Decorating

I've been haunting ebay, trying to find the perfect hall table for our entry and I thought I had it.... but I was outbid. I sulked about it for a bit, but now I've decided that it was a blessing in disguise, because I found this locally at a bargain price:



You can stash a surprising amount of crap in those drawers...

I need to find just the right arrangement of decorative bits and pieces, but for now, I've pinched things from other rooms, bought a lamp on special at Target, and parked Buddha (who's destined for our al fresco room) in the middle.



The print used to hang in the dining room at our old place. It's not quite what I want, but I don't mind it for the time being. Now I can take my time to look around for something that's just right.

Sun lover

I planted a bowl of cacti a few months back, using some plants I got for free, some I got as part of a bargain lot, and one that I actually bought specially.

Anyway....on Saturday night, I noticed four little buds on one of the more prickly cacti, about 2cm high. This morning, I went out to water my pot plants and discovered this:





And....it's had babies!



The ugly old plastic bowl doesn't do a thing for it though. I must look around for something nice to re-pot them into.

Don't chuck it out!

How often do we get glossy brochures in the mail with beautiful new, fashionable furniture and homewares, and we look at our shabby old furniture and immediately start planning to replace it?

New stuff is nice, sure, but who has a bottomless bucket of money to pay for replacement stuff every time fashion changes? I'm saving my money for the important stuff, like lovely new paving. OK, and some couches. :o) Meanwhile, there are savings to be made with just a bit of time and effort.

We had a couple of pine four-drawer bedside tables, that we bought over 25 years ago, and not only were they looking a bit sad, but the style was just all wrong for the new house. So rather than buying new ones, I once again dragged out the sander, bought a can of stain/varnish and a set of new brushed steel handles and transformed this:



....into this:



No, the colour doesn't match the bed, but that's going anyway (eventually). I'll sell it on ebay and buy a new king size ensemble - after all, we have the room. And the new colour does almost match the coffee and side tables we have in the retreat, which was way more important.

Cost was about $50 for the two bedside tables. The new lamps were from Target, picked up in a 30% off sale. I love a bargain!

My next plan is for the entry ...I'm watching something on ebay that'll be just the thing with some stain and a couple of new handles. ;o)