The Annual Christmas Beach Cottage IKEA Pilgrimage

By on November 25, 2011
in just a beach cottage life

 

 

Hello Beach Cottage lovelies.  Ready for some Christmas Ikea bling?

Ooh yeah, I have some Christmas decor to show you from my personal little Nordic boutique, Iqkea.

Wanna see what’s in my bag?  Dive on in.

Now every year I make an IKEA Christmas trip…yep I am really that easy to please…I start scheming this as soon as the Christmas section hits the website and I spy things I might like…I plan when I am going and mark it in the diary.   Every single year.

When I lived back in England, I saved the trip til late afternoon, so that when I came out all the lights were on and it was all twinkly and cold and festive….here that doesn’t happen, there certainly are Christmas decorations around but it’s not quite the same when it’s light outside.  I can cope with that.

So this year, I had one day this week ear-marked…I like to go alone, so no-one can annoy me and mostly I like to just peruse the Christmas set-ups.  Gotta say this year that my IKEA were not overly abundant in Christmas decorations in the store and Christmas tablescapes, I was a little disappointed with that…hello IKEA do you need a table decorator to help you out, are you feeling the Christmas stress, errrm I know one, she lives on the beaches and would be very happy to come over for the day and help out. ;-)

Soooooooo, this Annual Christmas IKEA pilgrimage has to involve the free coffee (you get that if you are a Family member) and a plate of meatballs…you see even though these are rather ahem heavy in the calorie department, they are pretty much compulsory to keep you going as you wander around ooohing and ahhhing and pretending that you live in a cottage where no-one makes any mess and that your bed really does have 3 layered up quilts on it, and 25 cushions all perfectly non-perfect ;-)

So here are the things that took my fancy as I wandered in Christmas IKEA bliss (this is a long post, scroll down if you wanna get straight to the juicy and what I came home to this ratty old cottage with)

This is the first idea I liked…the icy blue with the silver and white with the mirror underneath…I think they are mirror tiles…too easy…not sure how good this would be with children around, even big kiddos like mine…I think it might make me tense, but I love it anyway…

 

I loved these hanging stars, but thought they were kinda modern for my cottage, even though they aren’t modern, so none of these came home with me, I think these would be stunning in a large beach house setting…with windows overlooking the sea….just need oh about 6 million dollars more than I have right now…anyone like to assist with that?

 

trays of red and white things…nice

 

stacks of white Christmas china

 

I loved this bedding…why oh why did I not come home with it is beyond me, oh yeah I know I think I could start a linen shop with all the bedding I have now and in this place a red, white & blue plaid bedding set I could not have pretended we had had for ages.  But, I am doing a Christmas bedroom this year….I am gonna be in twinkly heaven in bed drinking mulled wine (this is one of the things on my list when we did the Saturday Club Christmas edition the other day) and piled up with white lights and white linens and maybe the odd French cafe chair to ogle and this would have been PERFECT underneath the doona don’t you think?  (no matter that some days it’s touching 100F on the mercury in Sydney at Christmas roflmao)…

 

errrm this made me laugh…think the stylist got a lil bit carried away here…a pile of plates like that.. and the garlands…

 

those IKEA people, gosh they are so thoughtful..they had even this white, silver and loveheart tree ready just for me at the entrance ;-)

 

 

and this idea I have done before in this old place….icicle lights on the windows…this year I am gonna give it a coastal christmas twist….

 

 

 

 

 

in line at the end, taking a photo of my shoes and bags, as you do…no there were not enough checkouts open, no I didn’t turn into the IKEA Witch…but I was close

 

What came home with me this year (not really Mr Beach Cottage if you are reading this, I am just doing this for the blog readers and taking it all back next week :-) )

loveheart cushions in red gingham….love me a bit of red gingham at Christmas time, I wish they had had other shapes of these…

a couple of these trees…now I don’t really like artificial trees…never have done, but I quite liked these…I deliberated them for ages, I nearly phoned Mr Beach Cottage, cos he woulda really like a phone call about whether or not I should buy two artificial Christmas trees while he was working hard to keep this family in food :-) …I decided after much head-to-side thinking that these would be lovely on the deck, by the new BLUE front door…with some of those battery operated twinkly lights on them…I would prefer mini-real trees but it’s super-duper hot out there in the middle of the day and I am not sure how long real ones would stand it without getting all limp and droopy.  I don’t need limp and droopy in my life.  Do you?   So in they went….

