An obsession with books

It's cold outside, but I am warm and cozy in my home library! Though it still needs a lounge or library wing chair or armchair (I haven't decided yet), the library is basically done. Our treasured antique Turkish rug takes centre stage and the bookcases have lined one full wall. Books and treasured decorative finds and gifts from friends are also on display. Here's a sneek peek folks:

 From a slightly different perspective.

And some close-ups:

A few of the awards hubby and I have received for doing work in the community.

Some of my favourite Palestinian pottery in front of the AMARAH civilisation books.

I love this black and white silk painting given by my little brother Salam. The painting is from a market in Malaysia.

And the shelves showcasing the books for my PhD.

Mind you most of these books in the library are mine- hubby's are in his office at work, but in the next few months, he will have to bring them home while his office building is being refurbished. I wonder if there is enough room? Hmm. I guess I will have to share.

DIY weekends

Hi folks! Sorry for the absence- life has been hectic as usual. And we have been quite busy with the house. We so want to finish our flooring so that we can move on to other things, like the landscaping (our yard is simply concrete and dirt at the moment

So it has been 2 DIY weekends (we thought we could finish it all in one! hah- what a joke!). Hubby measured and cut the quads (which have been sitting in our lounge room and garage for over a month now), while our eldest son and I stained and glossed them. I haven't done anything like that before and I have to say I didn't do too bad. Hubby reckons they look really good. Mind you it's not hard work at all :). In fact, it is such easy work- just tedious and a bit time consuming though.

So this is what the quads (moldings etc) look like before:

Our equipment: The mitre-box and saw:

And the cans of stain and gloss:

Here is the finished product:

And our assembly line (i.e on our deck)

My best friend during this whole messy process: (Mr Humble Turps!)

And here are the quads in their glory- nailed in to the skirting boards, matching the bamboo flooring perfectly. 

What do you guys think? Now I want to re-stain a few other things in our house! Yes, that's right folks. I have the DIY bug now... Enjoy the rest of your Sunday.