New Year, New Linen

Been wanting something more summery linen wise for the Master bedroom for a while. Dropped by Chadstone briefly today to check out the post-Christmas sales at Williams Sonoma and Pottery Barn and while I was tempted by some stemless wine glasses and a bunt tin left empty handed. Then spun past  Bed, Bath and Table where I picked up new linen. I was in two minds about it, and as soon as I got it home I realised it just wasn't summery enough.

So a quick trip to the local store and exchanged it for this. I am really liking the brighter colours. Usually I'd go for a teal or aqua, but green and blue is a change (and I change linens that frequently that I doubt I'll have a chance to get too bored by it).

 

New bed linen from Bed Bath and Table

  

Now the only challenge is to sneak some matching European pillows, cushions and decorative throw onto the bed ;)  Happy New Years - wishing everyone a happy 2016!

Designer's Guild

Went to a warehouse sale for Designers Guild the other day, which was lots of fun. Heaps of delicious textiles on offer. Didn't buy any as I'm still trying to resolve the rear room/couch issue. However there were some nice homewares there, including this delicious little milkjug which came home with me.

Other than that, the focus has been on putting up (and extending) our Christmas lights collection. Sadly we have been out the last two evenings, so have not yet had a chance to see the street in its lit splendor. Will have to take a tour tonight :) We were disappointed in the brightness of our lights last year, so bought brighter strands this year and it's certainly made a difference.

Infill

My front garden beds are partially shaded by the oak, and it also takes a lot of water from the beds, so it's hard to know what to put there. My New Zealand Rock Lillies thrive there, so I thought I might try a white Saxifraga for a little infill.

My hydrangea, which I had worried might not make it, is now doing wonderfully well beside the path near the side gate and is starting to bloom. Obviously it's in a good spot for it - so I have bought another to put in beside it. I am so excited that it's doing well - it's a plant I just adore and I know that once they're established they're very hardy. It's also something I had no chance of growing when I was in QLD.

 

We're off to the National Rhododendron gardens today. Apparently they are magnificent at this time of year. I must admit I am a little excited at getting a glimpse at some of the 15000+ Azaleas there - they're another favourite of mine!

It's been a while

The last month has been fiendishly busy. With my baby getting ready to start school next year, I've been slowly de-cluttering toys and clothes from her room and replacing them with school uniforms and school supplies. I suppose sometime soon I'll need to think about a desk.

Of course - the real de-cluttering will happen next year when I have the house to myself. I want to do a really thorough room-by-room clean out. I will still be working, of course, but I'm making a list of house things I want to achieve once I have some uninterrupted time to get them done. And a good spring clean is at the top of that list!

My garden needs weeding again - but it's looking glorious. Always does this time of year. In fact we have a morning of gardening planned today. Gypsum, fertilizing, weeding etc. Also have some new plants to put in.

To make me smile

Doing the groceries yesterday and I saw this Azalea for sale. Now when I lived in QLD I never had much luck with my azaleas - but this just looked so bright and pretty I decided it needed to come home with me.

I'm not quite sure where he'll go? Maybe between the driveway and front path where my lilac is now doing so nicely.

 

How gorgeous is this Azalea?

 

Hopefully I have better luck in this climate!

Let there be (sky)light

The light in the kids' toilet has blown (I actually think it's the transformer) and while I am arranging to have a sparky out for that and a few other little jobs, it occurred to us that really for daytime a better thing would be a skylight. The room has no external wall access (hence no window) and had I thought of it I'd have had it put in at time of build.

Anyhow I didn't - and so today had the skylight installed. And what a difference!

 

This is with no light - just the skylight

 

Huge difference

 

No excuse for not keeping it clean now

 

Wine Table

A friend of mine makes the most stunning furniture from decommisioned wine barrels. She's recently opened her new retail shop in Fitzroy, and yesterday I stopped by to say hello.

I must admit it was not a visit without a degree of premeditation. I have had my eye on this lovely little wine table and wanted to see it in person. And I am so glad I did. Sean and I looked at it and decided it needed to come home with us.

I need to do some work on the living room. It really is the least finished part of the house. So this table is the start of that!

 

Love at first sight!

Cafe Lighting and Coco Republic Display Home Sales

Did a bit of a road-trip this morning. First to the Cafe Lighting Melbourne showroom sale. There was a lot there, but not all of it suiting my decor. However I picked up a nice mirrored photo frame, so the trip was not a complete waste.

 

Lots of mirrored decor at Cafe Lighting, but

some nice accessories

After that headed to the Coco Republic Display Home clearance sale in Craigieburn. By the time we got there the large pieces were mostly gone, but there were a lot of accessories and art still available. Nothing right for our place, but good to check out nontheless.

