SHABBY

The jolly good British guide to stress-free living is the theme of this celebration of life. Being Shabby is about spending less time fussing and clearing up and getting stressed about stuff that doesn't really matter anyway. It's more than an attitude, it's a quintessentially British way of life, tied and tested for generations and founded on messiness, dilapidation, clutter and bodged repairs. A great Christmas gift idea, we love the humorous photographs of that cluttered desk, piled high with papers and books and important Post-it notes stuck on the screen of the computer, the keyboard of which is grubby and full of crumbs. Underneath the desk is a large pile of shoes. Welcome to the Shabby living room, kitchen, bathroom, loft, landing and outdoors the garden, shed, on the move, sports, parenting, fashion, eating, entertainment and hobbies, pets and Christmas where you don't 'give a flying damn about a judgemental aunty' and simply crack open the homemade sloe gin instead. Letting pets run freely, eating a Fridge Lunch, the BBQ with at least one wheel missing, the plughole spider in the bathroom, the dodgy plumbing bandaged with Jay-cloths, unidentifiable and tasteless spices on the rack, packets and jam jars dating back decades in the cupboard, Shabbification is a natural process through which a home truly becomes a comfortable place to kick back, relax and snuggle up, where games are played and family discussions take place, often among the perpetually flaking and rattling window frames. 64pp, colour.