Home » 1 Year On...

It's a year this week since Moon and found, put and offer in and were accepted on a mortgage for our new home and I can't quite believe how quickly that time has gone.

While working on a few things from Google Drive last week, I found the photos I took from when I was showing my Mum the house that I would then go on to show anyone who asked in the lead up to us actually living there and it's crazy to think that we even went for it. It's not that we've changed all that much about the house, I mean, structurally it's exactly the same but we've had to do so much painting and we're still not even finished!

I guess we just really loved the potential, but I'll tell you what, decorating a house is so far removed from the cutesy painting montages from the movies, like, it's the least fun thing I've ever done. I am really happy with the result so far though and even though we won't have been here a full year until April rolls around, it's still pretty fun to see the changes our house has gone through in the last 12 months.

Tuesday Tabs #35

Good evening,
It feels a bit like it's been a while although I know it hasn't really. I've been quite busy/lazy, which is usually the case. I've got a list as long as my arm of future posts but they can wait for a little bit, I'm hoping to get around to it all after a good night's sleep tonight as I've been a bit silly with my sleeping pattern recently and it's left me feeling exhausted by this time of day.

Did you have a nice weekend? We had a few friends over to eat chilli and peep over our fence at the fireworks display at Newbury Racecourse, it was a super way to spend Saturday night and was great to see everyone. My Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 arrived at the weekend too, I'm still getting to know it but I'm well and truly in love and am looking forward to introducing you.

Anyway, here are some of my recent Internet findings, have you found anything interesting recently? Now that Guy Fawkes Night is over, I'm well and truly looking forward to Christmas. Only six more Tuesdays to go before it's here, what a quick year it's been and yet so much has happened!

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[Wild Ridge Design]
Here's my first slice of Christmas for my blog. I think we're going to go all out with decorations for the little flat, even if I'm going to be away. I'm on the hunt for a wreath although we're thinking of making our own, the colours of this one are beautiful.


[MekaWorld]
Although not a big of George Clarke himself, I'm really into George Clarke's Amazing Spaces on Channel 4 at the moment, how perfect is this modular home? So tiny, but so great.


[Sea of Beas]
This bison locket is so nifty.


I know this has been used a lot in a lot of things recently but it's a really nice song, I've listened to it about four times today...


And this is another I've been listening to non-stop I almost forgot it existed until signing up to Spotify again last week. This recording is nice too.


[Michael Muller]
I spent a lot of time on Sunday afternoon nursing my head and perusing Michael Muller's awesome online portfolio. Obviously he's a pretty big deal but I was impressed with image after image and I like it when that happens, so I figured it deserved a mention.


[Alex M Lynch]
Right after I post this up and after I've had a shower, I'm actually going to get right back on sewing my own case for my tablet, but this one sure is pretty so if I do mess this up - in the way only not knowing how to use a sewing machine can - then this is always a pretty alternative option.


[Elukka]
Sometimes I really wish that I loved gardening as much as I love flowers, these flower pots are so cute!


IAmKritch]
I think it will be nice to get decorations from all over and build up a collection rather than buy a huge box of 'okay' baubles, this would have made a sweet addition to our Christmas tree but sadly it's already been snapped up. I also have my eye on the holiday armadillo.

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Link Love: ♥

Inside Nook and Cranny — This is a pretty recent discovery, but looks like somewhere right up my street, Nook and Cranny is an adorable little shop within Liverpool's creative hub, The Bluecoat and looks right up my street. Liverpool is somewhere I'd really love to head to for a weekend, this is definitely second on my list when I do get around to visiting - after The Beatles museum, of course.

Custom Photo iPhone Case DIY by Oh No Rachio — This is the most simple DIY ever, I can't believe I never really thought about it before. I've never really thought about clear tech cases before but they sure are a great way to help add your own stamp to things.

Container City — Speaking of George Clarke's Amazing Spaces, the awesome Container City was featured last week, it reminds me a lot of Boxpark, such a great idea, I love the idea of discovering storage techniques as I'm not a huge fan of massive spaces.