 

Coco Republic Display Home Clearance

I have started looking out for a new couch for the back of the house. It's the final area to really complete. Several times I've thought I've found just the thing but it's not ended up being right. So the hunt continues... 

Wah! Don't look don't look!

So I was looking at lighting for a friend and saw this. What a delicious light! While I am perfectly happy with the one in my entry way, I saw this and drooled a little. NO LOOKING AT LIGHTS, Amy! Even nice quatrefoil ones like these.

 

Why was this not around when I first

looked for a light for my foyer??

Sunburst

So Sean got to spend fathers day putting up the new mirror. I think I am coming around to leaving it its current colour. In any case, I think for $99 it was a steal and looks awesome in the spot.

Can't believe I finally found what that space needed!

Now to get a new lamp for the room (there's a nice one I have my eye on) and then one room will be complete!

 

Liking the look of this lamp

Look what I found!

So I was wandering around online when I spotted this beauty in the back of a photo from a local furniture store. Perfect size and oh what a price! Seriously when does that happen. Ever???

 

Can't believe I found this!

Jury is out on whether to change its colour. Will get it on the wall tomorrow and leave it there for a week or so while I make up my mind. I think I know the answer - but a week on the wall will decide it absolutely one way or the other!

In the meantime, I am wondering if I can find a spot for this mirror that I also loved... It's a bit too large for anywhere I can think of. But I still love it. Trying to think if any of my mates have the right spot for it, so perhaps I can convince them to buy it and I can just visit it.

 

Now can I find a spot for this?

Spring has sprung!!!

So spring is here! Spring is my favourite time of the year - and I plan to celebrate by doing a spring clean. Because it's easy to lose momentum, I am dividing the season into weeks and allocating tasks to each week. And as well as spring cleaning, I'll be doing a few low level decorating tasks too.

I thought I'd start with a neglected area of the house - our ensuite and walk-in-robe. I have baby clothes in the top of the wardrobe I need to sell off, and I also need to organise my clothing by weight/season etc. I also have a tonne of fabrics I need to reacquaint myself with. Adelaide needs some cute spring dresses, and I plan to make them.

So happy spring to all - hope you have lots of plans!

On the hunt...

Yet again I am annoyed by the lack of products available to us in Australia.

Specifically I am after a starburst mirror for above the fireplace in my front room. While I can find several in Australia, they are all fearfully expensive and honestly just not quite what I am after. Of course - I have managed to find the perfect thing, and good alternatives, overseas. And I can even get some of them here. For a cost!

 

The perfect thing.
Sadly it's around $1200 AUD and
in Pennsylvania

A cheaper option, this is still going

to involve overseas shipping

So another item added to my mental 'will buy this when I find one of these' lists. Sadly the chances of finding one locally is pretty slim - so it's likely to be another online order. Would be nice to be able to buy and support local businesses - but everywhere in Australia seems to have same old same old.

Long time between drinks

So it's been a month, but while there is a lot going on not much is worth reporting. I've been getting into my cooking at the moment (which means Sean is getting into the cleaning up afterwards) and have even been to a few cooking classes. Went to the Thermomix Indian one last night which was actually quite good.

New bedhead arrived, and I did get some new linen, however since the latter is leaving tiny bits of glitter on everything probably the less said on that the better! Still looking for the final bits to style up our room before I post a finished pic.

Have also been reorganising my kitchen cupboards and culling LOTS. Amazing the crap one accumulates - so I've decided it's all going. Amazing how I've not missed any of it and suddenly I have space to see the things I do want.

Am just waiting for the seasons to turn so I can get stuck into the largest declutter job - Adelaide's wardrobe. She has had such a huge growth spurt the pretty little summer dresses I thought might see her through to this spring with an undershirt and leggings will now only serve as tops. Big cull going to happen there which is probably just as well given I'm using the current Myer sales as an opportunity to buy her some new things.

Busy week!

So it's been a busy few weeks. A major birthday, and so very lucky to have my very nearest and dearest come in from afar. The kids were thrilled to have all their aunties visit in one shot - and I had a brilliant time.

Also came up with some new ideas and directions for the back room. I found a colour which I just adore and I can see giving the freshness, interest and 'twist' I want in the back of the house. Better still - it's quite 'in' at the minute, so I am hoping it will be easy to find the accessories I need.

And the start? Well I finally replaced that ugly metal utensil holder I didn't like.

 

Brown and teal. Loving it!

A bit of bling

Went to Pottery Barn the other day. Never a cheap visit! Bought a nice bar tray for my sitting room, and a wooden pizza/paddle board for the kitchen. Am thrilled with both of them.

