Tuesday, November 22, 2011

House Updates - Week 22

This rain is soooo inconvenient, and of course everything we are trying to complete at the moment is outside. So today the roof restorer was due to start, but because of the rain he couldn't go up on the roof. This now pushes back the painters because they can't paint the exterior of the house with its final coats until the roof is done. Naturally the landscapers can't work in this weather either, although it's a damn shame the grass wasn't laid on Monday.

The pool has been filled with water which took 48 hours, and is now filling nicely with the leaves, pine needles and debris from those damn trees above that our neighbour gave us such grief about trimming. We are going to have to spend about $5000 on a pool cover to keep all the crap out which is already staining the newly finished pool surface! The pool cleaner can't keep up. Oh the joys of suburban life. My husband keeps reminding me that when we lived on 100 acres we didn't have to give a toss what our neighbours thought about what we did to the house or garden, and nor did they care. In the city everyone seems to feel entitled to an opinion and input into everything little thing you do.

Today I discover that my beautiful bamboo light I brought from the US at great expense to put above the bath in the kids' bathroom can't be used, because there has to be a 2m clearance from the top of the water level to the light and 600mm clearance either side. So again, all those beautiful bathrooms inspiration images I have been collecting have lead me astray as we are no able to hang lights above our baths here in Australia. Yet another example of over-regulation in this country!

Now I am thinking that instead of putting it in another room I might as well hang it without the wiring, so that I at least get the benefit of the aesthetic beauty of the light, if not the practicality of its function. Shame I spent $100 having it rewired.

Has anybody else hung lights over baths with no trouble? I seem to have a very law-abiding electrician!

Here's some house updates. Particularly delighted with my kitchen and can't wait for the marble benchtop to arrive. Probably the one thing I am more excited about than anything - other than my gorgeous wallpaper which I can't seem to get hung!


Loving the pool cabana - bring on the daybed and cocktails India Hicks style!

The pool colour is tap water colour at present and will hopefully turn bluer


Inside of pool cabana

Temporary fencing of course

This is all the crap dropped in the pool in the first few hours - staining already

This is the culprit - ugly nasty pine needle dropping casuarina




Love the profile based on a Christopher Peacock design I saw in LA


My gorgeous island end panels painted Spanish Olive
The room packed to the rafters with appliances
So love Dulux Spanish Olive
The laundry has become my onsite office


Getting rid of that nasty cupola on the ridge, which has been a nice access point for possums
Pavers going down for path
 
My husband is worried the colour is too light - what do you think?
First coat of exterior colour - Dulux Milton Moon

The inside of the front door painted Dulux Domino

You can see why we are having the roof tiles restored and repainted!








Charlie insisted on taking this shot


My taps from Overstock.
This is the bamboo lantern I bought from Shades of Light.
This was part of the inspiration for the kids' bathroom with light above bath.
And another inspiration image - why can't we do this here? How is electrocution possible?

Have to change the bath spout as it's not long enough to reach the tub safely.




Our ensuite with Schots vanity finally installed - handles to come

More lovely taps from Overstock


Charlie insisted on this self portrait - boredom rules when we visit the house.

 So that's it for now. Hopefully some more updates later in the week, if the rains stops that is.

24 comments:

  1. Looking wonderful! You are ahead of us. Our tilers are finishing off the bathrooms, and kitchen is yet to arrive on site. Desperate to be in by Christmas, but.... we will see.

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  2. Looking Good Mel!! Get used to the pine needles in the pool, my nemisis is a Japanese maple and a chestnut tree grrr. Charlie is obviously a future photographer for the home style magazines. Can't wait for the next installment. I think I am becoming a Georgica Pond stalker. Sorry can't help myself. Tracey

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  3. Love the outside colour.. we are Domino too on our posts etc..

    I was on the understanding the light issue above bath was US too...its talked about in Novogratz Book.. that all the ones in their houses are just for display and that her chandeliers she just puts candles in sometimes xx

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  4. Looks great Mel, you taps are lovely & tiles are stunning, shame about those lighting rules I wonder if the electrician would do it after the final council inspection????

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  5. I feel your pain, Melinda but it's going to be so worth it in the end. Bit like child birth, all this angst will dissipate once the house is complete. No-one else (except we, your loyal readers) will know the lengths you've gone to to have such a fantastic home. The pool cover will be money well spent. I bought one a number of years ago much to my husband's disgust. I was sick and tired of him whinging about having to clean the pool every other day. We have an enormous silky oak above the pool that Council will not let us touch! He's now ever so grateful as the cover gets a quick hit with blower on the weekend. Hang in there, the end is in sight.

    Jennifer xx

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  6. Oh, it's so lovely from the ceiling in the kitchen, the sleek lines of the kitchen, the gorgeous outside coour. The pool house will be amazing. Looking good...

