kitchen reno part 2

From the living room. I'm getting a light fitting put in over the dining table. I have a Tord Boontjie garland light fitting I was thinking of putting there but am worried it'll be too small - thoughts?

Slowly, slowly the place is starting to resemble a house again. I spent the weekend putting the doors on and the shelves in place and tidying up the endless supply of sawdust lying around the place (thanks to the rain, the benchtop and sink hole was cut inside. So you can imagine how pleased I was about that). And this is how it looks now.

The view from the hallway.

I had to go back to Ikea today to get the plinths (kickboards to cover the legs) and a few other things they either didn't have before (like LACK wall shelves) or that I totally forgot to buy last time I was there (shelves for the end cabinets that face into the dining/living room). I also was desperate to get the benchtop oil because it hasn't been treated yet. I'm hardly precious about things and quite like the timeworn look of wooden benches and tables. But I'm NOT happy that on the second day of the sink side being completed I discovered this...

Naughty naughty

Luckily, this should easily sand out (hope so anyway!). But people are still banned from my house now because I also discovered yesterday that the electrician had damaged one of the doors while leaning over to fix one of the power points with his tool belt. I'm going to turn it around and swap with the door next to it so problem solved but still highly annoying.

Plates and random glass collection!

Not annoying, however, is the fact I can access my plates and glasses by simply shoving my hand through the top of the cupboard (I haven't put the handles on the doors yet so the less opening and closing of doors, the better!). Obviously this is temporary until the benchtops get put on next week!

The sink, gooseneck tap and dishwasher - my true love! How did I put up with handwashing for sooooo many years?

So this is the sink side. I bought shelves for these base cabinets today and there will be an open shelf the full length of the wall just above the tap and then three horizontal wall cabinets above that. Now, my dilemma. I wasn't going to get a splashback for either side - just one little piece behind the stovetop. But I will, because I think it'll finish off the space and also because I'll need one!! The wall is so uneven there is a rather large gap between the benchtop and the wall. Plus, while being extra careful because of the non-oiled benchtop, I've realised how much water goes everywhere in a kitchen. Never noticed this before! Glass is out of my budget, stainless steel won't go and so I'm starting to lean towards tiles which I was sooooo against just days ago. Any other suggestions? I seriously considered pressed metal (a friend has it in her kitchen and it looks amazing) but I can't imagine that being very practical or easy to clean. So if you have any brilliant ideas/suggestions, I'd love to hear.

Here are the holes the electrician cut in the wrong space. Steve patched them up today, but the eventual splashback will cover them anyway. Phew. But note to oven manufacturers: I'd happily pay an extra dollar or whatever it'd cost to put on vinyl stickers instead of those crap cheap ones that DON'T COME OFF. Gotta get some metho or something. Grr

Still to do....

- Paint the back wall properly (and the little wall with bathroom door in it - plasterer only finished patching it up with this most recent job)

- Paint the ceiling

- Paint the window architraves

- Sand back and re-stain the floor

- Build and attach the wall cabinets and open shelves

- Place the other benchtop

- Hook up the rangehood

- Attach the plinths

- Oil the benchtops

- Get a splashback

- Figure out what to put above the fridge - there will be cover panels on either side of it so you won't see the sides of the fridge. Wall cabinets will be too shallow and base cabinets too high for the space, so maybe shelves? But they'll be too far back too. Might need to custom-make deep shelves for the space.

Hmm, that should keep us busy!!

you can thank us for all the rain and cold...

I'm a fan of my new living room fan. I'm also a fan of the fact I can walk around this room again without tripping over a saucepan or slipping on sawdust! PS: That corner cabinet is usually home to linens and towels. This is until the wall cabinets go up in the kitchen. More on the kitchen tomorrow. PPS: I know I say this a lot, but apologies for crappy quality of images. Turns out, it's a crappy camera, not crappy photography. I know what I want for my birthday this year...

You know how when you wash your car, it rains? Well we had a double whammy: we had bore water installed last week and so it has not stopped raining since. We've used the bore water once. We also had fans installed in all the rooms, hence the wintery weather. And of course, to top it all off, we're all running out of clothes because nothing is drying in the awful weather and we didn't have much to choose from in the first place because I pretty much threw out the entire contents of my wardrobe one "I'm sick of my clothes" day and because the babies grow quicker than I can shop for them. So anyway, you might recall my whinging about the fact my husband wanted a different fan to the modern silver ones we were putting in the bedrooms? Well, I finally got him to the fan shop to choose this "different" fan and this is the result. Steve attempted to choose the bronze version but after headslapping him for such a suggestion, I pointed out the nice black version and SIX WEEKS LATER it finally managed to get attached to the ceiling. So after all my umming and ahhing about whether it'd look weird, it's in and I actually love it! It doesn't have a light on it, so we had wall lights installed on one side of the room and they're all glowy right now and lighting up the room up perfectly. Of course, none of the fan/light installation throughout the house was without drama: wiring in wrong place, no wiring at all, too much wiring, bonus studs and beams, complications in putting fan together... The fun of renovating an old place. Apparently, the previous owners had done some rather strange DIY electrical work. But considering these very same people tiled the back of the bathroom door, I wasn't even slightly surprised at this news! So what do you think of the fan? Fit in ok? We choose the eco version of the Futura Lucci for the bedrooms in the matte silver. They're great - nice and quiet and for fans, look nice too!

kitchen reno part 1

What I'm looking at right now. You should see the other side of the living room!

