The other side of the world & a crazy two week budget apartment renovation.

Well, Murphy's Law. I am in bed in the back room of my parent's house for the third day, waiting to recover from a virus caught on the plane from France to Australia. I am trying to think clearly about the budget apartment Reno project. It is an apartment in an iconic apartment block near the Yarra River that was originally built to house delegates for the 1956 Olympic Games.

I've downed Codral, Asprin and various herbal concoctions, trying to recover ASAP. I have three weeks and a minimal budget to prepare and paint the entire apartment, re-floor the bathroom, replace the vanity, hang new blinds, and put the place right. A miracle is required, but I remain optimistic.

Life is a funny old thing; it will always find a curve ball to throw at you. You think you have it under control then, bam 💥 there it is, curve ball. Sometimes, it's like a corker in the thigh. Other times like you caught the shit of a thing with your face.

The floor sanding and sealing are taking much longer than expected due to the aged wood soaking up the oil, which was quite damaged in some spots. So, getting in, cleaning and painting is delayed for the second time. First, I was unwell, and now there is this unexpected delay. But I should know by now if something wrong could happen when renovating, it most definitely will. The floorboards look fantastic, I'm glad we ripped out the newly laid carpets. A bit of a waste, but carpet in such a small area doesn't work and is just another dust collector to help those allergens thrive. Plus, I love Wooden floors.

A trip to Ikea, which should have been relatively straightforward, became an ordeal. I purchased the vanity unit with a basin, the whole unit as one, to keep it simple. Funnily enough, (not), when the chippie put the unit together, there were no drawer fronts! Oh, so convenient. I had purchased the unit from the Richmond store, but when I looked online, they had plenty at Springvale, so off I trot to Springvale, the closer of the two stores, with my Sister, easy. At the service counter, I explain the situation to the young man, who replies, "Ah, you'll have to get that from Richmond". WTF! I ask why there is an issue with picking up from Springvale, and he says with utmost conviction,

Like buying Milk!

"Well, it's like buying milk from Coles

and expecting to exchange it at Woolies". I replied, "No, it is nothing like that; this is Ikea and Ikea". Then he said, "You can't return the milk you bought at one Coles at a different Coles. "We both chipped in "Well, yes, you most certainly can". With that, we got a "You'll have to go to Richmond". Crazy, but you've gotta laugh, don't you? So off to Richmond, we go. Luckily, they had 'One', the only one there! What a load of rigamarole.

So, I have recovered enough to arrange the plumber for the vanity unity replacement. He will confirm the day as soon as possible. When that will be, I do not know. I do know that I will be doing an average of at least 160km round trips for the next six days.

The removal van has been arranged to transport #1 daughter's belongings from the storage facility, and her new Fridge will arrive on the same day. We're getting somewhere.

The 1950's bathroom makeover

I have the colour scheme for the retro 1950s-style bathroom with its blue bath and toilet. The new vanity unit has lovely green/grey fronts. The old floor tiles will be primed and painted white, and the walls will be a gorgeous soft pink. #1 daughter is not convinced, but I love it. You have to work with what you have on such a limited budget. I use exterior paint in my bathrooms. It is resistant to mould and cleans up really well.

So, come Sunday, I will be in the apartment sugar-soaping and painting like a demon......

......Sunday, Bloody Sunday. Sugar soap and elbow grease. For such a small unit, there was an unholy amount of, as my sister described, iced coffee-coloured water, vomit village 🤮, years of tobacco stains and kitchen grease.

I decided on 'Natural White' on the walls and ceiling, with the exception of the wall you look directly at when entering. It is sunny and fun and fits with the building and apartment's retro 50s theme.

It is called 'Show Business', a fantastic terracotta/orange that will bring a pop of contrast and a smile to your dial. I'll find the perfect image to hang there at some point—just because I love a reason to buy art 🖼️.

I have an idea that ours is the only apartment in the building that has not been completely renovated in a way that has changed the original interior layout. I wanted to work with that, it's a challenge, but doable.

Blink 182 Playing Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne

In between all of this mayhem, my best friend invited me to see Blink 182 at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne. Of course, I could not say no, as a night out with Lysa is guaranteed fun. Blink 182 were as solid as ever, and it was the perfect break from thinking about all the work ahead. With ears ringing, we headed back to Phillip Island for a well-earned rest. We felt like the oldest punk-lovin' ladies in the crowd.

After days of painting, using a single colour on both walls and ceiling was a time saver and looked great. It appears to be two very subtly different colours, a glorious trick of the eye, and no cutting in. It makes the space feel larger and a little sophisticated. I highly recommend it.

There are also the roller blinds which need replacing. I thought that would be easy, nope! After taking one of the roller blinds to the store and asking to have six cut to the same size, they said, "No, we can't measure an actual blind; you will need to measure the whole window and then each section that you want the blinds for". I explained that all of the blinds were exactly the same size, but the answer was a firm no. I trot off with blind under my arm to tell hubby it could not be done that way. Double drat. The result is curtains from Spotlight. They had a totally different look, but they worked a treat. Blockouts for the bedroom and something sheer for the lounge to diffuse the light. They were up just in time to help with the hot Australian 38-degree days ahead, a painter's nightmare.

The apartment is coming together once #1 daughter's belongings arrive and I begin placing them. Plants bring the outdoors in and breathe life into the spaces. The apartment overlooks Como Park with its beautiful, big, old trees and a rare and priceless outlook in an inner city suburb. With all-day natural light and being on the top floor, the rooms feel like a viewing platform where you can, for a moment, forget you have the tiniest kitchen in the universe 🤣.

So, with almost everything done, it's off to the trendy cafes of Toorak Village. As they say, the worst apartment/house in the best street 👍🏻.

Overall, I'm delighted with how everything turned out, and I know it won't be my last project.

Flight from Paris to Melbourne

Now, back on a flight to Paris, with a 9hr15min layover in Abu Dhabi airport—oh the joy. Luckily, it is one of the most amazing airports. It is beautiful and so clean. You feel very safe there, and it is so easy to navigate.

Trying to find the positives in the next 40 hours. See you on the other side ;))