a before and after kitchen !

Not my kitchen, but one I hand-painted for a client, earlier in the year, before I got the job in the cafe.
I promised a couple of people the pictures, so here they are finally.
I didn't manage to get pictures with the clients belongings back in place, but hopefully you can see the difference.

Before

The kitchen was originally hand-painted in yellow and white and had a lot of eighties detail. My client was offered a new kitchen by her husband (nice guy) but said she loved this kitchen, so I repainted it, and they had new work surfaces (corian), floor tiles and appliances.

After

Ok, so this is probably why I haven't posted it before, because the photos are quite boring, but she just wanted a cream kitchen (with one exception) and no paint effects.

Before

Now you can see why it needed doing, with all the water damage around the sink unit, after over 20 years of use (and three kids).

After

All spruced up with hours of painting, and filling, and varnishing, and finished off with crystal handles.

Before

After

They just need to get their very old chairs re-upholstered, and the oven needs fixing in properly.

Before

After

The door in the middle goes into the laundry room.

Before

After

My client wanted a blue dresser, and I think it's great to have a bespoke piece. It took us a couple of days to get the colour right, but she loved it in the end. I should have taken that awful chair out of the shot !

Before

After

After

After

My clients were lovely people, but I don't miss this work. I don't miss sitting on the floor for hours, with a painful back and knees (the whole job took me 100 hours) and I don't miss the travelling. This job was north of London and I had to stay there, and I'm really a bit of a homebody.

Having said all that I have just accepted a small commission to do some murals. They won't take me long, I can get the time off work and there will be no bending down (as they are over double beds). I will post pictures later on.

This week we're pretty busy at the cafe because it's half term, and on Saturday I will be working all day and most of the evening because we're having fireworks on the beach. We're going to do a BBQ and pumpkin soup (that's the head chef's job, I'm just the helper!). I hope the rain holds off because it could be fun, last year they reckon 300 - 400 people showed up ! 

Wish me luck - I just hope me old knees hold up !!

my multi-purpose mini guest room # 3

I need to keep all my sewing stuff in here because I have no place else for it.
I have quite a few things - threads, fabric, cross-stitch charts, canvases, ribbons and trims, and lots of unfinished needlepoint.
In my early 20's, I worked in a needlepoint shop in London, and so tried lots of different techniques. I even did lots of extra sewing for the shop in the evenings, in order to save to go travelling.
So, now it's stashed all over this little room.

Ribbons and all kinds of trim are in the Ikea drawers.

I just have to decorate them !

As I'm trying to spend as little money as possible, I used some floating shelves I already had, but added the corbels underneath to make them fit in with the scheme a bit better.

Some cross-stitch charts and sewing magazines are in the box files. I covered these years ago, with photocopies of the fabric in the room.

It still needs a bit of sorting out !

Pandy (my bff) found 4 matching jars, that fit perfectly in my wire rack - they'll be filled up soon enough.

On the table are my favourite peces. 

My Grandmother's sewing box.

Her button box.

Her tin with hooks and clips (written on a very scrappy piece of paper and stuck on).

A dish I love with a little scissor case and wooden needle holder.

I made up the patchwork design on the scissors case, it's on 18 gauge needlepoint canvas, and done with silks, but I didn't do the finishing. We had an amazing lady at the shop who made these up with the tiny piping. She also made up beautiful cushions and eye-glass cases, and worked on soft furnishings for an interior company.

And the reverse.

There are canvases and bigger trims in the baskets under this table. 

This area needs a bit more work, and the sewing machine will probably sit here, or at the end of the bed when I have made a cover for it.

Finally, I managed to find some cheap storage boxes to fit under the bed and hold all my fabrics. Five of them fit perfectly.

So another long, drawn out post, you know I can't do short ones (though I have tried !). 

The guest room is nearly done, just a light fitting to finish (I've been on it for weeks !). A few bits of sewing to do and the Ikea drawers to decorate.

Do you see the coaster on the edge of the table, that's for a glass of water ...............it is a guest room after all  !!!!!!!!!!!!!

linking up with

Make it pretty Monday @ The Dedicated House

Tuesdays Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays @ Coastal Charm

Cowgirl Up @ The Farmhouse Porch

Knick of Time Tuesdays @ Knick of Time

What's It Wednesday @ Ivy and Elephants

Wow Us Wednesdays @ Savvy Southern Style

Primp Your Stuff Wednesdays @ {Primp}
All Star Block Party @ Full Circle Creations

Open House Party @ No Minimalist Here

Pot Pourri Friday @ 2805

Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage
Vintage Inspiration Friday @ Common Ground
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest

Sunday's Best @ My 1929 Charmer

 

the beast has gone !

I never liked the large spidery beast.
The beast dominated our living-room.
Even when I painted the beast white, he still spoiled all my photos with his gangly limbs.

THE BEAST HAS GONE at last.

In his place - a white lacy ball.

A white lacy ball that is by no means perfect - but which is pretty perfect for my living-room.

A quiet, understated, soft piece of whiteness that doesn't detract from everything else.

I LOVE my lacy ball !

 

The tutorial on how to make this is here and it's WAY WAY WAY better than mine, but I first saw it here at my dear friend Olga's blog.
My lacy lampshade lost it's shape a bit while I was trying to sew a fitting to it, so I may take it down and re-do it, but it's soooooooooo much better than the before.

Before

After

***********************************

 

 

Please take a moment to read this post from another dear friend, Maureen.

It is a very heartfelt piece about a child who was shot in the head because
she dared to blog about her life, something which we all take for granted.

 



my imaginary shop !

For quite some time, I have been creating items for an imaginary shop. I had some success with furniture on ebay, but a few things didn't sell. I've also been working on some little gifts (since last Christmas actually - doesn't time fly !).

My studio is getting overloaded, so I need to sell some of the following pieces, in the not too distant future.

A decoupaged letter rack with cute little feet. The postcards are from The Graphics Fairy and Knick of Time Interiors. The stamps are mine.

It started out life like this.

Another letter rack, painted the same way as this little table.

My favourite pieces are of framed cutlery. These are really hard to photograph, so apologies for the quality of the pictures.

All the box frames are from charity shops. I spray painted the cutlery and rubbed it back a bit. I used little bits of organza ribbon to give a little focal point, and various back papers, some stained with tea. And of course, my trusty hot glue gun.

I've also been collecting keys, and this is the only one I've used so far.

I took some of my goodies to a place in Arundel where there is a co-operative. I can have a shelf, or two or three to display stuff, for a fee, but I also have to work there once a month. I don't mind that, but I won't be allowed to sell decoupaged or 'worded' pieces, because these would clash with other people's work. I felt it was all a bit small minded, so haven't gone back - yet !

My bff Pandy is trying to organise a Christmas party in another friend's house, where I will be able to sell some things, and then of course, there is etsy. I basically need a big kick up the derrier, to make me move on with all this stuff.

Pandy is coming down in a couple of weeks to do just that. She's also found loads more box frames for me, and is working on her own things (she did the little button heart above).

Sharing all this with you has made me realise, that I really would love to make more of this stuff.

I think Pandy needs to get her kicking boots on !!!