Am completely knackered, so not going to bore with all the details just yet, but let me update you in numbers and pictures...
Number of days without a kitchen: 8
Number of sandwiches eaten: 42
Number of arms incredibly sore from sanding and painting three times in one day: 2 (they would be mine)
Number of hiccups so far: 6
Most number of trips to the hardware store in one day: 6
Number of cabinets in place: 5
Number of cabinets to still be put into place: 10
Number of taps working: 0
Number of appliances working: 0
Number of holes in the wrong place the electician cut into the wall that was already sanded and painted? 2
Number of flies killed because the doors were open all day every day: 723. Wait. 724
Number of times we've fallen onto our butts because the floor is so damn slippery from all the swept up sawdust? Me: 2; Steve: 1; Z: 4
Number of days before my dad can come back and finish putting the kitchen in: 12 :(
Number of hours before we can get water and power on in the kitchen: oh god please let it be no more than 15!

Day 1: Looking better already!

The mouse's house (left) and grass growing inside the wall!!

Several floorboards had to be replaced. We nearly had this gaping hole overnight, but luckily the new floor was put in on time.

Day 2: Electrical and plumbing work

Day 5: new walls in and plastered and lights installed

Day 6: dad and his little helper putting together the cabinets. Funnily enough, that plastic hammer worked: teh nails actually went in!

Day 7: Pantry done. The other cabinets on that wall are not flush with the wall yet. Dad needs to come back and put the benchtop on. Am hoping the electrician can connect the oven and cooktop tomorrow. I'm tired of sandwiches and takeaway!

My temporary benchtop!! These are the offcuts from the other side's bench and the cut out from the sink hole!

And just because I don't have enough things in my life to keep me busy (!) I signed up to Twitter last week and actually spent longer than two minutes on it tonight working it out. I think I've got it. Here is where I'll be sending all those little quirks, annoyances or snippets of news too minor or time-consuming to blog about. And much excitement is the fact I can SMS the updates and they'll appear magically on my Twitter profile. How genius. Not sure how long I'll follow this fad (am really good at losing interest in things - Facebook? I only get on to look at friends photos now!), but for now, you can follow me at twitter.com/belindagraham

is this the world's ugliest kitchen?

The missing door: poor bugga nearly made it. Was hanging on by one tiny nail. But Steve kept forgetting its state and it fell on his foot one time too many and spent its last few days beside the fridge.

It might well have been. But unfortunately it can't claim this distinguished title because it NO LONGER EXISTS!!!! It's sitting all partly smashed up on my front sandpit (what pathetic grass we had has been fried in the heat). And it's never looked better. Even Z is glad to be rid of the "kitchen mess" as he calls it. Gee, do you wonder why I never posted pics of this room? I'm completely embarassed to show this, but seeing that it's all in the past, let's have a laugh, shall we? Yes, I've put up with this for five years. My medal better be in the mail...

A few incredibly exciting facts:

* I painted the doors white when we moved in because I couldn't imagine living with green doors for any amount of time. I did such a crap job, I was wishing for the green to come back.

* The previous owner's son thought himself a handyman. He wasn't. He installed the taps himself did such a bang-up job they didn't work properly. They were replaced numerous times and ground back and had lots of work but no makeover could save the cold one which exploded one day. I'm so used to using warm/hot water for everything I rarely turn the cold water tap on in the bathroom. He also cut a hole too big for the tap nozzle and didn't bother doing anything about it. My non-handyman husband figured expanding filler would do the trick temporarily. It sealed the hole, but, well, look at it! Ugh.

* The tiles are on big sheets of some asbestos-ridden material and weren't the same depth as the rest of the wall, so there was a weird uneven gap no one ever bothered fixing. I don't remember how the piece of wood make its way there but there it is!

Hmm, what's sadder? The contact-covered sheets? The mssing door? The paper towel stuffing the hole where the cold water tap used to be? The lovely aged yellow stains or the fish plug that for some INSANE reason I never replaced??????

One of the delightful tile prints I could admire while cooking. They clearly shopped at the Ugly Tile Shop - same place they got the sunflower tiles that were in my old bathroom!

And another one - I guess they just couldn't decide between the two beauties and chose both...

On a happier note, I did wonder if I was utilising the space enough with the new design. Would I fit everything in? Considering I was ruthless and thew out half the contents of the kitchen cupboards as well, I have a feeling I'll be just fine. Aside from another bag out of sight, this is all I have! I sense a shopping spree coming on!

I started building the cupboards so I had something to store it in. Four packages down, 48 to go...

