In this blog, we discuss the reasons why you should pursue a career in accounting and the steps you need to take to become an experienced accountant.
Despite its abundance of opportunities, best aat accounting training can appear to be a challenging field to enter. How much time does it take to become an accountant? And when you become one, what advantages can you anticipate?
This blog looks at the reasons why you should think about becoming an accountant and the steps you need to take to get there.
Choose Your Path Before
beginning your search for a career in accounting, you should decide which level of education is best for you. There are many options, with ACCA and CIMA being two of the most well-known.
The ACCA is widely recognized. It is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing accounting degrees. If you think you might like to work in a variety of roles, the ACCA certification is a great option.
The ACCA qualification can help you get work in public or private accounting. Alternately, you could start your own accounting firm.
People who want to work as management accountants will do best with the CIMA certification. In particular, pursuing a CIMA certification might be your best option if you want to work for a company.
Know Your Exemptions
The ACCA and CIMA want to give you credit for your previous knowledge and abilities. By allowing you to skip portions of the exams, knowing if you are eligible for exemptions and which ones to look for will help you study more efficiently.
As a result, you will be able to begin your job search and obtain certification more quickly.
Exemptions from the ACCA : The ACCA may grant exemptions to nine Applied Knowledge and Applied Skills exams and Foundation level qualifications. Unfortunately, you will not be eligible for a work-related exemption.
Before claiming an exemption, you should carefully consider your eligibility. After all, the information you acquire through study can assist you in passing the more difficult tests that lie ahead of you.
It might be in your best interest to study for that portion of the test regardless of whether you qualify for an exemption or not.
CIMA Exemptions : You may be exempt from taking the CIMA exams if you have a degree or other qualifications. You can look through a database on their website to see if you qualify.
The majority of qualifications are based on your degree. However, if you are a member of ICMAP or possess another relevant qualification, you may also be eligible for an exemption.
Studying online can help you pass your professional accounting exams. Let’s collaborate to get you qualified quickly!
Select a Program
Prior to beginning your exam preparation, you will need to select a program. You will have a lot of choices, whether you want an online program or a traditional learning environment.
Think about how adaptable your learning needs to be. An online study program might be best for you if you need to study on your own time or have an unpredictable schedule. However, you can benefit from live discussions and social interactions if you are able to attend class on time.
Garden rooms, wooden conservatories, and orangeries; Each of these three distinct kinds of extensions has its own unique characteristics. We’ve made it easy with our expert guide because we know that knowing which one is right for your home can be difficult.
We are frequently asked to explain the distinction between an orangery and a conservatory. By creating a bright and airy interior and establishing a coherent connection between your house and your garden, a glazed extension instantly transforms the space you live in and brings the outside inside.
However, what distinguishes an orangery from a garden room and what distinguishes a conservatory from an orangery? How can you determine which is best for your house? Basically they can be in every way classed as ‘garden room augmentations’, yet they are at last characterized by the extents of coating, lumber, and workmanship materials utilized in the building plan.
Let’s go over the various kinds of extensions in greater detail: what exactly is a conservatory
During the 1980s, conservatories were a very common type of glazed extension. They are usually made of uPVC and rattan furniture, and their walls and roof are usually made of glass and set on a brick foundation. The idea of easily adding more space to their homes, which could be used as a bright, spacious formal lounge or dining room with close-up views of their gardens, was welcomed by homeowners.
A conservatory’s extensive space can be filled with as much natural light as possible because it is mostly made of glass. Unfortunately, traditional conservatories have developed a bad reputation for being cold in the winter and hot and stuffy in the summer.
Additionally, the uPVC had a propensity to age and turn yellow; not exactly an appealing appearance. Conservatories started to go out of style as people realized that their expensive investments could only be used for half the year when the weather was nice.
This is regrettable because a high-quality conservatory made of wood can be a beautiful addition to any home. Underfloor heating, solar control glazing, and roof vents that help to improve circulation, as well as solar control glazing that limits the amount of heat coming in from the sun, are all solutions to the common temperature issues.
What is an orangery or orangerie
Orangeries were a symbol of wealth and prestige among the elite in the 17th century. Traditionally, orangeries were used to shield imported citrus plants from the harsh British winters. With their elegant architectural lines and timeless style, the aristocracy thought these beautiful rooms gave their mansions a sense of splendor and opulence.
Since the conservatory has become less popular, more and more people are choosing modern garden rooms and orangeries with timber frames. A garden room or orangery extension is still the pinnacle of luxury and exudes an air of opulent elegance because it combines perfectly balanced design with flawless functionality.
No matter how many times you’ve moved, there are always challenges to overcome. With experience, it might become easier to manage, but there are many obstacles to overcome. Which plastic storage boxes storage unit to rent, which size moving truck to buy, how many cartons or containers to buy, and how to pack fragile items are just a few examples.
We will concentrate on one aspect: how to select the appropriate size of moving truck. The truck must be packed correctly to avoid damage and accidents. If you choose a truck that is either too big or too small, you could run into a lot of problems. It might put everything you packed inside in danger.
The right-sized truck will make your move easier on your budget and more accessible if you consider its proper functionality. A larger truck is more expensive to rent than a smaller one, so you should also think about your budget. Read on for all the information you need to choose the right size truck for your move.
Bedroom Count Technique
The bedroom count technique is one of the most common methods for determining the appropriate moving truck size. A chart that you can use to see how many bedrooms a moving truck can hold is provided by many moving and storage companies that offer moving services. It’s a fairly simple method!
When deciding where to start, these size estimation charts are helpful. Be that as it may, they are vague assessments, not altogether exact. Some bedrooms are larger and can hold the same amount of furniture and other items as two or three smaller bedrooms.
