Coming soon...

It's been a bit quiet over here lately, mostly because I have nothing much to tell you.

I've taken a break from the decluttering as we went on holiday, and also because we ran out of room in the hallway for the stuff to go (it was going well!). I took some of the cardboard and clothes to the recycling centre over the weekend and I have some more boxes now so I hope to get back on that this week. I'm actually almost there just the kitchen and bathroom left. Then getting rid of it all of course, which involves car boot sales and trips to the tip which relies on Tom and I having a day off together with time to spare...so maybe after Christmas! Can't wait to show you the pile to go, when we're done it's going to be huge! Have any of you been decluttering while I've been slacking?

I've been trying to catch up with the washing from holiday and the last few weeks which isn't going very fast as the weather is a bit rubbish for drying, so the bedroom is not photo worthy at the moment as the washing pile is bigger than me. I've been plotting some projects in there though and trying some things out which just need to be tweaked to make them work. I'll share once they're done and the room is a bit tidier!

I've also been looking at the living room, mainly the lack of colour, and how I want to go forward in there. I'm thinking at the moment of a load of pillows, maybe a rug and some curtains to bring in a bit more colour and interest as at the moment it's pretty boring in there.

So really this is a 'coming soon' post, my aims for the next few weeks are to finish the decluttering, finish the project in the bedroom and try to spruce up the living room a little (I might wait for the January sales for this one!).

To Do Update

I last shared my to do list for the flat back in March when the blog had not long been in existence, and since then a lot has been done around here. I think starting the blog and showing the world our flat really lit a fire under my backside to get things done! 

I thought it would be good to share the updated list, to keep me motivated...

Entrance Hallway

• Get storage furniture - A large cupboard or wardrobe   Done!

• Organise the stuff stored in there  Done!

• Add art and photos - 1/2 done there are a few small photos on the bookshelves but I want to add in some larger scale art.

• Give the room a purpose other than storage and drying washing! - Not done yet but I have a few ideas

• Once we have the wardrobe/cupboard move items from other rooms into it   Done! And also the small ottomans on top of the wardrobe are now full with kitchen and office stuff.

• Maybe a runner or a rug - Not done but this will be one of the last finishing touches so will probably be last thing on the list for this room.

• Organise music equipment Done!

Office

• New desk - Done! Well we actually got rid of the desk and got a table.

• New computer - I'm typing this first post on my new asus eee, well 2nd and actually it was £75 on eBay and came with a full size screen also and a case, bargain! - Netbook still working and so little it can fit into my handbag :)

• New desk chair Won't need one any more as no more desk.

• Update fish tank (this really is a 'one day' thing as the one we have is fine it's just a bit dated) - Not done although we have changed the filter as the big external one broke so we are back to a small internal one which seems to be working fine. Probably next on the list of large purchases.

• Mat under cat litter tray Done!

• Add art and photos  Done! 

• Sort out the lighting 

• Possibly change light fixture (the one in here came with the flat so we'd have to store it away safely)

• Maybe a rug under the desk, see once we get the desk - Not done but not sure this one is needed any more since a rug under the table isn' really needed and we don't have the desk

Bedroom

• New wardrobes asap Done!

• New bed - After the turtle tank this is probably second on the list of large purchases

• Find use for the old bedside tables or get rid of them - maybe repaint or otherwise update them - Not done yet, they are full of stuff so we need to replace them or update them can't just get rid.

• New bedside tables - Nope not yet, although we were waiting until we got the bed but now the tank has moved up the list we might just get some temporary ones as having to put everything on the floor by the bed is a bit rubbish.

• Shoe storage  Done!

• Bedside lamps - Again no as waiting for bed but if we get some tables then we can use our old ones that have just been in storage.

• Declutter! - Sort of, we got the ottomans on top of the wardrobes and had a sort out but the room is still a bit cluttered for my liking. 

• Organise under bed storage Done!

