New floor

Take one favorite color and find the color code for it...

... then clear the room which floor needs to be dealt with...

... buy a can of required paint...

... shield the skirting from splatter by putting up painter's tape...

... start in the deepest corners and paint your way...

... towards the doorway leaving you a way out...

... and there you have yourself a brand new turquoise floor!

Clear out

I have plans for my daughter's room so I cleared it all out.

                       

It started out like this however, quite a lot of stuff that I needed to move around. Some of her things and furniture I moved to my bedroom (which is a lot smaller than hers), some downstairs to the living room, some to the newly cleared out upstairs closet, some to the upstairs hallway and some to the bathroom!

Finally it was empty.

It's packed everywhere else, though!

The bookshelf on the floor was dismantled and taken downstairs to the living room. Now it's a great opportunity to sort through the books and all the boxes of papers.

This is about the amount of stuff  I got to get out of the house so as not having to store stuff in bags and boxes on the floors of various rooms. Doesn't necessarily have be this stuff, so I have to go through it all.
My goal is to have everything in a place of its own in a cupboard or closet.

This picture is from the upstairs hall. As one can tell it's extremely cramped right now, the big mattress taking up most of the space. The door behind the box and the mattress is leading to the closet and in it I keep the buckets. And of course, now I needed one!.
And if you are in need of doing some office work while using the bathroom, hey presto! here's a desk at your disposal!

Pink garden

When I started out gardening four years ago I had an idea I wanted it white. This isn't exactly how it has turned out though.

Most of the flowering in the garden right now is pink.
Here is a Cosmos bipinnatus (in Norwegian also Pyntekorg).

Here is a Phlox Paniculata, it has just started to blossom. Planted last summer. 

Astilbe japonica, also planted last summer (or maybe the year before). By the size of it it looks like it was planted last year.

Our garden has to make do mostly on its own. I weed now and again, and mow the lawn, but that's about it. This year I haven't even given it fertilizer. No wonder growth is poor.

I've said it before; I think the New Dawn Roses are best plant in the garden. It's growing and blossoming from early july and through the summer almost entirely on its own. Planted during our first summer here.

Good morning

Starting my day with a slow breakfast. Would have preferred to have it on the terrace but it's a rather dull morning outside so I stay inside. 

I'm planning my day, make to-do-lists, tidy a bit in the kitchen, have another cup of coffee.

Calm and quiet. 

It's vacation.

Morning is the best part of the day; then I've got all the time in the world 

and not a minute of it is yet wasted. 

HAVE A LOVELY DAY

Rose

it has been unreal days

first shock and grief

then

renewed hope for the future

symbolized by

the rose

My heart and thoughts go to those afflicted by the tragedies in Oslo and Utøya.
The atrociousness of terror is the same whether it is the action of an entire organization or of a single person.

Life will go on.
But it will never be the same.

Wrap paper container

The wrap paper has been kept in a basket that is rather short leaving the paper rolls to spread out like a bouquet. 

Then I found this higher container that will keep the paper rolls in more upright position.

          

New

Old

(As these photos show I have cleared out the trash from the closet that was here yesterday)

A hoarder? Me?

Well, if a hoarder is someone who acquires stuff that is not necessary or used or enjoyed to its or a purpose, then I have to admit I've had tendencies.
I enjoy shopping, but I see that once I've gotten things home I've tended to forget about them and just leave them somewhere to be clutter. 
And also I've had difficulties getting rid of stuff - cause it may come in handy and I've payed good money for it.
(Notice how I write about this in past tense) 

It's the mix, I think, of traditions from two generations. 

My parent's generation that never throws away anything (not at least, if it's whole or almost whole, or working or almost working), 

and my generation that has access to so much and can buy anything. 

It then follows that if you buy all kinds of stuff and never get rid of anything, eventually your space will be full, and chaos will follow in the house, as well as in the HEAD. 
The last few months when I've been working more determined to sort out and clean up our house, I can feel the side affect of it in my head - I have more space in my head, more space for happy and calm! 

Now, then, I was ready to purge the built-in-closet in the upstairs hall. It's not big but very full, and apart from a few things I didn't really know what it's contents were anymore.

I opened the door, switched on the light and it looked like this: 

I had to catch my breath.
I closed the door again and thought to myself I can't do it!

But I knew I had to. 

