Ok, here we go, hurtling into the Easter break. At time of writing, we are expecting a super-warm weekend, just right for getting outside and sprucing things up for sunny days in the garden. Or, if you’re feeling extra-energetic, tackling small tiling tasks to get indoors looking good and summer-ready too…
Grand Designs
Well, this isn’t necessarily going to be a quick project for the Bank Holiday, but it might prove some inspiration and perhaps spur you on to get started on preparing the ground. Or scale it down slightly and re-do an existing corner of the garden. Remember, preparation is everything – visit the Garden & Outdoor section of our Help Centre for advice on installing outdoor tiles . Does lounging in the sun, eating chocolate and scrolling through advice on your phone or tablet count as research?… Hmm yes, we think it does! These tiles are our Enstone grey outdoor tiles, also available in Anthracite.
Confident Colour
There’s something about the new season that always prompts thoughts of introducing cheerful colours to the home, particularly pinks, reds, and yellows. Perhaps it’s all those spring tulips, daffs and bursting buds on the trees? Anyway, a blast of colour is always welcome and an achievable re-styling project for the holidays is a new splashback – in the kitchen or bathroom. Our Metro tiles are easy to handle and cut, not as daunting as large-format tiles to use, and come in some fabulous colours, including Teal, Red and Orange, making them perfect for a seasonal splash.
Hot Stuff
This gorgeous shade of yellow is Mustard Jar from Crown Paints, in two formulations, Breathe Easy Coloured Emulsion and easyclean, so it’s ultra-practical and hardwearing…a great combination if you’re refreshing both tiles and walls.
Out and About
If the good weather puts you into ‘heading outdoors’ mode, click on the National Trust Things To Do link – it’ll point you in the direction (literally!) of Easter Egg hunts, trails, walks, projects and other holiday activities. Oh, and there are lots of Easter goodies available in the gift shops as well! If you can’t make it out to one of the gorgeous NT properties, get busy creating an Easter Egg hunt in the garden. There’s plenty of greenery and shrubs all sprouting up nicely at the moment which will make it easy to hide things … but in my experience, hiding things above ground is much more entertaining and little ones take ages to catch on! Suspend little hollow eggs (already wrapped of course!) on string and drawing-pin them to tree branches, along the edge of the shed, window sills etc. We’d love to see any of your pictures of the Egg Hunt!
Neva Blue by Olenka Design | Vanilla Cupcake and Open Window by Price’s Candles | Velina Pink Peony by Olenka Design
Easter-Inspired Colour Scheming
Blues, pinks, lavenders and yellows are popping up everywhere, and for a quick seasonal freshen-up, take a look at the beautiful wallpaper designs from Olenka Design. Shown left, Neva Blue is a timeless, digitally-printed paste-the-wall paper; and shown right, Velina Pink Peony is from the same collection, and demonstrates a flexible colour scheme, mixing pinks with blues, greys and greens. Centre; Vanilla Cupcake and Open Window are just two of the fragrant candles from Prices that will add a celebratory fragrance to the room.
An Easter Table
We’ve heard that some people are grumping about Easter, and how it’s ‘becoming just like Christmas’. Well yes, it is a bit much that Easter Eggs seem to appear in the shops straight after Christmas, or if not then, swiftly after Valentine’s Day! So we can’t begrudge an Easter table display and some goodies, whether it’s simply hot-cross buns for tea-time or a full on roast lamb dinner. We love these designs from Sophie Allport, and plan to create bunny-ear napkins all year round …
Twig Wreath by Gisela Graham | Pretty Straw, Twig and Egg Wreath from TK Maxx | Twig and Gold Egg Wreath from The Contemporary Home
Three In A Row
As someone who always forgets to remove the Xmas wreath from the front door after Twelfth Night, I love the idea of having seasonal wreaths as decorations all year round. This year I’m planning to go from an Easter wreath straight into some kind of home-made summer display (depending on what kind of greenery pops up in the garden, maybe with some twisted willow stems) then I can segue into an Autumn moment with mini gourds, squashes and pumpkins on the step. And after that we will have come full circle and be back to Xmas! Happy days! In the meantime, here are three of my favourite Easter wreaths; from left; Twig wreath, Gisela Graham, phone or hop online to find your nearest stockist. Centre; Pretty Straw, Twig and Egg wreath, from a selection at TK Maxx. And last, but not least, Twig and Gold Egg wreath from The Contemporary Home, we love the Lemon and Vegetable designs too!
Don’t forget…we are always very keen to see pics of your projects, especially any creative outdoor dining and entertaining spaces. Hit us up @TileMountainUK or tag us on Instagram with your photos.
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Linda has worked as a freelance interiors writer and blogger for many years; she has written for most of the major home and design magazines, including KBB Magazine, Grand Designs, Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, Period Homes and Good Homes. She made the break and moved from London back to her home town of Shrewsbury three years ago and has just finished renovating her house. She also works in an interior design studio, produces copy for brochures and website, tries to tame her garden, aims to finish all the home furnishing projects she has on the go … and loves walking.