Day dream

Ikea Karlstad 3 Seat Sofabed
Ikea Karlstad Footstall
John Lewis Cushions
Muji Coffee Table
Habitat Rocking Chair
Unto This Last Shelving Unit
Anglepoise
Ikea Solvar Chairs
Muji Dining Table

I've got bit too much time on my hands at the moment, and I've been daydreaming about all the things I'd love to buy for my home. We definitely need some new dining chairs, but all the other things are purely for dreaming. We have two perfectly good sofas (although I don't like the beige colour..) so I don't think I'll be able to convince my husband to buy the one above. Although it does convert into a sofabed! But we already have a sofabed in the spare room... oops. I've loved that rocking chair ever since Habitat introduced it several years ago. And the coffee and dining tables from Muji are just perfectly simple. Must stop this day dreaming.. my home is already fully furnished!

Basically, if I moved in here I would be very happy!

Inspiration

I've added lots of images to my tumblr over the past few days. I'd quite happily move into any of these places.

Since finishing uni I've been productive and sorted through every cupboard and drawer. I have two boxes of clothes to list on eBay, and several bags of odds and ends to take to the charity shop. For once, I feel organised; it's such a relief to know everything is in order. The next thing I need to do is touch up some paint work, paint a couple of doors, and possibly paint the insides of the wardrobes. I've written a list of things we still need to buy for the flat (new dining table and chairs from Ikea, a couple of lamps, chest of drawers), and things we can make ourselves (bookcase, shelves). It's terrible having time at home as it makes me want to change everything around!

Changes!

I started this blog about 6 months ago and it has been such a wonderful way for me to keep track of all the inspiring things that I see on the Internet each day.

But I feel ready for change.

A couple of days ago I opened a tumblr account, and I plan to update this image bank whenever I see something that I really love. I think tumblr is better suited to this than blogger. Sometimes I don't have much to say about an image other than, "Look at this. I like it", and on my tumblr there will be images and no words. It's a lot quicker to upload a single photo on tumblr than it is to write a post on blogger.

From now on, Cubic Dreams will be home to my own creations/photos/thoughts and as a result it probably won't be updated as frequently as it was in the beginning. I might do summaries of my favourite images or write about a project I particularly like, but most of the material will be original (I hope!).

In the meantime, above are some of my recent favourites, and feel free to take a look at what else has made it's way onto my tumblr so far, here :)

*images via Milk from a Thistle, Wunderlust and Colour + Sound.

Spring fresh

Things that have caught my eye this week...

1. miamizeiss (via Bleubird), 2. Spring Globe, 3. Bee Hives, 4. B-Martin (via Design is Mine), 5. Lena Corwin, 6. "a small collection" dress, 7. Odette New York.

All sorts

Over the last few days I've been reeling from the shock of learning that Ronan Keating has had a seven month affair with a dancer. I'm not usually one to care about celebrity gossip, but Ronan played a huge part in my childhood and still is a big part of my life (I saw him in concert only 3 months ago) and I feel devastated that he's not the man he made himself out to be. Over the last decade he's cultivated an image as a loving family man, and even brought his children onto the stage at a recent concert. I can't believe he's been lying all this time - not only to his fans, but more importantly his wife. It makes me sad. I don't doubt that he's still in pain after losing his friend and fellow bandmate last year, but surely losing someone so close to you would make you appreciate your family even more? I just don't understand, and I feel sad. Sad for him - as his career is in tatters - and sad for his wife and family. This stupid mistake will affect the rest of his life. I really hope he can try to sort himself out... Anyway, I have many more things closer to home to worry about. I just needed to get that all off my chest.

These are a handful of images that have caught my eye over the last couple of weeks. They make me *happy*.

*Images via Grossomodo, Made by Anna - Etsy, Design Sponge, Design Sponge, The Design Files.

