Upcycling Leonard

This is quite possibly the coolest thing to me right now...  My Aunt Angie sent me photos of her recent restoration project, a much loved refrigerator that my grandfather purchased in 1946.  Growing up, I always remember it being used as a second fridge to store soda and veggies that didn't fit in the house fridge.  It's amazing that my grandmother was able to feed 5 children with the food she kept in here.  My aunt says she remembers how my grandmother would bake a strawberry cake for each of the kids' birthdays and store it in the fridge, making them wait ages before they could eat it...

I can honestly say that appliances aren't made like this anymore and the fact that it still works perfectly is a true testament to the Leonard company.  It just needed a bit of loving care to restore it back to it's original glory.  My aunt said the restoration company kept the interior intact and cleaned the motor but besides removing rust and painting it, they only needed to replace the power cord, wheels and door seal.  They were impressed that it had all its original parts!

I've always been in love with this fridge and while I wasn't around in 1946, I can't imagine it looking better than it does now, with its restored chrome and Tiffany blue paint.  As my aunt put it: "Now I want to dress like a forties housewife and play big band music!"  I couldn't agree more!

BEFORE

BEFORE

AFTER!!!

Love, love, looove!

Shelf Help

Mark and I head to Berlin tomorrow to celebrate our 3 year anniversary but before we make our way, I just wanted to post a quick photo of our finished shelves. They are DONE! Yesterday, our friend and talented carpenter Ian dropped by to work his magic to the front of the shelves. He spent hours sanding and filling to the point where you can't even see the original holes. Perfection!

Mark is now putting the final coat on the floor. Watch this space!

Inchin' Towards a Kitchen

Progress is a bit slow since the break is over but we're gettin' there!  Last weekend, I painted the shelves and walls white and we're now waiting to get access to an electric planing tool to shave off the protruding wood filler pieces on the front of the shelves that hide the metal rod supports.  They have been secured to the wall and a strip of lighting has been wired into the underside of the bottom 2 shelves.  

New additions include a magnetic knife strip on the wall and most importantly our new refrigerator!!  After a lot of research, we decided to save a lot of money and go for a reliable Bosch over the adorably designed Smeg. And lastly, Mark has done an amazing job hand-sanding the stain off the kitchen floor, filling the cracks and imperfections and has added the first coat of white paint to the floor.  It's going to look amazing when its completed!

I recently took a trip to the Kempton Antique Market and picked up a beautiful Turkish kilim rug in for £35!  For that price, I won't feel bad when my kitchen throws up on it.

I'll post more shots in about a week and hopefully it will be nearly completed!  I'm already planning the master bathroom project...  : )

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!