Living My Real Life

Are you in need of a holiday? I feel like I am. For the next few weeks, I thought I’d take you on a virtual holiday of New Zealand. Want to come along?

This is a photo I took quite a few years ago when we went on a tour of the South Island of New Zealand.  I can’t actually remember where exactly it is, except that I know there’s a bridge over the stream and, at the top of the bridge, there is a café where we stopped for lunch.  

I also know that there were a gazillion sand flies there and we all got bitten and that my kids were having fun skimming the very flat stones across the water.

I hope you enjoyed that little sight-seeing trip.  Let me know in the comments below if you would like to see more of our New Zealand journeys. 

On the Blog This Week

This week I shared more details about my kitchen renovation as well as a DIY necklace tutorial.

Kitchen Island

After the post last week about the door furniture we used, I was asked about the kitchen island so I’ve written a blog post about how we gave our kitchen island a fabulous coastal makeover. If you would like to see the details, check Part 14 of our Lockwood renovation.  

If you would like to see more of our home renovation, check out the Renovate section of my blog.

Stars and Swirls Necklace

Faced with the challenge of what do make with these metal twist beads, I decided to use them as the focal point of a necklace.  This Stars and Swirls Necklace has a decidedly gothic feel and my daughter (and ex-goth shown above wearing bright pink!) really likes it, so it’s gone to live with her.

Around the Web

Sometimes, it seems like every article on the internet is written in the Northern Hemisphere, doesn’t it? For me, the end of summer is a mile away from spring and tulips but the whole internet seems to be buzzing about them.

Tulips are one of my favourite flowers,second only to roses.  I grow roses but I’ve never grown tulips.  It’s on my bucket list – you never know, maybe this year. In fact, all this talk of tulips might actually inspire me to plant some bulbs ready for spring.

Early Spring Décor Tablescape

I loved this tablescape created by Stacy.  The white tulips are just stunning.

Infact, everything about this room is absolutely stunning – the light fixture,the lantern on the wall and that gorgeous black cabinet.  For more pictures, take a look at Stacy’s blog.

Stacy Ling Bricks and Bloom

Spring Coffee Table

While we’re on the subject of table centrepieces, why not make a faux one?  I loved that Paula from Virginia Sweet Pea made this beautiful table scape from faux flowers. Honestly, you could make this any time of year and bring the spring in. I’m thinking about making one now! It’s so beautiful.

Virginia Sweet Pea

Newspaper Seed Pots

If you are thinking about spring planting and maybe getting some seeds started, check out how Jayne is planting her seed without using any plastic!

I’ve used some of these methods in the past and they are well time-tested.  Certainly, worth a look.

Chalking Up Success

Minestrone Soup

If all this talk of spring is making you hungry, but it’s still really cold where you live, why not try this wonderful Minestrone Soup recipe by Christy of My Mountain Retreat.

My Mountain Retreat

I really love that Christy has included arugula in this recipe.  It’s so unexpected.

That’s it for this week.

Please let me know in the comments section below if you enjoyed this post and if there are any special topics you would like me to share in the future.

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Come back next week for another wonderful New Zealand destination.

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February 27, 2021