House front makeover (HFM) Phase 1: De-vining

Before demolition, 15+ years of established vines had to be ripped off and dug out. The roots were such a tangled mess that every shovel full of dirt had to be sifted. We wanted to save our very good soil for new (smaller) flower beds next spring so it all got sifted and relocated to the backyard, for now.

I was busy with a school assignment so Jeff and his parents tackled all of this (and started the task of raking the piles and piles of leaves that fall in our yard). Ugh.

Curb appeal

For a long time, Jeff and I have struggled over what to do about our front entrance. Our house is a raised bungalow- while the 9 foot ceilings in our walk-out basement are wonderful, the exterior of our house still has a "jacked-up trailer" quality. The front steps are hidden by lush vines for most of the year but have fallen victim to rot and replacing them is no longer something we can delay. After much pondering, research, driving around looking at houses and questioning what to do, we have finally come up with a plan. Demolition and construction has already started and I'll post our progress as things move along. All prayers for sunny and clear skies continuing through this weekend's construction are most welcome.

Coastal autumn

A few images from a sunny walk last week at Piper's Lagoon.

Blue is me

Following the great inspiration found at the Interior Design West show in Vancouver, we have been working on a variety of DIY projects. The first was painting the kitchen and hanging up my much loved blue toile curtains. Doesn't it REALLY look like I live here now?!

Daytrippin'

Nearly a month has flown by without a word shared here. It has been busy with work, school and lots of DIYprojects. I took my first ever float plane ride to the big city several weeks ago to attend the Interior Design West (IDW) show at the Vancouver Convention Center.

Me with my laminated Harbour Air "ticket" Olympic torch on the waterfront right beside the Convention Centre

It was a fantastic day spent with my very stylish and uber creative cousin, topped off by meeting two of my favourite Canadian designers. She and I ended up shopping so enthusiastically that I missed the mid evening ferry and had to scurry to catch the last one of the night!

IDW was filled with wonderful ideas and trends. Eco decor is here to stay, I think, and with that, renewed popularity for things made of wood. Wood certainly seemed to be the dominant new trend along with brighter colours (goodbye greige), more vibrant patterns of fabric, more natural materials (cork and cotton), lots of attention to outdoor spaces and living accessories.

Contrasting with the eco-natural-homespun trend was a bolder-sparkly-glam that, while perhaps not always practical, was so much fun to look at.

I LOVED the use of Ikea Dandelion lights in this kitchen,

the vibrant wallpaper, velvet sofas, silk pillows and leather poufs at The Cross Design,

the incredibly glamorous lights at Richardson lighting (the bubble chandelier over the bathtub was so

strikingly beautiful it caused us to stop in our tracks with simultaneous gasps of wonder),

the gorgeous teal accents and perfect styling at Parliament,

and the beautiful furniture at Liberty (that's the Sarah Richardson Garfield chair piped in black) and Home Delight.

While I felt VERY dorky about lining up to meet Sarah Richardson and Tommy Smythe, they were gracious, funny and very warm. Tommy was wearing a fantastic pair of black and white plaid socks and when I complimented them, he went off on a long and very funny story about buying them in Montreal. I kept running into him at several vendors after his and Sarah's presentation and at one point, he came up to me and said "Really now dear, you MUST stop following my socks!" I was completely charmed.

Happy Thanksgiving

This was the was one of the views on my walk up the hill to the grocery store earlier this week that confirmed that fall is indeed here.

We are headed up to Parksville to celebrate a family birthday along with a lower key Thanksgiving dinner. The rest of the weekend is a quiet one for us, hopefully with a few walks outside (if the current rain lets up) to break up the main project of repainting our kitchen and front entrance.

Jeff and I talked over dinner this evening about how we certainly don't have to look very far to find plenty of things to be grateful for. Wherever you are, we wish you a a thank-filled weekend with people you love.

End of summer

September disappeared and I'm not quite sure where it went. We have had a beautiful Indian summer with balmy days, blue skies and clear nights. 

Bumble bee photos by Jeff

When I asked Jeff what exactly I did in September, he silently pointed to the freezer. Oh yeah... we two Nanaimo bears are ready for a long winters nap. 
 

I canned 25 pounds of tomatoes, 20 pounds of peaches and pears, 10 pounds of pickles and 10 jars of apple sauce then froze 25 pounds of roasted tomatoes, 15 pounds of green beans, 10 pounds of nectarines, 25 pounds of bell peppers,10 bags each of blackberries and raspberries- so along with our stash of salmon, we're in good stead. Thank goodness for generous in-laws with a very large freezer! My eyes were certainly bigger than my freezer space.


I never thought I would become a woman who wears an apron much more frequently than lip gloss and who feels genuine joy at full pantry shelves. This whole experience is teaching me that I do need to find a more simple way of living. I think that's a good thing.