27. Almost there!

This week we are looking forward to our final inspection and then hopefully is all goes well...

... handover and keys. 

Luckily we have had pretty regular access to the house and so have been able to draw our builders' attention to any minor things that need attention, with luck this will speed up the process.

The painting is now complete and the cleaners have started working their magic.

  Oh, loving the kitchen, can't wait to fill all those cupboards!

Freshly painted doors (Antique White USA)

Over the weekend Craig and I did some work on the outside. 

We hope to start the retic in over the next fortnight and get some plants in as soon as the limestone goes down.

We deliberated for some time over whether to paint the front doors or leave them as wood and varnish.

We are happy with our decision.

Everything is looking great, or we think so anyway which I guess is to be expected as we chose it :)

One item that is causing mixed feelings amongst our visitors and family is the ceiling fan in the alfresco!  Before I reveal the photo, let me explain....it has to be an outdoor fan, marine grade stainless steel...

and there isn't a lot to choose from. 

We could have a stainless steel metal job, a bamboo style or...

Ok..opinions are as follows:
Against (Dad, Greg, JP, Murray, Jade, Lisa)
For (Craig, Muzz, Shell, Niki, Jake, Linh, Sarah, Johanne, Andrea, Dell, Lidia, Amanda and Sheldon, Rhonda, Taylor, Hannah)........me??? 
Well I am still not so sure :)

What do you think?  Opinions welcome.

That is all for now...the next photos will hopefully be of the flooring going in and the limestone going down.

26. Lights, Camera, Action!

Ok, it is a lame title, but this week there has been plenty of action- we have painting, taps, bathroom fittings and lights! 

The ensuite, grouted, fitted out, just waiting for a clean.

We had to reselect our taps as the ones we originally chose are now discontinued. 

It is actually quite unusual now to have taps in a bathroom, most people go for a mixer apparently.   What can I say?  I'm just an old fashioned girl :)

This heated towel rail caused a few problems for our very patient electrician because this wall also houses the recess for our "cavity sliders".  Dell, you are a legend.

We even have a shower head!

 

The kids' bathroom is now also ready for cleaning. 

It is very tempting to take my bucket etc. over to the house and get stuck into a big tidy up but I know this is best left to the professionals.  

They will work their magic next week.

   Progress photos of the tiling in the kitchen, all finished and grouted.

The butler's sink, our baby! 
 I was so anxious about how this would look as 

 we had seen hundreds in magazines but none in "real life". 
We took a risk and purchased this online about a year ago, so the wait to see it installed has been a nervous one.
We love it!

We have lights!

We have appliances!

The lights work and so does the alarm thank goodness!

Checking out the painting. 

Preview of some more lights, the "jam jars" are outside and the other is in the lounge.

Craig even took a dip to fish out some debris from the bottom of the pool.  This was brave, murky water on a rather chilly day. 

The pool is looking much better now and is all set for handover next week.

25. We Are Getting Close Now

Well the new house has been a hive of activity this week as the completion date gets closer.  

Everyday there is progress.

 We are now under a bit of pressure as the owners of our rental need to move back into their home.  Although we don't have a firm date, handover is looking at being around the end of this month. 

We are busy scheduling in the flooring, window treatments, retic and driveway so that we can move as soon and as smoothly as possible.

Ok, so what is new this week?

The external render has all been finished and the inside has had a coat of paint.

The friezework has also been added. 

We are loving the archway and think the change in dimensions was a good call. 
What do you think?

The frieze continues inside to the lounge area as well.

Ok, enough with the frieze...onto the kitchen..yay!

We have a benchtop at last (Cracked pepper...which is a grey, white, black and taupe mix)

The overhead cupboards and rangehood going in.

The bookshelves that sit either side of the kitchen, next to laundry and pantry doors.

Ta dah!   Although there is a cover on the bench, the splashback is yet to be tiled, no electricals or tapware..you get the picture!

I can't wait to fill up those cupboards.

Ok, enough of the kitchen obsession...the kids now have doors on their wardrobes. 

Poor things have had small cupboards for so long, especially JR so they will love the space.

Our light fittings are almost all done and Sam started painting the woodwork today.

Looking forward to the tiling being finished next week...we are on the home stretch now!

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