PROPERTY OBSESSED
22 July 2018
I’m obsessed with BRICKS. I discovered that when you’re done with a project, you need something else to focus on. From what I’ve been obsessing over those last few years, my next venture has to be house hunting. I’m aggressively saving money towards a deposit on a house and my mind is firmly set on reaching that goal soon because I’m sick of talking about it. I was feeling a bit unmotivated earlier but I’ve now decided I need to get into action!
The bf and I know what we want. And what we want is a toilet that functions properly. Haha, no seriously, the house we live in is fine: cheap rent and we got to decorate it the way we wanted it. The main problem is that with renting a very old house, we can’t fix ourselves what doesn’t work anymore. Also, we find that there is not enough light shining through the main living areas: it’s making us a little depressed during wintertime…
So, we both want to move out and get our own place.
In fact, we have known that for a while. We just haven’t made it our priority. I feel like we’re very close though:
- we know that only since January this year !! (I’m sick typing this as I’ve just realized that we would never have gotten a loan before even if we had had enough cash saved!), we can easily get a loan with both of our jobs (we asked the banks!) and;
- we only need to save just a little bit more money.
Like I did with my job hunting related post, I have this feeling that if I’m more clear about my goals and write them down, I will be more focused and actually reach them. That’s what I’m hoping I’ll achieve now that this post is live. It’s like the whole wide world knows about my plans and I can’t screw up…
WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR
Pretty, isn’t it? Because THAT WAS IT. The house of our dreams. Unfortunately for us, it has now been sold.
It was almost perfect for us for all of these reasons:
THE RIGHT LOCATION
We are looking for a row house located right in the heart of our town. We need a place where we can just step outside to go and do our errands. Shops, cinema, banks, restaurants, … must be within reasonable walking/cycling distance from our doorstep. This narrows down our search quite a lot but we’re confident we’ll find it.
The house we will eventually buy has to be in a bad shape so we can do some work on it. We have crazy dreams of designing, knocking down walls, building extensions, sanding wooden floors… It also means the price should be quite low.
A WELL-LOCATED STAIRCASE
I know this might sound totally weird but a stylish staircase with a wooden banister are what we want. It has to be located on one side of the hallway when you come in so that there is no waste of any space nor light. Many row houses we look at online usually have this type of staircase going up to the first floor and up to the attic. The house we live in right now has the wrong type of staircase: dark, super steep and situated right in the middle of the house. It’s making the rooms’ layout totally awkward. Plus, it’s making the kitchen gloomy because of the walls blocking all the light coming from the windows. Also, it’s my ultimate dream to hang Christmas garlands on the handrail!
A LITTLE GARDEN
Oh my. We’ve debated this for a little while and decided we could not NOT have a little outdoor space for us and the cat to relax in. I’m really tired of staying indoors all the time and not have a little spot where I can sunbathe or have an alfresco dinner in. I want to plant flowers, have a little vegetable patch, maybe two or three chickens… Also, Gaston (our furry baby) needs some grass to get his teeth on!
A LOFT WE COULD CONVERT
Because we’re looking for a house we could renovate, the most idyllic thing would be that the house had a loft used as a storage attic. That way, we could redo all the insulation and install some huge roof windows. It’s my ultimate dream to install those long vertical windows in my future house. I don’t understand why people (at least here in Belgium), only buy the smallest ones in the range…
A WORKING FIREPLACE
Winters are very cold in our old rented house. Unfortunately, there are no working fireplaces in any of the main living rooms. We miss the smell of the burning wood and the cozy atmosphere a fire brings into a room as both our parents have fireplaces in their homes. It’s something we always said we needed in ours, either we would build a new one or have a functioning one already there. I also love the idea of having a mantel: you get to decorate it with stockings at Christmas time!
The major problem with the house we both loved is that the square footage was all wrong. The larger the house is, the higher the fees are. Even though the asking price was alright, we could not have bought it only because of the fees associated with the purchase.
Those are the major things we would love our future house to have: the right price, the right square footage (for us), a doer-upper with possibilities for a loft conversion or/and a room extension, a fireplace, a well-located staircase and most of all a pretty decent city garden. It’s not too much to ask for, isn’t it?
CURRENT PLAN
I made a plan to make it happen:
- aggressively save more money,
- visit some houses that could match our criteria,
- be more interested in renovation works and cost,
- find THE one,
- make an offer,
- move in!
Easy peasy.
Are you also house hunting? What do you look for in the properties you visit?
ESCAPING TO FINLAND
15 July 2018
This year, we escaped the harsh reality of life to go to Finland for our summer spring vacation. I’m sad it’s already behind us as we had a lovely time. We were very lucky to experience a heatwave while we were there. Locals told us that last year in May, there was still snow on the ground! Trees and flowers had just started blooming a couple of weeks before we arrived and the sea wasn’t too cold to dip in for a swim – if you had sauna first!
The bf and I really loved visiting the country. Even though we had a lot to think about – I just had been fired from my job – we still enjoyed the beautiful scenery Finland had to offer.
Here are all the reasons why I think you should also visit Finland this summer…
QUIET TIME
Before getting on the plane, we hadn’t prepared much in advance. We knew we were attending a wedding with our friends so they kindly booked an Airbnb for the 6 of us to stay. The spacious flat was located in a really beautiful area called Ullanlinna. There was a grocery store right around the corner and it took only 15-20 minutes to walk to the Esplanade, the lovely area that’s situated between the train station and the Market Square.
The best thing about the place we stayed at was its location. We were told we were staying in a great area and we understood why: it’s a street away from the sea! We enjoyed having a stroll along the water and ate quite a few ice creams from the Italian ice cream stand near the park. My favourite flavour was the mint chocolate chip one! It was exquisite!