 

 

 

Next up these crochet stars…these have to be one of the best Christmas IKEA finds for a long time…at a couple of bucks each, I threw a few of these in

 

 

…and these puffy embroidered hearts…love these too…my philosophy this year is keep it simple even though I am really into it this year…the past few years I haven’t been so much, this year I feel very Christmassy…but I am trying to remain realistic and keep those purrrrfect Christmas images out of my head…and so I am gonna just go wild on the sparkly lights (I raided the local dept store for new lights, don’t tell Mr Beach Cottage, errrrm we did have quite a few already ;-) ) and just sorta hang things randomly around…I figured this is easy, quick and also will be easy when it all needs to be taken down again…these fit that Christmas philosophy perfectly …hanging things on rusty old knobs??? no brainer ;-)

 

 

and then we move swiftly along to wrapping…truth be known, I prefer brown / kraft paper on my parcels and presents…and then to adorn them with things I have collected and at Christmas add a few in white and some red…this bores the pants off of my children…they are not with me in the chic and simple brown paper formula, those babies like a bit of bling…well I say you want bling, you want colour, you want YELLOW at Christmas, or worse purple and black, well you my little cherry pies are quite welcome to get yourself to the mall and buy your own….

but I liked this

 

and then we have OMG Christmas paisley

with OMG silver

did I say OMG love?

I saw these on the little trees they have on top of all the products displayed on a Christmas tree…but I couldn’t find them anywhere…a few things were sold out already so I was a bit disappointed…and then I saw them stashed up in a box and a sorta squealy hiss came out

“Yesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss!’  they were like OMG only a few bucks a packet….

 

Alongside me was a man, in the middle of the afternoon, an obviously retired man in chinos, with retired wife in chinos too…retired man in chinos was leaning on the post examining the ceiling, retired wife in chinos was scooting about filling her trolley with gold things…when I hissed/squealed /jumped up and down and punched the air in Ikea Christmas Pilgrimage delight he almost jumped out of his skin and he OMG TUTTED.

Can you believe that.

I rammed my trolley in his shin-clad chinos and pretended it was an accident.

How dare he try to ruin my Christmas Pilgrimage?

 

these….tea towels, I am not sure if these are meant to be part of the Christmas range or not, but I bought a couple of packs of them, I wish now I had bought more, I am going to make things with them…thinking a cushion and something for the table….

 

 

I bought a few packs of these bags, I always like to have bags in the house for wrapping, about a million times less stressy when the date is looming…I have a whole stash of brown paper ones I bought from a local paper wholesaler that I tie sparkly stuff on but I thought these red ones would blend in nicely, plus the funny little santa on the small bags I thought was right up my little one’s alley…

 

next up we have more hearts, more love, more silver, more delight, but no shin-kicking

 

 

did anyone around here say hearts?

OMG love white hearts?

Oh yeah…

they had these in other colours too, but I already had quite a few silver hearts from other IKEA Christmas years, so went for white…

 

 

I also spied this silicone cake tin….I loved the blue (we all know I am having Beach Cottage Blue Phase right now)…and the hearts were reduced so I thought I might make my lovely Beach Cottage Crew a loveheart sponge to let them know how much I love them….I have only got a couple of my fall-back recipes to share now…the Victoria Sponge is one of them…I thought in this I’d do a Christmas version, I would really like to find some edible glitter in silver…anyone know where I can get that in Australia without having to trek over mountains to find it????

 

 

I also bought some lights, the star icicle ones, I am going to hang them somewhere pretty….I forgot to take a picture of them but at the moment they are only $20, a great price compared to what I have seen elsewhere….

 

 

And that is it for my Annual Christmas IKEA Pilgrimage…gotta say I thoroughly enjoyed myself….I don’t quite know how though when I got to the registers I had managed to spend so much when supposedly everything is only a few dollars…it’s the IKEA conundrum that no-one will ever know…it must be something they add to the meatballs ;-)

Bye for now lovelies, I’ll be seeing you next time…

 

oh and last chance to vote for abeachcottage

A Beach Cottage needs your luruve!

