There is a giant jigsaw puzzle getting put together on my site today... Gee Wizz Magiz what a difference a day can make.
Will blog and post pics tomorrow... I'm so excited, I just can't hide it, I'm about to lose control.....
Okay bedtime, too much excitement for one day for me...
Ms Betsy!
Tuesday, 8 October 2013
Tuesday, 1 October 2013
Forever grateful
Building a house is a labour of love. So much time and effort is put into the pre-planning before you even get to the starting line.
In my case this dream has been brewing for over 10 years. I put in the hard yards for years, meandered around display villages, wondered what house would fit my family, wondered if we would ever get to a point in our lives to make our dreams come true. I devoured blogs just like this one.
Then the time arrived. FINALLY we could work towards our dream. We visited display homes, we poured over brochures and magazines and crunched numbers and did all the things we were meant to do.
Then right as we were about to put the deposit down I was made redundant. I vaguely remember hearing my husband say to me "Aren't you glad we didn't put that deposit down" and although I smiled and silently agreed in amongst the disappointment, I just couldn't give up the dream. After a few days of feeling sorry for myself I was back in employment - determined. I was temping but I was moving mountains to get a permanent job and I did it, within a week I was employed. I was onto the bank, I had the balls rolling, I managed to secure a verbal go ahead from the bank even though my employment status was still in limbo (I had another 3 weeks to go before I even started the new job) but I wrote to my bank manager and begged (I have no shame). He looked at my employment history and the fact that I'd been unemployed for about 48 hours in my life, he gave us the go ahead. Yes! The dream was still alive.
We were doing it.
Then the valuation came back and my dream was shot to pieces. The valuation was under and miles from where we needed it to be. It was the last straw. I sat looking at the email, sitting at my new desk with my new colleagues surrounding me and internally I cried. All the emotions that I'd held back from the redundancy and the pressures of finding a new job and chasing the dream all came crashing down and I died a little inside. My brain was spinning, it was over.
Then I remembered reading a blog about someone who was building with McDonald Jones and they praised their mortgage broker. I have no idea how I remembered that blog, but I found it.
Rebecca Jarrett-Dalton of Two Red Shoes came highly recommended. I kid you not I emailed her and asked for a miracle. She responded instantly, asked me for x, y & z which of course I had at hand, and within 24 hours she was sitting at my kitchen table working towards my miracle. We tried everything to get my own bank to budge, we even went straight to the valuer, but they weren't in the business of handing out miracles so our broker went to work.
Rebecca gave us options, we picked one, a second valuation was arranged and I walked on egg shells for a couple of days. Rebecca did her thing and our miracle was delivered. We had a new valuation which came in higher than we needed (go figure), we had a new bank ~ who didn't even blink at the fact I was in a new job, and most importantly we had our dream again.
And here we are 6 months later building our dream home.
It is only fitting that I share Rebecca's details with anyone who reads this blog. I am a true believer of word of mouth and Rebecca's company 'Two Red Shoes' deserves the praises that I'm singing.
If you, or anyone you know is in need of a Mortgage Broker who listens, understands, and is in the business of helping you achieve your goals, I cannot recommend Rebecca highly enough.
Give her a call. I know I'll be forever grateful that we did.
In my case this dream has been brewing for over 10 years. I put in the hard yards for years, meandered around display villages, wondered what house would fit my family, wondered if we would ever get to a point in our lives to make our dreams come true. I devoured blogs just like this one.
Then the time arrived. FINALLY we could work towards our dream. We visited display homes, we poured over brochures and magazines and crunched numbers and did all the things we were meant to do.
Then right as we were about to put the deposit down I was made redundant. I vaguely remember hearing my husband say to me "Aren't you glad we didn't put that deposit down" and although I smiled and silently agreed in amongst the disappointment, I just couldn't give up the dream. After a few days of feeling sorry for myself I was back in employment - determined. I was temping but I was moving mountains to get a permanent job and I did it, within a week I was employed. I was onto the bank, I had the balls rolling, I managed to secure a verbal go ahead from the bank even though my employment status was still in limbo (I had another 3 weeks to go before I even started the new job) but I wrote to my bank manager and begged (I have no shame). He looked at my employment history and the fact that I'd been unemployed for about 48 hours in my life, he gave us the go ahead. Yes! The dream was still alive.