So I opened the door again and just plunged into it. Dragged out all kinds of stuff. Stuff I didn't need, stuff I didn't know I had. Almost suffocating in the dust that twirled up. 

I'm still not finished with it, but this is how much I've found till now that is leaving the house, either as trash or as donations. 

But I'm still not finished! Just needed a break. Many.

In those breaks I crocheted ferociously. 

I started on something that I hope will result in  a small blanket. I'll just crochet till the yarn is finished. 

And the closet, I hope.   

  

Favorite doorknobs

Three knobs waiting to go on the doors of a cupboard in the living room. In the mean time they are sitting in the window sill just because they are so pretty and colorful.

The design of the knobs is of a favorite designer of mine; Anne Black. 

I have long been admiring what she makes. 

This vase is also from Anne Black. 

Downstairs hallway

The hall is my least favorite room of the house. It's sooooo tiny, way too many doors, too dark and too edgy. It gives me a bad feeling to have to come into this room when I come home. 

Something has to be done. So I'd like to: 

- Put up different lighting in the ceiling

- Paint the door (black or white - haven't decided which yet)

- Paint the floor white

- Paint the walls white

- Paint the stairs white 

- Give it some round and soft forms - it is so square and edgy

- Tidy up and always keep it tidy!!!

 Standing in the doorway to the living room looking out. 

My daughter is sorting her collection of pebbles.

Looking through the front door towards the living room door. 

The downstairs hall measures only 3 m2 / 30 f2 and has got three doors and a staircase.

I quite like the doors by the way.

 The former owner had, for some unknown reason painted the hall in two different shades of pale. It's barely visible in this photo, but another reason why I'm not happy about the hall. 

Still life - buttons

These fun buttons inspired me to put up a still life. 

The handpainted porcelain buttons are made by a local designer (which unfortunately I don't remember the name of).

The vase is from a series called Karen Blixen by Holmegaard.

Flowers from the garden. 

The photo is of my precious girl

The piece of fabric is from Åhlens. When I bought it a couple of years ago I wanted to make pillow cases of it, but then I could almost feel the branches poking me in the back, so I never did anyway.

The book is from a library sales a while back. The title reads Spanish for beginners. I don't intend to learn Spanish (not now anyways). I bought it purely for the fresh, retro style, front page.

Kitchen - yet another corner

In preparation for the party last weekend I cleared out yet another corner in kitchen. 

There has been some unwanted stuff sitting on the counter above the dishwater since forever, and finally now it has gone. 

        

Before

After

There's a rack for hanging aprons and towels

Different shades of green in a charming mismatch

Late night garden - part two

The New Dawn roses are  probably best plant in the garden. It's a shame I can't see it from either inside the house nor from the terrace. But it does look lovely, doesn't it?

    

The terrace in front of the house on the south side is an absolute fav of mine. Being able to just step right out from the living room door, bringing our breakfast or dinner, reading a book - it's just fantastic. 

Too bad the weather has been really bad so far this summer. 

I see the terrace needs a thorough tidy up, hopefully I'll get round to do before long - at least before the summer is over!

The pictures from today's and yesterday's posts are taken at about half past ten in the evening. 

I love these long light summer evenings. 

Late night garden

We went out late last evening to do some gardening. The light summer evenings make us forget the time. I had bought some plants earlier this summer and not gotten round to plant them. Now was the time to do that.

I planted a cosmos in a beautiful bright pink shade in the flower bed by the lilac tree in the south west corner of the garden. 

It's been sitting in a small can and was looking not so good. 

Hopefully it will improve now that it's in the soil.

 

Then we freshened the soil in the corner bed (south east corner) and planted four turfs of grass. 

We also have a turf of natural grass that has grown all on it's own and which we've left there because of it's freshness. Now my daughter's cut it back to the brown straws and it doesn't look so fresh. It'll grow back soon, though.

Some of the stauder didn't make it through the winter so it looks a little bare in the bed. 

The brown sticks at the bottom right is a hyasinth I thought hadn't made it, but there is a few green leaves growing.

Last summer I planted a hedge along some of my border. This is how far it's grown, which is not bad given how little I've tended to it. 

Still I'm going to cut it a little so the branches won't be thin and long but short and full.

Here is one of the newly planted turfs of grass next to the flox. 

Tomorrow there will be more from our garden.