Quick Hello from The Mediterranean!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous week. I have spent the last few days in Venice, Marseille and Barcelona. Today we are at sea, heading towards Malta for some site seeing tomorrow.

I have some beautiful photos of this part of the world, but cannot post just now. I look forward to sharing a few when we reach land again.

Take care and ciao!

Wedding - That Personal Touch

I don't know about you, but I love looking through other people's wedding photos. I love seeing their style, and flair, and all those cute and personal touches that make their big day so special.

Sometimes, it's a keepsake from a loved one, or a theme that resembles a big part of their life. Local photographer Imprint Imaging shot this beautiful wedding last weekend for Amanda & Corey. Amanda has danced her whole life, and she really wanted to incorporate this into their day. These are a few of my favourite shots.

A guard of ballerinas, just beautiful.

Weekend Hello

Besides going to a Christening for my dear friend's little girls, I happily dedicated this weekend to chores. I now have the dining suite 100% complete, and have the house packing under control - whoo!
Just 3 sleeps and we are off to Europe and the UAE. I am craving the fresh air, sunshine and change of scenery that a good holiday brings.


Here is the dining suite, all done. Total cost $450. Not bad I say.


Talk soon!

Dining Suite Project

Over the Easter long weekend, hubby and I went shopping around the local second hand furniture and antique stores. I went in knowing I wanted to find a couple of cute and quirky vintage vases, but didn't have much luck. Then, we spotted a dining suite that would be perfect for our new place. It is hardwood, sturdy as you can get, seats 8, and has a rustic look, which we both liked.

We knew we wanted it, but thought we may check out a few shops next door, so went to leave the shop. The owner then asked if we would like it "held". I sort of laughed, and said "We will only be 10 minutes, but thanks, that would be good". Sure enough, when we returned, another couple were waiting aside to see if we would return as they wanted it. Lucky!

I knew I wanted a rich walnut colour, rather than the reddish brown it was, so we both got into sanding it back. This one is fully sanded.

I just realised in my flurry to get rid of the reddish brown, I didn't get a decent "before" picture, but here is the table in original condition. Some of the chairs have a lot more red in them.

First, I purchased a tin of Cabot's stain in "Walnut". It really didn't do anything with the colour, and allowed too much red to come through in the timber. 

Then we tried Integrain Natural Stain in "Charcoal", perfect! Here is the grubby tin.

The timber now has a nice dark walnut colour, and I'm really happy with it. Here are the chairs before/after.

I will need some chair cushions, especially with winter coming, so that will be my next mission.

Daydreaming

I hope you are all having a great week, and that you are feeling inspired today. In the midst of a sloooow work week, I am day dreaming... of Europe. I can hardly wait to feast upon the most beautiful scenery, and food!

I need to work hard this week, finalising loose ends at work (& home), staining the new dining suite (more on that later) and packing the remainder of our home for the big move. Hopefully hubby is impressed when he returns from his interstate trip on the weekend. I have been a very busy bee. Well, it always helps to make the time fly doesn't it.


Here is a little taste of Venice, beautiful huh *(sigh)*

via australiangrouptravel.com

 via thundafunda.com

via dsi.unive.it