We were doing it.
Then the valuation came back and my dream was shot to pieces. The valuation was under and miles from where we needed it to be. It was the last straw. I sat looking at the email, sitting at my new desk with my new colleagues surrounding me and internally I cried. All the emotions that I'd held back from the redundancy and the pressures of finding a new job and chasing the dream all came crashing down and I died a little inside. My brain was spinning, it was over.
Then I remembered reading a blog about someone who was building with McDonald Jones and they praised their mortgage broker. I have no idea how I remembered that blog, but I found it.
Rebecca Jarrett-Dalton of Two Red Shoes came highly recommended. I kid you not I emailed her and asked for a miracle. She responded instantly, asked me for x, y & z which of course I had at hand, and within 24 hours she was sitting at my kitchen table working towards my miracle. We tried everything to get my own bank to budge, we even went straight to the valuer, but they weren't in the business of handing out miracles so our broker went to work.
Rebecca gave us options, we picked one, a second valuation was arranged and I walked on egg shells for a couple of days. Rebecca did her thing and our miracle was delivered. We had a new valuation which came in higher than we needed (go figure), we had a new bank ~ who didn't even blink at the fact I was in a new job, and most importantly we had our dream again.
And here we are 6 months later building our dream home.
It is only fitting that I share Rebecca's details with anyone who reads this blog. I am a true believer of word of mouth and Rebecca's company 'Two Red Shoes' deserves the praises that I'm singing.
If you, or anyone you know is in need of a Mortgage Broker who listens, understands, and is in the business of helping you achieve your goals, I cannot recommend Rebecca highly enough.
Give her a call. I know I'll be forever grateful that we did.
Ms Betsy xo
Monday, 30 September 2013
Saturday Slab
The difference a few days can make.
Friday all the prep work was done and dusted...
Saturday saw a lot of activity on the good ol' block. A team of strapping young men turned up with their trucks and tools and got to work ~ good old fashioned style. Rolled up their sleeves, in some cases stripped to the waist and layed a slab.
Yep, as far as slabs go, I think its looking good. The guys worked hard all day and it was hot, they put up with us spectators as we stopped to watch and the kids took photo's. It was all very exciting for us and another day in the office for them, but we are very appreciative of their hard work.
Keep up the great work MDJ.
[apologies for quality of photos, I do have better ones I'll replace them when I get a chance]
Friday all the prep work was done and dusted...
Saturday saw a lot of activity on the good ol' block. A team of strapping young men turned up with their trucks and tools and got to work ~ good old fashioned style. Rolled up their sleeves, in some cases stripped to the waist and layed a slab.
 |
| Working hard.. |
 |
| Love a smooth surface |
 |
| Drop Edge Beam |
Would you look at that Drop Edge Beam, now I have all this soil to get rid of.
 |
| Back View |
 |
| Front View |
Keep up the great work MDJ.
[apologies for quality of photos, I do have better ones I'll replace them when I get a chance]
Saturday, 21 September 2013
On your marks, get set.....
GO....
... and we are off running, or at least I thought we were and then we reduced the pace to a steady walk.
I drove past the block a week past Tuesday and someone had been along and gave it a nice little tidy up, excavated/cut/scraped ~ whatever its called it looked good.
the next day we had a little blue box delivered, okay so it was a rather large blue box, but the less I think about what goes on in there the better..
Shortly after we were introduced to James by email... our trusty slab site manager with great news that plumbers had been arranged for Monday and viola just like that I drove past the block in the early hours of Monday morning and there as promised were 4 strapping lads setting up my site for pipework... oh I love it when a good plan comes together.
We are plumbed!!!
Piering was scheduled for Thursday and then....
so piering was rescheduled.
Friday we became a building site...
... and we are off running, or at least I thought we were and then we reduced the pace to a steady walk.
