Nest in the Vines :: Paint & Tears

 

 

Yes, the little studio {definite change in labelling here} has been painted thanks to my lovely Lynda friend who helped me slick paint all around the main living space of the studio on Anzac Day. That howling, windy blizzard of a day. And yes, tears have been spilled since that day, especially Friday. The day I couldn’t stop crying.

 

The word that possibly best describes the way I was, have been feeling and hence the tears, would be overwhelmed. I’ve never before felt so overwhelmed. I came close. Very close when we were moving from the purple nest. That felt overwhelming and stressful and terrible. But this has been even more so.

Thursday came around and we still didn’t have running water to the wet areas or a connected hot water system or glass in some of the windows or door handles on either of the doors or villa board in the bathroom or a shower base installed. I know that the filthiness of the floor in that little studio was getting to me as well as the worry of where I was going to put everything that needed to be sheltered from the weather {and haven’t we been having some weather lately???}. I was tired. Really, really bone achingly tired. The ground was wet and sloshy and sticky with that clay mud that you can’t get off your boots. Lew was bored and semi- uncared for. The rental was a mess of boxes and disarray and there was still so much to do everywhere I looked.

It all started when I found out how difficult window pane installation really is. I had no idea what I was doing and the wind, though nothing like the day before, was threatening. Fear of jugular vein severing continually washed over me. I felt edgy. I managed to get the panes installed and then came the putty. The putty that really, really … one more …. REALLY bugged me. What a pain in the butt job that is. It took all day to do 4 smallish panes – in between picking up plumbing bits and pieces and going to Mitre 10 and getting the lunch ready and picking up Lew. But the tears hadn’t flowed as yet. I managed to keep it together for most of Thursday until Rodney, at the very end of the day, showed me our water pressure. Or should I say, lack of water pressure. He left saying that he wouldn’t be able to get back until next Tuesday {the day we had to be out of the rental} and that we’d definitely need a pump.

That’s when the overwhelming feeling hit me like a tsunami and slowly but surely the earthquake inflicted waves of salty tears came upon me and would not go away. I had to make 3 phone calls and none of them I could manage without blubbering. My lovely, lovely friend helped reassure me that all will be OK and that they had a pump we could borrow {which they now insist we keep xxx}. I felt a little better and a little less overwhelmed after that final phone call. I went to bed early and read to my gorgy boy and chatted about the day and all of those normal things we do in the evening.

But by the next morning I could feel those tsunami waves lurking in the cold, oceany shadows of yesterday ready to get me once more. I wondered how I could possibly get through the day feeling like that.

My beautiful brother was there at the block, as he has been most mornings this past month, when I arrived. We started putting in the other windows bits that hadn’t been fitted and the tears started welling up. Tom made a few taunting jokes and I could feel myself not able to cope. Then Dad turned up with a pump he’d got hold of which was so very nice of him. But it was so hard to show much appreciation in the state I was in. We had some morning tea and then a few tense words between my Dad and I were said, which I won’t go into, and that was that. I started crying and couldn’t stop. I cried on and off all day. I cried when anyone spoke to me. I cried when I was alone. I cried behind the tank – the only spot I could sort of hide.

I cried so much that my head hurt. My eyes felt so puffy I had to squint. Again, my lovely brother helped me by telling me it’ll all be OK and he grabbed the broom and started cleaning up because he could see that the filth and the mess was probably what was setting me off. Then my lovely Lynda friend came to the rescue and helped to clean. Then my lovely sister came and helped me clean. And in not too long we had the studio clean and liveable despite the lack of bathroom and kitchen facilities. And if that wasn’t enough help, Lynda invited us over for dinner that night.

By dinner time the tears had all gone and I could have a conversation without fearing a flood. Exhausted and sore and over it all I gave thanks.

Because after all of this I was never ever left in my overwhelmed state. I was taken care of. I hadn’t lost a child or been given a terminal illness. I’d just sold my house and had to down size and build a shed… woops, studio, to live in and none of that is the end of the world or, really, anything to cry about. It’s just me and my fragile nature when it comes to disorganisation and dirt and uncertainty. I don’t cope. I’m so sensitive to things that are beyond my control. I hate relying on others. The guilt seeps in. But I’ve been more aware now than any other time in my life that I’ve needed other people’s help. There have been way too many things that I haven’t been able to do myself or pay someone to do. That has felt so very overwhelming.

I wonder what I’ve taken on by buying this block of land? I have a real concern for my ability to be able to handle it all and the responsibility that more than 1 and a 1/4 acres is going to bring. I worry. A lot.

