It has to be said that I am a little too obsessed with interiors & home furnishings. To the point where I am constantly forming plans that are far bigger than 1. My Budget and 2. The amount of space I actually have in my diddy little studio flat. To try and scratch my itch without heading straight into my overdraft or becoming one of those weird crammed-in hoarders, I'm constantly adding new candles, cushions, and wall art to my online wish lists (currently on Next, NotOnTheHighStreet and M&S), but recently I've been lusting after a much bigger item; An armchair. 

After quite a while explaining exactly what kind of shabby chic/vintage chair I want to a clearly interested Kieran on the phone last week, he gently reminded that I really don't have the room for such a piece of furniture. Then, even when I started trying to convince myself that I could move my drawers to the end of the bed and cram a chair in the corner by the door, I was bought crashing back down to earth by the realisation that by having anything at the end of my bed, my fridge wouldn't open. Yes, my flat is that small.

Anyway, this blog is mostly full of me harping on about items that I wish I could own and never will, so why break the habit. Here's the armchairs I'd be snuggled up in if I could.. (yes, they're all ridiculously pricey.)

Now that I've been in my new flat for just over a month (!!!), I've got a much better idea of how everything fits into the storage that I have, and what else I need to get me really settled. Weirdly, for the first time in my life, I've got actually more storage space than I need and my drawers and wardrobes are actually about half full - a great reason to go and buy new clothes I believe. What I'm MAJORLY lacking though, is surface space.

I've actually got a proper bee in my bonnet about this first idea. For the past few years, Ikea have been offering an over-bed 'occasional' table as part of their Malm collection. Really annoyingly, now I need one, they've totally cut it. WHY? I've even emailed their customer services literally asking what they're playing at. I've scoured preloved.com and gumtree.com and none are coming up for sale within pick-up-able distance so I'm pretty much settled on making my own.

I've done a bit of research and found that I can get an extra long wooden finished shelf (140cm-150cm) for about £40, which would go over a double bed, and then I'll need legs / side panels and probably wheels, so I can slide it up and down over my bed. It has the potential to add up quite a bit, but I'm so absolutely set on this plan I'm going to start saving now. I can put my laptop up on the shelf while I watch TV, and as I'm in a studio flat, I can eat my dinner off that instead of a cushion on my lap. Dreamy.

Next up; a bedside table. It was really hard for me to imagine my flat once all the furniture was in place, and I wasn't sure I'd actually have space for a little something next to my bed. But I've actually got a space about 60cm wide and I think a little shabby chic addition could just pop in there delightfully. Below I've gone for a save and splurge option. The wicker unit on the left is just £35 from eBay and I'll probably get this because I need to be REALISTIC here, but the Dunelm Mill option is just oh-so-beautiful, even if it is £100.

And finally, not that these are at all surface-related or useful, BUT I'm seriously craving some gold/bronze/cracked pillar candles for my ethnic-themed bathroom and a snuggly fur throw for winter hibernation. The candles here are from H&M Home, somewhere I've not really explored much (not sure why), and are all a couple of pounds each which is just a total bargain considering the lovely finishes.

The darker throw on the left is H&M again, and the one of the left is Next (I mean, it wouldn't be a 'home' post without me mentioning the mothership). I like the idea of the slightly darker one against my light vintage bedding but I think somewhere in between the two of these would be the absolute ideal. Good luck to anyone who thinks they're getting a Christmas present from me; I'm going to be busy spending money on myself.

Sorry for the silence the past couple of weeks - as I may have mentioned (about a million times) in past posts, I MOVED INTO MY NEW FLAT!! Obviously, whilst I was unpacking boxes and tackling flatpack furniture blogging took a back seat. 

My little nest or 'pad' - as my Mum has affectionately named it due to it's dinky dimensions - is literally perfect. I wake up every morning and have a little stare about the place and a smug grin to myself. 

The only downside is that I live above a proper strange nutter called Leonard who's an alcoholic and on a completely different day/night schedule to every normal human. His TV turns on at about 11pm and it eventually goes off at 7am and if I'm honest I'd have to say it's one or two notches too loud all the way through... but I'm managing to sleep and a bit of back ground noise just reminds me I'm in central London, right? HA. We'll see how long it takes me to go down there and tell him to STOP IT. (Except I'm not going alone in case he takes me hostage or something.)

ANYWAY, aside from the move being exciting and overall a huge success, I had to attend a funeral  on Thursday. One of my best friends from school has just been shattered by the tragic death of her older brother from Sudden Adult Death syndrome and the service was really, really beautiful but just so sad. 

The family had put together the most fantastic image / tweet montages and chosen totally beautiful poems and songs. The quote at the very bottom of this post is something that was printed on all the orders of service, and is something I'm absolutely determined to live by because sometimes life really is too short. It's a new year's resolution of sorts, just a few months early.

