Australian Christmas

I'm in Los Angeles on my way to New York for my final trip of 2013.  Before I left Sydney I decorated my house for Christmas.  By the time I get home there will only be a few days to go, so I wanted to make the most of the festive season by decorating early.  We always have a lot of fun decorating the tree.  There's no theme - it gets everything thrown on it in a riot of colour.  Old and new, tasteful and tacky, anything goes.  Dressed by a 12 year old boy, the placement of garlands and decorations is fantastically irregular.  But I love it, especially at night when the lights are on while the rest of the house is dark.

This year I decorated the mantel in the lounge room for the first time.  I used a combination of Christmas branches, silver bells with hessian bows, coloured glass baubles and a linen bird, all from Camargue in Mosman.  There's also a strand of cones from Selfridges in London last Christmas and candle holders from Country Trader in Sydney.  Even though the elements are traditional, the effect has an Australian summer vibe.

I'll be in New York in a few hours, to be greeted by sub-zero temperatures and Christmas in full glory.  I can't wait to see all the decorations in the shops and on the streets. I'll try to find time to get out and capture a few to post.

Jacarandas

The Jacaranda is my favourite flowering tree.  Every year I look forward to November when they flower in abundance all over Sydney's north shore.  They lift my spirits with their extravagant burst of vibrant colour after the paler hues of winter.  Most of all, I love to see them carpet the ground under the tree canopy in spent blossoms, like a reflection in a pond.   

Antique bedroom chair

Early one morning just after moving into my new home I was walking to Balmoral Beach and happened across an antique bedroom chair thrown out for hard rubbish collection. It was in a bad state of repair but had potential, so I swooped it up and took it home with me. For the last two years it sat in my attic, waiting for me to get inspired to resurrect it. The process was quite gradual.  

Not long after rescuing the chair, I was in Freedom Furniture at Balgowlah and found a single curtain in a sale bin.  In coastal colours which match my decor, I decided it would be perfect to re-upholster the seat of the chair.  Some months later I visited Lincraft at Belrose and purchased wadding and filling for the seat.  And later again I bought nail-heads at Ewen's Hardware in Mosman to trim the fabric.  Finally, just two months ago, I found Annie Sloan white chalk paint at Cote Maison in Waterloo.  Finally, I had all the elements I needed to repair the chair.

First, I experimented with the chalk paint, which I haven't used before.  As well as the pure white chalk paint for the chair, I bought pale blue and pale grey paint which I mixed together to paint a pine milking stool Dad had made about 20 years ago.  Two coats later, this is how it came out.

With that behind me, I tackled the chair.  I forgot to take a "before" shot, but this is what it looked like after the first coat of paint.

Today was a slow, rainy Sunday - perfect for an indoor project, so finally I completed it.  Everything about it was a first for me - chalk paint, re-upholstering and doing nailhead trim.  So I'm happy that it's come out exactly as I had pictured it in my mind two years ago when I pulled it out of the rubbish. 

Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong

Just got home today from a busy week in Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong.  I love Shanghai at any time, but the weather this week was beautiful, giving great visibility to the impressive view from our office during the day.

Dinner at a local restaurant provided a really spectacular evening experience.

Hong Kong also turned on gorgeous Autumn weather - mild enough to enjoy iconic Hong Kong rooftop cocktails and city views.

I'm so incredibly fortunate that these amazing experiences form part of my everyday life.

London

Last week I was in London - despite grey, drizzly skies and overcrowded city streets, it continues to be a great city to visit.  I had a lovely Monopoly Board stroll on Saturday along Fleet Street, past Australia House...

…down The Strand…

...past Covent Garden and the West End…

...past Eros still fending off pigeons with bow and arrow at Picadilly Circus...

…along Regent Street…

…until the lure of shopping on New Bond Street seduced me.

Eiffel Tower

From dawn to late evening, I've watched the dominating presence of the Eiffel Tower on the Parisian skyline adapt and change demeanour.  

Autumn in New York and Paris

After a few luxurious weeks at home I'm back on the global "road".  This week I've been experiencing autumn in New York and today I arrived in Paris. 

As always, the work routine in New York was hectic but I managed to find a little time to roam the city and have a lovely dinner with friends Helen and Fiona.

This morning I arrived in Paris, having flown overnight from New York.  I arrived before dawn and checked into my hotel just as the sun was coming up.  Deeply engrossed in a work call to Australia, I was completely surprised when I opened my room curtains to this iconic Parisian view.

A quick walk outside the hotel at lunchtime reminded me how much I love Paris with her wide, leafy boulevards.

London, Ghent and Stockholm

I spent the last two weeks in Europe.  

The first week in London was overcast, drizzly and hectic.  There weren't many photo opportunities, but when I look at the few images I captured, I realise they reflect the mood of the week. The first two were taken from a moving taxi, the next from a rain speckled capsule on the London Eye and the final one on Fleet Street.

My next stop was Ghent in Belgium.  In contrast to London, I had a leisurely weekend to enjoy Ghent's picturesque medieval beauty and refined pace.  

Ghent is a city of quaint and stately architecture flanking languid canals... 
















...eclectic shops on cobble stoned streets...

...a city whose weekend traffic is dominated by cyclists and pedestrians...

...whose cafes and outdoor markets draw the Sunday crowds...

...and whose surrounding countryside is iconically Belgian.

My final destination was Stockholm, which unfortunately consisted of a late evening arrival and an afternoon departure the following day, so the only photos I have, which are of my stunning room at the Grand Hotel, reflect the transient nature of my stay.