Bought and Sold by The Suburban Stylist

 

Hello,

How has your weekend been?

I do hope it has been lovely! I've been busy... doing a little wheeling and dealing. As you do; and as a result I now have a huge list of "To do's" and it's all a little bit overwhelming but in a good way offcourse. I don't know how it happened exactly but suddenly in the space of two days, my house is looking more like an antique store than a home.... seriously!  I do believe that suburban stylist is still buying more wares than selling!!

 

The Suburban Stylist's record thus far

Sold

1 x Art Deco Mirror (dreadfully hard to part with!)

 

Purchases

Vintage Mirror

Lamp 

Vintage Ladder

Antique Wardrobe's x 3

Dresser with antique Mirror

 

 

Keeping ;-)

Vintage Mirror

Lamp

Vintage Ladder

Antique Wardrobe's x 3

Dresser with antique Mirror

 I am actually super smitten with all these new purchases; We have had storage issues for a while now, more specifically since our bathroom renovation. In order to make our new bathroom more spacious, we had to say goodbye to our hallway linen cupboard; it had amazing Tardis like capabilities, everything including the Christmas tree happily lived in that space. Anyhoo, thought I'd just share that I now have three beautiful antique cupboards and vintage dresser with mirror all waiting in line for a lil restoration (can't wait to show you!). I also have my new website and styling portfolio to finish in order to launch this next phase of my styling business. The upside is that I don't mind having lots to do at all and I am super excited about getting all of this completed!

Rach xx

Do you like to get the look for less in your home?

Hello, 

I have been quite preoccupied working on developing my new website... between you and I, I am a web novice so this project literally eats my time. I guess, there is always a huge learning curve when you embark on a new adventure too. Stay tuned, I am hoping that one day soon.... I will eventually be able to share some more news  ;-0.

Now tell me, do you like to get the look for less?

Well, this post is all over that!.

Getting the look for less is one of my favorite things, mostly because I get to recycle, reuse and be creative all at the same time. As some of you would already know this makes my heart flutter and puts a huge smile on my face especially when the project is completed.
 

I wanted to create a wall vignette just like the one you see on the front page of this Elle Decoration UK magazine. For the record, it did not turn out exactly the same. The look on the magazine is all about lovely neutrals; it is subtle, interesting and beautiful all at the same time! My vignette did not achieve the same result however I definitely feel that I have put my own style and creative spin on things and that is very important too!

Thrifted picture frames

 I bought these picture frames from a thrift store, they ranged in price from 50 cents to maybe around $1.00 each. Just saying, they were super cheap! I simply painted them; some I distressed white and a couple I painted charcoal.

My wall vignette

As you can see my wall vignette is a mixture of snaps of my children that I took from our last family holiday and also a couple of Instagram pictures that I recently photographed and liked. It was a specific design decision to mix up the subject matter; I wanted the wall to be interesting and have few layers of appeal. I believe that I have made a good start to achieving this and I know that the wall will continue to develop from here.

 Have you had any thrifty bargains of late? Please, do tell me about them.

 

 Rach xx

Hooking up at Ivy and Elephants linky party

Sweet memories and souvenirs

Inside these bottles are dried remnants from a beautiful bunch of flowers gifted to me on mother’s day. They were from Magnolia Flowers in Ashgrove, my favourite florist!

 

I adore their flower arrangements and Magnolia is also one of my most favourite names ever!

Keeping flowers has long been a tradition of mine; it was something I did even as a teenager. I guess I just love the gift to last and like finding ways to remember thoughtfulness. They are my souvenirs to remind me of a sweet moment and I think they also look great as decorations scattered around the home.

Sometimes, the greenery is the best part to dry out and keep! They look great hanging on a wall, dangled around a bottle, or as part of a wall vignette

What souvenirs do you like to treasure?? xx


Hooking up at Ivy and Elephants

A vintage meat safe restyled

 This old meat safe would have many stories to tell... I do like that attribute in a cupboard!

 

A girlfriend of mine, spotted this fabulous gem! She could see that it was very worthy of a revamp/ restyle and helped me rescue it from a road trip to the tip. It was all kinds of apricot and its doors were lined with old-style frosted glass...

