Lots of time has passed since I removed the lino and carpet from the dining room. We have had a bit of a nightmare trying to confirm a builder. We went out to tender to four builders. They all quoted on the same job, but the quotes varied from $5,000 to $25,000... go figure!!! They are all qualified registered builders too.
We have also had to revise what we were wanting to achieve, i.e., removing the whole wall between the dining and kitchen as this was part of the major expense, due to structural issues, and having to put in a supporting steal beam.
So we have now decided to only remove the wall from the doorway, down from the top of the cabinetry to the bench top, as shown below. This should still open the space up and let more light into the kitchen area.
Which also means we have had to re-design the layout and the kitchen cabinetry too. Its a shame really as I have lost part of the character which I was going for. But hey them's the breaks!!
Since writing the above, which was a week or so ago! We have now secured a builder, which we are very happy about, as the builder is also the same guy who did our renovations upstairs ten years ago. He did a really great job of the upstairs, so we know he will do a great job of remodelling the kitchen walls etc. The builder is hoping to start late September, early October. No later I hope!
The kitchen joiner is also locked in and ready to start all the cabinetry too.
This means I have four weeks to sort myself out in setting up a makeshift kitchen in the guest bedroom. Packing up all the kitchen items, crockery, glasses, food etc. etc. Clearing out the spare bedroom so we can move the guest bed into the empty spare bedroom. Relocating the kitchen sink into the garage and getting it permanently plumbed in there, along with our washing machine. I also want to try and put together some freezer meals ready for the crockpot, so meal times won't be to much of a hassle. Though we are coming into Spring, so we can BBQ outside if we need too.
Getting very excited now :-)
Last Friday I also attacked the guest room's en-suite. I needed to wash the ceiling as it was covered in mildew or mould, speckled brown spots anyhow! I used sugar soap to do this. Came off really easy surprisingly. I used a spray bottle and a scrubbing brush then washed it off with a cloth and warm water.
I also stripped the wallpaper, ready to tile or install panelling. We haven't quite decided yet. Here's the before and after shots.
We will be replacing the shower, toilet, sink and heated towel rail too in the process.
A couple of builders who came around to quote kept asking how the pipes were structured behind the false wall. I wasn't sure so I decided to pull part of it off to have a look!!!
Gotta love all the Resene test pots on the shelf eh!! I am having trouble deciding on a colour so have made an appointment with the Resene colour rep to help me out. Hopefully!!!
Till the next up date...
