A Very Fine House

Bye bye {for a little while}

2010-09-11T20:14:00.001+10:00

Hi everyone!

Julie-Ann and I have decided to take a holiday from this bloggy. I am so busy here and here and Julie-Ann is flat out with the Decorating Forum. But we are still hanging out together in lots of places, but just can't get the time to do this blog justice. So we would still love for you to find us in other places and join in our fun decorating discussions. Remember I am building a new house next year and will be blogging it, along with asking for everyone's advice on the Decorating Forum.

However, this is not to say we will be gone forever. Who knows?!

So thanks for all your support. We love you and will see you over on YOUR blogs.

xo

JA & Katrina.

Ready, Set, Dissect: Pink Living Room

2010-09-02T22:03:00.003+10:00

In the spirit of breast cancer awareness there has been an amazing campaign on Twitter this week - feelthemupFriday. We thought this was such a great idea to promote we would go pink with our decorating this Friday.

Do you think you can do Pink with style & sophistication?

If you want to see a little more pink take a peek at this beautiful pink Marie Antoinette Tablescape on the Decorating Forum.

And don't forget to take the time today to do a breast check.

A few questions about bills???

2010-08-30T22:45:00.001+10:00

Just a couple of questions today...

Where do you store your bills? Do you file them, lay them out over the kitchen, or have a simple system? And for that matter - if you DO have a system, does that make it easy to pay them on time and juggle what needs paying when? Let's face it, not many of us these days find it easy to pay all our bills at once...

This is Katrina's system....

Yep, chuck them all in here.. so no it's really not a system - more of an "out of sight out of mind" approach. Don't think it works too well though as I am HOPELESS with bookwork or paying bills... (this is probably why the bank runs for cover when they see my name hahaha!).

Then I came across this photo:

Really? Check. it. out. There were some serious hours that went into that drawer! Shesh... could I do this? Hmmm... doubt it!

This is the best system I have ever heard of- it's from Lanne on the Decorating Forum.

What do you do with your bills?

Ready, Set, Dissect: Master Bedroom

2010-08-27T09:43:00.003+10:00

Our friend Lanne from the Decorating Forum sent in this picture. She sent an email saying this was perfect for me- What???. The second email clarified it would be perfect for our game lol.

So are your Ready to Get Set and Dissect?

Pop on over and join in the chat on the Decorating Forum- be warned- we are known to have quite a giggle over there:)

Wednesday's Walk-through {on a Tuesday} Katrina's Sisters Home

2010-08-24T05:40:00.002+10:00

Today we are sharing Katrina's sisters home...

There are so many nice features, that is was hard to narrow it down, so we decided to throw a mixed bag in there for you to look at. If you have been reading Katrina's blog for a while, you may have seen some of these pictures before.

Katrina's sister, Amie, built this massive home about 12 months ago. It's an ongoing project for them as the house in on half an acre. Like Katrina, Amie is a project junkie so since these photo's were taken some bits have changed! I think we all need to rally together and get this house in a magazine! Who is with us on this one??

What a beautiful home. I particularly loved the kitchen.

Do you love white kitchens? Have a look at what was the most popular colour for kitchens on the Decorating Forum.

Only a few tickets left for the BHG Live show- first in is a winner.

Ready, Set, Dissect: Nursery

2010-08-20T09:53:00.000+10:00

This is a little boys nursery I found on Decorpad. What do you think? I wasn't sure that it was meant to be a boys nursery, but I read it twice.

Personally I think it's pretty cool, but then again I am a fan of colour in kiddies rooms. Maybe the pink mat might be a little crazy... too much stimulation? Love the wall sticker though!

Hope you are all having a great week. Thanks for coming by and visiting us.

Have you seen our GIVEAWAY?

Katrina xo.

Who has a white lounge/sofa?

2010-08-17T06:11:00.000+10:00

If you were into white lounges/sofas, would you go washable covers or leather or faux suede?

Remember Katrina has 3 snotty nosed, strawberry eating, mud wrestling little dudes...which white sofa would you have?

We had quite a chat about our favourite colour for a sofa on the Decorating Forum. Come and let us know what is yours on the Decorating Forum.

Ready, Set, Dissect: Bathroom

2010-08-13T05:55:00.000+10:00

This would have to be one of Katrina's favourite bathroom's ever! I think it's just the dreamy whites, the lighting & the little tv over there on the right. I had to show 2 pictures, just so you got the idea of the whole room.

What do you think?

Did you see our GIVEAWAY?? Pop over to have a look!

Also get yourself over to the Decorating Forum to enter yourself again.

Have a fab day!

Competition- Free tickets to Better Homes & Garden Live

2010-08-11T14:55:00.005+10:00

Exciting news - we have 25 free tickets to give away to the Better Homes and Gardens LIVE at the Sydney Showground, Olympic Park, October 15-17th.

Australia’s most loved brand, Better Homes and Gardens is now going LIVE!

This fantastic event will be held at Sydney Showground, Olympic Park 15 to 17 October and will feature inspiring talks and demonstrations hosted by your favourite Better Homes and Gardens personalities; Graham Ross, Tara Dennis, Rob Palmer, Jason Hodges, ‘Fast’ Ed Halmagyi and Dr Harry. There will be thousands of products for your home and garden to try and buy and plenty of activities for the kids, to make this a great day out for all the family!

Better shopping – At the event, you’ll find hundreds of new products and services to try and buy for your home and garden.

Better advice – Pick up top tips from the experts at one of the three FREE seminar stages, or join one of the workshops for one-to-one hands-on advice.

Better ideas – Wander around beautifully designed room sets and show gardens to pick up inspirational new ideas for you to recreate in your home.

Better experience – Enjoy a fabulous family day out with live entertainment and plenty of activities for the kids.

Better Entertainment – See your favourite faces from the Better Homes and Gardens, including Graham Ross, Tara Dennis, Rob Palmer, Jason Hodges, ‘Fast’ Ed Halmagyi and Dr Harry live on stage!

So come along and be inspired! To enter all you need to do is leave a comment here on A Very Fine House or on the Decorating Forum.

But don't worry if you miss out on winning - you can book your tickets in advance and save $5 at www.bhglive.com.au or buy at the door. Tickets at the event will be $15 for adults and $10 for concession tickets.

Gorgeous Red Bedrooms!

2010-08-10T10:59:00.000+10:00

Today we are featuring our lovely friend Mel again. She featured back here too. I had to quickly share this home with you one more time as she is moving out of it in a week! She is starting a new and exciting adventure.

Click on her blog here to follow her new journey... she is moving into a beach house!

In the meantime enjoy these pictures of the bedroom's in her house (and her love for the colour red!)....

Mel isn't the only one fond of using Red when decorating. Pop over to the Decorating Forum to see Katrina's addiction to Red.

A question to our readers: What do you want to see more of on our blog? Love to hear your thoughts!

Oh, and if you have something you would like to share with us, please email us...we would love you to feature on our blog.... after all it's not a blog about us, but about all of you!

Ready, Set - Dissect: Luxury Dining

2010-08-05T22:16:00.008+10:00

rI have had this picture on my files for ages. There's so much I like but so much I couldn't live with. Come and play Ready, Set - Dissect and tell us what you think:)

We have also been chatting on the Decorating Forum about these Ghost and Eames dining chairs- come and share your thoughts with us there too.

A Very Organised Office

2010-08-03T21:37:00.009+10:00

Lanne is one of the most organised people I have ever met (or because of the internet world - never met). Followers on the Decorating Forum will know what I mean:).

Lanne runs a successful photography business - Painted With Light- and has shown us the odd glimpse of her office set-up on the Decorating Forum but today she reveals to us her Media Room for clients.

"We have a couple of rooms for clients and this one is our media room. It is used for client viewing and ordering appointments. We have tried to keep it to our brand and style, but not make it into a traditional sales area. Clients watch their slideshow and make selections over either morning tea or if it is an evening appointment a cheese platter or dessert.
The colours stick to our branding of 60% white, 30% grey and 10% school bus yellow. The room has a dark grey carpet and blinds and the furniture is simple and mostly ikea. It is simple, minimalist and functional.

