Before and After TV Cabinet

My home seems to be ever changing. Especially when you find a great bargain like this TV Cabinet for $20!

It was a black wood grain veneer with silver handles, that had fallen out in some places.

A few coats of white paint later and some new handles from Ikea and it was a perfect fit in our little home… almost…

We ended up rearranging all our furniture as it was too big to fit where we used to have out TV. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as we love our new home configuration.

Special thanks to my husband who did most of the painting!

 

Baby Bonanza

A couple of weekends ago I helped plan a baby shower with a few friends for a new friend and her first baby!

We know it’s a girl so there was plenty of pink! Plus we had way too much food but a lot of fun.

Here are some decorations we made and games we set up – plenty of easy DIY.

 

Ready to pop! Popcorn jar.

 

Handwriting is not a strong point of mine (I did all the printed materials) but my sister in law created this wonderful welcome sign. (She actually make the chalkboard too, a few years ago now.)

 

Another friend made these beautiful rosettes with patterned paper.

 

Here’s a few of the games, including babies frozen in ice,  jelly babies in a novelty over-sized baby bottle and guessing games.

On the signs, this chalkboard style font is a favourite of mine lately. It’s called fff tusj.

 

 

Moody Monday

I really enjoy creating a mood board and seeing how various items come together to create a space.

Below is one of the mood boards I did for an assignment. I wanted to create a neutral and natural base for an open and comfortable feel, with feature red and teal and various patterns and textures for some fun and warmth.

Before & After Film Office

This ones goes back a couple of years now, but in keeping with Before & Afters (see my last post Before & After Inspiration) here’s one I helped out with.

My husband is a film maker and he and his partner rent a small office in the city.

It certainly isn’t the creative warehouse space you might hope an up and coming film company would be in, like this one – ooh wouldn’t that be awesome!

Source: Inspiration Feed

But anyway… the guys and I had some cool creative ideas to liven the place up. We got to work and painted and they found some artwork and new furniture that fitted their style better.

BEFORE

AFTER

Update

Well it’s been a while since I last blogged. Life has been busy; work, weddings, Christmas. I’ve also been busy updating some things in our home.

A few months back we bought a new sofa. It’s a Kaslstad sofa bed from Ikea and matching footstool. Of course along with this I also needed to buy some new cushions and a new rug 🙂

Here’s a reminder of how it was before.

So here’s an update of what our little home looks like now! I love the changes, especially the touch of turquoise.. more of that to come.

 

Moody Monday

Happy Monday everyone!

I cannot believe it’s the end of September already, but I’m in a very good mood about it anyway.

In a few days time it’s my birthday and I’ll be heading down to Deep Creek for an annual family camping trip over the long weekend in South Australia.  I can’t wait 🙂

I’ve also just handed in my final assignment of my interior design course with The Interior Design Institute. Woohoo!

So to celebrate all these wonderful things I bring you some mood boards.

This was part of one of my assignments where I had to speak to someone I know about some interior design work they would like done and treat them as client.

This assignment was actually mostly about paperwork and I only had to write up a scheme for the room but for my own purposes I created some mood boards/layouts.

This room is a teenage retreat in a family home. Somewhere for the teens to hang out, watch TV, play video games, music (including drums) and the sofa would be a sofa bed for easy sleepovers.

The trunk & footstool would double as seating and storage and along with the bookshelf and storage shelf, they all help to keep bits and pieces stored away neatly.

The mural wall is to be made of a sound absorbent material to help keep the noise from traveling throughout the rest of the house.

I wanted to create something contemporary with touches of industrial and rustic which is achieved with geometric patterns, bold colours and then industrial lighting and a few rustic wooden items. We discussed the colours grey, navy blue and mustard and I added some pops of pink/purple for contrast, fun and a more feminine touch.

The soft greys and dark carpet keep a relaxed feel while the bold shapes and pops of colour create a fun environment.

If I was still a teenager, I would love a room like this!

Moody Monday

Feeling in soft natural mood today – but can’t help but throw in some zig zag chevrons too!

Here’s a mood board for a calm but fun mix of contemporary and vintage styles.

