Slowly coming down to Earth.

Well I had all the best intentions. Go to New York, Blog and post lots of pictures.....Wrong!!! walked and walked all day, had fabulous dinners and fell into bed a very happy girl each night!! Had absolutely not an inch of energy left. It was all I could do to rip open my Oreo Cookies every night and eat them to sustain me through my sleep.

What a fantastic time we had though! I couldn't have planned a better time to go (Fashion Week) and Natalee and I earned every little blister on our swollen and battered tootsies!! My feet have never been soooo sore and I've never smiled sooo much!!

Where to start??? I guess our first night set the bar for the following 10 days. We arrived at my favourite hotel in the world The Greenwich Hotel . This hotel is owned in part by Robert De Niro and he had a vision of creating a hotel that was comfortable, warm and welcoming. He definitely succeeded. The service is so lovely and gracious. The decorating is absolutely inspiring, classic and yet very original in it's approach.

Natalee and I looked like mad tourists taking photo's of every door jam, hinge, carpet square and old book in the Fabulous drawing room. Surely they all thought we were mad when we were taking photo's of the Missoni designed label on the San Pellegrino bottle!?!?!

Having blogged about The Greenwich Hotel before and thought perhaps 2nd time I would be a tad jaded and not so impressed. I was wrong (again) it more than lived up to my memories. Behind a very inconspicuous entry lies a welcoming lobby that instantly makes you feel welcome. Exposed beams, softly worn velvet occasional chairs and beautiful original pieces of art all give you a feeling of stepping into someones home instead of a hotel.

The rooms themselves are full of interesting old books (from Robert Di Nero's own collection) lovely time worn furniture and stunning beds with the kind of linen you just sink into.

All photo's from The Greenwich Hotel website.

The beautifully appointed drawing room. Very cosy here with a glass of wine after a long days walking.....ps you never know who you will bump into.

One of the gorgeous bathrooms.

Love the tufted chair and the lovely bared back floor boards.

We stayed in this gorgeous hotel for 5 nights and it was with very sad hearts that we left. We had made lovely friends with the staff and felt truly at home. I highly recommend just staying at least one very impressive night there.

The area of Tribeca is also (in my opinion)one of the most fascinating places to just sit and people watch. Battery Park is such a lovely, gentle way to say your initial hello to New York City. The Sun bouncing off The Hudson and in the distance the unmistakable silhouette of The Statue of Liberty make for a very memorable and satisfying first impression.

NEW YORK!!!

O.K have been keeping this a bit hush hush because wasn't sure if I could pull it off in such a short amount of time (2 weeks to be precise!!!) But we are soooo excited because Natalee and I are off to My Mecca of Happiness on Friday Yay!!! We are looking for some exciting pieces to bring back to Lily-G and also scouting out our itinerary for our Lily-G New York/Hampton's Tour that we are going to start doing next year. We have put out the feelers and there has been an over whelming response to a shopping & cultural tour of New York.

This is what we are toying around with at the moment...

7 - 14 day tour 4 days spent down town in the lovely hip area of New York with trips to all the vintage shops, one off boutiques, lovely Italian restaurants, Nobu, Soho, Tribeca, Chelsea etc then shopping up town at Barneys, Bergdorf & Goodman, Ralph Lauren, Restoration Hardware etc and of course trips to The Plaza, Broadway, The State Library and lots of other gorgeous places. Then we think up to The Hampton's to all the gorgeous antique shops, home ware shops and some tours of some of the stunning gardens and Houses that we all adore!!! That's it in it's basic form so we are going to be doing a lot of research while we're away so that we can offer the most fantastic girly trip....V. excited

We will be blogging and posting fabulous photos of the trip so keep posted.

Shop Daze

We have been getting so much stunning stock in the store I thought I would share some little pics with you all. I am absolutely in love with all our blue Crockery and all the gorgeous new dinnerware we have received. Love our beautiful tapestry butterfly cosmetic bags imported from France!!

Magnolias always a must have at lily-g next to our hand milled french soy candles and soaps.

Here are the urns and jugs that we have received in a beautiful crackled grey it all looks so elegant along side the french etched wine and champagne glasses.

This is a happy little corner of lily-g with our beautiful pond printed Chinese stool and matching bunnies. Lots of happy Bungalow cushions and my little rabbit shelf is growing, we have had such a great response with the bunnies and all their little furniture!!!

Love all my blue ware at the moment with these fantastic charger plates and these

absolutely stunning hurricanes and it all looks beautiful with the coral and taupe's.

Our new table ware and stunning silverware with all the lovely pieces to accompany it. Once again because it looks so pretty.

This console arrived the other day it actually has two doors and is deep enough to be a perfect TV cabinet hiding all the hideous black boxes.

This is the most lovely little shopping basket has little wheels with a lovely antique handle very beautiful full of hydrangeas and next to our lovely lily-g linen which is to die for and I can't order enough to keep up with the repeat clients. Once you sleep on these stunning sheets you'll never buy anything else!!!

