Exotic Hanging Plant

My son gifted me with this hanging plant.  He calls it "pitcher plant".  He bought it from a street vendor on his way back home.  He told me that this hanging plant is a mosquito catcher.  Mosquitoes will be trapped inside the pitcher like flower and this will shake once a mosquito was already trapped inside. Quite exciting, isn't it?

This is going to be a great addition to my garden! :)

Dirty Kitchen Reorganization

After doing a little bit of "make over" to our kitchen and dining, we've done our best to have our dirty kitchen reorganized, as well.  Yes, you heard it right, tidying up our "dirty kitchen" (lol).

Well dirty kitchen used be name like that as this is the place where we do most of the dirty jobs at home. This is where I cook the more complicated dishes that requires a lot of cutting, shredding, mixing and pounding.  I just used our main kitchen for simple to do dishes like soups and for making snacks, salads or sandwiches.   In that case, I could save a lot of time cleaning and tidying up as I just need to concentrate on cleaning one space whenever I used our dirty kitchen for heavy cooking.

Our dirty kitchen is separated yet attached to the back of the house.  This is actually an extension of the house.  But since we've decided to create an additional room for my son which could be accessed via the dirty kitchen, we've decided that our dirty kitchen would be a neat one.  Sometimes my son would bring his friends to his room to work on a project, so I do not want them to feel like they're crossing on a jungle. :)

I have two sinks in the dirty kitchen so cleaning and washing the dishes is not really a problem as two persons could use both sinks at the same time.  It saves us a lot of time and speed up the job.  I'm basically a sink lover and you could find quite a lot in our home.  There is a sink everywhere! I don't have a hanging cabinet in the dirty kitchen before so we've decided to make one this time just to store the other kitchen stuff that can't be accommodated in our main kitchen.

I had my baking pantry organized, as well.  I requested hubby to transform one built in cabinet into open shelves with sliding glass doors so I could see my baking stuff in full view.

Yes, dirty kitchen is sometimes one of the most neglected part of the house but for me it should also be clean, neat and organized.

Kitchen And Dining Area Make Over

Even before hubby arrived home for his vacation, I am already requesting him to help me with a "little make over" in our kitchen and dining.  I want our kitchen cabinet repainted and I want to change our counter top tiles as some of the old tiles were already worn out.  Well, not really in bad condition but I just hate seeing things not in order (lol).  I just want the kitchen counter top look more spacious and kitchen stuff be in their right place.  Initially, my kitchen counter top was a bit messy as there are lots of kitchen stuff located on it. We've decided to bring out our dish cabinet in our dirty kitchen to give way to the new microwave oven which I've purchased before hubby arrived home. 

Hubby also changed the lights as a bonus and I just felt so grateful that he really collaborated with this "little project".  he loves to paint, that's a fact and that's a plus factor as we do not need to hire a painter and could save on our budget for the make over. :)

I used to place a curtain before on that cute window but since we've changed the lights in the kitchen, hubby and I both agreed that it would look better and simple without a curtain.

We have installed a floating shelf on top of the microwave for some cute jars where I placed some tea bags, sugar, coffee and creamer.  Since the shelf is quite big, we also placed there that cute decorative lamp which I bought from Bangkok during our recent visit there.

We've changed our curtains to match the color of the cabinets and installed a wall fan right in front of the dining table.

I know that our kitchen and dining is not really that elegant compared to other kitchen deigns I've seen online but thanks God, I am satisfied.  What is important for me is that it is simple, clean and organized.  I hate clutter and I love to organize, for me that's freeing myself from stress.  Sounds like a real home maker eh!

 So that's it!I might be doing some minor touch ups every now and then but what's important is that we were able to do a simple project for summer that's pleasant and worthwhile.

Until my next make over!

Finding the Right Shipping Container for Your Needs

Image by ceiling via Flickr

You might be looking for shipping containers for hire in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, or anywhere else in Australia. There are lots of different shipping containers that are available, so you will need to know what cargo you are looking to transport and how much of it you are transporting. Shipping containers are available in a variety of different sizes, with different lengths but with uniform width and height. The only exception to this is a high cube shipping container which is taller than a standard shipping container. Working out how the amount of cargo that you are carrying will allow you to choose the right sized shipping container to meet your requirements.