The candy is a must. Clients tell us it is like going to the movies.. so we added M&Ms.. very popular. The second image is of our storage cupboard. We keep the dishes and serving items in a white 'billy' bookcase from ikea with glass front doors. We added a large photographic print to the doors. Each door is approx 20 x 40 inches.

This desk is a recent purchase from Officeworks. The Sierra desk is awesome value and it gives us a place for clients to sign EFTPOS receipts and sign off on orders etc. There is a 30 x 40 canvas on the wall above it and some brochures/business cards stored in a Kikki stationery holder.

YUMMY snacks for client viewings. We keep a record of all of our clients preferred snacks and ensure we have them ready for appointments. Clients also love T2 teas and sugar cubes. The yellow cups were from Freedom and we use them to hold spoons, bags etc. Our Painted with Light letterpress business cards. We bought the cushion from etsy.com and asked for a custom colour combo.

And the main event. We use a 32inch screen calibrated by our printer so that clients can see the images exactly as they will print. The media cabinet (Ikea) stores an apple macbook which runs our software and screen. We operate it with an Apple Wireless keyboard and bluetooth mouse. The glass fronted cabinet was perfect for this. We also have a large grey rug (an Ikea bargain) and a simple off white sofa and coffee table with storage underneath + side tables (lack from Ikea). We had the wall decal custom made to match our colour and branding. Our second brand Light + Love uses this same pattern on the back of the business cards. "

What an amazing Media Room. Now do you see what we meant by organised?

Join Lanne and all our other members over on the Decorating Forum to help get your office organised.

By the way I have told Lanne to record that I would like a nice Chardonnay & King Island Dairy Seal Bay Triple Brie and Maggie Beer's Spiced Pear Paste for when I visit:) Do let her know what your preference for nibbles will be when visiting her Media Room.

Replacing the oven - not so simple!

2010-08-01T20:37:00.000+10:00

Deb from Two Cheeky Monkeys went to do a minor kitchen renovation that turned out to be a lot bigger than originally planned. This is how the story unfolded:

"We live in a house which is about 25 years old. All of the appliances were the same age as the house, so it wasn't a big surprise when our oven and cooktop unit started to fall apart. I was initially excited about replacing this old unit however, what we thought would be a simple replacement of our oven and cooktop turned into a bigger job than we had imagined.
Our old oven/cooktop unit was not the standard 60 or 90cm in width, but was 70cm wide. This really limited the range of new units we could investigate, so we decided it would be wiser to install a separate cooktop and oven rather than an all in one unit. We decided on a 70cm electric oven by Andi and ad 70cm gas cooktop by AEG-Electrolux.

The decision to buy separate cooking units meant that our builder would be building a cabinet for the oven as well as adding a new section of bench top where the previous oven/cooktop unit had lived. This didn't seem too complex until our builder couldn't find any laminate to even vaguely match our existing bench tops. His initial solution of replacing the laminate on all of our bench tops was way over our budget and meant too much disruption to our kitchen. After a few days, our builder came up with a suggestion of covering our new bench top and splashback with stainless steel. This was not only affordable, but would make cleaning a lot easier!
We weren't sure the stainless steel look would suit our rather retro kitchen, but we figured that we didn't really have much to lose so agreed with the new plan. The whole project took our builder, electrician and plumber 3 and a half days to finish due to a few problems which arose such as slight warping of our floor and cupboards due to the age of our house and also due to inaccuracies in the unit measurements supplied by the manufacturers of the oven.
Anyway, the work was finally completed and we are happy with the outcome. We have great new appliances to cook with and they don't stick out too much in our kitchen. And most of all, it was all within budget!"

This is not an unusual story. It is also very common when replacing wall ovens set directly into the wall. Older ovens are bigger than newer models.

Have you known someone to start what seemed to be a simple change in the kitchen but ended up with a major renovation?

What do you think of Deb's builder's creative solution?

Ready, Set, Dissect: French Living Room

2010-07-29T22:02:00.005+10:00

Yay- it's Friday. Time for a little fun and to play our Friday game- Ready, Set, Dissect.

Let us know your thoughts on this French Living Room.

Could you live in it?

Join us over on the Decorating Forum to chat about our own living rooms:)

2010-07-27T20:16:00.013+10:00

Wednesday's Walk-through

Today our Decorating Forum member Babyjo who designs beautiful bamboo clothing, blankets, pyjamas and gifts (Eco Friendly, highly renewable and sustainable and fantastic for eczema sufferers and super soft) shows us her stunning bathroom.

The house is an old concrete commission style house – not very pretty and very rundown when we purchased.

Our bathroom was “planned” at a pool bar in Thailand, when we decided we wanted to have the indoor/outdoor feel that we had seen in a few of the resorts we stayed in.

Our deep Japanese style Mizu bathtub is just beautiful to relax in and it is certainly a peaceful, quiet and favourite area of the house.

I love that we have an indoor garden, natural light and something unique – it never fails to get a reaction from guests who drop in.

My husband Andrew is the owner of Harveygroup Construction (Melbourne based business, specialising in bathroom, kitchen and laundry renovations) 0413 11 33 77

You can tell Andrew is experienced in designing beautiful bathrooms.

Let Andrew & Jo know what you think of their amazing bathroom renovation.

We are chatting about our favourite bathroom tiles over on the Decorating Forum - come and tell us yours.

Deck Dilemma - Help!

2010-07-26T06:54:00.003+10:00

Our lovely blog follower Edwina wrote to us recently asking for help. Of course we knew exactly who to ask for help - you:)

This is Edwina's dilemma:

We built the deck in September last year and only got around to painting it recently. Our problem is working out what to do with all the space out there! As you can see, it's pretty huge - 50 square metres. We have it set up so the dining table and chairs are down one end, two couches in the middle and an old BBQ down the far end. There's also a bar fridge, but not much else.

Our idea was that one day, our kids would be able to play out there and have plenty of room. But, as we have no kids yet, that plan is a way off coming together...

The couches were originally in an L Shape, but whenever there was a bad storm they both got drenched, so we pushed them to the back wall.

My problem is working out what to put down the far end, where the BBQ is. I'd LOVE some plants and herbs on the deck, but my husband is pretty picky about not letting water onto the walls and not having anything on the decking that could degrade it... He's leaning towards putting a pool table down there, but I'm not so keen because I think they're pretty ugly, plus it'd get damaged pretty quickly being exposed to the weather.

We live in Queensland, so we spend about 8 months of the year out here, but when it rains it POURS and the storms and wind can be pretty violent.

So, I'd love to hear some creative ideas on how to make the space more comfortable - lighting, furnishings and any solutions on putting herbs out there without ruining the finishes.

Basically, if this space was yours, what would you DO with it??

Thank you so much - really excited to read the responses.

I hope you can help Edwina with some suggestions.

We have also been discussing the exteriors finishes of homes over on the Decorating Forum so pop on over and join in the chatter:)

Ready, Set, Dissect: Black & White Living Room

2010-07-22T22:44:00.004+10:00

Yay- it's Friday and time for a little fun. So the game is Ready, Set - Dissect.

Tell us what you do and don't love about this room:)

For some great ideas on how to create a stylish Living Room come and chat with us on the Decorating Forum. Love to see you over there too:)

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-07-20T21:55:00.012+10:00

This is an amazing house- and my neighbours. Yes I get to look out my window at this gorgeous house everyday. It is very unusual and maybe not everyone's taste but I do admire the effort the owners went to to create their dream home.

A striking exterior - their interpretation of a French Farmhouse.

The dining and kitchen.

The Media Room- very formal.

The Family Room - overlooking the Plunge Pool.

The Ensuite- with a Recollections Vanity.

One of the minor bedrooms.

Just in case you loved it - sorry it sold last weekend. So as we watched the neighbours visiting their new home this is what I was wondering.

Is this your cup of tea? What are your favourite parts of the house?

We would love to hear your thoughts:)

Clever Ways with Televison's

2010-07-18T22:46:00.014+10:00

This week on the Decorating Forum we have been looking at some imaginative ways to include that huge flat screen television into your decor.

Some of our forum member's have come up with some very creative solutions. To see them all pop on over to read the whole thread on the Decorating Forum.

A simple but stylish solution.

This is becoming even more popular.

An unusual solution.

Something similar to this was on Divine Design on Foxtel.