For the Little Ones

We are in the process of decorating for a lovely family in Ascot and part of the brief includes the sons and daughters room. Love doing children's rooms as I get to bring out my inner child. The son plays guitar and has discovered music so we are doing posters, album covers and lots of Rock'n'Roll!!! The daughter is going silvers and gorgeous Designer Guild fabrics. Stay tuned for the photo's

Also cannot begin to tell you about the absolutely stunning pieces we bought at the fair!!! Colour is coming to Lily G in a big way for spring!!

Here are some stunning childrens rooms that always give me inspiration.

Yummy New Wallpaper & Fabric Collection from Thibaut

Sooo excited to receive our lovely new Thibaut books!!! These Wallpapers and fabrics are so beautiful can't wait to do something fabulous with all these gorgeous colours.

Look at this amazing yellow!!! Reminds me of Mad Cow in Sydney Very Doris Day Happy!!!

Back On Board!!!!

OH what a slacko I have been!! There's something about cold winter nights that sends me straight to the lounge to snuggle under a lovely throw and sip Pinot instead of sitting in my office and being a good girl and blogging. So I have been on a little break and getting back my work/life balance (well watching Master chef,Big bang, Glee and London Bachelor) So what has been happening here at Lily-G? So many Interior Jobs we've gotten our little teeth into and due to the frenetic pace I have been going at, I have to thank my wonderful staff for helping me to cope both mentally and physically. If it wasn't for these truly creative and energetic employees I would have gone a wee bit loopy. My partner in crime and creativity Natalee has also kept the little white men at bay the last couple of months and as you can read on our blog "LILY G Homes" we are very very busy rolling up the sleeves and tackling some big renovation jobs. Also I celebrated my much dreaded 40th birthday and I must say not as many tears as I was expecting and certainly not as much angst. I cruised into my 41st year with much grace and good humor and it is all thanks to the comfort of my lovely girly friends who stood shoulder to shoulder with me as I drank a disgraceful amount of Champagne and laughed a tad too loud at my birthday dinner. Also being whisked away for a weekend at The Park Hyatt in Sydney and taken to Tetsuyas doesn't hurt (thank you MM) So a new year financially and a new year creatively and so much possibility out there makes me feel very blessed to be a woman in such a fortunate country. On the subject of women (even though she is not a style icon and we must remember that fashion sense or the lack there of has never been a pre-requisite in the past when it comes to competent leadership) Julia Gillard is our new P.M and I feel so inspired that we actually have come so far in Australia (such a traditionally patriarchal government) as to finally see a female PM. What an inspiration to women all over the world and a reminder that we are truly unstoppable in any arena!!! On that note I'll say night night and promise won't be gone for so long next time....in fact hold onto your laptops as we are going to be bombarding you with many an image and a many many ramblings as well. Melinda.

Sex and The City!!

Here we are all frocked up for the Premier of Sex and The City!! This is Shelley, Tanya, Myself and Natalee. Me & Natalee with Two of The "Ladies" that were there to provide extra entertainment at the function.

We just received boxes and boxes of amazing stock!!! Unbelievable pieces from all over the world.

Selling and Building

We have decided to sell our house at Birkdale and build. I am in love with the idea of building as I can finally get the home I want. I am a very picky little puppy and cannot for the life of me find a house that I would be happy to make the monstrous effort of selling, packing and moving into for. We are very fortunate to live on the Bay and I will miss the lovely views and the Summers when it is 5 degrees cooler than the rest of Brisbane. But the commute to work and to all our favourite haunts is becoming too impractical. So my partner M.M and I are now looking for a perfect block of land to Build our house on and it will also be our First Official Lily G house. A proto-type for the gorgeous homes that we will be building for our clients. So if anyone wants to buy a lovely home on the water....Come and get it!!! Contact me at Lily G for details :) 5 bedrooms all with Bay views and 180 Degrees of Moreton, Manly and Green Island. Will miss it but too excited about the possibilities!!

Lily G Bedding!!! Qld Homes

Get this months issue of Queensland Homes we are featured amongst some very big names!! We are very proud of the work and think it looks the best (of course :) )

Here is our amazing bed all set up in the middle of the shop!!! Gorgeous Lily G linen and mountains of pillows and the most luxurious quilts all ready to snuggle into on those cold winters.

Bunnies have arrived in Lily G!! Decided to run with these soooo cute bunnies and some of their friends!!! because they are just lovely and so gorgeous. We have given them their own little shelves and they look very happy in their new home.

Off to Sex and The City premier tonight!!! very excited and will take some pics to show you all the Lily G girls putting on their best Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte !!

Samantha Wills will be there tonight and we are very excited to be getting her amazing jewellery in at Lily G!!! It is featured in the movie so double-ly excited!

Lily G linen & Sex and The City

We are receiving our gorgeous aprons featured in S.I.T.C any day now....Makes me want to take up baking.....nearly!!! We have received all our linen today and it is absolutely luxurious and after testing it last night I can genuinely say it gave me a lovely nights slumber. Nothing is as lovely as waking up in a mountain of fresh white linen. Lily-G linen is made at the same Mills that make linen for Harrods and The Ritz hotels it is high thread count (not so high as to make it unaffordable) and long staple combed cotton. Feels so soft and smooth!! We have Herringbone, Damask & lovely plain white with Satin piping. Available in King, Queen & Double.

