Motherly Advice...Be Yourself...My Romantic Decor Part 1...Boxes and Bottles...

I've always described my decor as Eclectic. A bit of British Colonial, a bit of Shabby Chic, a bit Bohemian, a little Glamour, and a good shake of French Country. One thing is for certain. No matter the current trend, I remained true to my own style.

It's only come to my attention recently, when a friend came to visit and called my home 'romantic', that perhaps this is actually a style too. Well, I never! Whatever it's called, I know that I love it, and always have. Minimalist? Me? Not a chance!

It's ornate, lots of gilt or gold, accented with crystal and curls and swirls and curlicues. There's lace and brocade and embroidery involved. Crystal, cut glass, anything that glimmers and glows. It appeals perhaps, to the bower bird in all of us, and focuses on collections and vignettes of prettiness.

You too, can have a Romantic decor with just a few little touches, and the best part is, it's not an expensive style to cultivate.

Take for example my vintage Eiffel Tower trinket box, pictured above. Found at a thrift shop for $2, it now houses my favourite earrings.

More boxes below...the two larger ornate and aged gold ones with cut glass knobs, another thrift shop treasure for just $5 for the two, the two enamelled ones inherited from my Mother, and the smaller engraved brass one styled after a basket, inherited from my Nanna. That one is absolutely unique and I've never seen another like it. It holds a pair of garnet earrings, also inherited from her.

Another very special treasure below. This is a miniature perfume bottle that is attached to a brooch pin. It's encased in ornate metalwork of some sort, and belonged again, to my European Nanna. I remember my Mum affixing a pearl to it's clawed top and to the clawed front, but they are long gone, and I don't actually know what the jewellers style claws held originally. I do vaguely remember Nanna wearing this, filled with Lily of the Valley scent. I thing it may have been something one wore to Tea Dances.

A collection of cut glass decanters on a thrifted silver tray, graces my dining sideboard, for little money and lovely effect.

This pretty Art Deco inspired perfume bottle was a special gift from my Heartsister. The Heartsister programme links women, who each have a friend to send to, and one to receive from. We remain anonymous, and aim to send something, even if just a short letter of inspiration, once a month. My Heartsister last year, was nothing short of generous, and blessed me with many beautiful gifts, including this one. To this day, I do not know her identity, but I want to thank her. I treasure each of her special pretties enormously, and they sustained me through a very difficult time.

I have many more Romantic decor lovelies to share with you, but for today, I hope I've inspired you to introduce some Romance into your own life. It takes little to have something lovely around you to make life more lavish. Todays offerings are simply bottles and boxes of different kinds. Could you find a Romantic bottle or box on your next trip to a thrift shop? I bet you'll have fun looking!

Enjoy! 

...Mimi...