The Fabulous Renovation ~Week 8

Well ~Day 57 dawns bright and shiny and I am here to chat about Day 56. Yesterday was START DAY and I really didnt expect much to happen...
 That was NOT the case.

Heritage Blue Mason Set

I was actually finishing some Heritage Blue Mason Sets and packaging them up when my phone made its bird whistle noise. Normally I wait till I am finished before I do all the text messages but this time I didnt....
Our AMAZEBALLS builder ~Chris Hall The Scotsman has sent me through pictures of what he had managed to accomplish in ONE DAY.

Pic 1 : Back Yard ~Fence removed to be replaced

Picture One is the view of our backyard ~Chris has removed the fence in preparation for replacing with a hardwood one on two sides. 

Pic 2 : Downstairs where the new shop will be

Pic number Two is the downstairs area. Mr Fab and I have enlarged the picture and looked a million times and we believe Chris The Builder has removed all the dodgy 70's tiles ( yes yes I am a retro vintage girl but damn if those tiles were not awful!) the carpet is gone and *blink* so is the old brick wall!!!! He must have the best apprentice IN THE WORLD as it looks really clean and tidy as well! Now you have already seen the pics of this area so just to recap ~ it will have brand new stairs and the under stair section will be filled in. We will put a fab chair we have for sitting and waiting ( your choice but you will have an option) ~ we will then re purpose some old cabinets we have by painting them up and using them as the shop fixtures. No point in wasting anything ~the furniture is there and a lick of paint will make them perfect! There will be a glass paneled door next to where the stairs are so the Fs Vintage shop will be completely separate to the rest of the house.

Mr Fab is amazing when it comes to the mess that is generally around ~he doesnt say much and tends to work around the Mason Jars and packaging that are normally on the bench but he did admit to loving the idea of the shop being away from the rest of the living area...

Pic 3 : Back of house with door leading from kitchen

This one is the back deck area. This morning I looked up Kwilla wood as I honestly had no idea what it looked like and have to admit I LOVE IT. The deck is going to be 4.2 x 4.2 metre and will come out from this door into the backyard. The stairs are concrete and just need some refurbishing and sprucing up so we decided to keep them and restyle. Why spend money on things we dont really need to replace?  We will turn the underneath section into something Fabulous as this is the area that leads from The Shop and Guest area. (sounds way flasher than it will be but I love saying Guest Area.) Mr Fab admitted this deck is one of the things he is really looking forward to seeing. He said he just wants to walk outside and stand there .... feeling the Serenity maybe?

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

fs vintage Renovation ~ Week 7

Well ~ Here we are at Day 55. Money seems to have been literally hemorrhaging out of our account and not much to show for it. I understand the concept ~Foundations to be laid for kitchens / bathrooms, tradies to be found and hired, Builders to start ordering.... yep SENSIBLE Tracy understands completely.
Emotional Tracy is screaming ~START ALREADY!!!!!!

And tomorrow .................. IT BEGINS!!!! Monday the 5th August 2013 is START DAY. Yes yes yes in capitals and yelling! Also doing some squirming, wiggling and ........ dancing ......

Downstairs ~Under the stairs where the shiny fs vintage will be

Mr Fab has arrived home safe and sound after his mini trip down to do some ripping and tipping.
He managed to remove the entire kitchen including all the wall tiles and even managed to remove doors! He also called me to advise :
Me: ~ "Hey babe whats up"
Mr Fab: ~ (cue serious deep quiet voice filled with loathing and disgust)  "There was an electrified rat behind the stove......"
Me: (trying not to laugh) ~"You ok?
Me Fab: ~ (continued low and deep quiet voice) "No".
I absolutely should not tease him about his disgust with Rats but seriously I think its his little face ~it is so darn serious!!!! His loathing of Rats comes from his job where they had to wear whats called Sperm Suits
(yep you read that right) to clear up the sheds with the product they use. Apparently Rat Poo and such cause a terrible lung problem......
*cough* Moving on ......

I said to him last night I am finding the fact he is so focused and committed to our Reno a little bit disconcerting. As a rule he generally says ~"Whatever you want is fine Babe" and lets me toddle on to do what I like.
He seems to have a need to contribute...

Yep ...contribute. I am woffling on about this drawer knob or that paint swatch and he will actually look at what I am showing him and make comments.
Ummmm no thankyou just nod and agree sweetie ~ dont need any input just agree with me....
Take our Fi for example ~ who is building a new family home ~ we have these weird conversations where we have paper and our respective "The Books" sitting between us ~ we have pens and highlighters at hand as we dissect and create spaces and rooms and living areas. We half finish each others sentences and start new conversations as one finishes....we both seem to understand what we are saying.

(I must also pause for a second and send much love to the rest of the girls in our group ~they do tend to have a glazed kind of half smile on their faces but they do LISTEN and nod in what seems like the right places.... bless their hearts!)