So I was feeling the pressure with all your "can't wait to see the new kitchen" comments. But I guess, looking at this, anything is going to be a huge improvement isn't it?

bye bye hideous kitchen

Oh the memories....

It's finally happening, people. THIS WEEK. Am so very excited. Builder starts on Wednesday to start ripping out the old one. This is how it looked the first week we moved in. We had all our stuff crammed in the bedrooms and former garage while we attacked the walls removing all the lovely mismatched wood panelling and scraping all the CRAP some genius thought would look great sprayed on the ceiling. There it is all over the floor, which is shame because it's hiding the delightful multi-coloured, animal-hair-covered carpet, which was actually better than what we discovered under the carpet... Once I've finished emptying the kitchen I'll take another pic of how it looks today. I'm afraid to say, it's actually worse: one of the doors recently fell off, the cold tap is no more and we changed the wall cabinet handles over years ago but never bothered to patch up the marks left from the old ones because "we're doing the kitchen soon..."

So soon has arrived. I'm going to start the new blog to coincide with this reno. I've called it The Happy Home because that's what it'll be with a new kitchen. Hopefully. So I'll redirect you when it's time - so far I've been blindly finding my way around Wordpress. Doesn't help that when I finally work something out my computer crashes and I have to start all over again. Am a little over technology... Have a good week. x

tiny chairs are taking over my house

I can just see L all dressed up in her pretty yellow frock rocking away in here clutching a doll or some sort and sipping a pretend cup of tea. Cu-ute!

It's true. Soon, they will out-number adult-sized chairs. At the moment, we have 8: a Stokke Tripp Trapp (with another one to come soonish), two wooden Ikea ones that came with a mini table, a child-sized green suede armchair, a little wooden antique chair painted turquoise, a purple Bumbo, a black bouncer and now this little wooden rocking chair - my fave! I just need a baby-sized Cape Cod chair to match my own one and I'll be happy. Oh and maybe a tiny Eames rocker - anyone know if they exist?

But back to this little rocker. I'd just spent a few thousand at Harvey Norman on kitchen appliances when I decided to pop into a cute little baby store around the corner from it. This was the first thing I saw. I ooohed and ahhed, but decided I couldn't really hide it (as, um, I often do with some purchases. Then when the hubby finally gets around to noticing it I can say "had it for aaaaaaaaaaages". Naughty.) and told the lady so. But then she knocked off a huge chunk of the price and I practically robbed her at $60. How could I say no? Especially when you compare it the last purchase's receipt! The store is a must-see if you're on or near the central coast - it's called Blossom Bubbas (ph: 02 4367 6900) and stocks a beautiful collection of children's decor, clothing and gifts, including Oobi Baby and Lilly & Lolly as well as local crafties who've started their own lines and are just adorable like Four Little Cupcakes and Little Buddha.

And just because little baby wardrobes are too cute, here is the contents of L's. She likes to shop at Country Road, Pure Baby, Oobi Baby, Cotton On Kids and Pumpkin Patch. Well, her mum and aunties do anyway. The little yellow cardigan was made by my Nana. I "bagsed it" years before I even fell pregnant the first time with Z!

The chair has since moved into the already-overflowing-with-chairs living room because from lunchtime yesterday, this same space now looks like this:

My new kitchen - you like?

Oh yes, my kitchen cabinets, benchtop, sink and tap arrived. Fifty two boxes. The poor guys couldn't fit the truck through the gates so had to park in the street and walk alllll the way down the driveway, and then along the obstacle course of a deck into our bedroom where they're being stored until it's ready to go (hopefully a couple of weeks only). And it was HOT. So anyway, there were two young, hot sweaty men in my bedroom for a while yesterday. How horrid for me!

corners of my home: zak + layla's room

Boy + girl = pastels, apparently!

So I've finally figured out what I'm going to do in this room, I'll be working on it during the holidays, but here is a little peek at one corner. They're not both in there just yet. Zak has partially graduated to a big boy's bed (he's fine in it during the day, but ends up in cot at night at the moment) and Layla started sleeping in there in his cot during the day yesterday, which was interesting. So I'm slowly starting to merge their things. Here is where the Made By Girl LOVE poster I won ended up (thanks Trina!). It's going to be a bit of a challenge and a lot of fun (hopefully!) creating a combined space for a boy and a girl. Wish me luck!

Zakky's side features a Dazey Chic print, painted MDF dinosaur and (much-loved and therefore filthy dirty) knitted teddy my Nana made him.

Layla's half: ballet shoes, Belle & Boo print, an "L" I customised and paper butterflies.

The deer head is from Hart & Heim, the cow money box from Fragile and the wooden truck was $8 from Vinnies!

my kitchen: update

I wish I could say this is it, but nope, mine is still how it was a month ago only with less cupboard doors and more ants (does anyone else have this problem? What is going on with the ant invasion?) This, however, is a rather lovely looking kitchen from our October issue. Image by Dan Magree/Real Living magazine

Before I start, you just might think this week's lot of posts is sponsored by Ikea, but for the record, they're not! There just happens to be a whole lot of Ikea-related things to write about, so I thought I'd cram them all into one week.

