Work in Progress...

The kitchen is coming along!  We still need to properly install and paint the shelves, fill the holes and finish a few more bits and bobs but I reckon by the beginning of January, I'll be able to post more photos of the completed project.  Mark starts on the floor tomorrow...

Coming Together

Dave has installed the cabinets, oven and...wait for it...DISHWASHER!  Seriously, this appliance has transformed my life, just this evening.  I have no idea what's going to happen when the garbage disposal goes in... 

We're waiting to order the worktop tomorrow, then hopefully have it installed in the next week or so along with the new sink, hob, hood, tiling and shelves.  It's starting to take shape and it's wonderful!

The Kitchen Diaries

Mark and I have pulled the trigger on our kitchen remodel.  The former kitchen was poorly installed and over 10 years old.  When we removed the old cabinets and worktop, we found water damage and really shoddy electrics.  Dave the Builder has come up from Brighton to help fix these potentially dangerous issues and ensure our hob and oven are the only things catching fire in our kitchen, moving forward.

Look at the mess we've made!

It looks harmless enough but it's a Monet!  The chair back on the left side of the photo is hiding the piece of plywood that is propping up the worktop edge.

During the demolition

This window was never fully integrated into the kitchen plan, so Mark and Dave are tackling it now.

The window sill has now been raised to the height of the worktop.

Our lovely living room...  :)

I Miss The Rains Down in Africa

I'm back from 8 days spent volunteering in South Africa with Virgin Unite and Pride 'n Purpose.  Words simply cannot express the incredible experience I had and it was all due to the love and support from everyone who donated and wished us well.  In 6 weeks, I raised over £2k towards our £15k target, which we smashed (the 10 of us raised over £22k in the end!).  I've made life-long friends with the 9 other extraordinary individuals from all around the global Virgin Group , loved donating my time on a project to benefit the most welcoming people I've met and created memories that will last a lifetime.  8 days just wasn't enough time but I know I'll be back again soon...

Our incredible group!

Meeting inspirational entrepreneurs at the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship, Johannesburg

Footy with the locals

Plowing the fields for the food garden in the village of Dumphries

Team Food Garden

Learning about permaculture

We constructed a swing set, jungle gym and trampoline for the children in the Dumphries community centre

We had time to do a little sightseeing...

Our close encounter with an elephant.  Watch to the very end, we were all holding our breath!

In Goes The Balustrade!

After almost 9 months with a beautiful patio but no railings to speak of, we finally had our iron balustrade installed today!  We debated for a while between glass and iron but in the end, we decided that we should stay true to the Victorian design of the house.  I spent 2 months researching the design that we wanted and which iron companies to use.  I carried out reference checks and went back-and-forth on the pricing (you can tell, I've been watching too many episodes of Cowboy Builders!).  We finally chose Ironworks to carry out the job and we were impressed with the work.  It was all done in half a day and they cleaned up after themselves.  :)

Just in time to enjoy the (long awaited!) summer weather and view of South West London

Ikea Hack

It's been a while since my last post.  Mark and I have been busy with the house again.  We're in the process of hiring a company to supply / install an iron balcony on our patio, Mark's been fixing leaks on our roof, we finally got a bed for the loft and it's officially been a week since we moved up there.  It's like sleeping in a brand new house!

Mark is touring New Zealand and Australia for 3 weeks so to keep myself busy, I purchased a Rast chest of drawers from Ikea for £15.99 with the goal of re-purposing it with new paint and hardware.  Even with primer, the super cheap pine wood proved a bit difficult to paint.  I got so frustrated having to constantly sand the drawer fronts after each coat with little success so I slapped the hardware on and left it, looking a little distressed.  I'll probably end up re-painting it, around the hardware, but for now I'm just going to leave it...

Before

After (looking a little distressed)

We Lost Antarctica

Up close, this looked like a blind, overexcited chimpanzee attached the map to the wall (I will avoid purchasing foto-wallpaper in the future, which is much thinner than regular wallpaper).  I was about to rip it down but Mark worked a little of his magic on the air-bubbles and the map is looking much better while the skirting boards pull the room together.  We still need to finesse the wallpaper further when its dry but the space is now starting to feel like a proper bedroom.

Perfection!

Mark has applied the final coat of varnish and we both agree that all the hard work over the past few months (mostly from Mark) was well worth it...

BEFORE

AFTER!

Celebrating What Was

My Auntie Angie is so crafty.  She has recently turned the inside of her closet into an office!  I've been asking her for photos and she sent these along.  What I love most is that she incorporates family heirlooms, favorite photos and books into a space that she'll see almost everyday.  Things like my grandmother's typewriter, a self-portrait my cousin Michael drew when he was little and an old photo of her sweet puppy, Bogie. I definitely get my love of recycling vintage things from my Aunt and my mother. 

Wall paint: Benjamin Moore's "King Arthur's Court"

My grandfather's old metal grain scooper is filled with daisies

My grandmother's candy dish

I've recently been seeing a few closet offices cropping up on design blogs and think its such a great space saving and functional idea:

P-400

Mark has been slaving away, finessing the parquet floors with multiple grades of sandpaper.  I'm rethinking putting furniture in here now...

Mr. Sandman

Steve came down again this week to sand the floors and they are looking incredible!  We still need to hand-sand, fill and seal them but we're almost there...

¿Parquet?

Steve Christian, Mark's producing partner, graciously agreed to help lay our reclaimed parquet floor up in the loft.  We couldn't have asked for a better person for the job.  Take a look at his attention to detail.

Next comes the sanding...

Glue Sniffer Christian.  Poor Steve.  :(

Wood cutting skills

Vintage Canvas Pull Down Charts

Gorgeous.