoffelpuffer, sausages, what more can you ask for? Aside from the usual mulled wine (Glühwein) a trend this year has been “mulled” Caipirinha (affectionately called “Caipi” by Germans.) Anyone tried it? All images courtesy of my father-in-law. Merry Christmas!

Around Here

lavalotti — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 17:06:15 +0000

Presents wrapped? Check. House cleaned? Check. Food shopping completed? Yup, for once with a proper list and a bit of focus. Tree hauled home and decorated? Check (plus one gratuitous Christmas Siamese Cat Watching Birdies.) As much as I love the smell of a real tree, I am going to give in to my desire for a fake Christmas tree next year. In fact, I’m going to order mine right after Christmas when prices are at their lowest. It will be silvery white, like something off a Siegfried and Roy set, and I will revel in the fact that it doesn’t drop needles and can be kept up until August should I completely lose my mind. Share the dream, everyone:

apartmenttherapy.com

More faux Christmas tree inspiration can be found here.

Ebay Score

lavalotti — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:45:52 +0000

One of the upsides to the gloomy darkness of the winter months is that it provides an excuse to collect pretty candle holders. In my opinion the Swedes really know how to rock a stylish votive, so as soon as I found out that my beloved Kosta Boda snowball came in two more sizes, I was on the hunt for a complete vintage set. For over a year. Behold! The hunt is over. Ebay provideth. Ann Warff designed these in 1973 and they have been in production ever since. I like that they look great lit and unlit and don’t have that overt Christmas decoration appearance. Speaking of Christmas, can you believe it’s only 10 days away? We’re hosting Christmas for the first time ever this year (and for the first time ever in our first ever house) so let’s just say that preparations have been in full swing for a while. What are your Christmas plans this year?

Tree

lavalotti — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:01:33 +0000

This is my parents’ Christmas tree this year. Many years 0f collecting Christmas decorations means that there’s always a visual feast of a tree at their house, whereas we’re at the beginning of our little collection. And our tree? Still haven’t bought it yet in the hope that it will stay fresher for longer if we hold out a bit…probably in vain.

One of my decoration themes this year will be toadstools. No, really, they’re cute… …updates will follow. Have you set up your tree yet?

Black/White

lavalotti — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 18:03:40 +0000

For those who are on the fence about hunting for West-German pottery to integrate into their muted and tasteful interior palettes, I present this chic Scheurich model (2024/18) in pure white with a crusty black fat lava glaze.

I picked this piece up over a month ago (!) at a fleamarket in between bouts of bronchitis (yes, I’d appreciate a chorus of “awwwws”.) It looks so current that I’m wondering whether this might not be a 90′s model. If this vase were a person, it’d wear a black polo neck, these glasses…

via m.gerwing architects

…and swan around in the Neue Nationalgalerie.