…click here to vote for abeachcottage every 2 hours 

coastal decor

 

 

Bye for now lovelies, I’ll be seeing you next time…let me know…what did you like in IKEA this year for your Christmas goodies, and I hear from the Facebook girls that a whole lot of us take a pilgrimage there at this time of year…do you?

 

beach decor

 

oh and hello to Nicola who came to say G’day to me while I was in the cafe and recognised me from this blog…errrm yes this was ‘all’ I ended up with!

 

 

 

~~~~~

 

Media should sw%@r this White Ribbon Day

 

 A Beach Cottage supports White Ribbon Day, Australia’s campaign to 

stop violence against women (click here for more info)

and click here for an article by Erica Bartle at JustB Australia on Domestic Violence..Erica makes some interesting insights…domestic violence is not just about a man hitting a woman.

if you are in a violent situation, suffering physical or emotional abuse & there are kiddos involved, please seek help, do it today

ALL children are deserving of a peaceful, safe & secure home where they feel loved

~~~~

FacebookPinterestStumbleUponShare
81 Comments Read them now or add one


There's More

Comments

  1. Nina says:
    December 2, 2011 at 9:15 am

    Sarah great IKEA finds! I love your leather brown bag!!! Do you mind if I ask where you got it from? Thanks!

    Reply
  2. Janmary, N Ireland says:
    December 2, 2011 at 10:55 pm

    I just blogged about my IKEA trip – I knew I would succumb to temptation – I blame/thank you :)

    Having re-read your post, I realise that some of the things you spotted I didn’t see in our store – maybe just as well :)

    Reply
« Older Comments

Speak Your Mind

More Life by the Sea
  • Beach Cottage Too Easy Goat’s Cheese, Lentil & Herb Summer Salad

    Beach Cottage Too Easy Goat's Cheese, Lentil & Herb Summer Salad

        G'day ladies, let's have a Too Easy Beach Cottage recipe yeah?  The original place for Too Easy Recipes on the web ;-) So, after my last salad went down a storm in my inbox, that's here if you missed it, I had to do this one seeing as I make it most weeks.       There is a problem with this salad and kiddos though...it looks, well, it looks, kinda yucky...but once they try it, they'll ask if and when they are next having it....at least that's what happens in this ratty old cottage...but I must interject here that my kiddos are 'good eaters'? ...they didn't get a choice in that ;-) Now, stop, don't start running and hitting that next on your blog reading list, pulses are your best friend in the Too Easy Dump & Go kitchen for the busy mum, or busy anyone for that matter...that reminds me I must blog the garlic canneloni Go To for when you forgot to do dinner, feel like a bath but have three ravenous young Beach Cottage Kiddos on your hands...another day.         I am almost embarrassed to tell you how easy this is, we have it so much that I always have a couple, make that six, cans of lentils around and a jar of goat's cheese in the fridge...the great thing about this is that it's all too easy to get ready in just a few minutes, but it looks, tastes and seems like you did oh so very much more than that. You can obviously too change it up a bit depending on what you have to hand in your kitchen, and I must say that is how I settled on this version...because one day when I made it I didn't have enough Parsley in the garden and so I chucked in some basil too, and liked the Summer feel it added. I think of this as being a rather posh salad, not sure why, because it couldn't really be further from the truth...the great thing is that it works so well for an average run of the mill day, (when I did this for this blog post, it was a hot Sydney Sunday and I did it just simply to go with Rosemary & Garlic stuffed pork, you can see that pork here), ...but just as easily it works on a regular old Wednesday night when you have lost all enthusiasm for rustling up yet another meal, or indeed on Saturday night, when your friends are on their way over for dinner and you my friend, are in your new vintage inspired clawfoot bathtub (that's me in a few weeks time, k?) without any clothes on, a tipple and no idea what to cook for dinner... I have a complicated and ever-changing relationship with goat's cheese...it never fails me in its performance and it never fails to impress me (you can find out a bit more on what I like in food here if you like) and I kinda collect it...because it's very easy to collect and has a fairly long fridge-life, I love trying out different ones and there's not many things I love more than goat's cheese on sourdough...but I think the best thing about it is not thinking about it exclusively in the toast/salad department...I've stuffed it in chicken and all sorts of things as a last minute and it's been fab.     But let's get down to the nitty gritty of this super salad that makes you look like an angel who has been on her knees all day scrubbing the front step when really you are in the digital world and spent most of ...

