Spring-a-ling-ding

It's getting brighter and I'm really anticipating evenings outdoors, chilling out in the garden. Since shiney brand new garden furniture isn't an option for all of us - and maybe it's not really a look that we would all necessarily strive for - give your outdoorsy bits and pieces a new lease of life with the Little Greene oil-based paints, now more eco-friendly with a significantly reduced chemical content. You can use them on both woodwork and metalwork, and there is a choice of 128 colours, all in low-sheen oil-eggshell or oil-gloss. For details of Irish stockists contact Tel: 01 450 7154.

Leo & Clodagh & Laura

The furniture of Irish designer Leo Scarff makes an appearance in the latest book by New York-based Irish designer Clodagh, called Your Home Your Sanctuary. Clodagh pioneered the concept of considering the natural environment in home design and Irish interior designer Laura Farrell of Scudding Clouds worked for her in New York before returning to Dublin to  bring that beautiful earthy, pared-back aesthetic back home to us.

What a beautiful surprise

So, I was sitting at my desk yesterday afternoon, moseying away with my work, wondering if the sun was going to make a return visit at any stage and thinking about what I was going to have for dinner, when I saw Renata from reception coming down the corridor with a huge bunch of flowers. 'Hmmmm, wonder who they're for?' I thought to myself - and then she brought them over to me!I received a beautiful bouquet from Appassionata Flowers, and you really have no idea how much they brightened my day. They also brightened up my (currently rather grim-looking) little house. I decided that, to make the most of this massive bunch, I would do what I've seen my mum doing since I was a kid when she gets a bouquet of flowers - she spends absolutely ages taking bits and pieces from the bunch to fill up vases around the house. So, as you'll see from the pics above, my flower arranging skills leave a lot to be desired, but they look so bright and beautiful, they really cheer my home up no end. My friend Ciara got me the funky yellow vase for my birthday - it's by Menu and it's so handy for a large bunch of flowers because you can squeeze the stems in nicely. I love Appassionata, I'm always popping into their shop on Drury St (just at the top of George's Arcade, D2) for a little look, and I just bought myself this lovely lavender plant there the other day, it's a lovely scent to have right by my bed.

A terraced redbrick to fall in love with

I have a lot of love for 1) red brick houses, 2) terraced houses and 3) fireplaces, so when I spotted this little charmer in the Irish Times property section today I was totally smitten. So pretty.

Aaaaaaand the latest obsession is:

Josef Frank! I've been admiring this man's designs for yonks without having any idea who he is and then the pieces of the puzzle slowly came together. I had been wondering for quite some time who had designed the fabric on this lovely Astrid chair from Anthropologie (above). He is responsible for some of the most beautiful classic-but-quirky textile designs that I have ever seen, and if I could afford to have one of those designs grace my bedroom curtains then I would happily look at them forever - how could I ever tire of such beauty? He was Austrian by birth, but emigrated to Sweden in 1934, and was actually an architect who also designed furniture and textiles. I found this La Plata fabric on Swedish website Svenskt Tenn, and when I saw the funny currency I wondered 'hmmm, how much would that be in euro now?'. Answer: €81.28 per metre. Gulp.

Lovely but pricey La Plata. As ever, I dream on.

Grona Faglar

Jungle Blue

Manhattan

Phew

Storage stuff

The impending house move means that I've been paying a lot of thought to packing and storing. This applies to my clothes in particular, as not only will I have to pack them and stash them for the move, they'll also be spending serious quality time in boxes until I can afford wardrobes and chests of drawers. Howard's Storage World have these great Easi Store boxes for €27.55, I think I'll have to invest in a load of them. After I've done the big annual clear out, of course!