 

New bar tray - just the thing

for my sitting room

 

Loving this for my kitchen.

Saves a LOT of bench wiping!

Am rather excited. Just today I got a message my long awaited bed valance is on its way. Of course, new valance and bed head requires a new quilt set, too. And I'm not happy with the pillows (they really need to be replaced) so I guess that's my next area to focus on.

Location location location

It's an old real estate adage - but that's the one thing you can't change.

Tonight we had the annual progressive dinner. Smaller than previous years due to illness - but still an awesome night :) We hosted mains this year (so the middle stop of three) and it was awesome. Lots of wine and laughs and amazing food.

The longer I spend in our street the happier I am. Love our street. Love our neighbours. Love our neighbourhood!

Bedhead!

Has been a BUSY weekend here. LOTS of gardening, Sean away at a course, and now he is back home the new bedhead installed.

I shan't show it until I find some nice new linen to match (and the matching valance arrives). But I can confirm I am pleased with how it looks :D

A new look

Was getting sick of the other scheme, so decided to shake things up a bit with a new look. Change is as good as a holiday!

Speaking of which, am in the middle of booking a couple of holidays. One for later in the year (probably Tasmania or maybe Cairns) and then FIJI early next year. Although I've just spotted a good deal for Hawaii which I need to talk to Sean about.

Am focusing on finishing projects at the moment, removing sources of irritation from my life and looking at things with a new set of eyes. A case in point being my utensils holder beside the hotplates. I've never liked the cheap wire basket they're kept in. Utensils catch on the wire and are hard to pull out. It overbalances easily and it's also ugly.

A night or two back after another struggle to extricate a utensil, immediately followed by an overbalance and, I will admit, some cursing Sean calmly asked me why I persisted with the basket and didn't buy something a bit more practical. It was a light-bulb moment! I don't like its looks or functionality. Let's replace it! So I am not sure what I'm getting yet - but am having a think.

Bedrooms and Birthdays

So I ended up ordering a bedhead and new valance for our master. Not saying which one - but will post pics when they arrive. Of course, a new bedhead and valance will eventually require new linens. But, for now, I am going to wait and see how things look before I add new linen. I am completely undecided on what will look well - although I today saw something I liked the look of.

In the meantime it's all systems go baking and preparing for a little guy's birthday party this weekend. Did the party favour bags today. Nothing that hard to do - but something I could pre-prepare and tick off the list.

We also have the street progressive dinner coming up very soon. Our first time hosting (we're doing mains) so that will be interesting. I am assured it is easy enough but I worry about that sort of thing!

I bought a lovely crystal lamp base the other day (with the world's fugliest shade) for my sitting room. Went by a Laura Ashley store the other day and found two replacement shades I liked. One was almost 3 times the price of the other. Guess which one the store attendants were steering me towards? Am going to head back there tomorrow with some cushions, the base etc. so I can get a sense of which (if either) I like on the base / with the linens from the room.

So it's a quiet time here. I have cleaned out my linen cupboard, my bathroom cabinets and have started on my kitchen cabinets, too. Sorting out a bit, but happy with that for now.

Indecision

You see - sometimes being indecisive bites you on the arse.

I blew up the kettle. Woo hoo! A great opportunity to buy a new (read here stylish!) one. So I was pondering what to buy. Do I go with colour? There was a nice SMEG one which I liked. Then I thought perhaps a glass/clear one. Because then I might not burn it out like the last one.

I was still pondering this crucial purchase when Sean got sick of not having a kettle so went out and bought a one. A $20 Coles special.

 

Our new kettle

So there we are decision made. Not quite what I had in mind. Wonder how long I have to keep it before I can 'accidentally' burn this one out?

Bed Head

So the bedroom has needed a bedhead for quite some time. I have been looking at various options, so was delighted today when something suitable presented itself. So I ordered it - and then I realised that it really just was not tall enough on the wall - it would look a bit like a pimple on a pumpkin.

 

The original one I ordered and then cancelled

So I looked around and found I could have something custom made quite inexpensively. But now I can't decide which I like the look of most. I am leaning 60% towards one, but 40% towards the other. Sean is, of course, absolutely NO help - although out of the 10 designs I showed him he did manage to pick these two as his top likes which is kind of amazing as they were mine, too!

 

Can't decide whether I like this style in
Oatmeal with brass studs

Or this one in Oatmeal as pictured
and brass studs

Also in two minds about the height. I do like a tall bedhead, but since European pillows give Sean the irrits, I'd probably only put them out when I style up the bed when we're entertaining. Am wondering if I get 10cm shaved off the height (currently 85cm from top of the mattress).