I drove past the block a week past Tuesday and someone had been along and gave it a nice little tidy up, excavated/cut/scraped ~ whatever its called it looked good.
the next day we had a little blue box delivered, okay so it was a rather large blue box, but the less I think about what goes on in there the better..
 |
| Thank god I don't have to clean it... |
Shortly after we were introduced to James by email... our trusty slab site manager with great news that plumbers had been arranged for Monday and viola just like that I drove past the block in the early hours of Monday morning and there as promised were 4 strapping lads setting up my site for pipework... oh I love it when a good plan comes together.
We are plumbed!!!
Piering was scheduled for Thursday and then....
IT POURED :-(
so piering was rescheduled.
Friday we became a building site...
and finally all my anxiety disappeared.
Of course I'm still excited and checking up on what is happening, but I am no longer stressing or anxiously counting the minutes. Now that things have started and the ball is rolling, I've relaxed. I'm quite happy to let McDonald Jones do their thing.
Meanwhile, I've started looking out for furniture and lots of nice things to make a house a home... watch this space.
Monday, 9 September 2013
Display home.... medicine for the soul
Nothing to report but I thought I'd pop by and say Hi...
I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately and the added stress of waiting for something to happen with the house hasn't been helping. I suggested a visit to the show home over the weekend and off we trotted.
I am so happy we did this. It is amazing how much your mind can play tricks on you. It has been such a long time since we have visited the display home, in all honesty I had forgotten how great it was. I am very excited again to see the start of the home being built, the reminder of how great it is and how much I'm looking forward to living in it was very welcome.
Everything seemed so big. Kitchen felt huge, living areas felt amazing ~ space, space, space... I cannot wait to be living in a house with some space, instead of us all tripping over each other all of the time.
I especially cannot wait to give my girls a bedroom of their own. The girl's have been sharing a room since they were born, but they are ready to have their own space. They are completely different from each other, it will be interesting to see how having their own spaces will develop them, and how their individual characters will shape the decor of their rooms...
CANNOT WAIT ~ bring it on...
I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately and the added stress of waiting for something to happen with the house hasn't been helping. I suggested a visit to the show home over the weekend and off we trotted.
I am so happy we did this. It is amazing how much your mind can play tricks on you. It has been such a long time since we have visited the display home, in all honesty I had forgotten how great it was. I am very excited again to see the start of the home being built, the reminder of how great it is and how much I'm looking forward to living in it was very welcome.
Everything seemed so big. Kitchen felt huge, living areas felt amazing ~ space, space, space... I cannot wait to be living in a house with some space, instead of us all tripping over each other all of the time.
I especially cannot wait to give my girls a bedroom of their own. The girl's have been sharing a room since they were born, but they are ready to have their own space. They are completely different from each other, it will be interesting to see how having their own spaces will develop them, and how their individual characters will shape the decor of their rooms...
CANNOT WAIT ~ bring it on...
Saturday, 24 August 2013
Little bits of red wood...
I've been driving by my lot of land every day and yesterday morning I decided to give it a miss.
Last night I went to see a late movie with my son - Mortal Instruments, City of Bones. Go see it, its great - seriously... but I recommend you read the books first. That is how my kid earns movies. If he's read the book he gets the ticket..
Anyway I'm getting off topic.
On the way to the movies I decided to drive by the lot - IN THE PITCH DARK!
And of course we have progress... well a little bit.
What are those 4 little bits of wood on each corner of my lot?... here's one.
Yes I know, how exciting can a little stick of red wood be?
Now I've had over 3,000 visitors to this site, and a warm welcome to my readers from America and Russia - but can anyone tell me what these little red bits of wood are for?
I have them on each corner of the lot. Someone please enlighten me?
Last night I went to see a late movie with my son - Mortal Instruments, City of Bones. Go see it, its great - seriously... but I recommend you read the books first. That is how my kid earns movies. If he's read the book he gets the ticket..
Anyway I'm getting off topic.
On the way to the movies I decided to drive by the lot - IN THE PITCH DARK!