Lily G Homes

So have created another blog to track our progress on all our interior jobs and the different ideas and creative processes that we go through at Lily G as we build on our Interiors department. I will continue to blog about the shop and my little purchases and drama's and both myself and Natalee will blog at http://www.lilyghomes.blogspot.com/. Problem was being a techno phobe I was trying to blog here and ended up blogging in the wrong one. But you HAVE TO READ my little blog in Lily G Homes as it sooo funny.....well I made a complete fool of myself and that is always funny!! As you will see we are in Melbourne at the moment and just happened to bump into someone that made me as excited as a school girl.....to my shame I acted like a crazed fan but that's allowed sometimes.. Have a lovely week. Melinda

Lovely Things

NEW STOCK!!! Just some pickies of all the lovely pieces and fabrics, cushions and little creatures that have arrived recently. Love, love my pink Monkeys. Here are some new cushions that I have had made. I love the faded blues against the distressed white of the screen. This French Industrial Cabinet is fabulous for craft storage, veggies, bits and pieces, toy rooms.

This lovely new cupboard just arrived yesterday!!! Lined in a Chinoise Teal Silk, absolutely gorgeous for all your little keepsakes and perfumes. We have put all our beautiful Jewellery in it and it looks AMAZING!!!

These little fellows are the stars of the shop after arriving 2 days ago....they are so cute and look very pretty and fresh.

Out with the old. In with the big!!

Can't wait for winter, and here's why....

Aaahhhh!!!

Well getting colder, so thought I would go through the old wardrobe and try and sort out some semblance of a winter wardrobe for the wee bit of cool weather we get here in Queensland. FORGET IT!! Cannot deny what I was desperately trying to avoid acknowledging...3 months to the day after taking over Lily-G I have gained 5 Kg's and none of the old winter is going to fit my expanded girth.

When I try and ponder the weight gain I can't exactly put my finger on it!??

OK working so hard at the shop one gets low blood sugar and well the bakery is just across the road....and the convenience store....and there's the duck wrap place just up the road.....or there's Harvey's in James st...or Cru for business lunches..and then there's the Friday afternoon's 3 C's: Chippies, Clinkers and Chitto's for that sugar fix when it's been a long day.

But other than these little indiscretions I've been very good. Oh and then there's the Wine that has become a lovely friend. Just a couple of glasses......Oooops!!

I desperately Need to go on the Food & Wine Wagon but Master Chef every night isn't really helping!!!

So here's my plan for now......COATS!!! Yes Coats cover everything!!!! and lovely black clothes with leggings!!! I will hide my weight gain from myself with big roomy coats and will look fabulous as I walk past my Gym which I donate to every week.

P.s Am getting very well defined upper arms from much heavy lifting of furniture though!!! :)

Courage to follow a dream

We have again been very busy at the shop, changing displays, wallpapering, organising furniture. We have had a great response to our Carribean Room and as always it is wonderful to meet all the lovely ladies (and gentleman) that make that special trip to Lily-G.

Everyday we hear such lovely and positive feedback from our clients. This is the main reason I wanted to go into retail to get that immediate gauge on how we are doing as a service and how we can improve on an already successful business model.

We are still in the process of deciding what stock to put on the on line shop.

I have sourced my own Linen Range which will be classic and elegant and from the same mill house that supply for The Ritz and for Harrods!! So am very very excited about that and will be selling that on line too. That is only a couple of weeks away so I guess I better get my Toosh into gear.

I know that shopping on-line is convenient and easy but I still feel that a tangible experience is the most integral part of the experience, and I watch my clients walk dreamily around the store touching the fabrics, languishing on the comfy lounges and smelling the gorgeous candles and soaps...I know that having a store and an ultimate location for people is vitally important.

We are all working very very hard here at Lily-G to keep enhancing an already good experience into a great one.

The shop is transforming into what will be it's final carnation.. A gorgeous retail space and Complete Interior Decorating and Design consulting space up on the Mezzanine level.

I was going to transform upstairs into a bedroom but our Interior Jobs are happening so fast that we need to expand into a much larger area...so It's upstairs we go!!

Saying that though my bed should be arriving any day and it will be featured beautifully right in the middle of the shop so that is going to be something new and exciting.

Interior Job

Here is a little job we have just finished. The Client wanted a re-vamp of her existing pieces and I wanted to bring the gorgeous outlook inside. It wasn't a huge job but a lovely one as The Client was the most fabulous and happy individual. All jobs are important but it is the relationship with the client which matters most to me. I like to develop a strong collaboration with anyone I am working for.

BEFORE

AFTER

BEDROOM BEFORE

AFTER

Again, The Client only wanted a re-vamp and we lightened the room with neutrals and lighter tones.

DECK BEFORE

DECK AFTER

I used lots of Green to bring their magnificant outlook inside. The colour scheme became prominantly Greens with black accents, lots of natural finishes and colour.