Kitchen inspiration

Now that our project start is imminent I can allow myself to be inspired!  I think we will have cream or white units and a wooden worktop.  I like how the wood warms up the pale units.  One of my favourite things about this picture is the shelf unit on the wall.  I am on the lookout for a similar one.  It adds some interest and colour to the kitchen while still being functional.

Photos from ideal home and house to home

The inspiration from this picture is the pale sage colour on the walls.  I have been thinking for months that this is the colour I want for our new kitchen and this picture proves it is a great idea!

Remember, remember the 8th of November

Oh, very exciting news, the builders are hoping to start work on our extension and renovation on the 8th November.  That is also our wedding anniversary so it should be a happy day of celebration all round!

You'll remember the previous photo of the "sun room".  Well, this will be demolished which is great news as it has moss growing on the inside of the windows and a very squint floor.  It will be replaced with a new pitched roof extension which will house our new kitchen. 

This is the architect's drawing of what the back of the house will look like with the new extension.  There are also velux windows shown in the roof which is the next phase.  If we have any money left, we will convert our loft!

Sorry this picture isn't very good, but it shows the layout of our house and the new kitchen/family area, utility and loft bedrooms.  Down the left hand side of the picture is the front of our house so to help you get your head around it, both our sitting room and master bedroom both look out to the front. 

I have my cold fingers and toes crossed that the builders will start on 8th November as it is very cold here now and we are struggling a bit with our old storage heating system.  I actually saw snow on the hills for the first time this year at the weekend! Our poor little boy doesn't have a heater in his room so we have been leaving his door open all night to let the heat in from the hallway which luckily seems to be keeping his room warm.

More to come soon on ideas and inspiration for our project.  Have a lovely day!



First Shoes

We've been shopping and got our little boy his first pair of shoes.  They are a size 5 which, having spoken to my friend's and my mum, seems like it is quite big for a first pair of shoes.  My friends have 2 1/2 year olds and they only have size 6 feet!  He can't walk yet but we needed a pair as he crawls around at the park and gets cold feet when he is in the buggy so now he will be nice and toasty.

Here he is with his new shoes on!  He tries to say shoes now whenever we put them on or take them off now too.  It sort of sounds like this... "Ssshhhhhhhhhsssss".

I'm back!

Hi, I am back from a busy week away at my mum's with my little boy.  I have been getting in the Christmas spirit this week as I am an Independent Phoenix Trader selling their gorgeous greeting cards, wrap and stationery and Christmas has arrived in the land of the greeting card!  So, I held a party at my mum's house for all her friends last week then had one here in our house for all my friends, old and new, this week.  I was quite busy and am amazed at how organised people are to be able to order their Christmas cards already!

Since we moved house I have been keen to earn a bit of money as being a stay at home mum is rewarding but not in the financial sense.  So selling cards is my contribution to our renovation budget. 

If you are interested in seeing the lovely cards I have been selling take a look at My Phoenix Trading website.  Don't worry, I am not trying to sell them to you.  They are just very lovely.  They even do mermaid gift wrap which I think is fabulous!

I've been tagged ...

I've been tagged by my new blogging friend Sarah at Modern Country Style.  It was really interesting reading a bit more about Sarah and I hope this will be a little insight about me! 

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
I always wanted to be a mermaid!

What do you like most about where you live?
We live in a small village called Aberdour on the Fife coast in Scotland and I love that there are two beaches that we can go to even though the sun doesn't shine very often.   

If you could only rescue three things from your house what would they be?
Oh, now, let's see!  Excluding my family members as I am assuming they will be out already, I would rescue my family photo album as I wouldn't want to lose all those memories, my favourite Emma Bridgewater mug that my husband gave me when he proposed and probably my memory box for our little boy that contains all his "first" things.

What's your favourite book?
Gosh, I don't get much time for reading these days, not past my house magazines anyway! Maybe some baby cook books if I am lucky. I really enjoyed reading the Shopaholic series of books by Sophie Kinsella and there is a new one out just now which I am hoping to get for Christmas called Mini Shopaholic.

What's your favourite room in your house?
I like our sitting room as it has two big windows and is lovely and sunny.  It needs re-decorated and a bit of a move around but it has the basis to be a good room and I like that.

What's your favourite joke?
This is a "joke" that my friend's son made up...
What crossed the road?
A rubber ducky!
I like it because it isn't even a joke but he thought it was hilarious, even though his older brother said it was silly.  I can't wait for my son to start saying funny things like that!

What would you most like to change about your house?
At the moment, I would like to change nearly everything which is what we are slowly trying to do.  If I had to prioritise though, I would say that I would like to make the bathroom into a lovely relaxing retreat. Oh, or maybe make the kitchen sunnier?!

Do you believe in love at first sight?
Yes, and, no! I believe it can happen to some people but I believe that love can also grow on you as you get to know people.  I do absolutely believe in fate though.

Lovely new chalkboard

This morning my little boy and I set off down to the village to go to the post office and chemist.  However, it appears to be a local holiday so they were both closed for the day!  I decided that because they were closed we would go to the park instead as it was a lovely sunny morning. 

On the way we pass a little shop called Coastal Reflections which opened on the day we moved here.  Perfect timing as it is all things beachy and coastal!  I treated myself to a new chalkboard for our kitchen.  I am imagining it will be just right for the style we have in mind.  We started to look at kitchen units at the weekend, very exciting!

The fabric behind it is a gorgeous Greengate one that I bought a fat quarter of from Jonathan Avery a few months back.  I think I will make one of those fabric covered noticeboards with it for my new office/study.

I hope the sun is shining where you are!