Tuesday 30 April 2013

Scarves With A Cause!

Imagine a group of women, mostly young widows with small children, no home, no food and no future.

Then look around you, your home, your family, your life.


 That's what happened to me on my overseas trip. My mother had decided to start a Womens Shelter. My mother took me to the shelter (a Not-For-Profit Centre) and I had the opportunity to meet these amazing women who are desperate for help but are too proud to ask. 

And then she approached me. She wanted to know if I could come up with an idea of providing them with some sort of employment opportunity. They are limited in terms of skills but so eager to learn.


I had an idea…


I decided to create a few designs, drew them, coloured them in and then got the printing blocks carved and bought some silk fabric.

The women in the shelter will be printing my designs on the fabric and turning a blank canvas into beautiful chic scarves. 

My mother always says, "give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day; teach him to fish, he'll eat for life." 

And that's what I want to do…I want to give these women a job, paid employment and their dignity back, not just a handout or a donation.

And the women were so eager to learn… to print on fabric and cut them into scarves and earn their money. 


These three main designs are inspired by the beautiful damask wallpapers and carvings I observed while vacationing in Paris and Provence.


The colours used are Paris Gray, Pale Pink, Sea Foam Green and Aqua.

All dyes are eco-friendly to maintain a sustainable environment. These scarves are 100% silk, light and airy but so warm and stylish.


At the moment there's only one of each colour. But I'll be making some more.


Sometimes art can be an escape for me, but I hope for these women, it will be a way of finding themselves.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

xox
Rani

Friday 26 April 2013

Bookcase Turned Display Unit

Hi All

I'm back with a new project. From my overseas trip, I bought back a lot of small antiques from my husband's family home. I needed a display cabinet to display some of my favourite ones. So I turned a pine bookcase into a pottery barn inspired vintage display unit.


I'm a huge fan of two-toned furniture. For my display unit, I chose to go with a walnut stain with a dark grey/almost black background to make the pieces really pop.

The display case currently sits in the dining room, but knowing me, it will be moved every so often from room to room unless it gets sold!



Vintage photos of my husband's great grand parents in an antique wooden frame

A vintage mini desk fan

Couple of Wedge wood framed pendants in antique wooden frames

More photos in a vintage silver frame

An antique crown from Aix-en-Provence

A vintage glass bottle picked up from a flea market in Paris. I made the label. I think I'll remove it and make a proper one soon.


A cherub from Venice

I sanded and distressed the corners of the bookcase to give it a well loved antique look.


Before… (sorry, I'd taken the shelves off to stain)

After…


There you have it my pottery barn inspired display unit.

Stay tuned for more projects.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

xox
Rani

Tuesday 23 April 2013

Crate Cravings!

Hi All

I'm back after an exhausting trip overseas with our family. We had to fly off unexpectedly as my father-in-law suffered a stroke. He is doing much better and we are back in Melbourne again. 

Today I'm posting about a mini project since I still have to take pictures of the projects I completed before I left. 
This is a fairly simple one. 

My husband spotted a small crate on the side of the road and knowing my love or rather obsession with crates, he bought this baby home. 

I tell you, he's a keeper! Both husband and crate, in case you're wondering! ;)

The crate was a light pine colour and I stained it to a darker brown to make it look vintage. Sanded it down lightly and we are done! 





















The mini crate is perfect for storing my recipe books in the kitchen.





I contemplated stencilling some letters on it, but decided against it. It looks cute just the way it is. 


Thanks so much for stopping by! 

I'll be back with a few more completed projects this week including my living room reveal!

xox
Rani


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