GHOST FURNITURE IN 2012 - PLANS ARE AFOOT

I have never known a year like 2011. Apart from some awful personal stuff going on in our lives business has been dire. I don't believe anyone who says it hasn't been for them. I have never seen so many sales before Christmas, it was certainly a buyers market.


Onto 2012 with new plans to beat the recession. Ghost Furniture will be spending longer periods of time in France scouring those fabulous brocantes to not only bring back pieces and breath new life into them but we are going to start to bring back those pieces we have spent years bypassing, those pieces that need to stay just as they are. We are determined to put the chic back into shabby in 2012.


We are also in the throes of organising Furniture Workshops for 2012 to be held in this gorgeous place I call home - The Northumberland National Park. They will be 3 day courses with the most amazing accommodations available which include - luxury apartments, traditional country inns and even luxury yurts and Indian tepees. Our guests will be treated to wonderful local fayre and will be taken to the places that inspire us and will have a tour of our cottage that sits in a tiny hamlet overlooking the Tyne Valley. All our guests have to do is turn up with a small piece of furniture they want to restyle and the rest will be provided by us.

We will be appearing at Vintage Fairs all over the UK. All that's left to say is WATCH THIS SPACE.

Autumn in The Forest

I saw this image on Tumblr this morning and could sympathise with the lady sitting under the leaf. Living in The Northumberland National Park, as I do, means we are surrounded by forests and trees and at this time of year there is a constant raining down of leaves. I feel sometimes as though they will bury me. I also hate raking them up.

de Rigueur For The Ducks In Northumberland

Dress code for the ducks around here at the moment. Stop bloody raining PLEASE!

Found at Trend Pulse

Northumberland Goes To London - RE at Liberty

I was invited by Liberty to attend the launch of their new Dining Room and the announcement of the RE Satellite Store in their famous London shop. For personal reasons I could not attend but those lovely people sent me a gorgeous Goodie Bag (a Liberty Goodie Bag, no less). Before I go any further let me say that the people at Liberty are some the friendliest people I have ever come in contact with. Liberty seems a fun place to work if their attitude is anything to go by. I digress.

If you have never heard of RE then you must have been living under a rock. RE is situated not far from my home in Northumberland so I have the huge advantage of going there whenever the fancy takes me. Simon & Jenny, the owners, have turned this old workshop into an Aladdin's cave and now they are taking their magic to Liberty in London. On 6th April you Southerners can get a taste of RE and you will not be disappointed believe me.

After and Before

I can't believe that it was over 2 years ago that I visited and blogged about the Alpaca Farm near my cottage and bought some yarn. Well today I finished the first little knitted outfit made from the alpaca yarn I bought way back then, for my new granddaughter that's due in March. Cute eh? I was a knitwear designer back in the 80s, nice to discover I haven't lost the skills.
Below - the before pics.

A Very Merry Christmas From Here

Thanks to every person around the globe who hangs around Designers Block, it's been fun. Merry Christmas to you all xx

It's Official

My area has been the worst hit by snow in the UK, well thanks for admitting that whoever you are. I am now going to venture out before I go insane. The local pub will only let us in if we take a log - good idea as theirs are buried under 6 feet of snow.

We Have Bears In Our Garden

 I can't believe it's still snowing, this is the 7 solid days of it but we are not alone because

we have a Polar Bear asleep in the garden and

a Teddy Bear trying to escape, can't say I blame him.

TRAPPED!

It has been snowing relentlessly here since last Thursday and I am now officially sick of it. Oh it looks very Christmas Card Perfect but I am totally trapped. We live in a hamlet on a hill and the roads are impassable. I have loads of Ghost Furniture orders to go out and no possible way of sending them.
My garden bench looks like a sofa but it's far too cold to sit on.