Girls Who Like To Buy Houses

So it's more or less official - subject to finance (which we should hear about in a week or so), Anthony and I have bought an apartment in Mount Lawley. I'm so thrilled! It's a partly heritage listed, 1940s building, and we own 1/8th of it. I'm already busily planning all the nice things I want to buy for it and do to it. Here's my checklist:

• Paint - the current owners have done the place up in fairly loud, clashy shade of red and purple. Now, I like red and I like purple, but not right alongside each other. I'm going to go for a greyish mid-blue, I think.
• Enclose the balcony. This one's a biggie and it's going to take some time and professional intervention. There's a small balcony that comes off the main bedroom, and we want to enclose it and use it as a sunroom/Anthony's musical thinking space. We're still deciding the best way to do this one, so it will probably be the last thing done on this list.
• New wardrobe. The current wardrobe is sufficient but totally ugly. I want to replace it with one of the super-functional ones from IKEA. Probably with mirrored doors, as the room could use some embiggening. I've never had a really great wardrobe, and I am totally going to take the opportunity to indulge here.
• Chandeliers! Oh man, ever since I was a little girl I've dreamed of having a house with a chandelier. AND I AM GOING TO PUT THEM IN EVERY ROOM SO HELP ME. Well, maybe. But definitely the living room and the bedroom. I want to have really great lighting in this house - additional to the chandelier, I want lamps, sconces, spotlights... lighting can really transform a space and I plan on using it to its full potential.
• A dishwasher. I am married to the best man in the world, who always cleans because I always cook. It's time to cut him some slack.
• Change up the storage space. Currently there's a mezzanine floor in the main bedroom with a fixed staircase. I want to remove that staircase and replace it with a pull-down ladder, thus freeing up floorspace and making the storage area more separate.

That's about it for now. We'd also like to replace some furniture gradually, but I think finances are going to drag on us a little bit there and we'll have to wait. The balcony needs to be approved by the council and strata board before we can start on that, but everything else will happen ASAP. I'm so excited!!!

I've already compiled a huge number of inspirational photos. My theme is basically a chic Parisian space. I'm thinking blue-ish grey walls with pops of colour here and there, and a lot of really classic lines - but the occasional surprising hit of modernity (like, for example, some Starck Ghost chairs:)



I've already gone and bought a couple of Eiffel tower bookends from Domayne. They're on back-order but I should be able to post a photo next week. Oh man, I'm so excited. Ruth was saying that I'll see IKEA in a whole new way now - I totally get it! I'm designing MY OWN HOME. This is so great.

-Hayley xoxo