Showing posts with label budget. Show all posts

Retuna Recycling Gallery


image Retuna

I've long been an advocate of anything that can be recycled or re-loved.  So when I came across a facebook post of a friend showing the amazing Retuna Recycling Shopping Mall in Sweden, I had to take a closer look. 

Thrifty bedroom makeover


My bedroom has always been a bit of a dumping ground for laundry, stock and generally stuff that I just didn't want to look at.  I have tried over recent years to regain some order, especially as I am often sent bedroom related items to review.  

It's finished ! The kitchen / dining room Renovation






 When we moved into this house ten years ago this month, life seemed like it couldn't possibly get any worse.  We had lost our main source of income, I was on maternity leave with six month old twins

Affordable Photographic Wall Art



I've always loved black and white photography. It seems to capture something about the subject that colour photographs don't.  My favourite picture of all time was a black and white one of me and my son on my wedding day.  These days I click away with my phone on a daily basis, storing hundreds and hundreds of pictures of my family.  On a recent visit to my mum's home and seeing all the photographs she has on display, I realised how few photographs we actually have around our own home.  Thanks to the nifty filters on my phone I am able to get all sorts of  effects so decided to print three black and white images of the boys and make them into wall art for the new utility room wall.



I bought these great value Ribba frames on a recent trip to IKEA.  perfect for the job. Really easy to take apart.




We had some photo quality paper at home.  I downloaded the photographs from my phone onto the computer and printed them off.  Cut them to size and stuck them onto the white mount.



Put the picture back together again.  Took me about 10 minutes to do all three.


 Can't wait to get them up on the new utility room wall.


March #StyleWise DIY Artwork


For this months #Stylewise post I decided to have a go at some DIY Art.

January Style Wise








This weekend I found some great bargains and always get a great response when I post pics on my social media, so I thought I would try a linky to see if others wanted to join in.  Just link your recent bargain home wares or interiors posts/pics.  They can be a sale bargain, an item which you think was great value for money, a vintage or charity shop purchase, something you upcycled yourself, anything at all you consider stylish and great value for money.

You don't have to have a blog , it can be a pic from facebook, pinterest, instagram, twitter etc.  All I ask is that you use the hashtag #stylewise  & mention my blog or username The White Approach when you link up or promote your post.  This will also help me to find you on social media and RT you.

To kick us off, below is what I found this weekend




 I've always been a bit of a bargain hunter, but more so since the birth of the twins which also coincided with the complete collapse of our joint incomes.  Forced in a frugal lifestyle, I was determined to still find a way to live a stylish life.  Thankfully we are pretty much back on an even keel now ten years later, but old habits die hard and I find it very difficult to buy anything without first shopping around for the best value versus quality.  I found this great wooden sign at the range for just £5 its lovely quality.  I was looking for something to put on a newly wallpapered wall but when I put it up it just didn't work against the pattern of the paper.  I think it looks so much better white on white.  The shadow really makes the words pop.


 Bargain number two has to be this totally beautiful, on trend perspex light shade.  It looks perfect ether lit or not and suits my new kitchen/dining space perfectly.  Just £22 again from The Range.  They have a great selection of lighting in store.



As we have finally realised our dream of knocking through the kitchen/ dining room I though perhaps it was about time to put away (or sell off) my huge selection of mismatched vintage dinner plates in favour of a simple, more Scandinavian looking dining set.  I found these lovely, large grey dinner plates at Dunelm Mill for just £2.75 each.  Great quality and big enough to suit the appetites of all four men in my home.  The pretty white side plates I found on one of my bargain hunts last week in the local charity shop for 10p each !




and my final bargain for this week .  I stumbled upon a new store called B&M Big Brands at a retail park in Exeter.  Its a bit like brand value pound shop but HUGE.  I popped in for a mooch around and discovered these gorgeous retro looking table mats (to protect my new table) for just £1 for a set of four.  They are great quality, cork backed and wipeable.  Love them !

So that's my offering.  Would really love you to link up and show me what you have found .

Wardrobe to Armoire




Last year hubby and I made a long trip to North Devon to collect two wardrobes I won on Ebay (that is another story in itself).  When I laid eyes on this one I knew instantly I wouldn't be selling it.  It was perfect for us to transform into the French style Armoire with chicken wire I had been coverting for some years.

I think it turned out pretty well.



I gave hubby the job of taking the door panel out and putting in the chicken wire. 







Huge drawer at the bottom for storing all sorts of useful bits and pieces.  Sorry couldn't take a pic of it open as it is full of unattractive bits and can't possibly photograph them on om blog !




Hubby put two large shelves in to give me lots of room to store my vintage china.


Unfortunately I can't find my before picture I took of the wardrobe, but here is the picture as it appeared on Ebay.  


Looking forward to filling it up with wonderful white vintage finds. 

Decorating the hallway (again)





I love white, all the rooms in my home have white walls but about 6 years ago I saw some stunning wallpaper in Laura Ashley called Summer Palace.  It was on 70% reduction so I snapped up all the rolls they had left in the bin and hurried home to tell hubby he had some decorating to do.  You can see it in the staircase makeover HERE .