And of course we have progress... well a little bit.
What are those 4 little bits of wood on each corner of my lot?... here's one.
Yes I know, how exciting can a little stick of red wood be?
Now I've had over 3,000 visitors to this site, and a warm welcome to my readers from America and Russia - but can anyone tell me what these little red bits of wood are for?
I have them on each corner of the lot. Someone please enlighten me?
Friday, 16 August 2013
We are on the...
Let the countdown begin... 20 days, 20 days, 20 days....
when the words...
"Construction will commence within 20 days" graced the screen of my phone, I didn't know whether to cry with relief or scream with joy.... screaming with joy won, I think my boss thought I was a maniac (of course I get this news while I'm at work).
Finally the big looooooong wait is over, the next 20 days is going to kill me but at least now I have a timeline to move towards.
I am so excited. I can start to look forward instead of wondering when, were, and how long..
Saturday, 3 August 2013
That hole in the wall that you put your fridge in...
Okay its been a few weeks.... imagine how long that feels to me!
BUT...
...we finally got it. Building approval is through. Now we are waiting on a construction certificate and then once that is granted McDJ has the pleasure of 20 days to start doing 'something'.
I'm told that as soon as they step foot on my property that that is day 1... you can bet your bottom dollar I will be setting up CCTV cameras on my property just so I can mark 'Day 1 of 150' off my calendar {I'm joking ~ seriously}.
I have found myself in procrastination mode due to the whole council delay, so just to pass time, I pulled up my plans on the computer one day and started to look over them.
I spotted a few anomalies... and panicked. So without further ado, here is something else to note when building your house.
That hole in the wall that you put your fridge in...
If you have increased the height of your doors throughout, and your fridge space is next to your pantry door, please remember and check that the fridge space height has also increased. I did not even think about this, until it jumped out at me on the screen.
Secondly if you are putting a cupboard above your fridge within your fridge space and you are making it into a wine rack, please remember that if you have increased your fridge space height that you can increase your cupboard height too giving you three rows of wine instead of two. Again, I just 'assumed' {there is that word you should never use in building) that this would automatically happen. It didn't.
However all is good in my little world again. My trusty CLO got to work and fixed up everything and 24 hours later I was smiling again... I 'heart' McDJ.
BUT...
...we finally got it. Building approval is through. Now we are waiting on a construction certificate and then once that is granted McDJ has the pleasure of 20 days to start doing 'something'.
I'm told that as soon as they step foot on my property that that is day 1... you can bet your bottom dollar I will be setting up CCTV cameras on my property just so I can mark 'Day 1 of 150' off my calendar {
I have found myself in procrastination mode due to the whole council delay, so just to pass time, I pulled up my plans on the computer one day and started to look over them.
I spotted a few anomalies... and panicked. So without further ado, here is something else to note when building your house.
That hole in the wall that you put your fridge in...
If you have increased the height of your doors throughout, and your fridge space is next to your pantry door, please remember and check that the fridge space height has also increased. I did not even think about this, until it jumped out at me on the screen.
Secondly if you are putting a cupboard above your fridge within your fridge space and you are making it into a wine rack, please remember that if you have increased your fridge space height that you can increase your cupboard height too giving you three rows of wine instead of two. Again, I just 'assumed' {there is that word you should never use in building) that this would automatically happen. It didn't.
However all is good in my little world again. My trusty CLO got to work and fixed up everything and 24 hours later I was smiling again... I 'heart' McDJ.
Thursday, 18 July 2013
Nothing is happening ~ Nada ~ Zilch ~ Not a god damned thing...
We are still here, still waiting... and...waiting...and...waiting...
This building game is really a test of your will. We obtained 'verbal' building approval over 10 days ago, but verbal means nothing until its in writing and ~ you guessed it, we are waiting for the paperwork.
It's killing me. I'm probably killing my husband with my incessant nagging about chasing up the documents, but what can I do, I don't do the whole waiting thing very well.
