Pass me that mother of the year baton, guys. I don’t get to have it too often, but I totally deserve to hold it for a good minute or two. I won a cubbyhouse! I won it late last year through an Instagram competition held by a local Perth cubbyhouse company called Kidzshack. To enter, you had to describe how you would decorate your cubbyhouse if you won, and I

The post We Won a Cubbyhouse! appeared first on House Nerd.

Of all the bad things to come out of Facebook – the creepy harvesting of our online data, a rise in loneliness, infidelities kindled from long-lost acquaintances, the erosion of individual self-worth through unfavourable comparison, to name just a few – there are also a lot of good things. For example, I re-met my now-husband through Facebook… something I like to remind him of every so often, that lucky guy.

The post A House Decorated by Marketplace – and Tips for Thrifting appeared first on House Nerd.

If you are after one of the quickest, most affordable and also easiest ways to freshen up a bedroom or living space, I always think new cushions are a fail-proof way to go. Nothing brightens and lifts a space quite as easily! Add in a fresh new plant and you’ve treated your room or outdoor area to a speedy, mini facelift that will lift you up as you walk into

The post Make Your Home Beautiful with Bambury (and WIN a $500 Gift Voucher!) appeared first on House Nerd.

Well, that got your attention, didn’t it? Blame my shrunken, shriveled brain, but somehow I have totally neglected to share a big part of our home renovation here on the blog – our new patio and deck, which is about thirty times nicer than what what our once-daggy 70s house had there before. (Those before pics are coming up a little later in this post). I’ve shared our outdoor entertaining

The post My Husband’s Big Deck: Our Backyard Before & After appeared first on House Nerd.

Recently I tackled a DIY project at our place that had been on my to-do list for a LONG time – spray painting our old Colorbond sheds black. Woohoo! I know they are just sheds, but they look SO much better now that it legitimately thrills me. I had it in my head for months how much nicer they would look black, and they turned out even better, which is

The post Spray Painting Our Old Colorbond Sheds appeared first on House Nerd.

If you’re like most people, the very mention of the words “spring cleaning” makes you want to dive under the covers and hope for six more weeks of winter. Decluttering, doing a deep clean of your whole house, knocking off all those cobwebs to get your outdoor area ready for the warmer weather… we all know spring cleaning is a great idea, a fresh start to welcome the warmer weather

The post Spring Cleaning Tips with Max Kater – and WIN an Epic Murchison-Hume Prize Pack! appeared first on House Nerd.

I always admire it when people don’t merely just dream or talk about doing things, but they actually go out and give them a red-hot go. It makes sense that I frequently admire small business owners, professionals and creatives, and one of my favourite local businesses is also run by one of the nicest women. Julie Ramsay, the founder of Bedtonic, is not only a wonderfully generous person who has

The post Bedtonic – A Local Linen Business I Really Love appeared first on House Nerd.

Lately there’s a saying that’s been doing the rounds on social media – that to help maintain overall health and wellbeing, you need not just one, but precisely three hobbies. One to keep you fit, one that exercises your creativity, one to make you money. It’s a very neat and clever little idea, and I agree it sounds very sensible and that’s all well and good. But I want to

The post Why Hobbies Are Important (Especially for Parents) appeared first on House Nerd.

If you have ever admired a pretty succulent bowl but thought they looked too tricky to make one at home (or that you’d kill it anyway) I have good news! Succulent bowls are super-easy to put together; and even if you’re a total black thumb with plants, you can keep one alive and thriving, I promise. Now I’m no gardening expert and I’m sure there will be lots of right

The post How to Make An Amazing Succulent Bowl appeared first on House Nerd.

When I first heard of Cook and Clean WA four years ago, my first thought was, “What a good business idea!” I think Little Nerd was about six months old, and the reality of how hard juggling a baby and a job (with a husband on frequent work trips away) had most definitely sunken in by then. I shake my head in embarrassment when I think back to pregnant me

The post Cook and Clean Perth (and Win a Free House Clean!) appeared first on House Nerd.

This post was first published on my original blog format on November 17, 2014.  Today I’m going to share a very easy DIY project – one that I think is maybe my favourite DIY project ever. I feel like everyone should do this to their home, partly because it is so easy, but mostly because it was actually really fun and satisfying – and cheap! I wallpapered a couple of

The post How To Make DIY Wallpaper from An Old Book appeared first on House Nerd.

Don’t fall off your chair. Today I finally have a reveal for you! Our before and after of our Scyon Walls elevation makeover, where we overclad the exterior of our double brick 1970s house. Yep, it’s been a while. If this is your first time to my blog, welcome! Basically we decided to overclad our existing double brick and rendered (poorly rendered!) three bedroom 1978 house, which once upon a

The post Our Cladding Makeover Reveal appeared first on House Nerd.