Additionally, there are a lot of rooms in homes that don’t fit into standard room sizes, such as studios, sitting rooms, work offices, storage rooms, mud closets, and studios. They might not be the right size for the chart, but you can get a general idea of how many people each room can hold. Using the bedroom count method, count the final number of bedrooms to easily select the appropriate moving truck size for your needs.
Determine the Truck’s Cubic Feet
Each moving truck is made to carry a certain number of items, which are typically measured in cubic feet. The dimensions of the vehicle’s interior range from the roof’s size to the total area of the floor. You can stack and distribute all of your boxes evenly, according to their weight and length, to make good use of it.
However, you might need the entire floor as opposed to the length from the floor of the truck to the ceiling, which might be more practical for you. One way or the other, except if you are moving and pressing specialists, you will require help to productively occupy the whole room. Therefore, if some items require more space than anticipated, selecting a truck that is slightly larger than your requirements is safer and preferable.
Keep in mind that this method is more accurate and reliable than the bedroom count method. Calculating the dimensions and placing the boxes in the truck in the right order might take more time. Nevertheless, it counts the total cubic space of everything you intend to store in the vehicle, which is more consistent.
Rather than measuring each item individually, pack all of your small and loose items in boxes and measure the size of the parcels. It won’t take much time and will provide a more accurate estimate of size. The total size will be approximately equivalent to the truck’s available space.
With stay-at-home requests lifted the country over, and before summer closes, families are making summer get-away arrangements. Prior to getting together the vehicle and going out to the lake or the forest, it’s brilliant to consider ways of making your home safer. There are a few straightforward and modest things that you can do now which can immeasurably work on your possibilities getting back home to find your home simply the manner in which you left it.
Activity Locksmith Sutton Coldfield has a few hints that can serve you over time, in any event, when you are not holiday.
Try not to report your get-away anticipates virtual entertainment. While your loved ones by and large aren’t a hotspot for concern, you don’t know companions of companions and other people who might approach your web-based entertainment posts. To be protected, save your get-away plans and excursion pictures for posting when you get back.
Secure your entryways and windows
Continuously take your home key off your key chain while valet leaving your vehicle, as an educated hoodlum can make a key to your home by just snapping a photo of your home key.1 Likewise ensure that you briefly eliminate that extra key you have concealed under the mat or a close by rock. On the off chance that you have sliding glass entryways, the most straightforward thing to do is to placed a stick or thick wood dowel in the base track of the sliding entryway. You can purchase slide-locking bars on the web.
You can likewise sustain the entryway by changing out the first entryway locking component with a business locking item that includes a couple of bolt locking framework that connects to the locking point of the entryway and has steel bolts that safe the way to the frame.2 Window stops, which keep windows from opening more than a few inches, are likewise smart. This is a somewhat reasonable item that can be seen as on the web.
Scene to safeguard your home
It is generally smart, regardless of the time, to ensure that shrubberies and trees don’t conceal your windows, entryways and other passageways to your home. Congested hedges can permit thieves a spot to stow away while getting to your home and discourage your neighbors from seeing a break-in. Certain individuals decide to establish prickly shrubberies under window passages as a hindrance. Scene lighting and movement actuated lighting are additionally wise ventures with regards to ruining would-be hoodlums. 3
Managing skin inflammation can appear to be a daunting struggle you won’t ever win. Certain individuals battle with skin inflammation breakouts more than others, yet the something normal among a great many people is they need to dispose of it anyway conceivable.
Over-the-counter treatments might be powerful for minor cases, yet those actually are never an assurance. A typical misguided judgment is you must have extreme skin break out scarring to fit the bill for an expert skin inflammation scar correction treatment.
That is basically not the situation, since laser hair removal in birmingham skin inflammation scar treatments can assist with even minor skin break out scars. Here are a portion of the circumstances where you ought to think about an expert treatment.
Forestall OR Change Skin break out SCARRING
Some skin inflammation is bound to make scars than others. With laser skin break out scar treatments, you can forestall skin break out scars from happening in any case by killing microorganisms around the impacted region, which could prompt more skin break out breakouts.
Yet, on the off chance that you’ve proactively experienced scarring of any seriousness, the most effective way to reexamine them is by looking for a treatment from a respectable clinical expert.
Skin inflammation is adequately troublesome to manage all alone, however when it prompts scarring, it’s not difficult to turn out to be much more reluctant. In the event that you want to conceal your skin or not associate however much you used to on the grounds that you’re humiliated in your own skin, then now is the ideal time to look for proficient laser skin break out scar treatments.
The treatments can be finished in less than 60 minutes, generally speaking, and results should be visible in just multi week. Nobody ought to must be hesitant in their skin, and an expert skin inflammation update treatment is your most ideal choice to guarantee you feel more sure with your skin.
While CONTROLLING Skin inflammation BREAKOUTS BECOME Incomprehensible
Skin inflammation breakouts can now and again happen at the absolute worst minutes. Once in a while an expert compound strip for skin inflammation could be a possibility for controlling these breakouts.
Contingent upon the guidance from your clinical expert, attempting a substance strip for skin break out could be the principal proficient treatment to attempt prior to going through laser treatments.
There are substance strips you can buy over-the-counter, yet not exclusively are these generally insufficient, they could be perilous on the off chance that not managed accurately by an expert with broad experience.
I had a few requests for planters like it at different price points so I rounded a few options up below (they weren’t as easy to find as I hoped they would be but maybe more will show up in the next few weeks. I can share more if I find them).
Planters like these are so fun to hold a collection of various spring flowers or plants, but also would be lovely in all seasons!
