My bathroom renovation & the inspiration

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Have you been following along here and on Instagram with my bathroom renovation progress? The most talked about room of my house? We have hit some hurdles along the way, but are on the home stretch now! 

As I type, the tiler is busy cutting tiles and grouting the floor tiles. The plumber is scheduled to come and install the toilet today (hurrah after two weeks!!).

We had a few little setbacks that have pushed the timeframe way out. We thought we would be enjoying our new bathroom by now! Firstly, the tapware we chose was on backorder and there was none available in SEQLD. The bathroom was already gutted and at this point we were waiting for the plumber to install the new plumbing and fixtures so the tiler could commence. We lost two days waiting for the tapware to arrive. We attempted plan B, Hubby drove to several tapware suppliers one day when I was at work. I received endless photos of tapware on my phone that day, but none measured up, so I thought we would wait it out for our ordered ones to arrive. I am glad I did though, as they are stunning. No regrets there!

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....

Bedroom Inspiration - Rustic, White, Texture & Timber

We recently changed the layout of our bedroom, so now we have a view of the back garden. I love opening the blinds in the morning and watching the blue sky contrasted with bamboo swaying in the breeze. I want my bedroom to feel a sanctuary, somewhere I can relax and feel rested and calm. I have been looking for inspiration in my quest to achieve this bedroom feel. Here is what I found...

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The month of September through Instagram

September's Instagram for Glamour Coastal Living was all about spring: enjoying the blue skies and warmer days it bought. I love Instagram, simply for the fact that I enjoy sharing a snippet of my day and also taking inspiration from what I am seeing. There is some divine feeds on there that you could swoon over all day!

Here are my favourite September moments and what the month looked like through the eyes of Instagram...

The month of August

The month of August for me through the eyes of Instagram....

August flew past, I can't believe it is the first of Spring already!

Here is my snapshot of the month of August and my highlights...

♥ This month I dusted off the tools and found my DIY mojo once again. I tackled a few little projects around the house, plus we finally finished our kitchen renovation. Phewww...I can't wait to share it with you (stay tuned!). Did you see this post where we added some serious street appeal to the front of our house?

 ♥ The lovely Sally from Coastal Vintage was on Instagram, asking followers to share our coastal treasures, using the hashtag #allthingscoastalvintage

Sally featured on her Instagram page my side table that I recently painted and added some sisal rope handles to.  You can see the post here. It was so nice to be feautered and shared with the lovely Instagram community!

♥ I Indulged in lots of healthy, fresh food thanks to my neighbour's gorgeous vegetable garden and found my new favourite dessert recipe - this chunky pecan caramel fudge.

♥ Was lucky to tack on a few extra days to a work trip and had a camping getaway 

♥ Took a family holiday to the Pumicestone Passage and spent four days fishing and crabbing.

♥ Enjoyed writing Feature Friday posts and stepping inside someone else's home! If you missed it, I share Shelley Craft's home, Nina Proudman's Offspring apartment and a gorgeous country barn styled home.

I must admit though, I was counting down the last weeks of Winter. I am so looking forward to the warmer weather, being able to swim again and not having to wear so many layers of clothing (less washing I am thinking!!)

The Month of June

The month of June through the eyes of Instagram....

I woke to a three degrees morning today and I thought about June and the month I had. It was an unusually warm start to winter and I embraced being able to spend my mornings outdoors enjoying nature and enjoying the afternoon sun that hits my kitchen each afternoon, baking up a storm. 

Here is what I got up to in the month of June...

Happy Birthday Glamour Coastal Living!

Happy birthday to Glamour Coastal Living! 
A year has flown by and I am so happy to be here blogging!

I started Glamour Coastal Living a  year ago with this post.  I wasn't sure if I was going to be laughed at, if I was a crap writer, or would anyone be interested? But I posted it and Glamour Coastal Living started. Blogiversary was a word that I had not even heard of way back then, but today I am celebrating my first!

Dreaming of a Beach House

I have been dreaming of a little beach shack...

Somewhere by the sea.

I want to hear the sound of waves crashing as I fall asleep each night.

Somewhere to unwind and relax.

Somewhere where you park the car when you arrive and then spend your time barefoot, walking, exploring and enjoying the surrounds.

A palette of earthy tones, simple design, natural textures and lots of light.

I think I may have found my little dream beach house, or even two!

This beach house can be found in the seaside village of Urunga, on the NSW mid north coast. 

You can see more of it here.

A green grassy backyard, a short stroll to the beach and shops. 

Hinterland and waterfalls on your doorstep.
A relaxed beach house which you can even enjoy in winter, sitting around the wood fire.