• Organise storage on top of wardrobes - Done!

• New bedding - Not done but will be a final finishing touch so last on the list

• Art and photos - Sort of done we have the canvas on top of the trunk, but we have permission to hang things on the chimney breast just need to get it done...

• Update mirror and maybe hang on wardrobe door - Mirror will be updated but not hung on the wardrobes now we have our new ones as they are a. too nice to spoil with a cheap mirror and b. the doors are too narrow.

Bathroom

• Get some storage solutions for toiletries - Done!

• Artwork and maybe photos - Not yet, looking for something for the back of the toilet.

• Organise the built in cupboard - 1/2 done, got the cleaning supplies organised but want a shelving unit in there too

• Get a shelving unit for the built in cupboard to store more in there - not done

Living Room

• Get new sofa in  - Done!

• New coffee table - maybe a trunk or box - Not done, I might try to DIY something with our current table...

• New CD and DVD shelves  - Done!

• Declutter - Sort of done but we need to hang some of the photo frames as there are too many on the surfaces

• Stands for Toms guitars - Done!

• Find places for all the photos and add in some larger pieces - still in progress, the photos all have places but we can now hang stuff on the chimey breast so need to get on that and I want to DIY some larger pieces.

• DIY or buy a roman shade to brighten up the window - not done.

• Runner for behind the sofa - maybe DIY  Done!

• More cushions for the sofa - some different patterns and colours - Not done but I'm keeping an eye out for cushions...

Kitchen

• Organise cupboards - Almost done just one more cupboard to go.

• Get a spice rack - Done!

• Declutter work surfaces - Done!

• Storage storage storage - top cupboards and in cabinets - Done!

• Get a nicer dish drainer - done, I don't think there are actually any photos of our old one but it was a silver plastic one we had for ages and it was a bit gross 

• Get a cutlery organiser for the drawer  - Done!

• Art and photos  - Done for now I might change some around though

• New cups that match or at least look better than work freebie ones!

• Maybe get a rug or better door mat - I'm going to DIY one with the off cuts from the living room rug when I get round to it

• Move rarely used items into the hallway cupboard Done!

• Sort out bins, maybe one bin with 2 sections rather than 2 different bins

• New cat bowls Done!

Outside

• Add plants in pots to the front - Not done but not really much space so I've kind of scrapped this idea.

• Add a window box to bedroom window - Again not sure this is possible but I might try next spring.

• In back garden add plants in pots  Done!

• Generally tidy back garden  Done!

• Maybe find somewhere else to keep the bikes to free up space - Not done but not really possible.

General

• Get some clocks! We have none in the whole house and have to check our phones or the TV for the time - Still not done!

• Sort out all the bills (at the time of writing this I still have not had our final electricity bill from when we moved in here and have not had the deposit back from our last house) - GAH gas bill not done, but given up now if they want my money they can get in touch with me I am not calling them again! Also not holding out much hope on the deposit but that is a whole other story. 

• Find homes for all the photo frames and ornaments, this will probably be ongoing as we move and acquire furniture - Yep still ongoing but getting there

Additions to the list so far:

• Seat cushions for the benches on the new table, possible DIY
• Put up picture hooks in the living room and bedroom on the chimney breasts
• Possible rearranging of the hallway depending on a few other things in the pipeline (can't share yet!)
• New duvet
• New pillows - we have memory foam ones and Tom's not keen on them, they're a bit hard
• New bathroom accessories like soap dispenser, tumblers and soap dish (They are from our old house and don't match)
• Possibly new towels for same reason as above

That's the current state of the to do list, it's good to cross stuff off and see how much you've gotten done. Although often things change and some items don't need to be done after all, and sometimes ticking off one thing means adding on more because the one project leads you on to 5 more!

Also I found the bolts for the table in the boot of Toms car so they were supplied with the table, we ate at it over the weekend and it was nice to sit up at a table.