I have been entertaining myself looking for gorgeous and suitable Fab things to put in the all new and shiny Fs Vintage. Mr Fab and I have discussed adding a range of stylish yet simple home wares as we will have a beautiful space with restyled fittings and fixtures so why not make it even more Fabulouser?????
Everything in the shop will be FOR SALE ~ I have even managed to find some terrific tags to make up with prices and information. There will be our beautiful range of signature Soy Candles in both New and Vintage Mason Jars ( Thats how we roll here at fsv ) HOWEVER ~ now we will have sensational and gorgeous home wares to compliment and enhance your home!!! How cool is that????? Even the restyled furniture and fittings will have a tag along with vintage wares we have found in our travels ~You want it? You got it.

One of the Fab things we are putting in The store. Image via google

We are going back down on Thursday and driving through the night. Gotta say ~I loathe driving through the night. Hate it / Yuk / *spitty noise* / shudder / groan / complain. I could not even begin to tell you how much I dislike driving through the night. However ~ to ensure everything that's needed is done and dusted and deposits paid? We have no choice. We are so hoping we see SOME sort of progress on Friday. Yes yes its only 4 days from commencement but SOMETHING ~ even a frame perhaps? A ripped out wall maybe? Tiles removed from downstairs ? Ohhh what about the framework for the upstairs wall??? *swoon and faint*
We both have fingers crossed after this trip we get a few weeks where we dont really have to visit again. Did I mention the Plantation Shutters will take 6 to 8 weeks to make?

Image via google

Now Mr Fab seems to think ~Maybe October for a finish and ready to move in? He said the other day he reckons we need to add a month to that estimate just to be sure? I dont really care how long it takes as long as it is Fabulous!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

fs vintage renovation ~ Week 5

Back in The Bah after another flying trip down to the house. We left last Thursday evening and drove through the night. We have decided ~absolutely unequivocally ~We are NOT doing anymore night drives. It is to hard, to dangerous and far to tiring.
We arrived Friday morning about 8.30 am and had no time to stop before meetings with Builders / Painters / Kitchen people.
So ~Bottom line? Very productive as we have signed a Builder. His name is Chris The Scottish Builder. Fantastic to deal with and basically our conversations go something like this:
Me: Chris I really want to have such and such
Chris The Scottish Builder: Ye canna have it Trace (You're all reading with a Scottish accent now hmm?)
He then explains very clearly WHY I cannna have it .... he will then give us an alternative and away we go.
On the other hand...
Me: Chris can I have another shelf thingy near the basin please?
Chris The Scottish Builder : A nook Trace? (Pronounced "oo" rhyming with poo)
Me: *blink* Ummm yes....a nook.....
Both Mr Fab and myself now are incapable of saying Nook without adopting really bad Scottish accents.
He is the one who came up with the idea for The Fabulous Shop.

Entry area down toward the fs vintage shop

The wall from upstairs is coming all the way down to the bottom level (we thought that was a "canna have"~ its not) A fab glass door will go right here and that awful brick wall will be GONE. Under the stairs will have a little store cupboard but the rest will be open with a gorgeous chair maybe? An artfully placed little table perhaps? What about a small desk for doing the shop paperwork? Who knows!!!!! The pretend plastic woodgrain will of course be gone......

Stairwell will be replaced and no balastrade

The Kitchen chaps were interesting and they were very clear I have to get rid of my island bench idea as there will simply not be enough room to walk in the room. We also managed to go to the stone place and after much deliberation ~we have decided on Wild Rocks for the bench's with the cupboards in white. We have sent the first lot of drawings back as there were far to many angles. The far wall drawers and shelves are FABULOUS and I can already envisage our gorgeous vintage jar collection looking super fab! The entire process is so time consuming going from this display to that to choose everything from door furniture to benchtops and we have not even begun to look at tiles!!!!

Vintage wire Ball Mason on Wild Rocks sample ~Perfectly Fabulous!

I honestly did not think the whole process would be so HARD.

On a positive note ~Mr Fab has been resisting my hounding for a King size bed. We managed to find some time to pop into a mattress place and he lay his weary bones on a Pillowtop King size mattress........ Yep we have a winner! I am super excited about THAT.

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

fs vintage Renovation ~ Week 4

Welcome to Day 29.

After going round in what seemed like never ending circles ~we have finally reaching Decision Time. The Quotes we have had come in ~when you eventually get them that is ~ have been well over 50 Thousand MORE than we budgeted. Keep in mind we were very liberal in our Budget! I needed a Bex and a good lie down to recover and they seem to have come in about the same on all of them. So ~as much as I really dont want to ~we will have to go The Mates Rates Way. I may have to compromise on things ~ Perhaps the Studio will not have as many bench tops. Maybe my Prep area will not be as big. Perhaps the Tiles in the downstairs bathroom / Laundry will have to be a less expensive version of the look we want? Maybe I will have to do some serious legwork to find some bargains?

Then lets do this!

