Pearl Lowe - Pearl Lowes Vintage Craft: 50 Craft Projects and Home Styling Advice

Contents

A s a child I always wanted to be different from everyone around me and to be able to express my own personal style. I chose the clothes I liked and drove my mother mad by insisting on only wearing clothes that were unique, and if anyone bought something I had, I never wore it again! Vintage clothing made copying my style very difficult I had no fear of ever bumping into anyone wearing the same thing as me.

Getting into vintage styling was a natural thing for me, but it wasnt my first vocation. I started my career as a singer, which was all I ever wanted to do as a child, but when I had children and the singing and touring came to an end, I decided I had to find something else to do. At the time, Id just bought my first renovation house, in Camden, London. It was a wreck and I didnt have much money, so I decorated it simply by painting all the walls and floors white and punctuating the whole look with dashes of colour throughout the rooms. I even did this in the bathroom, by putting up a lace curtain I had dyed a fuchsia colour. It was this curtain that started my career as a designer: a neighbour saw it and showed it to a friend who owned a lifestyle boutique in Notting Hill. They loved it and asked if they could stock my curtains. They sold out almost instantly, but not before the editor of Elle Decoration noticed the curtains and asked me for a bright red version. She then commissioned a ten-page article on my vintage style and everything snowballed from there.

Its the history and style of days gone by that excite and inspire me when Im designing for my home or for a collection. My favourite periods are the 1920s and 1950s; they were eras of glamour and romance, of beautiful people, beautiful clothes and beautiful furniture, and I believe we are all entitled to a little bit of glamour in our lives and glamour never goes out of fashion. Because period items become rarer over the years they become damaged or are discarded and lost they can come with an expensive price tag in some of the boutique shops, but dont let that hold you back; you just need to get savvy and know where to hunt for the bargains.

I particularly enjoy trawling around flea markets, vintage fairs, car boot sales and online, hunting out genuine vintage pieces, but because they are old they can be difficult to find in good condition. The good news is that this style can be easily and inexpensively mimicked, so you dont have to go vintage you can go vintage-style and it doesnt matter! Thats the beauty of this look: you can create the detail yourself or with a little help from a specialist craftsman.

If you dont mind a bit of damage, then the choice of original pieces is even greater everything doesnt have to look perfect. In fact, I think flaws add character. For instance, I love roll-top baths (I get them cheap on eBay) and I dont mind it when they have a few chips in the enamel as I think it gives them soul and history.

Use your imagination when youre out hunting for bargains; if you see something thats a bit chipped or marked, think what you (or some other crafty person) can do to get it looking the way you want it to. Slightly damaged pieces can be given a new lease of life with a bit of imagination: dressers and armoires can be painted; damaged door panels can be replaced with glass, wire grilles or lace; lampshades can be dressed up with lace or fringing; and sagging sofas can be reupholstered in your favourite fabric. As long as the piece you buy is pretty much fit for purpose and not irreparable, you can make it whatever you wish.

I do upcycle objects and decorate many things myself, but I know my limitations and also when I need to I call in an expert to help me create something really beautiful. Carpenters, furniture restorers and electricians will become your best friends as you ask for their expertise in revamping old or new pieces, but there are also great crafters around who can help if you are not so handy with a needle or a paintbrush. Theres a wonderful lady in Bath, for example, who makes all my pretty padded clothes hangers for me.

Its these people who have inspired this book. With their help I have managed to turn many of my homes over the years into my vintage dream. I have moved roughly every two years, always looking for the next project, and so Ive picked up lots of tips along the way, which I want to share with you here. I hope this book will inspire you to create your ideal home; alongside all the advice Ive found useful over the years, Ive included plenty of ideas and practical projects to show you how easy it can be to upcycle furniture and other objects to create beautiful vintage-style pieces. From painted tiles, homemade cakestands and my signature dyed lace, to headboards for beds, painted chests and dcoupage chairs, there are loads of suggestions for how you can inexpensively create the look. In between the projects, Ive shared with you how I go about styling rooms and how I like to create the look using both vintage and vintage-style pieces Ive also spilled the beans as to where I get my best bits from (the secret is out!).

Vintage styling isnt about clutter and lots and lots of mismatched pieces (although that works too, sometimes); its about choosing things that work well together and complement each other. What I love about it is that its a really personal style, and one that reflects your personality. You dont have to follow all these craft projects to the letter, they are here to inspire you to create your own look change the colours or the patterns to make them your own, mix and match objects wherever you want, vamp it up or tone it down. Be brave to make things beautiful, go with your instinct and passion and you will create your own unique and stylish home, and have a lot of fun in the process.

A pretty stand can make even the most humble shop-bought pastry something worthy of a Parisian patisserie, so heres my guide to making one of your very own. Dont feel limited to three plates for your stand use four or five if you like.

you will need

3 plates

Water-soluble marker

Safety glasses

Cordless drill with a tile drill-bit

Three-tier cake-stand fitting, which comes with rods, screws and washers

Screwdriver

Select the plates you wish to use. You will need a dinner plate for the bottom, a side plate for the middle and a saucer for the top. For an Alice-in-Wonderland feel, use a china cup for the final tier. Mismatched patterns work really well, but try to tie the plates together in some way whether through a theme, such as birds or a pretty floral motif, or a complementary design or colour scheme.