BEFORE & AFTER: Kitchen Oven Installation

And finally, 5 months later we have a oven in our kitchen. Here are a few pictures showing the before during and after. The doors need to be redone at the top as we decided to also put the microwave oven in the same cupboard.

And to celebrate we had pizza (home made pizza) in the new oven!!!!

Yuuummmmmmm!!!!!

Just love the oven - it has:

• Almost THE best energy rating
• A quick preheat function
• Bright light
• 2 fans for convection baking
• Grill from the top function
• Conventional top and bottom element heating
• Or the option to use the either elements with the fans
• Digital nobs, timer and clock display

It is AWESOME. Also baked some muffins in it - they were soft and moist!!!!!

GARDEN UPDATE: Desert Roses

Took a few long stems of desert roses this morning and have planted the leafs. Each leaf will shoot roots and make a new plant. Will find a spot in the garden where I can plant them out when they are big enough.

REAL: New addition to the house

I almost wanted to make the heading new additon to the family. . . But wouldn't want to mis-lead anyone. But a family airlume it is.

Earlier in January 2013 I spotted this lovely cupboard in my mom-in-law's house and just fell inlove with it. I mentioned to my mom-in-law that if she ever wanted to get rid of it (it was awkwardly placed in a small room), I would be more than happy to have it, but ofcause I know she loves it, but throught I'll just say. Her response was, this old thing! Nobody wants it, you can have it with the greatest of pleasure!

So yesterday we picked it up, just-just fit it into my small 4 x 4.

Our first plan for it was to place it in the guest bathroom and to fill it with rolled up fresh towels, toilet paper and other amenities. The guest bathroom does not have any fanity space currently, excpet for a very sad half cracked glass shelf, a small glass shelf, placed just on the side above the toilet. The first time I used the toilet the shelf nearly didn't survive when I came up, so, we will have to take it down before a guest gets injured!

Our second plan for it (should it not fit into the bathroom) was to turn it into a shoe cabinet in our bedroom! :-) Ohhhh did I love that idea.

As the saying goes, RECYCLE - REUSE!!!

So, for now it is in the bathroom, just moved it in last night. I still have to clean it and rework it a bit, but here is a sneak preview.

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So, we moved the bird feeder and bird bath closer to the house. It now hangs in a tree really close to the lounge and bay window.

Our gardener had a little oops with our furr trees. We decided to make the best of the situation.

Also planted some pink and blue flowers in sequence below the other furr trees.

The pumpkin patch has gone crazzzzyyyyy

Wow, look at this!!!

Before, during, now and our first little pumpkin is showing off!!!!!

New tree - make believe banana tree

Planted right next to the forest entrance. I hope it will grow big and make lots of lush leafs!

New addition to the patio

This is our latest addition to our patio plants. I call this one "Klokkelaan". I think it's real name is Fucushia. Just beautiful!!!! This is the small version, there are bigger specie that grows into a large bush.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Spinach and Rocket

Just two more before and after photo's for now.

Below: Spinach - We have had some and there's still plenty for us to use over the next week or two. And if you are wondering, the sticks with the plastic bags tied to them is great for recycling/reusing BUT are really there to chase off unwanted mouse birds that eat my crops.

Below: Rocket - Our bearded dragon loves the Rocket so much!!! In the after photo below it has already made flowers and started producing seed. Will be taking them out and planting some petty pan pumpkins.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Granadilla

Our latest addition to the vegetable and herb portager is this beautiful granadilla plant and finally it has something to creep up against now.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Herbs - Chives

Our CHIVES have gone bushy!!!!

And they are so yum!!!! They have gone into quite a few home baked breads, stew dishes, our house warming party meals, brinjal dishes, etc. And there are still plenty left. So, I conclude, it is true - Herbs produce more and more as you use of them.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Artichoke

Before and after archichoke - they are still growing. It is the first time I am trying to grow tehse and I am not sure at which point we will see "fruit", but keeping an eye on them patiently.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Vegetable Portager Garden

Here's a few photos of the progress that we have made from the time of layout and up to a week ago.

Below: Portager resting spot

BEFORE AND AFTER: Forest entrance

Will load more photos of our small forest at some stage.

Below: Before and NOW of the forest entrance.  

                            September 2012                                              November 2012

BEFORE AND AFTER: Garden around the patio area

It is time for some updates on the garden. The garden all the way around is truly becoming so beautiful! The summer rain and weather is helping for sure. No more brown winter lawn!


Below: The garden planted on either side of the steps leading up to the patio. First photos taken 3 months ago as soon as we planted. Just look at it now!!!!!

This garden was specially planted for our bearded dragons, it is filled with their veggies, salads and herbs and a few flowers here and there. The white daisies will be blooming soon.

