Just DIY it : Champagne styles for lemonade incomes

This week I am feeling very inspired to write.  Usually I like to talk a lot, so this  allows me time to think, reassess and focus on  future plans.

I love Spring time! The conception of new ideas and creativity. Today I have been up with the sunrise springing into action.  I tend to procrastinate, a lot!  I'm enjoying a cup of detox tea in my favourite mug which my brother in law bought me many years ago. 

Last year I turned 40 and 2 big things happened...one of which literally turned my world upside down, and in 3 months I am flying to the Southern Hemisphere to Australia.  The second big thing is that I was on the BBC Great Interior Design Challenge Series 2 viewed in the U.K in November 2014.  My episode will be shown on April 21st and 22nd on Foxtel in Australia.  I am going global!  

The Studio Lambert television crew were fantastic.  Sophie, Daniel and Tom were inspiring to be around and we all had so much fun.  In this image, Rich, me and Luke await our fate.  All will be revealed next Tuesday 21st April on LifeStyle TV Australia.

 I have always loved interiors and since buying my home 10 years ago, I have drilled, painted, upholstered, assembled and varnished nearly every surface.  I bought my home by myself so everything was done on a budget.  My mum has always sewed and my dad is a D.I.Y whizz kid, so I have learned my skills from my parents.

I came across this article called 'Brilliantly Flawed' and the page of how to get the look for yourself. 

 

Big sheepskin rug and a real fire.  What more would you need?

 

 

I had bought a wooden milking stool like this for £5 at a car boot sale a few years previous,  The legs were much longer.  I was stunned by the price of this stool, so got to work on my £5 one.

 

 

I own a drill and a well stocked tool box, but dad has a range of electrical saws so this job required a trip home to dad's tool shed.

 

Steady handed dad chopping off a few inches. This is a great saw and I use it to cut wood for my fire.

 

 

I'm sure I can think of some use for these legs!

 

The hand sander was used to smooth off the bottom.

 

It makes a perfect little meditation stool or for resting the singing bowl on.

At home in front of the fire. I have a real love for circles, textures and natural materials in the home.

 

This is what I did with the legs.  I attached a double ended screw and they are being used to hang my bags in the living room.  The end needs waxing to match the colour, that's on the list!

 

If the swing tag in the Interior Magazines is out of your league there are always other ways to recreate the look for less.  It usually requires a little elbow grease, but the satisfaction comes from knowing you have done it yourself and saved a lot of money!

 

Enjoy the GIDC in Australia on Foxtel.

 

I will be back blogging next week

 

 

 

New Year, New Wardrobe!

Happy New Year to you all ... I've a feeling that its going to be a good one!

2014 is a very significant year for me... I was born in 1974 and that means I'm turning 40 in April!  I'm really looking forward to it!

New Years always means a good clear out. The last pine needle of the tree has been brushed outside ( although Im sure I will still be finding them for the next few months in the house) the decorations are down, the house is sparkling, focus turns to a good wardrobe clearout.  Or as its called in Northern Ireland, 'a good read out'. (said as 'red')

Back in September I had decided to rip out my wardrobe, so armed with tools, wrenches, hammers and many other gadgets I rolled up my sleeves and set to work.

 

These were the 2 doors before

 

With the door frames only coming up so far it meant there was a lot of wasted space. When you live in a 2 bedroomed 1920s terrace and own a lot of clothes, every bit of space is important.

 

These nails were SO big, and took a lot of struggling with to get them free from the door frame.

 

All my clothes had to go into the spare room until the job was done.

 

A very messy bedroom floor!

 

All the woodwork off from the door frames

 

I used some of the better pieces of wood from the door frame for another clothes related project. I will share that in another post.

 

At this stage I could do no more.  The next stage involved finding a good tradesman and I found https://www.facebook.com/HandyMattNI?fref=ts'  Handy Matt' by facebook.  

 

Where the shadow is was wasted space.

 

 

Matt took away the partition wall in the middle, checking that the ceiling wouldn't fall in first and then did a bit of plastering. 