Progress

We've been living in our flat 6 months now, so I thought it's a good time to look back and see what progress we've made (and what we still have left to do...which is plenty!)

Let's start with the kitchen, probably the room that's least changed

We've decluttered and added in some storage jars and storage solutions, also we've added in some finishing touches like the 'keep calm' sign. Still left to do in here are new mugs (thinking those DIY sharpie decorated ones that are all over Pinterest), new bread bin and mug tree, new canisters for tea coffee and sugar (thinking silver metallic) new recycling bin, maybe a rug or at least a doormat, new fruit bowl and possibly a window treatment. Also we still need to declutter some problem area like the top of the microwave.

You can see larger photos and more detail on the changes in the kitchen here, here and here.

Onto the living room

We got the new bookshelves and I changed the basket under the table for a larger one with a lid (It came with the ottomans from the bedroom), we also added in my DIY runner. Other than that the changes have been minor rearrangements of frames and CDs etc, I want to eventually get an ottoman or trunk to use as a coffee table, change the TV unit, add some art/photo frames on the fireplace (where we have been told we can put picture hooks, yay!), add more pillows to the sofa, maybe make a faux roman blind for the window (to go over the existing boring one) and generally add in a bit of colour as the room is a bit bland! Possibly thinking yellow to go with the Fender...

You can see more on the living room here and more on the DIY runner here.

The into the Office

We have some art on the tank and a mat under the cat litter tray, but the desk is now even more of a mess as we have 2 PC screens at the moment (anyone want to buy one?!). We are looking at the whole computer situation, as I have my new netbook (which came with one of those screens) so very rarely use the desktop, Tom uses it sometimes but if we had a laptop that did iTunes and Tom could play games on we could get rid the desktop, freeing up some space. This all costs money though so will be something we sort out gradually. We also want to get a new desk and new desk chair, and possibly a rug under the desk. The turtle tank will also need replacing at some point (see this post on the leak we had the other week!) but that's also something quite expensive that we will need to save up for.

You can see more on the office here and here

Then into the bathroom

This room, like the kitchen, hasn't really changed a great deal it has mostly just been decluttered and I'm trying to not buy more than one bottle of something at a time (you know when your shampoo is on offer so you buy 5 bottles...yeah I'm trying not to do that). I want to get some more art or something in here as it's a bit bland, I'm thinking on the back of the toilet as I like the lilies there in this post. Also I think we need a new bath mat as our has goe a bit off white, new towels probably soonish as well as I bought really cheap ones and they're starting to go a bit off colour (they also looked great in our last bathroom but I'd prefer black or white ones here).

You can read more on the bathroom here and here

The bedroom, it was gross before!

We've gotten rid of the 2 armchairs that were in there, reorganised my shoes, moved the trunk in from the hallway, got new wardrobes, got ottomans for storage on top of the wardrobes, rationalised the stuff under the bed and moved a lot of it out to the wardrobe in the hallway, brought the canvas in from the office, got new paperwork storage and generally tidied up! To be honest it still has a long way to go, I want to get a new bed, get bedside tables, rearrange the furniture so the chest of drawers isn't in front of the window (makes it hard to open the window), add some art or photos to the chimney breast (again this is where we've been told we can put picture hooks) get new bedding and a mirror, get some bedside lamps and bring a bit of a cohesive colour scheme in (so far we have about 10 different wood tones and 5 different textiles in here and it looks a bit crazy). It all seems to hinge on the new bed I so once we have that we can do the rest.

You can see more on the bedroom here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Then onto the entrance hall way, probably the most transformed room so far!

I reorganised in here a few times before getting our lovely big wardrobe to put all our junk in, it's a room that isn't really used by us except to walk through when we come in and out of the flat and for storage, so really I want to give this space a use other than drying clothes. As we don't spend any time in here more often than not it's full of clothes airers with washing drying on them, so you come in the door and it looks like this

Not exactly a warm welcome. So our aim in here is to maximise space so we could actually spend time in here, I'm thinking a reading nook as all the bookshelves are in here.