I have now donned my Project Manager / Build Boss hat and will begin the long and arduous job of finding what we need and making sure the needed Trades person is at the House when he or she needs to be!
So far I have sourced and confirmed ~at this stage ~A Plumber / Tiler & Painter. It will mean Mr Fab will have to take some Leave and go down to be there for things like the Pest Control Chap and The Tree Lopper Chap. He will also start ripping out Kitchens, Bathrooms and all the internal Doors. I also conducted an experiment yesterday and purchased the Perfect Bathroom Light! I thought I needed to try the whole Online House Requirements and Accoutrements scenario to see how easy or hard it was.

Beacon Lighting 

I was browsing through Beacon Lighting Online and noticed this beauty. http://www.beaconlighting.com.au/
Ok ok it is NOT vintage but it looks pretty darn nice! I have spoken to the gorgeous Alicia over at https://www.facebook.com/timewornstyle and she will be keeping an eye out for a vintage version so the Shop is even more Fabulous than my vision.
Anyway ~ The real deal crystal was over $400 and I simply cannot justify that much money for a light. This one is pretty, glass and only $99 delivered. Yep they do a set delivery via Courier rate of $10.
After purchase I received a phone call from Beacon Lighting Rockhapmpton to inform me this item has to be ordered and will be out to me in about 2 weeks. The lovely girl I spoke to ~Lisa ~was super helpful and so nice. I loved how she actually TALKED to me. I asked her about putting it in the Bathroom and you could tell she was genuinely keen on the idea and gave me information to help. For example ~I can have it in the Bathroom but it will have to be a certain distance from the main water source as you cannot put a light in within whatever feet from aforementioned water source. Fair enough ~Duh and what a shocking experience that would be .......
Lisa mentioned it is quite simple to remove the shade to refresh the globe and while not very environmental ~a Halogen will hit the glass crystals in a far more sparkly way...... I do try and be very Earth Conscious but I am torn ~Save the Planet or Blingy Sparkle ~sigh ~Decisions Decisions. All in all ~a super shopping experience!

We have booked an appointment with The Kitchen Chap / Cabinet Maker for Friday at noon to discuss what we need  ........... Hang on Hang on ~ BACK UP ........... *blink blink blink*  Does this mean I will finally start to see that darn kitchen ~ seriously stuck inside my head for 15 years? I will actually have the tactile experience of literally touching the stone bench tops? Seeing the color of the cabinetry?

Corner of Kitchen ~Before

So after all these years I wont be looking at Volcano Benchtops and dealing with cupboard doors that fall off?

Pretty sure I passed out for a second there .........


Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Lets go back to Mates Rates shall we?

We are now in a form of Limbo? Purgatory? Suspended Animation? It is literally driving me insane. Yesterday we had another quote from one Builder who was on our Short List. It came through as a text message and it was DOUBLE what he told us it would be. He stood downstairs in our home and said it would be about 20% either way in difference but nope ~ DOUBLE. I near passed out of course so Mr Fab and I now have to rethink the entire process.
We also had two Builders who we contacted over a week & two weeks ago phone us to say they would like to Quote ....... So what has happened to returning calls? Messages or emails?

Now I am aware I am a bit of a stickler for manners and maybe  fs vintage does not turn over squillions of dollars but I make sure I return any customer contact I receive! It is literally making me crazy! We spent the entire day waiting for another Builder to get back to us to let us know if he wants us down at the House on Friday and Saturday. We will leave here Thursday Night when Mr Fab comes home from work ~ share drive straight through to arrive Friday Morning and meet with the Builder. We had narrowed it down to a couple and still dont know for sure but we have gone back to looking at Mates Rates ~ Friends and Family who can help because the costings are blowing out of proportion. Seriously NOT happy about that as I find the stress of dealing with people you know to do a job becomes incredibly frustrating and you also tend to not say if you are not happy with something just to be....well ....nice. I may have to rethink that mind set and just make sure I do say when I am unhappy with the appearance or result of the work? ARRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH ....... *mini nervous breakdown* I honestly thought we were borrrowing a reasonable amount and then I added another 40 odd percent to be sure but it seems I am so far out of the Proverbial Ball Park I would need a Bus and two trains to get there!!!!

Downstairs Area ~Furniture will be restyled for The Shop

I am beginning to think that maybe the Builders Quote really high because they dont want the job? Maybe it is to big and far to hard for them? I now understand why people say Renovation is one of the most stressful things you can do!!!!
I need to be doing something! Not sitting around waiting waiting waiting.... So after the shock of yesterdays quote (I might add we really liked this Builder but WOW!!!! Double your original estimate???????) anyway I set to with Mr Google to see what I could source and obtain via the Internet. Remember we live in The Bah and we dont really have all that many options!
Also ~lets recap on what needs doing shall we?

