Weeks 10 and 11
The major focus was on ground floor works over these two weeks. Given that this overlapped with first floor finishing works, meant a little chaos and a lot more dust. We had essentially been without a ceiling downstairs for almost two weeks, and whilst initially creepy, I miss the 'ole rafters now that they are covered up. That said, all the new walls makes for a light and uplifting space, even though they have not been painted yet.
Our sparky was in first up for the ground floor fit out, and to be honest, it took a lot more thought than we originally imagined. Decisions about dual light switches, what switches would turn which lights on in different areas and where to locate them (especially when you lose some walls...), combined with external light points, and indoor and outdoor fans, not to mention task or background lighting!
Then came the messy work of gyprocking walls and ceilings downstairs. Fine powdered dust makes it sound almost harmless, but it literally took over the house and floor. In the end we just got used to having white feet from the residue from walking barefoot, despite endless attempts at vacuuming. Our air purifier worked over time, and I reckon is due for a filter change! When the cornices and plastering finished, things were looking up and the large space looked more and more complete.
Following that came the wood floors downstairs, and to be honest, she looked worse for wear. Luckily our chippie said the joins would be long, and relatively unnoticeable especially if we use large rugs which we had already planned to do. We are excited to see the floors when they are whole, sanded and restored back to its original glory. While he was at it, our chippie replaced the old skirting with a colonial style board to match upstairs. All up, downstairs feels so much more refreshed. I would have loved the upstairs and downstairs floors to match, but the thought of covering up the original floors downstairs with laminate seemed slightly sacrilegous!
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| Replaced cypress pine boards all in need of some love! |
Before he started, our chippie commented on how good it is to see people restoring homes in older (sometimes undesirable) areas instead of building new. He finished the conversation saying he wished more people understood that "it's not where you live, but how you live". Just like that, he summed up what we have been trying to explain to people who question why we choose to stay in our neighbourhood rather than build a new home in a new estate. My hat goes off to the philosophical tradie this week :-)
Finally the stairs were in the process of being finished. Beautifully crafted and well suited to the style of the original house, I am so happy we went with a traditional staircase.
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| Staircase from upstairs rumpus, I love the evening light in this room |
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| The curve in the staircase at the top and bottom is elegant and crying out for some art on the wall to highlight it's beauty |
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| View of staircase from hall entry - more walls for artwork and photos! |
Upstairs, work continued to finish the bathroom fit out, clean out the dust and remove the floor coverings in preparation for painting and floors etc. It has been fun seeing the traditional (me) and contemporary (hubby) fixture's come together, after slight hesitation to mix such different styles. As in life, in bathrooms, opposites seem to attract!
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| Oak double vanity with mixers |
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| Freestanding bath that is calling my name people! |
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| Traditional gooseneck shower head matched with modern tapware |
We are keen for the painting to start upstairs so we can get floors laid and then move the heck up there. While it's only been 10-11 weeks we have really felt the chaos these last couple of weeks. As much as I love the work our builders are doing, every time I see a tradie, my first thought is a dreaded "not you again."
It's a real love/hate relationship! On one hand, they are giving us the home of our dreams and we are so very grateful, and on the other, I would really prefer not to see another tradie in my life ever again.
It's a real love/hate relationship! On one hand, they are giving us the home of our dreams and we are so very grateful, and on the other, I would really prefer not to see another tradie in my life ever again.
The saying, "so close, yet so far" has never been more true!
images: Shelley Stephens for Little Elm House