On Friday I convinced my parents to come all the way up from Canberra to meet me at Ikea and help me get my head around the whole kitchen design thing. Well, they were coming up to Sydney anyway, but I used the babies as bait so they'd make a detour to Ikea. So mum babysat Zak and Layla and I put my blinkers on again and bypassed all the cool stuff and headed straight to the kitchen department (I did spot one thing - tomorrow - but that's because it was right in front of me. I swear I didn't look to the side once.)

It was rather helpful having Dad along - I can't imagine doing this with someone who hasn't done it before. He had clever inside knowledge such as how the wall microwave cabinets they have aren't deep enough for a lot of microwaves so I should just get a normal base cabinet and smaller door. And how the Gripp handles will avoid a repetition of my wardrobe handle debacle because unlike most handles you just screw them into the side of the door instead of drilling through it. And how I can use any size wall cabinet for the fan cause he'll adapt it. And that yes, I can use two small wall cabinet frames (because they're not as deep as the base ones) on the end of one bench side as open shelves into the dining room. Excellent.

I also - finally - put to good use a commenter's suggestion from way back and took a stick of wood in my wall paint colour to match the colour. On my last Ikea trip I was horrified to discover that the Applad white is actually not that white at all, rather a cream. However, it seems my Whisper White paint is also not that white and so the two together should come up a rather good match after all. So it's back to Applad! With Gripp handles. And birch wood benchtops. And a stainless steel sink with mixer tap. And if Domayne can't beat a price on the appliances, it'll be their ceramic cooktop, silver oven and rangehood too.

This almost made me want to reverse my materials, but I have a feeling - as lovely as it is - the wood bottoms will date quicker than white. Image by Dan Magree/Real Living magazine

So, if my estimations are correct (oh please let them be!) I'll be forking out around $2350 for cabinets, $2018 for benchtops, plinths, legs, handles, sink, cover panels, taps, and $1310 for the appliances. A total of $5678. My carpenter quoted me $3650 for all the other stuff (ripping it out, putting in a new window, resheeting the walls, the plasterer, the plumber and electrician) so that brings it all to a grand total of: $9328 which is UNDER the $10,000 budget we set out to do. Oh, hang on I forgot to add the dishwasher, but still, close enough. We can afford more, but why go crazy when I'm happy with this? Plus, we won't be here forever, so I can design and do my dream kitchen in the next place if it doesn't have it already.

My only drama was that when I checked the stock availability at Ikea I noticed some base cupboards and oven cabinet weren't in stock. I was all ready to call them to ask when they can expect more in when I discovered this nifty little tool: Ikea Webchat. It's like instant messenger - you ask a question, they answer rather quickly, and I found out the actual frames are in, it's the doors that aren't in stock, but they'll be in in a week and a half. Everything now rests on when I can get my electricty box upgraded because it's not going to be able to handle anything else and I'm not keen on finding out what will happen if it gets overloaded.

Soo, it finally looks to be happening. In fact in needs to be happening because my little '50s kitchen is literally falling apart: the cold water tap came off a while back and we didn't bother fixing it because "we were doing the kitchen soon". And then the other day the door under the sink fell off. We discovered that one tiny nail (not even a screw!) had been holding it on for the past five years. I think it was tired of holding up the fort and just gave up. Damn good job though. So, yes, it's time!

In celebration of my near kitchen renovation, I thought I'd share these pictures of two pretty kitchens from recent issues of Real Living I'm adding to our website's brand spakin' new image gallery (from next month, fingers crossed!) Aren't they lovely?

oh my god, the mess!

You can see where the dropsheet ended! There is no stopping this stuff - it's pretty much in all rooms. It can even travel through doors!

My plasterer just left - covered head to toe in a lovely white powder he'd sanded off my walls. Sadly, though, it didn't ALL land on him or his dustsheets and I have this snowy wonderland in my new open-plan living space. And yes, I'm procrastinating by blogging instead of cleaning it up but the babies are asleep and vacuum cleaners are noisy. AND I want to let it settle as much as possible to cut down the number of times I'm going to have to vacuum it. It's not as bad as I thought it'd be, but still not going to be much fun.

Look! No more hole! And I just noticed this disaster paint job: the wall, architraves and door are three different colours! Good thing we're redoing!

Happily, my ceiling no longer has a hole in it and the thoughts of imaginary possums falling through are no more. I'm hoping to find a few spare minutes to start painting this week, but I just might be delusional. Fingers crossed I'll have something a little more exciting than dust and holes to show you next time I blog about my house!

Phew. Cornice crisis over

I realise this picture has nothing to do with cornices, but I do have a question about the sink - below. Picture via Haus Maus

My plasterer managed to track down the cornice, thank goodness. But of course that wasn't without drama either - the place that makes it wanted to charge me $200 for delivery. The cornice will cost about $12. My plasterer quite rightly said thanks but no thanks and is going to get it for me tomorrow and will finishing on Tuesday. Yay! So if I don't melt from the hot weather and lack of fan (another point I forgot to add in previous post: fan control broke so no fan until we get a new one), I should be able to start the painting sometime next week.

