Light it up and plumb it in- Reno day 101

We have lights. The exciting pendant variety that is. Please excuse the terrible custard backdrop, once I have whited it all out I will get a much better pic of this beauty. We decided to swap them around and put the colourful one in the hall.


We kept the plain white one for the entry space so as to not compete with the leadlight.

Most exciting is the installation of those three mint green pendants that have been snuggled up in their boxes for the last 15 months. They are  still hanging  a little low but you get the idea. That's our fridge, all wrapped up in a protective vintage blankie.

And those industrial pendants we found at the demolition yard are in as well on the deck. They have a few bumps and dings, but I think it just adds to the charm.

The electricians suggested some up lighting on the expansive deck wall. We found these spotlights but turned upwards they should do the trick.

Meanwhile the plumber returned and in between uninspired jobs like installing downpipes, he popped a new toilet and pedestal sink into the second teeny tiny bathroom. This is the only room in the house without vj walls so I am pondering whether to sneak some wallpaper in here.

Several of you were wondering what the heck an ironing station was? I had no idea either until our cabinetmaker suggested it. We had been considering a pull out ironing board in a drawer but apparently these wall mounted options are much sturdier. It has a shelf and plug for the iron and the board folds down and swivels so there was just enough room to fit one in the laundry.

And finally, this week we had some resolution to the ongoing issues with the kitchen window. Despite the window company being aware from the beginning that this window was to be installed flush with the bench top, this simple request turned into a huge palaver.

In the end (at the builders suggestion) we were awaiting a final frame to be installed to cover over the main frame and reveal. Now that this is finally in I can see this room actually getting finished properly.

Next up it's kitchen benches and a few final jobs for Betsy.

Lights, Contracts, Action!

Woohoo, I'm finally back, with a new computer and some real, actual renovation news. We have been talking with our builder for months, he is a country boy who works on his word and a handshake. We like that about him, but we really, really like having a completed, signed contract. It has taken a few weeks to finalise all the details and trim a few costs ( like painting the exterior of the house) in order for us to be within budget, but this week we locked it all in. Betsy, it seems, will just have to remain her unseemly shade of dirty cornflour blue for a while longer.

The plans have gone off to the certifier and the surveyors have been to confirm the boundaries, leaving white posts and pink tags, that to me just wave and say "renovation is actually happening" every time I use the driveway. After vacillating over whether to stay here through the build or move out, we finally made the decision to move. While the bulk of the work is at the rear of the house, with new windows to be installed and asbestos to be removed in several other areas, not to mention the lack of a kitchen or laundry for a minimum of two months, we decided that the costs of a rental house were probably cheaper than divorce and division of assets.

So for the last two months I have been trawling rental properties in the hope of finding one close to home that would offer us a shorter than standard six month lease. A few popped up here and there but they were only for three months, and the timeline did not match our plans. I was starting to fret slightly, when the school-drop-off-mum-network kicked in, and it seemed that one of the mothers at school had a neighbour who had an old friend from playgroup who lived in our suburb and was planning a few months travelling around Australia with their kids. Leaving exactly when we would need to move out. With a high set house with lots of storage and tolerance towards tenants with a cat. So with immense gratitude for this incredible serendipity, we signed a contract yesterday and it seems to all actually be going ahead.

And what about the lights? Well about a month ago while attempting to complete several years of overdue tax we took a break and went for a drive to look at lighting options. As we need fans in nearly all the rooms, the bulk of the lighting will be provided  by downlights. We already had pendants for the kitchen, we just needed to find two pendant lights for the entry foyer and the hallway. As with most other decisions we each had a few options but couldn't actually agree and also both lights needed to work well together as one room flows into the other. Suddenly we were driving past a window with this light and we screeched to a stop.

The one bonus of disagreeing with your husband on ninety eight percent of possibilities means that when something falls into that magical two percent bracket where you both like it, you just buy it on the spot. And choose the plain white one for the hallway. Four weeks to go folks.

Reckless light purchases

So, we have some renovation plans. We have left them in the hands of some local builders who are willing to let us know if our budget is remotely in the ball park. We have three possible deck roof plans but we only like one of them so fingers crossed we can afford the one we like.

So being the crazy fools that we are, with a potentially unaffordable renovation looming over us, we went and purchased lights. Extremely reckless, will not fit anywhere else in our house, lights. Handmade in France I might add. Yep, completely loopy I know.

Now , what about those wonderful mint green  bakelite canisters I can hear you ask? Well, I found these a little while back at the oppy and my heart just about stopped when I saw their beautiful colour. They were grubby but cleaned up beautifully and I have spent months looking at them and dreaming about them sitting on my new kitchen bench.

And then I stumbled across this beauty.

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And I knew in that instant that three of these pendants would be hanging over my new kitchen bench. I was smitten and Legoman was wholeheartedly agreeable (which is a miracle in its own right). I of course had no intention of actually purchasing these lights for a good nine months being the sensible girl that I am. Legoman wanted to investigate further ( the details man that he is) and discovered that not only were they on sale (yippee) but that the ONLY Australian importer was not ordering any more  and there were only a handful left in the country. We managed to get 3 of the last  few in this colour and I like to just unpack them and swoon every now and again. The cord and inside the pendant are silver (you can also get them in gold) and the pendants themselves come in a whole jellybean range of colours. I figure with my bizarre logic that if one purchases the lights to hang over a kitchen island, that surely the island will present itself?

And while we are on green, this popped up at the oppy this week. Green wire basket to pile full of crafty goodies. Did I mention that in the plans for the potentially unaffordable reno  is a teeny tiny room just for me and all my creative stuff?

Plans coming soon. Oh, and a massive thankyou for all the lovely comments on my last post, and a big welcome to some new followers too. I am a shocker at leaving return comments and get a little overwhelmed by a pile of new blogs to follow but I am working on it.

Demolition yard style

Well we stumbled across some lights for our deck on the weekend. Just see past all  the grime and imagine four of them hanging from a very high space. At $35 each they were a welcome subtraction from our meagre budget. Legoman actually ferreted these out from none other than a demolition yard. It's quite an interesting place to poke around in, so a few treasures came home with us. We  actually went out looking for some doors and windows that might be suitable for our renovation. This is Woolloongabba  Demolitions, now conveniently located in Rocklea. A huge space chock full of doors, windows, wood and all sorts of odd bits and pieces.

This is what caught Legoman's eye.

I of course snorted derisively and said no way was that damn ugly  motor box thingy coming home to our place. So he and the demolition dude whipped out a phillips head screwdriver and hey presto, four new deck lights for Betsy. The bulbs were a work of art too and Legoman is looking for a spot for them.

Then I found Legoman poking around in a box. How he even found the box is beyond me- this place is seriously full to the brim of stuff, poked into every nook and cranny. So he found a few sets of tap covers for a project of his own. I'll keep you posted on that one.

And then he found this little treasure. Yep that would be Lotte and Johanna those Happy Tyrolean Wanderers playing the zither for some snowcapped music down under. Thankfully we do not own a record player or I'm sure Legoman would have brought it home for his own zither amusement. Do you think one can play a guitar and spin wool at the same time? Johanna sure gives that impression.

Me, I was just a little distracted by this old wooden potato box. The demolition dude gave it to me for $5. Expect a little makeover very soon. Yep that's the paint on top.

So, we are very excited to find such a treasure haven so close to home. Now just to wait for a few weeks before we go back to check all the new stock.