But, I know that all things are not planned and organised by me. I am not in total control. Thankfully. So, thankfully. And because of this I know that I will be taken care of and that all things work together for His good, which is my good. I have to trust that I will be given the grace I need to get through it all. It’s not brain surgery. It’s not the death of a child. It’s not a terminal illness. I’ve just sold my house and had to down size and build a studio to live in and none of that is the end of the world or, really, anything to cry about. It’s worth being thankful for. So the crying ceases ….now! {I know, I know, I know that I sound exactly like our Chicken Train cracked record when I say that for the 100th time}.

 

So here’s what’s left to do:

* bathroom plus kitchen sink to be grey water connected and taps put on and sink useable.

 

 

* bedroom to be lined … a big maybe.

 

 

* bathroom finished and villa board  be put up so we can use this gorgeous little beauty in privacy.

 

 

* pump to be connected.

 

We’ve begun moving our things into the main living area space. It’s cosy and small but it looks like it’ll all work OK. Today we will aim to get most of the rental house stuff over to the studio. Then it will be cleaning at the rental and finishing off the final bits of packing. I have friends coming over to help me clean and finish up over the next few days. I don’t know what I’d do without them. Probably some more crying no doubt.

 

 

I’m planning to schedule some bloggy posts over the next week or two as I’m not sure how long it’s going to take for good old Telstra to hook up our phone and over at the block. So you’ll be hearing from me from afar but I look forward to getting back here in person and relaxing with you all with a long, hot cup of tea and not a tear insight.

Catch you then.

Kim x

The Guest Nest :: Sams Creek Studio & Garden

 

It’s The Guest Nest time again. This little space has become my  favourite spot at Feather & Nest {other than bits about my gorgy boy, of course} and it’s only the second time around! Sticky beaking into real life nests and the lives of the featherers who live there is, well, a huge passion of mine. But I think I may have said that a few hundred times before….

Last month’s Guest Nester was the lovely Leah from The Inside Story. If you missed Leah’s guest nest then please pop on over here for a squiz at her beautiful creation.

This month is a Guest Nest with a difference. Today it’s all about the creative space of one very  talented and, may I add, local gal.

So, no more ramblings from me, let’s take a wander around the gorgeousness that is the lovely Rhonda Ayliffe’s creative Sams Creek outdoor nest. Over to you, Rhonda.

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Who lives in your nest?

The Sams Creek nest is home to my family - my man (Farmer Phil), our two farm- and sports-mad kidlets (Sass and EJ), the cats (Boots and Dante), dogs (Brimmer, Brody and Sarah) and countless farm and forest animals.

 

How long have you lived there?

My family purchased the farm at Sams Creek when I was 18 months old…. It had a ramshackle old home (the original part of the house was built in the last decades of the 1800s –its one of the oldest farm houses in the area). Along with the house there was a collection of sheds – each more decrepit than the last, half a dozen ancient loquat trees and one old horse. No one in my family chose to live in the rather unappealing house (no running water, no electricity, no hope – or so my parents and grandparents thought!) but I fell in love with the place and from the age of about nine I started to plot how to make it mine – in 1988 my dream came true – I’ll never leave.

 

 

What made you move to this nest?

Love – for the house/farm/forest/creek.

 

 

What is it that you love most about living in your nest?

This place (the house, the funny bits of left over sheds, the gardens, the paddocks, the creek, the forest) are a part of me. They are me - and I am this land.

 

Can you tell us a bit about your favourite space?

My very favourite space – its this place … Sams Creek.

 

 

How about your favourite feathering thing?

I’m not much of an interior person and I’m not at all into luxury or show-off items or ‘new things’. Most of my furniture was either found in the house or was handed down through the family. The house came with a collection of depression-era furniture my fav is a funny little concoction – it’s a set of drawers made from packing cases, an old sewing machine frame and cotton reel drawer pulls – its never been painted and I think it’s simply perfect. I have a little wunderkammer – a glass cabinet of curiosities (the cabinet was a ribbon cabinet from my grandparents general store in the 1940s-1970s) – in it I keep all my most precious little things – a ceramic bird I bought when I was 7yrs old, a hand crocheted jug cover my great grandmother made, a lyrebird’s tail feather, a hand beaten brass bowl with butterfly wings collected in the garden….

 

 

Could you show us where you spend most of your bloggy time?

 

Trust me when I say – no one should have to see that space (what a mess!)

 

Where is the one place in your nest {inside or out} that you feel the most cosy and relaxed?

I love our verandahs – we have a space for every season or occasion…

 

 

Can you show us around your permaculture garden and tell us a bit about it & why you’ve designed it around permaculture?

