Travelling Musings

I love to travel and after just getting back from a trip overseas and still feeling exhilarated, then coming across this inspiring post at the gorgeous The Bottom of the Ironing Basket today, it has made me want to share my own thoughts on travelling.

I swear by the motto The World Is A Book And Those That Don’t Travel Read Only A Page

Thanks to my parents who took my brother and I around the world for 6 months when I was the impressionable age of 18 I got a taste for travelling that I may not have otherwise taken an interest in.

Although I couldn’t even drink in some countries (not that it stopped me!) I was old enough to catch the travelling bug and knew that if I wanted to go back to the places I loved and explore new places I’d have to work hard, save harder and then just DO IT!

Years after that trip I picked up the book 1000 Places To See Before You Die and decided then and there to make my list and plan a trip each year some big overseas and some small interstate, solo and with friends, anything just to pack my bag and go off on an adventure.

Travelling is so exhilarating and some of my best travel memories are:-

Spending New Years in a different country

Being in Rio de Janeiro for Carnival

Driving thousands of miles across Australia. 

Eating seafood daily in Tasmania. 

Living a childhood dream and visiting theme parks with my brother in Queensland. 

Cruising the seas on cruise ships being treated to 5 star luxury 24/7. 

Indulging in fresh figs every morning in Ibiza picked fresh from the tree. 

What are your best memories from travelling?

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[Images via Angelo Cavalli and Flickr]

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September in Spain

Ola! I'm back from a trip overseas we're Peter and I spent 3 exciting weeks jetting about and seeing the sights of Madrid, Ibiza, Barcelona and Amsterdam. I love to see the world and how different each country is and how the people live. Spent the most time in Ibiza as I was there for my dear friends wedding. A group of us stayed in a big 2 storey white stone villa in the countryside of Sant Carlos. I loved the look of the white walls, potted succulent and cactus gardens against the contrasting red stoned earth. I plan to bring a bit of the holiday home with us and put some of the Spanish design into our own house and garden.

This is the outside oven which we fired up and made pizzas



The villa at the back, outside oven to the right and laundry to the left

Had an amazing time but in the words of Dorothy there's no place like home and it's so good to be back in Aussie Land. Now to catch up on some blog reading, hope everyone is well and happy. Pin It Now!

Sneak Peak At Craft Room / Study

The furniture is in, the paperwork organised and filed away, the wrapping station is set up, the drawers are sorted with papers and crafty bits and bobs. Yes the Craft Room/Study is coming together nicely.

Here's a sneak peak at setting up the latest room ....

These baskets I scored at a market for $2 and the frame 50c and blasted it with 2 cans of sunny yellow to bring the feature colour into the room.
 

 

The white furniture we already had and just changed the handles to those we salvaged from the old wardrobe we ripped out in the Master Bedroom. Updating handles makes such a difference doesn't it?

 

 

I still need to find some funky storage boxes so it doesn't look so mitchy matchy, a hardy rug to protect those gorgeous floorboards and a big sturly bookcase then I'll be all moved in.

What do you think?
Do you like the pops of yellow?

[All images my own]
 

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DIY: Art Card Frame Inserts

I have been getting my craft on in the master bedroom and made these art cards.

The bedroom really needed some more splashes of red to go with the black/white/red colour theme.

They were super cheap and easy to make. I picked up some shiny silver card and cut it to fit the frames, stuck on the chipboard buttons and whola!

Doesn't really matter what's in the frames you can't stop looking at that high gloss red it just screams LOOK AT ME when you walk past. The hard part is finding a spot for them. I got the drill out all ready to put them on the wall beside the wardrobe but they just didn't look right. Think they're a bit too small for a big wall, plus being on the side makes the wall look out of balance. So they're displayed on top of the tallboy for now.

Cost breakdown:

Silver paper Spotlight    40c

Love square buttons Spotlight    $4

S&P Patent Frames Myer    $22

Now what to put on the wall .... I'm thinking a large mirror. Black frame or Chrome. Hmmmmm it definitely needs something! Any ideas?


If you join Blitsy a one stop shop for discounted craft supplies and make a first time purchase it would be awesome if you use my referral code HERE - you will get great discounts and I get a $10 reward to spend on my creative obsession so I can share more posts like this with you guys!

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[All images my own]

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Craft Room/Study: It's got to be P.E.R.F.E.C.T

The study/craft room is finished!

Horray!!

Horrah!!!

Its all freshly painted and waiting patiently to be filled with furniture odds n bobs.

I’m pretty sure we’re getting more fussy with each room. It had to be P.E.R.F.E.C.T. The ceiling was sanded and painted, the window and door frames were sanded and got an undercoat and 3 coats of white (see what I mean), the walls were painted with 2 thick coats of Mountain Peak.

The floorboards got filled, sanded and coated with Tung Oil and then recoated again in the places that the oil didn't take to until it was P.E.R.F.E.C.T! Now just to wait for the floors to completely harden so can move the furniture in. Takes a few days but better than to scratch the now P.E.R.F.E.C.T floorboards.

Hung up some shiny silver blinds and we are done and done.

Will show some before and afters once I've set it up nice n pretty. For now will share some of our tricks of the trade ...

This is the lazy mans paint stirrer - you just attach it to a drill and let it do the work (costs about $5 from Bunnings)

Yes that colour did turn into grey eventually!

And this is what you do when you have to paint again in a few hours or even the next day .... Bugger washing out the roller, just wrap it in gladwrap and stick it in the fridge and it stops the paint from drying out. Cool hey!

I'm so happy it's another room we have renovated in the house

Stay tuned for some before and afters of the craft room/study coming soon!

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[Images my own]

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Why You Shouldn't DIY With The Heater On!

If your varnishing the floorboards in the freshly painted study with super stinky Tung Oil and then shut the door and windows so no dust falls onto said glistening wet floorboards then DO NOT turn on your gas heater! Why?

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 

We couldn't work out why our brand new heater was letting off a strong kerosene smell each time it was turned on. So making use of the 5 year warranty we rang the friendly folk at Rinnai and spoke to 3 people who all asked the same question "Have you been renovating, using paints etc".

Turns out the gas heater will emphasise any chemical smells in the house and as we'd been painting all weekend + doing the floors = yes this combination was definitely a problem.

So the solution? 

Open all the windows and doors for the cold winter winds to blow through and let the fresh air in and the chemicals out. Problem solved! Now it's been 3 days we are back to cranking up that heater even more to warm the now freezing house back up again!

Probably common sense, but these little things seem to stump you at the time. Just another misadventure in the Jarrah Jungle renovations!

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Real Living

On the same date every month I race home and check the mailbox. Excited like a kid waiting for a letter from Santa. I eagerly walk towards the little white mailbox straining to see whether that glossy plastic wrapper sticking out is just junk mail or ... wait ... opens lid ... YES my Real Living magazine has arrived!

I cannot wait to race inside, rip off the wrapper, pour a wine, put my feet up and drool over this months glossy pages. A magazine subscription is a great gift for someone (or yourself). It's the gift that keeps on giving!

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