House plants can be an excellent way to give your humble abode a more homely feel. From gorgeous greens and fabulous flowers, their lush colours can bring an exciting accent to your room as well as give your home a natural, organic touch.

But they’re not always just beautiful to look at – there are many plants that will bring practicality into your home as well. We’ve compiled a list of five of our favourite and most useful house plants to give you some inspiration…

Peace Lily

A stunning sight, peace lilies will always be a striking and welcome addition to your home. They’re also proven to help detoxify the air, meaning that your home will feel even fresher with your peace lilies around!

Money Plant

Although we can’t guarantee that this plant will bring you fame and fortune, we can promise that it’s quaint little blossoms and waxy green leaves will provide a striking centrepiece to your room.

Aloe Vera

Aesthetically pleasing and extremely practical, Aloe Vera should feature in everyone’s home! Once the leaves have grown enough, you can slice them off and use the gel-like sap on dry skin, rashes and even burns to help soothe and smooth your skin.

Pop one in your bathroom so it’s always on hand for your morning beauty regime- you won’t regret it!

Bonsai Tree

These quaint little trees can be just the thing to give your room a little quirk. With plenty of species and styles to choose from, you can find the perfect bonsai that will suit you and your home to a tee.

Philodendron

With their big, beautiful leaves and startling shades of green, philodendron’s will be a striking and exotic addition to your home. Ideal for bigger vases, you can even set up a trellis or cane for them to climb!

One of the simplest and most effective ways to bring a warm, homely feel to your house is by using photographs- something that can often be forgotten nowadays, with mobile phones and Facebook taking over.

Printing a few photos of family, pets and even friends, finding ideal frames and displaying them in your house doesn’t only give you opportunity to relive those happy memories, it also allows you to share them with everyone you invite into your home- much to your children’s chagrin!

Why stop at scattering a few photos here and there? Why not incorporate them into your decor and create a wonderful display of your memories? That’s where a photo wall comes in!

We’ve put together a few of our favourite photo wall ideas to inspire you and really get your creative juices flowing…

Pin-Board

Take it old school and use a pin-board to pin up both your old and new photographs. We particularly like the old-school feel of the polaroid images used in this design.

Family Tree

It may not be shaped like a tree but the message above this wall clearly shows that the subject is family. What better way to make your house feel like a home than incorporating your favourite family portraits, family holiday memories and all those impromptu shots that you’ve come to love so much?

Washing Line

We really love this quirky idea of hanging the photographs across a wire. We think this design is both stylish and contemporary although we’d certainly like to try pegging the photos to a line of fairy lights for a truly magical effect!

Heart

Is there a better way to show off the memories that you love than arranging them in a loveheart? No, we didn’t think so either and that’s why this creative idea makes our list.

Stairway Gallery

This is a really effective way to display your photos. Not only does it give you a vast space to toy with, you can also experiment with different sized frames to create a beautiful, ascending effect.

We like to keep an eye out for unique ideas and beautiful designs and this week we’ve been sucked into the world of paper by Rachel Hazell.

Literature lover, book binder and paper artist extraordinaire, Rachel Hazell creates some of the most beautiful and intricate designs using both her love of books and of paper to an outstanding effect.

Not only does she create works of art, she also inspires others to try their hand, offering a range of workshops as she travels as well as online courses to unleash your inner Paperphile.

We’re particularly enraptured with her aptly named “Bookquet“. Not only is the finished product unique and beautiful, the concept behind the idea is just as lovely.

Created as a commission to adhere to those couples who love books almost as much as they love each other, Rachel Hazell uses pages from the couples chosen favourite books to create the exquisite flowers before binding them together in a stunning arrangement.

Whether your on the lookout for a Bookquet of your very own or if you just want to learn how to create and bind your own books, Rachel Hazell’s website, Paperphilia, is worth checking out and keeping an eye on as she adds new and exciting content to bring her love of paper to the world and share it with you.

We’ve explored gardening tips to keep those pesky trellises hidden, the best water features to install in the space you have and also excellent ideas for a relaxing corner, just for you… But what happens if you simply just don’t have the space?