Not everything about writing a blog is fun and roses. But one of the things I love most about blogging being a part of my life is that it gives me so many kicks up the butt – deadlines and incentives to finally get my act together and do something. I need these kicks up the butt, guys! Otherwise I would never make decisions and actually get things done. And

The post Our Budget Nursery Makeover: Miss Nerd’s Room appeared first on House Nerd.

I have a soft spot for Penshurst, the historic house I’m going to share with you today – which was actually one of my very first home tours – in fact I visited it before I’d even clicked ‘publish’ on my first blog post! (Original post here). When I was a teenager, after school my best friend and I used to walk down to the river, swim at Bicton Baths

The post Penshurst – A Sea Captain’s Mansion Saved from Ruin appeared first on House Nerd.

Bayswater is one of my favourite suburbs in Perth. If you don’t know it; think old farmhouses, sleepy streets, old trees, character houses with tons of potential, and little pockets of former farming land that make you feel like you could have stepped back in time. It has so much perfectly unpolished charm, and it often strikes me as one of the few areas left in Perth where you can

The post An Energy Efficient 1960s Renovation in Bayswater appeared first on House Nerd.

Rolling country views, a pony, dogs, a beautiful solar passive new build, a lovely family and two pet sheep who are convinced they are people – this wonderful home visit was one of my favourites and I’m so pleased to share it here today with these gorgeous photos by Heather. Nestled in the Perth hills in picturesque Stoneville, this family home is special – it is proof that building on

The post A Solar Passive ‘Shed-House’ in the Country appeared first on House Nerd.

Would you like Florence Broadhurst patterned blinds in your home? Or would you prefer to design your own pattern and have it printed and custom-made just for you? Whatever your fancy, you can have the most stylish windows going with one of the newer window treatment companies to make waves on the market, Blinds in Print. When I first came across Blinds in Print I fell in love with the

The post Florence Broadhurst Blinds for Your Home (and WIN!) appeared first on House Nerd.

If I was down to my last $20, I’d probably buy a coffee and a book… maybe a novel about a house. Me at bookstore *Spies book with pretty old mansion on cover* TAKE MY MONEY I am very partial to a story where an amazing house is almost a character. And I’m a total sucker for a book cover with a beautiful old sprawling manse, the more secretive-looking, the

The post 14 Great Books About Houses: My Reviews appeared first on House Nerd.

This beautiful home has just gone on the market with Nadija Begovich and Dan Broad of The Perth Property Co. Buying a house in beautiful Coolbinia was a dream come true for then newly-engaged couple Ash and Lisa Mitchell. Both Ash and Lisa had always loved character homes and when the chance came to buy this 1947 Federation Bungalow 14 years ago, they jumped on it. Since then, the house

The post A Timeless Federation Bungalow in Coolbinia appeared first on House Nerd.

“I just want lights on a dimmer,” I used to say to my husband every time the topic of new lights came up. I remember when I was growing up and my friend’s house had their lounge room lights on a dimmer and I thought mood lighting was just the most incredible fancy thing I’d ever seen. And since then I’ve thought of dimmable lights as one of those things

The post From Bugcatchers to Bluetooth LEDs: Our Lighting Makeover appeared first on House Nerd.

Le Fanu, Perth’s most expensive home renovation, is up for sale. If you could do with a luxury beach home and have a spare $17 million, this heritage-listed house could be yours! Some of you guys may remember the story I wrote a few years ago on this house. Right by the beach in Cottesloe with spectacular views, the 1893-built house later fell into ruin, catching the eye and imagination

The post Le Fanu, Perth’s Most Expensive Renovation, is Now For Sale appeared first on House Nerd.

The right lights can have a major effect on a room or an interior. In fact there are few things that can date a home more quickly than old, daggy lighting. Hello boob lights and oyster lights! No matter how curated and stylish your décor, or how modern your renovation, if you still have an ugly nipple light in the centre of your ceiling, the eye is naturally going to

The post How to Update Dated Lighting in an Older Home appeared first on House Nerd.

I originally published this post on the old format of House Nerd here. Iwanoff fans rejoice.  Iconic Paganin House has been saved! After this famous Iwanoff home in Floreat was gutted days before Christmas 2015 by a house fire, it has now been brought back to life by the careful work of its owners and a team of dedicated tradespeople. And Restoration Australia has followed its journey! (I have fond

The post Before the Fire: Paganin House by Iwan Iwanoff appeared first on House Nerd.