Imagine lying in bed and pushing the remote to have your TV lift out of this stylish cabinet- now that's luxury.

And the ultimate TV - in the mirror of your bathroom. A handy way to catch the morning news.

So which idea do you like the best?

How have you added your TV to your decor?

Looking forward to chatting with you :)

Ready, Set, Dissect: Luxury Bathroom

2010-07-16T07:39:00.001+10:00

I am so excited to be able to show some of my favourite rooms over the next few weeks.

I love this bathroom but I want to hear what you think of it- so Ready, Set, Dissect.

There are so many more wonderful bathroom ideas for you to see on the Decorating Forum. We hope to see you over there too.

Julie-Ann.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-07-14T07:00:00.002+10:00

Today our friend and member from the Decorating Forum Kristie (Elements) shows us the house she and her Hubby finished renovating recently. Kristie has amazing taste and you can follow her latest project on her blog Elements At Home - a brand new home for their family. I have been lucky enough to visit Kristie's new home and the pictures don't do it justice- it is stunning.

This is her story about their renovation project.

Whilst building our dream home we decided to buy a property with the intention of renovating and selling. I had kept my eye on this area for at least a year prior, so I knew the market and what everything was worth. It did mean we had to tighten our belts so much my new hobby was how to sell as mush as possible on ebay to fund any new purchases. But we knew we could do up this property enough to make enough money to fund the fitout of our build.....with our fingers and toes crossed I researched
and bought for our budget reno while Hubby implemented the ideas every weekend.
We felt we would need to appeal to the general public especially 1st homebuyers...so this is what we did.
So we purchased for $410k, we spent $18k on paint, tiles, new cabinets in all the wet areas, new carpets, new blinds and curtains and painted the exterior............ and today it settled with a purchase price of $510k.
So in the past 14 months we have bought a property and done it up while we were building and we have now moved in and yes its time to wind down and relax for a little bit.......

The lounge before - in all it's glory.

The lounge after- bought into the new century.

The kitchen before.

The kitchen - what a difference.

The Master Bedroom before.

The Master Bedroom After

I think you will agree Kristie and her Hubby earned every cent- it is an amazing renovation.

Some more good news - Kristie is an Interior Designer. You can contact her for help with your home at stylishinteriors@iinet.net.au

Pop on over today to chat with Kristie and our other lovely members on the Decorating Forum.

Julie-Ann.

Office Nooks

2010-07-12T07:10:00.002+10:00

This week on the Decorating Forum we have been looking at different ways to create a little nook for your desk.

Somewhere to rest the laptop and pay the bills. Or a place to let the little ones play on the computer but where you can keep a watchful eye on the screen.

Here are some of how favourite pictures we shared.

To see the full discussion and all the solutions we came up with pop on over to the Decorating Forum. Feel free to add any of your ideas or pictures there.

Behind the sofa.

Tucked in a bay window.

At the end of the hallway.

This little hideaway cabinet is from Ikea.

In a corner of a living room.

So which one did you like the best?

We would love to hear from you. Hope you have a great start to the week.

Ready, Set, Dissect: Girls Bedroom

2010-07-09T07:09:00.000+10:00

Back today with a little girls room. Go here if you are not sure what Ready, Set, Dissect means.

What do you think?

Image: decorpad

Hope everyone has had a great week? School holidays here and I am only just surviving. Sending 2 to daycare today (can you see me fist pumping the air?).

If you want more chat today go over and say hello to Julie-Ann!

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-07-07T06:58:00.000+10:00

We have so mnay new readers, so I just wanted to say hello to you all. Welcome.

What is Wednesday's Walk-through? Well it's all about showcasing YOUR homes. Real homes. No trick photography. No fancy photoshop. We are getting back to basics. Afterall, it's the real people that read our blogs. So if you have something to share with us, don't be shy... we aren't looking for the the biggest, or the best!

Today we say hello to Jenny from The Five Year Project. She is doing a fantastic renovation to her home!

Here is what she says:

The five year project…

I am married with two boys aged 12 and 5. My background is in Information Technology (Operations and Account Management) but this year I am a stay at home mum. My youngest has just started school and I wanted to be around for the pickup and drop offs. This has allowed me to really focus on the renovations of our Queenslander which we believe to be around the 100 year old mark. It has beautiful dome decorative ceilings and plenty of potential…

We have been here just over two years now and I think we are tracking very well even if new plans are constantly being conjured up.

The room I would like to do a walk thru of is our bedroom makeover. This room was very dark and dreary when we first moved in, in fact almost spooky. It had mission brown panelling and lolly pink cornices and dome. The floor boards were bare (unpolished) and the windows covered in cobwebs.

Our first job was to remove the panelling and replace with plaster. There is plenty of panelling left in the house that we felt it could be removed rather than painted over in the bedroom.

Although unpainted as yet, the plaster gave the room a whole new vibe.

The most inconvenient part about it, was that we didn’t have any wardrobes during this whole phase and I had to purchase a couple of those clothes racks as a temporary basis. The house was a bit like a Chinese laundry…

Finally, we had built-in wardrobes installed, making life a little easier for a while. The down side is that we had to paint the external wardrobe and doors (never again!)

This room is now complete including new curtains, home made bed head and new light for a bit of bling!

I try to have some piece of furniture in each room which tells a bit of a story or has some sentimental attachment. In this case I have my grandmothers’ dresser which I restored. My favourite part of the room is the dome ceiling.

If you want to see more real homes and chat with real people, jump over to The Decorating Forum, follow us on twitter here and here or join us on Facebook.

Back Friday!

Chalkboard LOVE

2010-07-05T06:35:00.000+10:00

Who has a chalkboard wall/frame in their house? Would love to see some.

This was one I had in my house once.

Then I did a quick google search and found some others I love!

After seeing some of these amazing rooms, I think I need some more chalkboard's in my home.

Would love to hear/see any chalkboard pictures you have.

Have a great week!

Ready, Set, Dissect: Office

2010-07-02T10:00:00.002+10:00

Wow it's Friday again! Where did the week go?

Hope you've all had a great week!

What do you think about this office today? Love reading your comments....

Pop over and visit The Decorating Forum today if you want more chit chat about our homes.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-06-30T06:31:00.000+10:00

How is everyone this week? You have all been so quiet! Hope this freezing weather (if you are in the southern-southern hemisphere) is not ruining your moods. I am dreaming of Summer...

So today we have a little look at Melissa's idea for an empty wall. Clever chickie.
This is what she says:
"This wall used to be empty, adjacent to the kitchen. I got the cabinet, top and bottom for $40 total at an architectural salvage shop, painted, new top, new hardware and wa-la. We recently moved out of that house, and I never had time to put some big ol' turned table legs on either side of the open ends. I think that's all it needed."

Melissa has a cool blog called Raising the Rhyne Brine so pop over and say hi!

See you all on Friday!

Paint Colours {and giveaway winners}

2010-06-28T07:21:00.001+10:00

Last week on The Decorating Forum we were discussing our favourite paint colours. Here are some of them.

Dulux Hogs Bristle...

Dulux Warm Neutral...

Toffee Fingers...

Duck egg blue {so many shades and variations of this one, but you get the idea!}...

Solver Parchment...

Dulux Buff It...

Dulux Domino...

This is my 8 year old's bedroom {Dulux Domino}...

Dulux Grand Piano...

Dulux Antique White USA...

My home {Dulux Antique White USA}...

And here are a few of my other favourites featured in my home.

Taubmans Invincible for the kids playroom...

A traditional Colorbond colour 'Shale Grey' made into an interior colour for a feature wall in my family room and office....

What are some of your favourite paint colours?

Next on the agenda... we drew the winners of the Wine Wipes giveaway..... and the winners are

Alison Gibbs
Alicia - Time Worn Style
Bronnie
Lanne
Susie
Avartargo07

Julie-Ann will be in touch with you
to post out your prize. In the meantime pop over and see Gill and grab yourself a little case of Wine Wipes. My sister and mum were drinking red on the weekend and I sure wish I had a case handy for their purple teeth and lips! Not a good look!

Have a great week everyone!

