So my next focus for getting things finished around the house (and I say ‘finished’ loosely, as we all know decorating is never REALLY a finite process!), is sorting out the kitchen, once and for all.

Here it is at the mo:

While the cupboards, floor and cooker are recently refurbished and the space is impeccable and maybe just needs a new lick of paint… somehow the room still irks me. It is better with the new Missprint ‘Little Trees’ wallpaper, which I LOVE, but still doesn’t feel right.

It screams BEIGENESS. The cheap, light wood cabinet doors give me the hives, and to make it worse are made out of some laminate that comes with a warning sticker not to use cleaners on it. Just a soft damp cloth. IN A KITCHEN.

A) Why would you even make such a product.
B) What numpt would buy it????

It makes no sense. The manufacturer should be shot.

Unfortunately, as the landlord has recently installed them, I really have to leave them be. So next on the irk list is getting rid the nasty halogen spot lighting. What a minger.

I am not even going to waste time with a photo – it is one of those silver bar deals with 4 lights. Someone thought a novel design feature would be to give it pseudo-retro pointy bits – so it looks like Buck Rogers shot it out of his ‘seat area’ (as a friend would say). It is bad.

So nearly a year later I am pondering how to replace it with something more pleasing, that will give us spot lighting in the needed places. WITHOUT a shadow over the sink when you are washing dishes.

Another irk.

I am full of them.

If there is anything I hate it is not having a direct light over you when you are doing dishes. A flaw in most of the kitchens I have lived with.

After much thought, and with the renting out excuse to make me move on it…I have finally come up with something (which you may have noticed in my olympic shots!. It is not quit done yet, as I need to sort out multiple hanging points, and I need to figure out how it will all work.)

Some of you might recall this post from way back on rise and fall lights – I have been wanting some industrial enamel lighting for a while.

Here are examples of enamel lights which I was using as inspiration:

For weeks I trolled and sniped on eBay for the parts I needed to make the fixture.

A few weeks ago I managed to snag 2 green vintage ‘coolies’ from seller frenchmemories on eBay, who is located in Vienne, France. I mentioned my sadness over not getting the 3rd one I had bid on, and the lovely fellow, Ron, let me know he was listing some more that evening! It was fate.

(I highly recommend his shop for French fleamarket goods, by the way. Enamelware, lighting, etc. Prices are very reasonable, and the man is super sweet. I actually won 2 more shades, as I was hedging my bets to make sure I got the 3rd in the second attempt…and he offered to refund me – unasked- on the one I didn’t need. Did I say SWEET?)

I need to sort out how the other 2 shades will work with the fitting and all the bits and bobs needed. Details make ALL the difference and I am hoping to find just the right brass bulbholder/coloured flex combination to make them shine. I want the brass bits to be chunky, but the hole on the shade is quite narrow, so need to rig up something that will work.

I can only dream of finding beautiful gallery fittings like the one below:


Yum.

I will also have to sort out how the rose will work with 3 cords coming out of it…and how to hang them… This should be interesting.

I love new projects! I will try to slow down and take shots once I start putting things together and do a proper DIY if any of you Roost-ers are interested!

Wish me luck!

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