Given that I am a lowly tenant and not going to be a property owner of any kind in the next hundred years,  this idea of a "flower wall" is silly and I need to get it out of my head. Because even on a very basic level it would cost quite a bit of money and fastening the flowers to the wall would cause damage even if I went for see-through special DIY tape. So, for now let's just all look at these photos I found on Pinterest and imagine that one day I might meet a rich man who will let me live with him AND decorate his mansion exactly as I want.

I'm getting quite into pinning everything at the moment because I have to do it for work, but I still haven't got round to making my own. It's on the to-do list.

Yep, you heard, ONE WEEK TO GO and it's full on panic-stations regarding much I have to pack and sort out. I've thrown away literally about half of my worldly possessions to account for the major down-sizing going on, plus, I'm officially living out of cardboard boxes and suitcases after selling my bedroom furniture on Sunday. I can't wait to be out of our damp flat and into my new abode but this moving business is all really quite weird and unsettling. Hold me.

I took myself to my Mum's over the weekend to try and relax a little, and also because I got my Next Home delivery sent there for her to look after and I wanted to spend some time staring at / stroking / cuddling all my new delightful bits and bobs. Mostly, I ordered kitchen stuff from there (you'll see below) but also because I'm quite possibly addicted to cushions, a couple of little pretties snuck in there. Oops?

Plus, as mentioned in a previous post, I've been craving a little buddha pal and I couldn't resist this antique gold one I found on eBay. He's quite big, larger than I expected, but has the most peaceful face and will go perfectly with my gold / brown / blue ethnic-inspired theme in the bathroom. Delightful.

As my moving date approaches (October 6th.. panic stations) I'm thinking about bits and bobs I want / need (is there a difference?) for my new flat and have got totally stuck on the idea of having a little friendly buddha sitting on my windowsill to bring some zen to my life.

Anyone who knows me will already know I'm beyond obsessed with Turkish Evil eyes, Hamsa hands and dream catchers.. all that sort of jazz.. and I just love the spiritual ideas behind them all.

The Evil Eye in the ancient Arabic sense comes from mythology about malevolent beings with a wide-eyed that stare that cast spells and curses on people. The blue-eyed symbol and the Hamsa hand (often decorated with eyes too) that have been adopted into Western modern society and seen on all tourist jewellery (we've all been there) are to protect the owner from the curses that the evil eye may cast by blocking the stare or returning the stare straight back.

Buddhists believe that looking into the relaxed, meditative face of a praying buddha will help them see a clear path for their lives - a sense of calm clarity - and bring Zen to house or place of worship. After living in my terrible damp flat and the developments in the last week - chunks of plaster falling off walls, toilet flush braking and dehumidifier turning itself on in middle of the night - I think a sense of Zen in my new flat would be just ideal.

I've got myself pretty well covered on the old Evil Eye front - I wear one around my wrist and my neck almost everyday but here's the type of dinky buddha I'd like if anyone fancies treating me.

My desk buddy and brand new blogger Clueless Amber showed me this amazing post from www.mrkate.com and I've literally fallen in love with the idea. In the original video (here) Kate uses lots of the same flower to cover her shades but I like the idea of having a less 'perfect' finish and a more meadow flower kind of mix. Yep, I actually said meadow flower mix.

I'm really struggling with two things... 1/ I have no money 2/ I want to dive head first into Next home like a kid on crack and buy everything in there all at once.

I've always known I'm slightly OCD about where I live. I'm house proud to the point that my best friend will be popping round for PJs and Pizza type soiree and I'll run the hoover round before hand despite the fact that she wouldn't care anyway and also probably doesn't notice because there are more important things to do, e.g. stuffing pizza in face.

I get it from my Mum. We spend far too long thinking about what room we can move around / do up next. To be totally honest our house is more perfect and 'finished' than most people I know but we're always looking to improve things. My Mum has the re-decorating urge so much than AS SOON as I moved out last year she swooped in and re-did my bedroom. Except, it's not allowed to be called my bedroom anymore now it's new. It's the 'spare room' that I just happen to use more often than other people, fml.

Anyway I'm really struggling with the fact I live way too close to Westfield, and that means the biggest, loveliest, nicest smelling Next Home department ever. As previously discussed I have just departed with a large sum of money for a deposit on the dinkiest flat so am totally unable to spend money on basic essentials (think cheese, milk, bread) LET ALONE fur throws, embroidered cushions and fairy lights.

However, in the name of blogging, here's what I'd buy from there is I was a rich girl (as Gwen Stefani once sung).

And if I wasn't moving into a flat the size of the average en-suite bathroom I would have to be absolutely restrained from rushing out and buying a huge, oversized vintage mirror to lean against a casually huge expanse of spare wall (as you do).

As it is, I'm going to use these photos as inspiration when I'm shopping for bits and bobs for the new flat, but scale things down A LOT. I think my taste could be summed up as 50% shabby chic and 50% bohemian. That makes me sound so edgy and in reality my new flat will be filled with Ikea's finest and nothing else.