My garden is where I do most of my ‘nesting’. We grow a lot of our fruit and vege (and beef and lamb in the paddocks for the meat eaters in the house).

 

 

*** To read more about  the story of Rhonda’s farm life and to view more pictures go here: http://www.rhondaayliffe.blogspot.com.au/p/farm.html ***

I first heard of permaculture in the 1980s and bought my first book on the subject while still in high school – but I didn’t get to complete my Permaculture Design Certificate (the 72hr introduction course covering the basics of Permaculture) until 2010. Permaculture is a wholistic design system based around 3 core ethics: care for the earth, care for people, fair share. Australian David Holmgren (http://www.holmgren.com.au/) is credited as the co-originator of permaculture (along with Bill Mollison). I think Holmgren’s book ‘Permaculture: Principles and Pathways beyond Sustainability’ is simply brilliant – it’s not a garden design book as much as it is a philosophical overview of the 12 principles of permaculture. – here’s a better place to read all about it > (http://www.permacultureprinciples.com/) I’m slowly integrating all our farm/garden/studio/home according to these permy principles – I like that it’s a work in progress….

 

How does being an artist influence your feathering and nesting?

Hmmmm – My home is full of art and natural elements found in wanderings around the area: birds nests, feathers, pebbles… the place is always a little bit ramshackled as I use most of my creative energy in my arty work.

 

*** Here’s a link to Rhonda’s artworks slideshow:  http://www.rhondaayliffe.com/ ****

 

You’ve got an art studio, right? Could you show us around?

My rustic ‘shed’ studio has recently had a bit of a face-lift in preparation for the launch of sams creek bookworks. On May 5^th I will be opening the studio and garden as a fundraiser for Cobargo P&C. I have a spectacular collection of book-craft related equipment and tools – including a gorgeous C&P letterpress, a jaw-droppingly fantastic French percussion standing press (its unlikely most folk will see one of these outside a museum) oh and so much more….. you’ll have to visit!

 

 

…

 

Thank so much, Rhonda, for that lovely wander through your studio and garden nest. I feel so inspired to get out into my new 3 acre block of nothing-but-grapevines and plant ‘till my my heart’s content.  I’m so looking forward to May the 5th when we can come and visit your nest in real life and see all of the studio treasures and book work gorgeousness that you’ve been collecting and creating.

If you live close enough to the gorgeous Sams Creek then why don’t you come along to Rhonda’s Open Studio too?

 

 

For those of you who won’t be able to make the Open Studio, here is the link to Rhonda’s juicy creativeness:

http://samscreekbookworks.blogspot.com.au/

Bring on the 5th of May!

Kim x

Nest in the Vines :: Lining

 

Can we? Can’t we? These have been the agonising questions over lining the shed from part way through week two of the building process. When the budget was blown and there seemed to be no money to do much with, it was the lining that had to go. Or did it?

 

Lining options seemed so expensive. Not in comparison to it’s importance and the rest of the build but in relationship to the lack of funds in our shed build back account. The worry of lining and the very real possibility of not being able to line or insulate the shed caused me many a sleepless night.

 

“It’s going to be freezing!” said most pessimists. Or were they realists? The more optimist and less greedy of my friends said: “Lining? Who cares? At least you’ll have walls.” {Ger-ry friends say positive things like that}.

Anyway, I digress. Long, boring story short, we got lining. Thanks to the lovely Ray’s joinery who GAVE us the chipboard for free. Big yah! {And huge thankyou!!} And, we also got insulation. Not for free but a lot cheaper than our Mitre 10 friends could deal with. Double yah! Not everywhere, mind you. Not in the sleeping area. But the main section will be warm and cosy and the sleeping area … well, there’s always plenty of doonas and blankets.

And… this is the really exciting bit…all 3 external walls got lined yesterday!

 

 

 

Don’t worry, I know I’m not out of the woods yet. There’s still plumbing and bathrooms and kitchens and painting and floors and archs and doors and handles and more to go. We’ve got until Friday, what’s the hurry?

Agh!

 

This is what we were gifted with at the end of a stressful and tiring day …

 

 

How beautiful is creation? He is good.

 

Kim x

Tea & Toast :: Style No# 2: Modern Nesters

 

This week’s Tea & Toast takes on a Modern Nest journey as Style No# 2 of our Style series. For those of you who missed last week’s  Tea & Toast go here and check out the style quiz. Leave me a comment and share with us what style of nester you are. Then come back and enjoy some modern nesting vignettes. 