Shopping Around for a Shipping Container for Hire

Image by CAS via flickr

Try using a search engine to search for shipping containers for hire in your local area. You want to use a local company as this can save you money. The less distance to drop off the shipping container, the less the shipping container will cost. You will also find that a local company will probably be able to supply shipping containers on a shorter lead time, which can be handy when you have a sudden requirement. Try to get as many quotes as you can for a range of different shipping containers which are suitable for your needs. As well as comparing prices, you will also need to compare the quality of the shipping containers as they are not all made equal! A reputable company will fully service each and every shipping container before it is delivered to the client. This ensures that the shipping container is in good condition, with all of the seals and doors working as they should do.

Use the Expertise of the Company

If you are unfamiliar with hiring shipping containers, then you will need to do some research as well as utilise the companies’ advisors that you are talking to. By giving them your requirement of what you are shipping and where to, they will be able to advise you as to the best solution for your transportation requirements. Even if you have experience, it is good to still ask these questions as it will help to judge the knowledge and professionalism of the company you are speaking with. There are also lots of forums and websites where you can post questions and find answers for many questions related to shipping containers. Taking part in forums is also an excellent way to get people’s firsthand experience with companies that you are potentially looking to use to hire a shipping container from.

Check Your Contracts

A good way to save some money when hiring a shipping container is try to avoid hiring from a company that will make you sign a long-term contract. There are many companies that will want you to sign either a weekly or monthly contract. This means that if you pay for a month and only use it two days, you will pay for the rest of the month as well even though you are not using the shipping container for that duration. There are companies that will allow you to hire a shipping container on an on-going basis, which means that you will only pay for the shipping container for the amount of time that you actually use it. As soon as the container is collected, you stop paying for it.

Inspect your Shipping Container before Signing for It

When you have chosen the company you are using and arranged for the delivery of the shipping container before you accept the shipping container, make sure that you inspect it fully. Hopefully, the company that you use will have serviced it thoroughly before delivering it, but it is worthwhile to check it properly and make a note of any damage or faults. The last thing you want is for your cargo to get damaged in transit due to poor quality shipping containers. Once you are happy you just need to start loading your cargo on board and getting it ready to be shipped!

House Repairs And Improvements

I am totally relieved after we've done with all the repairs and improvements on the house that we're renting out. Our new tenant has already moved in on a brand new day of June.  It was one hectic month of May when we have introduced all the improvements in the house.  We were not lucky enough to get our previous tenant who did not only violate my rules as a landlord but who also abused in a way.  Imagine them keep on adding house occupants every now and then without asking for my permission or even just pay a respect by informing me of their intention?  It was two hits in a row that I wasn't lucky enough to get responsible and good tenants.  Now, I am crossing my fingers that our new tenant who has just moved in will be totally different from the first two.  The first two tenants did not take good care of the house. Our house was a total mess after they've left.  Because of this, I have to spend quite a lot on repairs.  It's not that easy now coz the cost of the materials is really high now as well as the labor cost.  Thanks God that we're done.  We have invested not only my husband's precious time as he was the one who oversees the whole thing and he also helped out in painting the house but also a large sum of money to pay for the materials and labor.

We're pleased with the outcome though.  Everything was restored and the house looked even better than before.  Now, we became more careful with our rules.  We've insisted for a contract to be signed, I have demanded for a 2 months deposit which I intend to use to cover up the expenses for damages in the house resulting from carelessness of the occupants and also to cover for the unsettled utility bills.  I had that bad experience from my first tenant wherein I've answered for all the unpaid utility bills amounting to more than 11K.  Not only that she left the house with unsettled obligations amounting to 3 months rental.

Now I've learned from my experience and vow not to suffer from the same thing again.

Here's some of the photos of the house after the repairs:

master bedroom with it's own terrace and toilet

photos of the living room

inside the Master's Bedroom

kids room

elevated water tank

We've bought a new water pump ( 1 hp) for the tenant to use as our house is on elevated lot and water supply from the city's main line can only be availed in the afternoon.  With the use of this water tank, they can be assured of a steady supply of water 24 hrs a day.

I hope everything now in the house is okay as we practically attended to every small details like changing some electrical fixtures, changing all the faucets and shower heads in the bath room, sockets, switches, etc. We've also managed to change the counter top tiles in the kitchen, vinyl flooring and even repainted interior and the exterior of the whole house including the fences and window grills.   Window screens were also changed including some pieces of broken glasses in the steel windows.

Now everything is back into shape and we're hoping that the new tenant will take care of our precious investment.