Autumn Decorations and a wee update on the House..........

  

Its been almost two months since we moved into the new house and it has been....... an experience so far. The previous owners, were nice but odd. They were also into DIY. Bad DIY. A lot of what we have been doing so far is more like just re-doing. Its frustrating because there is just so much to do, but everything we start uncovers another DIY horror! And there is almost no-where pretty to rest your eyes either.

 We keep saying to ourselves that as long as we do something everyday, however small, we are moving forward and eventually we will get there. Our last house was a little cottage, we were there for 5 years and made it perfect- this house feels enormous and we will have to live with things we dont like for years until we have the money to change them.I want everything done 'yesterday' so that will be a big challenge for me!

We also have big things to pay for before we can decorate and really make the house into our home. That is hard for me too......It is so much harder to part with money for boring things like guttering and cement than it is for antique quilts and lamps!!!........but gotta be done.  

So far we have been focussing on the outside whilst we have had the weather- cutting back the weeds and clearing the garden of most of the debris ( a smashed up old greenhouse, endless piles of rubble, earth, sand and general rubbish) We have put up a nice post and rail fence across the front and will plant a beech hedge along it to replace it one day when it grows. We are almost finished putting up guttering which is the first this house has ever seen and today we made a start on the living room- ripping out walls and the wierd fireplace which will be replaced with a proper woodburning stove. Ideally, we would like this done for Christmas  (I am in for a dissapointment methinks). There is a classic example of the bad DIY.....above the existing fireplace was a very big mirror, we thought it was nice of them to leave it but in trying to take it down, we realised it has literally been superglued to the wall and a wooden frame stuck over the top. We have had to cut out a 5 by 5 foot hole in the plasterboard to get rid of it.........

I have been working tonnes of overtime and we sold quite a lot of bits a bobs on ebay and gumtree to raise the money needed to pay someone to render the extensions and get the roof put on the entrance porch; work begins on that next week hopefully.That should be the house wind and water tight then for the winter, which here in Aberdeenshire has pretty much started already.

We are enjoying it though, me especially- Euans a Firefighter so his job is action packed but mine is a lot of sitting at a desk for long hours and I am loving getting stuck in and my hands dirty.  

I would love to decorate for Autumn, its my favourite season but there is so much mess in the house right now, there is almost no point!!

Have to be next year.....

                                           

countryhome.com

 

delicious-decor.blogspot.com

And in the mean time, there is always Pumpkin and Butternut Squash soup to keep me feeling festive and autumnal...................yummy!

Does anyone know a good recipe for Pumpkin Pie?? I have a pumpkin pie scented candle and its making the whole house smell amazing and cosy but I have no idea how to make a real pumpkin pie..............xxxx

Here are a few snaps of the house...my Dad took these photos when he was up visiting so excuse the VERY cheesy one of me and Euan taken just before I left for work.As you can see its not a terribly pretty house......Yet... but it has tonnes of potential. I will post some more of the interior soon.

This is the back of the house looking towards the front; you can see the entrance porch which is missing its roof. You can also see the building materials that are piled up everywhere! 

This is the front and other side of the house with the majority of the garden to this side

The lovely patio area which has double doors from the kitchen....one of my favourite features of the house!

This is the pond which we had a long think about and have decided to fill in. Mostly because the previous owners hadnt bothere to line it so the outside tap had to be continously on to keep it full which is totally impractical and probably illegal as its a waste of treated water. 

We feel awful about the wildlife, we have been taking all the frogs and newts we can catch to the pond in the woods. The water has been slowly emptying and we will probably leave it till the spring till we fill it in

As for the shed in the picture.........it has been lined.... floor, walls and ceiling in..... fake fur. God only knows what went on in there but we call it the 'porn shed'. Like I said, the previous owners were very odd.

Hope you are all keeping cosy....its getting cold out there!!! xxx