Ready, Set, Dissect: Bedroom Nook

2010-06-25T06:55:00.000+10:00

What do you think of this one today? Julie-Ann found this in her travels. I am instantly thinking LOVE. Not so sure on the bed canopy though, but I would still be happy sleeping there! Oh and I could roll over early and check my emails (ah that's right I already do that anyway...but I wouldn't need to leave the bedroom and wake half the house up haha!).

Here is the run down on the game if you are not sure what to do.

Don't forget our GIVEAWAY! You must read up on these Wine Wipes. They are an essential item required in one's purse these days. No more embarrassing stains on your teeth or mouth from wine, chocolate, coffee...

Hope you all had a great week!

Wednesday's Walk-through: A Powder Room

2010-06-23T06:49:00.001+10:00

Welcome Michelle from The Yellow House. She has done an amazing transformation on her powder room. Please enjoy her before and after pictures....

This is what Michelle says:

The BEFORE.....

Last year I gave it a coat of brown paint that was leftover in the basement. It was a quick fix to cover the purple color it was when we moved in. I didn't want to replace the sink and toilet at that point so I went with the brown/blue theme. The floor is the worst part I think. It's vinyl and discolored.

The AFTER....

And here it is now.....

The sink was a craigslist find for $50....

Ever notice how the magazines rarely show the toilet? Well, it's a part of life and here is ours....

I'd like to find some antique brackets and put a shelf on the wall above it. I've been hesitant to hang much on the walls so far because of the wallpaper.

The old trim was standard stuff so we installed all new moulding and added crown. "We" meaning my hubby, you know the drill. ;)

The towel holder was found on Ebay and the soap dispenser is from Target.

Ruffle towel from Target and the holder was found on Etsy.

So that's the bathroom! We're so relieved it's done because we've begun other projects.

A few things we learned on this room:

~ Wallpapering a tiny space is more difficult than a large room.

~ Decorative plumbing parts are expensive. I wanted nice shut off valves with the cross handles since they would show behind the pedestal sink. The plumbing supply had beautiful ones in nickel but they would have cost $120. For $40 and some wonderful free advice we ended up with something just as nice. We purchased the shiny silver ones and used a Scotch-brite pad to create a nickel look. The scour pad worked wonders and now we have "nickel" shut offs for a fraction of the price.

~ It doesn't hurt to ask about display items. Our toilet paper holder was the last of the set so we were able to purchase it for $30. It retails for $146.

~ Be sure to measure carefully and not rely on the store employees to figure out what you will need. With both the wallpaper and the tile we had to order more after starting because it was underestimated. This ended up costing us more time and money.

Overall it was a really fun room to do!

Hope you loved seeing Michelle's room! I had to stop in my tracks when I saw this makeover. The colours are divine. Pop over and say hi to her and please make sure you visit her little boys bedroom!!!

AND don't forget to enter our giveaway: Wipe That Wine Smile Off Your Face. These are such a nifty product and really have more uses than just for wine! Chocolate or coffee stains too....

Giveaway Time: wipe that wine smile off your face

2010-06-21T07:31:00.000+10:00

We think it's time for another giveaway!

We are so excited to offer you 6 x tins of Wine Wipes.

What are they, you ask?
This is from The Wine Wipes website:

We're all familiar with the unattractive dark film that red wine leaves on your smile. Well, now there's a solution! Wine Wipes are a quick and easy way to remove red wine stains from your teeth and mouth.

Developed with the help of a sommelier, Wine Wipes' proprietory blend of natural ingredients cleans red wine off teeth and neutralizes the palate, without interfering with the wine tasting experience.

Wine Wipes are packaged in a handy compact that contains 20 wipes. Our point-of-sale display boxes contain 20 compacts and are perfect for countertop or aisle placement.

Wine Wipes are made in the USA in a fully licensed laboratory.

Well this is an amazing product! We have been lucky enough to become friends with Gill who runs her own "Wine Wipes Empire".... She is so much fun and is totally outrageous. You would be mad not to follow this chickie! Find her on Facebook and Twitter.

What do you have to do to enter?

There are lots of places you can enter. You don't have to do them all to be in the running though...

1. Comment in this post

2. Comment anywhere on the blog over the next week

3. Comment anywhere on The Decorating Forum

4. Tweet it and FB (let us know you did this)

"No more purple on your pearlies...."

Good luck!

Ready, Set, Dissect {it's a crazy one today}

2010-06-18T07:08:00.000+10:00

Very very different today kids! We just know what you will all say! But give it to us anyway...

Who is this designer? Just testing you all to see if you know?

What do you think of his/her work? If you want to see more, email us and we will let you know who it is.

Not for everyone, but we love to see people's reactions. This is what makes this game fun!

And look at those jackets!

Hope you are all having a great week. Send us anything you think would be good for the blog because we are open to everything.

I am still discussing house plans over here and need some serious HELP.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-06-16T06:57:00.000+10:00

Hello!

Today's room is actually my (Katrina) own child's bedroom. We made a few changes last week.

This was my son's room beforehand. Why the change? He really didn't want Star Wars ( that's what I wanted! Hahaha) and it was time for a new doona (quilt cover).

So we moved his room around to accomodate a new desk too. Down went the Star Wars prints and we both decided his most favourite things in the world are skateboards, skulls and cool cars. I would have rather just picked one theme (as that is the OCD in me!), but I knew that this change in his room was meant to suit him. I threw caution to the wind and let him pick everything.

A new doona cover was purchased. He wanted skulls. Ok I can do that, I thought! And normally I like to layer the doona with blankets and throws, but he wasn't having that. So here is is, for all to see!

Here is the new desk. We purchased the bookcase a few months ago and this desk matches the set. Oh and he wants you to know those high-top's in the above photo are his new shoes (they take position on the chair next to his bed!).

The prints on the walls were gathered from magazines. We went to the newsagency after school and I let him pick 2 magazines, hence the skateboards and cars. Then I bought a few cheap frames, plus I had a few spare at home. We mixed them up and it was done! Mr Chambo hung them for us.

So there it is! Pop over to MY blog if you want to see more projects. In the meantime, I am asking for house plan advice on The Decorating Forum if you want to chime in and help me.

Have a great day!

Going on a holiday?

2010-06-14T07:29:00.001+10:00

I was emailed this by Gail a while ago and thought I would share it.

How cool is it?

Fancy being able to travel in style like this! Who even comes up with these ideas?

I was flabergasted to see such style. My idea of camping/caravaning is not up to these standards

What is your travelling style? What are your must-haves?

I wouldn't suffer in this though as I know it would have a hair-straightener!

Today is a public holiday here as we celebrate the Queen's Birthday. I am off to discuss house plans (mmm what for you ask? Secret, maybe!), decorating and see my sister's new tv unit and bookcases. I will bring back pictures if she has finished. So even on a holiday I am still talking about everything houses!

Pop over HERE if you too want more chat today.

Ready, Set, Dissect {Living Room}

2010-06-11T07:09:00.001+10:00

Something a little different today! Go on, let me have it. I know you are dying to tell me what you think! If you are new to the game go HERE to see what it's all about.

Picture from Decorpad.

I am chatting on The Decorating Forum today. No excuses for me! I am staying in my pj's all day while the kids at in daycare/school. Come and join me!

And guess who won the GIVEAWAY?
Lauren McKay

Send me an email Lauren and I will pass you on to Susie.

We had 69 entries, so thank you everyone for entering! If you missed out you MUST visit Susie from I Just Love That Fabric.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-06-09T07:05:00.000+10:00

Let's welcome Amanda from Homely One blog to our Wednesday's Walk-through.

Her kitchen makeover is impressive!

This is what Amanda says:

"Updating our kitchen is one of the best decisions we have made to our house since we bought it in 2005 and is definitely the renovation project which has had the most significant impact on the look of our interior.

Previously, our kitchen was an unattractive combination of face bricks, mission brown door frames and skirtings, dated light fittings, a chunky cream bench and dark brown laminate cabinets.

In our new kitchen, we chose to keep the existing layout and simply updated each component. Our white Ikea cabinets have made the area much brighter and our new grey benchtop is much more streamlined. With white door frames and rendered walls and well as our new floorboards, the kitchen has a much fresher look.

Now I'd like to add some decor to this space - a wall shelf above our toaster/kettle to display some canisters and pretty teacups, a statement piece above the oven (at the moment I'm leaning towards a clock) and a display above the fridge. I'll get there eventually!!"

