A Simple Repaint

I'd been thinking alot about this room,

it was a pretty room,

blue and white,

but some found the blue a little too much

I think.

So, I thought, let's just repaint it.
Nice and simple,
a quick update,
won't take long at all. 

Took all the furniture out,

except the bed,
and started on the undercoat.

Then I got to the unit in the corner.

To be honest, I have always struggled a bit with this unit,

I think it was the mirror at the back of it

or something,

so once I started with the heatgun and sandpaper

to take it back,

I decided the mirror had to go...

... and behind the mirror was a hole in the wall!!

'S okay I thought,

I'll get a new panel made to fit where the mirror was

and while I'm am it,

I think I'll replace the doors as well.

I love the t & g look,

and in a previous house I replaced some kitchen cabinet doors

with new ones made from simple MDF

but grooved out to look like t & g.

A quick call to the joinery guys

and doors and panel were under control.

Right next to the unit is the fireplace

and the fire surround,

made from kauri I think,

but so full of borer holes and tracks

that really it had to go.

You can see how the quick repaint is progressing:))

A couple of turns of the screwdriver

and the surround was gone.

The top of the surround is going to make the perfect seat.

But the rest...

stored under the house.

A trip to the local salvage yard followed

and it was destiny I'm sure,

as there at the very front of a whole stack of fire surrounds

was the perfect one.

It needs a little tlc,

but nothing that some sandpaper and paint wont fix.

Now, next to the fireplace is the wardrobe!!!

Why stop at just the walls, unit and fireplace I thought.

Let's change the wardrobe as well.

Whipped the front panels off,

though whipped is not really the right word,

cos they were seriously screwed on

and I reckon glued as well !!

My simple repaint is coming along nicely,

and it's probably just as well

that there are no more fixtures in the room

that I can get my hands on!

The new unit is looking fine:)

And the room looks a little like this right now...

I did intend being in there today putting on a top coat

'cos I can't wait to see how it looks.

But there's been quite alot of this the past couple of days...

...and it's a little chilly up that end of the house,

much much nicer down here by the fire :)

I'll do it tomorrow.

These little pretties don't seem to mind the snow...

Nor do I:))

See you

Jenny.

Time to Paint

There is a time and place for painting in winter,

I have discovered.

It's between 11 and 2.30,

and in a very specific spot in the back yard. 

At this time and in this place is the best only chance of catching the sunshine,

and the other thing I discovered...

 is that a little bit of sunshine is good - so that you can feel your fingers,

and hold the brush:))

Here's what I've been painting.

One very old rickety bench....

In desperate need of some tlc...

this bench, and the next chair, both sat on the front verandah

at the family home in Geraldine,

for as long as I can remember,

I think they were always there and it was a place to sit,

in the sun,

watching the world go by.

I think my Dad made the bench, though maybe it was my brother,

I'm not sure, but I think it was my Dad,

and I can't remember where the chair came from,

it was just always there.

When my parents moved from that home there was no place for the chair and the bench,

so I took them cos I think they are neat:)

And then there is this stool...

I bought it  many many years ago, liking it's shape,

but not liking it's colour!!

Always said I would paint it one day,

just that the ''one day'' took a while to arrive :)

So, with a good coat of undercoat...

... and a coat or two or three of paint,

they are nearly done.

Some cushions to sew, for the bench and the seat,

then the seat will take it's rightful place,

on my front verandah:)

I painted this little old shelf, too ...

Need to go make some cushions,

and I know just where to go to find the fabric:))

The cottage and it's garden

Two years ago I found the cottage at the top of the stairs.

I visited once on a Saturday, once the next Saturday, and once again in the middle of the following week.

Then I knew for sure that this was where I wanted to live.

(actually, to be honest, I knew the very first time I walked through the front door, and Jake knew that I knew, 'cos he saw that look in my eye!!:))

The cottage is our home.

And it is a "bed and breakfast" for guests from all over the world.

I have plans and dreams for the cottage and it's garden,

painting and colours,

plants and garden beds,

verandah nooks,

gorgeous bedrooms,

quilts and pillows,

places to sit and relax at the end of the day.

Where to start?

In the garden, I think.

These beds - along the back fence - desperately needed some loving, and slightly ruthless, attention.

I've neglected them a little and I made a gutsy decision to rip out any plants that I did not like!!

This was about half way through the ''lets get rid of the uglies'' garden session - now it's looking pretty bare, but there are foxgloves replanted, rose bushes have been moved in, and  penstemon cuttings transplanted.

This is a look down the other way...

There are spring bulbs coming up already in this garden bed, though you wouldn't have known it before I got started - I'm ashamed to say that it was so overgrown here, I had no idea what I would find. 

A little house for the garden faeries :)

Even though it's pretty chilly at the moment,

 and much of the garden seems to be in hibernation, 

there are still pretty little pockets of colour...

So after tackling that garden bed last week, I felt like doing something a little different this week.

Painting!

Furniture, though, not the house.

Old pieces that I have been meaning to repaint for years. 

I've done all the undercoating,

and now I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good day tomorrow so I can do the top coats.

Show you soon:)

Keep snuggly and warm.

Jenny