*New Kitchen
*New Bathroom upstairs
*New Bathroom / Laundry downstairs
*Kitchenette Downstairs as fs vintage Studio
*Wall to divide fs vintage downstairs
*New wall upstairs
*Repaint entire house
*Floors repolished
*New Back Deck
*New Front Door and upstairs Panel
*All new internal Doors
*New Internal Stairs

I would have thought in today's climate that people would be WANTING work and trying to find as much as they could!

Bathroom Upstairs

It appears I am very wrong. However ~those of you who have been following us for awhile know that we Fabster's tend to shine brightest when faced with problems. When I told Mr Fab what was happening yesterday he really surprised me by remaining stoic and hitching up his pants so to speak and trying to figure out our next steps.

On a brighter note ~yesterday was also delivery day for some Rare Mason Jars we sourced from one of our suppliers. They had contacted us to advise they had some Aqua Blue Wire Ball Jars and some very early original's. Definitely enjoyed unpacking the goodies and imagining them on the shelves in the New Kitchen ~whenever that finally comes out of my head where it has been for about 15 years.......

Beautiful Vintage Aqua Blue Wire Ball Mason Half Gallon Jars

I definitely do not anticipate us being back Home till after Christmas the way it is going. But lets stay positive and see what today brings........



Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

fs vintage Renovation ~ Week 3

So we wake up on Day 23 refreshed and ready to begin the Builders Quotes. Well I was woken at 5 am by Dexter about 2 inches from my face making these weird growly noises and scraping the blankets back. So downstairs to the backyard we toddled so he could do what he does. Absolutely freezing but gave me a chance to peer around the yard and start to make some plans for getting back into The Fabulous Garden. I am super keen to go back to growing my Hydrangas and Roses in pots so I can have fresh flowers in the Entry to the Shop. *blissful sigh*

Went back to sleep on the loungeroom floor ( Please note ~ I washed it with Domestos!!!) only to be woken again by super prompt Builder Number One. He was absolutely lovely and we enjoyed chatting to him and arranging to have a quote sent to us over the weekend.

Lounge area ~will be walled

 
By about 11am we had two builders email us to say the job was far to big for them so we waited around for another appointment all day only to have him not bother to show up. In the meantime we pottered around going through the boxes and repacking everything we needed to pack away.
It is interesting to note we firmly believe downstairs was being rented out as a sort of an apartment. Not to our knowledge of course but it was set up with another dining setting and a large couch. Someone has painted a delightful feature wall / ripped out the TV aerial / plugged a massive hole with plaster and a ...coin *blink* and installed Foxtel both upstairs and downstairs. In my humble opinion the garage was ALSO being rented out as it had curtains and a daybed......

Downstairs in what will be The fs vintage Shop

Moving on

Builder Number Two turned up and we also really liked him!!! I was by this stage getting up a full head of steam as I was concerned the Builders would not agree to my idea of putting a wall in where the balcony is upstairs. THEY LOVED IT!!! Very positive and might I just mention ~ My Reno Book? They also loved that. They all took pictures of my pictures and ideas to do their quotes. Apparently I had made it very easy as there is no compromise in what I want.
Mr Fab loved discussing Pergolas and Decks and Boy type Buildy stuff ~ I just zoned out and thought about Hydrangas and how well they would grow under the Deck...............
It appears his idea of a 6 x 6 Deck was so massively enormous it was suggested by all maybe he downsize a wee bit? Size does matter to the Boys but in this case ~ smaller is better and far cheaper!
He also enjoyed discussing The Bathroom. He had some great ideas but at the end of the day ~ some were not doable. We have sorted out what we want and because our ideas are so very clear and we have pictures in our Book ~The Builders said it was easy!

The Bathroom

We also started going through the dark and hidden places and found to our surprise ~all our framed Movie Posters. Yep they had been knocked over and smashed somewhere along the road and we spent a good hour laying them down on sheets to try and get the smashed glass out. They have all been popped into the garage to go back to the Framers at a later date. That is also when we found The Giant Rat Trap. I went into FULL girl mode and Mr Fab stood his ground.

Me: Dear god ~Look at that trap!!!
Mr Fab: Well check to see if there is a rat in it
Me: *blink*
Me: Me?
Mr Fab: Yes just check it dont be a bloody girl
Me: Me?
(My Husband ~Hero and Protector)

So I poked and prodded the trap till we could see it and thankfully I am happy to report ~No giant Rat. Goodness me those things are so bloody big you could strap them on as a shoe!!!!!
After waiting all day for Inviso Builder who would not answer his phone ~guess who WONT be getting the job ~we grabbed a bottle of wine and a few beers to head next door to check out the work of Builder Number Two and relax for an hour or so. Also found out some interesting goings on which had been happening but we wont go into that!!!!!! *blink blink*

So Day 27 came to an end and as we lay on our BlowUp Camp Beds we discussed how well we had slept and how we both feel like we have come home......

