Villa Maria speaks to me

not a day goes by without me knowing that I love living here. I feel blessed. it is like I have just finally slotted into the life that I am meant to be living, here. it is all coming together. nicely.

funny thing is that when I moved, I bought alot of my 'things' with me.. favourite curtains and alot of furniture, which bit by bit has been sold or swapped for something different.
- decorating Villa Maria has taken on a life of its own. it is as if the house is telling me what to do

My previous home, Inglewood was a true mountains cottage & I had it decorated in a kind of comfy, english look..

when we first bought this house, I had plans of creating a french look with an eccentric twist here at Villa Maria

but as I play house here, Villa Maria is taking on an Italianate look - vintage of course.

lots of gold is coming in to play.. lots of deep reds, tassels and gaudy pieces of furniture. accessories which most people shudder at. but you know, it is coming together really well. I love it.

op-shops have taken on a new purpose. with us finding our love of treasure hunting once again [I think both Joe & I had become stale in our passions of hunting for stuff we loved] but now, we have that excited gleam in our eyes as we spy yet another second hand junk shop or op shop on our travels.

I am looking for lace curtains which I absolutely abhorred in the 70's.. I have found a few and the best thing is, it seems I am the only one with a passion for this vintage italian look that is making itself known to me.. and things are very cheap. take for instance a lovely vintage curtain for $3. absolute bargain.

ebay has been fun.

I have found some gold velvet chairs and re-possessed a gold and glass table that I had given away.

I have swapped my large yellow floral lounge for a small, pink velvet one. seagrass table has been sold and in its place i have bought a chunky wooden table which to my surprise has crosses engraved in the top.

I have even swapped my antique bed quilt for a 1960's velvet fringed bedspread.. bought on ebay from a woman whose mother in law bought it with her when she migrated to Australia from Italy, in 1960. it has been stored in a linen cupboard since then and never been used. like new. ...
I have even bought an old ceramic italian holy water font to hang in my entrance, near my altar.

the garden too. I have planted olive trees along the nature strip. lots of geraniums are going in along the rock wall, to spill their bright blooms down over. a large urn sits in the corner of a garden, holding geraniums whose ancestors belonged to my great grandmother.. aromatic herbs are planted amidst the garden.. hopefully to give of their strong perfumes in the heat of summer... even the garden is taking on a life of its own.
yes, I truly love Villa Maria.