 

Then rails and shelves were added.  A curtain rail was put up.  I stitched curtain tape to a very large old Irish linen tablecloth and hung it as the wardrobe closure.

 

All the vacuuming done, and the clothes are hung in place.  Making full use of every inch of space.

 

BEFORE

 

AFTER

 ...I added the tie back today. 

 

 

 

Now that the wardrobe structure was finished, and the New Year and all its resolutions had been made it was time for a wardrobe clear out. My sister Linda of 'Hey!Homewrecker' came over last night and hanger by hanger went through the rails.  Somethings require the losing of a little weight to fit back into so its back into running and yoga as of next week.

 

Today I left 3 bags full into Oxfam :)

 

 

 

It was decided that no more charity and vintage shops are to be visited, and that although I have lots of really nice clothes, I have no basics!

 

A trip into the shops, January sales in full swing, led to me coming straight home, having bought nothing only an M&S pastry to console myself after having to deal with the nightmare that is high street shopping.

 

The kettle called to be put on, the tea was poured and up to my bedroom I went, plugged in the laptop, logged into La redoute, and shopped online for colourful basics.  Bliss ....

 

 

This little pouch is from the 'House of Colour' when you get your skin tone and hair colour assessed and shown all the colours that suit you best. Handy to have when wardrobe shopping.

 

The final curtain. 

Night night

 

xx

 

 

Recycled home haven and garden

In one week my life should return to normal working hours after 3 months sewing costumes for Game of Thrones season 4.  And while it is wonderful working on the hand stitched costumes, the hours are long and leave me pretty much with no time to do my own thing, and no time to blog about doing my own thing!
 
So this Sunday evening finds me comfortably sitting on my sofa, listening to Chopin's Nocturnes on Spotify.  My sofa being 1 of 4 things in my house that has not been salvaged, recycled or found in a skip.
 
This blog is the 1st of a few on the subject of recycling, upcycling, skip-hoking whatever tag name you wish to give it, for it has many.  Kirstie has made her own TV series about it, and I was interested to read that she has been labelled 'the pioneer of skip searching'.  Hmmm, I have been at this since art college when me and my friends Grace and Alison rescued a Denby tea set, a fish platter and a glass serving dish from a skip at the corner of Royal Avenue circa 1992.
 
Let me share a few of my finds, upcycles, recycles, re-thinks, re-fashions around the home.  Kirstie eat your heart out!
 

 

I found this old spade handle in a bag of firewood my dad gave me. I instantly thought that it had a purpose and could be saved from a firey end.

 

 

I visited my local DIY store and asked for a 'double - ended screw'.  I was given a strange look.  12p it cost.  I charged up my sisters drill and in less than five minutes had a new hook to hang my satchels on.

 

 

Leather + wood = LOVE

 

 

This satchel was a charity shop find at £7.50. 

 

 

 

An unwanted mirror with a solid wood frame becomes...

 

 

My new pin/black board.  Re-using all my corks that used to be strung up for curtain tie-backs.  I am still working my way through the paperwork!

 

 

 

Next we head upstairs to the bathroom where the towels have been neatly rolled in this rack for 7 years.  I scratched this 7 year itch, and found a use for a drawer which I picked up for free in an old closing down linen factory.  See my previous post DIY Stacking shelves for another drawer uses.

 

 

Upturned and upcycled drawer with added shelves.  Perfect for storing loo rolls.  The towels are now rolled up into a woven straw basket.

 

 

They are stacked here before getting hung on the disused spool.

 

 

 

 

 

And finally for this evening, into the kitchen for a before and after found on Gumtree.

  

 

Cast iron Tractor stool before...

 

 

Tractor stool after a coat of red gloss.  It now sits in my kitchen beside the frame of my great grandmothers Singer sewing machine.

 

 

 

 

I hope I have inspired you to look at things differently before throwing them out or giving them away. Keep following my posts to see new ways to furnish your space for next to nothing. 

 

Till next time...

 

Keep Creating and tell me what you have been DIY-ing

Christine