My little haven

It's been such a busy week. I submitted my porfolio for an interim review on Friday (and had to travel to London twice in one day: once to hand it in, and then to collect it after it had been marked!). Then on Saturday I took a trip to Ikea and picked out some new pieces of furniture. The delivery was meant to be on Sunday but they called us an hour after we left the shop to ask if they could deliver the same day! I'm used to having to wait for things, but everything happened so quickly! Then my kind husband assembled everything Saturday night, and had to dash out for a wood saw first thing Sunday morning so he could cut down the desk top to fit nice and snug under the window. Then yesterday I helped out with a crazy project at uni: we're building a temporary structure out of 4000 milk crates! Eeek. My hands are so sratched and legs are bruised, but it was fun! And then last night I lost a contact lens in my eye! It's still in there I think. It's happened once before and I found it rolled into a tube under my eyelid (sorry for all the details), but so far it hasn't surfaced so I'm off to the opticians in the morning *sigh*.



Anyway, focusing on my new work area in the bedroom... I chose one long surface as it makes the most of the strange uneven shape of the room. I want to claim back the corner of the room but sadly it makes up the neighbour's bedoom. We originally had a dressing table and small chest of drawers in front of the window, but it looks a lot more streamlined and spacious now. The chair is also from Ikea - it's made of string that's wrapped around a metal frame. It's so pretty and incredibly comfortable. As soon as I took it out of the box my husband and I looked at each other and suddenly realised that it's in fact a giant scratching post for our cat, Honey. And sure enough, that night, she Christened the chair by running her claws along the seat. But don't worry - as soon as I shout, "OUT!" she knows she's been a naughty girl, and luckily she hasn't tried it again. The desk is a dream to work on: so much space to spread over and all my things are at hand in the drawers! It really is a luxury for me.



The lightbulb of drawing pins was my grandad's: he always had it on his desk.



This is the view upon entering the room. The painting is by my father, and my granny grew the money tree for me.



*All photos Cubic Dreams.

A nest of my own

This week I've been quite obsessed with the idea of creating a work space in our bedroom. (I blame this beautiful office I saw last week). I'm planning to replace the dressing table with a long white work surface. I've tested out this space by working on the laptop on the dressing table, and I can't believe the difference it's made to my productivity! There is so much light and a view to look out on. (The dressing table is too shallow to use in the long term...) If it's going to work as a proper work space I'm going to have to learn how to put things away and keep it clutter free. There's nothing worse than a messy bedroom!

I've been looking at lots of images of offices/studios, and especially ones that are in bedrooms. Ours won't have a PC out on the desk (as I now have a laptop - yay!) but it will be an area for model making, drawing, studying: a little nest of my own.



So whilst shuffling the bed across the room late on Sunday night, I decided it's time to add some more colour into the room. I'm thinking about a yellow bedspread like in the picture above, and maybe wall mounted bedside lights. I mentioned the lights to my husband and he looked quite worried. I told him it's really easy to do, right? I'm happy for the wires to show :) I now need to convince him to come to Ikea with me at the weekend... Even if we pay for delivery, we've still got to lift those boxes!

P.S. This is my first post under the new Government: a coalition between the Lib Dem's (YAY!!!) and the Tories (not so yay, but Vince Cable will keep them in line!). After being at each other's throats in the live debates, I just hope they can work together!

*Image credits: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Balance

I'm in love with this girl's apartment. The black window frames perfectly balance out the whiteness.

Yesterday I had a bit of a whinge about our flat. We've been trying to sell it for a number of months, but to be honest, property just isn't selling at the moment so we're going to be here a while. It's a very unsettling experience; I've already emotionally detached myself from our home and the space just isn't working for us. I dream of changing everything around a creating a new office area in our second bedroom, but it just doesn't make sense to do it at the moment. So my kind and understanding husband spent Sunday evening moving the furniture around in our bedroom and we've made room for a desk under the window. It's the sunniest spot in the flat and looks onto trees. We're going to get a simple white tabletop from Ikea and two drawer units and slot it into the gap. I'm so excited about having a nest of my own to do my work - it will make such a difference. Now we just need to work out how we're going to pick up the furniture from Ikea... :)

*Images: Hildagrahnat's Flickr stream

Dream work space

I've just spied the most amazing office space on Design Sponge! Look at those long surfaces and all that space in the middle to breathe. Oh and the doors that open onto the garden!! Oh my... If I ever fulfill my ambition of working for myself, this is the kind of space I could only dream of...

