the one... where I paint, maybe?

The decision to paint or not to paint...

I really am undecided about whether I should paint the front footpath the same colour as the front porch.

I originally bought the paint for the cement beside the garage in the backyard but I don't want to start any work on the backyard until the frontyard is complete.  I know for me that I hate it when you have several big jobs going at once and it feels like nothing gets finished.

When it was time to paint the front porch the painter noticed I had the can in the garage and after seeing a painted sample I love.

I love the colour so much that I have used it in the laundry (photos soon, I promise).

I would love to know what do you think?  To paint or not to paint?

Lisa xo

the one... with more mess

Well the mess continues at the cottage but you won't hear any complaints from me.

I mean really, how could I, it has only been in the past week and it looks like it may be only another week and it will be finished.

You may remember I am moving the kitchen to a new space in the cottage which will free up the old kitchen to become a spare room.

This is the current state of the old kitchen.

It has been a busy week with the plumber installing the sink and pipes in the laundry.  The room still needs another cupboards and shelving but it is starting to feel like a room with a purpose.

The electrician has also been in to install all of the new power points.  That's what you can see here sticking out of the wall.  The gas fitter has installed the new pipe for the cooktop - that's it with the glamorous plastic bag tied around it so I don't walk into it (this is very likely given recent events).

It seems to be happening very quickly.  I got a phone call from the cabinet maker on Thursday afternoon to say the cabinets will be delivered on Friday morning and he would like to make an early start in the afternoon.  Originally he was to start on Saturday.

It was funny, on my way home on Friday night I phoned mum to let her know that the cabinet maker had contacted me to say he had gotten most of the work done and would only need a couple of hours on Saturday morning to finish.  The next works out of mum's mouth was to say she was grabbing her keys and locking up her house.  She was just as excited as I was!

I knew she would beat me there but had promised she wouldn't go inside without me.

This is what we found.

Did you notice Charlie in the corner with the freaky eyes!?

I think there was a squeal from me and there was definitely a little dancing.

We were both amazed at just how much he had done in a single afternoon.  He has since been back and installed the handles, adjusted the door hinges and sealed the many gaps (these lovely old homes are always out of whack).

This week the benchtop will be measured and hopefully installed and the electrician, plumber and gas fitter will finish up their jobs.

I'll be back during the week with more updates.

Have a fabulous week.

Lisa xo

the one... with the memories

I found myself going back through my Charlie photo folder recently and found this video - I hadn't seen it in ages and it still brings a smile to my face.

It was taken in the first month after I adopted Charlie.  I had to keep him inside for a few months until the fence was built in the backyard so coming home was always interesting to see what he had gotten up to during the day.

Looking back, maybe I should have restricted him in the house but NO, I gave him full rein and that hasn't changed!

The video was taken on my iphone so the quality isn't the best.

Lisa xo

the one... with the mess

This is how I have been living for the past few days.

I've had a big weekend of moving furniture from one end of the room to the other.  This was all done because the kitchen is about to happen.

Yep, I got the call late last week to say it will be delivered on Friday and then installed on Saturday.

SOOOO there is lots do between now and then.

First, I started taking things out of the hutch and placed them in the kitchen.  The desk was moved down beside the dining table and the hutch and pantry were moved away from walls and into the centre of the room - there really isn't anywhere for them to go, unless I take them out of the cottage.

I then moved on to remove the skirting boards and wall trims from where the new cabinets will go, otherwise the new cabinets won't sit flush against the wall.

The history of the cottage has it built with recycled material which I love and it always surprises me what you find when you remove things like the trims.  Underneath trims I found several different colours of paint, including a mauve (being a purple girl, I loved this discovery).

The new kitchen space was not the only room to be attacked over the weekend.  I then moved on to the laundry.

The laundry now has a newly painted floor, cabinets and a bench top.  All waiting patiently for the plumber to do his thing.

You see all the work actually flows together.  The old kitchen currently holds the washing machine which needs to moved and refitted in the laundry and the existing plumbing needs to disconnected and refitted in the new space.  With the plumber coming to do the kitchen, I figured I would get him to fit out the laundry at the same time.

The kitchen countdown has begun!

Lisa xo