There is a McDJ house being built a stone throw away from me, I've been stalking their build, watching and wishing it was mine and trying to tell myself that I just have to hang in there, that eventually it will be mine. EVENTUALLY {did I mention I don't do waiting very well...}
I have nothing to share I'm afraid. Not regarding the build anyway, this is the down period, but I was checking out the blog and I noticed that I've had over 2500 visitors, I thought I should write something, even if its just to say ~ Thanks for popping your head in and checking things out!
I really really want to give you updates but its pointless taking photo's of a block of land.
If anyone has any questions on what the process has been so far or would like to stick their head out of internet land and just say hi... post a comment or a question below, I'd love to answer something {keep me occupied before I go up to council and write the approval myself}.
Betsy xo
This building game is really a test of your will. We obtained 'verbal' building approval over 10 days ago, but verbal means nothing until its in writing and ~ you guessed it, we are waiting for the paperwork.
It's killing me. I'm probably killing my husband with my incessant nagging about chasing up the documents, but what can I do, I don't do the whole waiting thing very well.
There is a McDJ house being built a stone throw away from me, I've been stalking their build, watching and wishing it was mine and trying to tell myself that I just have to hang in there, that eventually it will be mine. EVENTUALLY {did I mention I don't do waiting very well...}
I have nothing to share I'm afraid. Not regarding the build anyway, this is the down period, but I was checking out the blog and I noticed that I've had over 2500 visitors, I thought I should write something, even if its just to say ~ Thanks for popping your head in and checking things out!
I really really want to give you updates but its pointless taking photo's of a block of land.
If anyone has any questions on what the process has been so far or would like to stick their head out of internet land and just say hi... post a comment or a question below, I'd love to answer something {keep me occupied before I go up to council and write the approval myself}.
Betsy xo
Saturday, 29 June 2013
WARNING: Whinge fest ahead...
Yes, I'm pissed off ~ and that is putting it mildy.
No I'm not pissed off with McDonald Jones they are safe from my rantings.
I'm pisssed off with the whole process.... it is so bloody time consuming. We are still waiting for building approval from the council, so I won't be sharing any nice photo's of tradies putting up frames or starting bricks for a long time yet. I'm currently residing in a shitty rental property - no offence to the owner but its shit and he knows it, but it was cheap and I figured I'd only be in it for 6 months, but seeing as we are heading towards nearly 2 months and we haven't even handed over to McDJ yet, I'm guessing my 6 month deadline is out of the window. I have cabin fever - living in the shitty rental with 3 kids and a dog and its too wet to kick them outside... OMG.
I'm blaming the weather, it has rained consistently for forever {well it feels that way} everything is damp and its impossible to dry anything and my block of land looks like a mud wrestling venue ~ the only thing missing is hot ladies in skimpy bikinis, mmmm now there's a money making idea :-)
Council gave us a modification so its back to the builder, then back to council and again they will probably take their sweet time about finishing the process. Its just frustrating me no end.
To take my mind off of the delay I went window shopping (read internet shopping) for things we need for the new house, well that was a trip to depression lane if ever there was one... I need to find myself a millionaire, win lotto, or both. The End Of Financial Year sales are also depressing me. I keep seeing all of these amazing things and I think "Ooooh I should buy that its a bargain" but I can't because I told myself I wasn't purchasing anything until the house was up so I could get a feel for the place.
Anyone else living in frustration?
Have a whinge here? I'll listen to you!
No I'm not pissed off with McDonald Jones they are safe from my rantings.
I'm pisssed off with the whole process.... it is so bloody time consuming. We are still waiting for building approval from the council, so I won't be sharing any nice photo's of tradies putting up frames or starting bricks for a long time yet. I'm currently residing in a shitty rental property - no offence to the owner but its shit and he knows it, but it was cheap and I figured I'd only be in it for 6 months, but seeing as we are heading towards nearly 2 months and we haven't even handed over to McDJ yet, I'm guessing my 6 month deadline is out of the window. I have cabin fever - living in the shitty rental with 3 kids and a dog and its too wet to kick them outside... OMG.
