The Search For The Perfect Sofa

We have one tricky room in our new/old house - the living room. It's kind of small and it's kind of a thoroughfare. At one end there's sliding doors through to the light filled front room which will become our library (soon, I hope, maybe) with floor to ceiling bookcases, cosy seating and our LP player. At the other end it opens out into the airy dining/kitchen area. There's a TV on a stand in one corner and a fireplace along one wall. It's pretty narrow, so if we don't get the sofa right it's going to look a bit like a hallway with random bits of furniture thrown in it. Tricky. 

We've moved out the old sofa already, it was too big for the space. (Pssst - it's currently listed on ebay if you're looking for a super high quality Italian leather lounge suite, all reasonable offers considered…) So for now watching TV involves sitting on the floor whilst balancing two needy dachshunds on your lap. 

And I have a feeling it's going to be like that for some time yet, because I'm searching for the perfect sofa. There's lots of sofas I love, but it's about finding the one that fits perfectly into this tricky little space of ours. 

Here's what's currently on the short list:

1. Softscape Modular Lounge | Stylecraft   2. Milo Sofa | Jardan 

3. Studio Couch | Ercol   4. Coast Modular Sofa | Jardan 

5. Finn Juhl Poeten Sofa | Great Dane 

(And that's the Jardan Ned sofa right at the top. And yes, I am slightly obsessed with Jardan at the moment. Although the current 'Perfect Sofa' front runner is actually the Softscape modular lounge - it's pretty amazing!) 

Oh the possibilities! So many lovely places to sit! Do you have any sofas you adore? Have you fitted out any tricky spaces in your home? I'd love to hear about it if so...

Oh Xmas Tree!

As the husband put it, this is the first year we've had a relatively 'classy' tree. I had a vision of a tree decorated in blue, silver and white, but the decorating is in the hands of the stepsons. Happily, once they saw the pile of blue, white and silver I'd collected over the months (including some gorgeous vintage additions to the bauble stash), they pretty much came up with the idea themselves - hurrah! The tree is the usual riotous mix of decorations new and old, handmade and mass produced, but this year it has a unifying theme and I love it.

Eight Tips for Stress Free Festive Entertaining

On Monday night we hosted the husband's management team for a full xmas roast dinner. It was quite fun actually. Being overseas we haven't really had much of a chance to do the big festive celebrations at home and there's something quite lovely about dressing up the house and preparing all the tasty things. 

It was kind of a last minute decision to host the dinner. It meant a few late nights planning meals and counting cutlery; some frantic trips to the department store to buy dinner plates; and possibly, maybe using the stepsons as xmas cracker mules (you can not buy crackers in Korea for love nor money). But in the end it felt like a warm, enjoyable evening, and I'm pretty sure (I hope!) our guests left feeling that too. 

Based on my recent entertaining experience, here are some handy hints:

1. Do work with children and animals. In what could otherwise have been a slightly awkward, formal evening the stepsons and the dogs helped break the ice, relax the mood, and provided a nice focal point during those awkward silences. 

2. Give yourself time. I basically cleared the whole day. I went to the flower market and did the grocery shopping. The table was set by 2pm, the dinner prep done by 5pm, and a Campari spritz was in my hand by 6pm.  

3. Have a plan. I'm a list lover, and I know when something isn't written down I will fret over it, even when I don't really need to. So I printed up a time plan for the day (even covering when I'd feed the boys, and when we'd all have showers!). I found it very reassuring! 

4. Keep it simple. Cook what you know and focus your efforts on one or two courses. We did a roast beef with all the trimmings, which is a meal we've cooked a million times. We kept the other courses simple (antipasto to start, and cheese and then cake, chocolates and macarons for afters). 

5. If the guests find out that your dog loves Baileys, watch them very, very carefully. And maybe hide the Baileys.

6. If the guests click out of the selected iTunes playlist and find your full non-edited music collection, hold your head up high. Even when Fragma / Ke$sha / Chingy starts blaring out the speakers. (Oh so many guilty pleasures). 

7. A pre-dinner drink for the cook is fine and can ease the nerves a little. But pre-dinner drinks for the cook may spell trouble. 

8. When in doubt, throw in a poinsettia. 

Have you been entertaining this festive season? What are your tips for hosting a stress free holiday dinner?

Death by Doxie : Elfi's the Queen of Our Castle*

As a little xmas present to ourselves I finally bought some of the Castle pillow cases that I've been lusting after ever since my sister first put them on one of her wish lists some years ago.  Of course, now that I have my hands on some, I just want more.  The quality and design is just too good. Anyway, here's Elfi giving our new pillow cases a test run.

*bad pun intended.  Sorry.