Some of the ones I’m sharing aren’t “real” planters but you could definitely use any basket to set potted plants in. I do that often, you just remove the plant for watering (in fact that’s what I am doing with the basket on my counter). A couple of the planters are stoneware (I have one of them!), which are also adorable!
If a basket you want to use is more shallow than the plant, I still think it might work if the plants were in attractive pots. You could also use moss to tuck them all in.
The secret to how full my planter looks like is to use plants with thick leaves so you can’t even see the pots. I have four small plants in mine and I set them on saucers just in case they drip a little.
This one above says it will be available May 18, 2025. Be on the lookout and I’ll try to share on my social media and newsletter if I see it in stock!
If you love my specific planter basket, this round one (above) is from the same brand and style—but smaller and a little bit less in price.
My mom got me this hobnail planter for my birthday and it fits perfectly in this little window by our front door. I just love it! Makes me happy every time I walk through the entry or down the stairs.
A couple of weeks ago, I ordered ten fabric samples for the recliner that I want to order for the reading corner in our bedroom, and those samples finally arrived a couple of days ago. And you know what? All ten are beautiful! But there were a couple I could rule out immediately, and then some others that were fairly easy to rule out for various reasons.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. First, let’s go back to the mockup I did of the bedroom so we can all be reminded of the end goal for this room. And once again, I’ll remind you that the wood bed frame in this mockup isn’t what I envision our bed frame looking like. I just needed a quick and easy copy-and-paste bed frame from that specific angle, and that’s the best I could find.
So yesterday, I laid out all of the selections I have so far for the room on my work table in the studio — the rug on the top left, the headboard fabric on the top right, the velvet drapery fabric on the bottom left, and the grasscloth wallpaper on the bottom right.
The other three fabrics are samples of accent fabric I may use for various things like pillows on the bed, although I may not use those exact fabrics. I haven’t made final decisions on accent fabrics yet, and I’d certainly want to add a teal to those colors to bring the teal onto the bed as well.
And here are those selections with the ten fabric samples that I ordered for the recliner. From left to right starting on the top row those are: celadon, platinum, spa, scuba, terracotta, peacock, blanc, mink, bloom, and coral.
I immediately ruled out the darkest and the lightest samples. The peacock is a really dark teal, but I think I have enough teal. The blanc, while beautiful, would disappear against white wainscoting. I’d also be afraid of having something so light in color that would show dirt and stains easily.
So right off, I was able to narrow it down to eight samples.
I went back to the Interior Define website to view all eight of those colors on the Jude recliner that I plan to purchase (affiliate link). Here they are in order as they’re shown above.
Again, I have to remember that the recliner will go against the creamy white wainscoting with the teal grasscloth on the top portion of the wall. So the color I choose will need to contrast nicely with the creamy white and not the teal. With that in mind, I ruled out several more. Spa is too light. Suba is too much teal. Terracotta is too dark for my taste. Mink is too blah. And bloom is too pink.
That left me with three — celadon, platinum, and coral.
You can let me know what you think, but of those three, there seems to be a clear winner to me.
The celadon is actually the color I was rooting for the whole time. I was really hoping the green would complement the other greens nicely, and I think it does.
So I think I have a winner, right?
UPDATE: Since I don’t have a mockup of the reading corner in our bedroom, I decided to copy and paste the recliner in the coral and celadon onto the mockup I have of the headboard wall. Of course, that’s not where the recliner will go, and the scale is completely off. But at least it gives an idea of how each one would look with the selections I’ve already made.
Here’s the celadon…
And here’s the coral…
The chair won’t actually be sitting on the rug, although it may touch the rug just a bit. And now, after seeing these, I’m torn. I like both of them equally, I think. I might actually be leaning slightly towards the coral. Ugh!
The A2D Daily update for today:
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
Sanya Richards-Ross, the Olympic gold medalist and former Real Housewives of Atlanta star, has joyfully announced that she and her husband, former NFL player Aaron Ross, are expecting their third child. The couple shared the exciting news on February 22, 2025, coinciding with Sanya’s 41st birthday and their 15th wedding anniversary.
In a heartfelt Instagram post, Sanya showcased her baby bump in a stunning gold ensemble, expressing her surprise and happiness: “40 + 1 😯🧘🏾♀️💙💌. I knew this birthday would be special, but this was A LOT more than I could have imagined.” She added, “I’m about to be a Mommi of THREEEEEE AHHHHHHH!!!!”
The news was met with an outpouring of love and congratulations from fans, friends, and fellow RHOA stars, who have followed Sanya’s journey both as an athlete and a reality TV personality.
This pregnancy marks another milestone for the couple, who welcomed their second child, a son, in December 2023. Their path to parenthood has been filled with both joy and challenges, as Sanya has previously opened up about experiencing a miscarriage before the birth of their second child. By sharing her journey, she has offered support and encouragement to other women facing similar difficulties.
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Sanya and Aaron, who have been married since 2010, continue to inspire with their unwavering love and dedication to their growing family. As they prepare to welcome their third child, the Ross family embraces this new chapter with gratitude and excitement.
Congratulations to Sanya, Aaron, and their expanding family!
In my quest this year to find a place for everything, I wanted to find some bigger planter pots so I can use them for greenery and flowers around the house. I sometimes buy plants and then they just sit around without a pot looking forlorn and forgotten. 🙁
I had some gift cards so I was pleased to find a really pretty set of blue and white planter pots that I hadn’t seen before on Amazon. They seemed seemed promising, so I ordered to take a look!