Well, we haven’t forgotten about you! If you’re currently living in an apartment or flat, we’ve found an ideal solution to your garden woes- windowsill gardens. An ideal fixture in any south-facing windows where there’ll be plenty of natural light, these little gardens can brighten up your home and make you feel that little bit closer to nature.

Get your green-fingers at the ready as we give you a quick run-down of the different plants that you can bring into your home…

Plants and Flowers

Whether it’s an indoor or outdoor plant, you can bring it inside simply by taking a 3-4inch cutting and pop it into a small container- you can choose almost anything to keep them in, from old tin cans to colourful pots, the world is your oyster, allowing you to create your perfect little patch of heaven inside.

Herbs

Fancy utilising your window garden in a most helpful way? An ideal solution if your south-facing window happens to be situated in your kitchen, planting a few choice herbs will give you the satisfaction of self-sufficiency as you use them to flavour your meals, creating beautiful colours and scents in your home as you nurture them.

Vegetables

If your window gets plenty of sunlight, without any obstructions in the outside world, you could even plant a selection of vegetable and start your own little indoor farm. From tomatoes and carrots to radishes and lettuce, there are plenty of vegetable that can be grown indoors in a larger pot to allow for growth.

We’ve been well and truly bitten by the Pinterest bug.

If you’re yet to sample the delights of Pinterest, we strongly recommend that you take a look… Just make sure that you don’t have anything planned for the rest of the day because it is quite addictive!

We’ve found that it’s a great way to showcase our products and let people know what the best selling blinds are as well as show them the latest additions to our collections.

Not only that, but we’ve found some incredible inspiration for the home…

There are so many incredibly beautiful decor ideas, featuring gorgeous styles and bright, fabulous colours.

We’ve also found some inspiring ideas for outdoors, from stunning water features to relaxing patio set-ups.

Not to mention the luxurious additions to your home, such as a personal gym or a swimming pool…

And how can we forget the mouth-watering recipes for cooking and baking inspiration?

Pinterest is a great way to organise the things that you love into separate, manageable boards and show the world exactly what it is that makes you tick.

So what are you waiting for? Click the link here to take a look at our Pinterest page and while you’re there why not sign up yourself?

If you’re already a member don’t forget to follow us- then you’ll be kept updated with all our weird and wonderful interests, as well as our favourite products.

Happy Pinning!

Whether it’s the sound of the water as it gently trickles away, easing you into relaxation or the joy of having a little place in your garden that you can sit and watch the fish swim around, there’s something special about water features.

Not every garden is large enough to incorporate one shown above so what alternatives are out there for you?

You can try a self-contained water feature– these are a great addition for smaller gardens where there might not be enough room to install a pond. With built in pumps and circulating systems, all you need to do is fill them up and turn them on- they do the rest of the work themselves.

If you’ve got a small pond that you want to add a little fizz of life to, you can install one of these little fountains in the centre. It may not be a sprawling waterfall worthy of a Beverly Hills mansion but it will give you little pond a fresh and exciting new life as well as feeling like a whole new fixture in your garden.

For a more stylised garden, why not try a cool, contemporary water feature design? Primo Landscaping Ltd offer this modern design that works perfectly both in and out of a pond, meaning that you can use the space in your garden as wisely as possible.

Our favourite idea has to be this Patio Pond water feature.

It features a little fountain in the self contained pond, as well as space around the edge of the dish for small plants and flowers- such a great idea and cute as a button.

So which type of water feature will work best in your garden? Do let us know…

Using trellis is an excellent way to encourage flowers or vines to wind their way up your garden fence or even an outhouse wall but it can prove to be a bit of an eyesore when first installed.

The best way to achieve the same natural growing effect without the bulky, unsightly wood on show is to create your own invisible trellis using a fine wire for the plants and vines to grow around.

Whether you’re happy with a simple bottom to top design or if you’d prefer a fanned effect for your flowers, putting your own trellis together gives you complete freedom to design it however you prefer.

All you need is a little imagination, some fishing wire and a handful of eye hooks- once you’ve decided on a design, just mark out where you need the hooks to go, screw (or drill if you’re putting them into brickwork) them into place and thread the fishing wire through the eyes, knotting it around each hook as you go.