Cat Nail Art Tutorial from Syl and Sam — My nails are super-short at the moment but I can't wait to try this out!

F***! I'm In My Twenties —Although there's a lot of personal anxiety surrounding this Tumblr blog, I think a lot can be said for being thrown head first into you twenties and not really having a clue how to react to it.

Cute Chipmunk Photos from The Dainty Squid — Kaylah is so great at photographing animals if I had my hands on this little guy he would probably just run away.

Duck Egg.

I wish I had more things to paint, painting is so much fun, although it's much easier to do it outside without a little cat trying to interfere every few minutes.

So, my Gran handed me down this box, she says it's called a butter box but she couldn't tell me why as she's always used to use it for extra bathroom bits. I figured it would come in useful for us so that we wouldn't have to worry about Dolly tearing up all our toilet paper (something that's happened before). All it needed was a lick of paint, so I figured why not.

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Once again, Wilkinson saved the day with their sample pots, although I don't think these shades went as far as the ones I used before as I had basically run out by the time I was finished. The amount was fine though and I think it's best to have the exact amount rather than be over or under.

I went for 'Duck Egg' and 'Tealtastic', two of my favourite colours.
The 'teal' was a bit more blue than turquoisey but I still think it complimented the duck egg well.


Before.


I decided to paint the inside of the box too, which was much more hassle than painting the outside. It is better I did though, mainly because it had seen better days and was kind of mucky, but also because the mushy red didn't go to well with the clean, crisp colour I'd chosen for the rest of the box.


After.
I'm quite happy with the end result, and although our bathroom is mainly white - with the grossest shower curtain, which is why I haven't shown it to you - most of the accents are a turquoise/teal colour, so I picked everything so it would go.


RIP sanding block, this was Moon's contribution to this project. obviously we couldn't wait to buy smaller screws to screw the handle back on (we totally could have), so he improvised and used my sanding block to hold everything in place. It's a good improvisation to be fair and means that the handle holds well, and it does look a bit silly but hardly anyone would ever know...

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I'm quite pleased with this little project and it took a lot less time than the chest, probably because I only stuck to two colours more than the fact that the chest is a lot bigger. Now the toilet rolls have a safe home!

Rainbow chest.

This is from a long time again, so long ago, I almost shouldn't really be posting it, but I wanted to share it with you because it gave me a great sense of accomplishment. I would have shared sooner, but apart from a couple of days, I've been so busy with other things.

Today, all I have to do is some laundry and to clean the house, so I thought this should take priority as I promised myself I'd upload it as soon as I had internet, and it's been nearly a week since that happened, so here we go...

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This chest was originally from Ikea, we've had two for as long as I can remember, and have usually used them for laundry hampers. Since I moved into my first house at University, this particular chest has followed me to each house since. I've used it mainly for storage and it was looking pretty tired and was (some how) covered in nail polish and stuck-on paper. So, I thought it would be appropriate to give it a makeover before I moved again and it would follow me once more, plus it saved on thinking about laundry hampers.

Everything I bought to do this was from Wilkinson. I was going to paint it all one colour but found out buckets of paint are way to expensive, considering I wouldn't use it all. So I picked up some of Wilkinson's sample sizes, which were £1 each and much better value, mainly because of their size, than branded samples. I did use two yellows in the end, but that's mainly due to the amount I used. Unfortunately I can't remember the names of the paint for you, all I know is the blue colour is called 'Minted' and sadly didn't live up to is minty expectations, but overall went quite well with the other colours anyway.

Supplies:
Paint
Paintbrushes, from large to small (for tiny details)
Sanding block
Sandpaper - to get rid of muck and smooth the surface
Masking tape
Warm water

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Here is Moon being super-helpful as always, but I did the rest by myself, even putting everything back together!


Even now that she's moved in here, this is still going on, great place for hunting, apparently.