What a huge difference don't you think? Please feel free to visit Amanda at Homely One today. She has a great blog with lots more to see!

If you are interested in a having a feature, please jump over to THIS post to find out what you have to do.

Worried you haven't got time to participate on The Decorating Forum? The easiest solution to this is just to become and member to receive the weekly newsletter keeping you up-to-date with all the chat...if you don't have time to read the forum often and keep up, you can peruse the newsletter and pick up on the best bits that might interest you.

Don't forget our GIVEAWAY {winner announced Friday}.

Calling all bloggers: do you want a feature?

2010-06-08T07:22:00.005+10:00

We have a few Wednesday's Walk-through candidates ready to go, but we like to be well prepared....

So I am calling all bloggers who have:

Before & After pictures

Finished Rooms they are proud of

A Great Garden

A Renovation in progress

A New House in progress

We are receiving huge hits to our blog on Wednesday's and bloggers who have featured are gathering new readers.

This is great for the blogging community! We survive and people keep coming back only thanks to your comments and shared features.

So please email me if you have something to offer. It helps keep the blogging world interesting and fresh.

Gorgeous boy's room from Decorpad.

PS. Don't forget to enter our GIVEAWAY!

We are announcing a winner this Friday.

Nurseries {and send us your links!}

2010-06-07T07:34:00.004+10:00

Setting up a nursery can be hard work! So many aspects to think about.

The cot, a change table, storage, a rocking chair, blinds, warmth, noise.....

What do you think are must-haves for a new nursery?

Today we thought we would share some gorgeous nurseries {no we are not clucky hahaha}! Can you find some inspiration in these pictures?

And we want you to send us YOUR links to shops/stores you know about or even own. I will add them here during the day. For those of you looking for inspiration on setting up a nursery this post should help.

Let's get started:

The Nursery Fairy

{The home of nursery room makeovers, accessories & giftware}

Giggle Smile Designs

{Children's Room Decor & Gifts for all Occasions}

Nest Design Studio

{online design studio!}

GIVEAWAY

Did you get a chance to see our great giveaway? Pop over to THIS post to see it. Susie from I Just Love That Fabric is giving our readers something very special.

Jump over to the The Decorating Forum for more chat on EVERYTHING decorating!

Ready, Set, Dissect {& Giveaway}

2010-06-04T07:17:00.001+10:00

Back this week with a dining room....

Click to enlarge. Source unknown. Sorry!

I hope you LOVE this room! I do. It's one of my favourites. Let us know what you think.

Did you see our GIVEAWAY? Susie from I Just Love That Fabric is giving our readers something very special. Leave a comment on THIS post to be in the running.

Giveaway

2010-06-02T12:34:00.001+10:00

One of our lovely and generous friends, Susie, would like to give you something...for free!

Win an oilcloth tablecloth from I Just Love That Fabric, in one of the colourful designs in their store. We are giving away in conjunction with A Very Fine House a 2 metre long x 120cm wide Oilcloth tablecloth just for you.

Throw over your table to protect if from spills, crayons, paint. With our gorgeous collection of oilcloths your dining table can be protected and still look lovely. Choose from a selection of colours and designs, emerald, sunshine, retro red, baby blues and candy pinks, tropical flowers, traditional ginghams, all in our Mexican Oilcloth collection.

All you have to do is comment on this blogpost to enter. Pop over and say hi to Susie here. So easy!

We will draw a winner next week.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-06-02T06:43:00.001+10:00

Welcome Mandii from Shabby Dreaming. She is a shabby chic queen! Here is some serious white eye candy. Love it.

What Mandii says: Our home is made up of my Husband and our Gorgeous 2 sons and me. We also have 2 furry pup's who spend most of their time inside with us.

We live in a Victorian town called Sunbury which is about 15 min's drive from Melbourne Airport.

We have lived in our home for around 9 years and built it ourselves. The outside is a modern bagged home. When stepping inside you wouldn’t believe that the outside and inside are part of the same home. Our interior is decorated in Shabby, Cottage, beach style, hmm quite a handful (and yes it is possible with kids)!!

When decorating I started with painting just about every piece of furniture white, gives a fresh crisp feel to a room and lets you ad almost any colour. I like subtle hints of pink and blue, not too bright though.

Dining room: I purchased most of the furniture for this room, from either ebay or from op/thrift stores. The old Queen Anne table setting has been admired by many is really is a focal point in the room along with the Vintage Chandelier fitting that hangs above her. The blue crystals really bring out the blue in the feature wall. The French doors aren’t original. We had those put in a couple of years ago and it adds so much more appeal and light to the room.

The front sitting room is also known as the pretty room. It’s a warm light filled room and is lovely to sit in to read a book or host an afternoon tea. Probably my favourite thing about this room is my sofas; I love that I can remove the covers and wash them or even change them depending on the season. You can add throw cushions or have them without and they look lovely!

The large cabinet featured houses our television. I hate when you have a lovely room and then a huge ugly television on display!! This way we have best of both worlds a lovely room that also has the function of a movie room.

It is our dream to purchase an old beaten down cottage and renovate and hoping that our dream isn’t too far away!! We are currently in the middle of remodelling our ensuite and guest bathrooms, along with our son's rooms. A lot of work but I love it!!!Thanks for visiting 2 rooms of our home!!!

And I decided to add these extra photos on Mandii's lovely home. Pop over to her blog for a better look around.

In other news...remember to jump over here. I need your help with renovating tips. Pretty please!

Back on Friday with Ready, Set, Dissect. Feel free to email me pictures you come arcoss to dissect. I have had a couple of great ones lately.

Wardrobe Organisation

2010-05-31T06:36:00.000+10:00

How did you go with your kitchen organising from last week? I had lots of emails and tweets letting me know you were inspired!

This week I thought we could talk about wardrobes (or closets). Hand up if you are guilty of mess behind closed doors? ME! ME! ME! I am good at making the most obvious areas of my home clean, but I am shocking at shoving things into cupboards willy nilly.

Following the principles of last week about sorting and deciding what is needed and not needed (go back to last week if you didn't get to follow it) the same applies here.

Wardrobe organisation is serious stuff for some people. I have seen some of my friends cupboards and they love sorting and organising! Puts me to shame.

So what I want to know is:

Do you colour coordinate your clothes?

Do you hang or fold?

Do you have a spot for your shoes? Are they in boxes?

Do you have somewhere for your jewellery, scarves, belts etc?

Where do you put your socks and undies?

Where do you put your pj's?

Do you have an organised system for your kids?

Do your kids robes hold their clothes and toys?

Here are some pictures to help get you in the mood.

Decide on the purpose and function of that cupboard/robe/closet.

You will need some things to help you:

Think about your hangers. Do you have some for shirts, skirts, pants, heavy jackets? Do you need more? Do you want them to match?

Your shoes, where are they? Are they sitting neatly, or thrown in the cupboard (mine are!)? Can you put them in boxes?

Is your wardrobe hosting other items? Examples: suitcases, toys, paintings, photo albums? Mine do.... Are they grouped together? Do you need some storage tubs? Can you put colourful ones in the kids rooms?

Do you need more shelving? Can you easily add some? Can you double hang some clothes to minimise space? I find the kids clothes are so small that a double hung area is the best! I also asked my husband to put an extra shelf in their wardrobes recently and it was so easy to do - made a world of difference.

Small spaces can look just as good. It's just being sure that nothing is in the space that is not needed or could go elsewhere.

What do you think? Could you give it a go?

Join us on The Decorating Forum today as we are always talking about organisation. Kids rooms seem to be the biggest battle. Do you have this struggle?

Ready, Set, Dissect!

2010-05-28T06:32:00.001+10:00

Go here if you are new to the game.

We're back this week with a Clive Christian Kitchen. Whatcha think about this one? Love to hear your comments! Click to enlarge.

Next week we have a giveaway lined up so please pop back.

If you are bored over the weekend joins us for a chat at The Decorating Forum.

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-05-26T05:59:00.001+10:00

Today we are having a look at a lovely twitter friend/boss of Katrina's, Peter Brewer. Peter is an Inline Media Manager for the Professional's Real Estate Group based in Brisbane, Australia. Peter is also one of our lovely advertising friend's with a great free offer - click on his ad on the sidebar.

