UK Flooding

Image from Google

If you don't live in the UK then you probably don't know about all of the awful flooding across the country since around Boxing Day; certain areas of the country will always be more prone to flooding than others but important questions have been raised - can more be done to prevent or reduce flooding in future? Is anyone to blame? Has enough been done to help those affected? Is enough money being devoted to flood prevention and warning?

The town in which my grandad lives was affected on Boxing Day by the flooding and the council weeks before had opened up the river running under the town which I think was part of a re-design and re-development of the town centre but in hindsight it may have made the flooding worse! The images of the town on social media were shocking, I've never seen the area like that before and the damage caused was quite far reaching. Also the photos on social media of Hebden Bridge, not far from were my grandad and other members of my family live, was even worse as well as Leeds were my sister is living for university. Thankfully my grandad's home wasn't affected but so many businesses and other properties in the area were, particularly the town centre and it doesn't seem like that much is being done and it seems that there wasn't much of a warning beforehand either, in my opinion.  

I think more needs to be done in terms of prevention and also warning so that people living in those areas to be affected can prepare their homes as the damage from the flooding must be awful to witness and to try and repair as well as pay for, particularly just after christmas. There are ways to help reduce the effects, the Home Owners Alliance suggest air brick covers and stocking up on sandbags just in case as well as excess damage prevention suggestions such as moving plug sockets higher, fitting water resistant skirting boards, sealing exterior walls and protecting the doors and windows. Flood gates or floor barriers may be useful too; also the government suggests making a flood plan although a better warning system would be needed for a flood plan to work!

One point that is useful from not only a design perspective but protection perspective too is smart storage (a point raised in my previous post about interior design trends). I'm all about interesting and unique storage solutions which is something I've tried to incorporate into my office as it has just been redecorated with simplistic and easy to move units and copper wire wall storage. I think wall storage, whether it's wire racks, floating shelves, boxed wall shelving and more are perfect ways to display valuable and interesting items as well as storing them in a safer place in the home. This is a collaborative post. 

The images of the flooding have been awful and so many people and businesses are still being affected by the damage caused by the flooding and I hope everyone gets the help and support they need. 

Were you affected by the Boxing Day flooding? Do you think enough has been done or could the flooding have been reduced? 

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Interior Design Trends 2016

All of the above images are from Pinterest

If you have been following me on Instagram or especially on Pinterest then you may know that I'm in the process of redecorating my blogging space/office and it's made me become even more addicted to Pinterest than I already was - the home and interior design photos on Pinterest are so inspirational and gorgeous! I have been scrolling through stores and Pinterest most days for design and product inspiration not just for the office but we are thinking for redesigning the kitchen this year too.

This is a sponsored post but as I've been a little obsessed with interior design recently and I ran a poll on Twitter about the topics I should blog about more and a lot of people voted for lifestyle topics, I thought this post would be interesting. Todays post is all about interior design trends, especially kitchen trends for 2016 from an article on the Better Decorating Bible by the kitchen worktop specialist, Mayfair Granite.

- Smart Storage: I think this concept applies to every room, not just kitchens, smart and space saving storage is such an important aspect of any home. I've been trying to find new and interesting storage ideas for my specialist vegan and vegetarian products in the kitchen for a while and it's not easy! Also in the process of redecorating the office, I've been trying to find smart storage for one of the smallest rooms of the house. De-cluttering and keeping things minimal will help and a new year is the perfect time to organise and sort, well I do this all of the time but for most normal people the new year or the spring is the time to sort out the home and storage solutions.

- Pendant Lighting: If you look on Pinterest you will not only been consumed by the amazingness of it all and you won't be able to leave but you will also have home envy as the kitchens on Pinterest are heavenly. I especially love pendant lights *they feature heavenly on Pinterest* and they look so futuristic and striking in a minimalistic way that I adore. Also as I am a blogger, I naturally adore rose gold pendant lighting! I think pendant lights would also be perfect for a breakfast bar or dining room table and I'm currently looking for a pendant light *rose gold, of course* for the office. They don't necessarily come cheap though but this is a trend I'm all for!