We had a big move around yesterday, so where the chest is at the moment isn't how it is in this photo, but you get the general idea. This was a much easier project than I had anticipated and I've since moved on to painting something else, which I finished yesterday and hopefully won't take as long to share with you. I can't say that enjoyed the painting side of things that much, but the end result of having something new and exactly how I wanted it for a fraction of the cost was such a great feeling.

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I'm thinking of having a big revamp elsewhere, and once I have some time to meticulously go over it, I'll be giving my blog a bit of a facelift. Also, don't know if you noticed but I used my tablet for the 'before' and 'after' photos, bit naff, I know but I want to try and use it more. I've had my Wacom tablet for years but never really used it due to lack of space, now I have tons of space so I thought I'd whip it out - it took me so long to do these that neither of the words mean anything to me anymore. I hope to practice and use different techniques to get better, I know it will take a bit of getting use to though.

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Have you done any fun DIY projects lately?

Tuesday Tabs #15

Time to de-clutter my tabs bar once more, a much more productive way to wait for paint to dry.

Currently I think I need at least a 28 hour day, that would be good, I can't seem to fit everything in. Doll is settling in almost too well, and although she was being - weirdly - affectionate when I returned from an interview this afternoon, I didn't appreciate her loud wailing outside our bedroom door at 5 o'clock this morning, so our visitors are probably in for a treat when they stay at the weekend...

I'm not sure how much I want to talk about job hunting today, I'll just say it's steady and leave it at that. I can't get any more fed up with it than I am already. Let's just get started, shall we?

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Due to all the stress, I kind of failed April's Photo A Day challenge, so I'm going to try and start again with this months, again from Fat Mum Slim. I might only post it once a week though rather than every day. I didn't like how cluttered it made my blog look if I posted something else. #ocd

(via It's Nice That)

I don't know what Ikea think they're playing at by being this awesome but how good is this? Following the previous week's announcement about their new TV units, I was already pleasantly surprised, but this is too up my street. Ikea are doing all kinds of exciting things at the moment and KNÄPPA is one of them, would love to know when it will be released so I can try one out.

(via The Dainty Squid)

Make A Run For It Skirt, $188.99, Modcloth
I have too many printed animal items of clothing, but this skirt is perfect, and the colour is lovely, definitely in need of more orange in my wardrobe.


Wombat Hug Brooch, $AUS35, Made By White
Wombats are wicked, easily my favourite Australian animal and I don't actually have that many brooches, let alone any wooden ones.


Interview with The Maccabees for Swiss TV Show 'POPBAR'. They say some good things, like how it's silly to cover The Beatles.


How many great movies are coming out in the next few months?! I'm a big one for trying to avoid full-trailers if possible, especially if I've already heard good press about a film or know who's going to be in it. However, I'm a little obsessed by this viral trailer for Ridley Scott's Prometheus, everyone needs to at least watch this trailer, but the film itself, judging from it's official trailer, just looks generally epic.


'LOL I'm just kitten' t-shirt, $28, Burger and Friends


Hand screen-printed Dala horse, Seventy Tree
Ever so slightly gutted that this piece is now no longer available. ;(


Rob Ryan's Bells vase, £35, John Lewis
I'm obsessed with Rob Ryan's 'Bells' series at the moment, it just makes me feel so warm because the words are so beautifully put. I'm also lusting after the plates, but as I wouldn't want to eat off of them and have no where to display them, I'm mainly eyeing up this vase, especially since seeing it on display in the local John Lewis, perf. ♥

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Link Love: ♥

Camera Bag Round-up from A Beautiful Mess — I'm currently waiting on a new bag, but a huge, and I mean huge part of me wishes I had the will-power to save up for a great-quality, pretty camera bag like the ones talked about here. It's a really strong well-rounded overview too, talking a bit more about what else is on offer other than Jo Totes. Don't get me wrong, I adore Jo Totes, I'd just never considered there were other similar brands.

Perfectly-timed Animal Pictures

Per Johansen's Mæt (Full) — Wonderfully, grotesque still life images from Danish photographer Per Johansen.

Make a teddybear from a sock — This is a super-cute craft idea, definitely on my to-do list once I get the never-ending list of everything else out of the way.

