Ceiling Problems

So something went wrong when we built the new roof.

There is a leak somewhere and it is clearly visible on the ceiling.

Oops.

My husband's been on the roof a few times to try and fix it but so far no luck.

We're waiting for better weather to dig deeper into the problem.

But it really isn't pretty... no matter how decoratively I frame it.

By the way, happy birthday little brother :-)

Kitchen Progress

We have not really done much work on the kitchen this past week.
It's more a matter of trying to get things cleaned up.
The dust is everywhere, you have to move everything to get rid of it.
We even managed to have dinner at our dining table for the first time in a month.

Yesterday was an exceptionally beautiful autumn day and I took a few photos of the kitchen.

This week I will enjoy my kitchen making dishes like vegetable soup, pasta bake, chicken with veggies, and fish with oven baked chips.

I hope you all have a great week ahead!

Kitchen Progress

The kitchen is pretty much done :-)
Everything we do now feels cosmetic.
I had plans to take some photos yesterday so that I can show you just how much progress we have made... unfortunately the weather decided not to play along. All the photos turned out very dark and doesn't do the kitchen justice. So I'll post some photos later this week.

Here is a list of the remaining things to do:
- paint the wall;
- put up a few shelves;
- build the microwave oven unit and fix it to the wall;
- connect the new oven to the gas and electricity and move it into place;
- put up the extractor unit;
- unpack more all of the boxes filling up my living room.
- paint the last kitchen wall white.
- lay the laminate floor.
- buy skirting boards and put them up.
- build a bookshelf.
- build the pantry.
- build the new ikea cabinet.
- buy a new (or nearly new) radiator.
- paint the door and window frame.
- paint the indoor window cill and fix it to the frame.
- put up a trim on the outside of the new window.
- clean everything in the house.
- remove the floating shelves in the dining area.
- remove and sell the old radiator in the dining area.
- move the light fitting in the dining area and plaster the hole.
- paint the ceiling in the dining area and living room.
- plaster the new wall in the dining area.
- paint the new and old walls near the stairs in the dining area.
- go to the spa.

Once again this week's menu will be randomly decided on a daily basis, all I know for sure is that the new oven is awesome!!

Have a great week!

Kitchen Progress

I am so impressed with the progress this weekend!
We have a floor!!!!!!!
And the pantry shelves are also in.
The clutter is becoming less and less (you cannot see it, but I have a big smile on my face).

Here is a list of the remaining things to do:
- paint the wall;
- put up a few shelves;
- build the microwave oven unit and fix it to the wall;
- connect the new oven to the gas and electricity and move it into place;
- put up the extractor unit;
- unpack more all of the boxes filling up my living room.
- paint the last kitchen wall white.
- lay the laminate floor.
- buy skirting boards and put them up.
- build a bookshelf.
- build the pantry.
- build the new ikea cabinet.
- buy a new (or nearly new) radiator.
- paint the door and window frame.
- paint the indoor window cill and fix it to the frame.
- put up a trim on the outside of the new window.
- clean everything in the house.
- remove the floating shelves in the dining area.
- remove and sell the old radiator in the dining area.
- move the light fitting in the dining area and plaster the hole.
- paint the ceiling in the dining area and living room.
- plaster the new wall in the dining area.
- paint the new and old walls near the stairs in the dining area.
- go to the spa.

I've been using my new oven and it is pure heaven. Not sure what I'll be making this week but it will be delicious ;-)

Have a great week!

Kitchen Goodies

Here are a few things for the kitchen.
I've already bought the light and the cabinet but I still have so much on my wish list... now all I need is to win the lotto!

1. Light
2. Display cabinet
3. Mugs
4. Kickboy
5. Pretty Plates
6. Herb Garden

Kitchen Progress

More painting, more cleaning, more shelves, a new back splash, the old extractor.
Yep, the kitchen is almost done.
Almost.

Here is a list of things to do (as you can see it keeps growing):

- paint the wall;
- put up a few shelves;
- build the microwave oven unit and fix it to the wall;
- connect the new oven to the gas and electricity and move it into place;
- put up the extractor unit;
- unpack more all of the boxes filling up my living room.
- paint the last kitchen wall white.
- lay the laminate floor.
- buy skirting boards and put them up.
- build a bookshelf.
- build the pantry.
- build the new ikea cabinet.
- buy a new (or nearly new) radiator.
- paint the door and window frame.
- paint the indoor window cill and fix it to the frame.
- put up a trim on the outside of the new window.
- clean everything in the house.
- remove the floating shelves in the dining area.
- remove and sell the old radiator in the dining area.
- move the light fitting in the dining area and plaster the hole.
- paint the ceiling in the dining area and living room.
- plaster the new wall in the dining area.
- paint the new and old walls near the stairs in the dining area.
- go to the spa.