I'm blaming the weather, it has rained consistently for forever {well it feels that way} everything is damp and its impossible to dry anything and my block of land looks like a mud wrestling venue ~ the only thing missing is hot ladies in skimpy bikinis, mmmm now there's a money making idea :-)
Council gave us a modification so its back to the builder, then back to council and again they will probably take their sweet time about finishing the process. Its just frustrating me no end.
To take my mind off of the delay I went window shopping (read internet shopping) for things we need for the new house, well that was a trip to depression lane if ever there was one... I need to find myself a millionaire, win lotto, or both. The End Of Financial Year sales are also depressing me. I keep seeing all of these amazing things and I think "Ooooh I should buy that its a bargain" but I can't because I told myself I wasn't purchasing anything until the house was up so I could get a feel for the place.
Anyone else living in frustration?
Have a whinge here? I'll listen to you!
Tuesday, 25 June 2013
I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down...
I started a blog about how nothing was happening and that I was starting to get very restless when I received an email from my hubby with this...
Until we were left with this...
Its kind of weird. I felt a little bit out of sorts when I first saw this picture (I was at work and getting updates by email) but after I slept on it I realised a home is really just bricks and mortar or in my case, weatherboard, wood and windows. The memories and the family is what makes it a home. Yes my house has gone but the memories are still with me.
As I move onto this new chapter of our life, I'm very excited to actually see some bricks and mortar. Now my only hurdle is council approval... fingers crossed it happens sometime soon.
 |
| It was coming down... |
Until we were left with this...
Its kind of weird. I felt a little bit out of sorts when I first saw this picture (I was at work and getting updates by email) but after I slept on it I realised a home is really just bricks and mortar or in my case, weatherboard, wood and windows. The memories and the family is what makes it a home. Yes my house has gone but the memories are still with me.
As I move onto this new chapter of our life, I'm very excited to actually see some bricks and mortar. Now my only hurdle is council approval... fingers crossed it happens sometime soon.
Saturday, 25 May 2013
I love you.... but I hate you.
Today we are moving out of our home. It has been my home for 12 years.
I didn't think I would feel anything but as the demolition day approaches I have an urge to protect my home ~ my heart is screaming 'cancel the demo', my brain is reminding me of all the reasons why I'm doing this.
I love you because you are our first home.
I hate you because you are beyond repair.
I love you because I brought my babies home to you.
I hate you because we have outgrown you.
I love you because my memories are engraved in every part of you.
I hate you because at times you are the reason for my desperation.
I love you because you are home.
I hate you because you allow mold to live within your walls {and even though I've tried everything to eradicate it, you keep allowing it to come back}.
I love you in Summer.
I hate you in Winter.
So, even though I have a love/hate relationship with you, my heart will still crack a little and no doubt a tear will fall when the walls come down, you have held our family, stored our memories, and tried to keep us safe, you're just too old to keep us healthy, we can't keep fixing you. You served us well, and you will forever live on within the walls of our new home.
Farewell wee cottage!
I didn't think I would feel anything but as the demolition day approaches I have an urge to protect my home ~ my heart is screaming 'cancel the demo', my brain is reminding me of all the reasons why I'm doing this.
I love you because you are our first home.
I hate you because you are beyond repair.
I love you because I brought my babies home to you.
I hate you because we have outgrown you.
I love you because my memories are engraved in every part of you.
I hate you because at times you are the reason for my desperation.
I love you because you are home.
I hate you because you allow mold to live within your walls {and even though I've tried everything to eradicate it, you keep allowing it to come back}.
I love you in Summer.
I hate you in Winter.
So, even though I have a love/hate relationship with you, my heart will still crack a little and no doubt a tear will fall when the walls come down, you have held our family, stored our memories, and tried to keep us safe, you're just too old to keep us healthy, we can't keep fixing you. You served us well, and you will forever live on within the walls of our new home.
Farewell wee cottage!
Monday, 20 May 2013
Let there be light....
And fans and power points and data points and tv points and
the list goes on and on and on....
