Frump to Fab - Onwards and Upwards

lessonlearned

FThat sofa is lovely, it looks very squishy and comfortable. Shades of cream and white will look wonderful. I love that look, very elegant and sophisticated and of course you can introduce gentle colour and ring the changes with flowers and accessories. I love those old fashioned creamy roses with that look.

I do like IKEA - good design at very affordable prices.

DS2's house is a Victorian terraced, quite large with decent sized rooms, high ceilings and plenty of original features such as cast iron fireplaces in the bedrooms, original mouldings and covings and a stunning Minton tiled floor in the hall. We have put back deep skirting boards to compliment the look. I really would like to replace the ugly modern radiators with Victorian cast iron ones but that would cost an arm and a leg, so we are going to cover them. A nice little diy joinery project for DS2:rotfl:

Like a lot of Victorian terraces it can be a bit dark so I'm trying to decorate in a way which makes the most of what light there is.

We are decorating and dressing the house with its heritage in mind but adding a modern twist, with the emphasis on comfort and a bit of glamour.

I've tried to post today's purchases.

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/S39029173/

It's the pax wardrobe system with bright turquoise hi gloss Doors for DS2's room. They will fit each side of the chimney breast, where there is nice cast iron fireplace. He has a huge dark sheesham wood bed and two matching bedside tables. There is a black leather chaise long at the bottom of the bed.

We have been unable to match the dark wood so I suggested he should go for a complete contrast for wardrobes rather than a half hearted near match.

The walls will be "greige" - sort of warm grey, mouldings, skirtings, woodwork and the chimney breast will be white. Then just a pop of mustard yellow and turquoise in the accessories to add a bit of zing. I think his bedroom will look stunning - masculine and grown up.

My room is smaller, so I have chosen the pax system with mirrored doors, which should hopefully bounce light around and make the room look larger and lighter.

Then I will be "shabby chiccing" some bits and pieces in a pale French grey and then accessorising in duck egg blue and soft pale greys and whites with just a pop of soft creamy yellow. So, basically my room will be a softer more feminine version of DS2's room.

The third bedroom is very small so will be a designated study, in pale greys and whites, with a few pops of mustard and plum. This room leads to the bathroom which has a white suite, limestone wall and floor tiles with plum towels. I'll add a few plum and mustard accessories.

The hall will be a paler warmer version of the "greige" with white mouldings, woodwork and trims, then lots of bright art and mirrors on the walls.

There is no airing cupboard so A shabby chic pale grey armoire will stand on the landing to house linens. I need to source some storage for outdoor paraphernalia and shoes etc. I've found a huge ornate Victorian mirror, the wood is in a sorry state so I will repair it and paint it to match the armoire.

The downstairs will be creamy white walls, with plum, grey/green, pale greys and soft turquoise as accents. The kitchen units are cream high gloss, with solid wood wor tops. The new bookcases, units etc are rustic Mexican pine to match our existing furniture. I really wanted mango wood this time but that would have cost four times as much.........

Perhaps when I've made my fortune as a successful property developer........

I know I make the house sound like a right mish mash but it will look nicer than it sounds:rotfl:

lessonlearned

Maddie - I know just what you mean about simple tasks sometimes being beyond us. I cannot believe how weak and feeble I am sometimes. I used to be able to decorate a room in a weekend but not any more. I really have to pace myself these days. I can't lift anything and just holding a paint roller or brush for any length of time hurts my wrists and elbows.

Our little trip to IKEA has left me exhausted, even though DS did the driving. :rotfl: I'm now reclining on the sofa watching Titanic. At least I'm not cooking tonight because we had a good lunch at Frankie & Bennies.

This weakness and constant tiredness is such a nuisance. I used to have almost limitless energy. I'm hoping that its just a silly phase I'm going through.:D Perhaps it's part of the grieving process and I just need to be patient. In the meantime I'm doing what I can, delegating where necessary, resting, eating well, exercising when I can.

My plan is to devote more time to exercise after Christmas. I'm going to add weight training to my regime. I used to train with weights and I found it really helped with my strength and stamina.

Tomorrow I've got Physio. I didn't manage any shopping on Friday - the weather was just too grim so im hoping to shop tomorrow.

ScarlettMcCain

Just wanted to wish you well for tomorrow Katiecat, and I hope it's not too difficult. Of course it will be very hard when he goes, but in the long run much better to have him gone and be able to rebuild your life. Just plan lots of little treats and events for yourself - meeting friends, looking after yourself, whatever you enjoy :-)

I hope everyone finds more energy too, it's horrible going into winter and feeling rubbish even before the days draw in! I take a few vitamins and that helps me - I'm vegetarian and without my B12 vitamins I do feel very lethargic.