Then we're on to boring stuff like moving powerpoints and the air conditioner so it's not in such a stupid place, installing new fans and a few wall lights. And then the kitchen. Poor old kitchen. It's always one step forward, three steps back with that one! I do have one question someone might be able to help me with: I'd love to have a white porcelain sink in a wooden benchtop but realise the lack of drainer, water and wood won't be the best combination. So, has anyone seen a sink like this one in the picture above in Australia? It looks like it has a cover over one side of the sink or it is a drainer, I can't tell for sure, but either would be ideal as I plan to do as little handwashing as possible seeing as I've been without a dishwasher for the last 10 years. And I don't want the Ikea one that sticks out of the cupboards. Oh so picky I am!

Have a good long weekend. And I'll try to be a better blogger next week. I seem to say that a lot, don't I? Sorry!

oh my god the drama!!!!!!!!

Our old front door used to be here. Yes, right next to another door! We ummed and ahhed over what to do on this wall and recessed shelves were the winner. I didn't want them all in a row, so went for this. I think it'll look better once stuff on shelves (oh and it's painted etc!). Still deciding whether or not to wallpaper inside them - what you think? I'm on the hunt for a console/buffet to go underneath.

Quick question: why is there always a bloody drama when it comes to renovations? Everyone has a story. Granted, I didn't have huge dramas like a caved-in roof, a burst water pipe or a budget blowout of thousands of dollars, but I do have a hole in my ceiling due to a missing cornice that appears to be unfindable in plasterland. Let me explain the annoyances that made up this relatively small job that is still unfinished after a week.

No more wall. But a lovely hole! Excuse the mess, I haven't bothered to tidy up yet!

Drama 1. Phone line got chopped during wall removal, so no phone - obviously - and no internet. Thank goodness for mobiles. BUT, electrician, who is moving wires and powerpoints etc can't do phone lines. Oh no. Apparently, normal electricians aren't allowed to touch phone lines now and have to get special phone and internet man to do it. Writes name and number on plasterboard (as you do). Plasterboard is nailed to studs in wall the wrong way around, so no more phone number for special phone and internet man. And can't get electrician for number again. So builder (!) fixes phone line temporarily. Phone ok, internet crap. Wireless especially crap. And not clever enough to steal nearby wireless even though no security on it. Decide to wait until job finished to get special phone and internet man to fix phone line properly and move it so it's no longer in the middle of the floor and damaged more by young son who likes to deliberately trip on it because I told him to stay away from it. Nice special phone and internet man came today and hooked me up.

Drama 2. Am deaf from use of vacuum cleaner. Dust everywhere. On everything, in everything - including my nose. Still. And the bad news is the worst is still to come. Plasterer still hasn't sanded back his job. Which brings me to point three...

Drama 3. Cornice crisis! The lack of wall left a big gaping hole in the ceiling - "F's hole" as Zak called it (F being Jeff, our builder who was often seen dangling from it while inserting the world's largest beam into the roof so the whole house didn't collapse when wall removed.) "F" attempted to remove cornice as neatly as possible so it could be reused to patch hole, but plasterer elloquently told me it was "rat sh*t" and that I needed a new one. So smallish hole in ceiling which was fine until I realised it could be weeks before it's filled. Having all sorts of horror flashes of non-existent possums falling through hole onto me working below. Zoom over to plaster place yesterday with incredibly heavy sample of old cornice in one arm, tired baby in another. Nice man helps me with door and then tells me awesome news: never seen that cornice before. Can't find it online, or in catalogues. So much for "common cornice". Am sure it was in 1952. But today? Maybe not. Ask plasterer what happens if we can't find cornice. He tells me I don't want to know. I think this translates to having to recornice entire living space which thanks to wall removal is now HUGE. Decide to just ask him to use "rat sh*t" offcut but then remember builder taken to tip. Crap.

The good news is my recessed shelves are going to come up brilliantly once sanded (whenever cornice is found and attached); I have lovely smooth hallway walls with no dents and the living room appears to have doubled in size. Yay! I also now have new phone lines and three internet cables dotted around house so I can work in bedroom, kitchen or spare room if I want to. Hooray!

I'm (almost) back!

Some of the plaster that is STILL lodged in my nose.

Oh, it's been a fun week. Full recap tomorrow cause I know you've been dying to hear all about it! Good news: ceiling did not collapse when wall removed. Just thought I'd let you know in case you were wondering if it did and that's why I've been gone so long. Nope. But bad news: job still not finished and had dodgy internet connection. Nice phone man is coming tomorrow morning to hook me up properly as the phoneline got chopped during wall removal. Oops. Will show you how it looks now tomorrow (much better but not perfect), but here is what it DID look like for a few days. Isn't it lovely? x

bye bye wall

Ta-ta office; ta-ta wall

I might be offline for a few days because the wall my office is on is to be no more! Unless I can manage to keep the modem plugged in and attempt to get wireless working. But considering the electricity and phone line is being ripped out of the wall as well at some stage, not sure how successful I'll be with that! I'm very much looking forward to this job as it means we can soon start the kitchen. But I am NOT looking forward to the yucky dust, mess and noise that will plague my house for the next few days. We're also getting the hallway reskinned because the previous owners of the house appeared to have used the walls to practice boxing or something and getting recessed shelves in another wall where the front door used to be.