We had our electrical appointment the other day and as usual
anything to do with spending the day at McDonald Jones Colour Studio and
spending money makes me a little bit giddy with excitement, they really should
have a public health warning for that place.
All jokes aside, we had a good day and I'm very happy with
our choices ~ although we are still tweaking a few media options.
There really isn't anything exciting that I can tell you
about an electrical appointment, I mean how exciting are power points and light
switches?
We didn't buy anything luxurious, it was a NO to the intercom
options, NO to the ducted vacuum, NO to the under floor heating (although I
have to say, it was priced quite reasonably, just not required for us.)
I did get myself some ceiling speakers, but that really was
my only luxury – the rest we considered a necessity.
I upgraded a couple of items, most of my switches/power
points I made slimline. I put fancy ancy
ones in the kitchen to blend in with the decor.
I upgraded the control panel for the alarm to a touchpad one, the other
one had a pull down cover and with 3 kids it would only be a matter of time
before the cover was snapped off.
I have to say I found the electrical appointment a little bit
tougher than the colour selection and the fact that we are still pondering over
it {late at night} confirms that.
However all that being said and done, I'm excited to see the end of the
preparation work....
Now – LETS BUILD THIS BUGGER!!!
Wednesday, 1 May 2013
Dreams are coming true...
First things first - We did it... We signed our contract!!! ***applause***
We also signed off on our Landscaping Plan and I'm really pleased with it, we will more than likely tweek it here and there when the time comes but mostly we will stick to the plan and this will give us a good foundation to build on in years to come...
..AND
We found a rental property ~ I think this little project is starting to come together quite nicely ~ Okay remind me I said that when I'm in the middle of moving out of my existing home, I'm not sure I'll be quite so 'chirpy' about the whole situation.
In other news...
Just incase this whole interiors thing isn't quite your thing or you don't spend all your time reading interiors and lifestyle blogs "POTTERY BARN, WEST ELM & WILLIAMS SONOMO OPENED IN AUSTRALIA TODAY" seriously, how could you not know that!!!. If I happen to have any American readers then I forgive you for not understanding how monumental a moment this is for me.... no more browsing the net and wishing I could get this or that... okay so I'll still be wishing because I won't actually have any money to buy anything, but at least now I can touch it - right!!! {if your an interiors person you know what I'm talking about...}.
Unfortunatley I'm a bit pissed that I'm sitting my butt at work right now instead of plodding off to Bondi Junction to have a squizz ~ common sense prevails and I will continue to live in wonder for a few weeks until all the hype has died down and I can go for a browse without having to fight an army of people to get throught the doors {Yes that will be the day I surrender my credit card to my other half,possibly NOT}
Target & Woolies..
Whilst I was out browsing yesterday I noticed that Target and Woolworths (yep the supermarket) are putting on some lovely bowls and plates and fast becoming contenders in the 'cheap and still lovely' category.. as much as I love the owls, they aren't taking up residence with me anytime soon but they are still nice to look at - but I'm having a little bit of a love affair with the black and red.
I had my troops with me {aka children ALL THREE OF THEM} and my patience was shot by the time I was in Woolworths so no pic was taken from there - but trust me they are worth a looksy!
What's your favourite homewares shop?
Miss Betsy xo
We also signed off on our Landscaping Plan and I'm really pleased with it, we will more than likely tweek it here and there when the time comes but mostly we will stick to the plan and this will give us a good foundation to build on in years to come...
..AND
We found a rental property ~ I think this little project is starting to come together quite nicely ~ Okay remind me I said that when I'm in the middle of moving out of my existing home, I'm not sure I'll be quite so 'chirpy' about the whole situation.
In other news...
