Growing roots

It’s time to talk about my latest purchase: a flat. Since the process is still going through, and everything could go pear-shaped at any time (buying a house in England is always a bit of a gamble), it would have been prudent, for superstition’s sake, to wait before making it public, but I somehow needed to express my blinking feelings of excitement and uncertainty, since it is not fair to continuously assail my other half and I can involve my parents only to a certain extent. In any case, in this post I want to concentrate on the most appealing side of possessing your own house: furnishing it. Needless to say, in fact, that this latest purchase opened up a new world of shopping--as Amanda said, or simply a new way of directing my creativity. We decided to furnish it with a rather neutral and warm style: we chose earth colours. In this regard I would like to point out how the choice of the said colours is related to my personality. I am a Virgo which is an earth star sign, very rooted to the ground. Whether you believe or not in astrology, I can assure you that, even though I am a day-dreamer and love wandering around the world, I also like to enjoy the domestic comforts and always try to set my roots wherever I go in search of stability and equilibrium. You could also read this feature as my willingness to deeply integrate into other cultures as I have been doing over the last four year in London. This could explain also why I experience any kind of separation as a petit mort and am a nostalgic queen. In any case, without going too deeply into psychological issues, the house remains for me the emblematic symbol and materialisation of this strong homey feelings--a big achievement in the life of a Virgo woman! :o ) Back to the nest. Situated in zone 2 of north-west London, it is an ex-pub converted into flats boasting huge arched windows and high ceilings, as you can see on the photo below. Although it is not properly placed in a chic area, and the neighbourhood can be quite rough, it is strategically located: walking distance to my office and with easy and quick access to the west end. Here is the damage: In detail, for the quirky shape of the lounge we chose an olive/brown fabric sofa, whose seventy’s rigour is softened by the big cushions replacing the back of it (see drawing below). The minimalist look is completed by the brown/black bookcase and side tables whose coldness is mitigated by the natural straw stool and rug. In lieu of the curtains, the idea is to overlap the three panels (white, dark blue and white with floweral decorations as shown below) to create a stratified effect.

For the dining area we opted for a warmer look and chose a rectangular Indian wood table surrounded by hupholstery chairs with high backs. The table's veined shade and intensely shiny tint made it the best candidate to be the protagonist of this area of the room. The bedroom sees the combination of black/brown, white/grey and baby blue tones. The low leather brown/black bed is associated with the horizontal black chest of drawer and with the dark brown Venetian blinds. This choice is partially practical: low furniture conveys a sense of space in this small bedroom, and the dark blinds allow oversleeping in the morning. ;o ) The severity of the brown/black is counterbalanced by two more classical and *romantic* pieces: the white/grey wardrobe and bedside table. Whereas the retro style chair's, walls' and quilt cover's light blue aims to convey a contrasting and lively effect to an otherwise dull bedroom.

This is only the *basic* look for our flat. Personal effects, plants, paintings, frames and special objects, such as my vintage English telephone and my Buddha sculpture, will give the final touch to make it unique and special.

P.S. I really would love to replace some of the cheap furniture I listed above (like the coffee table or chest of drawer) with some vintage Danish wood or original '60s pieces, but we have to take into account the limited space we have at our disposal and we don't want to overload the flat. However, I was recommended quite a few shops in Camden and Holloway Rd, as well as on E-bay, which I will certainly check out, and, budget permitting, I may change the interior design accordingly, to make it even more exclusive. ; )

UPDATE: It is ironic to think that when I first landed to this country, I applied for a bank account at Halifax and I was refused. Three and a half years down the line I got a mortgage from the same bank. L'ironia della sorte!