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So what does a modern nest look like? Well, that is a kind of tricky thing to narrow right down. Modern has quite a few slants these days. I should really have had an ‘eco’ style option because it is a style in it’s own right but for this little series I’m blending eco and modern together because eco is hot right now in the feathering and nesting business, and so it should be. I love this look! It fits all the bills of modern – streamlined, chic, minimalist, clean but it adds a little more warmth and heart compared to other ultra modern looks. There’ll be a bit of both types of modern on our Tea & Toast journey today. I hope it covers every one of your modern nesting needs.

For you, the Mostly B’ers. Enjoy!

 

Style No# 2 :: Modern Nests

~Mostly B’s: Modern Nester  You love all things new and contemporary. You love minimalism in your nest. Neutral colours. (as well as black and white) are your favourites. You love simple, clean lines and stainless steel appliances. The latest nesty technology is important to you. You love to shop in the city and like to have your nest looking up to date and streamlined always~

 

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The next scenes are more relaxed modern with hints of ‘eco’. More my style of modern, I have to say. They bring warmth and heart to the often stark, cold feel of the ultra modern look. A nest has to have heart, don’t you think?

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The Cullen house in the Twilight movie… obviously those vampires were mostly B’ers too.

 

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There you go. Modern Nests.

What did you you think? Even if you’re not a modern nester, could you use some of these ideas in your nest?

Next week’s Tea & Toast is for the mostly C’ers :: Rustic, Earthy Nesters. I can’t wait.

 

Happy Tuesday!

 

Kim x

Nest in the Vines :: The Race is On

 

The race is definitely on. The pressure is building. Literally. We’ve come so far from here:

 

 

 

Time’s marched on though, and the countdown has begun. We have 5 days to finish the shed, pack up the rental and move out… and into the shed. There’s been a bit of a hold up due to limited funds and lack of lining material for the inside but there has been a huge break through all of this and we now have lining AND insulation. I am stoked. The lining was generously given to us by the lovely, lovely Rod Sirl at Ray’s Joinery. I don’t think he realises just how very much he has helped us. A gift back to him is definitely in order. He has given us some huge chipboard sheets – enough to do 3/4’s of the shed.  The rest will come from a Second Hand Building Material Facebook link  for $50.00. Bargain!

I’ve spent days driving around checking out packing pallets for architraves and building type businesses for chipboard and metal recyclers for all things metal {door handles, taps, tin, copper piping … and more}. I’ve had my finger sanded by a belt sander and screamed ‘help!’ on more than one occasion as I tackled the trestles again.

There’s been some family tension. No surprise there, really. Thankfully it gets quickly resolved. Nothing a brother and sister can’t move through and no matter what, I’m eternally thankful to my cranky littlest brother for everything he’s done for me. He’s worth his weight in gold, even the grumpy, short fused bits.

In between all of this has been meetings with the builder of the new nest, reading and signing contracts, phone calls and meetings with the lovely bank we are getting our loan off {and I really mean that. They are so lovely, lovely, lovely!}, dealings with engineers and the council and the worm farm people. Picking up our approved DA. Yah! Going through papers and sorting through junk piles to get everything in order and ready to go to wherever it needs to get to. Parenting a poor, bored boy who has been very patient throughout this whole ordeal and has helped us so incredibly much with the physical side of moving. It’s like having 3 helping adults now Lew is 12. I feel like I’m having to apologise daily to Lewi for my crankiness and stressy reactions to the simplest of things. I truly hate being this sort of parent.

So, a quick run down on what we’ve been up to since my last Nest in the Vines update:

 

 

Corner angles of the shed went from this …

 

 

to this…

 

 

as well as the flashing angle thingy's that had to be put up on the peaks near the fascia board. Done and painted.

 

Front and back doors went on. Lew even had a go!

 

 

and more architraves.

 

 

The archs went around the big front window too but I haven’t got a piccy yet. Still needs a lick of paint to finish it off and a couple more window panes.

 

More electrical were done. Now we have light!

 

and a semi-connected, soon-to-be-useable stove which I feel so excited about. I didn’t realise how big my cooking urge was until I thought about 5 months without a stove.

 

Still to go:

~ window panes

~ last of the architraves

~ door handles

~ a bit more exterior painting

~ insulation

~ inside lining

~ bathroom fit out

~ kitchen sink and bench fit out

~ paint inside

~ paint concrete floor

~ stop gorgeous birds like these swallows {and the maggies}from nesting with us:)

 

 

Plus – we have to finish packing and moving all of our stuff from the rental into the storage shed and the few bits and pieces that will fit, into the shed.

Ahhhh, the race is on. Can we do it?

 

Kim x