Horray for wood filler!

The woodwork in our flat is generally so cracked and pitted that we are now starting our fifth tin of wood filler!

Bedroom Floor

For the bank holiday weekend we decided to give the bedroom a push and paint the floor at long last. This entailed emptying out the big black wardrobes entirely and storing the contents in various locations over the rest of the flat (not particularly zen!). We then lifted them onto trolleys as they wouldnt fit through the bedroom door, and rolled them around to paint beneath them. The first coat was a pink stain block to stop any oils and resins from the wood leaching through. We then filled the major nail holes and dents. This was then followed by 4 further coats of paint, one coat every 4 hours. What a mission!

Dream Kitchen 2: Bulthaup

Look at these gorgeous clean lined kitchens from Bulthaup... mmmm delicious! Wouldnt you love to sit in that french farm house kitchen in the top image eating a croissant and freshly squeezed orange juice?

Dream Kitchen 1: Nomiya, Rooftop of the Palais De Tokyo, Paris

Ive decided I need to post some dream kitchens to get in the kitchen planning mood... (enough photos of cracked timber!). Last year I helped organise the architecture study trip to Paris, and one of our stops was the roof top restaurant Nomiya - a temporary installation on top of the Palais De Tokyo. The kitchen was sponsored by AEG Electrolux and featured its new Front-line induction range. With white Corian worktops, 4 integrated dishwashers, and a view of the Eiffel Tower - what's not to love?!

Gas Hobs

As a little break from the window refurbishment, we've been thinking about our kitchen which we hope to replace in December-January (before the VAT increase!). We visited the appliance store Comet on the weekend to check out some appliances as we were keen to see them 'in person'. We havent made many final decisions, but are thinking about these for the Gas Hob.

Our requirements: Clean lined, 4 burner (60cm wide max), Stainless steel, cast iron pan holders (ie. not the enamelled ones).

Solution: Bosch Exxcel - PCH615M90E (top image - preferred because of the knob location at the bottom) OR
Bosch Clasixx - PBP615B90E (bottom image - slightly flatter)

Does anyone have any other suggestions for a good looking gas hob?

The Window Quest Continues

Here is a photo of how the timber panel beneath the bedroom window looks on the one we have finished. The window beads are unpainted in as we are replacing them along with the sash box covers. We have our work cut out for us this weekend!

A Parallel Living in Boston

Our London Flat PJ's Boston Flat During a fun (and long overdue) skype catch up with my friend PJ in Boston over the weekend we discovered that, an ocean a part, we are living in almost the same flat! We both have the same external wall layout, sash windows with timber panel bases, fireplace locations and internal staircase arrangement, however our rooms are arranged slightly differently. How funny. Click on the image for a larger view.

Front Window Surround Refurbishment

Our three front facing windows are all at different stages of refurbishment. Here you can see the kitchen window (left) and the central window (right).

We havent started yet on the kitchen window, (we'll attack that one when we do the kitchen), so it gives a good impression of the 'before' condition. The central window has been stripped and Flo is repairing the wood surrounds and replacing the sash box covers (yes, its a lot of work!). The last window has been painted, but needs the new draught beads.

Draught Beads

Our draught beads arrived in the week so this weekend I was busy priming and painting them so they will be ready for installation next weekend. The brush seals will slide into the white plastic slots once Ive finished painting them.

Our other market finds

At the market we were also looking for a brass key hole escutcheon for the bathroom having been unable to find one online that matched the toilet room door. After much searching we finally found a stand specializing in old door knobs and ironmongery and found our keyhole. Flo installed it last weekend so now at last we have a working bathroom door lock.

We also found these fantastic solid bronze letters which I will find a place for somewhere in our flat. Not sure where yet...

White on White Inspiration

Over the weekend I tested a bit of skirting and picture rail in the light grey and it didnt quite look right, as it only drew attention to the fact that the trim isnt straight. So after all those careful wall colour studies, Ive decided that actually what I really want for the bedroom paint scheme is a crisp white on white like this Victorian house in London. So the plan now is to do all the trim white, except the fireplace and shutters, which will remain the same light grey as our flat door.

A girl's got a right to change her mind right?! (Especially if she's the one doing the re-painting!)

Flowers from Fred & Emily

Last weekend we had Fred and Emily and their newborn Kaspar over for brunch and they brought us these lovely summer flowers. They make the living room smell heavenly!

Bedding Chest

One of the things we bought at the market was a large wooden chest to store our spare blankets and bedding in. Our flat has no built in cupboards, no loft (attic), and generally no storage space so we thought this would be a good storage solution. The real selling feature was the cute little inner shelf where we keep our guest oyster card, street parking tickets and maps for visitors so everything is in one place.

Yes, I know, a bit over organised, but as you all know, Im just like that!

Kempton Antique Market

Two weeks ago, Flo and I took a Tuesday off work to visit the Kempton (Sunbury) Antique market - apparently the largest in the country. The market takes over the car park and facilities of the Kempton Racetrack, near Heathrow Airport and consists of hundreds of stands selling everything from furniture to fancy hats. We had a list of a few specific items we were searching for, and although we didnt find everything, we did come home with a few things. I forgot I had brought my camera until we were waiting for the train home, so these dont fully convey the vastness of the event!

It was fun look at all the odd things people had purchased while waiting for the train home.

http://www.kemptonantiques.com/

Life's little pleasures:

Opening up a brand new can of paint....

Cornforth White - 228

On my lunch hour today I popped over to the Farrow and Ball shop near Baker Street to pick up a new can of paint for the shutters, skirting and window architraves. Its the same light grey as our bedroom fireplace and our front door so everything is unified.

Light Grey and White

Our immediate reaction to the purple and yellow walls of our bedroom was to paint everything white, however now looking at the bedroom we've decided its a bit of a shame to loose the wood trim and panelling details with the white on white scheme. Having settled on the grey fireplace and grey shutters we remained uncertain about the rest, so I did a few tests in photoshop. We've finally settled on keeping the walls white and doing all the woodwork in light grey (bottom right).