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!

Taken today

Our glass door grill. I didn't want a glass door but at this moment in time we gotta keep it. And I tried to figure ways out of the hideous grill but alas for safety purposes, it's got to be installed!

This is our 'backyard' door. We hardly have a backyard. It's probably 5' wide. But it'll do I guess, enough to hang the clothes and CD's to dry.


My kitchen back door. Half-painted. Thanks to Carol for her wondeful under-coating skills. Rajin-rajin again she go tape the glass.

View of my extended kitchen with the grill up.

Partition for our walk-in closet. Yet to be plastered and painted. Carol said looks like an office.

Our feature wall in the master room. Regal Blue

A view from the walk-in closet into our master bedroom. The size has reduced considerably after fitting the partition. But I like a medium sized bedroom. It's cosier and warmer and snug. Plus all we need really is a bed!

Some shots of the house yesterday....

Rear View from the back gate

Rear view from outside

View of upstairs living and door to master bedroom from 2nd Floor staircase

The grill is up. The space between bars a little too far for my liking but whats done is done.

Our tiny back yard. I left a patch of 'grass'

Our extended kitchen. Painting and glass to be completed today.

Not quite toile but it will do

I got this wonderful piece of fabric from Kamdar believe it or not! Ots and I pajak the last 27 meters! I was looking for something toile a couple of months back. Did not have a huge budget so couldn't get anything from the expensive stores. This material is meant for bedsheets and not curtains. However, I got the tailors to sew a thick and heavy lining to make it more resistant. Ots has hers up in her back porch for her sliding doors. It's been doing fine. Can you imagine, I sewed my bedroom curtains last year? Talk about kiasu man! Finally, the day will come when I get to hang 'em up.

BEFORE shot of house 3A

Front view pre-renovations

Thanks Yo for reminding me of the BEFORE and AFTER shots. I should have taken inside and behind as well. Because there wont be much work on the front portion. Maybe i'll take some shots of the untouched houses.

Lights for the Living

I have been cracking my head on the best design for my Living Room lights. Ever since I was at that light shop in Puchong I could not stop thinking about that 7-lamp bamboo-like chandelier. When I was first there, its displayed price was RM720 and on top of that I could get a discount of 30% (connections connections). But that was a long time ago and well the house wasn't ready yet and well what's the point in getting the lights so soon, right? So months past and I could not stop thinking about it so I brought hubs to the shop to check it out and convince him to purchase 2. But alas, when we got there, the price doubled! It was now going for RM1,400. WTF! I didn't ask the store owners why. Even with the 30% discount, I could not bring myself to purchase the item, I would have felt too cheated. On top of that hubs couldn't see the beauty I saw in it. So with a heavy heart I left the store. *Sigh*

So I have been looking around fo lights. I'm pretty sure I have been to every light store in the Kajang area. Uptown and SS2 as well! I hear that Puchong has quite a few decent places too. However, I spotted the perfect crystal chandelier for my Master Room in a huge store at Uptown. Price decent, no discount though, apparently its NEW ARRIVAL. AND on top of that in the same store I saw these gorgeous hanging lamps that I thought would be wonderful in my Garage. But after a suggestion from Ots and seeing this shot in one of my home mags, I figured they would make interesting and unique Living Room lights as well. Yay! Hope you can see it, my photography skills suck.

A long glass bowl (cylinder-like) with gold trimming/frame. I think it has 3-4 candle-lamps. Hubs thinks its too 'simple' for our 'grand' Living Room but he hasn't actually seen the real thing. I'm sure I will manage to convince him its perfect in every way until he finds out how much one costs that is!