Category: Home renovation

My Dirty Secret: Cleaning Motivation

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the day-to-day of work, travel, play, sleep and mundane tasks. It’s that occasional moment when I look around and see all the things I’ve yet to do that makes me roll my eyes and want to climb back under the blankets and hide.

When I can find a space to sit alone for about an hour, I’ll sometimes search youtube for an episode of hoarders. I think the entire world recognizes this show by now (which in and of itself is kind of weird …the things that garner attention!) and it is absolutely horrifying.

Watching this show makes me want to vomit in my gym shoes. Seriously. I don’t understand HOW people can allow themselves and their homes to get in such horrendous shape! This really is people choosing things, trash – over those they love. However, I am absolutely addicted to watching it. It’s like a train wreck: You know you shouldn’t look, and instead should assist, but…it’s just that odd that you can’t help but stare in earth shattering fear and amazement.

Even better (or worse for my youtube hoarders addiction), every time an episode completes (sometimes halfway through), I start cleaning.  CLEANING my home. The super kind of cleaning and ready to toss out just everything. This is quite a big happening usually, and now with a heavy fear of any kind of bacteria, the neurosis goes soooo much worse.

So this is my dirty secret. Hoarders is my biggest motivation for a seasonal cleaning. If you’re anything like me, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Check it out if you have the stomach for it and watch your floors sparkle.

Whats your dirty secret?

-Mliae


It’s up and it’s Awesome! – Photowall Product Review

Thank you for stopping by today:)

I would like to talk about a really fantastic company I happened upon, called Photowall. They specialize in wall canvases and wallpaper prints – and art prints (my absolute favourite now) for feature walls. It really is amazing what they do. Wow…I mean, really…WOW!

I have been very hesitant to wallpaper. I’m old enough to remember some of the ghastly designs people used to have up – Oh so many years ago. Due to that ongoing design trauma, I refused to put anything up on my walls that I wasn’t absolutely in love with. Needless to say, after 2 years of searching for the perfect item, we still hadn’t found it. But then this happened. I discovered Photowall. I’ve seen many firms who can do a Photo print wallpaper. But this was just unbelievable. Firstly, they had everything I could’ve possibly imagined…and a whole lot that I couldn’t even imagine for myself. I could never have believed that art. True art. Could cover my entire wall! I fell in love with the art selection at first sight. Imagine it: The person who was unable to find anything in 2 years of digging through countless wallpaper books, suddenly had an email full of links and choices to make! (Yes, I’m that chick. I email myself. ) The choice was a difficult one. Deciding on one of something that really brought out our personalities, plus fit in with the rustic-ness of the house, still offered too many options. We kept going back to this Painting by the Swedish artist John Bauer. His Trolls are just too cool. He is a highly sought after artist from the 1890’s and neither of us ever thought we could have his work in our home! This is the piece we got, on our wall and we love it! No, seriously. We can’t stop staring at it. It’s so magical, it’s kind of like stepping into a fairytale 🙂

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(Oh yeah, and this is me. You’ve never really seen a whole pic of me before. Ta-Da!)

Let’s start at the beginning.

The selection. At first glance, one might assume that this is nothing more than a photo print or statement wall papering firm. Oh, how wrong you are! The selection is out of this world. For real! There are, quite literally, THOUSANDS of incredible options! We looked at every single one of them. The ones that really made my heart flutter, are the art. I’m not kidding. Do you love Van Gogh’s Waterlilies? Want an entire wall of it? They have it. And they will get it to you…FAST! Want your entire flat to look like the exhibit hall at The Louvre? Nooo problemo.

Here are some of the items we really loved:

Van Gogh’s almond Blossom

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Watercolour World Map

watercolor-world-map

(My inner travel blogger is screaming for this in my office.)

Dans le Clapot

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These are just a few of the outstanding collection they offer.

Cost. This product seems to average about 32 Euro per square meter. This price really isn’t bad…especially considering the fact that you don’t need so much. It’s a feature piece, without the feature price. Win-win!

Customer service.  I have never had my emails returned in such a fast & friendly manner. Even with my 1001 questions, they never seemed annoyed or too busy. This I find outstanding in itself because I know I was annoying. But I could feel the smile in every transaction. And that is worth SO MUCH!