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

The Fabulous Renovation ~ Week 3

So here we are at Day 22. This week we finally went back and actually saw our home.........For me? The first time in 7 years. Mr Fab has been down a few times.
We left on Tuesday night as soon as Mr Fab had managed a few dodgy hours sleep. Dexter came with us and initially thought it was a great funtime in The Car on a Holiday. He was NOT impressed by the end but he did travel very well indeed.
We drove through the night and arrived in Brisvegas around 9 am. We have no bedding at the house ~ well actually that is not true ~we have our old bed but seriously? Damn? I was pretty clear my body was NOT going to be sleeping on THAT mattress.
We stopped in at Caboolture KMart to grab some blow up beds so we could Camp on the floor. It was insane busy and I found it quite stressful to have so many people around???? Anyway ~ grabbed what we needed after parking what seemed like 25 miles from the car and me having to lug everything while running after zero sleep.........Back in the car and.............We arrived at Home about 9.30 am.
There was no Electricity connected because we had to wait till between 1pm and 6 pm for an Electricity chap to come and inspect the house to ensure it was safe to turn the power on. This was quite interesting. I called our Electricity supplier on Monday to turn the power on ~I had the lovely girl say:
Lovely Electricity Girl: Who is your Seller?
Me: My what pardon?
Lovely Electricity Girl: YOUR SELLER (You know when people talk louder when they think you might be deaf or not quite right?)
Me: I am sorry but I have no idea what you mean
Lovely Electricity Girl: (speaking slowly and carefully) ~ITS LIKE YOUR PHONE ~THE SELLER OF YOUR ELECTRICTY.
Me: *laughing* Sweetie we have one choice in decent phone service out here and I still dont have any idea what you mean
It appears while living in The Bah that the world moved on and changed ~You need a Seller of your Electricity and then The Provider connects.....Our current one does not Service Brisbane...sigh
Needless to say ~called company's ~blah blah they will all do the best deal blah blah ~settled on one / made an appointment for testing ~move on.
Ok so we are at the House ~I stood on the entry steps for a few minutes collecting my thoughts and thinking DontthrowupDontthrowupDontCryDontCryDontCry

opened the door and walked inside.

Looking Down to Entry from top of stairs

We spent about 30 minutes walking around while drinking our Maccas coffee ~ (no power remember? ) Finally sat down at a random table and chairs in the dining room and just looked at each other.....

Kitchen sink section

To be fair ~ it was not really as bad as what I thought it would be. Yes its dirty but you could see the Chaps had made an effort to at least make an effort. The paintwork I did 7 years ago was actually not all that badly damaged and good old America White USA has withstood the test of time so we are definitely going with that again. I love that color and will be doing all the existing furniture in it to match the walls / skirting and ceilings. Yep ~the whole lot in one color. I love that look and originally did that when last painting and still love how open it looks. All of our furniture except the Old Washstand ( with 100 plus year old tile inserts) was downstairs and while some of it is damaged ( one piece has no door and some red stuff that looks like Paraffin wax *shudder* all over it but nothing some elbow grease and my trusty tool kit cant fix with a lick of paint.) ~ I will use it all in The Shop as my fittings so nothing goes to waste. The Washstand is gone for sure and I will even mention in another post about going into the under stair cupboard to search and finding a Rat Trap I could have strapped on and used as a SnowSki.......
We started going through boxes and cupboards and we did find quite a lot of our things still in tact and not broken. Most of our vintage china and collectables are still there and our Kids special things are still perfect apart from a layer of dust that will probably require some heavy duty cleaning. We actually found the Marble Top of our Old Washstand in the very back of the very top of our linen cupboard.
Me: Ronnie ~ check this out (I am standing on one of the random dining chairs we found)
Mr Fab: : What the hell.....??? Is that the......
Me: Yep
Mr Fab: But how did they get it up there?????
Seriously? It is so heavy we spent a good five minutes maneuvering it out of the back of the cupboard to get a good hold on it to manage to take it down without smashing this beautiful piece of Old Marble into a zillion pieces!!!! It took two of us to ensure it was safely deposited on one of the Blowup Beds. So we have the top but no Stand so I will be turning that into some kind of table as we have a set of really old sewing machine legs laying about here..... I LOVE RECYCLING AND RESTYLING!!!!

Entry leading to Downstairs

Electricity was connected by about 2 pm and we spent the rest of the day just going through boxes and sorting out whats gone and whats still useable. 

All in all ~ the pieces that are missing ~ old Botanical lithographs and prints / decorative wall pieces / various other vintage bits and bods ~ at the end of the day its just things. Some things made me sad but then I thought ~ Fresh Start and when I am meant to find the perfect piece? ... I will

HOWEVER ~ All my clothes are gone ~ everything ~ GONE. The containers they were stored in ~ gone ~ Clothes ~ Gone. 

Hmmmm maybe I am cooler than I thought?

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

Mates Rates...