Here is a photo of the kitchen last night (once again sorry neighbours for making some noise today!!). The lighting does not do the room justice and I promise to take another picture in daylight.

I also want to wish my Dad and Father in Law a very happy birthday!

DWZI - Colour!

The kitchen is getting there.

I mean it is really getting there.

A splash of colour on the wall and an oven sure changes the view.

We are in the final stretch and I'm so excited.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

(you know what we will be doing...)

P.S. Yes, that colour on the wall is way brighter than my original plan. I got a little carried away in the paint shop and decided to be bold! 

You can find all the DWZI participants here.

Kitchen Progress

Once again it was a busy weekend in terms of DIY.
Although it feels like we are doing so much, the results are not quite as visible as I'd like them to be.
We started unpacking a few things, connected the light fittings, installed a light outside, sanded the kitchen counter, gave the walls a primer and filled in lots of gaps everywhere. I bought paint for one of the walls. Truth be told I was in quite a rush and I have no idea what the color will look like on the wall. Mild Ocean. Can you picture it?

The last trip to Ikea was disastrous. Stella would not stop screaming.

Difficult is an understatement.

I cannot wait to be able to leave her at the children's play are with Heidi, but it is a while still before that will be possible.

We survived.

Hopefully this week (after work and late at night) we will manage to do the following:
- paint the wall;
- put up a few shelves;
- build the microwave oven unit and fix it to the wall;
- connect the new oven to the gas and electricity and move it into place;
- put up the extractor unit;
- unpack more of the boxes filling up my living room.

What will I be cooking this week? Well, it is certainly a mystery.
I'll be using my griddle toaster and microwave oven.

Have a great week! 

DWZI - Kitchen Decoration Ideas

Yes, you know it.
Besides the usual daily grind (working, getting stuck in traffic, making food in the microwave, taking care of the kids, worrying about everything...) we worked on the kitchen.

There is progress but is still looks like a disaster zone. The oven made its way upstairs (magically, ha ha!) and now we first have to fix a few things before it can be unpacked.

The main thing is to paint some walls.That means selecting a color since I want color!

I love this pretty wallpaper by Cath Kidston...  so perhaps wallpaper one wall and paint the other?

I've got a paint chart from Little Green Paints which I've been holding against the wall all week. The blues just feel right, but they are all so lovely.

Last but not least there is the budget to consider. I'm probably going to go on a hunt this weekend to find something like this but cheaper.

Have a great weekend everyone!

You can find all the DWZI participants here.

Kitchen Progress

Slowly the dust is starting to settle and slowly I am wiping it all away.
We are making progress. But it is not quite as fast as I was hoping it would be.

The oven is still in a box downstairs.
The fridge is being defrosted.
It will probably be another week before I can actually cook again and the fun of having take out for dinner has worn off.

Now for the good news.
The kitchen was completely dismantled and the wall plastered.
We built three new Ikea kitchen cabinets (around midnight, sorry neighbours!).
The counter top was cut to size and is resting on top of the cabinets.
Water pipes were extended and the wash basin fitted.
We have water again in the kitchen!
The electricity was disconnected and connected and disconnected and connected.
The dishwasher is already working hard as I type.
Yes, it is definitely not all bad.

The big questions is how we will get the new oven upstairs. I'm hoping for some magic.

Woonbeurs

Since the kitchen is a no go zone, there is really no point in thinking about a weekly menu. Unless I'd be serving dust for dinner. Yes, write that down... dust for dinner... OK, I'm a little depressed by my kitchen situation and my husband was kind enough to look after the kids yesterday for a few hours so I could escape to the Amsterdam Woonbeurs.

It was awesome! So much to see and to draw inspiration from. It was busy but not crazy busy. They had something of everything and I loved the stalls where you could buy all kinds of design accessories.

Kim Welling also had a stand there for her new venture with Ellen Vesters: UrLaub. They make such beautiful illustrations and I cannot wait to see what they produce next. You can also see an interview with them here from 101 Woonideen (in Dutch of course).

I still have a lot of things to figure out in the kitchen. The light fittings, the wallpaper, the flooring, to tile the wall or not... but it was lovely to spend an afternoon away from my own kitchen.

P.S. The oven has been delivered and some kitchen cabinets should be arriving on Friday so it is only a matter of time before things will be improving!

Kitchen Extension

I thought I'd give a little bit of an update on our kitchen extension.

It is going to take months (yes, months) to finish it... but we are saving a lot of money by doing all the work with the neighbours.

Normally I am not a patient person.

This one time I am making an exception ;-)

It really is for a good cause and slowly but surely my excitement about our bigger kitchen is growing.

Plus let me tell you how impressed I am with my husband.

He works in a corporate environment every day, always wears a suit and is glued to his laptop.

Somehow he managed to turn into the best handy man ever.

Lucky me!