Six years down the line Summer Palace has become really popular and the final nail in its coffin to keep it in my house, was when I saw it decoupaged on a piece of furniture in a shop !  Sorry hubby but time to decorate the hallway again.  Luckily he agreed as the paper was starting to look a little grubby and faded.



On a trip to B & Q to buy paint supplies I noticed some beautiful, bright paper on sale. Again massively reduced and also the final batch as it was going out of production.  Yippee, not only reasonably priced but also hopefully never to be seen again for sale so I won't have to suffer seeing it decoupaged somewhere (I hope).  The only problem was it would mean I would have to also re-paint my beloved pink stairs !






I found this mirror at the vintage trading company in Exeter.  A large gilt piece, I painted white and lightly distressed.  Looks perfect.




I painted the chair in a dip dye style.  I recently painted a dressing table for a customer in a similar style and loved it so much I have decided to paint a few more pieces.







Love my hubbie's attention to detail in how he matched the wallpaper up round the corner.



Sorry about the quality of the photographs I really do need to save up for a proper camera and stop using my phone !

Back to Grey (or thanks for the free paint Helen)

One of the perks of people knowing I upcycle and paint furniture is I am often offered items they are throwing out and on one occasion two massive pots of virtually unused paint !  The paint in question is not your ordinary everyday kind of paint.  Oh no!  Its the top of the range Dulux Trade Diamond Matt in the colour of the moment Dove Grey.  This paint has superior durability, covers like a dream, as hard wearing as they come, can be wiped clean and most  importantly has a matt finish. (so works well if you like a chalk paint kind of finish).

Normally out of my price range I was thrilled to receive the paint from the very lovely School mum friend and set to work immediately on dark wood items that needed a solid undercoat.  Just about to start a commission for a customer, it was also a perfect colour for the job!

Once I completed the commission and still only halfway down the pot of paint ! (goes a long way does quality paint) I looked around for more items in my own home requiring a lick of paint.  With the twins away at Grandma's and No 1 son away on his holiday in Turkey, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to do some decorating in the house.  Time to change the staircase (AGAIN).

AFTER




Newly painted staircase.  Intend to put the stencil back on them again and still toying with the idea of putting a white stripe up the centre but I'll wait until hubby finishes the new wallpaper before I decide.  Also think I might fill the very tall wall with bits and bobs I have collected on my thrifty travels.

Next I headed to the bedroom to start on the cupboard which houses my linens and has stared accusingly at me for the last few years.  A lovely piece of stag furniture in its day it just had to have a paint job I'm afraid.

                                                                               BEFORE



 AFTER




 Sorry about the dress dummy, I use her to display clothes I sell online and she wears this beautiful silk nightie and dressing gown to remind me to try and stick to a diet for my holidays !


 I even found these gorgeous grey candles on a recent (rare) trip to Ikea.




I am really pleased with the result.  It still needs a bit more wax and a buff, but thanks to Helen's paint it transformed this piece of furniture and really brings the rest of the bedroom furniture together.

 I picked this rocking chair up at a bootsale last year for £10.  I nearly passed out when I saw it and virtually ran over to the stall holder.  I have done nothing to it except clean it and absolutely LOVE it in all its chippy grey painted glory.



Found the grey slip ons in the Next sale for £14.  Not normally a shop I go into these days, but was pleased I did on this occasion.




Mirror found on Ebay about 6 years ago.  Paid very little for it.  Grey and white designer throw on the bed purchased for £30 from TKMaxx.  Silk (look) curtains purchased for a song in the sale at Dunelm mill.  Bedside cabinets found in the recycling centre, pair for £10 and painted in Helen's perfect Dulux paint.

There you go, amazing what one tin of paint can do.  Thank you again Helen ! 


IKEA in Exeter






Many, many years ago whilst serving in Germany I came across a store which was way ahead of its time in terms of design and product innovation called IKEA.  You could shop for everything you needed for the home, following a pathway around the shop past every kind of room design and fill your basket to overflowing with affordable homewares and gadgets you might not really need or even know what they were for but they were cheap and looked good.

About 20 years too late for me, IKEA it seems is finally coming to Exeter.  There was a time I would have been ecstatic about this, no more long drives down the M5 to Bristol or Birmingham to shop this iconic brand.  These days my taste has evolved and I prefer to spend my hard earned cash more wisely and buy sturdy, solid wood, usually, English made items I can lovingly restore to fill my home with one off unique items.

It occurred to me that instead of fighting the inevitable exodus of customers from my little independent shop, I embrace the Aladdin's cave of ideas and items IKEA has to offer.  So off I popped to Pinterest to get a bit of inspiration for just what you can achieve with a bit of imagination using items bought from IKEA.




Metal mesh lace planters made into  wonderful downlighter lamps.




This style of bookcase is always available at IKEA and very affordable.  Pop it on its side, upholster the top and add some feet and you have a bench seat which is not only attractive but comfortable and practical too.





Always lots of plain wooden furniture at IKEA perfect for painting and decoupage.



Chairs like this are perfect for this imaginative transformation




The vidja lamp perfect to add silhouettes to.

Just a few examples of what a little imagination can do.   So I say bring on the IKEA store !  I look forward to trawling their goodies and if you have a piece of furniture you would like me to transform for you, please do get in touch.  email info@thewhiteapproach.com