Then all you’ll need to do is wrap a few vines from your plant around the trellis and let nature take its course- within a few weeks the plant will be climbing the trellis easily, creating a beautiful and natural effect in your garden.

For more in depth instructions, you can take a look at eHow’s guide to making an invisible trellis right here.

Whether you have a sprawling landscape to work with or a small, modest yard, it’s always important to make sure that there’s a place to relax in your garden.

For those times that the sun is shining and you just want to be outside and also for those moments when you need a little me time, there really is nothing better then being able to stroll outside, settle yourself down and just… Relax.

We’ve been searching for some inspiration ourselves and found these excellent ways to give your garden a unique spot for you to let your hair down.

A Hammock

Hammocks always make me think of warm, sandy beaches a clear blue seas so what better way to relax with a few added cushions and a cosy throw? You’ll have a little piece of paradise in your own back yard.

Up-Cycled Pallets

Feeling creative? If you can get yourself a couple of old pallets, you can create your own garden lounger to relax on! Not only will it be a fun project for you, it will also give you some unique and quirky patio furniture… And a great place to put your feet up after a busy day!

You can find instructions here, from hgtv and there are some other great ideas for how to incorporate pallets into your outdoor decor on 1001 Pallets.

Reading Nook

Take inspiration from this simplistic garden design and find a lovely nesting chair that you can convert into your own little reading nook. After a hard day’s work, you can pour yourself a glass of wine, put your feet up and lose yourself in your latest novel- perfection!

Jacuzzi

For those of you who prefer a little luxury, why not splash out on your very own hot tub? Perfect for those summer nights, relaxing by candlelight as you let the worries from the day wash away… Well, we can dream, can’t we?

It’s that time of year again- hat watch at Royal Ascot… And it’s not even ladies day yet!

Today marked the opening of one of the biggest horse racing events and, as exciting as the racing itself can be, we’ve been keeping tabs on some of the more stylish guests and their big, bold headpieces.

These bright choices are stunning and really catch your eye- we especially like how the race goer on the left has coordinated her outfit beautifully… Although the giant blue butterfly is also quite impressive!

These ladies have really made a statement- go bold or go home! The ladies on the right have made a particular effort, although I’m not sure which one of them has the most outrageous hat…

Finally, these four are some of my personal favourites- I love the quirkiness of the designs and the way that fashion and fun have been so effortlessly mixed.

Speaking of stylish statements mixed with quirky personality, have you had a look at our excellent range of whimsical roman blinds lately? We’ve got a great selection of the weird and wonderful to brighten up your room, adding a flash of personality, whilst still retaining a sophisticated style… Just like these ladies at Royal Ascot!

Men are notoriously difficult to buy for, so with Father’s Day coming up this Sunday and you’re in a mad panic to get him something that he’ll actually enjoy, we’ve put together a list of what not to buy.

Novelty Clothing

It’s usually not the cheapest item of clothing. A funny tie or a t-shirt that says ‘Mr Grumpy’ might get a wry smile on the day but the chances are he’s not going to wear it. Save your money and spend it on some nice clothing that he’ll actually be able to put to good use.

BBQ Equipment

By BBQ equipment, we’re basically talk   ing novelty aprons. Let’s face it, we don’t get much opportunity to put on a BBQ in this country and when we do, do you really think Dad will want to spend it looking like a wally? If he is into cooking, why not try an inspirational recipe book or some really sharp knives.

A Mini Golf Set

Even if your dad’s a huge golf nut, chances are one of those mini putting gadgets aren’t going to get a lot of use. What’s more, they’re probably going to break after a few uses. Why not shell out on a round of golf for him and a friend. He’ll enjoy that much more and it shows you really do care.

Car Stuff

Not all dads are hugely into cars but for the ones that are, their car is probably their pride and joy. The last thing they’re going to want is a novelty Union Jack seat cover or a set of pink fluffy dice. Why not get him a track day and let him loose on some powerful sports cars, that will really put a smile on his face.
So if you’re just about to head to the gadget store to buy your token gift for Father’s Day, stop, have a little think and try and get him something that he’ll really want to show him how much he means to you.