Friday, January 1, 2010

The Seafarers Cottages- first look



Happy New Year! As you might have guessed we had a quiet one last night as we were pretty exhausted. The last of the three Seafarers Cottages was rented out to holiday makers yesterday afternoon and it was still a building site a few days ago.

The interiors are done to stage one, that is, furnished and fitted out with the first layer of decoration. I am now looking at the photos like you are thinking, "What else can I add to make that room special?".

I am really happy with the small aqua kitchen in cottage #1 with the marine-style stainless steel bench and old porthole ship's clock. Adding pieces like that old clock give a room some soul. The raffia mirror is one I have had for years. It was in my fisherman's cottage up the road (Country Style Dec 2007) and I have been looking for raffia things to go with it ever since, without much luck.

The fridge and dishwasher are neatly concealed behind cupboard doors and the pantry is built into the old meat safe cupboard. We took the ceiling out to expose the roof line and it does make the space seem bigger. The exposed rafters give it a more boatshed feel and I painted it all Dulux "White On White", including the shutters and woodwork to also add to the illusion of spaciousness!

The tiny bedroom in cottage #1 was a real challenge. I went with this Ikea four-poster bed as I love the fun of putting a box within a box. We had to nail it to the floor so the shutters and doors wouldn't hit it, that's how tight a fit it is. 

The shutters as window treatments were a great solution as there is quite a bit of ambient street light at night. Also I love that greek island vibe.

The bedsides were a dilemma as I wanted something a bit different. At the last minute I drove into town to my favourite 2nd-hand store and found this slightly kitsch side table which sort of matched one given to me by a friend recently. They are crying out to be painted in bold colours and I will get to that...

The floors... had to be whitewashed. I have come up with a new recipe for whitewashed floors and this one seems to be working well. (The cleaner has yet to comment, however.)

20 comments:

  1. Oh, I just love all the white. You are so good at putting things together ... looks so pretty and clean.
    Happy new year to you !!

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  2. Gaining height from removing the ceiling and exposing the rafters is such a fabulous idea. Beautiful work.

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  3. I've been itching to see the beach cottages completed. Love the ikea bed, it looks great in that space. Very clever all of it.

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  4. Love the Aqua, white and stainless steel! They are my kitchen reno colours now for sure!
    Have a great New Year :)
    Irene x

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  5. That kitchen looks fabulous, and your white wash recipe seems a winner.

    Very well done. jules

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  6. how fabulous !!so glad i found you...looking forward to following your blog !

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  7. Wow, it looks incredible, it's so inviting!
    Glad to discover you and Happy New Year!

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  8. you have a wonderful blog.. i am so happy to have discovered it! happy new year to you... x pam

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  9. These cottage photos ar so charming, Catherine! I especially love that aqua kitchen. Happy New Year!

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  10. i love the top photo with the aqua with stainless steel tops. such an unexpected yet lovely color choice to mix with the industrial tops!

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  11. Hi Catherine, the aqua kitchen is SENSATIONAL! I adore it...so different and SO gorgeous! Can't wait to see MORE PHOTOS!!!!
    Hope you are well.

    xx
    Anna

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  12. they look gorgeous. well done.

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  13. Absolutely love the kitchen, I would normally go for all white units, but this light blue is so gorgeous, combined with the white walls and steel worktop.

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  14. Ho Catherine, came here via Absolutely Beautiful Things. That kitchen is just to die for, I love it so much.

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  15. love love love and adore the kitchen .. always loved stainless benches and with the pale aqua what a fab end product - thanks for sharing le

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  16. me encantó!!!!l love your house!!!!!!!!besos!!!!

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  17. This kitchen is soo clean and vintage, modern looking. Lovely. Will you share your whitewash recipe?

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  18. Hi Catherine
    I just discovered your blog ... the cottage looks fantastic!
    As a child we used to holiday at Culburra Beach on the south coast (which I noticed you have a beach house). I haven't been there for 15+ years ... I'm sure its changed a lot!
    xx

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  19. Roberta - the whitewash floor finish is still in its road test phase. I will let you know soon! Catherine

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