my little urban jungle

as you can see, my little garden plot has grown into a mini jungle and since these photos were taken, it's kind of gotten out of hand. all the stems are growing over each other and despite the bamboo stakes they are toppling over.

last year, my little garden was a bit sad with very few tomatoes harvested. so this year, with the help of a lot of organic compost, the 4 tomato plants became large bushes with lots of tomatoes growing.

the basil is doing really well too and is probably 4 feet tall now.

lessons learned for next year:

• leave waaaaay more space between the plants so that they don't end up growing on top of each other
• get thicker stakes
• trim the sucks

house project update - kitchen part III

i keep on forgetting to post these photos. aside from a backsplash our kitchen has been completed for several months now and our hardwood floors are down as well. to think that just a year ago our kitchen looked like this and this.

this past weekend andre and i went to factory tile depot to pick out tiles for the bathroom. it is dry walled and painted!

our renovations are moving much faster than anticipated but there is still lots to do.... we're right on track to having a reno free house in 2012.

our crab apple tree

what used to be a wretched and evil looking crab apple tree, with branches growing in all directions and suckers sprouting from the base and all over the trunk, quite literally blossomed into a showy spring tree! for the past 2 weeks it has been, hands down, the prettiest tree on our street.

most of the blossoms fell off earlier this week with the wind storms, but andre's trimming work has paid off and our crab apple tree that looked like something from a tim burton movie now has a beautiful silhouette. the blossoms were SO fragrant too.

kitchen - part II - sneak peek

a quick kitchen update!! andre has been working tirelessly and getting sick because of this house project, but our kitchen is almost done! this is how it used to look like.

we installed our ikea cabinets and the counter people came and installed quartz countertops - which means we have a working kitchen! i can't help but daydream that i'm giada or anna with my own tv show when i'm preparing even the quickest of meals in this new kitchen.

the trim went up this weekend and now we just have to install the last remaining cabinet doors, cover up the nail holes in the trim and we are almost there.

what's remaining:
• finding a pendant lamp for above the sink
• buying the backsplash tiles and putting them up

basement bathroom sneak peek

the silicone is curing, but the walls have been primed and painted and tiles have been grouted. i always take care of finishing the dry wall (sanding/mudding/priming/painting)and andre, well he takes care of everything else.

this room is now officially the nicest room in the house. full photos to come after all the green tape is removed!

kitchen - part I - ideas and progress

the scary before! these cabinets were either super cheap or super old. the shelving was bare, unfinished plywood.



the previous residents tried to hide the plywood by decorating with these lovely gingham ribbons. country kitsch at it's best!



the wall between the kitchen and dining room was removed. this photo was taken after the plaster and wire mesh was removed. notice the old 'knob and tube' electrical remnants.



the ceiling is reinforced with thick beams and now we have an opening that lets natural light into the kitchen area.

after a lot of dry wall dust, banging, sawing and sanding we are finally at the point where we can install our cabinets.

so far we have:
- new floor tiles
- new low voltage pot lights
- all old cabinets removed
- tile glue removed (you can see some that remains in the last photo)
- skim coated walls where tile glue was
- new appliances delivered (had to take advantage of the sale!)

outstanding:
- priming and painting all walls and ceiling
- installing new cabinets
- hooking up appliances
- buying undermount sink and tap
- ordering countertop

partially because of the contemporary aesthetic and mostly because of the DYI aspect of cost savings we went with ikea's kitchen cabinets. yesterday, andre and i spent 3 hours at ikea: 1 hour waiting for the kitchen specialist to come help us order our cabinets; 1.5 hours ordering all our cabinet parts and another half hour, picking up some of the parts and then paying for our purchase.

while we waited i amused myself by holding an impromptu portrait party. after a while i was able to persuade andre to join in on the fun. as you can see, however, his attempts were half hearted at best.

on a walk with elmo

this walk seems like a memory from a long time ago now. this weekend we had the 2nd snow fall of this season, which was beautiful, but the windchill just made it too cold!! today we experienced -20 with the windchill. sometimes the gusts of wind were so cold that it would quite literally take our breath away.

in house project news, the basement looks fab with new laminate that andre installed last weekend. we picked up our tiles for the basement bathroom and main floor kitchen . and while andre demolished the kitchen floor tiles, i painted the wall and bits of the ceiling of the basement. photos coming soon!

pattern haven and an eco audit

our new house is a pattern sanctuary for old, retired patterns and textures. for now they co-exist peacefully and congregate in the kitchen area. their time on earth is numbered, but many of them have told me that they have lived long and fulfilling lives, so they aren't afraid of leaving.

today we had an eco audit done on our house by green tech, a non-profit energy/eco assessment company. after the report is filed by the auditor, we have 18 months to upgrade items in our house like appliances, toilets, windows and also to better insulate the house so that we can achieve a better score for energy efficiency.

the amazing thing about getting an eco audit done is that not only do get educated on the items that can be changed to save energy (thereby saving money on electricity and hydro bills), but we were walked through a tonne of rebates that the federal and ontario goverments are giving away on upgraded items.

for example, if you want to get a cheap low-flow toilet for $90, you can apply for a $100 rebate just for upgrading your toilet which ends up making the toilet free. you can then revel in the lower water bills after the toilet is installed.

with all these rebates, i'm surprised more home owners aren't taking advantage of this program! you don't need to be a tree hugger to want to save money, non?