These three pots come in a set and are quite lovely! They are bigger than this other set I bought a few years ago so they are perfect for what I needed. These pots have drainage holes so I can plant directly into the pot (which I haven’t done yet).
One of the planter pots is surprisingly large, so I think it will be so fun to use it for spring bulbs on my rattan cart in the kitchen. For now I just set a colorful bouquet in it — it reminds me how much I love seeing pretty flowers in the kitchen! Soon spring will come.
Robert Charles Albon visited Wales in 2023 and posted this photo on Instagram: “Joe Donor in Wales… do you need help with a baby? Send a message”
A sperm donor who claims to have fathered more than 180 children has been used by a judge to warn of the dangers of unregulated sperm donation.
Robert Charles Albon, who calls himself Joe Donor, claims to have fathered children all over the world from China to Australia after advertising online.
But using him as a donor turned into a “horror story” for a couple after he took them to court as he wanted parental rights over their child.
Mr Albon declined to comment.
It is extremely rare for a parent in a family court case about children to be publicly identified but the family court judge said it was in the public interest in naming Mr Albon.
In his judgement, Jonathan Furness KC said he wanted to protect women from the possible consequences of unregulated sperm donorship and from using Mr Albon.
The baby in this case was conceived by syringe injection to a same-sex couple, although Mr Albon claimed to have had secret sex with the biological mother in the back of a car. That’s a claim rejected by the judge.
Cardiff Family Court heard that Mr Albon, who is in his 50s, was a “stranger” to the child and has only met them for 10 minutes when a few weeks old for a “one-off” photo.
Mr Albon applied to the court for parental responsibility, to be named on the birth certificate and changes to the child’s name.
Instagram | Robert Charles Albon
Robert Charles Albon claims on social media to have been present at some of the children’s births
Mr Albon wanted the child’s non-biological mother to be called “auntie” rather than mother, despite the fact she had acted as a parent from birth.
Both mothers said the stress from the legal proceedings – which took more than two years – had been cited as a factor in the break down of their relationship.
The court heard the biological mother suffered from anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts made worse by the case.
The judgement – made in 2023, but only just published – said Mr Albon claimed he wanted to “protect the welfare” of the child when he was actually “wholly self-centred”.
Judge Furness concluded: “They chose a sperm donor who advertised that he would leave it up to the mother as to whether there should be any contact.
“There was evidence from his own social media material that Albon has indicated that to be the position.”
The court found Mr Albon, who is originally from the United States but has been living in north-east England, started the family proceedings to support his immigration position to stay in the UK. That is something he denies.
“In reality he is a man who seeks to control,” added Judge Furness.
WATCH: BBC reporter Gemma Dunstan explains how sperm donation works – and whether it is legal
“Women and children appear to be almost a commodity to him as he sets about increasing the number of his children around the globe – China, USA, Argentina, Australia and UK to name just some of the countries where he has fathered children.”
The judge in this case found “no positive welfare benefit in changing the child’s name” and that direct contact between him and the child would not be in the child’s best interests.
Neither mother opposed “letterbox contact” so Mr Albon can send an annual card or email to be retained for when the child is of an age to understand who it is from.
Mr Albon advertises on social media accounts like Facebook and Instagram and donates through various methods including artificial insemination and more natural methods like sexual intercourse.
In an interview with The Sun last August, he said: “I’ve had about 180 live births and I’ve met about 60 of them.”
“I might never see a lot of them, this has to do with the child’s mothers relationship… it’s my preference to have some sort of relationship.”
The non-biological mother said Mr Albon’s insistence of having parental rights had been a “nightmare and a horror story”.
“She believes that the world needs to know of the risks associated with unregulated sperm donation,” said Judge Furness.
“The public and vulnerable women seeking to get pregnant should know that is the case and they risk a similar ‘horror story’.”
The judge said he wanted “to protect women from the potential consequences of unregulated sperm donorship, generally, but also from Joe Donor himself”.
“He is a man who intends to continue donating sperm and vulnerable women who are interested in such services should fully understand the risks of becoming involved with him,” he added.
Family Court proceedings, like those at Cardiff Family Court, are private although under a recent change in court rules, certain information can be reported.
The way he was giving sperm was unregulated as it was not through a licensed clinic, with no limits on the number of children, mandatory health checks or protection from legal rights as a parent.
Mr Albon has previously spoken about his motive for donating. He claimed he wanted to help create life and it was insulting when people said he only did it for sex. He said he did not make any money from it and was often lucky to break even on travel expenses.
Family Court proceedings are private although under a recent change in court rules in England and Wales, reporters can attend and report certain information.
Measures have been taken to ensure the child cannot be identified.
Unusually in this case, the guardian acting on behalf of the child made an application that this judgement should be published online and the father should be named.
It was argued that it is important that the public should be aware of the dangers of unofficial sperm donation. Both mothers agreed to publication.
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) said it was “always safer to have treatment with donor sperm” at clinics it licensed, “where there are laws and guidance to protect and support patients and donors”.
Clare Ettinghausen of the HFEA said licensed clinics were also expected to adhere to the “10 family limit”, restricting the number of families that can be created with a single donor.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this story, support and advice is available via the BBC Action Line.
Y’all, these last couple of days have been rough at the Linauer house, so I’ve gotten virtually nothing done on our bedroom suite. Sunday was Matt’s birthday. We were planning a fun day to celebrate Matt’s 51st birthday, but he had a horrible day. I mean, horrible. It was, by far, his worst day so far this year. (If you’re new around here, my husband has M.S., so he has good days and bad day, a some bad days are far worse than others.) It was one of those days where things started off great, but as the day went on, he got progressively weaker and weaker to the point that I feared he might end up in the hospital by the end of the day. Thankfully, that didn’t happen. But what that did mean is that I had to stick close by in case he needed anything.