At the moment I'm loving the Dove self tan lotion - my fabbing doesn't go very far when I look pasty white!

newthrift

Katie – sending you positive vibes for today, I hope you have a nice wonder around the shops and treat yourself to a coffee and cake somewhere - sometimes needs must!!
LL – It sounds lovely!! You will be looking for another project when you have finished it all.
Maddie – Sorry you were having a bad day and struggling with a few things, sending hugs!
Ruby – Oooo a bit of colour to the skin always does perk you up
General day to day fabbing happening but nothing much over and above, time hasn't quite allowed this weekend. I did manage to paint my nails yesterday afternoon in a nice pale pink and on the ring finger have some 'loose nail glitter' which I shook on.
I think it was someone on here who mentioned about 'the real housewives of beverly hills' (or could of been somewhere else), but about how glam they can be and getting hooked watching. Well I have found it;s on ITVBe and I keep dropping in to catch up now :rotfl: because they really are quite glam, annoying how they just drop ££££'s on little things though!

happe

Thinking of you Katie xx

Rose_Wood

Afternoon Everyone.

I hope today goes well for you Katiecat and that you manage to focus on the positive aspects - which there will be even if it doesn't feel like it at the moment.

I love the sofa Maman, it looks really elegant. We have cream settees - a 2 seater and a 3 seater but they are looking a bit battered now and may need replacing in the future.

It's a glorious day here with the sun shining and all the trees looking wonderful in their autumn colours. I had a 5 mile walk this morning rather than my usual 3 mile run as my running friend has hurt her back. We took it quite slowly and had a really good chat which was nice.

I haven't done brilliantly on my diet over the weekend as I made fudge yesterday and had quite a few pieces. The rest has been wrapped in bags ready for Christmas presents and stored in an airtight tin. I had lost 1.5lbs at my weigh in last week at the Aerobics Weight Loss Challenge so I hope I haven't put any back on.

I have work quite early today and have to go in for 3.15 so have had a bath and washed my hair. I'm wearing an old favourite - a purple tunic dress from Oasis (via the charity shop) teamed with leggings and boots. I need to go and run the straighteners through my hair shortly to try to stop it going fluffy and wild and to hopefully make it look sleek and glossy instead.

We went to see The Imitation Game last night starring Benedict Cumberbatch and thought it was superb. It's about Alan Turing and the Enigma Project and well worth a visit if you get chance.

Rose

maman

Rose_Wood wrote: »

I love the sofa Maman, it looks really elegant. We have cream settees - a 2 seater and a 3 seater but they are looking a bit battered now and may need replacing in the future.

Rose

My current ones are looking battered too! The good things about the ones we're planning is that they have washable, removable covers. I'm not sure I could trust myself with cream otherwise.


Ikea's brilliant for storage LL. My DD1 is fancying those wardrobes but she wants the panelled white sliding doors as there's not a huge amount of room to open them in her bedroom. I think the mirrored doors are a fantastic idea for making rooms look light and spacious. And totally agree that you can mix and match ancient and modern.


I've got myself fabbed up to go out later. I've put on a dress as it's always better for my dancing class. Tonight will probably be the first time I've worn foundation/tinted moisturiser too as I'm looking really pale.


I'm going to have to cancel my hair appointment for this week. My hairdresser can't do the morning and if I make it later it'll involve a lot of unnecessary rushing about. So I'll ring up tomorrow and move it.:(

nilequeen

newthrift wrote: »

Katie – sending you positive vibes for today, I hope you have a nice wonder around the shops and treat yourself to a coffee and cake somewhere - sometimes needs must!!
LL – It sounds lovely!! You will be looking for another project when you have finished it all.
Maddie – Sorry you were having a bad day and struggling with a few things, sending hugs!
Ruby – Oooo a bit of colour to the skin always does perk you up
General day to day fabbing happening but nothing much over and above, time hasn't quite allowed this weekend. I did manage to paint my nails yesterday afternoon in a nice pale pink and on the ring finger have some 'loose nail glitter' which I shook on.
I think it was someone on here who mentioned about 'the real housewives of beverly hills' (or could of been somewhere else), but about how glam they can be and getting hooked watching. Well I have found it;s on ITVBe and I keep dropping in to catch up now :rotfl: because they really are quite glam, annoying how they just drop ££££'s on little things though!

Hi
It was me and be warned it can become compulsive viewing, they are now doing the Cheshire housewives as well, should be interesting, might even see someone I know!
It was the Miami housewives I liked best because they were so Latin and fiery, made for interesting viewing, I love the New York ones too, the only ones I did not find so riveting were the Washington DC lot, a bit dry except for that controversial couple that blagged themselves into the white house and a dinner with the Obamas!
The Housewives are good for inspiring us to get fabbing, you almost want to emulate them, especially your faves, there is always one in every set or series.
Isn`t it nice the way they invite each other on lavish girly holidays and then always have a dramatic meltdown! Oh the clothes they wear are so fabulous.
Got a bit carried away there but itvbe is a bit moreish.
Your nails sound fab.

nilequeen

Hi ladies
If there are any chocolate lovers on a diet, I suspect there may be, I have discovered these milk chocolate chewy delight special k bars, similar to a chocolate crispy, only a little chewy, 95 calories per bar.
I think they are rather tasty and I`m not even a chocolate fan, I can take it or leave it, but would buy these again.

katiecat

Well I made it and he has gone.


I am planning this new chapter in my life -it was not what I planned(not sure who said that- sorry)but its what I have to deal with. He left quite a mess behind him but my very special boys have set to and cleaned up.
I know there will be difficult days ahead but today was a difficult day and I got through it.


Many thanks for all your kind messages on here. I read them and feel sure it will all come good in time!


Katiecat