Weekend Away at Pittwater, Sydney

If you need a weekend away from the hectic lifestyle in Sydney, head up to the beautiful Pittwater area - the scenery and beaches are gorgeous, food and shopping is great, and it's only an hour away! Read about our weekend away below:

We stayed in a wonderful boathouse, right on the water, aptly named The Boathouse on the Waterfront, at Careel Bay, which you can book through Stayz. It features a double bedroom, single bedroom, bathroom, fully equipped kitchen, simple but comfortable decor, a gas fireplace, and best of all, a deck and it's own jetty jutting into the water.

We hired kayaks the first day from Careel Bay Wharf which was great fun, and explored the local area checking out all the divine boats and houses.

That afternoon we had lunch at Clareville Kiosk, a lovely little restaurant with one hat from the Sydney Good Food Guide. The food was great, service very friendly, and we sat next to the open window looking onto a delightful frangipani tree. Great beach for a dip in the water after lunch too. Check out the sublime pork belly and panna cotta below.

That night we stayed in our little boathouse, relaxing in the chaises on the deck, reading, eating cheese and drinking wine.

The next day we couldn't resist lunch at The Boathouse Palm Beach - if you haven't been there you must go. It's got the most amazing location, on a old pier right over the water on the Pittwater side of Palm Beach. The decor is to-die-for with lots of lobster pots, rustic furniture and fruit and flowers spilling everywhere. The food's pretty good too - I had an awesome burger.

Then of course we had to stop in the shop Bow Wow in Palm Beach, and I bought some lovely clothes, while my friend bought an amazing painting from local 24 year old artist Daniel Stephen, similar to the one below.

A visit to the area is not complete without a stop in at the wonderful Mark Tuckey store - I can dream!

  

If you're in need of a re-charge away from busy "life" I highly recommend a weekend in Pittwater!

www.yellowfrontdoor.com.au

DesignEx 2014

There's nothing like visiting a design expo to get inspired! Last year I attended DesignEx Sydney and here's a round-up of my favourite stalls and products.

ABOUT SPACE

Providing striking, high-end designer lighting. With their finger on the pulse they set rather than follow trends.

www.aboutspace.net.au/

DULUX

Dulux have put together some inspiring collections, making colour choice less over-whelming!

They've also made some colour forecasts for 2014, and my favourite is the Digital Nomads collection. Colours and inspiration come from exotic destinations such as Africa, India and Morocco. It's a global aesthetic with a fusion of tribal patterns and colours.

The colours work well with the Yellow Front Door range by Tamasyn Gambell - Aztec Red, Aztec Blue, Textured Stripe and Abstract cushion covers available at www.yellowfrontdoor.com.au

HEART ETHICAL TEXTILES

A eco-friendly and ethical textiles and wallpaper company, based in NZ. The quirky, colourful and playful designs are printed onto hemp, Belgian linen and organic cotton. They use fabrics that are natural, recyclable and biodegradable, and digital printing processes that reduce waste. Patterns and  colours are designed to be customised. You may see a range of Heart Ethical pieces at Yellow Front Door in the near future....

www.heartethical.co.nz

NOMI

I've had my eye on their dining tables and chairs for a while, all hand-crafted in beautiful oak. The idea is that you customise the furniture to suit your style and space - choosing size, style, shape, material, colour.

https://nomi.com.au

www.designex.info

See how Design Ex has inspired the collection at Yellow Front Door:
cushions online yellowfrontdoor.com.au/cushionsonline/
wall art online yellowfrontdoor.com.au/wallartonline/

Country NSW House Tour by Roth Architecture

Take a tour around this stunning house by Roth Architecture in country NSW (written by Yellow Front Door for hipages).

http://www.homeimprovementpages.com.au/inspirationboard/house_tour_country_residence_39598/?

Relaxed Timeless Dining Room on Braggables

Yellow Front Door has featured on hot website Braggables - showcasing the best in new products, design and innovation. Check out their gorgeous dining room post, which features Yellow Front Door wall art!
http://www.braggables.com.au/look-relaxed-timeless-dining-room-area/

Awesome Skiing at Cardrona, New Zealand

I've just come back to Sydney from an amazing family holiday skiing in Cardrona, South Island,  New Zealand. I really can't rate it highly enough - the mountain, staff, scenery and our accommodation.

