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Thrifty Finds

by on May 19, 2013 in Daily Life, Op-Shopping, Vintage

It’s been a little while since we posted about our op-shop finds, so I thought today I’d share some of our most recent treasures. We haven’t done a lot of thrifting lately, but have managed to squeeze in a few op-shop visits and garage sales here and there…

Vintage Tablecloths

I stumbled across a whole stack of vintage tablecloths at a garage sale last weekend. Naturally, I took the lot! I really can’t say no to pretty vintage linens.

Teaset

I ummed and ahhed about this tea set, but in the end the fact it was complete and only $5 won me over. Because all of our plates and most of our mugs are vintage and have been gathered on our adventures, barely anything in our kitchen matches. Though I love our mismatched, scrappy collection, complete sets are so nice.

Vintage Apron

I rarely think to wear one when I’m actually cooking, but I love vintage aprons. This one with its cute floral print just might be my favourite ever.

Bedside Tables

We haven’t had bedside tables since we lived in Sydney, as our bedroom in Bendigo was too narrow to fit them in. These 70s tables were $25 for the set and they go with our old bed so perfectly. (Oh and look! We’re finally off the floor living room floor and in our bedroom!!)

Granny Blankets

Over the last couple of years we have acquired about eleventy million granny blankets, so I try to practice restraint and be selective about the ones I bring home these days, but I couldn’t resist these two. The colours are so good!

Vintage Serving Tray

Speaking of so good, this incredibly retro serving tray was $2! Yes!

Vintage Sheets

And last but not least, two more vintage sheets for my ever growing collection. The orange one matches the blue sheet from my last thrifty finds post! One day I hope to turn all my lovely old sheets into beautiful quilts… (and some more dresses!)

Have you had any great thrifty finds lately?

Katie x

Comments { 15 }

It’s OK to be Happy with a Quiet Life

by on May 16, 2013 in Daily Life, Musings, Simple Living

Its OK

The other day I was wasting a little time on Pinterest, when I stumbled across a quote that said “It’s ok to be happy with a calm life.” You know when you happen upon a quote, idea or sentiment that just really resonates with you? That’s what happened with this. I repinned the image and went on with my day, but instead of forgetting all about it like I do most things, I kept coming back to the quote and pondering on it. Today I spent a couple of minutes typing the words up (replacing “calm” with “quiet”) and printing it, so I could tape the message on our fridge as a reminder.

I think this little phrase struck a chord with me because for a long time I didn’t think that it was ok to be happy with a quiet life. I am actually only fairly new to this way of thinking. I grew up expecting my adult self to become a high-flying editor. In my teen years I watched a lot of Sex in the City and imagined myself moving to New York and strutting around in Manolos like Carrie Bradshaw. I wanted an impressive job, an incredible wardrobe and money. Lots of money. After uni I leapt at the first opportunity to move to Sydney, so I could start my dream life in the city… And then quite unexpectedly, things changed. I wasn’t happy. I slowly began to realise the life I had always thought that I wanted was in fact, not what I wanted at all. I hated working in an office. I couldn’t stand wearing heels for any prolonged period of time. I found the hustle and the bustle of the city exhausting. Coming home to our dark little apartment and getting takeaway after a day at work and a long commute was miserable. And most surprisingly of all, having more money didn’t make me any more happy.

In our society we are constantly bombarded with the message that we should want more. Advertising tells us life will be better with more. Our families and school teachers (who only want the best for us) encourage us to work hard to we can acheive more. The media and popular culture focus on celebrities and people who have more. More means success. So deciding that actually, we’d be happy with a bit less, can require a big adjustment.

A couple of years on, sometimes I still catch myself slipping into “more” mentality. I see people getting impressive jobs and promotions, driving new cars and buying big houses and I get caught up comparing my humble life to the their successes. But to compare myself to someone else’s version of success makes no sense at all. Though I am happy for my friends’ achievements, I don’t necessarily want them for myself. I actually really like my life! I love our shabby old house. I love my little Etsy shop. I love my Reuben and our fur babies. I love our op-shop dates. I love our trips to the farmers markets. I love that we are working on this home and making it our own, all ourselves. I’ve also come to realise I value time more than money, and that Reubs and I don’t need a lot of stuff to be happy. I now know that I find life richer, happier and smoother when we spend plenty of time quietly at home. I understand that I’m more confident in myself when I’m not totally focused on material things. I’m less anxious away from the crazy pace of the city. I’m healthier when I take the time to cook whole food from scratch. I’m more pleasant to be around when I’m not stressed. In the past I’ve had more money, more stuff and more conventional “success” than I do at the moment, but I don’t think I’ve ever been happier than I am right now.