Create Your Own Fabric Patterns — Amazing!

It Looks Hard But Isn't: 15 Dishes to Impress Your Guests — Don't think I'm quite ready to impress people with my cooking just yet, but living in your own (non-student) home does bring about a certain notion of 'entertaining' rather than the more manageable 'drinking'. I like cooking anyway, so if nothing else these are some good ideas to test out on Moon at least.

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Currently listening: 'Call Me Maybe' - Carly Rae Jepsen
Currently watching: HBO's 'Girls' (Lena Dunham ♥)

Eggcellent.

Crispy Crackolates
Ingredients:
- 1 oz caster sugar
- 1 oz butter
- 1 oz golden syrup
- 1 oz cocoa powder
- 1 oz cornflakes - we used Crunchy Nut but I like Coco Pops too
For Easter decoration - Mini Eggs - we did three per cake

Instructions:
1. Mix together the caster sugar, cocoa powder.
2. Add butter to caster sugar and cocoa powder and melt mixture in a bowl over bowling water.
3. Once melted add the golden syrup.
4. Add cornflakes to mixture and combine until all cornflakes are covered.
5. Separate mixture into cake cases and leave to cool - add Mini Eggs for decoration as desired.

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Not quite the baking that's been a heavy topic on Twitter today, but a simple recipe that's delicious and easy to follow. I also thought I'd take the time to share these cute 'vintage' cookery books with you. As long as I can remember these were the first cookery books I'd go to whenever baking at my Gran's house, they were used by my Dad and uncles so they're definitely items I treasure. I might be a bit more advanced now but they're still a good point of reference for simple things, I thought I'd share the cute illustrations and neat presentation style with you.

I hope that you had a fun Easter Sunday and got to eat all the chocolate you wanted, I only ever really get one egg nowadays, not that that's going to do me any harm. I went to two car boots this morning in an attempt to bag some bargains for our flat, but returned empty-handed, I'm placing blame on a combination of Easter and horrid weather. I then went for a tasty pub lunch at the Surrey Yeoman with Moon, Chris and Calvert before ducking out of an afternoon of football (phew!). My favourite kind of Sunday, a relaxing yet busy one, although I was a bit of a grump about the early start.

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The books are called 'My Learn to Cook Book' and 'Fun-To-Cook Book', the designs are so 70's ♥




Throughout both books there are helpful kitchen tips.

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It's been a cracking day for catching up with blogs and looking at cute Spring and Easter-related things, here's a short list of my faves.

(via Vice: The Cute Show)

It's Easter Sunday, so it's the perfect excuse (although who actually needs one?) to look at lots of different breeds of adorable bunnies.

A Beautiful Mess: Sundae Sunday — A tasty-looking ice cream version of traditional Easter nests.

Pineapple flower decorations — Chinese tutorial but great photos so really easy to follow. This is definitely one to try, a cute, different and fresh way to decorate cupcakes, I'm pretty impressed.

Baked Eggs in Bread Bowls — I can't understand how I've overlooked Noble Pig for so long, there are so many good recipes to scout out, I only picked this because of the whole 'eggs and it's Easter' thing. I've needed some new recipes for a while and Noble Pig is a more than substantial treasure trove.

Deviled Egg Chicks — These look really cute and would be great for a buffet-style dinner party but after a read-through I'm more than reminded of the mayonegg scene from Arrested Development, which is a bit off-putting.

How To Make Speckled Eggs — I don't see why Easter needs to be an excuse, I'd like to do this all year round.

A Bun in the Oven (via Charlotte Theroux) — Something else that should be standard and not just for Easter, bunny-shaped bread. Generally homemade bread is good anyway but this seriously raises the bar.

Easter Cupcakes — Kim from Sweet Monday sure does bake some nice things, and these bite-size cupcakes are no exception.

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Enjoy the rest of your Bank Holiday weekend, I'm so excited about being around the whole Johnston clan tomorrow, it will also be the first time I'm meeting the latest additions to the family, my new twin cousins, Gilbert and Walter.