He showed us a few pictures of his lovely home and we thought this was a great feature to share with you because it's much different to what we have seen thus far on the blog.

Peter says:

Michelle and I are in our 50's living in Manly Brisbane with 2 kids still at home aged 16 and 19.

It was designed by Michelle and I with Architect Philip Gough. We went for a beachy earthy feel and an open plan style for easy family gatherings. Wanted to have the kids close by as they grew (not so much now!)...

Benches are Stone Italiana. We went with a Smeg Oven as a piece of furniture plus I love cooking!

Ritek roof makes for a trendy feel plus is low maintenance.

Built in 2004. House is on 638 sqm.

Enjoy the tour!

Hope you got to see our post on Monday about Organising YOUR Kitchen.

Julie-Ann has been busy chatting about Laundry Organisation on The Decorating Forum if you need some inspiration on that one.

Back Friday with our Ready, Set, Dissect Posts. Thanks for your comments! It keeps us motivated!

Organise YOUR Kitchen

2010-05-24T06:35:00.003+10:00

All of this week there has been so much talk of organisation.... on Katrina's blog and The Decorating Forum. So we thought it fitting to give you a few tips on how to get your kitchen (the hub of the home) sorted.

5 tips before you start:

1. Do you have 1 hour or 4 hours to spare? This is important as you need to think about what you can achieve in that time. No good starting something as big as sorting your kitchen if you can't get close to finishing it. You may need to break up over a couple of days.

2. Garbage bags in hand. There will ultimately be 2 piles - give away or throw. You need to have the bags accessible before you starting pulling things out. Things you keep can go straight back into your kitchen.

3. Are you likely to be disrupted? If you have kiddies, do you have activities ready for them?

4. Do you get emotional about detaching yourself from items? If yes, get over it (mean aren't I? But I promise I am only helping you!). If no, you are ready to do this.

5. Are you serious about achieving this? If yes, get to it!

The aim:

The aim is to have a kitchen (pantry, drawers, shelves... the lot) that ONLY houses things you will use. If you didn't use it recently, then it has to go.

You do not need 4 egg lifters. You do not need 5 mixed herb spices. You do not need 8 casserole dishes (and probably half of them are chipped). Do you ever use the yoghurt makers?

You are going to remove things from the shelf 1 by 1.

Throw?

Keep?

Give Away?

At this point I highly recommend you have a sponge ready to wipe the shelves and drawers as you go.

The KEEP items:

I cannot stress enough how important it is to ensure the items you are keeping go back into the drawers or onto the shelves in an orderly manner.

Examples - all tins together, all coffee mugs together etc etc.

If you get this right, you won't have to do it ever again!

The best places for things?

Here are some ideas for drawers - they are great for crockery (including maybe your better dinner set), saucepans and frypans, casserole dishes and roasting dishes, tupperware, and recently Julie-Ann put her slow cooker in one because she wanted it very handy. We wouldn't suggest glasses or cups unless the drawer isn't very deep.
Glasses are good near the dishwasher as it makes it easier to unstack them.
Saucepans and frying pans near the hotplate.
Crockery is best near where you would plate up.
Narrow side cabinets are fantastic for trays and cutting boards.

Definitions:

Give away - to friends, family, or charity.

Throw - in the bin, not move it to another spot!

Keep - are you sure about that item? Yep? Then keep. If unsure... it has to go.

Organisation Tools:

We have sourced some bits for you that can help keep the organisation in tact. Don't feel like you have to have these. Like Katrina has been saying on her blog "you don't have to spend money to be organised".These are just ideas.

We enjoy some of the products and would love to hear if you have any of them, or can recommend any more?

Katrina's pantry a few years ago.

Containers all stacked together. Lids on! No floating and missing lids!

Sorting food as you put it into the fridge helps you keep track of what you have. No lingering plastic cold meat bags in the back of the fridge.

Tea towel hooks - these can go inside or outside the door.

Pull out spice rack.

Another variation of an easily mountable spice rack.

Extra shelf for pantry so you can stack food. From Howards Storage World.

Pockets are excellent for packet soups, gravey, packet pasta. Can stack them all in together and they won't float through your pantry. From Howards Storage World.

Slide and stack basket (sorry about the quality). Great for in the pantry and under the sink for cleaning bottles. From Howards Storage World.

Utensil trays are a must! From Howards Storage World.

Grip mat for inside drawers so items don't slip around.

And to finish the post off we thought we would give you some organised kitchens for inspiration!

We would love your feedback. Your comments keep us motivated to keep producing fun posts for you to read.

Katrina & Julie-Ann.

Ready, Set, Dissect

2010-05-21T02:55:00.000+10:00

Ready for another week? Go here if you are new to the game.

Tell us what you love about this room? I know you love to tell us what you hate, but thought it would be fun to also see what you love.

Pic here.

PS. Did you miss yesterday's post? Have something to giveaway? Free advertising on offer.

Just a quick one

2010-05-20T12:47:00.001+10:00

Do you like giveaways? Do you have something we could giveaway here at A Very Fine House?

In return we will offer a months free advertising in the sidebar plus free plugs to yourself as the gift-giver.

Email us if you have something to offer and let's get this party started.

Katrina & Julie-Ann.

Eye candy picture via Marley&Lockyer

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-05-19T05:29:00.002+10:00

Welcome Leanne!

About:

Mother, Wife, Lifestyle Photographer, Cook, Cleaner, Cat and Guinea Pig owner

Mum of two boys aged 6 and 2, wife of a good bloke who works very long hours and will still come home and paint for me.

Lives: Inner South-East ( Melbourne ) - close to the city, close to the beach, love it.

Site: www.hbfotografic.com

Blog: www.hbfotografic.com/blog

What else?

Hmm - love a project, love a reno. This is our 3rd house and our 2nd renovation project. I bought my 2nd house site unseen off a website when I was laid-up in hospital after birthing my first child. I SOLD my first house 2 weeks home from hospital - I had a baby on the boob as I completed those odd jobs we hadn't got around to .. like painting the fireplace surround, and ensuring the place was spotless. I remember a troop of R/E agents inspecting the place and they wanted to see the bedroom and I was propped up in bed feeding the baby. It was MADNESS. We bought our current home for it's big backyard and luckily just before the market turned. Our house has doubled in price ( land value alone ) in 4years, and we could no longer afford to buy here if we were looking today.

Personally, i've just turned 40, and in my time have lived in 24 different houses, 3 different countries, and 2 different states.

Since arriving in Melbourne at age 21, I have lived in 8 different suburbs. I believe home is where you make it, and as long as I have an abundance of natural light, I am happy.

THE BATHROOM RENO....

This was the original sleepout on my original 1930's home. I really loved the sloping roof and wanted to make that a feature of the bathroom, rather than making life easier for the builders ( oh, but they tried ) by putting in a false ceiling. I also wanted the whole bathroom to be a wet area - tiles from ceiling to floor - no paint, except for the ceiling!

Previous to us buying this house, it was owned by a physiotherapist who worked from home. You could smell rubbing oils in the old lino, and the old fashioned light feature was on a spring, whcih pulled down from the ceiling. I quite liked that light actually - people were always fascinated in it when they came over. There was also a small sink and electric handdrier in there, which I sold for great profit on ebay ( who would have thought!).

So for 4years, this was my makeup and craft room.

The original 1930's bathroom at the front of the house had/has no electrical outlets for my hairdrier, so i'd come into my craft room to fix my hair and face. I also kept all the kid's craft stuff and my giftwrapping supplies etc in here.

DURING....

In fact, if we keep renovating each room, I'll have nowhere else to go (I'm hoping to go UP! ). I had to get rid of the craft stuff, and my photographic studio and camera/lighting equipment live in the old dining room now. It's pretty cramped :/

Another essential of the new bathroom was dual sinks - I'm sick of arguing over toothpaste dribbles and shaving cream drips that are definitely NOT mine. Now there's no argument - my sink is spotless, and his is sloppy. He tries to blame the kids now - *sigh*

There are no nooks and crannies in this bathroom. After years of old houses with dirty little spots behind the toilet etc, I wasn't going to have that again. Big broad tiles, less grout, a toilet flush to the wall with no visible pipes, sinks flush to the tiles with clean lines.

