trying to declutter...

Hi girls, wow it's been a while since my last post but in all honesty I haven't had much to say. Not much has happened around here. It's still winter here and this year I promised myself I wouldn't winge too much about the cold hoping that it would make winter feel like it passed quicker and I have to say it worked. Only 4 more weeks to go .. yay!

In an effort to do a little more decluttering I decided to redo my buffet and hutch. Here are some before pics. The one above goes back awhile and the one below not so long ago.

This was probably more recent .. mmm.. maybe I should have left it like this!

but I did change it to this..

I did originally have everything white on there but it didn't last long, I found myself putting some pink back!! Clutter or no clutter?? is a question I often find myself asking and can't seem to answer as I like the look of both.  

I picked up these plates for $2 each from house warehouse.. I love the frenchy look of them and they were cheap enough for me to buy a couple of sets for everyday use.

Well for now it stays like this,.. it's soo much easier to keep clean but don't be surprised if I change it all back!

take care, Maryann

lounge room curtains and painted doors...

Hi girls, well I finally put the curtains up in the lounge room. It took me a while as I couldn't decide whether to go for gold rods or white. In the end I went for the white. I decided to keep the gold to a minimal and just have touches of it here and there. I also painted the french doors that lead from my hallway to the lounge room.. come in and have a look...

my hallstand is the first thing you see when you come in

Fred still needs to put the handles on..

from the other end of the hallway

I also hung up a mirror on top of the fireplace but it looks too small for the space

the curtains are just off the floor.. I might put the hem down so they 'puddle' but having a thermal backing they may look a little stiff and not puddle so well..will have to think about that one..

my cute frenchy dressing table/desk has gone from this room, into my family room for a trial and now back into my lounge room. I'm not sure if I'll leave the mirror there but I really don't want to get rid of it as I just love it..

other side of the room .. I don't have curtains tie backs yet ..the fabric is just pushed in where my blind attachment thingy is.. but you get the idea..

this mirror will stay for now .. I do have another mirror.. the frame only that is..  I need to get a new mirror cut out for it and I'm hoping it won't cost me an arm and a leg as it's quite large. Next thing for this room is to get a lounge suite. I had planned on reupholstering a vintage one I came across awhile ago but I am more leaning to getting a new one with comfy cushions and a couple of french style armchairs. So I am on the hunt... thankfully it's sale time at the shops so fingers crossed I'll find something I like at a good price! 

take care, Maryann 

Hallway...

Geez, I can't believe it's been 2 months since my last post.  So what have I been doing?..... not much! My hallway is still a work in progress but you might like to have a look at where I'm at.

This is looking from my family room into the hallway.

I put the hall stand right near the front door and a small sideboard on the opposite wall. This is only here temporarily. I'm on the look out for a nice vintage one with lots of details which I will leave timber and not paint. I love the mix of both painted and timber in a room. So for now this will have to do. I have all family photos on it.

The view from the front door.

I put my china cabinet right at the end. It probably really doesn't go in the hallway but I love it too much to get rid of it and it fits perfect there anyway!

I found the pink light fitting at a garage sale for $4. This is also here temporarily as I have something much nicer to go there but it needs adjusting. I think I have to nag Fred a lot bit more so he can hurry up and do it!

and finally this is the view from my hallway into the family and dining rooms...

take care, Maryann

ps. I put the curtains up in my lounge room but the photos turned out crap, so will have to take some more..!     

an angel in my garden...

I have always loved statues in the garden. They give such an ambience and add interest to an otherwise boring spot. Every time I go to a garden centre I always check them out but the prices are pretty much out of my price range, especially for the larger ones.

As luck would have it last week Lisa wanted me to take her looking for a particular clothes shop in the direction I don't normally head in. I don't know why I don't go that way.. perhaps because it's in the opposite direction of the shops I normally go to. Mind you we never found the shop she was looking for but on the way home I decided to make a quick stop at 'the old pot factory' in mittagong as it had a huge sale sign on the front.  I had only been to this place once before and I remembered it sold heaps of pots..and I'm after 7 of them!

