11.10.07 The Back Bedroom

Rob had decided that the yellow was a little bright, so we should tone this bedroom down slightly. I've never been one to say no to having a paint brush in my hand, so I set off to work. It is in keeping with the rest of the house in the fact that it is now brown! It does make the room brighter, so I've had to sew blackout curtains onto the curtains.

23.09.07 The Garden

All the trees have been cut down and removed apart from the pear tree which has been pruned significantly.

We haven't done a deal of work on the garden as we started painting the cottage ready to sell it. It may be a little late in the year to be completing the garden now.

We will wait until the cottage has been sold and use the money to finish off the garden and start making the outbuildings into the kitchen, utility and bathroom. We still need to finish the middle room and stairs, but we shall build a garage first at the bottom end of the garden and place all the things from the middle bedroom in there. Hopefully, this time next year the house will be complete. I shall remind myself that I said that!

06.09.07 The Hallway

I decided to finish off the hallway. It seemed such a shame to have a grand old house and then the first thing that you saw when you walked in was bare woodwork and walls.

It's just in need of some pictures and I'm thinking, an ornate mirror.

29.07.07 The Garden

At the beginning of today we had piles of branches. Yesterday we bought a shredder which turned out to be useless really and then we tried a bonfire which gave off far too much smoke. So today we cut all the branches down so that we could get them into bags and had several trips to the tip. Even our next door but one neighbour helped along with Mac.

The pear tree has been cut to a more manageable height which is a good thing as most of the branches were so brittle, we could break them with our hands.

The damson tree has to be cut down next and the plum tree tidied up a bit. That leaves the holly tree which we're still debating about. It would be a shame to cut down all the height of the garden. When we have a sunny day we will try and cut the rest of the hedge down at the bottom of the garden.

24.07.07 The Garden

The Buddleia was a little bit over grown and didn't really fit into the whole plan of the garden. Not that we have a particular plan for the whole garden, but for this bit we do. So yesterday it came down.

Last night and today I have been lopping all the bigger branches into firewood. I can't wait to get my hands on a chainsaw!! to cut all the bigger branches into logs.

I think that after being inside because of the rain it makes a nice change to be outside and I've actually enjoyed myself when I didn't think I would.

We also spoke to the neighbours and they are happy for us to chop the rest of the overgrown hedge down at the bottom even onto the other side of the wall.

22.07.07 The Garden

Well, we had a long rest and decided that we ought to tackle the garden!

We would have liked to have started before today but the rain stopped play....for a very long time!

It's been quite an enjoyable day. I am at my best when I am dismantling things! It's just put them back together that I'm not too fond of!

Well, the first bit of the garden wall has been revealed and now all we have to do is wonder how we get a huge amount of branches and leaves to the tip! They won't all fit in the green bin!

02.05.07 Finally In!

Back on line in our new home!

We moved sucessfully into our new home on the 27th March. I managed to pack most of the items into 6 boxes, transport them here and unpack them in about 5 trips. John came with his big trailer later and as we were only moving 1/4 mile away we didn't bother to fasten any of the big furniture down. It was interesting when we went around the one corner on the way to the house! But it's lovely to be here in our own little marital home finally.

It's such a warm, lovely, huge property. I've still not quite got used to the size of it but it's a proper sod when you've just come from the top floor down to the bottom and remember that you left your keys on the top floor! But I think the exercise will do us good!

It's still a bit chaotic over a month later. Nothing else has been done in this house and the stairs and middle bedroom are just as they were on the 23rd March. I can't believe we've been in so long already! Nothing else is due to be achieved until we finish re decorating the cottage and sorting out the bathroom after we ripped it all out so that the tenant can move in on the 20th May. Renovation never stops in Bawtry!

It's lovely to finally have a dining table and we find ourselves using the kitchen and the bedroom as the main rooms in the house. Very rarely do we use the living room and bathroom for some bizarre reason. The shower in the en suite that we said we would never use unless we had visitors is the most used shower in the house as it's just so convenient.

The cats have settled in. Oscar is at home anywhere but it took Jake a little while to settle. Jasper the ferrel cat came a week later when I managed to catch him and after 2 weeks being inside and getting comfortable he now loves to live above the outside toilet during the day and visit home at night. He loves the space under the kitchen cupboards.

We will be glad of a rest and we have decided to go on holiday once the cottage is finished and the tenant has moved in. We need a holiday of the type where you sit on your backside for a week and do nothing but laze. I can't wait!

Once the cottage has been completed I shall take pics of this house as it is complete with furniture etc.

26.03.07 Ramblings

Well, the budget has run out. The house is not quite finished. It needs a stair carpet, woodwork on the stairs and the middle floor bedroom finishing, but phase 1 of the house renovation is almost complete. Phase 2 is the garden and phase 3 is converting the out buildings into the kitchen, utility room and toilet.
We move tomorrow and I sit here in Church Street thinking that this will be the last time that I will sleep in this little cottage. I've lived here for 3 years and it's a bit sad to leave. I will miss the fact that it only takes 1 hour to clean and Rob will miss the fact that it only took 10 seconds to get to the pub, now it's going to take 4 minutes!!!!
We move tomorrow and in true Diane style everything is left to the last minute! Nothing is packed and Mickey and John (who dug out the garden with their JCB) will bring their van and trailer and send us on our way. Via the chippy for their tea! But as Mickey would say "It dunt matter" the fact that I've not packed. Packing tomorrow will consist of throwing stuff into suitcases and boxes and hoping for the best. Thankfully, we still own this house and so moving can really take as long as we like. Well, within this week.