    Read More

  • Beach Cottage Too Easy Recipe – Layered Raspberry, Cream & Cake Dessert

    Beach Cottage Too Easy Recipe - Layered Raspberry, Cream & Cake Dessert

      G'day Beach Cottage ladies, howdy, howdy howdy today for a Beach Cottage Too Easy recipe. If you like cake, cream, sugar and chocolate, make this. This is, rather than a recipe, a putting it together...as you know I am no dessert maker, but, I do make quite a few sweet things, because, somehow I have ended up with kiddos, who in their roles as offspring, believe that part of the deal, is that not only do I feed them a home-cooked meal with a few homegrown ingredients in there, yes, they also believe that dessert and not the kind that comes out of a packet is included too in this All-Inclusive Deal they call Parenthood.   So, this, for sure, is no culinary masterpiece, but if you are looking for something that is so very easy, dump-able, uses everyday ingredients and at the same time makes you look like you spent hours pulling things together plus tastes good....well, then this is for you. Best though, you don't make this for yourself, if you have spent the most part of your week sitting on your derriere reading blogs...this my friend ain't low in the calories department...if, however, you are treating yourself to a delight in a mason jar, this is so for you. I first had a version of this when at dinner back in Old Blighty with a girl, I once, in another life, caught the train up from our village to London with...she was a funny thing really...I am not quite sure how we got on...she was kinda prissy and a bit bothered by too much...I would run to the train flustered, having got up late, and she would have a spreadsheet on the train times, if you know what I mean. Anyway, a few years later when we both had bambinos, I bumped into her again and we met up for playdates and dinner sometimes....this particular night, after a lovely meal she served up little bowls of creamy, cakey fruity stuff topped off with chocolate flake...it was delicious! She didn't serve hers in little jars like this, hers were in a champagne glass and not quite so layered as these ones, plus she used tinned fruit not fresh or frozen.     Years later when said offspring kept requesting dessert, one day I wangled together somehow these from what was around in the fridge and they've been with us ever since. Most likely, if you ever come here for dinner, and shock horror, you dont' bring the dessert with you, this, if you are lucky, will be what you will get. Throw it all together, sprinkle a lil bit of chocolate on the top and the blog reading past-time you so rudely left in order to make this, is my friend, your oyster.   Beach Cottage Too Easy Layered Raspberry, Cream & Sponge Dessert   1 small maderia or butter cake or a pack of cupcakes (or of course make your own) 1/2 cup whipping cream 1/2 cup cream cheese 1/4 cup sugar 8 tbsp fruit 1 x chocolate Flake or chocolate bar for grating      1. beat the cream cheese  until it is soft 2.  whip the cream until soft peaks form 3. combine & add the sugar through 4. cut your cake into portions & layer into the bottom of your jar 5. add a tablespoon of fruit   6. layer on top the cream combo   7. repeat 8. grate chocolate or Flake on top   *Beach Cottage Recipe Notes : this is just a guide really, you can use any cream that you have on hand...I have made this with clotted cream (don't even go there unless you want to seriously get these babies on your thighs), with double cream and I have even, in desperate times squirted in that, ...