A very, very old view of the room. The room will open up in line with the bathroom wall. This is the old bathroom. I miss it sooooooo much. Ok, I lie.

The not-so-great thing about this job is the fact I'll have to put my desk in my bedroom. I think eventually it'll fit ok once Layla is out, but until then, grr. So fingers crossed we'll all be able to breathe ok and that the noise will stop for nap times, cause life will be lots of fun with two overtired children! Back soon. x

PS: Yay for me! 10 followers. It's rather addictive logging on to see if anyone else joined! Oh the exciting life I lead.

PPS: I attended the Reed Gift Fair in Darling Harbour today. I was going to take some pics of the stalls for you to check out some pretty things but wasn't allowed. Sorry! It was a good day. Until Layla screamed all the way home and I nearly ran out of petrol. Good times.

new towels + new project

My new towels from Le Souk

For all my sob story about never being able to buy from great shops overseas, there is one you need to know about if you don't already: Le Souk. This beautiful collection of homewares is owned by Danielle from the Style Files and... drumroll please... ships worldwide! Which is good news if you fall in love with these towels like I did. Aren't they beautiful? Turkish, tasseled and terrific - I love the woven pattern and the softness. All up the two cost a little over $AUS100 to get here (good old international shipping!), but that's no different really to buying two good bath towels at David Jones is it? And plus, I'll do anything for love...

Last night I left my laptop closed and had a bath. Ok, I send off some emails and then closed it (it's really, really hard to not log on once the babies have gone to bed and have a little browse around). It was rather heavenly. I was so relaxed I decided to start a little project: a completely embellished cushion. By hand.

Time consuming, tedious and yet oddly relaxing: the start of something fabulous. Potentially fabulous.

Several years ago I did this to the top of a white singlet and loved it so much I only just parted with it recently to bin because it was no longer white and, in parts, no longer beaded. It took me a whole long weekend. Considering I had no children then and absolutely nothing else to do over those three days, I estimate it will take me until sometime in 2010 to finish this one! But, oddly enough, I find the tediousness of stitching on teeny tiny beads and sequins quite relaxing (except for when I jab my finger. Which is quite often.) My plan is for a rectangle-sized cushion with a smaller rectangle on the front completely embellished. Although seeing as it took me just under half an hour to do this much last night, it just might soon become a square (shorter amount of time!) We'll see...

kitchen moodboard additions/alternatives

A few more things to um and ahh over

Well Canberra was fun - it's rather heaven having someone look after you for a few days. Thanks Mum and Dad! I also got some useful info regarding wooden benchtops from Dad who installed one in our old place. Unfortunately they need a fair bit of work - like an oil every three to six months to keep them in tip-top shape. But my mind is made up (for now!) and I think if I put a year's worth of Benchtop Maintenance Days in my diary, phone reminders, noticeboard and on my calendar I might actually do it! And you guys all seem to like the woody version too - thanks for voting! So here are some extra decor bits I'm considering. It might be IKEA overload but they're just so good! And so well-priced...

Lights (left to right)
I definitely think it'll be the white Basisk one I posted below, but until I see them in the flesh, I've got some backups: Kroby, $29; Ikea PS $79; and Foto, $29 all Ikea

Curtains (left to right)
I'm planning to have a nice big window - Steve wants French-style Cascade windows (that push out) - so I want something sheerish to emphasise instead of hide it. We get the sea breeze from here so it's sooo nice in summer. I'm thinking the Shell Capiz curtain will win out, but I do love the patterns and prints on the other two - Tulip Mist and Paisley Au Lait, $US22.99 each from Etsy seller Saffron Marigold. I might still get one style for the two windows in the living room.

Rugs (left to right)
Well my dream rug is a no go. Dad reckons it'll be too heavy to bring back and that also rules out shipping, so I'll prob go for one of these bargains: Sveje Rug, $19.95 and Alvine Rug, $12.95, both Ikea. I wish the Sveje rug was grey instead of black but I guess you can't have everything. Although, it's sooo cheap I could buy one, see if bleach does anything decent to it and then just get another one if it ruins it! They're like disposables! I love the colours in the Alvine rug and think they'll work beautifully with the room and pop on the dark floor. Again, it'll come down to seeing it in person.

Chairs (left to right)
Ugh, I'm annoyed at Steve for not liking my first choice! I have no idea now what I want. Bugger. I already have this silver chair (Replica Emeco US Navy Aluminium Chair, $148, Matt Blatt) at my desk so obviously like it! But I quite like the shape of the other (Nordmyra, $55, Ikea. Again.) and the birch would match the benchtops...

