I grew up in Yorkshire, to South African parents, and have family & friends on every continent bar Asia. Thomas is Scottish but has also lived in the Czech Republic and the Netherlands. It's no surprise, then, that we enjoy collecting things to remind us of our global heritage. When decorating the spare room it was an easy choice to make it loosely travel-themed, with a mixture of maps, vintage railway posters, and tchotchkes from our travels.
Some homemade map-themed art is on display: a gift I made for Thomas after our first year together featuring heart-shaped map cut-outs and a cardboard B covered in a vintage New York transit map, which together flank a gorgeous soapstone carving from my second visit to South Africa in 2002.
Something new I've put together, after an increase in visits from overseas guests, is a small basket full of useful bits and pieces: pen and paper, tissues, a mini first aid kit, basic toiletries (nicked from a hotel room, obviously), a UK charger plug. I'd also like to add a small local travel guide. Anything else that you think might be useful to a visitor?
The bed frame in here is identical to the one in our room - a bargain eBay find. A string of Cable & Cotton lights entwine the frame and the cushions are a mixture of high street finds, a beautiful African map one from Etsy, and one made from scraps of sari fabric. The rather forbidding wooden mask on the wall was brought back from Malaysia by my mum and step-mum.
Finally, my new homemade poster hanger continues the map theme with a vintage map of the USA, together with a sign that Thomas salvaged from his old home in Nijmegen, and my bridesmaids dress, which hangs from a flower hook on the back of the door. It's too beautiful to keep shut up in a wardrobe!
With this room being so light and bright, it's also the only room in the house to be painted a colour other than white: I think the bold teal feature wall looks great and I love how it ties together with the blue shades from the maps and railway posters. Like every other room in the house, though, it's been done on a mega-budget. The bed frame and mattress were a steal on eBay, the chest of drawers cost a whole £5 from a junk shop years ago, and pretty much everything else was picked up in sales or while travelling. I haven't done the maths, but I'd be very surprised if everything in the room, furniture and decorative items, came to much more than £250.
Details:
* All frames: Ribba by Ikea * Chest of drawers: Junk shop find * Drawer knobs: eBay *
* Bed frame: Ikea via eBay * Lamp: Tesco (old) * * Bed linen: Matalan *
* Cushions L-R: homemade, Tesco (old), My Bearded Pigeon on Etsy, Matalan (old) *
* Vintage map paper: Baileys Home & Garden *
