So this is my last post of the year and it's all about my nuts shoot. Not Nuts as in "man paradise where girls, games, gadgets, laughs, footy and fun abound" (sorry guys!). But nuts as in those hard shelled kernels we associate with Christmas.   

The shoot has just been published in the Christmas edition of Caterer and Hotelkeeper and looks rather lovely. It was part of a tutored tasting hosted by New Covent Garden Market where three chefs discussed the properties of different varieities of nuts, shared ideas on how they're best used, and cooked a few dishes to sample.

The trio of knowledgeable chefs were Nicola Aylward of the Faucet Inn group, Duncan Cruickshanks of the Hospital Club and Nikki Low of the Warrington in Maida Vale.

Now the truth is that I intended to put together a post that would be full of interesting nut facts and delicious recipes. However, on googling the word "nuts" I discovered that this might take a long time and bring me into contact with websites I'd rather stay clear of. Still, Caterer and Hotelkeeper have published a fine article so I suggest you take a look there: Tutored tasting

Happy Christmas all!

Helene Dabrowki is a talented interior designer who established her own practice in 2001 after many years working with renouned interior designers in both London and her native Paris. Earlier this year I got to see some of her fabulous design work when I photographed one of her projects - a house in Chelsea.

Usually I'm not a fan of basements, often they feel cramped and gloomy, even when they get some natural light. However, this house shows how good design can turn basements into spaces that feel light and spacious. In the basement dining room Helene introduced a feature wall of beautiful silver leaf gilded wallpaper made of silk (from De Gournay). This wall, the sculptural nickel base of the dining table and gilded furniture from Julian Chichester all successfully added, and reflected, light - so clever.

Helene also maximised use of all space. The small room leading off the dining room could have ended up a wasted, unused area. But instead it was transformed into a fun chillout, media room which opens out onto a peaceful zen mini-garden. The amethyst and green colour scheme of the basement ties everything together and is picked out in accessories and in the dining room's feature wall which is beautifully hand painted with twisting wisteria.

Helene enjoys mixing patterns and colours and she tells me she had lots of fun using using the Missoni collection to create a colourful seating area on the terrace.

In the guest bedroom, Helene used a painting by her artist husband, Adam Dabrowski, to add some perspective to a small room furnished with greens, browns and a touch of vibrant orange. I loved the cushions in this room!

While in the master bedroom a mix of blues, brown and taupe creates a peaceful and relaxing feel. The client particularly liked the seagull fabric which reminded him of his house in Brighton. It's little touches like these that make it a really special, bespoke design.

I've had work published in the past so should probably be cool and matter-of-fact about the publication run that's happened over the last month or so. But I can't help it, I'm excited to see my work on the printed page and reaching new audiences so I won't pretend otherwise!

My first bit of publication news relates back to something I wrote about back in July. Ceri Olofson of Bake Until Scrumptious and myself collaborated on a fun, floral-inspired cake-photo project and were delighted when Flowerona and several other online magazines decided to feature our story and pictures.

Lucky for us, Wedding Flowers also picked up on the story and went on to publish the photographs in their November/December issue (see below). It's such a beautifully produced magazine both Ceri and myself were thrilled with the results.

This led to a commission from Wedding Magazine to shoot a series of wedding guestbook ideas. You can see the results in the current December/January issue. An outdoor shoot in the gardens of the Horniman Museum, it was great fun to do. The Wedding stylist team arrived on site with a van of beautiful props, Pollen Nation delivered a fabulous selection of flowers, and everyone set to work! 

Location shoots are a funny thing because there is usually an 'audience' of some sort who are drawn to the camera. This time the audience was largely made up of inquisitive children visiting the Horniman - 'what are you doing?' they chorused in unison as they tried to climb over the fence and join in. 

I've also had some corporate work published in the Tax Journal and that mushroom shoot I mentioned back in August was published in Caterer and Hotelkeeper.

So, I would call this publication spell eclectic! Of course, the bonus of building up a little stack of publications is that I can wave one of them in front of my mother next time she asks 'what is it you do?'. One day the message will get through...