Homemade Marquee Signs

I mentioned back in May about a Moulin Rouge themed event that I was designing, and that event has come and gone... I thought I'd share my favourite part today, my handmade marquee signs! I've seen these floating around on Pinterest for ages, so it was great to finally have an excuse to make some of my own. 

For the red "Moulin Rouge" sign, I roughly followed this brilliant tutorial from Oh Happy Day. It worked a treat, and although it was super time consuming, I was really happy with the result. It was perfect for setting the scene at the entrance to the event. 

If you are thinking of making some of your own, make sure you use LED fairy lights (which don't get hot) - anything else will be a fire hazard with all that card and spray paint. I bought mine here and they were perfect. 

I also made a slightly different version for the "Cabaret" sign. It's basically the same method, but without the edges on each letter. I was really pleased with this one actually, because it took a fraction of the time to make and still looked really effective. 

If you'd like to see a bit more of the event, there is a short video here. All I will say is that I was not responsible for those chair covers. Or the balloons. Sometimes you just have to let these things go haha... but if there's one thing I've learned, there is nothing a bit of red velvet draping and plenty of fairy lights paint can't solve. 

Home Trends: Concrete

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The industrial trend is not getting old for me. I love concrete mixed with pretty colours and accessories. I love it! I have a steadily growing pile of DIYs on my Pinterest that I can't wait to try, but some may have to wait until we have a house of our own... I've shared some of my favourites below:

>>> DIY Concrete Bracelet. 

>>> DIY Concrete Votives.

>>> DIY Concrete Letter.

>>> DIY Concrete Pendant Lamp.

>>> DIY Concrete Coasters.

Ahhhhhh concrete!! I could go on forever. But I'll stop now. What do you think of this trend? Getting boring or still a winner? 

x Rachel 

Moulin Rouge Event Design

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Hello, it's been a while - again! I just thought I'd pop by and share one of the many reasons for my internet absence... I'm styling up a Moulin Rouge event next week for around 300 guests - crikey.

Moulin Rouge is a bit of a gift of a theme really, lots of luxurious red draping and marquee sign making, black and red ostrich feathers and diamantes . I've finally got an excuse to try out the many light-up sign tutorials I've been seeing on Pinterest recently. I'll be sure to share some pictures of the finished article next week. 

In other news, although it has been quiet here, I've got plans for little old bloggy... Maybe a redesign, but most definitely a refocus. This year so far has been amazing work wise, but has knocked me sideways slightly. I feel like I am spinning so many plates that my favourite ones keep slipping (this blog and shop being the favourite plates in this analogy). I just need to find a way of slotting them back into my life in a way that's sustainable, so hopefully some of you will stick around while I work out the kinks. 

Lots of love, 

x Rachel 

Great Set Design Moments: Where the Wild Things Are

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I recently had a lovely email from blinkbox that was a little different from the usual promotional mail outs I receive. They offered to send me some vouchers to try out the service, but rather than asking for a review they encouraged me to write about film from the perspective of a set and costume designer. I realised that I don't actually write about set design that much here on the blog - despite it being my job! This inspired me to start a new series: Great Set Design Moments. I'm going to start with one of my recent favourites, Where the Wild Things Are. 

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I love the style of this film throughout, and I think production designer K.K. Barrett did a fantastic job at staying true to the original illustrations by Maurice Sendak. I think the greatest achievement of the design is that it captures magic and imagination while staying very true to the woodsy setting, creating a world that you can really invest in visually. 

My favourite design moment of the film is Carol's model city. It's so beautiful and completely incapsulates that woodsy magic that runs through the film. I think this also comes from my love of miniature things... Take a look at the online portfolio of one of the set and model makers on the film, Nick Pledge - he has some amazing behind the scenes shots of the sets and miniatures! 

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What films do you love for their designs? 

x Rachel 

ps. Although I was not required to write a review for this post, let me just say that I was really impressed with blinkbox. So much so that I cancelled my Netflix subscription... Big move! 

Autumnul Pinecone Centrepiece

I think Autumn decorations are my favourite. I love earthy tones mixed with moss and hints of gold here and there - it just makes everything so cosy. I was doing a bit of styling experimenting yesterday and put together this Autumn inspired centrepiece. It would be perfect for a wedding or for a special dinner party - or you can just have it on display in your house like me...

The process is very very simple, it's just about layering up pinecones with moss in a giant jar really. I sprayed a few of my pinecones with gold spray paint to add a little bit of variety - then finished it off with some dried wheat.

You can probably expect a few pinecone crafts from me in the next few months, I have a big bag of them in my cupboard from a past show. Plus I just feel in quite a pinecone-y mood at the moment - nothing says Autumn better. 

x Rachel 

Dream Interiors: Gold

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Inspiration: Gold Balloons

This weeks Dream Interiors feels so glam! Gold is all over the place in home decor at the moment, but for me it is timeless. There is just something so cool about everyday objects sprayed or brushed with a bit of gold leaf. 

How do you feel about gold? 

x Rachel