House Rules - Maddi & Lloyd's amazing home transformation

I am a loyal Block fan and I have never watched the TV series House Rules. I did come across these amazing before and after photos of Townsville couple Maddi & Lloyds newly renovated home though and I had to share them. I am not saving the styling is fabulous, I am just impressed with the overall 'Wow' and improvement. Lucky Maddi & Lloyd I say!

You know how I love a good before and after picture, yep you may have seen some of my own (here, here and here) and I thought the transformation from the House Rules contestants was pretty damn impressive especially in only seven days.

Here are some of my favourite before and after photos of Maddi & Llyods Townsville home...

New Zealand: The style of home s + architecture

A few weeks ago I wrote about a holiday to New Zealand's south island I went on late last year where I spent 10 days roaming the countryside in a motor home enjoying the sights. I knew that the landscape and nature would be beautiful, but what I didn't expect would be the amazing architecture and beautiful homes we discovered. Driving into Wanaka in the Central Otago Lakes district I was pleased to be sitting in the passenger seat navigating our way, as I took us down many detours and residential streets to admire the beautiful homes. The homes were overlooking Wanaka lake with snowcapped mountains surrounding them, the homes built around the natural landscape and incorporating this into their design.

The Block 2014 & those pendant lights!

I am a massive fan of The Block. am a blockaholic and never miss a show and this season I am so excited to see the construction of the much anticipated loft apartments with Fans Vs Favs. I would love to be a contestant and put my renovation skills to the test, plus spending someone else's money to renovate - yes please!! But I am not, so instead I have been gushing over the last few episodes of The Block. I have been over analysing the new contestant's, their design and skills to anyone who will listen. 

I loved the first few episodes of the season, where the contestants tackled a 24 hour challenge to see who made it onto The Block as The Fans. For me, the clear winners were Kara & Kyal and Chantelle & Steve, I am so thrilled they both got through as the Fans for the season and I cannot wait to see their work. I loved how they incorporated lighting into their rooms and through about its overall effect. In particular Chantelle & Steve on Tuesday nights episode - how unreal did the graffiti wall look framed by the wall studs and LED lighting? The light fitting was also a winner in my eyes. It was so disappointing on the other hand that Pascale & Chris got their roof dimensions so wrong and ended up with such an average light fitting. If I had high ceilings in my home there would be spectacular light fittings and pendants from every ceiling. But my ceilings are the standard 2.4m and a pendant light is going to have me ducking each time I enter a room. So the pendant and spectacular light fitting absence in my home has led me to pin some amazing pieces on Pinterest...leaving me to only dream and lust over them. Here is some I have been gushing over....

I have a colour crush: Mint Green

I have a serious colour crush at the moment with Mint Green. It all started with a cute beaded bracelet I bought and now with Summer here and the stores filled with pastel colours I am seeing it more & more (and loving it!). Here are a few mint green pieces I have been eyeing off...You can check out more of my mint green finds on my Pinterest board!

1. Door
2. Origami Lamp Shade
3. Owls
4. Beach Bag
5. Beaded Necklace
6. Pillow

DO YOU HAVE A SUMMER CRUSH ON A PARTICULAR COLOUR AT THE MOMENT?

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A touch of coastal in my home this Christmas

I saw this picture on a recent blog post by A Beach Cottage and fell in love.

I am now on the hunt to find these shell balls to place on my Christmas tree. Last year the Christmas theme in my home was silver and gold which I loved, but this year I would love to incorporate some coastal glam to my decorating. I have been on pinterest looking for some inspiration and this is what I have found.

Home Office Inspiration

After reading Katrina Chamber's post about home office ideas here, I was inspired to look at my home office and see how I can improve its design and functionality! My husband and I run a construction business and have a home office. If it was up to him, the office would be masculine with dark with bold colours. However, as I am the one that runs the administration of the business and spends the most time in the office I want to make it feel a little more like 'me'. Here are some images that I have been pondering over - looking at smart organisation tips, space saving ways and overall design.... 

I hope to get busy over the next week and share with you my home office and ways to get organised!!

 Xx Ashlea

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This desk is heaven!

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Great storage shelving idea

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So girly and pretty!

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Oh I just love this organisation in this image....

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A chandelier...if only!

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Love the simple blue and grey theme

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Master Bedroom Inspiration

I love blue, white, yellow and grey colours together. I am thinking this is a great gender neutral theme for the master bedroom in my home and today have been searching for some inspiration. Here is a sneak of what I stumbled across...

Photo thanks to Apartment Therapy 

 Photo thanks to Sweet Home Bedroom 

 Photo thanks to My Home Look Book

Photo thanks to Crafty Kricket

Photo thanks to Project Nursery
Just swap the cot for a bed - love the colour scheme in this!!

I am excited to start the bedroom transformations. I can't wait to share them with you x