been busy

so i mentioned yesterday that i've been a little crafty - just simple things i've been meaning to do for weeks now but haven't had the time.

please excuse the condition of all these photos - it's been an extremely dark and overcast day - *sigh* oh well!

first up i had these really old coasters (i think they were a wedding present some 20 yrs ago!!)...

and i have an old set of encyclopedias that i'm using currently for anything from propping up my new desk top, to propping up furniture for painting - or pulling out pages for craftiness. they're getting more use than they have ever had!!
after some cutting and some glue - here's the almost finished product -

i am just in the process of adding layers of matte varnish - however on close inspection of the back of the bottle - it mentions not to place really hot items in contact with the varnish as it may affect it - so......we'll see how it goes. it's a water-based polyurethane (brand - jo sonja's).
anyhoo - they look way better than the original - so far so good - i'll keep you posted.

second up - we have a home gallery wall that we set up for kidlette artwork in 2005 in a hall between the lounge and the family rooms. here's a 2005 pic -

(our family room hasn't changed much since this photo - although there is a huge clock now on that empty wall. oh - i'm such a tease!!! i promise to show photos one day soon - just haven't had the energy to clean it up for photos. it currently looks like a chinese laundry!!!)

anyway - back to the story - this home gallery was put together by my clever mr w. - as we live far far away from ikea - and we had to improvise with items from the local hardware store.
here's what's holding it up -

plug in wall, hook in plug, stainless steel wire and boat wire stainless steel toggle

it's been a neglected area of late - we add things now and then - but the kids don't bring home as many 'master pieces' as they did when they were little - so i decided to print some of goob's great photos out - nice and large and on good photo paper - and triple j realised what i was doing and started making some updated artworks of her own.

here's the start of the changes - with some changeover of pics -

(those building pics are triple j's work - and yes - that eye photo is freaky - yet hard to turn away from!!!)

so i got out some of my very neglected craft items and started to make a garland to pretty things up......

card, paper, printed out letters from a word doc, glue, little hole punch - and then some string (not in photo)

and below is the outcome - still not completely finished but a whole heap prettier......(it needs more - maybe some bigger pom poms - those were my first attempt at making them from a great tutorial i found on pinterest!! great blog over at house of smiths!!!)

garland says - "we love to make"

it's awaiting some art from eky - however she's been a little overloaded with assignments over the weekend - so we've left space to add. and i'm determined to keep it more updated.
as i said in yesterdays post - i start 'making' and so do my kids. goob saw me printing out photos and grabbed her camera again and headed out into the garden (after spending the greater part of the day chilling out watching tv - it was a cold and lazy sunday!!) they got busy - and it stayed like that for the rest of the day.
*love*

so that's it from that space for now. it's very dark - the previous owners that built the house never thought this little hallway would need light - so we're thinking of finally putting some low voltage down lights in. (and maybe some fairy lights!!) it's a great little gallery - and when you walk through the house from front door to back - you don't realise it's there until you're on it.
and if i keep it updated - it keeps the kids busy making stuff - and that makes me happy and them!

oh - and don't judge me - but i moved around furniture in the loungeroom once again today. (my family are all a little over my changes really!!)
it's an awkward space - and it's keeping me awake at night - but i think i'm finally getting there. (my family sure hopes so!!)
it has a huge piano that takes up loads of space and everyone must walk through this room to get through the house - and i haven't liked how you walk in the room and see a huge tv screen.
we were never going to get such a large tv for this area - but we won it!!! yep - you read that right - together with a trailer and loads of electrical goods!! it was a raffle we entered and figured that we'd never win - but were happy to support the cause (it was the local soccer club fundraiser) - and we won!! i screamed - a lot - that day!!!!
anyhow - this is the arrangement up until about lunch time today -

this is the view when you walk in the room from the front door - see - big flippin tv

view from the other way as you walk past the gallery wall (mentioned above) from the family room

the carpet will go - would love wood floors - don't know if my jobless/ uni student state will allow that to happen - we'll see how the tax man likes us later in the year!
wall colour is all wrong - leaning now towards a  light grey grey.
cabinets are also the wrong white - too stark and cold (i hate picking bloody white paint!!!) - will rectify very soon.
so that bigger cabinet up there can fit the tv - it just needs a little internal reconfiguration.
today i moved that cabinet to where the tv is - and that little cabinet near the tv up to where the big one was.
(confused now?? you're not alone!!)
now i'm working on convincing the family that this will work. it will. i know it..damn it!!!
they'll still be able to use the tv - but it won't be in your face in the open all the time.
anyhow - that's my problems for the moment - a work in progress - and i just want to get it right.
checking out some paint colours tomorrow.
the pool is straight out from this room - but currently we have no doors directly out from this room. we want to take out these windows and open it all up - but that will require putting in a big supporting beam - and one quote we got last year was over $16,000.........so that job will just have to wait. *sigh*
for now - i just want to get the inside sorted. hey - it's winter luckily - so the need to go out to the pool is a little diminished right now.

so - i'm rambling  - sorry.

in one other piece of news that really excited me today - my fairy lights arrived for my inspiration board (ebay baby - love it!!) no inspriation board is complete without them really!!!!!

they're battery operated and everything!!!! i lurve fairy lights!!!

love!!!!

hope things are good wherever you are!
hugz,
mrs c. xox