Printing and Shipping. Holy Smokes, Batman! That’s the fastest I have ever seen! No joke, I made the order at 11. By 11:20 I already had an email that it was going to be printed. By 18:00 (6 pm) I had another email stating my tracking number and that my product was being shipped. WOW! All in the same day! I love that, really. Also, for those of you like me who rage against International shipping: This is not a problem. The Photo Wall website actually has links to the website in your home country’s format. Just click on the world at the top right and scroll down to your area. It will be in your own language, currency and delivery will be incredibly affordable. YAY! That’s a huge plus in my book. 🙂

I was so excited to get the package, I made a  unboxing video.

The Product: You can see for yourself that their product is superior. It was very easy to put up and the wallpaper comes in one single roll, which is clearly marked where to cut and which panel goes where. It looks like it would be a nightmare, but it was very simple and at no point did we have to rearrange the panels. Just put on the glue, line up the panel and smooth/brush it down. Simple as that! Photowall also offers this instructional video.

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I get approached by companies every so often. Sometimes, the product does not fit into my niche worldview and I won’t bother with it. Occasionally though, there is a company that is really worth looking into. I could tell this company was doing good things and I wanted to know more. Photo Wall surpassed my expectations by leaps and bounds. I really cannot say enough good things about this company and their products. This is the truth. I have never had such amazing everything regarding the entire process, as I have with Photo Wall. I am so excited to have had the opportunity to procure one of their pieces and display it proudly in my home!

I highly recommend checking out Photowall. Even if you aren’t currently in the market for wallpaper, just so you can see how far it’s really come! I couldn’t believe it, and you probably won’t either. If you do happen to be doing some decorating, please feel free to use my discount promo code, it’s valid for the next 30 days! MliaeCampaign2017 Expires January 19.

A note to remember: These items are meant to be a focal point. Many of them are measured to be framed by the wall. If you prefer that your photowall image cover the entire wall, it might be beneficial for you to contact the customer service to make sure that you have given the correct measurements. They ask that you add a few extra centimeters, even for the pieces which don’t expand the entire wall. Photowall customer service is awesome, they’ll let you know precisely how to get what you’re looking for!

Thank you for reading and I hope you have a lovely holiday season!

-Mliae

*Disclosure: I was given a complimentary piece, in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion. Happily, I am a very happy – soon to be returning – customer!

DIY Yard Waste Composter

Hi all and happy Sunday 🙂

As most of you know, we’ve been working, working, working…to make this place great and add some curb appeal at the new place!

This composter desperately needed to be done, as we have quite a bit of yard space and nowhere to put all the cut branches, grass clippings, etc.

I was so excited when my partner mustered up some old wood and put this beauty together! It will be full soon, and no doubt, we’ll have lots of good quality planting soil next spring! 🙂

Making yard compost is really easy, especially since you don’t have to be so super cautious about placement since it doesn’t use food waste. A yard compost pile really only needs a perimeter (such as this), lids or solid walls are not a necessity. Just toss all your leaves, and natural yard waste inside it. The outside will insulate the core and will help to excellerate the natural process of breaking down the material. In about a year this will result in a natural, nutrient rich form of soil and fertilizer (especially if you add coffee grounds). Because worms are naturally attracted, and necessary in the process, you must place your composter a reasonable distance from your home, as to not create  a pathway for creepy crawlies from the compost to your home.

Compost and enjoy!

-Mliae

Reblog: Tips on how to make your home sell fast!

I found this while searching for renovation blog posts and I HAD to share! I know that the real estate market is difficult to navigate and this article contains a few simple tips to create an atmosphere in which buyers can better envision themselves living in your home for sale. Hope it helps! -Mliae

Check out this great article from our friends over at Slifer Designs sharing tips for sellers on how to make your home stand out to buyers so you can go from “for sale” to “sold” quickly! SOURCE: VAIL DAILY | AUTHOR: YVONNE JACOBS, President of Slifer Designs AN UPDATED HOME WON’T LANGUISH ON THE MARKET […]

via Homes That Are Designed To Sell — GOTTVAIL

Now the major experiments are coming…

Prepare yourself for strings of profanity, tears, maxed out credit card and the occasional trip to the hospital.  It’s time for the DIY Home repair, home reno, and crash course gardening section of our blogging experience together!

As most of you well know, I purchased a small very old farmhouse last year. Well, through the past however many months its been and living through the annual seasons thus far, I’ve come to the realization that a lot more work needs to be done than I had originally anticipated. At first, I thought – ‘hey, its mainly just cosmetic stuff…we can manage this little by little – no problemo.’ Oooohhh….how wrong I was!