    Read More

  • Beach Cottage Real Girl Blog Tips 5 Blog Essentials

    Beach Cottage Real Girl Blog Tips 5 Blog Essentials

      G'day Beach Cottage ladies, well I thought it was time for some blogging tips here today, alongside a few nice flowers and shells ;-)  I was recently part of a blogger discussion group over at Kidspot and a couple of hours later had a few questions from girls who couldn't make it to the live chat, one was on my Facebook page and one via email, the Facebook one I will deal with in another Real Girl Blogging Tips post...the email one asked me what essentials do I think every blog needs? Well I have been around here for a while now doing the blogging thing, so I should know this, yeah and I mused this on my walk by the sea this morning I thought well what do you only need? ...I think it is really very easy when blogging, whether or not you are blogging up there in the lofty heights of the Super Bloggers or you are just dipping your toe in the water, to get side-tracked by 101 million different things that are 'essential' to your blog and if you are someone like me who actually gets a thrill from reading blogging tips then you are in an even worse place because you will find yourself literally buzzing with these essential things to add/do/implement on your blog.   However, walking along, gulping down that brisk sea air today (no sunshine & clouds) I thought you actually don't need any of that professional blogging stuff to be successful...but there are a few things that are pretty much crucial ...and once I started to think about it I got it down to about 5 - these are the only things that you need to concentrate on...once you have read through take a look at some of the big girl's blogs...you'll see that actually they don't have bundles of stuff on their blogs...but they do have all of these... So here are my top things that your blog must have     1. About Page There are all sorts of About Pages out there, and if you search on it there are many different tips and ideas for what to have on yours Whatever blogging platform you use, adding an About Me Page is easy, quick and simple and will do everything to grow your blog. I like a long-ish About Page, I am inherently nosy and I like to know a bit more about the person but at the least you should have on it your name and where you are located.  I also think a photo is good too...over the last year or so I think this has become more important in blogging - if you are hesitant about that as I was, you can try using sunglasses or a behind shot until you get comfortable. There is nothing worse than stumbling upon a new blog and going to find out more to only be faced with a piddly little one liner About Me Page...well there is something worse, not having one at all!   2. Contact Page The chances are someone, somewhere will want to contact you and you will be surprised what lands in your inbox once you put yourself out there on the world wide web with a blog. Many bloggers also use this page to include details for PR's/brands that may want to contact them and some bloggers put their stats on there too. A short, to the point and simple Contact Page works really well...whenever I have wanted to contact another blogger I am often very busy and have limited time so I don't want to hang around sifting through information looking for an email address, so concise and clear ...

    Read More

  • Beach Cottage Coastal Blue Vintage Glasses on the Deck

    Beach Cottage Coastal Blue Vintage Glasses on the Deck

        G'day lovely Beach Cottage lovelies. So, yeah, so on a roll people, so on a roll.  I feel kinda home accessory wired right now.     I am always telling people, if anyone ever listens, that blogging is all about passion, not that sort of passion, but about passion that makes one tick. Things like this make me tick tick boom.     I love finding things that suit my budget and let me treat my home but look amazing too.   So without further adieu I introduce you, ladies of the beach, to the blue vintage glasses that I have been stroking for about a week or two now... These glasses are from a little boutique I sometimes happen upon, this boutique sells also pet accessories, carpet cleaner, bras and compost...it's quite unique though. And, thanks to my friend Marnie (she blogs over here, go take a look at her praying position, interesting), who just so happens to be one day having me over for a lil' Greek dinner, has let me in on the fact that we call Kmart....The KMart...with an accent ....as in 'I love The KMart'...just like her MIL does.  Oh yeah.  Love that. So I have had my eye on reproduction vintage glass blue wine glasses and being trying to find real true vintage blue glasses for like ever.   Oh yes I have spied them in Frenchy boutiques, I have lusted after them in stores that I shouldn't even enter and I have put them back pretty quickly in those shops with the hand-written price tags.  C'mon, you know the ones. And, though all of the above have tempted me, muchly, really, even with my wardrobe stashing skills I just thought that, actually, I'd rather be saving that casherooni for our next trip overseas.. Hello The KMart. Tick Tick Boom Vintage style blue wine glasses.   Do not come to my old place and think you might pick up one of these and smile with pleasure at their handblown quality, their weight, and be secretly jealous that my wine glasses cost more than your car...friend, that would not happen...these do not feel like that...indeed these in a funny way reminded me of my baby girl, she was a tiny little thing, with stick legs, the tinsssssssiest ankles and wrists you ever did see, she slept sideways in her cot wedged in between rolled up blankets and would only settle attached to Mr Beach Cottage or I or a (dirty) pj top of mine scrunched up under her nose...the first few times I picked her up to cuddle, being used to Honeymoon Baby who weighed in at 9lbs at birth and has never really stopped growing, I nearly threw her little bird-cum-rat down covered body over my shoulder. These glasses are like that...be careful or you might lose your wine down the front of your shirt. But oh baby, we are not talking picking up here, we are not talking quality, we are not talking house accessory snobbery. Beach Cottage ladies, we are talking aesthetics.     And this is what I need in my cottage. Blue vintage style glass, paired with coastal / nautical / beach stuff on my deck.     It's The KMart. Tune in tomorrow, tomorrow, I have more budget foofing for your home, or maybe it will be the dress that wraps me up in supermarket-chic and makes me feel like me again. Good Day to you my friends, wanna come hang out on my deck, talk house accessories, The KMart and drink some wine from blue glasses? Sarah    

    Read More