My Little Green Patch

DIY Waterfall

I can't call it a garden because it's just too little. We've only about 70 square feet of green in the front of our home. So it's my little green patch that I care for dearly. My mini waterfall is switched on only when we have guests. Two reasons for this. The first, it leaks. Try as I may, I cannot find the source of the leak. Secondly, we have yet to install an outdoor power point and currently we have a temporary and dangerous setup of an extension cord connected to the nearest point. Not a good idea.

There are no flowers in my patch. The simple reason being I don't like flowering plants. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE FLOWERS. I just don't like flowering PLANTS. And there's something so refreshing and relaxing about a green green garden. Ahhhh....

If you look carefully behind my waterfall, you will be able to see white stones. These stones cover my drain. Initially we wanted to do the typical, cover the drain with plastic covers. Uh, ugly. Ugly and expensive. And then my brilliant mummy gave me the idea for the stones. Over a couple of weeks I managed to collect unwanted bricks from old constructions sites. Just enough bricks to lay across the length of the drain. 12 bags of white stones were laid on top of the bricks and filled the drain to the brim. Water from the gutter freely flows under the row of bricks.

I really do surprise myself with the dozens of ideas I have for such a limited space. There are so many plans in my head. I really like the fan-like palm tree that's quite popular now. I don't know its actual name. And I need to start getting some pretty pots, dark blue ones in particular. A visit to a nursery is due. And oh, I saw some beautiful large rocks along the highway that would look pretty lying just outside my house right next to my future fan-like palm tree. Will update with some pictures once these materialize.

Great Used Buys

Firstly, our garage light (above) is not a second hand buy. We purchased it new from a light shop in Uptown. It cost an arm and leg but I had to have it because it is almost identical to the light I loved so much in one of my previous posts. The original plan was to have two installed in our living room. But hubs said it was too small. I agreed.




The blue arm chair is a second hand buy. We got this for RM100. It required no re-upholstering just some cleaning and sunshine. It looks brand new and is oh so comfy. I breastfeed Nila in this. It's perfect for my blue master bedroom.

Solid wood (TV) cabinet. This piece had been sitting in the shop for months. I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. However, the seller refused to drop his price of RM800. The drawers have sections in them specifically to store CD's. We do not use this to store our tv and the drawers are empty. The cabinet sits across from our main entrance. I am in the process of framing some pictures to fill the back wall. Also, I have yet to find a permanent place for the white lillies.

This retro chair too had been sitting in that store for months. Collecting dust and mites. Again the seller refused to drop his price. Apparently, the chair had already been sold but the buyer had yet to pick-up. Finally, hubs offered RM30 for it and it was ours. This chair needs re-upholstering. I have yet to find the material for this. Once complete, we will move this classic piece upstairs to our study.

This cupboard has undergone some serious refurbishing. It was originally dark brown. I think it may have been an office storage cabinet back in the 70's. I laid eyes on it and immediately thought of a toy closet for Elil. After bringing it home, I went out and got 7 cans of pink spray paint. My mother was in town and insisted I put her to good use. And so she worked very hard on it. First, she sand-papered it down (inside and out) to roughen the surface so that the new coat of paint would stick. This was some major work. Because the original brown was a much darker color than the pink, my mummy had to paint a layer of undercoat. Only then could she use the spray paint. The process was long but well worth it. I now wish I got two of these cupboards. The other I would have painted purple.

We have come a long way....

Our home looks so different now. We have not done anything major since my last entry. No kitchen cabinets or built in wardrobe yet! Unfortunately. However, I have added quite a number of loose pieces that I totally adore.

Hubs and I drive along Jalan Semenyih pretty often. Every time we are down a certain stretch, my eyes land on a huge sign that reads, SECOND HAND SHOP. I kept telling myself to check it out one day but didn't actually take myself seriously because hubs is not really a second hand type of guy. However, one fine day while we were along this road and I suggested we try our luck at the run-down shack-of-a-store. He agreed.

To cut a long story short, we ended up bringing home a two-seater sofa for RM250. However, I must warn you that probably 85% of the stuff there is true junk. And at every visit I don't expect to find a treasure like our first but on most occassions I am lucky enough to find something like an antique mirror or a solid old cabinet, a rare and retro chair or a wonderfully upholstered, good-as-new armchair. I purchased a huge-ass gold-framed mirror for RM150. Sofas need cleaning or reupholstering. Wood products either need some shining or a little touch-up and repainting. Most items we have purchased from this place require some form of DIY but its well worth it considering the cost (including transporting).

For weeks after our visit purchase, I promoted this place to everyone I saw. Friends, relatives, friends of friends paid them a visit. Some, like hubs and myself just kept going back. There's just something real exciting about getting something real good for real cheap. A few purchases were absolutely uneccessary and not in my list but we just could not let a good deal go. Most items are from hotels so they are usually of good quality and make.

There are two other branches, one in Nilai another in Shah Alam. We were once at the Nilai one but were not too impressed. But before you go rushing off to look for these places, let me tell you, second hand shops in general are not rare. Just keep your eyes peeled the next time you are driving around a small town or industrial area. You are bound to find a second hand store or junk yard with hidden treasures.

The Romantic Master Bedroom

I took these photos from the walkway to my walk-in wardrobe. I won't show you pictures of that until we have our built-ins in. The master room is pretty plain for now. We're taking our time to scout for the perfect pieces to complete the room. We'll need some white side tables and lamps. A chest of white drawers too and something to hang on the wall. I plan on having some family pictures up as well. Some nice black and white shots will go well with the theme. Still thinking of what I can put above our headboard. Really need to visit SSF (the Sungai Buloh branch) one of these days with my sisters.

This is our bed. We didn't plan on using this in our room but have decided to since we probably won't be getting our king-size divan for a while. This bed is the Malm series from Ikea and we got it super cheap from the As-Is section. It will do for now. I have my mind set on having a headboard custom-made from a factory we found in Serdang. The white spots/diamonds on the wall is a reflection of the chandelier crystals caused by the camera flash. Kinda cool effect if you ask me. The blue cushions were a steal from Vivencia in PJ; something I got over a year ago. I knew my color theme even then. I have always wanted a romantic room but it couldn't be too feminine coz I have hubs to consider as well. So I settled for blue and I'm so glad I did.

This is the door out to our balcony. I have painted it white as with all other doors and walls throughout the house. The only wall that isn't white is the master bedroom feature wall. The curtains go about 10' up so as to give the room a more grand look. I should have extended the left curtain (single panel window) to match the curtain on the right which covers a two panel window. This would have provided a more symmetrical look. My BIL Allen highlighted this to me, of all the people!