As it turns out, this would be a non-stop diy 10 year project if I had all the funds I needed for supplies and professionals (electricians, plumbers). But with my current budget (and the fact that a few weeks ago thieves stole my bank card and wiped out my entire account -> yet to be reconciled by the bank) I’m thinking 15, 30 years – tops.

The planned repairs/changes/beautifying:

  1. Full on yard do-over. This place was so overgrown from years of neglect, that even in several months, we couldn’t cut back the wilderness from the yard. The weeds had grown to small trees and were shoulder high. (Nope, not kidding) So this Spring/summer or plan is to create some serious curb-appeal.
    1. Continue cutting back the wilderness
    2. Plant grass
    3. Create some flower beds
    4. Straighten the drive
    5. Make a small terrace area to even out the front
    6. Replace entry stairs
    7. Replace front door to mudroom
    8. Replace mudroom door
    9. Make planting boxes to grow vegetables
    10. Build a small bridge
    11. Build a encasement for yard compost
  2. Sauna. Both the sauna benches need to be replaced, and the sauna oven itself. Plus its wicked dark in there so I’m thinking a new light as well.
  3. Attic. The attic needs newer insulation and I would like to create a space where its, you know, actual wall.
  4. Some of the fireplaces need repair, the chimney needs cleaning
  5. There is some seriously awful wood paneling. I would like to tear that down and make it a nice looking wall or even a lodge-like area with wood planks. Depending on what we find under it.
  6. We’ve got carpenter ants. Need to get rid of those and replace the floor and walls in one of the wet rooms because someone very bright put plastic flooring over wood floor and its not working out very well.

The list goes on and on and on… But honestly, I will be absolutely thrilled if we can even manage half of these tasks this summer.

Wish me luck and keep in touch, things are about to get very interesting!

And please, if anyone is willing or able to share some helpful or knowledgable advice, I’m ALL EARS!

-Mliae

My Dirty Secret: Cleaning Motivation

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the day-to-day of work, travel, play, sleep and mundane tasks. It’s that occasional moment when I look around and see all the things I’ve yet to do that makes me roll my eyes and want to climb back under the blankets and hide.

When I can find a corner to sit alone for about an hour, I’ll search youtube for an episode of hoarders. I think the entire world recognizes this show by now (which in and of itself is kind of weird …the things that garner attention!) and it is absolutely horrifying.

Watching this show makes me want to vomit in my gym shoes. Seriously. I don’t understand HOW people can allow themselves and their homes to get in such horrendous shape! This really is people choosing things, trash – over those they love. However, I am absolutely addicted to watching it. It’s like a train wreck: You know you shouldn’t look, and instead should assist, but…it’s just that out of whack that you can’t help but stare in earth shattering fear and amazement.

Even better (or worse for my youtube hoarders addiction), every time an episode completes (sometimes halfway through), I start cleaning. I mean CLEANING my home. Toothbrush in hand kind of cleaning and ready to toss out just everything.

So this is my dirty confession. Hoarders is my biggest motivation for spring cleaning. If you’re anything like me, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Check it out if you have the stomach for it and watch your floors sparkle.

Hoarders

Whats your dirty secret?

-mliae

 

New -old home purchase fail: -30 out and the pipes freeze…

That moment when something in the house has gone terribly wrong and you realize…for certain this time, that you don’t know what the hell you’re doing.

Yes. This happened. This morning actually. Woke up freezing, went to the kitchen to make the coffee and …oh, wait…oh, no…..! Turned every faucet in the place on just to hear the same ole gurgling. NOT.COOL.

Fortunately, I have some bottled water and enough in the water boiler to  heat up for washing. We took the electric radiator to the basement to warm the solid ice pipes. Which, after about 10 hours actually started to work. Splutter slat went the pipes…and we were so excited! Yay! Water! Then some crunching sounds and water everywhere. The meter ruptured. So now, here I sit – fingers, toes and everything possible crossed that the water guys will be here ASAP to fix this thing.

I love this place. I really do. But I am learning on a monthly basis that I was in no way mentally prepared to purchase and older home where I’m responsible for everything, while romanticizing the idea of renovating it to my specific tastes. It will happen, yes. And I cannot wait! But for now I could gladly read a home repair for dummies book.

Does anyone have any advice on how to prevent this in the future?

Thanks for reading!

-mliae