Now, for anyone who has a wooden Ikea benchtop - are you able to stain it to a colour of your choice? I like the birch, but wouldn't also mind a darker shade. Ahh, decisions, decisions!

my kitchen moodboard

My kitchen will be galley style like this, only with a window at the end

I've finally shoved Photoshop onto my computer and so thought I'd give it a whirl by creating my kitchen moodboard. Or moodboards to be exact. There are two because I can't decide if I want to go the earthy route or the modern route. Although really, they're pretty much the same save for a few tiny changes. But I think overall, those two tiny changes on Photoshop will end up making a big difference once it's all actually done. And then because I'm a commitmentphobe, I have some extra alternatives! The base kitchen will be galley style like above with a large window at the end. The floors will be stained really dark as they are now (Feast Watson Black Japan which we'll have to redo once we've finished), the walls will be - shock! - white, the cbainets will be white Ikea Applad and Lack open shelves and the appliances will be stainless steel. On the open shelves will be pretty assortment of crockery in soft blues, whites and neutrals. Wow, it seems sooo original so far, doesn't it? As I've said before I'm not the most original in terms of decor and like way too many different styles, so here is what I've come up with so far. Let's start the taste testing...

Moodboard 1: white and silver

Moodboard one
This is the white room. With hints of silver: white cabinets, walls, white CaesarStone benchtops with white sink but stainless steel appliances, splashback, taps, lights and chair legs. I do love this look but also think it might be a little too modern and clinical for us. However, the picture on the moodboard is dreamy - I particularly love the marble shelf under the open cabinets (which are actual wall cabinets turned on their side with the doors removed). I was going to do this too, but figured the holes for the shelves would stand out, and plus, the IKEA cabinet frames are not as thick as these ones, so wouldn't look as good. Other details:

1. I like the slight industrial feel to this light. We'd get two hanging in the middle of the room and then undercabinet lighting for the benchtops. Gade pendant light, $12, Ikea

2. I'm not going to tile or apply a splashback to the entire benchtop. In fact, only the stovetop will have one. I thought it'd look odd having a square of stainless steel on a white wall, but I've seen it in many Google Images searches and it looks fine. I don't want to have a continuing splashback because the kitchen blends into the dining room and that end of the cabinetry will be open shelves and decorative pieces and a splashback might just sit weirdly with that.

3. Under the window I'll be popping a little table and chair for breakfasty nook. I really wanted a kitchen island but room is limited so I thought I'd put that space to good use. There is plenty of room between both sides of the cabinet rows so it'll sit nicely. I love these replica Eames chairs from Matt Blatt ($138) - more so with the wood legs - but I've since been told by Steve that he hates them, so unless I can convince him (designer doesn't do it for him - that's partly the reason he doesn's like it!) I have to go back to the drawing board! Any ideas?

4. I'm having three horizontal wall cabinets with glass doors above the kitchen cabinet. I thought instead of just frosted or clear glass I'd add a stamp of individuality with some window film. This is my favourite: Emma Jeff's Otto Window Adhesive about $110 a roll

5. This long Lack shelf will be in-between the wall cabinets and the benchtop (similar layout to the picture in the moodboard). I'm pretty sure our budget won't allow for marble!

6. A white porcelain sink to blend in with the white benchtops, all seamless-like. This one is from IKEA of course!

7. Sleek silver handles for the cabinet doors. I have these on my wardrobes and bathroom vanity so might as well stick with what I know and love. Lansa handles from Ikea

8. I fell in love with this rug after spotting it on Haus Maus. It's from a German company so chances are I'd never see it in my home except that my parents are going there in September to see my Oma and they just might be able to bring it home for me. Although this all depends on the size, weight and price, obviously. I can't read German (even though my own father is GERMAN. Naughty, naughty - he didn't teach us :( grr) so I'll have to get him to tell me all the details when I'm at their place tomorrow.

9. Love the lines of the table so I think this will be the one to go under the window. Steve didn't comment on this, so he either likes it or didn't notice it. Fingers crossed! Replica Tulip Table 60cm, $286

Moodboard 2: white, wood and silver

Moodboard two
The more I look at this one, the more I think this will be the winner. Not just because I think it's a bit warmer and therefore more "me", but because the wooden benchtop will be considerably less than the stone one!!! But we all know how much I like to change my mind, so watch this space!

1. Love this glass light. It's simple but beautiful. Basisk pendant light, $12, Ikea. And such a bargain!

2. Even though most of my furniture is dark wood and my floors almost black, I'm not adverse to mixing wood tones and think this colour would be a particularly lovely contrast. Just not sure what to do sink wise: stainless steel or white porcelain?

3. Same handles, although I'm thinking about looking for maybe some nice wood or leather for something different...

4. I think a stainless steel splashback will clash a little too much with the wood benches, so am thinking a clear glass like this one for here.

5. Lack shelf again in same spot. They'll also go above the end cabinets in the dining room. I'll post my 3D plan and floorplan soon.