Nervous Breakdowns ~ 0
Mini Breakdowns ~ 0
Tantrums Me ~ 1
Tantrums Mr Fab ~ ............................ (I cant stop laughing long enough to write the number)

This picture represents nothing ~ It's just cool

Those of you who know us or have been following us for some time ~well you know Mr Fab and I DON'T argue. Yeah yeah I know its odd and strange but we simply don't. I suppose its because I  generally just laugh at him....?
Well since we have begun these Renovations ~ we have had snipes and scratchy comments flying about like dust in a high wind but nothing major.
I am the first to make fun of Mr Fab so I have to be honest and say ~ I lost it last night. Not a crying grizzly tanty ~just a I Have Had Enough thing ~ quietly picking up the keys, quietly closing the door and quietly walking out of the house. I cant write the EXACT conversation as I used words that nice girls don't generally use...... albeit quietly......
It was all about Mates Rates ~ it was the final straw on the proverbial camels back. I absolutely unequivocally DO NOT want to use anyone who we know or is a friend or family and get the aforementioned Mates Rates. I will do without to ensure that everything we have done is done by ONE person who supervises the entire build in a professional manner.
To be fair ~ maybe I was not being literal enough until I was finally able to explain that if you use Mates Rates ~ part of the whole Mates Rates scenario is you have no choice but to have the work done when the Mate can do it.
I do not want our Builder saying he cannot complete the kitchen because the tiling is not finished and the tiling is not finished because we are waiting for the Mate to do it when he has finished his day job and cant get there till the weekend. ( Which I must say is Fair enough!) Then the Builder saying he has to go to his New Job which had to start as per his contract with another Customer and wont be back for a month.....and so the saga would go on.
We have started talking to Builders and have been using an AMAZING page called Home Improvements or HiPages

 http://www.homeimprovementpages.com.au/

(Make sure you mention us!) 

You go to this page and enter in the job your require ~In our case it was MASSIVE . We were then contacted by HiPages within about 30 minutes to acknowledge us both via email AND Text message. They then put your requirements out to all the Builders and Tradespeople they have registered and those people decide if they can help you. You are notified via email every time someone says they will quote on your job. I had contacted Builders myself and left messages along with sending emails but have not had much response. We are meeting with 4 next Wednesday & Thursday so they can go over the house and quote on the job.

Pre 1918 Mintons Vintage Tile from Archer & Archer

https://www.facebook.com/archerandarcher

Now for a weird but endearing Tracyism...... I discovered a page on Facebook awhile back called Archer & Archer. They have nutty, kooky, interesting and Amazing stuff  for sale every Tuesday and Thursday night. The other night I found this ~ seriously swoonworthy over 100 year old Mintons tile. It was not a necessity ~ no. It was not needed ~ no .......... but DAMN if it is not beautiful???? I have used this Tile as a kind of gauge? Is that the right word? I have said to the Builders ~"So I have a 100 year old Minton Tile I want to use as a feature behind the cooktop ~do you think that would be possible?". Just a throw away question and so far only one has said something along the lines of "Oh wow ~really? Yes indeed I will absolutely make sure we can put that in!". Yes I know its a weird thing but I figured it would give me an idea if said Builder was on at least a similar page as us....
We have also been told an absolute mind blowing amount of information on what we need and yes indeed ~ quite a large portion contradicts what others have said so you can imagine our confusion!
I will update you when I can tell you absolutely what the Real Deal is.
I have also been spending enough time with Mr Google that I am beginning to think of him as a real person and think I may have a bit of a crush.....

So the Games have begun ~

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Let the Renovation Begin...PLEASE

The weekend was cold so it was the perfect time to don the favorite jammies and play around with some Jars. I am on the edge of my proverbial seat waiting for the Renovation to begin. I want to get cracking and get our home back to ... well being fabulous. I want to go down to Brisbane ~check it out ~ cry ~get that over and done with and move on to finding The Perfect Contractor. ( Feel free to contact us should you believe you are The One).
Anyway ~this is what I played with over one chilly Sunday in The Bah.....

Mason Jar with vintage music sheets & tealight

Nutty 50's style fabric on Mason with tealight

Mason with vintage music sheet & tealight

Mason Jar with Hessian Band & tealight

Pint & Half Mason Soy Candle

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Recycled, Restyled & Fabulous.

Over the last few days we have been doing some pics of some ideas for using our Masons AFTER you have enjoyed your Fabulous Scents Vintage soy candle.

Lets have a look shall we?

Heritage Blue Limited Edition Mason Jar Candle

Square Mason as a Soap Dispenser / Soy Candle and Beverage Jar

The perfect Beverage Jar for a Fabulous Wedding?

Vintage Jars ~ recycled & restyled

Glitter Mason with tealight

Hand Made Pin Cushion Lid

Holding your cotton balls in the bathroom

Just a few ideas  to help you Recycle, Restyle and ...................

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

The Mason Tests & Toilets

Recently we have been testing a couple of new jars to see how they go. So let me introduce to you  ~The Pint and a Half  & The Monster Redneck Drinking Jar!
 There was a need for something a little bit bigger than a traditional Pint & a little smaller than a Quart..