But since it was his birthday, I had purchased a couple of treats for him. I didn’t buy a cake because I knew he wouldn’t eat much of it, and then I’d be obligated to eat the rest by myself. 😀 Because that’s what sugar addicts do. So instead, I bought him two of his favorite candies — peanut M&M’s (just a small, individual package that you get at the grocery store checkout) and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (and they only had the king size package with four cups in it). Since he doesn’t do well with lots of sugar, I was going to give him his choice between those two rather than giving him both to eat. And since he was getting a sweet treat, I also used that as an excuse to buy myself a sweet treat, so I bought a millionaire for myself. It just comes one to a package at HEB, so I thought I could handle that without losing control.
But I bought them early in the day when he was feeling pretty well. By the time dinner rolled around (I had made him homemade chili, which was his birthday request), he was feeling so awful and weak that he didn’t even want to eat chili, and he surely couldn’t eat anything with sugar in it. And I was feeling so stressed because of the horrible day that he was having, and the fear that we’d wind up at the hospital by day’s end.
So in my stress, and with that candy in the house that he wasn’t going to eat, I did what sugar addicts do. I sat at my desk and ATE ALL OF IT. I kid you not. I ate every last bit of that myself. A whole package of peanut M&M’s, a king size of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (four cups), and my millionaire. All in one sitting.
Y’all, I felt horrible. I mean, I felt physically terrible, and the effect was immediate. After going last year with eating virtually no sugar (that was my 2024 New Year’s resolution), and going this year with very little sugar, eating that much sugar in one sitting just about did me in. But I thought I could just go to bed and sleep off the negative effects and wake up to a bright new day yesterday morning.
Nope. The effects of that sugar were even worse yesterday morning. Do you remember when I had that sciatic nerve issue that put me out of commission for a week back in October 2023? It was back. I was in so much pain yesterday that just walking was difficult. Matt had a better day yesterday, but still not great. So all of that combined meant that I was pretty much out of commission for two days straight. It was such a stupid, short-sighted decision on my part to eat all of that sugar, and I paid the price. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes, right?
So instead of actually getting work done yesterday, I sat at my desk and did some mockups of our bedroom. 😀
I started with the mockup that I did way back. It’s funny to see how different my vision for our bedroom was back then.
And then I swapped everything out for the recent selections I’ve made.
Those aren’t the exact bedside tables I’ll be making, but the one I want to make didn’t have a front-facing picture that I could copy and paste into my mockup, so I used a similar one. And that bed frame is also not one that I’ll be using, but I just needed a bed to copy and paste in front of the headboard. But at least it gives the general overall feel of what I’m going for.
And then I started looking for table lamps that would go with the new selections. As I was scrolling through, they all seemed to look the same. Gourd lamps, modern lamps. Everything seemed to blur together. And then this one stopped me in my scroll. This was it! This was the one. It was perfect.
Of course it was. It’s $989! I swear to you that I don’t do it on purpose. I don’t intentionally seek out the expensive stuff. It just always seems to happen that the things I like the most are expensive and out of my price range. There’s no way I could justify spending almost $1000 each for two table lamps. But oh my goodness, it’s so pretty, and so perfect. Don’t think for a second that I’m not already planning how I could DIY such a lamp. I don’t think it would be difficult. Just look how perfect these are for our bedroom.
I also found this beautiful art glass lamp. This one was much more my price range at $129 each. While I love the art glass look, I don’t think this will work because (1) I want gold accents, and (2) I think the color will get lost against the dark teal of the walls and curtains. But I do love a unique art glass lamp.
As much as I like those, I do think they get lost, just as I suspected.
As far as price goes, these lamps are even better. These are $140 for a set of two! I do love that sea glass look, and there’s a lot of this light blue-green color in the headboard fabric and also in the rug.
I think these look really pretty, and they do stand out against the teal. But they do seem to get lost with the bold colors.
And finally, these pretty lamps also come as a set of two for $340.
I really like these, too. They can also hold their own against all of that teal, and they’re a bit bolder in style, so they don’t seem to get lost like the sea glass lamps.
But my favorite is the orange. I love that it seems to bring balance to the overall design, bringing that color from the rug and the accents in the headboard.
But there’s no way I’ll be spending $2000 on a couple of table lamps for our bedroom. So I’m going to have to find a way to get that look on a budget. Perhaps I can start with a trip to a thrift store and see if they have something similarly shaped that I can paint and transform.
Anyway, no more sugar for me. I have learned that lesson the hard way. Yesterday was painful and miserable. I fasted yesterday in an effort to purge all of that sugar from my system, and I woke up this morning feeling good. The pain in my hip is gone, and I’m ready for a productive day. I hope I’ll remember yesterday’s misery the next time I’m tempted to gorge myself on sugar.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
The US Open is moving its mixed doubles event a week before the tournament begins, hoping a revamped format and a $1 million prize will persuade top singles players to chase a Grand Slam doubles title.
This year’s event – live on Sky Sports – will feature 16 teams competing over two days in shorter matches.
Tournament organisers believe that can attract the sport’s biggest stars, many of whom have long passed on doubles to keep themselves fresh for singles.
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Watch Victoria Azarenka accidentally hit her overhead smash straight at her doubles partner Beatriz Haddad Maia!
The plan calls for mixed doubles to be contested on August 19-20, during the week when the qualifying rounds for men’s and women’s singles are being held with the main draw in singles beginning on August 24.
