bathroom tour

if 2015 was the year of the bedroom in this household, than 2016 is the year of the bathroom.  i have so many ideas for the space that i am bursting!  some big plans for this small space.

in the meantime, i thought i would share the bathroom as it currently stands.  partially finished.

so far, we gave the room a quick coat of paint to hide the builders paint, swapped out the vanity knobs for some cute clear knobs from anthropologie (on sale!), picked up a rustic hook from a vintage shop near by, hung some simple ikea shelves to create extra storage, and added the cute WC plaque for a bit of character.

the space is coming along, but it definitely does not feel finished yet.  i cannot wait to get to work on the room in the coming months.

thanks for letting me share!

-d

balcony tour

we spent some serious time cleaning up the balcony last weekend.  it was disorganized & needed a little t-l-c.  plus we finally had the chance to pick up the bench we had ordered, which inspired a morning of assembling, sweeping, re-potting & then excessive coffee drinking & relaxing.

balcony fun facts:

- the flamingo law ornament in the plant was a souvenir from our trip to florida earlier this year; i found it at a flea market.  it got a little mangled in our luggage, so only one side of his wing spins when it's windy.

- our mint plant is of the mojito mint variety, & is delicious in mojitos!  it has been the main reason why just about every cocktail i make has mint in it.

- the rug is from an adorable little shop we found on our day trip to st. jacobs.  i love the little pops of colour it adds to the cement floor.

- herbs are really hard to grow in little pots! they dry out so fast from the summer heat.  they have also taught me that i can bring a nearly-dead plant back to life.

- the furry babies love to roll around on the cement. both of them. they will sit at the balcony door & stare out at it until we let them outside, then they aggressively roll around for the next 10 minutes.  they are strange.

this space has become a place that we both look forward to relaxing in after a long day of work.  it's the perfect spot to sit & eat dinner or relax on a friday after a long week with a glass of wine.

thanks for letting me share our little balcony oasis!

[d]

bedroom makeover

this room is by far the brightest in the condo, so i knew we could get away with painting some of it dark and not have the room look like a cave.  

the walls before painting had only the builder's paint on them - a chalky, matte, off-white colour.  it made the room feel really boring.

we decided to go for a bold, dark grey colour, but only paint the 2 longer walls as to not make the space too dark.  the two skinnier walls (one has the window, and the other has the closet) are painted a crisp white to contrast the dark grey.  they really pick up the natural light from the window.

   

the love how the grey really highlights the gold accents of the arrow jewelry holder & lamp, and brings out the wood tones in the headboard & vintage dresser.  

i am so happy with how the space turned out, and i'm thrilled that it's finally painted.  so long ugly builder's paint!  

personalized cat toys

this is maggie. she is about to turn two.  as an early birthday gift i made her some personalized toys in some the shapes of some of her favourite things. 

she was curious about them every step of the way.  even the older one (stitch) took the shoe and started to play.  

i share how i made them over at home james.

needless to say, i think they were a hit!  

before pictures: condo

before i can show our progress on the place, i should show you the before pictures.  below are a few of the pictures that were online while the unit was up for sale.

first is a view of the living room. it's a pretty simple room, with the nice big open windows & doors at the end.  the second photo shows how each rooms flows into the other, with the living room at the end.  we both have so many ideas for this space!

 

next is the kitchen.  compared to our old kitchen, this space is amazing.  it's large enough that two people can fit in the space together, but small enough that everything is just an arm's reach away.  while i love the shape and size of the space (remember, we do live in a small condo!), i don't love how dark it is.  i shared a few ideas on how we could handle this space here.

this is the "den".  upon moving in, we have actually turned this nook into the dining room.  it's the perfect size for a nice table, and is located next to he kitchen.  here are a few of the goals b & i have for the dining room.

and, the bedroom.  again, nothing fancy about the space.  this is one of the rooms i am most excited about decorating, with a ton of ideas here.

and last but not least, the bathroom.  it's such a tiny room with no natural light.  this room going to be a challenge...but we are both up for a challenge.  here are some of the ideas for this room.

both of us love how bare & simple the space is. there is so much room for potential & imagination.  searching sites like pinterest and houzz for ideas on things has become something i am looking forward to doing.  it's such a great way to visualize an idea before you commit to it.   

b & i are so excited to work on our little home.  diy's are something we both enjoy doing.  each idea is something that we develop together, which will truly reflect the place as our home. i cannot wait to share the transformation!