I don't have time to spend hours cleaning, nor do I have the money for a cleaner. I have to work smarter, not harder.

AFTER....

Thanks Leanne!

Hope you enjoyed today's post.

More over here at The Decorating Forum.

And don't forget to email me if you think you might like to be a part of our advertising offer.

Advertise with us?

2010-05-17T20:48:00.000+10:00

We are offering you a great opportunity for exposure. We are a multi-level blog/forum platform all in one. Our broad audience is not limited; 2 sites working together.

The Decorating Forum has been ranked by Google as number 1 on several searches for Australian based Decorating Forums.

The forum regularly has 9000+ pages viewed a week by Australians who want to talk and read about decorating, renovating and building their homes.

It is unique in that it has many members who are experienced Interior Designers willing to assist those who are looking to improve their home.

A Very Fine House is complimentary to The Decorating Forum to attract those readers that enjoy blogs. In our first 2 weeks we have already received 3,800 hits (not including those that read us through Google Reader).

We would relish the opportunity to discuss with you the opportunity to advertise with us.

Please email us for enquiries and rates.

Can you grow your business through us? We think so.

Katrina & Julie-Ann.

Before & After

2010-05-17T06:26:00.000+10:00

Sandy from Sandy's Place was kind enough to share with us some of her amazing before and after transformations. I am sure she sleeps with paintbrush in hand!

Isn't she clever? Just goes to show that a little paint can go a long way.

Don't be frightened to paint. It's the easiest transformation you can make. The cost of a tin of paint is much cheaper than a new piece of furniture!

Lots more DIY over at the The Decorating Forum today.

Please pop back lots this week as we are posting every day.

Ready, Set, Dissect

2010-05-14T05:46:00.004+10:00

Are you ready for another week?

If you are new to the game go here to find out what we do.

Pic here

Hmmmm, what do you think about this picture? Can't wait to read your comments. GO!

And drumroll please.......... The Winner of the Home Beautiful Magazine Subscription is...........

Kerry from A Tranquil House. Yippee!!

PS. Do you like the new look? It's changing as we grow. I have a few other looks I kept to the side, so this one may change yet. Maybe I should get you all to vote?

Wednesday's Walk-through {& last days for giveaway!}

2010-05-12T06:47:00.001+10:00

Welcome to Kristine from The Painted Hive!

She has been lucky enough to grab the spot of Wednesday's Walk-through.

Meet Kristine:

"Not ashamed to confess she's a designaholic, Kristine started her blog, The Painted Hive, only two short months ago to diarise and share her love of all things home.

A self-taught interior decorator, stylist, photographer, furniture restorer and home handywoman her blog philosophy, 'Making House a Home for Honey' is all about creating beautiful and liveable interiors on a budget!

Although an event planner by day, her small furniture refurbishment and design consultation business, Lemonbutter Furnishings and Interiors, is her real passion.

Kristine lives in a semi-rural pocket just out of metro-Melbourne, Australia, with her new husband Luke and little puppy Cooper."

For further details and images feel free to visit her blog, The Painted Hive.

Before: The walls were originally dirty apple green and the trim was all natural brown timber. The lovely windows were a little smothered by heavy green drapery.

To lighten the room we painted all the walls Dulux Chalk USA and the trim gloss white. We also replaced the bulky green curtains with taupe roman blinds.

It's a little hard to tell by the photos though our living room is pretty tiny so the layout and choice of furnishings needed to be pretty well considered. The coffee table was a $30 eBay find I refinished.

The previous owners had a bulky couch against this wall which really cut into the space. We decided to put the TV there and it works perfectly. I found the TV bench on eBay for $80. It was originally a hall table so I cut down the legs, painted it and changed the hardware.

Our living room is north-facing so the sun shines in pretty much all day.

Themed vignettes can really create impact. This side table was found on eBay for $20. It had unattractive veneered drawer fronts so I painted them only and then re-stained the remainder of the timber.

Pop over to The Decorating Forum for more chat today.

I will be drawing the winner of our Giveaway Friday!

My Office Transformation

2010-05-10T05:59:00.000+10:00

Today I thought I would share with you a peak into my crazy decorating world. I don't proclaim to be a decorator at all, I just like to move things and paint a lot!

Most of you who know me from my personal blog would have seen some of these pictures before, but not in a story like this.

I will commentate how a brand new house (now 12 months old) has received THREE makeovers in the office already.

This is how it looked on the very first day...blank canvas.

The 3 photos above are how it first looked. Ok, it's gross. I was going through my 'black and green' stage. Readers need to know that this little ‘duck’ waits for nothing. Nope, I do not sit back looking at an empty room; I find ALL the crap left over in my house and throw it together. I am not one of those normal people that waits until I have enough money to do something special or fantastic... I do not sleep very well knowing there is an empty room. Poorly done Katrina, I know.

Oooooo... looky here.. it's my 'pink and something' stage. Again, just a shuffle of random left-over bits in my house. The chalkboard was cool, but I just slapped that paint straight on the wall (don’t even ask how I got it off – think electric sander).

I must explain the desk bench and shelf. I had a brainwave (I have these often, whether they are successful or not is another story). I had seen on TV where someone bought a door from Bunnings and used this. So I made my husband buy a series of doors and brackets, and drill massive holes into the walls of our newly built house. Was he happy? No, but I am the boss. Next picture please...

What have we here? Hmmm.... was my husband right? Could I admit to him that the whole office looked awful and rushed? Yes, I had to. I had to admit this to him so he would pull every bit of it down and start again (this time I had saved some money!). So now the process began of filling up all the holes - in our newly built, less than 6 months old house.

What is he doing?? Ssshhhh... please DO NOT say anything about that piece of devon on his head (aka bald spot). He is tricking us here in the photo; he did not do this wall! So what's the wall all about anyway? It's paint (not a sticker). I saw this idea over here and I decided I had to do one. I stayed up late one night sketching it all on and with a fine paint brush I started filling it in. I was a nervous wreck. I had never done anything like it before.

Coming together and making a big mess as I go!

And... finished! Oh gee I was so happy! The paint was ‘Taubmans Shale Grey’.

So in went some new furniture I saved to buy, and a few other bits and pieces. With some fancy photography I think it's looking pretty good. What do you think?

Watch the vlog above to see me talk about it only for about 1 minute (warning - turn DOWN your speakers - I have irritating loud voice, I know this!)

Last days to enter our Giveaway - hundreds of entries!

Also, I will be chatting with the gang at The Decorating Forum today.

Ready, Set, Dissect.

2010-05-07T06:38:00.000+10:00

Ready for another one? Last week's response was amazing! Thanks so much. We loved laughing at some of the comments.

Gail said she was agitated.
Annie needed a nanna nap.
Nanny Pickle said the stylist was on some sort of hallucinogen.
I liked it, except the colour was a bit too much.
Kerry said she would see herself in a whole new dimension - 'does my bum look big in this'?
Julie-Ann agreed that the mirrors were too much, but said the colours are coming back in.
AimeeN really loved it.

Please go back to this post to read what you have to do if you missed it last week.

Pic here

Don't forget our GIVEAWAY too.

And again, lots of chatter over here.

PS. I am endeavouring to visit all our new readers - so I will see you soon over at YOUR blog.

Get to it!
Ready, Set, Dissect!

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-05-05T06:28:00.000+10:00

Hiding behind the tag Brismod is Anita who writes a blog called Fun and VJs, which chronicles the renovation work on a tired old Queenslander home. Anita’s background is in corporate communication but she has a particular interest in architecture, design and vintage furniture. She is married to Jason (famous for his shirtless renovating) and has three young sons.

Fun and VJs – Lounge room

Earlier this year, we renovated our lounge room in our 1930s Queenslander home. It wasn’t an overly complicated job but with three boys running around the house (the youngest is one year old), it was still an arduous task.

It took approximately three weeks from go to woe – removing and replacing architraves, sanding and preparing the walls, then undercoating and painting the three metre high walls. The noisy work was done on the weekends, while painting was done at night.

The old cream colour scheme in the room made our vintage mid-century furniture seem particularly drab. Therefore our main mission was to make the room appear brighter and airier.

