Wood Veneer Lampshade

I bought this white veneer stuff from the hardware shop. It's normally used for sticking onto wood, I think! Anyway, I bought a cheap lamp kit and then made loads of loops out of the veneer by cutting strips and gluing them together. I then glued the loops together round the lamp so that they made a pretty pattern! I made a couple of these and they are hanging in the hallway as you come in the door and in the landing upstairs.

Photos Wall

Well, it's over a year down the line but we have finally got frames for most of our wedding photos!
My brilliant and talented friend Oliver took all the photos and then developed them himself ... thanks Olli!
Am not very good at those gallery style walls as they always end up looking too try hard, so went for more of a symmetrical feel.

This is what the wall in the living room ended up like:

Branch Towel Rail

I collected some good sized branches from the forest next to our house, stripped the bark from them, cut them to size and chopped off all the sticky-outy bits with my circular saw. I then sanded, sanded, sanded and sanded some more until I had some super smooth branches!

Apparently Germans aren't so keen on DIY as I went to a couple of hardware shops and explained what a towel rail bracket was and even drew a picture but to no avail! So, when we were in England last week, I made a quick fly-by to B&Q and picked some up. Thank goodness for Blighty!
Anyway, I digress!
I then chose a chestnut brown wood stain and applied it using kitchen towel. I did 4 coats, letting it dry inbetween each coat. I then sealed it with a few coats of varnish so that no moisture can get it.
These little gems are now in the top bathroom!

I saw this idea on Pretty Handy Girl's blog - have a look and see what you think!

Storage Step

We have finally moved upstairs to our brilliant new bedroom! Every time I walk upstairs I smile. I love it so much!
Anyway, we have a section of the room that is a walk-in wardrobe and have got shelves that go right up to the ceiling. We wanted a sort of mini ladder to be able to reach up there ... et vòila ... the storage step was born!

I measured the height of a chair and built it according to those measurements. I designed the step using SketchUp and built it with spruce wood bought with a handy 19% VAT discount and then put it all together with pockethole screws.
I primed it, painted it white and turquoise and then sealed it with a varnish. I also added some rubber step covers so we don't slip!

Not sure what to put in the storage bit yet ... will have to get my thinking cap on!