Plastered

We are officially alcoholics but that aside, we've had two plasterers in today and things are looking up again.

Here is the living room:
and here is the kitchen:
The workers are back. Here is Mum inspecting the bedroom:
This is the water tank above the 3rd bedroom that is/was falling through the ceiling:

Some nice pictures that have nothing to do with the house

see more of my pictures here

Rant (possibly a very boring post but will make me feel so much better)

It's all going wrong.

The plasterer and electrician turned up at the same time this morning to work on the same room. Not our fault, I must add. The plasterer needed to wait for the electrician to finish so announced that the work wouldn't be finished until after Christmas. Nightmare! This means that the kitchen units can't be fitted until after the plaster dries. Think we could be talking a month delay but we'll find out at the end of the week.

We've had trouble after trouble with the skip. I went round tonight to drop the bathroom mirror off (which has been cut the wrong size) and noticed that someone has dumped a radiator on the road next to our skip. What is all that about? It isn't even our radiator and the skip is overflowing so really it has nothing to do with us but I'm sure that the neighbors will not see it that way.

Tonight I'm having a few glasses of wine and have wrapped all the Christmas present so am feeling a lot better already.

Aah! Was just about to post this and the plumber called. We need to pay an additional £400+ to move the water tank that is falling through the ceiling in the bedroom.

Thanks for reading.

Soot and dust everywhere

The kitchen and 3rd bedroom ceilings have been taken down and soot and dust is everywhere. I can't believe that the workmen didn't close the doors to contain it in the two rooms they were working in. It is even in the rooms that had closed doors but only a thin layer. Thank God we did all of this at once and before moving in.

This is the underneath of the 3rd bedroom floor from the kitchen

This is the roof from the kitchen. There are about three or four old wasps nests and one of them is huge, about 30cm long and wide.

The kitchen with the opened up chimneybreast

The new bathroom covered in dust and soot

It scrubbed up well although probably not for long. Alan has cut the door to size and fitted it so it should keep most of the mess out, hopefully.
I think the damp proofing has been redone, as there was lots of drilling going on last week (according to our neighbour).

Alan is turning out to be quite a handyman. He has emptied the water tank that was pushing down on the beams in bedroom 3 so it should be fixed this week and a new ceiling put up.

The kitchen should also be re-plastered after a little more brickwork to the chimneybreast.

Just wanted to post one more picture. The bedroom fireplace is still not quite finished but nearly there.

Off to bed now. I'm not used to this hard work so I'm shattered.

I love it!

The bathroom is fantastic. I am so pleased that everything has fitted in perfectly and I can't wait to get in that bath. It still needs a few bits done to it and I didn't have my camera but will post pictures soon. It's getting so exciting!

More work was done on the kitchen today and the fireplace is also looking good.

We're getting somewhere

OK, so it is a strange person who gets excited over a kitchen that looks like this:

and a bathroom that doesn't even have a bath in like this:

...but it makes our plans seem realistic at last and we can really see it all coming together now things are moving ahead. The kitchen seems so much bigger and I'm very pleased with the bathroom tiles. However, I'm still slightly worrying about the bath fitting in.

The bedroom is almost finished too. We need to put up the curtain rail, make the curtains, touch up the paint round the fireplace and apply one more coat of paint on the door. The furniture is arriving 2nd week in January and we might move the bed in this weekend.

Mess, mess and more mess

We really are progressing with things but as you can see, it looks like we're going backwards.

Floorboards up for no reason at all and tiles ready for bathroom
Alan at what was the kitchen sink
Kitchen sink in hallway

The living room and bedroom floors have been done. They are much lighter than we thought they would be but have a really lovely finish. Photos to come.

The bathroom has had a bit of a delay for no reason but should be finished by the 15th, we hope.

The plasterer is coming back to do the living room walls next week as Alan finally managed to get all of that nightmare wallpaper off.

Sofa

How on earth are you supposed to fit a sofa into this house?

It has a lovely big living room and we've seen some fab sofas that would look great in it but I just can't imagine anything but the smallest of sofas fitting through the front door, hall way and into the living room.

Have finally got some work done

OK, OK, it's been ages since I've updated this but it's been difficult to get workers in so things have been quite slow. Most jobs are now booked if not underway so at last it seems like we're getting somewhere and we might just end up with a house that we can move into.

Electrician - Half of his jobs have been done and the rest of the work will be completed at the same time as the building work, which will include the spotlights in the kitchen and dining room, plus all the other kitchen electrics.

Plumbing - Being done this week and next. Bathroom has been removed and new one will be fitted by Wednesday (if it fits). Thermostats have been fitted on all radiators and the water pump is in. The major job was fitting a new stopcock. Although Thames Water came round and ensured us that the plumber could turn off the water on the road, the tap was broken and they said that they can't fix it for a couple of months. Luckily the plumber was able to freeze the mains pipe to stop the flow long enough to do the work. We'll get him back in January to finish the work on the new cloakroom and kitchen radiator if it isn't done next week.

Tiling - Being done this weekend.

Gas Meter - Being moved by Scotia Gas Networks between 7th - 12th December.

Plastering - Main bedroom done and living room being done in the next few weeks. No date set for the other rooms, as yet.

Building - Starts on 11th December and due to finish 22nd (we hope), with the plastering done on the kitchen on the 18th Dec. This will include knocking the utility wall down, raising the fireplace hole, redoing the DPC and re-plastering.

Kitchen - Being fitted from 4th - 20th Jan. Can't wait, as this is by far the most exciting (and expensive) room.

Flooring - The living room and main bedroom floors are being sanded and sealed on 4th December.

Fireplace - Still not ordered this yet as can't decide on the mantle piece. Probably won't be fitted until February, as it is such a busy time for them.

Here are some pictures to prove that we've actually got something done.

Electrics first (very boring):
I've painted a couple of radiators but totally forgot they were upside down:
A random photo up the kitchen fireplace:
This is what you get when you have the sockets sunk and your plaster is like sand:
Now this is when things got interesting (for me anyway), the main bedroom has been skimmed and we're in the process of painting it white (so close to having a room finished):
Alan is currently stripping the living room but this is no ordinary wall paper, it is heavily painted lining paper that refuses to come off in any ordinary way. Luckily we have found razor bladed wallpaper strippers, which just about do the job but needs arm muscles that I don't possess (although I had a go):
Now onto the bathroom, which is the perfect size for an airing cupboard and I'm convinced that the bath isn't going to fit but we'll find out next week:
Day off tomorrow to hit the shops and bars (if I can get the gloss paint out of my hair).

Dated Fireplace

I found out that the bedroom fireplace was registered on 30th April 1877 (Seventeen years before the house was built). It is great to find out information like this. I'm presuming the other fireplace is the same but as it has so much paint on it, I can't tell. This is the website that helped me decipher the registration mark - www.oxfordarchitectural.co.uk/dating.htm

Trades People

These are the trades people that we've seen so far and we're still waiting on these quotes:

• Builders x 2 (already received one that made me fall off my chair)
• Plasterer (he quoted as we went round room by room)
• Floor Specialist (got two quotes, one that we're really please about)
• Plumber x 1
• Electrician x 1
• Kitchen company (had four quotes all very high but think we've made a decision)
• Chimney Sweep (done)
• Fireplace Co (had quote but need to know a date when room is going to be decorated before we can book fitting)

The electrician is the person we need to get in and working so we can get sockets sunk. We’d then be able to get the plasterer in and decorate most of the rooms.

We have a problem with the damp in the kitchen (surprise!) and are waiting to hear back from the company that the DPC guarantee is with. Their surveyor has been round so step one is completed but if we need work doing it will really delay things.

Have now received all the bathroom and cloakroom fittings (minus a pedestal and towel rail) so once the electrician has fitted the bathroom fan and shaver socket we’re ready to get the plumber and tiler in.

Answers

Thought I'd answer some of my questions I posted a week or so ago.

1) Do we knock the kitchen/utility room wall down and loose the cloakroom, giving us a huge kitchen big enough for a table?
We plan to have the wall knocked down and we're definitely keeping the cloakroom, which is going to have rules about its use.

2) Do we sand the living room and main bedroom floor ourselves?
Had two quote and one was very reasonable (although we haven't received it in writing yet) so we plan to get someone in to do it.

3) Do we put up a dado rail in the living room and hall, stairs & landing?
Yes, will save us quite a bit of time and money.

4) Do we sink the plug sockets?
Thinking that we'll do this as the verbal quote that the electrician gave us seemed reasonable but we'll wait for the written quote.

5) Do I order the bath now?
I waited for the plumber to see it and all of the other bits and have ordered everything. Bath came today and the rest is coming on Thursday.

6) Do we replace the new hot water tank?
No, the plumber said that it was the recommended size for our house so we're happy about that.

The painting has begun!

Mum and Dad extended their stay by a few days so they can attend a family funeral (which was expected) on the way back home to Scotland. They will also be running away with my quinces that they've already bagged.

They've worked for them though and even today Mum was digging in the garden.
I should point out that I don't get the camera out in front of Dad as I get told to put it away and get on with the important work.

Yet another fluffy neighbour came to say hello.

Alan & I spent the last week trying as hard as possible to get trades people round to give us quotes. I knew it would be tough but I had not idea that it was going to be like this. Wednesday ended up being laughable as two people called up to postpone due the England match that started at 6pm. At least they were honest.

This week we've seen a wooden floor restorer who quoted to restore this and the main bedroom,

...a plumber and another kitchen company. We've also ordered the bath (like this), which I'm especially excited about. We must order the other bits tomorrow and next week I've got loads of people booked in but have no idea who is going to turn up.

The only job that we manged to get booked in to take place this week was the chimney being swept in the living room.
So we thought we were in a position to order the fireplace and fitting today. After a last minute change of style, we ended up just walking away with two quotes. Do we go for an arch style fireplace like this or a style like (you're going to have to use some imagination here as this has lots of options with tiles and finishes) this, which I think is more traditional? Must decide this week so we can get it all sorted.

Mum and Dad did another important job for us and removed a lot of the remaining carpets. This really helped in getting rid of a little bit more of that dog smell that won't seem to shift.

We almost got back to normality today and spent a few hours in town shopping and I didn't try on one item of clothing or any shoes (but did find time for a coffee). We visited two kitchen shops/departments and realised that the kitchen we are thinking about is the best quality and possibly priced well but still very much outside of our budget.

Without a doubt the most satisfying thing to happen so far is this (before and after),
It is almost finished, just needs a polish tomorrow and a little touch up. Doesn't it look great?

Update from the weekend

Lots of water and a radiator sums up one of the days. Apparently everyone has one of these experiences and I think I’m over it now. Thank God Dad was on the end of the phone. I didn’t think Alan’s finger was going to last much longer.

Apart from that there isn’t a lot to say as we've kind of hit a point where we need workmen in and lots of them. The list of jobs we have is endless and could easily cost way over what we have budgeted. I'm feeling that Christmas is going to be here in no time and I don't know whether we'll be able to move in before hand. Am guessing not but have my fingers crossed very tightly.

The workers (Mum and Dad) are leaving on Thursday so we'll have to get on with everything ourselves. At the moment we're trying to get quotes but the builder keeps letter us down (surprise!) and the kitchen is way more than we want to spend. The plumber is coming tomorrow, which I'm quite excited about and the chimney is being swept on Friday so we should be able to order the new fireplace and bathroom suite soon. Yay!

Sorry, I've not got any more pictures but will post some soon when there is something to take photos of.

This week's work

Quick update on the house before I head over there.

Someone slightly pleased with a new broom in the dining room. Note opened up fireplace. Not sure what to do with this yet.

Radiator has been removed in living room. Look at that lovely bay. Thinking that we'll have to have a dado rail in here as the top part of the room is ready to paint, we just need to work on the bottom part. The hall, stairs and landing are the same.

Tiles and wallpaper removed from bathroom. A plumber is (hopefully) coming round on Wednesday to give up a quote, after which we should be able to order the bath.

Cloakroom has been stripped (still not sure if we're keeping this room).

My favourite wallpaper being taken off. We've kept a bit as I'm thinking of framing some and putting it back up. Silly, I know but I've become rather attached to it.

After all of that messing about, we've found the best way to strip the fireplace - Alan and a drill. Hopefully we'll finish this today.

The fireplace in the living room has almost been opened up.