For me, it is still a work in progress in terms of decorating, but at least we have a decent blank canvas upon which this room will evolve over time.

Most of our furniture and art in this room has a story or family connection and is vintage Australian mid-century. I believe a home should have objects with personal resonance to make it a real home.

Furniture, rug and objects – thrifted or handed down from family or friends

Lighting – David Trubridge Coral pendant light

Large art work is from a photograph of my great-grandfather when he was in French Polynesia

Large modernist screen print by late Gold Coast artist Veda Arrowsmith

Retro telephone table with teak lamp

This photo shows the breeze way with tulip design which is characteristic of Queenslander homes

The art work is a portrait of my Tahitian mother and the landscape is of bungalows over the water in Tahiti

This is the shelf directly under our wall mounted flat TV. This is the corner I’m not enthused about. We have the dreaded visible TV cords which are left dangling.

Lack floating shelf from IKEA, objects thrifted or were gifts

Art deco side table with salvaged Station of the Cross.

So pop over and visit Anita and feel free to ask her any questions about this room!

We are also discussing lots more houses over at The Decorating Forum today.

And don't forget our GIVEAWAY!

Special Touches

2010-05-03T06:04:00.001+10:00

Julie-Ann and I have been discussing elements that can make your home feel special, fresh and enriched. We decided that these 10 tips are easy to achieve and thought we would share them with you!

We would love you to share your ideas in the comments too.

1. Flowers - if you are like me you will have to buy them for yourself. And why not? After all, I am sick of cleaning up after stinky boys, listening to my husband snore and battle the supermarket. I deserve them! So do you.

Pic me.

2. Books/magazines - what's not to like about a bit of sweet fantasy? Whether it's a beautiful home book, an inspiring novel, or a trashy gossip magazine, I think we need a collection of these to help us escape from our monotony. Who doesn't need a good drool or a laugh?

Pic here

3. Aroma - kids and men? This is why we HAVE to have nice aroma. I love swanning around in a fresh smelling house. Natasha (who owns this photo) sold me some of these candles a while back. She wrote on her facebook last night that her husband rang on his way home from work and said.... "Hon, can you run me a hot bath, and put some of that stinky stuff of yours in it?" Coincidence but so true and hilarious! Even men need a good scrub up at times!

Pic here

4. Cleanliness/no clutter - I know, I know, I am a little over the top. Yes this is my office at home and it stays like this. I can't concentrate or produce lovely blogs *wink* if I work amongst mess. It feels good to have everything in its place.

Pic me.

5. Colour - a little bit of colour puts a spring in my step!

Pic here

6. Grouping accessories - grab all of your favourite things and group them in a little arrangement. You don't need to scatter everything all over the house. Leave some spots bare as a statement and group other things.

Pic me.

7. A bit of bling - whether it's perfume, a sequin cushion, chandelier or a lampshade with crystals, every girl needs a little bit of bling in the home. Show it off!

Pic here

8. A throw rug - the weather is getting cooler in Australia and this time of the year calls for a throw rug close by. I love cuddling on the lounge with one. My boys love them too and it actually doesn't matter what time of the year it is, they love a little rug across their legs.

Pic here

9. Fresh sheets - need I explain? Who doesn't love fresh sheets? Go on, tell me who irons them too??

Pic here

10. Comfort food - coffee, chocolate.... what's yours? What's a home without some comfort food handy for everyone?

Pic here

Please don't forget that every comment gets you an entry into our House Beautiful magazine giveaway.

We will be discussing lots of topics today over at The Decorating Forum, so we would love to see you there. Feel free to join in. We won't bite!

Win this.

2010-05-01T06:26:00.002+10:00

Julie-Ann and I would like to reward one of our lucky readers with 10 issues of House Beautiful. We want to thank you for being so kind and coming back to visit us.

I am going to make this super easy - just leave a comment anywhere on this blog and you are in the running. Comment on more than one post and you will get more entries! I will let you know when I am closing the draw and announcing the winner.

I subscribed to House Beautiful myself earlier this year, so I promise you won't be disappointed.

How nice will it be to receive a gorgeous magazine in the mail each month rather than dreaded bills every day?

Did you play along with us yesterday in Ready, Set, Dissect? If not, click here to see what some of us said about this room.

So keep commenting and keep coming back as there is plenty more to come.

Ready, Set, Dissect.

2010-04-30T05:50:00.004+10:00

This is a little game that we played over at The Decorating Forum, but we have decided to make this a weekly Friday feature here from now on.

The Aim:

I pick a room that I think has good and bad elements. It's not a room that everyone will love. But it is a room that I am sure has some great points about it, and some horrid points about it. Not everyone has to like it, and that's the idea of the game.

I want you to tell me what you think - love it or hate it - be honest. Tell me what you think of the furniture, the colours, or what could be added.

It's fun because I encourage you to come back over and read the comments. Some are hilarious! It's interesting to me because what I see is not what everyone sees. That's the beauty of interior design.

So... Ready, Set, Dissect... Hit me. I would love to see you spew about this room, want to live in it, or graffiti the walls. What do you think? I will pop into the comments section too and add my thoughts here and there.

I will be posting again over the weekend as I have a surprise for you!

So please come back.

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Pic Room Envy

Wednesday's Walk-through

2010-04-28T06:28:00.001+10:00

Welcome Mel from Mel's Rose Place!

Mel has been blogging for a few years now. She is based in the Australian bush and lives in a beautiful home surrounded by wide decks, lilly pilly trees, huge gum trees, fragrant hedges and her rose garden. She lives with her husband and 2 gorgeous daughters. She loves taking pictures of her home and life - things are forever changing. She has some excellent decorating ideas and has collected some gorgeous pieces of furniture over the years. Her basic theme for her whole house focuses on white with accent colours in each room. Mel also gave us a tutorial on how she did the black and white frames on the wall (she printed the images straight from her computer!)This room is my favourite in her house! We have lots more of Mel's house to show you over the coming months.

This is what Mel says about her room:

"I could not decide what colours to do in this room, it has had many changes. Katrina think it was you who said you really liked the blue and black and it got me thinking to try that. Then saw the free black and white print outs from The Paint Place and decided in one afternoon that I would go and get some black frames, print them and put together with some vintage blue plates I bought ages ago.

The couch is a big squooshy one from Bayswiss which takes up a lot of room but is hugely comfortable!

If I could change anything it would be the actual layout of the room - we have a big tv in the opposite corner and because of the site of windows, doors etc there is not enough walls to put furniture against. I am about 90% happy with this room."

So pop over and visit Mel and feel free to ask her any questions about this room!

We are also discussing lots more houses over at The Decorating Forum today.

Welcome.

2010-04-22T12:05:00.010+10:00

In conjunction with The Decorating Forum, we are please to present to you the newest blog on the block....

So welcome. We have lots happening. Lots will be unravelled.

Some of you may know me from my personal blog Katrina Chambers.
This is what my blog says about me:

I am a mummy to 3 rascal boys and a wife to a hard-working Aussie bloke. I sell new houses for a building company and we have just moved into our own newly built house. I am obsessed with blogging and tweeting...actually include facebook and my iphone too! I like to think I am in my early 20s, but I don't like to stay up late like a 20 year old. I don't keep much to myself either. I am a magazine junkie and will paint a wall (in my new house!) every week a new colour if I could. I love a project.

This new blog has teamed up with Julie-Ann Hind and her highly successful and Number 1 ranked Google site, The Decorating Forum.

This is what Julie-Ann says:

I am a mum to a gorgeous teenage boy, a wife to a very busy man and I run two businesses- no wonder I am busy :-) . I work as an Interior Designer based in Perth. But a huge (and fun) part of my day is spent chatting away on the Decorating Forum which is a forum where we chat about decorating, renovating or building our homes. It’s a tough job but somebody has to do it!

What are we about?

This blog is all about our homes. Original, quirky, fun, or on a budget...nothing will be excluded. You will see a collaboration of our friend's houses, those we like to drool over in magazines, fun games, product reviews and even recipes.

If you have something to share with us, please email us.
Or you may find me knocking on your door too!

Don't be shy and jump over to The Decorating Forum for a chat and some fun.

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