26.03.07 Third Floor, Front Bedroom

Phil fitted this carpet today too. This room is complete, apart from a door to the en suite. You see how everything is complete apart from a ......! But I love this room and I think that it's possibly my second favourite room. Mainly because, not only is it lovely, but I did all the tiling and grouting in the en suite. I do sometimes think that this house is far too posh to live in or use, especially as it will take me 3 times longer to clean it, than the small cottage on Church Street ever did!

26.03.07 Third Floor, Back Bedroom

Phil, the carpet man came today and fitted the top floor carpets. This is another room finished. It just needs a curtain pole.

23.03.07 The Bathroom

The bathroom is complete. I think the splendour of it speaks for itself. This is our favourite room of the whole house. It just needs a blind, some towels and bits and pieces to finish it off.

18.03.07 The Bathroom

All the grouting has been finished. Rob's Dad grouted all the floor last week. I have started painting the walls and they should be finished by Wednesday.

Rob made this cabinet last week too. It matches the sink unit.

By the end of this week the bathroom should be completed. The bedroom carpets should have be installed too. Once the middle bedroom has been cleaned out then we can move in. I think we will finally be moving in sometime during the last week in March. Yippee!

13.03.07 Woodwork

Today Rob has been making the toilet and sink unit in oak. As usual, he's done a wonderful job. Tomorrow he will make a corner unit also in oak.
As usual, I have been grouting this evening. I'm not sure why I used the grater for the cheese tonight when I could have just used my fingers! DIY is not glamorous!
We had a hole in the bath but we've fixed it with some adhesive. We will have to buy a new bath eventually and now Rob has a good excuse to buy one with water jets. The money is finally running out so we aren't able to buy one now.

11.03.07 The Bathroom

Today Rob installed the bath. Today I grouted, as usual! Rob's Dad has started to grout the floor. We have the light for the bathroom which was on the cooker in the previous pictures.

Lindsay and Jonathan came today and they said what I'd already thought about the Aqua paint. It doesn't go with the tiles. So I shall paint the walls cream instead.

Once this room is finished then we can start to clean the whole house up and move in! Yes really, we can move in!

10.03.07 Our Home!

Just a few bits which are beginning to turn our house into a home. We got the cooker installed and we now have curtains in the front room. They are slightly too long so they will be cut off and the excess used to make a couple of cushions for the settees.

10.03.07 The Electrics

Marcus came and completed the second fitting for the electrics. You can see the consumer unit which is situated in the kitchen and the wiring in the cellar from the main consumer unit which is also in the cellar. This means that we can now take out all the old plug sockets and fill them. Thankfully, there was only one plug socket in each room!

09.03.07 The En Suite

Is now finished! The shower no longer leaks so we can now have the carpet put down in both bedrooms.

The skirting boards have been fitted and the macerator has been boxed in.

09.03.07 The Bathroom

Rob finished tiling the bathroom. I think it looks lovely. It will look even better when it's been grouted.

Mac has been undercoating the ceiling in the shower room and the far wall with the radiator on it and has done a wonderful job. We were slightly worried that it would be too bumpy but he's been busy sanding it down so that it is smooth.

05.03.07 The Bathroom

Rob has put down all the floor boards in the bathroom and has laid the underfloor heating. He went off to Wickes tonight to buy some flexible floor tile adhesive. Tomorrow all the floor tiles will have been laid.

03.03.07 The Bathroom

I've been busy grouting. I no longer have skin on any of my right hand fingers. Thankully, our carpet fitter Phil, has given me top tips for grouting......if only he had told me weeks ago! The tips don't involve loosing any skin, which I'm pleased to hear about! It means that you won't see any of the grout on the tiles like you do on these pictures. Well that's the plan!

The exciting news is that we plan on moving into the house in 4 weeks time.

02.03.07 The Bathroom

Rob has worked on the house this week and he has done wonderful tiling. He cheated with the tiles in the shower area but that secret remains between us. Thankfully, Rob got the light up between the wall on one of the other wires. All lights have now been installed. Since he installed the dimmer switch when it's dark the PIR lights look faboulous. I can imagine bathing with glasses of champagne!

25.02.07 The Bathroom

Rob has been busy doing more good tiling. He's been very neat and careful apparantly!

However, as usual we always decide to do tricky jobs at the end of the day and today was no exception!

If you look at the middle tile you will see a light. You can never have too many! Behind the tiles and the plasterboard was a wire so that we could pull up the light cable. However, the light didn't go up with the wire and so we've now had to go under the bath and hope that one of the other 2 lights on the other central tiles will be able to pull up the middle light wire. It's more complicated than you could ever imagine!

25.02.07 The En Suite

The En suite is now all painted and I've started to clean the tiles up. It just needs the skirting boards and then it's finished.

24.02.07 The En Suite

I have grouted the en suite today. I type this message with most of my index and middle finger's skin missing. Grouting can be quite painful at times! Tomorrow, I should be able to give the tiles a really good clean down and finish painting the walls. Once I've done this then the whole of the upstairs is finished! It can now be carpeted.

This means that the bottom floor is done and that the top floor is done. The middle floor is the only floor left.

We aren't doing anything with the kitchen. We need to save about 10k to complete the house converting the outbuildings into a kitchen, utility room and downstairs toilet. But we have to wait 2-3 years for this to happen.

But, we are nearly into the moving in stage! Woo Hoo!

24.02.07 The Bathroom

Rob has been busy tiling the bathroom today. We wanted these tiles a couple of months ago but since then they have changed the colour. It's a bit darker than I expected. There are 10 x 10 cm tiles which match but since changing the colour they don't match. We will have to go and change them. Lets hope that they can find a colour to match them. There are also edging tiles which thankfully still match.