The house is completely restumped and so work both internal and external commenced with a frenzy (as if we didn't have enough to do still). We have decided on a process of room shuffling to enable us to complete one empty room at a time. First on the list was the new lounge room which meant we had to move out of our bedroom. That meant moving everything out of the spare bedroom into the office, moving everything out of the office etc etc. The result being that we have one empty lounge room and an abundance of 'stuff' in a pile waiting to either go back into the new rooms as we complete them or eventually sorted through and gotten rid of.
After much debate, we eventually decided to go with timber french doors in the front of the house. This mostly came about after we came across an old set of silky oak french doors for sale on Gumtree. They were originally from the old Townsville hospital so also carry abit of history. They needed sanding and varnishing but have come up looking amazing.
Settling on grey, white and colourbond ironstone for the colour scheme, we are close to finishing painting the front of the house. French doors are fitted so just waiting on new timber louvres to go in either side then we can finish repairing the chamferboard and complete the painting. We are also fitting traditional style window awnings over the two front windows to disguise the ugly aluminium sliders a little bit. We decided to leave the existing windows for the time being due to the cost of replacing.
We also had to apply to relocate the entry point for the electricity. Previously hanging a bit too low across the street and fitting smack bang in the middle of the front of the house, it now sits at a good height and fixes to the side of the house. Costing about $1500, this was done (a) to allow us to build a portico and deck off the new front doors, and (b) so we can plant tall shrubs in the front garden (for privacy) without the risk of them reaching the cable.
On the inside, we have removed the ceiling sheeting to reveal the original (much) higher ceiling height, with battens still in place. VJ wall sheeting also still in place, we thought it was a crime not to revert back to the original 3.5metre high ceilings. It changes the look of the room completely, making it feel more spacious and cooler. Now comes the fun part - choosing new light/fan fittings.
We just need to replace the ceiling sheeting, cut openings for the new doors into the spare bedroom and kitchen, moving light switches and power points, fit airconditioner, paint....
Til my next report!
p.s Tilly is sitting on eggs at the moment so hopefully will have more ducklings soon. This time hatched my mother duck instead of surrogate chook.
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| Making up window awnings (currently removed for painting) |
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| Uncovering the original ceiling height (with lower ceiling battens still showing) |
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| Original ceiling height (with lower ceiling battens removed) |
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| New front doors fitting - Yay they fit! |
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| With timber louvres in place for photo (currently removed for painting) |
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| Old power entry connection point - now needing patching and painting. |
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| The new power connection point |
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| Tilly and her nest |
