The Beach House Kitchen Reveal

And so the kitchen came about...

And I love it more than Christmas.

It's become the total centre of our home.

Every part of it makes me smile.

There's been a lot of planning, hoping, drawing and love gone into this kitchen...and this renovation.

I'm no renovator (that's been made clear...LOUD & CLEAR!)- I don't like dust, or time changes, or cooking on a camp stove...or dust.

But I am a decorator with endless idea's and a need for changing it up a bit.

This space, with it's beautiful light, wonderful louvre windows, simple dark floors and large white walls, has proved already, to be the most gorgeous blank canvas for me to *play upon*.

Did I mention the subway tiles?

If you follow me on Instagram, you will know I'm a little obsessed with subway tiles.
And totally obsessed with dark grey grouting.

Our Irish tiler, not quite so, but they grew on him...

I'm ok with others not being ok with our renovating decisions.

I've learnt that no-one does anything better than a professional.
I've also learnt it doesn't mean they have similar tastes, your tastes, or any taste.

It just means that they put your taste, into a building just as you see it in your head.

That's renovation 101 with the guidance of an Architect.

I still hate dust.

It's been a wonderful journey to get to this point...I'll share the kitchen details next post, as I've a coffee brewing and a chocolate slice in that oven there!

Happy Days!

Mxx

The Beach House kitchen {live}

Morning...yep still smiling every time I think I'm back!

OK...

Since I'm feeling settled at long last, I thought I'd start showing you round out little beach house.

It's totally different from out big old country house in England.
Although we chose a house in the UK countryside with many of the qualities we have here -lots of natural light and high ceilings, floor boards through out and a gorgeous big garden- all qualities we wanted out children to continue to grow up with- the two houses couldn't be more different in terms of *how we live*.

Weather dictates so much doesn't it!?
I have many a blog friend in the UK, Europe and America who will be nodding along with me on this, looking around their very loved houses, taking in all the ways they deal with the seasons.

In Australia, especially along it's coastline, we pretty much live outdoors for most of the year.
I never thought about this till we had our four years abroad in England where the weather dictated every aspect of how we lived- particularly as a family with three *out-door-beach-obsessed-kids*!

I now feel blessed every day that I throw open the bi-fold doors along the back of our house and look out at my vege garden! I take nothing for granted about life in our garden!

Here are a few images of the heart of our home...it's very Australian in it's open plan layout, but it has for me, a very farm house feel to it in the elements we have introduced from our travels abroad.

It's the small things that make me *want* to cook in here, the small things that *make* me want to look after my family the way I did in England where I truly fell in love with all things culinary.
Again, I think the weather in the Northern Hemisphere dictates how your days, weeks and pass times roll...for me to create in our rambling big kitchen there, as the seasons changed, made me fall in love with cooking in a way I never thought I would!

Now a vintage potato basket full of Autumn vegetables makes me think of the next meal.
Previously it was just a beautiful image around our home that my husband *dealt with*.

The beach house is very much about bringing the outdoors in...and the indoors out.
We spend the entire summer with all windows and doors open and the house doubles in size because of this.
Our kitchen leads through large bi-fold doors to an enormous balcony where we cook and eat for months on end...all things I no longer take for granted after living abroad.

Our kitchen is also a practical space, where I run the daily to-ings and fro-ings of the family.
The black board is my god send...reminding us all of the *Weekly Top 10* to do and giving the kids a chance to leave a anyone else a comment ;)

There's a few changes afoot at some stage. I'd love our dining table to be in the kitchen and some more industrial lighting, which means we're planning and thinking about making it twice as large.

To sit at our table, the kids doing homework and preparing a meal would be so lovely.

Now I'm back here- when we do this, I'll be sharing it every step of the way...and will be needing some wise words and thoughts- be ready!

How does your kitchen work?

Does it have a huge table that you, your family and friends gather round? 

My Pinterest boards of inspiration are here.

I'm  pretty much obsessed with finding the perfect grey pendant lights!

I ADORE Pinterest as much as the next *man-I-so-need-that-room-late-night-trawling-everyones-boards-mama*.

If you have a great kitchen board- please let me know!

Am I still smiling to myself - tea cup in hand- looking at my laptop-YES M'AM!

Thanks for coming Down and hanging out....

Melissa x

beach styling with vintage china...

g'day from my little beach house *Down Under* sweet gals...


it's tropical...warm, green & pretty lovely on our beaches today...

we're expecting more showers this afternoon- so i'm out with Miss.Lola (the puppy) this morning to tire 
her out for the day...

some days i don't mind a good drenching of the garden...the house...the puppy ;)

on those days, everything just seems a little cleaner...

today is one of those days...

but...before i head out with Miss.Lola i thought we could have a quick kitchen catch up...


the kitchen has to be one of the first rooms in any house to be sorted, don't you think?

i could truly do with a kitchen as big as my whole beach house...

i love everything about kitchens...the communal family life it holds...

the meals cooked...the recipes shared...

the chance to fill it...& the constant thoughts on re-designing it...

yep- this little baby needs some work...the floors are divine...the space, not so sorted yet...

we're moving the bench space around...& a new freestanding big stainless steel recipe inspiring
stove in there would be very loved i can assure you!

i have heard that good things come to those that *wait*...


i'm sooo waiting if anyone's reading this!

there's so much that i love about this kitchen...the light just blesses us...


the floorboards rock my boat more than tiles ever could...& it's white...


i just think, after our life in the English countryside, that i need a little more warmth to it...

can one ever have too much white?

i read many a blog about *beach living*...

many seem to spell out the virtues of whiter than white living...

i love this about the bloggy world...everyone's ideas are their own take on the world...

it's not the magazine empires dictating to us- but real people with real idea's- fresh & shared...

with this in mind...

for me, being born & bred on the Australian coast- i love our little beach house to be more french

farmhouse on the coast...

more linen & vintage china...more surfboards & beach towels on the lawn than starfish & stripes...

so...beach house styling aside...let's get back to the drawers...


i have to admit to a china issue...a serial hoarding china issue...

