Newsletter 20

Some good viewing and listening choices and a deep dive into Microcement...

I am reading

Thanks to my erudite village book club, I am now working my way through A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I do appreciate the education and broadening of my knowledge, but in need of a bit of light relief between book club choices, I think…

I am watching

An excellent drama, The Widower on Netflix, a true story, produced in 2014, based on a quiet, very unremarkable serial killer who murdered a few wives during the 1990s and then, very satisfyingly, got caught by a slightly cannier victim… Marvellous!

A rather more up to date ‘must watch’ is the gripping drama on BBC iPlayer Wild Cherry about the online world of a group of privileged teenage girls set in the environs of a posh housing estate and private school in the Cotswolds. When their online activities spill out into the real world and their parents and teachers suddenly became involved, inevitably, havoc breaks out and tragedy ensues. Searingly relevant I am afraid – you honestly do not need to live in an upmarket hosing estate in the Cotswolds or send your children to private school to be affected by the issues in this drama, they are affecting all of us…

I am listening

Have really learnt to love The Chromologist, the Farrow & Ball podcast. Its’ new formula asks the subject to pick Farrow & Ball colours to represent the various stages of their lives, I love the poetry of this podcast.

I am writing

About a beautiful, very contemporary kitchen and bathroom in North Berwick, both finished in Microcement.

The finish from Dynamic Surface Design is a relatively expensive choice, but actually, the all in one price is not bad at all. The cost depends on the extent of the area you are having done, the owner of this property had micro cement throughout her home, so it came in at a very reasonable £110 per sq metre, but a small area, just a bathroom, for instance, would probably come in at £300 per sq metre, including labour.

This should be compared to the cost of tiles, grout, adhesive, tile matting and labour, none of which you will need and which all add up, so it is not bad value at all. The result is a very flawless, unique, matt finish that can be pigmented with any shade you want. The owner in North Berwick used Joa’s White by Farrow & Ball, she wanted a very soothing, neutral backdrop throughout her home, but you could experiment: Calamine, Pitch Blue, or Brinjal, a deep Aubergine would be amazing in a bathroom…

I am enjoying

My Instagram course with @decor8 It’s hard work as social media does not come naturally to me, I worry far too much! I have been working on my personal account @accidentally_japandi_ please give me a follow and I will try to entertain you and enhance your life!

And relax…