A bit of silver

As promised, here are the new additions to the master bedroom. 9 years on - finally a wedding pic (of sorts). It's actually a picture of the back of the wedding car as we leave the church and drive just around the corner to the reception. I've also added a recent pic of the kids. When I finally get around to styling my bedsides I'll add a little more silver. For now I'm happy with the direction this room is heading.

 

Hanging on the wall between
our WIR and ensuite - a picture
from our wedding

 

Added a little frame to the chest of drawers, too

I need new bedlinen for the master, but nothing has so far presented itself. It's not urgent, so I'll wait to find something I like the look of.

Globe West Warehouse Sale

Decided to stop by the Globe West warehouse sale today. What a treat! Bought a chair (pics to come) and plan to go back tomorrow for another look around because they're restocking overnight. I was not there until late afternoon, but it was standing room only at 9 this morning apparently.

 

Just some of what was on offer

 

I thought the prices pretty good

Edited to add: went back today and picked up this nice little cheese platter. It's been on my list of wants for a while - and it was a good price so I thought 'why not?'.

 

New cheese platter

Pottery Barn Part 2

Another visit to Chaddy today to visit Pottery Barn. Made a few purchases - one wall and one photo frame for our bedroom, plus some stemless wine glasses. We chatted to ages with a lovely fellow that works there and I am so tempted to put in a job application! I know the money would not be great - but the staff discount might make it worthwhile.

 

Used here for punch, bought a set of these
stemless wine glasses

So tomorrow I'm off to print up photos for the frames and to finish the invites for Oscar's birthday party. We're doing a pool party, so I've done an invite which reflects that.

Easter Bunnies

So my two little bunnies got Easter eggs today :) However as they were collecting them I noticed the front garden really needed weeding. So we're having a gardening day today. Will feed the plants, do some weeding, sweep the paths, use the cobweb brush and generally tidy up the front of the house.

In the meantime, here's a few pics of my little bunnies celebrating Easter!

 

Happy with their haul

  

Happy to start collecting

 

Unimpressed - someone is
still tired after watching the
lunar eclipse last night

So another not a house post

I guess this is becoming less about the house and more about a day-to-day life sort of thing. And I don't care that no-one reads it. It's more for me!

So I just had to share the latest pretties I've bought for Adelaide. Because I just LOVE having a girl! And I am so grateful that I have a princess who likes dresses and wearing new things.

 

Like this for Autumn

 

Can see this for Winter

 

Adore this for Spring!

It's going to be hard once she goes to school and needs about 1/4 of the clothing :o

I have my eye on...

We don't truly need it - but I'd like a seat of sorts in the WIR to sit on while doing up shoes etc. The problem is, the furniture in our bedroom is vintage and it's hard to find an original seat which is in good condition and suitable. Because even if it's in a wardrobe, I do like things to match!

But then I came across a lovely little ottoman which could be just the ticket! Similar styling, same sort of delicacy, slim enough to fit into the robe etc. Am still considering it, but I do think it might be just the thing.

 

These are the drawers in our master room.

We have matching side tables

I thought this might be a suitable enough match

for our walk in robe?

Books

So like his parents, Oscar is a prodigious reader. He moved on to chapter books at the school library while still in prep, and now in year one he just devours books. We're lucky that the school library is well stocked and appointed - however we still buy him new books of his own every week or two. We try to focus on classics which he can read and re-read over time. However quite a few boy humour books sneak their way in.

Things came to a head a week or so back when we just could not fit any more books on his shelf. So today we did a cull.

I should point out by cull no books were actually thrown away. Younger sister Adelaide is now happily inheriting a stack of books Oscar has moved beyond. He was quite happy to send them on their way. Here's hoping she is as obliging tomorrow when I sort through her baby books!

Not really a house thing

Had to share a pic of my latest wheels! Very convenient for whipping over to the shops and riding with the kids to school. Taking a while to get used to riding it - but all good fun :)

 

New set of wheels

In house news today I am rearranging the living room. I've wanted some more seating out the back for ages, so thought to get a couple of occasional chairs. However I'm unsure on the scale I need. Was chatting with a girlfriend who suggested I get the wingbacks from down the front and try them out the back to get a sense of the space. I think they'll be too big - but it did make me think to try the kid's leather bedroom chairs as they're a little smaller.

If they end up looking good, I might co-opt them for the space and buy the kids something new. If not, at least it should give me an idea of whether 2 occasional chairs will work in the space and what size I need to be looking for. Of course - I might already have my eye on a couple of chairs...

 

Thinking about two of these for my living room