Four into 1

One of our biggest dilemmas regarding the reno has been the kids' rooms.  Do they have a room each, or do they share....

What about bunks?

One thing I do know is that they would NEVER keep their rooms this tidy.  And I'm sure there would be a lot of mucking up at bedtime with both these set ups.  The dilemma continues ......

Mood Boards

I've been creating some mood boards; just getting some ideas together for later down the track. These a just a few of my favourite things...

Oscar's Room

Look's like it'll be a while before the project actually gets going, so I've been thinking a lot about decorating each of the rooms. I've got this thing going with mid century furniture at the moment.

I fell in love with this Nifty Timber cot from Ubabub, and I just had to have it for Oscar's room.  Those George Nelson pendants are beautiful too; hard to choose which shape to go for. I'll definitely be getting some for the house.

Get on your bike

We are so lucky to have such wonderful cycleways literally at our back door, and since moving back to West End after a short stint in Orange - NSW, the whole family has ended up with a brand new bike - everyone except me that is.   So now that our youngest is almost 6 months old, I figured it won't be long before we can all go for a ride together.  So here's my latest purchase (well, it's gonna take a few months to arrive.)  I've ordered a custom built bike from Skeppshult in Sweden.  What do you think of it?

Concept plans

I met with the architects yesterday to review the initial concept plans.  Wow... was I impressed.  There are two possible schemes which are working really well.  With a bit of tweaking here and there, we should have something ready very soon.

Side Elevation

The fundamental concept is to keep the original house as public spaces (ie it will house the kitchen, dining, and living rooms) and the addition to the rear will incorporate the bedrooms and amenities.  The kitchen will have views and access points to the back (good for keeping an eye on the kids while they're playing in the yard) and the front, offering a nice connection with the street.

I envisage the house painted in Owen and Vokes' signature colour scheme:  white with black accents.  Mmmm.... loving it already.  I think I might ring Dulux and get them to change the name of their paint from "Whisper White" to "O+V".

What are we going to do with you...

The house has been a rental for many years, and it has seen better days.  The paint is peeling, and parts of the facade are falling off. I'm sure a lot of you would rather bowl the house down and start again, but there is something very comforting and rewarding in preserving an old house.  Maybe it's the character, maybe it's because it's got history, or maybe it's just because I want to save her.  This is the next phase for this house - it's time for her to have a NEW life with a NEW family - a BIG family...

I hope she likes what we've got in store for her.

School holidays

How good was the weather over the Easter break?  We went down to Yamba for a family beach holiday.  It's amazing how long the kids can entertain themselves with a bucket and spade and of course, lots of sand...

As she stands today . . .

Here's the house as it looks today.  A bit worse for wear, but it won't be long now for the transformation to begin...

Front View