You can see more on the entrance hall and how we got to this point here, here and here

Onto the outside space, really we have just planted some things and are waiting to see how they do but it looks better already in the back garden

We're just waiting for seeds to grow and plants to fill in, then we might get a few more pots and some pretty garden things but we will build it up over time. There's not been any change in the front of the flat, not a lot we can change really!

You can see more on the garden here, and here.

There's the last 6 months of projects and changes, it's nice to look back and what you've achieved sometimes and see how much progress you've made even though there is plenty left to do!

The List

I have talked briefly in some posts about our plans for rooms, but I thought it might make a bit more sense to put it all in a to do list dated back to when we moved in to explain my plans for each room. This might get a bit long but I'll try and keep it concise!

Entrance Hallway

• Get storage furniture - A large cupboard or wardrobe 
• Organise the stuff stored in there
• Add art and photos
• Give the room a purpose other than storage and drying washing!
• Once we have the wardrobe/cupboard move items from other rooms into it
• Maybe a runner or a rug
• Organise music equipment

Office

• New desk
• New computer - I'm typing this first post on my new asus eee, well 2nd hand actually it was £75 on eBay and came with a full size screen also and a case, bargain!
• New desk chair
• Update fish tank (this really is a 'one day' thing as the one we have is fine it's just a bit dated)
• Mat under cat litter tray
• Add art and photos 
• Sort out the lighting
• Possibly change light fixture (the one in here came with the flat so we'd have to store it away safely)
• Maybe a rug under the desk, see once we get the desk

Bedroom

• New wardrobes asap
• New bed
• Find use for the old bedside tables or get rid of them - maybe repaint or otherwise update them
• New bedside tables
• Shoe storage
• Bedside lamps
• Declutter!
• Organise under bed storage
• Organise storage on top of wardrobes
• New bedding
• Art and photos
• Update mirror and maybe hang on wardrobe door

Bathroom

• Get some storage solutions for toiletries
• Artwork and maybe photos
• Organise the built in cupboard
• Get a shelving unit for the built in cupboard to store more in there

Living Room

• Get new sofa in
• New coffee table - maybe a trunk or box
• New CD and DVD shelves
• Declutter
• Stands for Toms guitars
• Find places for all the photos and add in some larger pieces
• DIY or buy a roman shade to brighten up the window
• Runner for behind the sofa - maybe DIY
• More cushions for the sofa - some different patterns and colours

Kitchen

• Organise cupboards
• Get a spice rack
• Declutter work surfaces
• Storage storage storage - top cupboards and in cabinets
• Get a nicer dish drainer - done, I don't think there are actually any photos of our old one but it was a silver plastic one we had for ages and it was a bit gross 
• Get a cutlery organiser for the drawer
• Art and photos
• New cups that match or at least look better than work freebie ones!
• Maybe get a rug or better door mat
• Move rarely used items into the hallway cupboard
• Sort out bins, maybe one bin with 2 sections rather than 2 different bins
• New cat bowls

Outside

• Add plants in pots to the front
• Add a window box to bedroom window
• In back garden add plants in pots
• Generally tidy back garden
• Maybe find somewhere else to keep the bikes to free up space

General

• Get some clocks! We have none in the whole house and have to check our phones or the TV for the time
• Sort out all the bills (at the time of writing this I still have not had our final electricity bill from when we moved in here and have not had the deposit back from our last house)
• Find homes for all the photo frames and ornaments, this will probably be ongoing as we move and acquire furniture

The main themes seem to be decluttering/organising and art work or photos. We downsized to move here so are still figuring out our stuff and we have a lot of small photos, artworks and ornaments so I'd like to add in more large high impact pieces to make for a cleaner look.

That's it for now but each project usually spawns another so this will most definitely expand as we go!