*my name is miss sew & so & i'm a vintage chinaholic*...

please tell me you can relate to this...


or just let me know if i'm making you feel relatively normal here!

i have to say that i am stunned by the prices of old english china in Sydney shops...


yep...it came on a boat to our coastline...

yep...it's gorgeous...

yep...it's not chain store...

but

it's still old china...

vintage....yep...but sold in second hand stores...

i had a rule of thumb in ol'Blighty- £2 a piece was my limit...my absolute limit...

as you can see, i managed to pack my cupboards on that little budget...

i seem to have drawers & drawers & drawers of the stuff...


& we love & use it everyday...

this has to be good for the soul right?


unpacking one's *vice* - a china vice that was started years ago as a HS student working in an interior

design store...

a vice that has been going strong for years...& one that i resign myself to...& share with pride

& love...

what do ya think?

c'mon sweet bloggy friends we all have one...

i've collected china from pretty much every place we've travelled to in some form...


white's & blue's...fresh & crisp...


from Japan to France...Europe to England...the South Pacific to Morocco...

& now it all has to fit into a little beach house kitchen, in need of a *wee bit* of renovation, on the Australian coast...

i love that...

& i love that i could tell you where each & every piece was from...


yep that's how great my addiction is...& how simple my life is ;)

every time i look at this silver pot stand from Paris- bought by my husband on the banks of the Seine 


i smile...& think of friendship...& birthdays...& memories...


it's not china- but it's a piece of our kitchen that holds our china...it's all in together in my heart...

so...the truth is out- i'm an addicted china hoarder...


i truly couldn't part with a piece...

it's what makes our kitchen...ours...

err...the linen drawer is pretty much the same...but it's better than other habits i could have...

as i said...the kitchen needs to be the first place in a house that's *home*...that's sorted & 

loved...

it's where we spend so much of our time...it's where we create endless family memories...

i started creating mine, with this life in mind, so many years ago...& it all makes me smile...

so how are your kitchen shelves shaping up?

hope my stash makes you feel like you've come across a fellow *chinaholic* member...

got any hoarding tips to share...!?

see ya tomorrow with litte Miss. Audrey's room...

melissa

xoxox

*make-it-monday*-a french cafe kitchen blackboard...

morning from the gorgeous beaches of Australia gals...


i've walked, grocery shopped, dropped back to school forgotten library bags & managed to get

a good *rant* in on the merits of homework to the three kiddos this morning- all before lunch...!

i'm on a roll...a monday morning roll...

so lets keep going with *make-it-monday* as i still have a puppy & a few holes in the garden dug


with pride that i need to discuss with her...!

*make-it-monday* kitchen styling by the beach...


in our big old house in the English countryside- we had many a blackboard...

i love to list write & quote write...& with three kiddos on the run, it seemed to work that everyone was

used to checking life reminders on my blackboards- especially the kitchen one...

so on moving home to the beaches of Oz...i set myself a plan to paint a *practical, big* kitchen wall with

some blackboard paint...

as the house has just been freshly painted for our return- i seriously didn't want to make a mistake on the

wall of choice, or the colour...

yep...gals...chalkboard paint comes in ALL colours- but the french putty ones are especially perfect!

so...


kitchen wall chosen...i searched for chalkboard paint as we had seen in little french restaurants 


when travelling with the kiddos in France, over our summers in England...


there was plenty of black...green & even brights like pink & purple chalkboard paint...

none of which i wanted, although black would have worked, as it did in England...

then...i came across The Society Inc Chalkboard Paint & it was looove at first sight...


my favourite new & gorgeous shop {check it out here Honey Bee Homewares} had painted an

entire, enormous wall in the enticingly gorgeous colour *ship chandler*...

it's french...putty coloured chalboard brown...exactly what i had been searching for...

so i grabbed me a big ol'pot of *ship chandler* & went home to slap it on our kitchen wall...

it is D.I.V.I.N.E ...

truly if you are a blackboard lover like myself- you will want to invest in this product...

& like all of my *make-it-monday* projects- 


it's a quick, satisfying, simple living, cool way to give your house- beach or mountain...

country or ocean based...a little simple styling...

simply tape with *painters tape* the shape of your blackboard & slap on two coats- giving an hour 


between each to touch dry...


i like to double up my tape to get a nice thick edge which is easier to peel off later...


give the board a good few hours before you do peel the edges off...

if you're anything like me...love is a french coloured kitchen blackboard...

done in an hour whilst putting the groceries away...after a long walk on the beach...

*make-it-monday*

a french cafe kitchen blackboard

L.O.V.E

see ya tomorrow for a *virtual coffee*

melissa

xoxox