Etsy pick: Myexpresso

With Christmas approaching at speed (31 days? Really?), I'm running around trying to find those last few presents. I like to ensure that everything I give really means something to the person I'm buying (or crafting) for. My idea of present hell would be a "gift-boxed" set of bath products or a mini-spirit and shot glass set. Anything, in short, made up of useless little items boxed up together and over-priced. So although I tend to buy things as I see them, which means that I've had half of my presents for at least three months, I regularly check in on Etsy and various other craft sites for stocking fillers. My Etsy pick of the month have to be these hugely original mugs by Italian myespresso. The "bitten" mug is my favourite but I think that I'd buy a set of six different ones for someone with an edgy sense of humour.
Bitten
Masochist
Spikes
Spike up your coffee
Rooted
Buttoned up

Twisted and heavy metal: Handforged iron tables from Espirito do Ferro

Espirito do Ferro ("Spirit of Iron") is a family-owned company of modern ironmongers. This Portuguese design company make the most fantastic modern pieces from stone and hand-wrought iron. This console table is a perfect mixture of modern design fused with traditional workmanship.

DIY: How to paint wooden furniture

There is a lot of debate around painted wood in the world of interiors. Some people can only appreciate the pure simplicity of smooth and exposed grain. Which is absolutely fine if you're the lucky recipient of antique mahogany furniture worn smooth by the hands of your ancestors. If you're like me and the family home is in another country, or if you're on a budget, painted furniture is a good way of making cheap IKEA or pre-fab pieces look a little less factory and a lot more individual. However, although this is an easy little bit of DIY that can make a big difference to a room in just a weekend, most people fail to prep properly and so the paint does stick. So here you are sports fans, another London Lisbonite DIY guide: How to paint wooden bedside tables.
1. Pick a table, any bedside table. As you're going to paint them, I'd suggest that IKEA should be your first stop.
2. Remove any handles, drawers and knobs. And doors if you can manage it.
3. Sand every surface. Yes, it's boring and it's tempting to skip or whizz over this step but believe me if you don't do this properly, the paint won't hold. 4. Apply a generous layer of undercoat. Most of them say that they dry in thirty minutes. They're lying. You need to leave it for at least six hours to ensure you don't end up with any smearing. 5. Paint slowly and carefully with a good quality paint. Farrow and Ball would always be my first choice. Don't worry about any brushmarks as they'll even themselves out but make sure you don't leave any drops or they'll dry in lumps. Leave the furniture to dry overnight before replacing any drawers. 6. Step back and enjoy!

The evolution of a bedroom

Sometimes all that a bedroom needs to perk it up is a simple coat of paint. Sometimes it needs thirteen bags of various ugly wallpaper coverings removed, four coats of Farrow and Ball paint applied, skirting boards sanded and repainted, a complete overhaul of the furniture and the addition of art. The boyfriend and I have been working on the transformation of his bedroom for a couple of months now, snatching days to paint when we've had time. We were going for a classical, clean and masculine look. What do you think?

The new, Portuguese, Space Invadors

As the eyes of the world turn to Lisbon for the EU and NATO summits, the eyes of London Lisbonite turn to Lisbon for a different reason, namely, the futuristic and playful work of Portuguese designer Rodrigo Vairinhos. These Space Invader lamps can be hung upside down or used as a table lamp and, no doubt, would make you feel like a player in their namesake game if you were to walk underneath a row of them! A little bit of retro is always a good way to start the weekend.

How to remove paint from a leather sofa

The problem with redecorating, and with painting especially, is that whilst your renovations tend to make one thing look nicer (in this case, scary, high gloss, dark grey coving circling the sitting room ceiling), they so often end up making other things look worse. Take, the coving for example.
Painting it white made an enormous difference to the room in that it now no longer appears to have a ring of smog around the ceiling. However, the paint also made an enormous difference to the lovely brown leather sofa that got splashed. Non-water based paints are almost impossible to remove. We tried water (obviously no difference), white spirit (the colour rubbed off the leather and drained from the boyfriend's face) and scraping it very gently when it had dried. A quick look online had me charging towards the kitchen to fetch the peanut butter, the vegetable oil and the butter, all of which I'd been assured would work but the boyfriend forcibly stopped me and insisted that we think it through. He's so cynical about the wisdom freely available online. Amazingly, it was nail varnish remover that actually turned out to be the best solution. However, the sofa has still got various sad little patches where our initial stain removal attempts failed miserably which led me to look around at possible replacements. I'm thinking their either of these budget-friendly leather sofas from DFS (suspiciously overjoyed model not included with purchase) would do nicely. I'm not quite sure how Santa is going to fit them down the boyfriend's chimney though. I bet the local council will need to be consulted for reindeer parking rights first.

How to decorate your bathroom for Christmas

Whilst Christmas has always been the biggest festival of the year in my house, I have to admit, I recently stumbled upon various interiors pictures that made me wonder whether I really do enough for the holidays. I get a tree and decorate it whilst drinking mulled wine (which is why the star is somewhat off-centre) and singing along to corny Christmas tunes and then bask in the glow of the little lights as I wrap my presents and then go for a movie marathon that usually consists of "It's a Wonderful Life", "White Christmas" and that all time classic, "Muppet's Christmas Carol". Don't judge me. However free I am with the holly and the mistletoe though, I'm not sure I'm ever going to manage to include the bathroom in my Christmas decorating frenzy. What do you think of Christmas decorations in the bathroom?

Modern azulejos by Paulo Arraiano

There are certain things synonymous with Portugal. Sardines, for one. Donkeys, for another. Salazar, catholicism, the navigators and wine might get a look in too but the graffiti is often overlooked. I've written before about how Lisbon in particular is a hotbed of the stuff. I recently stumbled across these traditional Portuguese azulejos (tiles) painted in a rather modern and unique fashion by Portuguese artist Paulo Arraiano for a ritual that took place in the Chapel of Nª Srª dos Remédios in Formosa beach. This old chapel on the Azores Islands is a place that people used for prayer and cure and even has a sacred fountain were people washed themselves in search of cure. I just love the way that the tiles hang in on the old walls next to more traditional work in a way that begs further scrutiny.

Go on, have a BIS//CUIT...

Portuguese designer Carla Santiago has launched a new tableware company BIS//CUIT. Having grown up around traditional Portuguese azulejos (tiles) and learnt from her father who was a professional painter. Each plate is in a unique range of 100 pieces. She uses ceramic decals on each porcelain plate but they're still somehow dishwasher safe. Aren't they modern? They appear to be a cross between space invadors and dinnerware.

A wall of difference (geddit?)

I don't want to appear obsessed with walls in any way. However, the Artex weighs so heavily on my mind that it's easy to spend hours online drooling over note-worthy coverings. This house in Quinta da Avenida, Porto, put together by Portuguese interior designer Susana Camelo is something of a catalogue of different wall coverings. From the fully mirrored walls in the living room, to the murals in the nursery and in the dining room, the fabric in the bedroom and the book wallpaper in the study, this place is a veritable mix of ideas. Impressive. Which would you choose?
(Pictures via Caras).

Portuguese design: 10 men, 10 Portuguese brands by Rafael Serra

Today's post is about Portuguese history. I found this fantastic group of postcard prints by Portuguese graphic designer Rafael Serra (you need to email to buy them). This fantastic series shows what may plausibly be called the ten most influential Portuguese men past and present. There's also a series for women - I've picked out those I think will be most recognisable internationally. You know you've made it when someone puts a stylised abstract likeness of you on a postcard.