Transformation nearly complete...
Discussion
jas xjr said:
That kitchen looks great, could you tell us more about it please
Kitchen is boggo Howdens. We decided to go with (IIRC) Clerkenwell Gloss - it's a slightly thinner door but then we don't need handles, as you can see. The work-top was going to be quartz but quite frankly we couldn't justify it and so the laminate one was used instead with a £3,000 saving (obviously we can change this at a later date should we feel the need. With the money saved on the worktop we splashed out a little on a decent (mid-range) induction hob, extractor hood, 2 hide-and-slide ovens, built in dish-washer (with timer 'puddle'-light) and washing machine all from Neff (used http://www.cookersandovens.co.uk for these as they were cheaper than AO, who supplied the American style fridge-freezer). The builders have their own kitchen fitters who did a good job and we're happy with it.
Again in the interests of economy we decided to forgo the engineered wood floor and go for a good laminate with decent quality underlay (good decision) and lose the underfloor heating (the jury is still out on that as it would have been lovely but that really would have caused a massive amount of disruption).
solo2 said:
What are you doing with the garage, really lets the place down currently.
The garage is going to be clad as well (front only) as is the garden entrance. Garden gate and posts are going to be black for the contrast to the cladding and tie in slightly with the garage/front doors.Craikeybaby said:
How much did you do on the inside? Were you living in the house at the time?
The whole of the downstairs was re-vamped - to all intents and purposes it is a new-build. We were going to move upstairs for most of it but then my daughter threw a spanner into the works by not going back to uni 
This meant we had to be downstairs while the work was going on (thankfully it wasn't too bad a year weather/temperature wise), and that really wasn't a lot of fun, to be fair the builders were great and very considerate but still your house doesn't feel like your own. If you are thinking of doing quite a large job I would recommend you try and move out/go on holiday for at least part of it. The dust gets pretty much everywhere and there is no point in doing too much cleaning as it gets dirty again as you're cleaning!!, if you're an OCD type it could well be a serious issue. The other thing to consider is that I'm a very relaxed sort of person so that helped as well as despite now being at the end of a 7 month refurb I still get on well with the builders!!!! There is no doubt that this could have been done quicker (obviously a cost implication there) if we'd moved out for 2/3 months (obviously another cost implication there!!).
steve197 said:
Looks really nice, what cladding have you used?
thanks - cladding is this stuff:http://www.buildingplasticsltd.co.uk/Durasid-Textu...
decided to go for a lighter grey in the end as the charcoal (which IMO looks really good) would have made the house look too 'brooding'/'heavy'
we had a front garden but in the end decided that with 5 cars in the household and quite a busy road a larger driveway was a better option (if not more aesthetically pleasing), obviously helps with visitors not having to worry about parking too. Neither of us is a keen gardener (to put it mildly) and the rear one is 100 foot(ish) which is more than enough for us to be getting on with (part 3 of the project!)
I know what you mean about the front garden - however we used to live on a 'commuter road' 
and so really have a bee in our bonnet about sufficient parking 
The design came from a series of chats between us and the builder and then an architectural firm to put the ideas onto paper (I suspect the council's planning department may not have been too sympathetic with just 'an idea')
and so really have a bee in our bonnet about sufficient parking The design came from a series of chats between us and the builder and then an architectural firm to put the ideas onto paper (I suspect the council's planning department may not have been too sympathetic with just 'an idea')
well the builders have finally removed all their tools and there's just a bit of cabling to be done in the garden/utility room and a few small jobs to do over the next few weeks (cut a small section out of the BBQ for example) and then get the garden turfed. What I now need to do is start tidying up the inside. Kitchen and dining room are done sitting room getting there, ditto the hallway
for a proper before and after look here is (near as dammit) the same angle - old and new
for a proper before and after look here is (near as dammit) the same angle - old and new
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