As many of my readers know, the kittehs (aka the Feline Pet Panel) and I moved from a large duplex into a “much” smaller unit near the river over Christmas.
It was such a maddening experience for us, having to pack up over 14 years worth of clutter (throwing a LOT of it out) and downsizing everything along the way to ensure it would all fit into the new unit… sadly, I may have failed in that area… bringing far too much stuff over not quite recalling exactly how much smaller this unit was in comparison to our old home.
Word of advice for all those moving as well – do NOT move over the Christmas/New Years period! As if Christmas isn’t stressful enough, but to add moving (and the abhorrent expenses that are involved in moving over that time of the year) really was not the wisest of choices… but the location more than makes up for all that stress we encountered!
All three of us quickly reached the decision that the enclosed courtyard we have out back of the unit is our favourite area in the whole unit… it’s become our sanctuary… somewhere for us to relax, meditate, be one with nature (or just soak up the sunshine), it’s also a great little area to entertain in as well, with leafy surrounds providing a private backdrop.
As you can see, it’s a lil’ rundown (but honestly, I think that just gives it a more rustic feel)… thankfully there was a curbside clean up earlier this year, so a lot of stuff that was left behind at the unit, found it’s way being hauled to the curb in order to make a little more room.
I’ve slowly been shaping this area into a sanctuary for us all (with kitteh supervision naturally – to make sure I don’t get anything wrong!), but realise that I actually have the opportunity here to start replacing my furniture and decor items, and get a little creative with my surroundings!
Enter… window shopping… I’ve been browsing various department stores online to collate vision boards of how I’d like this area to look – and as it’s a sanctuary for the kittehs as well, I wanted to ensure that there would be special places for them amongst this quaint little outdoor room we have here.
Above is a collection that I’ve put together for “my” area… I’ve realised that this area can at times get a little ‘too’ much sun… so some type of shade is a must (totally love this movable and adjustable umbrella – it will cover a wide range of space, so when entertaining I won’t have to worry about there being too much sun for my guests – especially in the mornings!) I totally love these cushions too – the garden prints fit in well with my growing my own produce, and the others offer a hint of colour (and comfort) whether on the lounge or at the table.
I’ve also quickly learnt that candles on their own here do not work… I had a gorgeous array of pillars sitting very pretty like on a decorative plate on the table, only to find out the next day that the sun had melted them all into one… unintentionally creating an art piece in itself – but now I have my eyes set on a variety of hurricane candle holders in various designs – the idea is that they will help bring the colour of the various cushions and pot plants together, creating a more ambient and ‘put together’ feel. I also adore the cat planters above as well – I can see the cat grass and catnip for the kittehs in these planters.
The above collection is from KMart, Target, IKEA and West Elm.
Whilst on the KMart website, I noticed they have quite the collection for Pets – I have NO IDEA why I never knew this before, but it got me to start a collection up for a “cat pad” for the gurls – again, this area is just as special to them as it is to me, and I’ve noticed they’re a lot happier in general due to having that special area where they can just snooze in the sun, chase butterflies and whatever else it is that cats do.
I’ll be placing a couple of cat beds in strategic places around the courtyard, so the girls will have somewhere to retreat to when visitors come over (providing them with cover and a place to hide), I also absolutely love these containers for dry cat food – the one on the middle right is for treats and has a cat head shaped handle – how cute! I may not have to hide the “kitty litter” away with this super cute container to store it in! Scratch posts are also a must in this little nook – the kittehs love being able to scratch and stretch at the same time and giving them more places of their own to do this may *hopefully* result in them no longer scratching up MY furniture (one can wish right?! lol)
Stay tuned to this space as I’ll continue to upload photos of the progress of this special area (and other areas within the unit as they’re transformed). If you have any ideas or preferred places to shop for your decorative pieces, I’d love to hear them!
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