A hive of activity!

When I visited the house this morning it was a hive of activity.

The tilers were there doing the bathroom tiles and finishing the kitchen wall tiles. The floor tiles in the ensuite, bathroom, laundry, entry, kitchen, dining and living room are all complete (minus the grout).

The painter was back - doesn't look like he was there at all last week.

and...

The heating guys were installing our central heating.

There's still quite a bit to go...

• Finish tiling
• Finish painting
• Finish heating installation
• Brick clean
• downpipes
• shower screens and mirrors
• plumbing fit-off
• electrical fit-off
• robe doors and shelving
• door knobs
• garage door
• carpets
• driveway
• ceiling insulation
• house clean and site clean

I didn't get to meet with the SS when I was there this morning (mix up with appointment times) so I have no idea what the latest prediction for completion is. Given all that is left to do I tend to think that we are still at least 4 weeks from completion - I happy to be proven wrong on this though.

So now for the bit that you've been waiting for - pictures!!

Entry tiles - they're filthy from all the muddy workboots traipsing in...


Living room


Close up of the ensuite feature tile


Inside kitchen cupboards - just 'cause!


Kitchen floor


Kitchen tiling - we're not sure what's happening here... there's a section to the left of the window that's not done but we've checked the plans and it's certainly supposed to be done. I didn't really notice until I was looking through the photos so didn't ask the tilers about it (doh!)






Bathroom shower feature


Ensuite

Tiles are progressing!!

I managed to get a sneak peak at the tiling yesterday!! I stopped by on my way to work and was taking a photo through the fence when one of the tilers spotted me and asked if it was my house. When I told him it was he told me to go in and have a look. I didn't hesitate and went in and grabbed a few snapshots. They've started on the kitchen/living area but not the bathrooms.

Tiling didn't start today....

Tiling didn't star today... I don't know why... I just know that when I peered through the windows this evening, that the boxes of tiles were just as we'd seen them on friday - sitting there unopened on the dining room floor.

Maybe they'll start tomorrow?...

Painting continues...

We visited the house again on Friday for our latest update. There's not a lot to show since last time...

The painting has started and I'm pleased to report that I am happy with the colour. It is a bit on the 'cream' side (we really didn't want cream) but it's still a good colour and not too dark like I was concerned about. We've gone with a colour called 'Kid Skin' from Taubmans. I can't find a picture and it's really hard to describe. The ceilings and cornices are white and the skirtings, architraves and window frames are all Kid Skin.

I'm a bit concerned that the skirtings aren't the same colour as the walls (they are a gloss and the walls are a different type of paint) but the SS assures me that it's right because that's what's on his bit of paper... does anyone else find that strange? Just because the paper says the right colour doesn't mean that it's the right colour in the tin or even that it was mixed correctly? Anyway, we'll let them continue and see how it looks when the painting's done - perhaps it's just different because the walls have only had one coat.

Lounge room - with our laundry tub...


Wardrobe doors


The tiling is due to start on Monday so my next update (Monday week) should have something new to show.

Tiles sitting in the dining room ready to be layed (the feature tiles are in the pantry out of sight)


Given that the end is in sight, we went curtain shopping on Saturday. I had only intended to go looking and to show Bryan some of the ideas I'd had... We ended up buying curtains and/or fabric for all but 3 windows - a very impressive job.

We found some ready mades in the bargain bin to suit the 3 minor bedrooms. They'll need a slight alteration but I think that they'll look great. They're all the same pattern but in different colours. And such a great price - $130 for curtains for 3 rooms!!!!!



For the family room, dining room and kitchen (open plan room) we've bought fabric and I'm going to make roman blinds from it. No I've never made roman blinds before but how hard can it be?... I have a pattern!... I'm kidding, I haven't made them but I'm pretty confident in my abilities and think that they'll look fabulous too! This was also a great price - Spotlight have a deal at the moment where if you purchase all of a roll of fabric you get 30% off the price. We did that on two rolls (of the same fabric) and so save over $100!! We were planning on using this same fabric for the lounge, study and main bedroom but there wasn't enough which is OK by me because I'm still undecided about those rooms.

Fabric waiting to be transformed...


I'm still surprised that we were able to make a decision so quickly!

Painting commenced.

The painter started work on Wednesday. I could tell because when I stopped by on Wednesday evening after work the windows were all covered with plastic. The garage ceiling appeared to have been painted (kinda looked like it had been sprayed), and the front door had been started as well. I also spied a Technika box in the rubbish cage so the stovetop or rangehood might have been installed to - yes I check out the rubbish as a means of finding out what is happening on the inside.

I have another walkthru booked with the SS for next Friday so no more pictures till then. Hopefully by Friday the tiling will have started so I'll really get to see some progress. Our CSO says that the shower screens will go in after the tiling is done. Not sure when the carpets or driveway will be done but I'm guessing they'll both be right at the end. I might need to get started on some sorting and culling this weekend in readiness for moving... again... Looks like another garage sale will be on the cards too!!

Photos from the inside!!!!

Finally I have had a chance to walk in the house!

• The plaster is mostly finished - just a few cornices and architraves to finish off in the ensuite and kitchen.
• The kitchen cabinets and benchtops have been installed - the sink still needs to go in (and appliances too but that's not until after handover)
• The bathroom vanities are done and the bath and shower bases have been installed.

SS tells me that the painter is booked to start on Wednesday next week and the tiler should start about a week after that. All going well he says that the house should be finished in about 5 weeks from now!! (That would be great if it happens but I'm not holding my breath just in case something doesn't go right).

Anyway, as pormised... some internal photos...

The kitchen...






Bathroom...




Built in robe...


Laundry...


Garage...


Solar panel for hot water...

Tiles...

I've just realised that I didn't put up the photos of our tile selections so here goes....

We've chosen two different floor tiles - we'll use one for the living, dining, kitchen and entry... and the other is for the bathroom, laundry and ensuite. We originally wanted one tile throughout but couldn't find one that would go with the laminates and benchtops of both the bathrooms and kitchen. Hopefully it works like we have planned (you should only see one tile at a time).

This is the selection for living, dining, kitchen and entry...

The white glass squares are a feature tile for the kitchen and will be a line along the wall of the kitchen. The mushroom one beside it is the wall tile. The grout in the walls will be white to blend with the white glass tiles. The floor tile will have an off-white grout.

The laundry...

We've used the same mushroom wall tile (only needed for the small area behind the sink) and the same floor tile as the bathrooms.

The main bathroom...


The feature tile will run down the wall of the shower and down the side of the bath (I think..)

The ensuite...

The colours are the same as the main bathroom but with this feature tile instead - I really love this tile!!

When I spoke with the SS this morning he expects the tiler to start about a week from Wednesday (after the painter is finished).