Spring Clean: House Detox

ashley thomas


Spring is officially here! I've blitzed my house top to bottom over the weekend. There's nothing better than a house detox, here are my top five tips on having a good spring clean.

Make time
The main reason why my house gets into a state is because of the lack of time. Pencil a whole day to get on top of things. It might seems like the dullest thing to do in the world but actually once you've had a spring clean you suddenly feel great about everything. It real helps your well-being and is definitely worth investing some time.

Start in one room
Sometimes it's so hard to know where to start! Focus on one room at a time and start with an easy room to get a warm, satisfying feeling which will spur you on to do the next room.

Declutter first
When you have too much stuff and not enough storage space the house starts to look a real mess. Remember less is more! Organise cupboards and drawers by throwing out the rubbish and sorting things to go to charity shops. If you haven't used it for 6 months do you really need to keep it?

Don't cut corners!
Strip back all your home decor, clear shelves, sofa's and floors and thoroughly clean the room from ceiling to floor. I like dusting with my hoover attachment to completely clear every surface. Once you have a clean slate put the room back together.

Make a DIY list
As you get close and personal with your home you often discover more jobs that need doing. Make a list of all these things so you can come back to them another day. Don't divert from the cleansing job onto touching up paint or mending a floorboard as before you know it the day is over and you will have loads of half finished jobs and upside down rooms. Chaos! Remember one step at a time put in on the to do list and tackle it another day.

Hot cross bun recipe

baking

I've never actually made my own hot cross buns before, but always have them over the Easter weekend. This recipe is honestly super easy and they fill the house with the most amazing smell when they are baking. They are ten times better than shop brought buns. Give them a go yourself...

You'll need...
450g strong white flour
50g caster sugar
1 tsp salt
1tsp mixed spice
1tsp ground cinnamon
1/2tsp nutmeg
7g fast action yeast
50g butter
150ml milk
4 tbsp water
1large egg
125g mixed dried fruit
Apricot jam

To make...
Mix together the flour, sugar, salt, spices & yeast.
Melt the butter in a microwave and add the milk, water & then the egg. Beat together.
Add the liquid to the flour mixture along with the dried fruit and mix well until it comes together into a dough.
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 mins. Leave the dough to rise in a oiled bowl for
1 ½ hours in a warm place.
The dough should have doubled in size. Knead again for 2 mins then divide into 12 pieces and roll into balls. Transfer to a greased baking tray and cover with oiled cling-film. Leave to rise again for 30mins.
Make a cross in each buns using a knife and bake them at 220oC for 20 mins or until brown.
Brush them with Apricot jam straight from the oven.


Spotty sandwich platter, £10
Bunny Teatowel, £12
Spring Flowers Oven glove, £12
Watercolour Floral clip jar, £8

All exlusive to Debenhams
Shop online here!

Country Living Fair

ashley thomas
I've returned from the Country Living Spring Fair in London. My stand was a huge success and I even won the award for "Best New Stand" handpicked by the editor of Country Living Suzi Smith.
I was absolutely overwhelmed to receive this award. I nearly burst into tears! 
It just goes to show if you give everything your all it pays off. I made my stand a home from home and even though it was a small space and homemade in parts I was really happy with the overall feel. It's so lovely to know that other people loved it too. Especially the Editor-in-chief of the magazine, this is a huge compliment. Here's some photos of my stand. 
I'll definitely will be going back next year.

  








Picnic collection for Debenhams

2015
My new picnic collection for Debenhams has now launched! 
This range is gorgeously summery. Full of handpainted flowers and geometrics. 
Perfect to brighten up your alfresco dinning, whatever the weather!
Exclusive to Debenhams, shop online
 
Watercolour floral sandwich tray, £12 
Watercolour floral cake stand, £20
Set of four melamine dinner plates, £18
Set of four melamine side plates
Set of four melamine bowls


 

My mum taught me...

Debenhams
We had a great response today on the Debenhams social media pages for our Mother's day giveaway. 
Such nice comments about your lovely Mums. We hope you have a great Mother's Day this Sunday. Here's some photos from today...




Mother's Day Giveway

Debenhams
We have a special treat for you on Tuesday 10th March. We are having an exclusive giveaway, over on the Debenhams social media pages. I will be personalising some of my Debenhams products which will make amazingly unique gifts for your Mum on Mother's Day.  
Follow Debenhams on Twitter or Facebook and stay tuned on Tuesday to take part in this extra special competition.