Setting up a new loft room study

Now that I am in my second year of a Post-Graduate diploma I have amassed a massive amount of books, papers, files and other church history related material and need to create an office room where I can arrange my desk and bookshelves. Up in the loft room is out of the way, up a wooden staircase to the room where my son doesn't go and I can have some peace and quiet. 

The room needs a new coat of paint, white to bring more light into the room and a few new items to create a cosier space to sit and do my studying. I already have a bookshelf up there and so with a new stationery and some glitzy homeware items the space will be my reading retreat. I have a VELUX roof window on one side but would like another from 
veluxshop.co.uk to bring lots of natural light into the room and to be able to look across the rooftops and out over the surrounding fields. It's also a great place for watching the night sky and having a relax in the evening. So....it's the logical place to create my workspace in and I've been looking online for items I'd like to personalise the space.

When it gets a bit chilly I like having a snuggly woolly throw to hand, this geoprint one in goldy tones looks very snuggly and a new mug for a  cup of tea whilst I write my history notes is essential. Keeping with the metallic theme, a few beautiful stationery accessories for the desk to inspire me to plan and make notes, store my history magazines and keep my pencils. Coppery and rose golds tones will make my study area look really feminine and keep with the light and airy feel of the room. The storage boxes from Habitat would be perfect for all the church literature I pick up on my travels and keep them nicely organised as at the moment they are in piles on different shelves and in tatty cardboard files. 
The room also functions as a bedroom so I'd like the study area to not look too cluttered or take over with  With the light from the VELUX windows it is ideal for reading in each season and as a place to rest. I'd add some metallic cushions onto the day bed in here, so the shiny star cushion would add some character and accessories such as the copper globe to break up the stacks of books and add some features to the room. 

As soon as Little Bird is in school this will be part of my home improvement plans, so whilst he is learning and playing I will now be decorating and decluttering. Hopefully before Christmas I will have some new room looks to show you.

Geoprint throw, Matalan £15// Shiny star mug Noth £20// Metal storage boxes Habitat £50// Geometric design magazine file WHSmith £6//Rose Gold Kate Spade notebook £20//Copper desk organiser RedCandy £23.50// Copper Globe Asda £15// Copper succulent plant pot George £5// Shiny star cushion eBay £12

I don't really mind January

For most people January is the worst month and yes whilst it is cold and grey with a sprinkling of post Christmas debt and seasonal blues....actually it's not that bad. I like cold. I like grey. And I'll just spend little this month.

It's a month off really, still able to hibernate and recuperate if you've overdone Christmas and New Year and stay home huddled in a blanket. I've got a couple of social events I need to go to this month but to be truthful I'd rather be at home. January to me is hopefully a chance to mentally catch up after the roller-coaster busyness I've been carried along with since October. Also if I look miserable, nobody is going to annoyingly tell me to cheer up, it's expected to look fed up in January so I can be at ease with my inner gloom. Hooray. I do enjoy a little bit of melancholy. Embracing my Eeyore tendencies I'll be quietly just being myself - cups of tea, reading, going for walks and gardening. No parties, no big social occasions, no fake cheer and all that festive glitz gone. Good.

However, secretly I'm happy, loving every minute of the dark days, howling winds and icy rain showers. Every time somebody moans about January being bleak I smugly smile like the Grinch. January I love you, you ground me for the rest of the year and connect me to those ancestral feelings of hardship, isolation and getting through the winter. Life is so easy in our warm houses that a fierce January gives that tiny remainder of previous life lived a little shake of making fires and battening down the hatches.

A whole month to plan, make lists and forget any rubbish from the previous year. A month off from too much pressure to be doing things, of not feeling guilty for not leaving the house all week and of trudging around the house in comfy clothes.

Here are my five things that occupy my time during the start of the year.

1. An abundance of food and drink. Getting rid of the Christmas left over treats and making wholesome veggie stews and soups. The slow cooker is out and I've got root veggies chopped up nearly every day for variations on winter casseroles - potatoes, swede, celeriac, carrots and turnips. For drinks I have syrups for my coffee - vanilla, hazelnut and gingerbread along with loads of different types of teas. 

2. I read lots of books and then some more. Yes, fire blazing, comfy spot in the corner of the sofa, a book on nature or history, aforementioned cup of tea. I'm just reading the Time Travellers Guide to Medieval England as well as my university course books. 
3. I pursue my hobbies which may involve books as above, getting out into the bitterly cold air on the odd occasion or watching a documentary about churches or religion. I go out a couple of evenings a week to bell ringing practice which stops me from being a total winter recluse.  
4. January is a great time to study a new course. My new module will be starting next week for my post grad in Parish Church Studies and I can't wait. I have the reading list already so have made a start and I've also been revisiting last term's books too. There are loads of free short courses too such as with Future Learn and Coursera. I'm doing Magic in the Middle Ages which is a nice addition to furthering my understanding of the medieval era. There are so many courses I want to do, just wish there was more time. I wish there were more Januaries :) 

5. I make my plans for the garden and allotment in January. With a rough sketch of the plot and a list of those jobs to do, I will be popping over to my weed riddled patch of land this weekend to burn off a few calories and get clearing and digging. Back at home I'll take stock of what seeds I already have and make my list of seeds to buy - my favourite kind of shopping. 

Happy New Year and I hope you love January too.