:: Autumn 'Spring' Clean - Week Three - Main Bedroom ::

So ladies (and gentlemen?), I bring you the Week Three edition of the Autumn 'Spring' Clean. While I was cleaning/sorting our bedroom I realised it looks a lot like student accommodation in there. We have our clothes on metal racks and shelves as our only wardrobe is an antique and modern coat hangers are too wide for it (so now the wardrobe houses our shoes).

When we first moved in we decided not to hang any photos/prints on the wall because we intended to paint. And here we are, a few years later and still no paint on the walls! As a result, we only have a few photos around the house on hooks that were already there (and we even removed a bunch of hooks!). The result? Some very bare walls that are very noticeable in photos!

:: Main Bedroom - Before ::

We borrowed Mr LG's brother's amazing vacuum cleaner and did a huge anti-dust blitz on the room. Who knew under beds were so gross? We even vacuumed the dust/mites out of the mattress!

You can see a green patch - one of our potential colours (but not the winner).

:: Main Bedroom - After ::

See? Bare walls! Oh, and can I draw your attention to the dark teal colour the previous owners painted the top section of the walls and roof? We have ridiculously tall ceilings (12 foot), but when you walk into the main bedroom you feel like ducking a bit because it feels so small. I can't wait to bring some light back into this room one day!

Winter clothes are now washed and in my shelves/rack. I haven't quite given up all my Summer clothes, but it won't be long now!

The Hunger Games and an original Game Boy. Heck yes!

So, there you have it. That's my bedroom. Kind of boring, if I'm being honest. These before and after photos aren't as dramatic as I was hoping, but you wait. Oh, you just wait. Next week is my spare room, and that is a disaster zone.

:: The Autumn 'Spring' Clean - Week Two - Kitchen ::

Week Three of the Autumn 'Spring' Clean has come and gone, so I thought I should show you some before and after photos from week two - the kitchen. I admit, I took my kitchen before photos when there was some dishes to be washed and bench clutter, otherwise the before and after photos would be much like my bathroom ones - not much difference to be seen in photos (instead, the difference is something that can be felt).

:: Kitchen - Before ::

We are lucky to have quite a large kitchen (unlike our bathroom!). I'm not a big fan of the 90s cottagey feel, but it's a nice spacious room with high ceilings which I love.

:: Kitchen - After ::

Yay, less clutter!

We don't have a rangehood over our oven, so our kitchen gets greasy quite quickly. I scrubbed those cabinets to within an inch of their life, and as a result the kitchen feels so much cleaner now. Having less cluttered bench tops and cupboards, and no out-of-date food hiding in the back of the pantry is awesome - but it's the lack of grease is what I notice the most.

I have great plans for this kitchen in the future. I'm thinking lots of white and lots of natural lights, with a bit of antiquey vintage flair. Here's my kitchen inspiration board on Pinterest.

:: The Autumn 'Spring' Clean - Week One - Bathroom ::

Well, the Autumn 'Spring' Clean is off and running! Gracie and I have been hard at work for two weeks now. I don't know about you guys, but I love having a clean house. Most of the time my house is tidy and presentable, but it's not clean. You know, the kind of clean where you come home and it feels so nice to see sparkling floors and gleaming windows. We live in a really old house. It's almost 100 years old. And, as such, there are a few things that need a bit of tinkering - one of which is the bathroom.

It's no secret that I hate our bathroom. It's a small space with poor ventilation, the previous owners tiled it themselves and to save money they spaced the tiles a little too far apart (so we have lots of grout!), and they gave it a quick lick of an odd brown colour that doesn't cover the walls properly, and don't get me started on all the wood in a wet room! I tend to neglect our poor little bathroom because it causes me so much grief.

Bathroom - Before

As you can see in the photos, it's not the most attractive of bathrooms. I scrubbed it for over two hours. I scrubbed those tiles so hard that grout started falling off. And to my dismay, when I stood back and surveyed my work, there was no difference! But, I will admit that it feels nicer in there now that's it's been scrubbed to within an inch of it's life.

You can see the original white colour in the top left-hand corner of this photo. Oh how I wish they'd left it that colour!

Bathroom - After

(I promise I cleaned it!)

You can see faded bits of the wall where old cabinets were attached before we decided to take them down. They were made of wood and were warped from all the moisture in the room. We have great plans for this bathroom as soon as we get the money - I'm picturing lots of white and lots of light!

Do you have a dream bathroom? I've started a bathroom inspiration board on Pinterest to keep track of interesting, pretty, functional, and fabulous ideas I find.

:: The Autumn 'Spring' Clean ::

A few weeks ago I half-heartedly participated in A Beach Cottage's de-clutter mission. I did a pretty good job, but I wasn't completely dedicated because some rooms in my house are so messy that I didn't know where to start. You know how sometimes you just have so many things to do that you don't know where to start - so you don't do any of them? Yeah, that.

Gracie and I were speaking about our houses needing a good clean and we came up with the idea to follow on from A Beach Cottage's idea and host an Autumn 'Spring' Clean!

So, starting next weekend we will clean/de-clutter one room each weekend. If you spend a weekend focusing on just one room, it won't seem so daunting ... well, that's the plan anyway! Gracie and I will be posting before and after photos on our blogs, but also on Instagram and Twitter! So, if you choose to join us, use the hashtag #asclean so we can see your progress!

And now, just so you know I'm serious about messy rooms, check out my spare room. This room is supposed to be a second bedroom/craft room. Currently it is a dumping ground for things that don't have a home.

So, who's with us? Are you ready to give your house an Autumn/Spring clean?