“What I would say is the reason behind this is to appeal to more fans and grow the fan base around the world,” said Lew Sherr, executive director and CEO of the US Tennis Association. “But the way to do that is to have the biggest names in the sport participating in doubles, and to showcase them teaming up and playing in a different format, we think is exciting. In fact, we know it’s exciting.”
The early round matches will be best-of-three sets played to just four games, with a deciding point played at deuce.
Tie-breakers would be at 4-4 – rather than 6-6 in a regular match – and a 10-point match tie-breaker would be played if the teams split sets, rather than a third set.
Only the final will closely resemble a Grand Slam match, a best-of-three sets played to six games with no-ad scoring, tie-breakers at 6-6 and a 10-point match tie-breaker.
Eight teams will earn direct entry by their combined singles rankings, with eight other teams given wild cards into the field.
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Coco Gauff started celebrating too early with doubles partner Jessica Pegula during their match at the US Open…
There is a fear the new event will squeeze out doubles specialists who count on Grand Slam paycheques and now lose access to one of them.
To compensate for that, Sherr said the prize money that was allocated to the 32-team mixed doubles tournament at last year’s US Open would be redirected toward men’s and women’s doubles.
“Yes, there’s some that will be disappointed that they won’t have the opportunity to compete in this event,” Sherr said.
“On the other side, we know that there’s a huge opportunity to create more interest globally in doubles and there may be a cascading effect here, that the mixed creates a bigger spotlight on the men’s and women’s doubles when we get into that portion of the tournament.
“We’ll have to see how that plays out, but we do know that our mixed competition historically has been competing with the men’s and women’s singles, and so the fields have suffered and the attention has suffered. This is a chance to give it a massive spotlight over two nights.”
Watch the ATP and WTA Tours, as well as the US Open in New York, live on Sky Sports in 2025 or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.
[unpaid/purchase/affiliate] As soon as I spotted this pair of jeans on GAP they were in my basket! I love a good pair of skinny jeans (yes, I know…but I can’t give them up completely) and occasionally slip into flare jeans but what I can’t wear, and never have been able to wear, is straights. They don’t suit my body shape at all and feel all wrong, leading to what I can only describe as full blown jeans-envy when I see someone effortlessly slip into a pair of straight Levis and look sensational. I’m 5ft3ins with a long back (which is another way of saying short legs) so I really like to square off my top half for balance, hence my love of boxy cut tops. The GAP Ultra Soft Wide Leg jeans are so nicely shaped that they reproportion, as much as any pair of trousers can, my body. I’m wearing some clompy sandals in the pictures but ideally, I want to wear them with trainers so I’m having an internal debate about whether to have just a tiny bit taken off the hem.
These were taken first thing in the morning so please forgive the nil effort face! I just love the way they hang.
I’ve just grabbed a couple of things from my floordrobe (pile cropped out but isn’t it annoying that even in full adulthood, you have to tidy your own bedroom) to show you different options but one that I think is worth considering is a white shirt and black jacket if you want to style up rather than down. A few long necklaces over the shirt, a pair of sunglasses, couple of bangles and you have a super stylish look.
Funny how I find a picture of the whole of me so mortifying but don’t even flinch when it’s just my face! If you’re a tall gal, I don’t think these will be of any use to you – anything over 5ft6ins will find them a bit short I think. And, annoyingly, these are listing as only XS and S left HERE. I am in a M which is a perfect fit for my size 12. However, there are a couple of very similar styles still fully in stock at the time of writing …
This pair, in GAP’s softest denim, has the same easy wear feel that exudes casual confidence. Actually, I really weighed up between the two because I love the drawstring on this pair. They’re £50 HERE.
And then, there are the Blue Mid Waisted Ultrasoft Baggy Jeans that have exactly the same vibe but a fly and zip instead of pull on. The inclusion of 40% Lyocell is what makes them drape softly and give gentle stretch. They’re £55 HERE. These are the closest in terms of fabric and drape to mine.
You know those “if you give a mouse a cookie” projects that lead to many more? Well this mudroom is the reason we renovated our main floor, added a new kitchen and then came back around and did a makeover in this room, too HA!
That makes us sound ridiculous, but I’m glad we did the renovation. LOL! Many cookies later, here we are. I’ll add links to the whole renovation at the end of this post, but today I want to talk specifically about the mudroom makeover project, why it all started here, what we did and (didn’t do) in this space and why.
While we definitely made some cosmetic changes, we also used what we had!
Believe it or not, our renovation project started TWO YEARS ago (my how time flies!). We just hung the light in this room a couple of months ago, so it all takes time. I have even more ideas for this space but we will save those for the future. We love how it is now.
Also I never know what to call this room. Mudroom? It’s also a pantry. The dog’s feeding station. A hallway. There’s got to be a more charming word than mudroom! Please help me find something more inspiring! I’m jealous of those who have butler’s pantries but I’m very grateful to have a mudroom :).
Disclaimer: I decided to include a few photos in this post that I had shown in our Christmas tour, too, but rest assured we don’t keep Christmas decor up all year. 🙂
Mudroom Makeover Projects
Removing the exterior door
This mudroom wall previously led to our backyard, but we had to close up the doorway to make room for the Tiny Cottage (which is now where my parents live!).
Here’s a couple of photos of how it looked like “before”.
I was a little sad to lose the door because of the natural light the window brought in, but it was a small sacrifice for the Tiny Cottage.
The need to remove that door is when and why our whole main floor renovation started.
Since we were losing the door to the backyard, we needed a new exterior door to be able to access the backyard.
And as long as we are adding a new door ….
Many cookies later, we have lovely French doors in a new kitchen that lead to the backyard.
