Quick Chair Makeover.

I won this dining set on ebay last week and decided to just do a quick recover of the seats before I flick them on. They would look a whole lot better painted white, or even black, but I really don't have the energy to do the painting at the moment. The paintwork is in pretty good condition, as is the cane backing.
I am thinking I will paint the table white at some stage and sell it at a later date. In the mean time it is just the perfect height for me to do my upholstery work. I normally work on the floor but these days my knees are taking longer to recover from all the bending, (ahhh, don't we all just love the aging process,lol).

So here is the set as it appeared on ebay.....

78 dollars later it was mine :o)

Below is the fabric someone chose to cover it in.(I refuse to pass judgement).

Below is what was under that top fabric, a good example of why we don't upholster dining chairs in cream fabric nést-ce pas?


...and below in their new outfit. Fabric $4/m at Spotlight *SCORE*.

The set has 2 carvers which I love.

...and some nice detail.

ta da!

My son has gone on his year 11 outdoor education camp today and the forecast aint looking good..."why is it so?"

Distressed Refectory Table Before/After

I bought this coffee table off ebay. I believe it is called a refectory table but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. It is a very heavy solid piece of furniture. The plan was to paint and on-sell it but guess what...I like it and I'm going to keep it :o)
I bought myself an electric sander this weekend and it made the sanding so much easier.

BEFORE....

AFTER (Below)....

See the lines in the jute rug? (BELOW). Can anyone tell me how to get these out! It's been like this since I bought it. It was rolled very tightly and the folds just won't come out. It has a rubber backing. Any ideas???

The paint colour is called MESH. I think it is a British Paints colour but I sometimes use a different brand of paint to the colour card and can't always recall.

Check out a fabulous new blogger.... Olivia at Hunter Haus

I am happy to be following Olivia's blog as she builds a home in the beautiful Hunter Valley, NSW, Australia.

Buffet/Hutch Before and After

I bought this buffet/hutch before Christmas and was kicking myself as I felt I had paid too much for it (around $200). I knew I wanted to paint it after seeing all the fabulous before and afters on other blogs but was in a quandry as to what colour to choose (I'm not good with decision making). However, I took the plunge last night (poor impulse control too - I should have been clearing the kitchen after dinner, but you know how it is). I did a little mixing of some paints that were on stand-by for various projects and came up with this grey/green colour which I am stoked with! I made the "X" feature out of timber and painted the original handles black. I love how it has come up and now reckon it's worth every cent I paid for it. I just need to replace the top glass shelf that broke when it was coming home.



So my bloggy friends, can I get an AMEN! for this project????.....................

BEFORE (below)

This project was also inspired by a buffet I saw in my OKA catalogue.
Check out their website if you like the style of this hutch.

Do you like my placemats ($2 doormats from Bunnings)

My lamps are topless as they are getting new shades made by the ever so clever Sandy at

Paint Me White

My sofa has a dropcloth draped over it while it awaits new upholstery. I'm going to use a black and white ticking-look fabric to cover it and I am looking forward to geting that done but there is so much else to do and so little time - anyone else relate?

A Fun Post

I recently took part in Emily A Clark's reader participation feature on entryways . It was a lot of fun and after having a look today at the beautiful entryways/foyers featured, I have added to my already bulging blogroll. Please do yourself a favour and go and have a look at these entrys.

I also would like to make mention of a new blog belonging to Briohny called
French Doors and Verandahs
Briohny's blog description says "Building a Coastal Style Home in Victoria, Australia and I am Dreaming of French Doors and Verandahs".
Well that was enough to have me hooked!!! This is a young blog and I know Briohny would appreciate all of your encouragement.

I thought I would show you a little something I picked up at a garage sale recently. It was one of those where you think "okay, nothing here for me", and then look what I found:o) I love these bookends, love them! (shelves could use a dusting Ange).





I picked these 3, supposedly floating, shelves up in the IKEA seconds section and they were missing the attachments needed to float them. Guessing that's why they were $7 each rather than $40-odd. I'm thinking I will paint out the brackets one of these days.

Market Flowers

As you will see from the photos below, I went to the market this weekend and bought some beautiful flowers, but as I was putting this post together I realised the first image has more vegetables in it than flowers... cabbage (kale) and a pumpkin,lol. Oh well, I love how they look and that's all that matters.

The cute wee pumpkin was an op. shop find last week for $5.

These chrysanthemums light up the room so beautifully. I bought the cane holder while I was at the market too. I had seen it before but decided it was a little more than I wanted to spend but this time it was on sale and I thought $19 was a pretty good price:o)

The fish were another op. shop find. Talk about eclectic style. I just buy what I like and hope to somehow make it all work!

I have been discovering the most wonderful new blogs lately and am looking forward to sharing them over the next while. To begin with I'd like to share Letitia's blog The White Shed
Letitia lives on a farm on the Yorke Peninsula just outside of Maitland, South Australia. She has a homeware gift and interior design business. The first 2 photos are of her shop which I am planning to visit next time we visit hubby's family in Adelaide, and the last photo is her dining room which made the front cover of Country Collections magazine. How awesome is that! Please pay her a visit and be inspired by her fabulous blog. I know I am.

So I guess you're wondering where that Country Collections Cover photo is. Well somehow I deleted it and I don't know how to get the photo to the bottom of the page again so you'll just HAVE to visit her blog to see it. You won't be disappointed, I promise.