Wednesday 26 May 2010

Before and After

Not really Before - that was too too dreadful to expose to the world - but During, i.e. after I'd boxed up a lot of assorted stuff in Ikea's incredibly good-value Samla boxes, and thrown a lot of assorted tat out.


There's so much stained glass and equipment! And a large box of Lego. And many photographs to sort and scan before throwing out. And the Lovely Son's school reports......



There are the head-injuring shelves and their ill-matched supports.


With all the clearing out, the truly shameful carpet re-emerged. With bald bits, torn bits, and ...er....stains. The kind that tom cat owners would recognise. I used to have quite a number of cats, more than I do now. Even neutered ones like to spray a little eau de Tom when feeling under pressure, although so far, no one has told Hamish and Scooter that this appealing little ploy is theirs to command.


But at this age, and having been dirt cheap in the beginning, this carpet owed me nothing, as they say. Underneath:


And now, the After.

I knew there would be no way of making this room look like a bedroom, but I could make it look purposeful, and not simply an outpost of the city dump. So after a bit of scrubbing, painting, shifting boxes around, injuring my head on sharp corners, and buying some more cheap carpet, with (so far) no eau de Tom embellishment, I've settled for this: the boxroom/workroom look, a room with potential to become a second bathroom or even the bedroom it was intended to be back in Edwardian times. Probably for the skivvy.

The sewing machine on the old kitchen table was a cunning touch, I thought; no one need know that it is rarely used, and lives under its cover; the unavoidable stack of boxes opposite might even suggest that an organised, practical person lives here, who could move out in double quick time should a buyer be keen to move in.



Inside the eaves (behind that cute little door that the Lovely Son made for me) are a stack of other boxes, but no one need know about those either.

What was that? You thought you saw something unusual on the shelves? Well, of course.


It's the Project Manager. And a dog.

We think we did all right with some unpromising material. Next: wandering round the house with small paintbrushes, touching up scuffed and chipped things. Oh, and getting the carpets cleaned. The Project Manager may have to hide for that last task.

As an Army family, we grew up with my mother's edict that you always left your quarters cleaner than you found them. I can't do otherwise. It makes for a slow process, but helps me to feel that whoever buys this house won't find too many unexposed horrors after I've left.

15 comments:

Lesley said...

It looks great - I want to sit down and sew at that table and I last sewed in 1985!! It wasn't good either....

Well done, very impressive, keep it up.

Lesley x

the veg artist said...

Only you could have such a tidy 'glory hole'. You made it out to be the room of shame - it is nothing of the sort. Shallow is the home buyer who cannot see the potential here!

But perhaps it is all down to the Project Manager? Send her to me for a month, please.

BumbleVee said...

aww....I did notice Lottie tucked away on the shelf ....behind the dog....hahahh.....too cute....

Elizabeth Musgrave said...

I think you have done wonders and you so get the psychology of house buying. If someone doesn't snap it up I will be astonished.
Have you decided where to? I am of course still pushing, gently and tentatively, for North East Wales!

rachel said...

Somerset is the favourite at the moment, but I have yet to go and look..... Too many lovely places to think about, so sea and rolling countryside, a light airy house, a garden, a quiet road and a view are top of my wish list. Maybe I should just canvas some of you to keep an eye out for the perfect place for me!

Von said...

Looks great and worth the work.I can see you'll be a good mover when the time comes!

Hazel said...

Now I don't want to seem harsh here, Rachel, but you're decluttering so well, and yet you've kept a box of Lego? (I'm new here, so I hope I haven't put my foot in it with the Lego having some sort of history attached!)

Isn't that bureau beautiful? I guess that does have a history to it!

And there is Lottie looking like butter wouldn't melt.......ahhhhh! I hope that you sort out your mouse probs - one of my horrors has left me what appears to be the complete and intact innards of a mouse on the carpet tonight. Quite where the head/fur/legs/tail are I can only imagine.

Lynda (Granny K) said...

Looks great! All this preparation work you are doing now will definately pay off when you come to pack up.

Rattling On said...

Marching out! Yes, we always save the bleach bottle and vacuum to come in the car with us. Clean toilets and neat carpets for the new owners to walk into. We have bought too many grotty dumps to ever do that to someone else. The sewing machine is a lovely (cunning) touch.

Anonymous said...

Respect! Seriously, that looks amazing, puts me totally to shame.

Jan

lovethosecupcakes said...

What Jan (above) said.

Friko said...

Haven't you already had a major clear out? You are an industrious soul, how do the cats put up with you, always disturbing their world?

SmitoniusAndSonata said...

The Sewing Room is perfect . Potential is really what sells a house and an absence of grottiness .
You've got a beautifully welcoming and comfortable house to offer now . Somerset can't be far off .

Unknown said...

Oh I think it looks a rather lovely place to sew and the buyer of this house will be a lucky one indeed.

Bee said...

Your efforts will pay off when you put the house on the market. And the sewing machine was a very cunning touch . . . craft/sewing rooms are very "in" these days.

Plastic boxes can (organize)hide a world of clutter.

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