Our place was also located near the Loÿly’s public sauna. It’s very luxurious and stylish, I really loved it. There are two saunas: a hot smoked one, and a basic one. Test both and you’ll see the difference for yourself – the hot smoke one was my favourite!
Helsinki is not packed with things to do but more like things to enjoy. Either it’s an ice cream by the sea or a hot chocolate at Fazer, there are many things to enjoy in the city. We had snacks at the Old Market Hall, walked from the Esplanade to the Market Square and looked at books in the lovely Academic Bookshop.
We visited both cathedrals, two special churches (a ‘silence’ church and another one built inside a big rock) and the National Museum as well as the Helsinki City Museum. I loved both of those two museums. If you’re not into museums and can’t really bother, I really recommend the latter as it’s free, it’s very interactive and fun – great for kids I guess – and it teaches you quite a few bits about the city history.
Also, I must say, the shopping is really good. All the famous scandi brands are represented, we enjoyed having a browse in the Academic bookshop with a frappucino in one hand and I loved walking past the beauty counters of Stockmann, the big department store. We even got two new moomin mugs for my collection!
AROUND HELSINKI
We visited Turku, Tampere, and Porvoo. All cities are less than two hours away from the capital. I don’t know if the weather played a huge part in this or not but I loooooooved those cities so much. Porvoo has the cutest wooden houses you have ever see. Turku felt very romantic. Tampere is called the Finnish Manchester because of the presence of many factories. There are universities located in Tampere and Turku which means there were many students when we visited: both cities felt very lively!
I loved Tampere’s industrial vibes. We visited an open-air museum that I thought was just amazing. I love visiting old houses and see how people used to live in the olden days so that the museum was just perfect for me. You can visit the interiors of former workers’ homes and having a nosey while they’re working at the factory nearby… You can read stories about fictional characters on the doors of each apartment you visit which tell you how the residents used their room – it was very interesting.
THE LAKES
Nothing is more revigorating than a little swim into the fresh water of a Finnish lake. If you get into the cold water especially after having a sauna, it’s one of the most incredible experiences!
We even grilled a few sausages on the barbecue and enjoyed the late sun-filled evening by reading a book on the jetty and taking a stroll in the surrounding woods.
Having a swim in the wilderness after the sauna was by far, the most magical moment we experienced. We were lucky to be invited by my friend’s family into their summer cottage and had many saunas with them. It was so so good. The lakes are probably what we loved most about Finland. The Lakes area (south-east of Finland) is just stunning and there are some lovely little towns, like Savonlinna, you can visit.
We felt very lucky to have visited Finland in the heatwave that May was in. The saunas by the lakes were our most favourite experience, we really felt reconnected with our bodies and enjoyed our time totally surrounded by the absolutely exquisite beauty the Finnish nature has to offer.
Have you ever visited Finland before? I would love to know what you got up to while you were there. I didn’t write about all the things that we did and saw so ask away if you need more info about something in particular.
FEELING A LITTLE STUCK
11 July 2018
I was driving home from Brussels this evening and I thought ‘what the heck? just write those thoughts down and press publish‘. It’s Monday evening and now, I’m home all by myself. The cat is curled up against my legs and I’m drinking tea from my favourite cup.
BLOGGING
If you read my last posts, you’ll know that I’m trying to blog more regularly and to do so, I planned a few posts in advance. I had a little brainstorm, came up with a few ideas and I started writing.
The post that was planned to go up last week was one about my trip to Finland. I started writing it three weeks ago but everything went wrong! I didn’t know what photos to pick, whether to go with a focus (‘5 reasons you should go to Finland‘) or not, then I didn’t like my editing… Well, I typed up some words and then deleted them all…
What a mess.
Anyway, I’m writing this instead. The truth is, I question myself sometimes. Ok, yes, a lot. Since leaving my job a couple of months ago, I found myself with a lot of free time and decided my hobbies should have a more important part in my life. I made a secret plan to grow my blog and Instagram by becoming more regular and more creative with my photography. I’ve decided to do my thing at my own pace and not care about what people think. I guess I don’t really practice what I preach…
I want everything to look as I imagined straightaway: perfect photos, beautiful words, amazing ideas and brilliant content… I want immediate results. But surprise!, thinking like this actually prevents me from doing anything at all. I end up not posting anything and it’s actually the opposite of what I actually wanted to happen! I’m neither posting anything nor taking any photo…
I’ve done it before: a few years ago, we moved into a house that needed a bit of decorating work. I really wanted to document everything on the blog in a creative manner but it didn’t go the way I wanted it and I became quickly disappointed. I ended up not posting much.
I’m determined to change that about me. I guess I need to be more organized and get on with it.
WORK
I feel very content now that I’m out of a job that was making me miserable. I’m just a little bit bored. I do some little freelance work right now to keep me a little bit busy but I obviously don’t work like I used to. I’m starting with my new boss in August. I’m kind of excited but in the meantime, I’m in a weird position. I’m not on holiday, so I don’t really relax properly, but I’m not working fulltime either. It’s bizarre. My days are really unstructured and it makes me think I lack a serious routine. I’m not complaining at all but I feel like I should change something… I don’t know what yet.
LIFE
Life is good. Really good. The bf and I have big ideas and great plans but I feel like we’re also stuck. We just don’t do anything. It’s like we’re waiting for something else outside of our little bubble to make all of our dreams come true. It’s not a good way of thinking.
Overall I feel a little demotivated. When I was job hunting, I was totally focused on one thing and I knew what to do in order to find a new position. Life is not supposed to be like that I guess, chasing one goal after another. I don’t know, maybe what I feel now is temporary. I’m not unhappy, neither sad nor depressed. I’m just meh.
How do you feel right now? What do you do when you’re stuck in a rut?
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