Ha! It is true, we could’ve added new doors without a new kitchen and it would’ve been fabulous, too. I had a lot of ideas for that! But I thought it all through carefully and there really were many good reasons to renovate as we did (which I’ve shared in the past).
So here we are. I have no regrets.
Isn’t it wild though how projects can snowball?
Kitchen Details // The mudroom entrance is between the fridge and cabinets in the center of this photo
Mudroom Layout
While the door removal did in fact lead to the entire main floor renovation and then we returned to this room and made cosmetic changes to flow with the rest of the projects 🙂 we didn’t change the layout of this room at all. Just patched up the hole where the door was! 🙂
This little room is right off our kitchen. It leads to the garage and the Tiny Cottage as well as the whale powder room. It’s a little hub, almost a hallway!
I will admit that during our renovation I came up with many more ideas for how to “improve” this Tiny Mudroom by renovating the space more extensively. Ha! That’s what I do. I dream of ideas. It is fun for me to dream, plus “as long as you’re doing XYZ” it really does make sense to be sure you aren’t “missing an opportunity” to improve it “while the contractors are there anyway.”
But in the end I confirmed that the existing layout of the mudroom worked for us and is all we needed anyway! Phew.
This is why I suggest you always live in a space FIRST before you renovate. That way you know how your home functions.
The mudroom entrance is between the fridge and cabinets in the center of this photo
The mudroom is the only room on the main floor that you can tuck anything away in, so even though it’s tiny, I love the closet and open floor space here.
With that said, I didn’t want us to treat it as a storage room, even though sometimes it is handy as a temporary landing spot like Christmas decor or other stuff that is heading to the garage.
To avoid the whole room becoming a permanent clutter magnet, we made it all cute and each part of it is functional for every day life.
Give spaces clear purposes and make them cute. That is the secret — it works for us every time.
So now that you know how we got here 🙂 I’ll share the distinct purposes of this space and the cosmetic makeovers we did!
Flooring
We switched out flooring throughout the house during the renovation so we carried the same White Oak (engineered hardwood) right on into the mudroom and the pantry closet. This makes me happy –I love how clean it feels! In a small space, carrying the flooring all the way through can make a difference. But it sometimes it makes sense to switch only one space. If you can do so at a logical spot, you can even make it more charming like adding tile to meet up to wood.
Here’s when the mudroom flooring came out, before the door was removed!
Paint
Since we were painting the entire main floor, and we had to paint the wall and beadboard after it had been repaired, we decided it made sense to paint the whole room :). We did a reverse trim color so the wood is now all in a pretty shade of blue (Smoke Benjamin Moore) and the walls are the creamy white color of our kitchen (Classic Light Buff Sherwin Williams). I’m glad we did it this way. I loved how it was too, but it feels cheery and fun to walk in to this little space now and makes it feel special.
Pantry Closet
The pantry closet was already here and functional with solid shelving, so we left it as is — except for the paint! We’ll probably add some hooks, but the shelves are perfect for a pantry or whatever we decide to use it for in the future (I still have ideas ha!).
The Lazy Susans we had bought to help with organization in the previous kitchen before the renovation but they came in handy here! It’s nice to be able to spin them around so you can see everything and it makes it easier to keep it organized.
I’m considering some sort of baskets for the floor of the closet, but I do like having the option of the floor being clear so we have someplace to to stash all the random things we don’t have a spot for during a party or anytime. Plus it looks nice (if we would be able to keep it clear ha, that’s the question).
Use What You Have Dog Feeding Station
The main purpose of this room is it’s a place to feed the dogs. So basically it’s the dogs room. We even kept Finnegan’s crate in here when he first came to us (but now he’s upstairs).
You know those fancy dog feeding stations you see on Pinterest or Instagram with built in faucets?
We don’t have anything like that. 🙂
We used what we had (the built in bench) and made it work for us.
With a puppy and a “senior” dog they each have different food. We decided to use the existing mudroom bench (which we don’t need to sit on) as a convenient dog food station. There is storage under the bench top which we use for extra items we don’t need very often.
My husband feeds the dogs and prefers easy access to their food and bowls. So rather than put it all in the closet or kitchen, he wants it right here.
I suggest whenever possible, design spaces according to what works for the people who use it the most.
I try to show the practical ways we actually use our home, so this is how we made the most of what we had here (the existing storage bench) and made it into a system that works for our chief dog feeder.
Baskets
We decided to put the jars into these baskets because it gave a little extra storage to tuck in the dog bowls. Plus I didn’t want Finnegan to knock the jars down since the jars can be slippery and he was so curious about them!
Now the baskets keep everything together and in place and add a nice texture to the room, too.
Hooks
I’m a big fan of hooks. There were already hooks in this spot but we had these whale tail hooks that we brought from our last home so we just swapped them for hooks that are a little quirky but a fun nod to our coastal home. Plus they are a little connection to the whale wallpaper that was already here in the adjoining powder room.
These hooks are handy for so many things, but day to day we mostly use them to hang breadboards and baskets to hold the dog treats or any supplements for them, too.
It’s a convenient place to hang guest coats or tote bags, too, as needed.
Decorative Updates
Botanical artwork
We had the two large framed botanicals for years (originally from Ballard Designs, they don’t seem to have them anymore). I loved that they make a big statement here and add shades of green. They really make a fun statement and add more color and interest to this space.
The light fixture in the mudroom is new — it’s such a pretty shade of green (this light in rosemary mist color)! This was the last thing we added to the room. Changing light fixtures is something I like to do in almost every room when we move to a new home (over time) because it adds character and brings our own personality to the space.