Lucia Canvas in Mustard from Freedom

Throwback Table Lamps in Teal from Freedom

Hemnes Bedside Tables, Black-Brown from Ikea

Hayden Zig Zag Rug – Gray from Pottery Barn

Emmaline King Bedhead from Early Settler

Chrysanthemum Bedspread from Adairs

Albony Cushion in Mustard Yellow from Freedom

Natasha Mirror from Early Settler

Cancun 6 Drawer Dresser in White Wash from Freedom

Olson Lightfilter Eyelet Curtains from Freedom

Natasha Sofa from Early Settler

Tali Throw in Gold from Freedom

Floor Boards from Royal Oak Floors

Moody Monday

Welcome to my first Moody (Mood Board) Monday!

Monday’s aren’t generally a favourite day of the week but what a way to brighten the mood with a lovely mood board!

This first one I put together for an assignment and I did a bit of a mock up/mood board.  After changing floor plans, picking paint colour schemes, fabrics & finishes this is one of 4 mood boards we were asked to present.

The fictional client wanted a more open and family orientated living space, so as well as a light open feel I wanted to create a comfortable mood in the house which is achieved with soft neutrals, calming teal coloured feature wall, traditional style cabinets and  warm natural floors.

You may notice some of my influence came from last Thursday’s photo of the day

The above features:

• Aëon Illumination – Klec Pendant Light Satelight
• Antique Ale Brown Floor Boards from Royal Oak Flooring
• Crockery by Mud Australia
• FÅGLAVIK Kitchen Handles from Ikea

Home Sweet Home Pt 2

So in my last post, which just so happened to be my first post, I showed the building development of our current little ‘granny flat’ home.

Well here it is with furniture & decor and with curtains and blinds installed.

I would love to change a few things (ie new couch & other dining chairs so its even more mismatched) but this is working with what I’ve got. And it’s home 🙂

Through my early twenties I was very into sleek simple modern & contemporary styles but over the years this has evolved into an eclectic mix of this with vintage/country/rustic/provincial. I also like red… can you tell??

The bookcase below was found on the side of the road in hard rubbish collection. I painted it white, and grey on the back panel. The shelves are fixed so this proved an interesting task using a lot of masking tape. I just wish I’d taken before and after photos, but didn’t know I was going to blog about it then! The damask dining chair covers & whitewash cupboard where also DIY projects, done by my mum, and I wish I had before shots of those too.

I’ll tell you more about the kitchen some other time.

Home Sweet Home Pt 1

I thought it would be best to start with more about me and my current home.

I’m from Adelaide, Australia and I’m currently studying (almost finished) an interior design course.

I want to use this blog for interior design inspiration – styles I love, projects I’ve worked on and my own home.

My husband and I got married in December 2010 and on returning from our honeymoon, we headed to a rental property. It was great rent and a large house, a great first home – I’ll show you a few photos another time.

Just over a year ago we moved out to house sit for my parent’s in law for 6 months while they were overseas.. which meant no rent to pay woohoo! But trying to find a new place to rent after this time and get a deal as good as we had, was not looking good.

So my parents in law gave us another great opportunity! They rebuilt their old garage, which had been used as a bedroom for some time, and turned it into a living space for us, complete with kitchen and bathroom! Our bedroom is in the main house but with a back door and very close to our ‘granny flat.’

This is giving us the opportunity to save what would be our rent money, for a house deposit. So hopefully in the not to distant future I’ll be showing you pictures of our very own home but for now this is the closest thing. I got to be involved in choosing paint colours and designing the Ikea kitchen as well as a few other bits and pieces which was great fun!

So 2 days before Christmas 2012 we finally moved in (after months of builder’s promises that it would be ready sooner).

Here’s our pictures of the building progress. Unfortunately I can’t find a proper before picture, although I was sure I took some.

Framework going up, walls being changed & windows going in.

Plasterboard up.. looking better already!

Just needs a few coats of paint.

Bathroom Tiles

The Ikea kitchen being assembled.

Floor boards down… wow! Almost all done!

These floating floors are called spotted gum and I just love the variation in the boards, great colours.

Next post I’ll show you how it looks now, all moved in and decorated.