Browsing Tag:

dwell

Upcycling Furniture

Posted in Dwell by

When we moved into Richard’s parents house, we were also in the position of not having any drawers to store our things in.  We debated buying something easy to use whilst we were staying in the house, but also thought about our future home and decided it would be good to get some furniture now, so we set of to find furniture to upcycle.

The flat we rented had some Stag furniture in it and we really liked the structure and sturdiness of this and wanted to find some.  We had been looking on eBay for them and bid on a few, but never seemed to get close.  On a trip to Southampton early one Saturday, where we had planned to scour a few charity shops, we found a three over two set of Stag drawers, at the first store we went to.  A few weeks later, after many failed attempts to pick up another set of drawers, we found a four over two set in a bric-a-brac store just outside of High Wycombe.  It seems our furniture is fairly well travelled!

Upcycling Project

With our newly acquired furniture, we set about turning them, and a bedframe we found on eBay, into what we hope will be our guest bedroom set.  A light sand of the surfaces took off the varnish and gave the paint somethng to adhere to.  We then wiped the surfaces with a damp cleaning cloth to remove the dust.   Two coats of Annie Sloane chalk paint later and we left it to dry.  Fortunately, the day we did it, we had fantastic weather and, after an hour in the sun, we were ready for the next step.  Applying the wax using the brush and giving it a once over with a cloth, we turned it from a fairly light grey colour to almost black.  By the time the second coat of wax was on and drying, we were done for the day and made a start enjoying a drink!

Upcycling Project

The following day we set about putting the handles on the drawers.  We found a few cupped handles on eBay that give the drawers a good look.  First, we buffed up the wood using cloths to smooth out the wax and remove any excess.  Then after careful measuring, set the handles on the drawers.

The drawers are now in situ in our room and look great.  We look forward to setting it up in our future guest room.  The cat, Annie also seems to have taken a great liking to them, but that is more likely to be the fact we keep the pet treats in the second drawer from the left!!

Upcycling Project Upcycling Project

Our first attempt at an up cycling project, we were pleased how it turned out!
11th May 2016
/

In the Garden | Planning our Veg Patch

Posted in Dwell by

We are currently between houses so we find ourselves living with Richard’s Mum & Dad, and we are likely to be here over the summer. To help out whilst we are here we have offered to take on the veg patch.  Having lived in a flat with only a tiny balcony it is very exciting to have some outside space to get our hands dirty in.

We have both had veg patches previously but that has been quite a few years ago so we are taking it simple this year, but we are already planning what we would do in future years.

This year, in the veg patch we will be growing the following:

  • Lettuce ‘Little Gem’
  • Mangetout ‘Delikata’
  • French Beans ‘Sultana’
  • Courgette ‘Early Gem’
  • Carrots ‘St Valery’
  • Potato ‘Vivaldi’ and ‘Nicola’
  • Onions – Various Varieties
  • Pumpkin
  • Strawberries
  • Raspberries
  • Rhubarb

and in the greenhouse we will be giving the following a go:

  • Tomatoes ‘Tomatoberry’ and ‘Big Boy’
  • Cucumber ‘Telegraph improved’
  • Aubergine ‘F1 Scorpio’
  • Chilli Pepper ‘Cherry Bomb’
  • Sweet Peppers ‘Jingle Bells’ & ‘Italian Long Sweet’

In addition to the fruit and veg we are going to give a cut flower patch a go, we’ll update on the another time as it is still in the final planning stages.

I am sure there will be plenty of updates so check back and see how we are getting on, and if you have any questions or suggestions please let us know in the comments below.

Garden - Veg Patch Planning Garden - Veg Patch PlanningGarden - Veg Patch Planning

Planning our veg patch, let's see what works!

 

28th April 2016
/