Monday Snoop – Clean, Simple, Beautiful!

Minimalism has long since been a dirty word our house. I like stuff and lots of it. But as my furniture dwindles and my walls become bare, as unsettling as it is, it’s also strangely cleansing (and the house certainly takes much less time to clean). During my internet browsing this weekend, I came across a house on Verdana that once again got me rethinking my stance on clutter. Each room consists of a few well-made key pieces of furniture with minimal surface clutter, once I got over my knee-jerk reaction that the room looks sparse, I realised that the lack of furniture emphasises the strong clean lines of the windows, the rich wooden floors and the panelled ceiling. Beautiful, no? Now I’m not saying that I will completely relinquish all my stuff but I am certainly going to make an effort to keep it clean and simple.

Images via Veranda

Simple is best.

It’s been a looooooong week and I find I am fresh out of words for today’s post. So I’ll keep it short and sweet and say I hope you have a…

WEEKEND!

Beautifully Captured…

I am very lucky to work with a colleague who has just returned from living in Sydney for 6 months. I have been bombarding her with millions of questions about jobs, houses, lifestyle etc. I want to know it ALL. She has been wonderfully patient and informative and a few days ago, she emailed me a newsletter of a surfer-come-photographer based in Bondi that she thought I would like. This might be old hat to some of you (as he has a following to rival that of Justin Bieber) but Aquabumps (website and newsletter) was started by Eugene Tan, long before blogs were even a big deal. I was hooked from the very first picture. Most of the shots are taken at day break but it’s Eugene’s interesting and unique angles that I think make him stand out from the rest. I immediately subscribed to the newsletter and set about making friends and colleagues jealous by sending them pictures of our new home. If you are a fan of beach photography (or photography in general really), do yourself a favour and subscribe! You can also buy prints of your favourites from the website.

All images via Eugene Tan – Aquabumps

The dreamboat gardens…

I am currently sitting typing this in a dress. That’s right. A dress. No cardigan, jacket, socks or gloves. Just a dress. The hot weather continues and London is revelling people! My favourite part about English summers is the incredibly long days - after a lovely dinner on Saturday, Jordan and I took a long stroll through the common while the sun was still blazing. It was blissful. It got me thinking about the long hours we spend in front of screens, slumped in front of the tv or a laptop. If I could, I would spend every evening outside, just enjoying the scenery. Of course it helps when you have scenery to enjoy and even more so when you have an outdoor fireplace. I have been filing these babies in the ‘future dream house’ folder.

See ya later London!

As my days in London dwindle, I have realised that I am “taking in” a lot more than usual. Instead of reaching for my Kindle as I take my seat on the bus in the mornings, I have just let myself enjoy the scenery – the hustle and bustle of Victoria station, the traffic madness of Piccadilly Circus, the majestic beauty of Berkeley Square and finally the captivating window displays on Regent Street. In between packing and stressing, Jordan and I are trying to revisit our favourite London spots to make final memories to take with us to our new home in Sydney. I wanted to do the same here on Wishful Thinking. So every week for the next couple of months, I will be re-posting some of my favourite shots of London. I hope you enjoying revisiting them as much as I did.

Monday Snoop – A stone wonder…

It’s not often I get to say this, but London is experiencing a heatwave! The weather has been gloriously hot and we spent most of the weekend lolling about in the sun, enjoying each other’s company. It was exactly what I needed. We were able to put our worries on the back burner and revel in our last few weeks in London. I am now ready to face this week with renewed vigour… as the warm weather continues! I’m keeping things summery on the blog this week starting with a stunning stone cottage located on the Spanish island of Mallorca. The exterior remains traditionally Spanish with deep honey coloured stone walls and terracotta tiled roofs but the interior tells a totally different story. It’s light and bright and in places, very modern! It’s not surprising that the kitchen is once again my favourite room.

Images via