There’s no shortage of interior decorating advice available online. From well-known, experienced interior designers to DIY enthusiasts, everyone seems to have an opinion to share. They offer beautifully styled photos, detailed step-by-step guides, elaborate reveals, decorating mistakes to avoid, secret decorating tips and guidance on the latest trends. Looking for commonality and searching for guidance that is relevant to a specific situation can be daunting. As a result, I’ve attempted to piece together some of the most helpful decorating advice I could find into this blog post.
Signs of spring are (finally) popping up here in Nova Scotia. One eagerly-awaited, seasonal sighting is the pussy willow (Salix discolor) catkin. The catkins, technically unopened flowers, have a protective coat of soft grey fur. Some sources say this native shrub earned its common name from the catkins’ resemblance to the furry paws of a small cat.
It’s not unusual to walk into a fine hotel room and find a band of luxurious fabric draped across the foot of the bed. These decorative fabric bands, known as “bed runners”, are similar to the better-known table runner (more on those later).
Remember a few blog posts ago I admitted to restarting one of my new coiled rope projects four times? And I shared that all those false starts forced me to finetune my seam ripping skills?
It’s a special day in FanningSparks’ world. This is the 420th blog post and it marks FanningSparks’ eighth year online. That’s right ― I’ve had the good fortune to share my stories, ideas and photos every Tuesday morning since March 2018. Special thanks to everyone ― all 312,000 of you ― who has taken the time to visit the blog over the last eight years.
Hooray! The new fabric storage system in my studio is done and dusted! The wooden media cabinet has been repurposed, used cardboard moving boxes have been made into nine storage bins and a mini gallery, showcasing nine unique textile art panels, has been created.