*Home of Jen Bilik, via Design Sponge.

Comforting collections

It was only a couple of weeks ago that I came across the striking art by Serena Mitnik-Miller, and today I was so happy to see these photos of her bungalow. I love the relaxed nature of this home, and all the various collections on the shelves. This looks like it's a really comfortable place to be, and it exudes personality. It's refreshing to see a home that's so natural and 'unstyled'.

*Images: Apartment Therapy

Ikea Family Live

Ikea Family Live is a new website that features real people, in real homes. It's great to see Ikea furniture in natural surroundings, rather than overstyled catalogue pages! These are a couple of my favourite spaces.

*Images: Ikea Family Live. Found via Ninainvorm.

Bolig Magazine

I think Bolig is my new favourite website. I can't understand a word of the Danish, but I can recognise a pretty room when I see one :) It's all about white walls and fresh colour. From what I've seen so far, there's nothing I dislike. When I have the time, I plan to revist the website to absorb more.

*Images: Bolig Magazine

Kitchen nook

I adore the atmosphere captured in this photo. Tables in kitchens always make me feel cosy, for some reason. This little nook is so pretty with all the natural light flooding in.

*Home of Klaartje de Hartog/image via Bloesem

My dream room

As soon as I saw this living room I knew I had to make a note of it. I wish I could step straight into the photo... everything about it seems perfect, to me. The white walls, the grey sofa, the touches of yellow and turquoise, the beautiful wood furniture. I just love it all!

Well, that's enough dreaming for now... I've been taking a bit of a blog break over the last few days and it will continue for a little while. I have A LOT of work to get done for uni, and I've been finding the Internet to be a terrible distraction. I forced myself to sit down on Saturday and write an essay, and... *shock* I actually enjoyed myself! The Internet is great for many things, but it's has a detrimental effect on my concentration.

I'm allowing myself to post when I see something that I'd like to make a note of, but I'm strictly limiting the amount of time I spend browsing other people's blogs. I'm also desperate to make another shirt dress, but that, too, will have to wait...

*image: Apartment Therapy

Flickr Favourite: The 10 Cent Designer

[All images: The 10 Cent Designer]

I just can't stop looking at this flickr stream! It's everything I love...

Sliding panels

[Images: House in Midorigaoka, Japan by Camp-Design inc. Found via Dezeen]

I find the sliding walls and panels in this design very appealing. This idea has been applied internally and also to the wall that connects to the outside space. It would be very interesting to mix up the opacity of the panels: transparent as well as solid panels to offer different degrees of privacy. I think the detailing on the sliding runners is quite beautiful. When all the panels are pushed to one side, one huge space is created -- ultimate flexibility. Who needs fixed walls?

Habitat

[Images: Habitat]

I really like the interior shots on the Habitat website at the moment. I hope there's a new catalogue out soon!

Delicate desk

[Image: Living Etc]

I'm trying to convince my husband that laptops are the way forward. I'd like a desk like this one but the whole look would be spoiled by our ugly Dell monitor and huge silver tower.

It's clever how the bottom strips of blind have been painted to add a pop of colour to the room.

Dutch elegance

[Images credits: Bloesem]

Bloesem has been one of my favourite blogs for a long time, and I really look forward to the Let's Get Personal house tours. This week's house seemed to jump out at me more that usual, so I just had to make a note of it here I don't forget about it! It is the home of Dutch artist/designer Jurianne Matter. I love every detail and there are many more beautiful photos on Bloesem.

PS. I had a play with the new blogger template features today and created a menu under the header.. It's too much fun! I need to concentrate on my uni project. My Easter break is one month long: must work, not play!!

Kitchen nook

[Image: Apartment Therapy]

I've still got kitchens on the brain. This is the sweetest kitchen nook and it doubles as a craft area. I need one. With big windows, just like this one.