Do you like to give old things a new lease on life? I do! I particularly appreciate the hard work and craftsmanship you see in older style furniture. It’s rare that you see that kind of love in modern day, mass produced furniture. It is a huge, huge shame!

I sanded it back and painted it with a Dulux Antique white. I lightly distressed it for a very conservative, shabby chic look. I felt that it already had oodles of character and didn't need me to go overboard with a more dramatic look. I removed the glass inserts/ chipboard from the cupboard doors and for a more textured look lined them with chook wire. To achieve a sweet vintage-style finish, I also stencilled numbers on a few of the door knobs. 

There is something about this cupboard that I find very inspiring. It is the new addition to our office/ creative space; it will be a props cupboard of sorts and I love that it has already resolved some quite major storage issues around here. It does so make me smile!

 

Hooking up over at the Say Gday Linky Party

Happy Mothers Day!

This is how I spent Mothers Day, last year. This year, I spent a good part of the morning on our couch.... both were very lovely ways to spend a Mothers day! I do think it's nice to enjoy a lazy rest every now and then.

This is me, looking very sunny and yellow... Love!

I must confess I haven't yet sent my own mum a mother's day card... it's going to be a belated one this year, I do hope she understands. Instead, we have had a good chat on the telephone. It is a shame we don't live closer to each other, I could pop over and take her out to lunch. I would like that! 

For the record, I have never done juggling or acrobats with either of my children...but I do love and appreciate his imagination for thinking so!

What are your plans this Mother's Day??

Rach xx

Vintage Style Adventures

Oh Hello,
Thought I would share my latest thrifty adventures. How adorable are these vintage style finds? I love them! I do believe these treasures are going straight to the props cupboard… Although I honestly think I could find a special nook for this sweet vintage trophy if I persist! And I also love the autumn colours of this breakfast tray, be so gorgeous for a lil morning tea extravaganza. Orange and green palates do look so fabulous together!

Can you believe that my hubby found the above two vintage bottles (far right) on Anzac day? I thought it kind of timely and special! I think, I was also just very surprised to find some history in my own backyard... as everything is so very modern these days. As you know, I do love a vintage bottle or two and I adore how rustic they are! Have you had any Antique/ thrifty adventures of late?? Do tell me about them!
 
Rach xx

The irony behind "A Dunny with Dignity!"

 

I will take any progress I can get, Yay!!! 

As a general rule, I like to keep my blog posts mostly about all things interiors and inspiring if I possibly can; it is the voice that I am truly passionate about and the one that I am motivated to use... but please, allow me a quick whine (or wine is good too) if I may. The past week and half of our bathroom renovation has felt like an eternity. For many reasons (including our little family in tow) it is exhausting and I cannot wait until it is finally finished. I don't mean to sound dreary, just attempting to be at peace with life’s ups and downs, I guess. Maybe you also get the feeling that I am not really the outdoorsy type?? Yes, camping (i.e outdoor loo loo's and showers) for an extended period of time is possibly not for me!

 I realise this time will not last forever; it will pass and will be worth every ounce of pain. However I think the hardest thing is and as crazy as it sounds, I actually feel a little homeless without a bathroom in my house. Word is that I am a blessed creature of comfort and I think it’s quite true! Imagine if I were born pre 1950's where in-house toilets were uncommon, or even if I was actually homeless? Would I cope?? I don’t know; I hope so! What I do know is that I am indeed quite blessed to be finding this a difficult time in the first place and I see that! In the meantime, I am trying to enjoy the funny side to our outdoor living situation, and I hope our neighbour’s, bless them… will see it too ;-O.

Some random, possibly even helpful facts about about Portaloo's and showers.

• Portaloo's need to be within 10meters of kerbside so that they may be serviced/ hmm emptied... however it is quite possible that your visitors may actually knock on both your front doors ;-). 

• Get used to venturing outside during the night and try to not wake up too much so that you are able to get back to sleep more easily.

•  Portaloo's and Portashowers have no electricity, therefore your entire family will need to shower before dark and invest in VERY fancy robes/ dressing gowns.

• Outdoor showers are more suited to private areas ok; just saying a high fence is a sensible idea and preferably away from your neighbour’s entertaining area...

• Although the slogan is "Dunny's with dignity", bear with me... I am yet to discover the D for dignity in our outdoor dunny just yet!

Rach xx