Monster Redneck Drinking Jar

Say hello to The Redneck Monster Drinking Jar.
(Gotta mention ~ every time I pour or use these jars ~I laugh.)
Anyway ~ in between looking for The Perfect Contractor and trying to sort out paperwork we have managed to get these beauties poured and tested. We are on round three and it is looking gooood. They are burning beautifully and I probably should not admit ~I lost count after 80 hours ~I know I know ~pretty not very professional but I was sidetracked by toilets....
 Yep ~Toilets.
I said to Mr Fab:
Me: I really want one of those toilets like on The Block ~set back in the wall
Mr Fab: All toilets are in the wall
Me: No those ones that have no gap behind them
Mr Fab: *blink*
As soon as I saw the adorable *blink* I knew it was a date with Mr Google for me.

New Monster Redneck Drinking Jar

Finally found some pictures to show our Hero and he was happy. We have ~in a fashion ~decided on The Toilets. So that's Toilets / Paint & kinda sorta ~The Kitchen!!!

I know I know ~its AMAZING! *sigh*
After he was happy I was able to move back to The Fabulous Test Process.
Those of you who have followed us for awhile know we really REALLY try to be Eco friendly , environmental, care about what we are doing and recycle everything. I spose its lucky I love to forage and restyle? We are striving to make sure the Reno is as Eco as we can make it and we are searching for ways to make sure we do use recycled materials and do what we can to be aware of our environment. In saying that? We encourage our customers to be aware as well. Not in a preachy way but in a helpful way. An example ~we supply recycled glass refill bottles of our Reed Room Diffuser Oil and always ask our customers ~ Do you have a gorgeous bottle in a cupboard at home? They usually do and while we lose out on the sale of one of our beautiful bottles......we feel better.

New Pint & a Half Mason Jar

We also purchased some of the fabulous Mason Drinking SippyLids so our customers can recycle and reuse their jars for whatever Fabulous beverage they choose!

Pint & a Half with Mason Drinking Sippylid

Environmental Baby steps baby but still making steps....... Ohhhh yeahhhhhhhhh

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
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How to Make Glitter Mason Jars ~Part 2 ~continued

So after a couple of days ~the end result.

 

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

Lets get this Renovation Party started

Ok so the paperwork is all done and lodged and ready to go. I am pretty sure I was at my Eco Worst today as I printed out all that was needed. I have also been googling for information on the relevant laws regarding Renovations / Fence building / pest control and so on. The files are BULGING with information! We are also trying to keep being Fabulous and going for the Eco / Recycled / Re-purposed way on everything we will be doing. We even have old furniture down there which I will paint and use as the fixtures for The Fabulous Scents Vintage Shop downstairs. Nothing will go to waste.
So in the next week or so we will be cashed up and ready to start the Renovation Process. Now the hard part ~finding the perfect Contractor. Not asking for much ~basically someone who is a super pedantic, fussy, perfectionist who will listen to what we are saying.
The first hurdle will be having the aforementioned Perfect Contractor ~turning up on time for the quote appointment!!! We will have a very small window of time to be down there and it is a 12 hour drive both ways ~ tiring to say the least but also ~ kinda exciting. Not the drive of course ~the finding the right Contractor bit. I am hoping we simply "know" straight away. I also want someone who will keep us informed of whats going on. A txt? Phone call? Email? Just to say ~"Well today we did ....."
We have decided we will buy a couple of sleeping bags and a couple of blow up mattresses to throw down on the floor for when we go down to inspect the work and whats happening. I am thinking of it as Camping without The Bugs?
 The kitchen is completely sorted in my head ~along with the bathroom and the paint color. I have even decided where the shelves for our vintage jars are going and in what order they will be displayed...thinking Age / size / color? 

#vintage mason Pint Jar

Its the little things I cant seem to think about................
Where do I put the power points? 
Do I need extra in the study? (I think ~yes) 
You get the drift....... 
Which Front Door do we pick?
How big does the Deck need to be?
Our Big Book Of Renovation is filling up with notes, pictures, ideas & thoughts. The funny thing is ~I have the entire build sorted in my head ~ just need to bring it out and into reality.
The other thing will be the cleaning up and sorting of the house. I have already said to Mr Fab ~ nothing stopping us from getting in and ripping out cupboards and making sure everything is packed up in one room. We could also start to remove all the doors and cupboard doors as they will be going as well.
There will be plenty of pictures ~Before during and the best ones....AFTER! I cannot begin to tell you how much I am looking forward to sitting on my Zen Balcony ( a little one at the front of the house) with a glass of Bolle and a platter of assorted delicious cheeses. Just Zennin & Chillin and doing nothing......

Hope you join me!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

fabulous scents vintage: How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2

fabulous scents vintage: How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2: But wait ~there is MORE! I decided to try another way..... While googling I came across LilyShop. I am not sure how to tag but let me try an...