6. Same rug cause it's sooo pretty.

7. Replica Eames chair with wood legs. I love these chairs. Am making it my mission to convince the husband! Chairs, $158, Matt Blatt

8. Window film again.

9. And the same table. So not too many changes.

I've also got some alternative rugs, splashbacks and additions like curtains and crockery but haven't got around to virtually sticking them together. Again, stay tuned! So what are your thoughts? Which do you prefer? Go on, have a vote (top right!)

Bx

PS: am off to Canberra to stay with my parents for the week. It snowed there yesterday so if I don't post for a while, it's because my fingers are frozen and I'm unable to type. Or I'm just too busy having a fun, relaxing mini break!

my house: floor plans

BEFORE: just a little odd in places!

Ok, so unless you're like me and pictures of people's homes aren't enough - you need to know the whereabouts of each room in relation to each other via a floor plan - this probably won't interest you. But because I'm recording everything else to do with my renovation... here goes!
BEFORE (pic above)
When we bought the house the previous owners had divided the main bedroom into two. There was no light in the smaller one, just the world's largest wardrobe we had to smash up into little pieces to get out of the house. Our room had an L-shaped window on one side that let all the summer afternoon heat in, but no sea breeze. The bathroom was just ridiculously small with a huge shower taking up all the room and tiny vanity, there were two entry doors right next to each other and my absolute favourite feature was the fact the toilet was right off the lounge room and was an ACCESSWAY to the downstairs room (I lose that term "downstairs" loosely. It's a converted garage and has two whole steps). So, we lived this way for way too long and then made some changes...

NOW: getting there!

NOW (pic above)
Over the years we've added a huge L-shaped deck, moved the larger portion of the bedroom windows downstairs to replace the sliding glass door that didn't even close and moved the smaller window to the other wall to take advantage of the beautiful breeze that comes off the water (which is about 150m away). A tiny unopenable window in the tool shed out the back was popped onto the end wall and we put in French doors to open onto the deck. We also added two tall windows - one in the hallway, the other our bedroom - to break up the huge wall and let more light in. In the bathroom, we ripped out the linen cupboard and actually managed to fit a toilet, shower, bath and vanity in the space. We closed up the front door and use the glass doors as our entranceway, moved the original back door into the middle of the room to give more space to the kitchen and replaced a dodgy large window and ancient wall air conditioner with two new double-hungs. As much as I loved being able to watch television from the loo (!), we sealed up that door and opened up the other end of the wall to the other room. Originally we had like a semi-circle stage stairs taking up the whole "landing" area, but have since changed it to a teeny tiny mezzanine-style area so we can acutally utilise the space better. I do wish we'd just put in a false floor sometimes so no need for stairs, but don't think we'll change it again.

TO COME: what the future holds (hopefully)

THE FUTURE (pic above)
We're almost at the home stretch and I'm so excited! In the next few weeks we'll be ripping out the room my "office" is up against and opening up the whole space. On the wall where the original front door is, we'll be putting a few recessed shelves in-between the studs. And the kitchen will soon be a galley style up either side of the room with cabinets continuing into the dining area with open shelves above for a more decorative end to the kitchen that won't look odd in the dining area too. We'll probably turn the extra toilet into an indoor laundry so we can convert the cabin into a self-contained abode and rent out. And finally, we'll get rid of the really old front door and annoying awning windows which we've both smashed our heads on way too many times and replace the whole space with glorious bi-folds to "blend the indoors with the outdoors" - a line I've written way too many times in real living features! Oh, and we'll extend the stairs to take up the whole covered area and not make the new indoor/outdoor space feel restricted with a deck railing.

So that's it. Am in the exciting planning stage of the kitchen and am tied between two styles - pretty similar, just a few differences. I think ultimately it'll come down to price, but I'll post my moodboards in coming days and see what you guys think too.
Have a great weekend x

my office

Moodboard close-up. See Layla's birth announcement? You can read about it here

I'm am still alive and well and not buried under a pile of nappies (although, it certainly feels like it sometimes), just been busy! Soo, due to the little bit of craziness that is being home alone with two babies during the day, I'm going to alternate posting days between the two blogs as much as I can - so one day here, one day at mini meez. Hopefully this will work better than nothing on either for days on end!
Anyway... I've posted my office before, but I just had a tidy up the other day and prettified it a little so thought I'd share again. I originally used my pinboard for useful things (like bills and lotto tickets and stamps etc), but I've gone the every-other-office route and just stuck up pretty cards and things cause it's sooo much nicer to look at. And adds a little colour to the place! Now the real challenge is keeping it this tidy. Rather easy while I'm on maternity leave, but once I go back to work I'll probably forget what colour the desk is!

Clean, tidy and colourful. It's a nice place to work. And much lighter in photographs than in real life!

I culled my magazine collection as best I could recently. But not before going through every single one and ripping out pretty pics. Most of them are in a box, but I went through and chose some faves, especially if they featured some hit of turquoise - my favourite colour. I find it so fresh and pretty and it's the one shot of colour you'll find in my mostly brown home!

The side of the cupboard is now a feature rather than blending in.

Apologies for weirdness of photographs - am not sure what's going on with my camera! Have to ask Dad (cause way too complicated to figure out myself!)

xx