I am supposed to be “out of office” - relaxing, enjoying myself - but when I read through the post I had written and scheduled in advance, to tide me over in my absence, I thought bloody hell Ruth, this is scraping the barrel, and sent it back into drafts.
So, a belated little Between Us post: not the intended lengthy essay on the intricacies and associated dangers of shaping your own eyebrows, thankfully (though that will no doubt be coming once I’ve edited it into something sensible) but a few unbelievably pretty little things that we can coo over together. Things with stripes and frills and then other things with sea views and flower-filled courtyards; things that are too good not to share, even though I’m kind of loath to share them in case they sell out/get too booked up, leaving me in the lurch. (This has happened before.)
Whimsical Lamp Shades
These brilliant lampshades will also be in my monthly favourites, but some of the sizes are already sold out and I feel as though I need you to be able to get them, if you so fancy, not all of the other people in the world I don’t even know! I feel very proprietorial over these lampshades because they are beautifully made, ridiculously whimsical and, for all of that, priced so reasonably that I’ve found myself buying an extra one even though I don’t have a clue where it might go. Yet.
It’s these, the pleated striped lampshades from Next. Twenty quid for a 20cm version (which is the perfect size for a wall lamp or a very petite table lamp, perhaps one that you’d pop on the kitchen worktop and use to read your recipe book, etc) and they are so plumphy with fabric and pleating and frills that they feel loads more expensive than they are.
The plain pleated shades that Next do are also lovely, but the stripes with the frilled edge win the show; it’s like the designer just threw absolutely everything at them, bar glitter. Top effort and much appreciated.
Lamp shades from Next are here.
Now for a brilliant holiday villa find, if you feel as though you’re always looking for something extra-special but also don’t have a million pounds to spend and/or the time to trawl through thousands of listings:
