A change back

A number of posts ago I mentioned that we were initially, with our build going to do the ensuite before Christmas and the back extension after so it was easier to live in the house. I then went on to say there was a change as thought the whole build could happen before Christmas, well this is not the case and so we are back to plan A.

One thing I have learnt from this is make sure you get your builder to explain time lines in detail and you understand them. There has been a misunderstanding in our case and so we have been busy packing up the house and getting organised. At least I have only packed things I don't need on a day to day basis!

And on it goes - contract negotiations

Yes, we first looked at our building contract over three weeks ago now and we are still trying to sort it out. We had so many questions and items in the contract that weren't exactly what we had asked for or expected.

I know I discussed this in an earlier post but really want to reiterate as it is causing us a bit of angst and I hope by talking about it you can avoid similar.

Sharing our dilemmas with friends I have heard so many stories of delays at this stage. Or in the case of one friend they signed the contract in good faith and then discovered the doors and windows weren't what they were expecting when they were being installed - they proceeded to give the advice, 'it is good what you are doing, you should check every item and look at exactly what they are providing you with'.

This is exactly what we are doing and have discovered the doors aren't the quality ones we wanted and need to upgrade, plus a whole lot of other items we thought were included in their initial quote to find they weren't. This I am told is very common.

So now knowing this I can say to any of you out there about to start a renovation check your builders contract thoroughly!

Window design and the environment

Windows placement and style can add so much to the house, they let in the light and as some say provide the soul of the house. So how do you decide on what windows to use? What is more important to you the style and size or how well they protect your home, by keeping heat inside during Winter and heat out in Summer - the energy effectiveness? Can the two go hand in hand?


These are all questions my hubby and I recently asked ourselves as going through our building contract we realised exactly what windows and glass sliding doors we were getting. We didn’t really think about it until we saw it in writing.


Initially we weren’t keen on getting the awning windows listed and wanted double hung ones but then we checked them out on the Trend website and discovered the star rating was quite high so decided to keep them. This is important to us, one because we want an energy efficient home but secondly because two of the bedrooms face West and so are heat boxes in Summer. With this in mind we are getting all new windows double glazed with PVC frames. Did you know that PVC frames transmit less heat then others? I certainly didn’t until I looked into it.


The other important thing with windows is placement and this can be looked at more easily when building from scratch but as we are extending an old house we unfortunately can’t change this as much. We are lucky however that our main living space faces North and this will be the area with the glass facing doors, good for the Winter sun but we need to make sure they are well shaded in the Summer and so are looking at our eaves and a pergola for this.


If you are interested in finding out all about windows and energy ratings – visit the Windows Energy Rating Scheme website.

Building contract

Now for the fun and games! I was warned that the contract stage can take a while and be very frustrating but did I listen, no and now I am exactly that, frustrated.

You may be aware of this having gone through a renovation or starting on the path to one and so have been told by friends that the contract phase can take a while, especially if you are thorough which is a good thing to be.

We had the final builders contract brought around last Saturday, a thick 40 page document and lets just say we didn't get very far as we realised there were changes that needed to be made even before we started looking at it. Over the past week we have read through it and have sent our construction company, a list of questions and changes, now we play the waiting game. So now not sure about our August date for the build start.

At least I have to say our buidling group are very thorough and I am glad they put everything in the contract. As I was told by a friend that didn't have a good contract, 'you are better off finding these discrepancies now then when they start building'.

Letters

I love letters or typography and have started looking out for letters to decorate my house with the focus being on D & B, the letters that start my kids names.

These brown ones I got at the bargain price of $2 each at the Supply and Demand store on Glenferrie Road Hawthorn.

I have also got large white letters in the kids bedroom and my daughter painted letters we bought from Spotlight in multi colours to decorate the play area.

But I particularly love the red ones in the lounge.

Recently I found a place to buy great typography products through a friend who sells her own tea towels and beautiful materials - Yardage Design or at Etsy

As soon as we have finished our renovation later this year I will be getting some of these wonderful things to decorate the new rooms.

The kid factor

Something I have to keep reminding myself (not sure why I keep forgetting) is that my to do list takes a lot longer to complete then it used to because of the kid factor.

Even knowing this we still requested the build to be brought forward and now we have realised it is really happening with Robert, our Designer coming around this week to sign final contracts and technical drawings. So the plan is to start the build in August (initially we were waiting until January next year), so we can be finished in time for Christmas which we may even host - I am starting to think we are mad!

We are now in full on rush mode of choosing fittings, not easy with kids in toe, the problem being one of us always has to watch them closely as they zip around the showrooms, so no discussion, just picking things then comparing notes.

At Reece the kids hopped in and out of baths (which the lovely staff actually suggested to keep them entertained) and they loved pressing buttons to check out the water flow on different shower heads. And then I don't know what came over me but I took my almost two year old to a tile place by myself. He whipped around at high speed and kept climbing on the displays. Lets just say we stayed for all of five minutes. Thank god for the Internet where we can check a lot of things out first and for friends and family who have looked after the kids at different points (my parents are coming over from Adelaide to do just that this weekend, oh and are here for my sons second birthday).

It is going to be an interesting, full on few months with some great stories I am sure: - seeing how my daughter goes with the portable toilet (at least my son is still in nappies), how we move from one area of the house to another so we can live in the house and how we keep my son in particular away from the builders or climbing things he is not meant too!

Tile prices

Well I have learnt today that it pays to shop around. The other weekend we saw that some of the big tile stores had sales so rushed in to see what we could get for our new family bathroom and ensuite. The tiles we picked were on sale and so we naturally thought it was a good price.

Today I went to a smaller store, Mitcham Tile Centre and discovered I could get similar or in case of the wall tiles, the same tiles for $4 cheaper per square metre, so now know that sales don't necessarily mean that it is cheaper then elsewhere.

To give you an idea of the kind of look we are after - these two photos were taken from my friend Amanda's bathroom. My bathroom inspiration. We also love the free standing bath and the tiled recess next to it with the difference being we are looking at tiling the recess with a blue / grey mosaic.