I now know that it’s ok to be happy with a quiet life. Actually, it’s ok to be happy with whatever kind of life makes us happy! We just have to learn to let go of irrelevant expectations, listen to our hearts and do what feels right for us. Because at the end of the day there is no one way to be happy or successful. The formula for a good life is different for each of us.

You makes your life happy?

Katie x

Comments { 56 }

The Dear Delilah Shop is Open!

by on May 13, 2013 in Business, Craft, Dear Delilah, Handmade, Jewellery

Dear Delilah 3

Dear Delilah 2

Dear Delilah 4

Dear Delilah

Yesterday I finally opened my Etsy store! The shop had been ready to go for over a week, but I just couldn’t bring myself to take that final step and make it live. I guess that fear was holding me back again. Last night Reubs convinced me it was time to take the plunge and held my wobbly hand as I apprehensively clicked “open”…

Then this morning I woke up to discover I’d already made my first sale! I could hardly believe it. I’m taking it as a good sign.

I’ve named my shop Dear Delilah, after our sweet Daisy Delilah dog. The name was something I struggled with a bit, but in the end Dear Delilah just felt right. I’ve also created a facebook page for the shop, so if any of you would like to receive updates, information on special offers and sneak peeks of new products you can “like” Dear Delilah over there. I’d love that!

I just wanted to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to everyone who has urged me to take this step and launch my little store. Running an Etsy business has been a dream of mine for such a long time, and it feels wonderful to be finally making it happen. I owe so much to the kind words of encouragement offered here. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Katie x

Comments { 26 }

Lately…

by on May 9, 2013 in Daily Life

Daisy Poppy and Juicing

Mollie and Bunny Latte

Poppy and Thrify Finds

Artful Blogging and Daisy Walking

We have been watching The Good Life. (So good!)

We have been listening to She and Him Volume Three. (Also good!)

We’ve been juicing lots.

We’ve been kept warm on chilly nights with crochet blankets and a lovely heater, lent by a kind neighbour.

We have been honoured to be featured in Artful Blogging magazine!

We have also made it to the top 26 Home and Creative blogs in Voices of 2013!! (So chuffed!)

We’ve had a few nice op-shop finds.

Katie and Daisy have been enjoying walks in the Autumn sunshine, with Katie’s mum and puppa Molly.

Reuben has been reading Smith Journal.

We have very almost moved off the floor and back into a real bed!!

What’s been happening in your world lately?

Katie and Reuben x

Comments { 18 }

A Little Painting Progress

by on May 6, 2013 in Daily Life, Decorating, Home, Renovating

When we decided to buy our old house and renovate we really had no idea what we were in for. In the months since settlement we have come to realise this project is so much bigger than we ever imagined. Every day we discover new things that need doing, and every task we undertake takes longer than we anticipate. That said, it does feel wonderful to be (very) slowly breathing life back into this old house…

Reubs took last week off work to work on the house and we naively believed that with a solid nine days behind us, we’d be able to strip and paint two of our three bedrooms, as well our living room. Of course we were way off! We spent four days just stripping, sanding and prepping one bedroom!! We did however manage to get the two bedrooms very almost finished, so I thought today I’d share some pictures of our progress so far.

When we moved in the main bedroom looked like this:

Main Bedroom Before

Last week it looked like this:

Main Bedroom During

And now, it looks like this:

Main Bedroom After

As you an see the skirting boards and windows (and door frame) have only been undercoated and still need a couple of coats of paint, but we are almost finished! You might remember that when we started stripping paint we found the wood underneath had previously been varnished and we decided to keep the wood exposed? Yes well, as you can see we changed our minds. We discovered the hard way that stripping the paint off completely in order to varnish is virtually impossible and the wood underneath was in worse condition than we had realised. Plus, it just looked really dark and yucky. So sadly, the wood had to go.

Here’s the smallest bedroom (soon to be craft room!) when we moved in:

Studio Before

And here it is now:

Studio After

We still need to paint all the trim in there too.

Both rooms feel so much bigger and fresher now! We’ve used Taubmans Ocean Pearl on the walls which is a creamy, ever so slightly lemony, off white. We’ll be finishing the doors, windows and skirting boards with straight white. You can’t really see in these pictures but the ceilings were a creamy colour and they are now crisp white too, which has made such a difference to the spaces, and made both rooms feel brighter and more airy. We’re so pleased with how these rooms are looking so far and the fresh paint really brings the floors we slaved on to life! We can’t wait until the rest of the house is looking so good.

Only one bedroom, the living room, hall, entryway, kitchen, bathroom and laundry to go…

Katie x

Comments { 27 }
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