Well... forget about the pots..! they were still too expensive anyway even with 50% off. There was so much other eye candy in there, I was more interested in the statues and fountains and garden arches! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw 70% off some of the garden statues.  So after a little deliberating and a lot of sucking up to Fred I ended up getting 2 .. and the price if you're wondering... from $500 for a set of statue and plinth down to $150..  I think all my birthdays and Christmas's came at once last week!

I put some roses in the angels hands...

I made a rose wreath for the maiden with some fake flowers but I think they are too big, but for now they will do....

I couldn't pick between the angel and the maiden so they both came home with  me! They are not concrete but are made of a heavy type resin but that's ok..I'm not fussy. They were selling like hotcakes as when we went back to pick them up they had sold stickers everywhere. Funny how I just happened to be there that day, thanks to Lisa!!

take care girls, Maryann

chop chop...

Hi girls, last week end all we did was chop chop and chop.  Trees that is. Living on acres and always being so busy we sort of become oblivious to the trees around the house. Ofcourse they are growing silently but surely... and then one day you wake up and say.." how did that tree become so big?!!!"

this tree was touching the power lines and it was massive, Fred had already cut most of it down here.

he tied up the ladder to the ute so he could get higher! CRAZY!!

It was a massive job cleaning up but here it is now so much more open with lots more light. A lot of my plants were damaged but I know it won't take them long to recuperate. Plus it's a good excuse to get some new ones!

we  are into Autumn here now and I have to say we have had more sunny days these last couple of weeks than we had throughout all of summer! I am loving it, so this morning I picked some roses to grace my little table on the verandah.

I'm not finished with the garden yet as I need to do some serious weeding and want to put in some more flowers for lots more colour. I am tootlly in the mood for some garden centre therapy today so I think I'll leave it here. Have a great week ladies, take care, Maryann

my family room remodel..

Hi girls, I call it a redmodel and not a makeover as it looks absolutely nothing like what it used to.

I have gone from shabby to what I would probably call a modern take on country farmhouse...

To see what it looked like before click here...
My main goal was to make my teenage children happy,  a room that wasn't too pretty but was comfortable with a lounge big enough for all of them plus friends and a big TV.. yes a 55"er. I know, I know, but there is no hiding this beast, best just go with it. Have to say I love watching all my gardening and lifestyle shows on it!

As with everything else it's still a work in progress, especially the far back corner, but as of today this is what it looks like...

A new 5 seater lounge replaced the the 3 seater.This was actually a corner lounge in the show room. I just didn't get the corner bit. No one can complain that they can't see the tv properly now.

My family room is what you call a go through room, you have to go through it to the front of the house and through it to the back where the kitchen and dining are. This is looking towards the front. You can see the front door right at the back there.

  I also purchased along with the lounge a new tv stand and coffee table to match. The coffee table I had before was more french provincial and would definately look out of place. I liked this one as it had storage for dvd's and cd's. My previous tv unit was a large chunky country timber cabinet which had a cut out for the tv but was too small to accomodate this tv.

This is from another angle looking towards the dining room. (I was watching the garden gurus) I had hoped to purchase 2 wing back chairs to place either side of the tv unit but they proved a lot dearer than I expected so for now I just put my club lounge on one side and an older wicker basket that had been sitting outside on the other to balance the look. I placed some old cushions I had in it, to fill it up.  

A closer look at the corner that is still a work in progress.  It really has me stumped what to put there. This bakers stand was given to me and for want of a better spot I put it there. I really love it and am reluctant to part with it. I think it really goes with the look I'm going for in this room. I put whatever I had on it for now. I am thinking a nice vintage or rustic french provincial desk would look good here perhaps..??? If you have any ideas I would LOVE to hear them.

 

I also have these 2 cut outs of me which were done when I was only 5. My parents had them done one day when we were at luna park .Apparently some guy would do them freehand. I would classify them as vintage now and can't believe I want to frame them after all this time. I think they will look perfect in here.

So that's it.. this room sits between my hallway which is shabby and my dining/kitchen which are also shabby. The overall look doesn't look too bad, perhaps because the furniture is also light and sorta blends in.  I have left a couple of the shabby mirrors above the lounge to tie it in (and also because I didn't know what else to put there..! )

adios for now, 

take care girls, Maryann