How To Make Glitter Mason Jar ~ Part 2

But wait ~there is MORE! I decided to try another way..... While googling I came across LilyShop. I am not sure how to tag but let me try and add a link ~https://www.lilyshop.com/lilyshop-blog/item/how-make-glitter-mason-jars.

Lets get this glitter party started!

So with this one I simply filled the Quilted Mason with about 1 inch of Mod Podge & added a stack of Gold and Green Glitter.

 Swished it around and then left it turned upside down for about 2 hours.

 

Wiped down the rim and turned the right way up..... These have been drying in the Fabulous Scents Vintage Shop of Sorts for about 4 hours. I am going to leave them for a few days and see what happens. Do you see around the top they have started to dry?

So far it looks like it is working ~stay tuned for updates!

Stay fabulous

fs vintage
xx

How to Make Glitter Mason Jar

It popped into my head this morning that I had a motza of Mod Podge left over from "The Tinted Mason Jar Fiasco " (*see earlier post). Those of you who have been following us for the last couple of years know we have been dealing with vintage and new mason jars for a very very long time but cannot seem to crack the arty farty things. Candles? Oh yeah ~we rock at Soy Candles and quite a few of the Mason Jar Crafts but we cannot seem to get the whole painting thing! (*AGAIN ~Refer The Tinted Mason Jar Painting Fiasco) This morning my brainwave was ~ GLITTER. I do so love a bit of glittery blingy fabness so I have set to and had a go..... Guess what?

It Worked!!!!!!! Here is a Step by Step Tutorial with much Fab love!

 Materials:
1 x Jar (We used a new Pint Mason)
1 x Mod Podge
1 x Food Dye (Optional)
Glitter
Step 1:
Mix Mod Podge in container with enough water to make it a nice consistent paste that flows freely. Add a drop or two of Food Color if you would like to. Add Glitter... We added a Pink and a Purple Mix.

Step 2: Add mixture to jar and swirl till completely coated. Turn upside down on to some paper towel and let sit for about 5 minutes. Clean any excess from out side of jar.

Step 3: Pop into a pre heated oven to about 200 degrees (We used a Fan Forced Oven.)

 

 We set our Timer for 5 minutes Blocks and checked what was happening. We used 10 minutes as our set time. (* This is our vintage timer which we use all the time. A gift from a wonderful & interesting old lady)

 Step 4: Remove from Oven and let cool for about 15 minutes ~ IT IS INSANE HOT ~BE CAREFUL!!! Add the rim of a Mason Jar for that added extra zing ~don't forget we have heaps available here at Fabulous Scents Vintage   https://www.facebook.com/FabulousScentsVintage  so make sure you ask for one next time you are here. Happy to give you one if you need it!

Step 5: Sit back and admire your creative handiwork! We are using ours to hold our Wick trimmer and bid bods on the bench. A little bit stylish ~a little bit Fabulous. 

 

Hope you enjoyed our very first Fabulous Tutorial! Let me know how you went with your Fabulous Glitter Mason Jar!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage

xx

Let the Renovation Games Begin.......

I am not sure if we call this Day one? For the sake of this Blog we shall ~so lets begin with Day one and see where we are.
We have been approved on our Renovation Loan so we can at least make a start. We have started a book filled with ideas ~probably limited by money of course but dreams is dreams....
I cant even put up a picture as we are yet to make the journey down to clean out the house and pack whats left away till its all done.
Mr Fab told me I would cry ~I am NOT a crying person so it must be pretty bad....HOWEVER *stiff upper lip* ~ we shall do what needs to be done and get the job finished and ready for us to go home.
My friends suggested I Blog about the Reno process as a kind of soothing balm if you will ~ when things get tough and my mind is mulling over Effective Ways To Dispose Of  A Body and looking directly at aforementioned and normally much loved ~Mr Fab..........Perhaps this will help me return my usual Place of Zenness?
We made a huge and massive mistake when we didnt pack everything up and put it into storage ~so lets begin with Lesson Number One:

1: Pack everything up and put it in Storage.

There are one or two things which I really hope are still there and in tact ~nothing valuable to anyone but me of course but extremely sentimental. I have been cranky and grumpy about a couple of things like my RayBan sunglasses which I purchased in the Eighties after saving for literally a year ~ gone and their case filled with a delightful pair of Fiorelli sunglasses...Ummmm no people ~ it is not the same. Fiorelli are quite cute of course but they are NOT original RayBan.
I had collected 50 cent pieces for about 20 odd years including quite a few round ones.....yep...gone.

Someone once said to me: " If someone steals from you ~ they must need it more than you."

I have decided to go with that bit of wisdom and move on.

 

In the midst of all this schmozzle we will still be doing what we do ~ Fabulous Scents Vintage Mason Jar candles. The new shop will be incorporated into the reno which is a tad exciting with a studio for my creating behind the store...Ohhhh yeah ~Fabulous.
So tune in for the Ups and probably a few Downs in the Fabulous Scents Vintage Renovations!

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx