I seem to be one of those people who find it truely difficult to sit still for very long. I always have to be doing something - working, planning, dreaming...... True to form, the last couple of months have been non-stop. Only now that I finally have a little bit of time off work with not much planned, I can sit down and write this.
There was barely chance to unpack after our wonderful holiday up the Cape before we were settling a house and undertaking major renovations....ourselves....again! Having already undertaken such ventures several times in the past, it would seem we are suckers for punishment. The 2 weeks we gave ourselves, turned into 4 and then some. Only now do we finally have a tenant moving in to (hopefully) look after the place.
I've always had a passion for old Queenslander houses. The unique features and design is one thing, but also being made entirely out of timber, there is just so much scope for re-designing these houses. The possibilities are endless. I get so much joy out of buying an old run down, ugly, unloved house, and turning it into a beautiful lovable home once again. And it doesn't take much - a good clean, a coat of paint. Even new bathrooms and kitchens can be done on a budget. One of the houses we've done, we found a 2nd hand kichen on Gumtree.com.au for $900 which was in great condition and included appliances. With a little tweaking we re-fitted it to our ktichen, had new benchtops made, and voila.. a new kitchen for under $2000. But the
Pièce de résistance would have to be uncovering beautiful timber floors hidden underneath newspaper/vinyl/carpet for generations - ripe for sanding and polishing.
If I didn't need to keep my current job, I'd seriously consider doing this for a living. To be in a position to pay someone to do the hard stuff, even better!
Here's some before and after pics from our latest venture. Its not a
classic Queenslander, but we think it has potential - the worst house in
a good street. In fact, this house used to be a RAAF duplex and was relocated in the 50's to its present site. There is evidence of where walls have been removed and whats left is a unique layout that we may one day redesign. And luckily the kitchen was already done!
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| she ain't pretty but has potential |
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| the back |
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| Lounge - as it was originally |
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| Lounge - removing vinyl tiles and masonite revealed timber floorboards ready for sanding and polishing | | | |
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| starting to sand the floors and apply filler |
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| Fully sanded but not yet varnished |
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| Main bedroom - original |
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| Main bedroom with new dividing wall for walk-in-wardrobe |
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| Main bedroom finished |
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| 2nd bedroom - original |
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| 2nd bedroom finished | | | | | |
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| 3rd bedroom finished |
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| 3rd bedroom - original |
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| bathroom - original |
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| bathroom - original |
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| bathroom - in progress |
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| bathroom finished |
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| bathroom finished |
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| Gumtree.com.au - Great for finds like this Blanco dishwasher, only a couple of years old, for $90 |
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| Kitchen - luckily all we had to do here was paint the walls and add new blinds. We also replaced the stove and added a dishwasher. The rest had already been done. |