Below: Pineapple sage in a pot. I cut this one down every winter and let it come back to life in the summer. It can grow into a very large bush and makes beautiful red flowers that the humming birds love!

Below: A beautiful pink creeper rose - finally we have roses!!! 

Below: A plant we found at the back of the house when we moved it. It was just about dead , really just a stubble. My husband gave it water straight away and whala, 3 months later we have a beautiful addition to our patio plants.

Below: In addition to the lettuce down in the vegetable portager garden, we decided to plant some lettuce in a container on the patio.




 Below: We have 3 pots with strawberries in. Just adding photo's of the one showing from both sides. See the little creepers going down!!! We will leave it to kreep and see where it goes.

 Below: The garden outside the bay window with white and purple irises, lavendar and some other flowery bushes, not sure what they are called.

 

BEFORE and AFTER: Kitchen Scullery

Yeah, our kitchen scullery has been partially modified to fit our appliances and a new basin. Still need to replace the counter top all the way through. We will do that when we modify the remainder of the kitchen.

Below: Before and area of the basin close up:

Below: Before and area of the appliances now fitted.


Below: Just another view

We will need to think about replacing the floor as well at some point.

IDEA: Designer Pool?

Yeah, we finally found the coolest idea for the pool we want to buid!!!!

Tel me what you think of this. . .

GARDEN: Our portager location!!!!!!

Yeeeesssss, we selected a spot that receives the minimum hours of sunlight a day! It is close to a tap. It will not break the lovely lawn. And it will become a focal point to the main garden.

Below: The approximate layout. The red lined area "behind" the small trees will be fore shade loving veg and will not be very visable unless entered into. We may add a small arch inbetween the trees to lead to the small back strip.

Below: Just a close up of the area. Compost bags ready and waiting. White string has been strung to indicate the area! And now the hard work starts!!!!!

As you can see from the photos, the lawn and garden in general is recovering nicely from the winter! Now is the perfect time to plant a vegetable garden. If we delay any longer it will be too hot and the small plants and seelings may not make it.

Do you like the spot?

IDEAS: Veg Garden

Here are a few more portager / veg garden ideas I liked:

Below: This is an excellent idea for someone that lives in a townhouse and have only a small garden or even just a wall is really all you need. You don't even need to spend money on containers, focus on living green and re-use old coffee tins, etc. Just make sure you make little holes in the bottom!

Below: Another portager connecting onto a garden shed and planting/potting surfaces. This portager has been built up with little walls into various terraces! This is a great idea.

Below: Another portager connecting onto a wooden deck with some interesting metal art in the background. This is the type of space that will enspire an artist or work from home landscape designer!

Below: Another portager  with beds bing in-line and very square, but following through with the patterns in the beds itself!

GARDEN: What is a PORTAGER

So, the idea is to have a Portager or as we may say in SA; a veggie patch. But we will be breaking some of the rules and keeping the ones we like.

And you ask me, what is a portager?

Below: A classic traditional example! But as you can imagine a little out of my reach ;-)

Definition and discription:

The traditional kitchen garden, also known as a potager (in French, jardin potager) or in Scotland a kailyard, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden – the ornamental plants and lawn areas. Most vegetable gardens are still miniature versions of old family farm plots, but the kitchen garden is different not only in its history, but also its design.

The kitchen garden may serve as the central feature of an ornamental, all-season landscape, or it may be little more than a humble vegetable plot. It is a source of herbs, vegetables, and fruits, but it is often also a structured garden space with a design based on repetitive geometric patterns.

The kitchen garden has year-round visual appeal and can incorporate permanent perennials or woody shrub plantings around (or among) the annuals.

Below: A good geometric patterned example of a portager, with a lovely entrance arch and picket fencing all around!

Below: Still very formal with paving, focal points and beautifully landscaped

Below: This portager seems less formal, but in fact, it is not at all. Here they have made due with the available space, added wooden fencing. The climate and feeding must be excellent if you look at the plants. And I just love the little garden shed with french furniture, the perfect place for an afternoon cuppa tea with some mint in!

VEGETABLE GARDEN: Think before you dig!

Vegetable and herb gardens need around 6 hours

of sunlight a day! The more the better.

So for the first couple of weeks in the new house I have been eyeing out all the spots that could possibly work for a veggie patch or a portager.  My idea is to combine the two.

It can not be close to the Kitchen, as the kitchen is on the South side of the house. I also do not want to "break" the large lush larn we inherited. Our property has a mini-forest on the one side -

no sunshine there, well not nearly enough for a veg garden. There is a + - 2 m strip of

garden on the other side of the driveway which I thought would be perfect and then I realised

the neighbours on that side also had a urban forest going with large, large, large trees - the results, too much shade there too.

So after much discussion and ummming and aahhhing we have finally earmarked a spot!!!!

Details will follow.