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  7. Oh... Melinda honey! B r e a t h e !!!! Rome wasn't built in a day and your home isn't a 'project home' with an army of workers bused in to finish fast without due care. I'm going to be a thorn in your side by saying thank god to our electrical standards. Children, even teens do some silly things (balancing on the tub side to check out god knows what in mirror...yes I'm talking from experience)and a fall and grab of an electrical fitting pitched into the full bath could be catastrophic (more than a concussion and bleeding forehead). I think the pictures we all admire so much are either in other countries without safety regulations, are styled for the shot or have looverly tall ceilings to accomodate the fitting drop. I like your idea of installing it 'for show' only. Sorry for my lack of empathy on this point! But I totally agree with this inconvenient bloody rain, casurina leaf drop, poopy neighbours and lack of wall paper-hangers!!!!
    The bathrooms look simply divine and I so L.O.V.E the Spanish Olive and of course the Domino colours. (Of course I'm a tad biased there!) Treat yourself to that cocktail NOW and celebrate how far you've come and how close you are.... Charlie's watching!!!
    xo KL

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  8. Looking fabulous. What an exciting time when you can see it finally all come together. I do not think the exterior color is too light. I love all the colors you have chosen, especially Spanish Olive. Good job.
    Best...Victoria

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  9. Love how the the kitchen and baths are coming along and will have to visit overstock to see if they have front door hardware... been searching for days for the right set and no luck!
    xxoo

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  10. It's really looking fantastic! Love the gray color in the kitchen. M.

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  11. It is coming together beautifully, Melinda. Love the pool and cabana area and the kitchen is fabulous!! You look waaaay too put together for such a project ~

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  12. WOW that looks great!!! Love ALL the colours inside and out. Play dumb with a new electrician then another and another until they hang it. I don't see why you can't hang the light. That is more distance than a power point has to be from a sink.
    Keep going and good luck!!

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  13. Love the Spanish Olive co our. Why not try the wallpaper yourself if it is a small area and pre pasted wallpaper. You just need a string plumb line to mark one straight vertical line from about one wall paper width from a corner and hang your first sheet against this line, then butt the next one up against the first one, making sure you match the pattern repeat though. Just drop the paper in a large water filled trough or bath to activate the glue. I'm sure there will be something on You Tube or Martha Stewart to give you a demonstration. My husband did it in the seventies when our kids were little and I wanted to decorate their bedrooms.

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  14. I'm another Georgica Pond stalker. Totally addicted. Love that kitchen island. Would you mind sharing your secrets of its dimensions. Outside colours divine

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  15. To all my gorgeous readers - thank you for your great and supportive comments. So appreciate having your feedback. Now for a few questions answered - the taps I bought from OVERSTOCK.COM in the US and they ship direct. The first sets you see installed had no problems but I did buy some from another US manufacturer direct and they don't work. The KITCHEN ISLAND is 3m x 1.2m wide. By the way, I LOVE Georgica Pond stalkers!

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  16. Looking gorgeous. Love the kitchen cupboards and basically everything. Love your style.
    Carolyn xx

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  17. So excited to read this post - can't believe how far it's come. It looks AMAZING! I am so loving the backyard area, what an unbelievable transformation. Now comes the best part of decorating, which thankfully is not reliant on tradespeople! Always love seeing the kids too - Charlie is too sweet.

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  18. It's all looking sooo good! Not long now! I had similar issues with installing a chandelier over our freestanding bath tub - our electrician wouldn't do it either .... so nothing is above it now .... used the chandelier at the other end of the bathroom and it still looks good! :) The kitchen is looking fab, can't wait to see it with splashbacks and lighting etc etc! Can't believe how quickly it's all come together for you! (although I can appreciate it hasn't been quick enough for you!!) It's still raining in Sydney today! What a shame!! Oh, and love seeing random pics of you thrown in too! Nice to put a 'face' to the 'voice'! Take care, Mx

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  19. Have been reading your blog with great interest, as we are about 6mths behind you ie roof is about to go on - it is a new build in the Southern Highlands. Absolutly love your taste so classic and beautiful, should be stunning when it is finished. Remember things like wallpaper and lights can be added and changed later. Why not have a go at the wallpaper yourself - for best results use lining paper though. Can't wait to see more pics

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  20. Melinda, It is all looking so great!! Love all the choices you have made. Your kitchen looks so functional and pretty at the same time. Looking Good!! xo kathysue

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  21. Wow! What progress! Everything looks so great. I'm jealous of the cabana!
    Stacy

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  22. Melinda it is looking fabulous!!

    Love the colours, your gorgeous cabinetry and the taps are beautiful.

    I hear you on trees too! We had a massive Liquidamber & an equally massive Camphor Laurel in our yard before the knock down & rebuild but thank goodness our sensible council let us get rid of them! they were horrid - and dangerous, and totally inappropriate for a suburban backyard!

    Of course we have replaced them with extensive smaller plantings, much more suburb appropriate ;)

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  23. Your kitchen cabinets are gorgeous, love that profile. The exterior colour is lovely. The taps look great. And I like the vanities too, but wasn't there a pedestal vanity from Recollections? Perhaps you'll post about that one later. All up, it's really looking fab. Amber
    PS. I've very jealous that you're house is so far along, we're still waiting for Council approval.

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  24. Perhaps try another electrician...check out the blog below where they have installed a chandelier over the bath. They had it installed after handover from their builder, so perhaps contact them and ask whether they had any issues finding an electrician who would do it...

    http://chrisandtonia.blogspot.com/2011/07/pendants.html

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