Displaying posts from December, 2008

It’s that time of the year. It’s crazy!!! Parties, simple get togethers, shopping and cleaning. The presents are bought (we haven’t gone overboard) but there’s still the food and the house is a mess. Friends want to catch up for drinks and I’m running round in circles. I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about. So…. I have no winks prepared for today. As way of apology I thought I’d share a recent real estate stalk. Paddington, Sydney, way out of my price range but white and quirky and cool and so comfy casual. Now if we could only all meet up here for christmas drinks. Wait I need to pop out for more nibbles. (Here while it lasts.)

WINKS will be taking a break through the holiday period but will be back in the new year. I couldn’t go though without saying “Why didn’t anyone tell me that Another Shade of Grey is back?” I love this blog and really missed it when Julie stopped blogging back in April. Now she’s back! (Since October and I only found out a couple of weeks ago. At least I had quite a few posts to enjoy.) So pop on over and be inspired. You probably all knew already. Maybe I’m just late to the party. Party? Oh I am running late for drinks. Bye!

This blog chronicles my entire kitchen renovation from start to finish. Greentea Design has provided me with their solid wood kitchen cabinets, and I’m taking care of the rest.

If you’d like to be brought up to date, check out my kitchen remodel blog for an archive of previous posts. I posted recently about a few more completed items and some finishing touches, and now for the backsplash, dining table and yet more decorating.

Last Friday the backsplash was installed. I was excited to not have to see the unfinished edge of the countertop finally, but the result was very disappointing. I decided to use the quartz of the countertop and have about a 4″ high piece installed along the back of the countertop. The guy that installed it showed up and started bringing in these really short pieces of the quartz which had me a tad confused. They were not the length of each cabinet section. Turns out there were 6 pieces, each one exactly half the length of each cabinet section. Meaning there was a seam down the center of section. Then I watched him silicone everything in place, and then tell me he was all done. I said “HUH? You aren’t going to fill in those seams??” He says nope, they just silicone backsplashes. ALLRIGHTY THEN. He left and I called the shop and was told that they had told me they were going to use offcuts. I wasn’t told the whole story then if that was the case. I said it looked totally unfinished and the seams weren’t filled in. Turns out in the new year they will order a slab of the 3/4″ (which is what I had wanted but they didn’t have enough of so they used the 1 1/4″), and redo it. I can live with it for now and hope to see a proper backsplash next month. So these photos show the seam, and hopefully one day soon I can show you what it SHOULD look like. (Luckily with the kitchen counters dressed, it’s not as noticeable).

It’s just before Christmas and I finally have a dining table. It’s actually not completed yet but it’s useable and I’m very excited about that. I can now eat meals not hunched over my small marble table that was WAY too short to eat at. Also, the kitchen was designed so that I could use it as a second office because the office at the back of the house is cold in the winter and I wanted to be able to work at the dining table and watch the TV in the living room. My contractor built it, and suggested a pedestal base, which was a BRILLIANT idea because you don’t see legs from the living room and the top looks like it’s floating. It still needs a couple pieces to make it more sturdy because it’s quite tippy right now, especially when the porkier of the cats jump from the counter onto it. YIKES! (I should mention as I’m sure some will notice, that the table is warped. My contractor made it in a hurry and then brought it over and it warped quite a bit in the cold/heat. As a result he won’t charge me for it…but I’ll give him something because it is usable).

Click HERE to see more photos of some decor items I purchased, the completed basement hatch and more.

Is your idea of the perfect job styling and producing photo shoots for major magazines like House Beautiful, Instyle, Elle Decor and O at Home? And when this has been your job for more than a decade what next? Converting all that talent and experience from magazine to bricks and mortar. Char Hatch Langos, based in Los Angeles, is an interior stylist for the real estate market. She takes a house’s current contents, works her magic, tips in a few finishing touches and presents a visual feast to tempt those buyers.

A certain house in a previous post caused a little stir and no wonder because it is a spectacular piece of architecture. The Wheatsheaf House by Jesse Judd is just outside Daylesford in Victoria, Australia set amongst the stark and eerie landscape of gum trees. A holiday home Judd played with the idea of a tent or a shack, something impermanent on the landscape. Ideas inspired by old plywood caravans and bus shelters were translated into a steel, laminated glass and plywood cocoon which sits gently on the land and addresses the striking beauty of the site. Variously described as rose to red to orange (depending on which article you read or the lighting in a photo you peruse) the interiors are stained plywood forming a striking frame for the minimalist modern furniture within. The drama in in the c shaped main living area. Sleeping and bathing are in a relatively simple compartment down a corridor. It’s an organic, truly magical building.

A former antiques shop owner, San Franciscan Rebecca Bradley turned to interior design and became quite successful. Her sophisticated and classic style is timeless and comfortable. I love the Asian accents she has mixed with traditional pieces and OMG that kitchen is fantastic!