Round Rug
I did get this darling new round rug (it is the same rug, but a different color than one my mom has in the Tiny Cottage…mine is Legacy Blue). It’s hard to find rugs that work in a small or different shaped room like this and really almost unnecessary, but round made the room feel cozy, brought the colors together, I can use it in the powder room, too.
Corkboard
We’ve had the big cork board for many years (I think I got it at HomeGoods) so at least for now, we use it here! It’s handy for organization. Using something we had gives us time to think about exactly what we want, too!
We’ve been making a few updates to our powder room, too. The whale paper will stay at least for awhile but we’re working on a few simple updates.
I’ll have more to share on that space soon.
So there you have it! The place and project that started it all. Like I said, we have no regrets. This is our “forever” home and we love it here. Plus it’s not a large home, so we want to make every space work well for us.
A place for everything and everything in its place!
That’s my phrase for the year and it’s been such an inspiration throughout our renovation over the past two years, too.
I have expensive taste. It never fails that if I have several items to choose from, with all of the prices hidden from sight, I’ll almost always choose the most expensive item. It happens over and over and over again. That’s one reason I started DIYing many years (okay…decades) ago. I decided that if I couldn’t afford the things I wanted, maybe I could make them for a fraction of the price.
And that’s where I’ve found myself in my search for the perfect chandelier to go above the island in my future walk-in closet. I know y’all are probably going to get sick of this closet (if you haven’t already) before I even get started on it. But I’ve never had a decent walk-in closet before, and I would be embarrassed to tell you how much time of each day I spend dreaming about and planning this closet. But as anxious and excited as I am to make this closet a reality, I won’t start on it until I have all of the details worked out, especially in regards to how the cabinets and drawers will be arranged. I’m almost have it, but I’m not quite there yet.
While I’m still working out those details, these fun, decorative touches, like mirrors, wallpaper, and lights, are fun to think about as well. I’ve already shown you the modified floor plan, but just in case you missed it, this will be the layout of the closet/laundry area.
And a couple of days ago, I showed you my final wallpaper selection, as well as the mirror I bought to go on the section that will be wallpapered. If you look at the floor plan above, the wallpaper and mirror will go in the middle section on the right side of the closet area, where I’ll have drawers up to about 34 inches, a countertop on top, and then an open area with the wallpaper and mirror. You can see more details of this wallpaper in this post, but here’s a look at both.
So with those selections made, I wanted to purchase a really pretty chandelier or pendant light to go above the center island. I really had no idea what I wanted, so I was pretty open-minded about it when I started my search. I started out looking for a simple but pretty chandelier. The first one I saved to my “walk-in closet chandelier options” file was this one from Wayfair (affiliate link).
It’s simple, pretty, transitional in style, and brass. It’s definitely my style for a general use kind of chandelier. But this closet is mostly going to be mine. This is an area where I can kind of have a little fun and do something not so “general use“, if you know what I mean. So I started looking for something geared a little more towards my very specific taste. I wanted something eye-catching, fun, and maybe floral-inspired (because, if you know me at all, you know I’d drench my whole house in flowers, birds, and trees, if left to my own devises).
This light has been around for many years, and I’ve loved it since the first time I saw it. But the one thing that has held me back from buying it (and I’ve considered it for many different uses over the years) is that I’m pretty IKEA used to sell this light or a similar version of it. And I don’t really want my closet to look like IKEA. I don’t have anything against IKEA. I just don’t want it to be an overtly IKEA closet. I do love that light, though. I’d love to find a use for it eventually, but just not front and center in my walk-in closet.
Sticking with that eye-catching floral theme, I also considered this beaded chandelier from Wayfair (affiliate link). It’s not exactly floral, but it reminds me of vines with berries. And it’s sparkly, which I love. And best of all, the price was really good at just under $140. Also, the beads are glass and not plastic. There are lots of photos uploaded by customers in their reviews, and it’s so pretty in all of them.
That light is like a Sputnik (which I love) covered in vines and berries (which I love). It’s the best of both worlds all in one light. I came very close to clicking that “Add To Cart” button on that one.
And then the last one I had saved in my “walk-in closet chandelier options” file was this chandelier from Wayfair.
Three things held me back from this one. First, I think the gold is a little too gold. Second, I think it’s too big for my walk-in closet. The island will only be 24 inches wide, and this light is almost 24 inches wide. I think it might be a bit much for that space. I want something eye-catching and unique but not overpowering. I think this one would be better suited above a dining table. And third, I HATE that kind of ceiling canopy. It’s just a personal preference, but I can’t stand the way those canopies look.
And then it happened. I found THE PERFECT light that not only suits my taste, but goes so well with the mirror and the wallpaper and the whole vision I have for that room. It’s perfect in every way…except for the price. This light from Wayfair is $2300 (affiliate link). I mean…of course it is. Because why wouldn’t the most perfect chandelier ever created to suit my taste be ridiculously out of my price range?
But once I laid eyes on the most perfect chandelier for my walk-in closet, nothing else would do. I’ve searched. I really did try to find something else that looks similar in my price range. Nothing of the sort exists. But now that I’ve seen this one, I know I won’t be satisfied with anything else.
So, does that mean I’ll be spending $2300 on a chandelier? Of course not. 😀 I think y’all know me better than that, and I think y’all know what this means. There is a DIY chandelier for my walk-in closet in my future. This is the vision. This is the goal. Now I just have to figure out how to get that look on a budget. I’m already devising a plan, and I won’t stop until I have something similar that fits my budget.
But I think I can make a flower chandelier in much less time. And I think it’ll be the perfect addition to this vision I have for this room.
Update: I should note that this won’t be the only light in the room. I’ll also be adding plenty of recessed lights and/or lighting on the cabinets.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