- Colourful Cabinets: I am a big fan of neutrals and white walls but even I think there needs to be a least some colour in every room and as the kitchen is the heart of the home, it should be an inviting and also interesting and fun place to be. Colourful cabinets, appliances and sinks would make a great feature in a more neutral and minimal kitchen space - injecting some life and vibrancy into one of the most used and loved rooms of the home.

Also the combination of mixed materials in the kitchen, statement bathroom mirrors, charming fireplaces, luxury worktops and open shelving are set to be big interior design trends for 2016. What do you think of the new and upcoming trends for 2016? Where do you get your home and interior design inspiration from?

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Desk Makeover Ft. Room 4 Interiors

The office in our house has slowly over the past three years of blogging became my little blogging central and I love it - I spend the majority of my time day in day out in this little room and to be honest it isn't the prettiest room so when I was contacted about a blogger 'desk redesign' challenge opportunity, I obviously said yes. I have wanted to have a little office makeover for a while but I haven't got round to it but Rooms 4  Interiors set a challenge for me to redesign my desk with just £20. The desks of the bloggers taking part will be part of a competition in which one will be voted the best by the public. 

For my desk redesign, I didn't want to do anything major, firstly because of the price limit and secondly because it would take ages. I have always loved Matalans home ware so when I saw a couple of cute items, I made an order and it arrived SO quickly. I bought the Matalan Welcome Sign (£5) which is gorgeous and I love it; it fits perfectly above my iMac - I can't believe the price, it is so cheap! I also bought a Matalan Alphabet Letter Mug (£2), again the price is fantastic and I had to restrain myself from buying ALL of the mugs. I will be going back to buy more of their copper items, especially the simple copper photo frame and three tier hanging sign for the office too. 

Flowers always make a room so much more inviting, summery and colourful so I bought some gorgeous pink roses to brightening up my desk. They have such a uplifting effect on my mood whenever I see or smell them. Lastly, I bought a small copper candle holder from H&M which I can't find on the website but I'm using it as a pen holder; it fits well with the copper tones of the sign too. There are so many products I want from H&M home, it is a little ridiculous! 

Here is the before and after, I also rearranged a lot of items as it was a little cluttered and I always think better and I'm more productive when the space around me is tidy and organised. I had a grey skull money box and a cute plaque from Sass and Belle in my room which I moved to the office as it was a little too minimal in the office. I find that refreshing and reorganising your surroundings and switching up items (even on my iMac, not just the room) is so revitalising and renewing, I love it! 

Sorry the photo quality isn't amazing for these two last before and after photos but I used the pano setting on my iPhone 5C. Oh and I also added in my blog hoodie from College Custom to this room as it has my blog logo on the back which is just amazing and it seems fitting for 'blogging central' to have it's own personalised products! 

What do you think of my mini desk makeover? 

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Ultimate Spa Bathroom + Wish List

Images from Pinterest

There's almost nothing more relaxing that a pamper night, I love them and as a blogger I can use the excuse of testing new products as a chance to have yet another pamper night, that's justifiable right? I love trying out new face masks, scrubs and candles but most of the time it doesn't feel that spa like and I think it's because our bathroom isn't very spa like - I don't think most are!

UK Bathrooms conducted research into what people would like in their home to create the ultimate spa bathroom experience if money wasn't an object. They found that most people would like a whirlpool bath to make their bathroom more spa like as well as a sauna, massaging showers and foot spa. I think I would definitely agree with the whirlpool bath and sauna opinions although I've always wanted a free standing bathtub! To read the full results and ideas on how to create your own spa like bathroom, check out the Chic and Cheap Bathroom Makeover article. 

For my ultimate spa bathroom at home, I would have to choose gorgeous blue or grey Moroccan inspired tiles as you can see from the Pinterest images above as well as clean white walls, white furniture and facilities and obviously marble and copper/rose gold has to be included, I'm a blogger after all! I think flowers and minimal wall prints would make a bathroom feel much more spa like as well. Also, if money wasn't an object then all of my bath/body products would be from Lush and L'Occitane and there would have to be lots of Yankee Candles; the vanilla chai, lavender and midnight jasmine are my current faves. 

Here's my mini bathroom and pamper product wish list:

What would make your ultimate spa like bathroom? What are your favourite pamper products?

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