We just had to build a snowman

Cardona ski field is particularly good for beginners - choosing which mountain and ski field was a bit of a mine field, but I was greatly assisted in my research by Powder Hounds www.powderhounds.com - a comprehensive site that reviews and ranks mountains and skiing all around the world. So for me, a third time skier, and my children (5 and 7) who are absolute beginners,   Cardrona came out on top (luckily there were a few treacherous black runs to keep my husband happy too).

The beginner slopes

We all had lessons every day, which were invaluable, and perfect for learning technique and gaining confidence. Watching the little kids learn to ski, coming down the mountain in their little "ski-train" going choo-choo all the way brought tears to my eyes! The ski instructors were fantastic - calm, kind and experienced - just what you need.

There are only three cafes on the mountain (that I found) and Noodle Bar was the best - fresh, tasty and satisfying.

Now to the accommodation - we found an absolute gem of a luxury Bed and Breakfast called Waiorau Homestead on Trip Advisor - after reading a mixture of good and bad reviews on just about every hotel/guesthouse in the area (think bedbugs, zero cleaning and rooms with no windows...) we found his place that has no negative reviews. Well earned too - the hosts bent over backwards to make our stay happy and comfortable - even lighting an outdoor fire on one of the nights so the kids could toast marshmallows.

The house and rooms are stylish, luxurious (feather duvets and heated bathroom floors), and most importantly, warm! A roaring fire goes day and night, and meals are accompanied by music, candles, and the most wonderful food thanks to one of the hosts being a chef.

The family room at Waiorau Homestead

                  

                  We were greeted by this every afternoon - cheese, homemade muffins and tea

Nearby, the Cardrona Hotel is the perfect place to unwind after a day on the mountains - fires are lit indoors and out, there's a quaint, historic, rustic feel, and pretty good steak too.

                                              Dates back to 1863 - not bad for NZ

                                                              Lovely mulled wine

The scenery around Cardrona is breathtaking, and Wanaka is a pretty good place for a day trip if you need a break from skiing - I recommend the gorgeous cinema Ruby's, and Puzzling World for laughs.

It was the perfect little break from life in Sydney and Yellow Front Door - the only downside being  the price - skiing will definitely be a once a year treat!

Sunbrella fabric - why it's so good

Sunbrella is a brand of outdoor fabrics - starting out in 1961 they originally specialised in awnings, sail covers and marine upholstery. Sunbrella has come a long way in 50 years - now producing an incredibly extensive range of fabrics suitable for various uses in the outdoors.

New technology in the way the yarn is woven means the outdoor fabrics are super soft, textured, and feel more like indoor fabrics. Not only soft, they're exceptionally strong and durable, breathable, and stain and water resistant.

Sunbrella fabrics are solution-dyed, which means the dye or colour is added to the acrylic when it's in a liquid form. So the colour is integral to the fabric yarn, making it more long-lasting and resistant to fading.

Yellow Front Door is launching a range of outdoor cushions using Sunbrella fabric in the next few weeks - in time for the start of the Australian spring. So keep a look out on the website www.yellowfrontdoor.com.au for the new range of outdoor cushions online in wonderful colours and textures.

A sneak peak of two of our new Sunbrella outdoor cushions: Melon and Flax

Front Courtyard Reno!

It's long overdue but we are finally renovating our front courtyard! Out with the buckled 1970s bricks  in the courtyard, and out with the 1990s terracotta tiles on the verandah.

We're also removing the climbers and garden bed that are the bane of my existence - nothing thrives there due to the south aspect. We'll put back a very narrow garden bed to break up the line between the stone pavers and the white fence, and we'll put in something hardy, easy to grow and quite uniform.

Materials: After much deliberation we have chosen charcoal-coloured granite pavers for the courtyard in 600x400mm. The dark colour will be extremely practical and hide any dirt, marks or stains, and the larger size is very pleasing aesthetically. For the covered verandah we have chosen encaustic cement tiles in 200x200 mm - the pattern is Fleur Di Lis in black.

We got both from Teranova in Bronte, who were very helpful and well priced.

See below for "before" photos and I'll post "after" photos when it's finished!

Sneak peek: the wall has coming tumbling down and has really opened up the space and made a MASSIVE difference

I'll need to choose some of my own Yellow Front Door outdoor cushions for the outdoor furniture when we're finished!