Discovering a heritage home on my weekend in the country

Well today marks my 100th blog post. It's a kinda happy moment, I mean 100 is a pretty good milestone right? So just wanted to say a big THANK YOU for following along my Glamour Coastal journey and being a part of the tribe! Last week I wrote a little 'about me' post for the new followers to see who is behind it all.

Last week was a busy one. I was working with the lovely Melissah from Coastal Style to bring you a beautiful beach house that I have decided is my dream home...white, timber, ocean views, high ceilings. Oh its a stunner, from all of your facebook posts I think you like it too! You can see what all the hype is about here. I worked on my Etsy store, which I launched today and then I packed up the car for a roadtrip. I love roadtrips, there is something about the sing-a-longs, the endless conversations and that wide open road...

We (Hubby, Coopar our four legged fur baby and I) drove six hours south west from the sunny Gold Coast, heading for the Thunderbolt region west of Armidale. I spent a weekend visiting my Father's farm and catching up. It is such a contrast to see open plains, endless rolling hills, paddocks full of cattle and sheep and to hear the kookaburras calling in the distance. The weather was hot, the air was dry and there were so many flies!!

One of the highlights of the weekend was exploring a homestead that my Father has been renovating on a neighbouring property (see renovating and DIY is in my genes!). This home stood in the middle of a 800 thousand acre property, surrounded by endless paddocks and cattle. As we drove up to it, you could see the cute white weatherboard shed, the old brick toilet and old machinery lying in the grass....

Then as we approached the house I was mesmerised. Here stood a solid brick home 'Eureka', built in 1903 and still solid and serving its purpose. I couldn't wait to get inside and pushed open the old rusty front gate, not even noticing the weeds knee height around my legs. I was taken immediately by the grape vine entangling itself over the house entrance, the welcome sign and the cedar door. (I only had with me my phone, so excuse the photo quality!)

Pushing open the front door, even though it was 30+ degrees outside, the house was cool. The ceilings were high and the hallways were at least three meters wide. I ran down the hallways like an excited child! Talking at a hundred miles per hour, there were words like 'look at the size of the bedrooms', 'ohhh pressed metal ceilings', 'fireplaces in each room'....I was a kid in a candy store.

Although the renovation was not finished, I was in love. It had endless bedrooms (six I think!), feature ceilings, a wrap around verandah, the old hills hoist in the backyard, french doors and panes of old glass in the windows. It was such a treat to see such history being restored lovingly and knowing that this will be someones new home. Someone who will appreciated the quirks of an old home and love it for its history and stories...

The other highlight of the weekend was bringing home my very own tree stump. You may remember me posting about making a DIY tree stump side table? Well ever since then I had been on the hunt for a nice stocky tree stump to feature either in my lounge room or master bedroom. So the chainsaw came out (thanks Dad!) and the tree stump was brought home. It is sitting in the sun to let it dry out, then it will be ready to be sanded and oiled. It is a beautiful piece of redgum and I cannot wait to get to work on it!

Coopar cannot resist the water! Here he is cooling off on a 30+ degree Saturday!

Nothing beats a sunset to end a weekend! It was so lovely to see a different perspective for a few days and a different way of life. Coming home yesterday I could smell the salt in the air and feel the humidity on my skin. All I wanted to do was run down the beach and feel the sand between my toes. One day I would love to own some land, but I think it would have to be close to the coast. For me, the coast will always be home.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you love the country or the coast? Where would your ideal place be to live?

Hope you all had a great weekend x