Just incase this whole interiors thing isn't quite your thing or you don't spend all your time reading interiors and lifestyle blogs "POTTERY BARN, WEST ELM & WILLIAMS SONOMO OPENED IN AUSTRALIA TODAY" seriously, how could you not know that!!!. If I happen to have any American readers then I forgive you for not understanding how monumental a moment this is for me.... no more browsing the net and wishing I could get this or that... okay so I'll still be wishing because I won't actually have any money to buy anything, but at least now I can touch it - right!!! {if your an interiors person you know what I'm talking about...}.
 |
| Swoon - how could you not... kudos to organised housewife for the pic updates |
Unfortunatley I'm a bit pissed that I'm sitting my butt at work right now instead of plodding off to Bondi Junction to have a squizz ~ common sense prevails and I will continue to live in wonder for a few weeks until all the hype has died down and I can go for a browse without having to fight an army of people to get throught the doors {Yes that will be the day I surrender my credit card to my other half,
Target & Woolies..
Whilst I was out browsing yesterday I noticed that Target and Woolworths (yep the supermarket) are putting on some lovely bowls and plates and fast becoming contenders in the 'cheap and still lovely' category.. as much as I love the owls, they aren't taking up residence with me anytime soon but they are still nice to look at - but I'm having a little bit of a love affair with the black and red.
I had my troops with me {aka children ALL THREE OF THEM} and my patience was shot by the time I was in Woolworths so no pic was taken from there - but trust me they are worth a looksy!
What's your favourite homewares shop?
Miss Betsy xo
Wednesday, 24 April 2013
Finally...
Contract has arrived!
I'm in my sick bed!
Now to go through it with a fine tooth comb - mistakes where are you?
I'm in my sick bed!
Now to go through it with a fine tooth comb - mistakes where are you?
Sunday, 31 March 2013
I got a bin...
Sorry I've been AWOL, life is fairly hectic around here.
We finally did our colour selections - I was dreading the day soooo much - BUT - I loved it.
Our Colour Consultant/Interior Designer was F A B U L O U S... I had 100% confidence in her and took great advantage of her experience and expertise.
Word of advice to anyone heading into their colour selections, if there is a slight possibility that you will be doing your own flooring - take a sample of your tile/floor boards/carpet ~ whatever, with you. We had chosen a tile that we liked if we didn't end up liking what MCDJ had, and we took that with us 'just incase'.
Thank god we did because we decided to go with that tile and the rest of our selections was built up from that. We actually took two tiles and sat them side by side, as the rest of our colours started to come together we could see exactly which one of the two tiles we had to go with (and surprise surprise it wasn't the one I thought we would go for). I found myself in this situation a couple of times, some items that I had my heart set on, once I teamed it with something else, it brought out different tones and colours and I had to change them. With that in mind, I would say as a word of advice ~ don't get stubborn when it comes to your choices, be open to change, listen to the designers and really consider the options, some you may genuinely hate but I found a lot of her suggestions made sense and really brought the whole design together.
So what did we do?
Well you can see our colours under the colour selection tab here but in addition to colours we had a few upgrades ~ here is what we upgraded.
General
We finally did our colour selections - I was dreading the day soooo much - BUT - I loved it.
Our Colour Consultant/Interior Designer was F A B U L O U S... I had 100% confidence in her and took great advantage of her experience and expertise.
Word of advice to anyone heading into their colour selections, if there is a slight possibility that you will be doing your own flooring - take a sample of your tile/floor boards/carpet ~ whatever, with you. We had chosen a tile that we liked if we didn't end up liking what MCDJ had, and we took that with us 'just incase'.
Thank god we did because we decided to go with that tile and the rest of our selections was built up from that. We actually took two tiles and sat them side by side, as the rest of our colours started to come together we could see exactly which one of the two tiles we had to go with (and surprise surprise it wasn't the one I thought we would go for). I found myself in this situation a couple of times, some items that I had my heart set on, once I teamed it with something else, it brought out different tones and colours and I had to change them. With that in mind, I would say as a word of advice ~ don't get stubborn when it comes to your choices, be open to change, listen to the designers and really consider the options, some you may genuinely hate but I found a lot of her suggestions made sense and really brought the whole design together.
So what did we do?
Well you can see our colours under the colour selection tab here but in addition to colours we had a few upgrades ~ here is what we upgraded.
General
- Door handles, we upgraded all the internal door handles;
- Deadlocks - they are a necessary evil;
- Front Door - bigger & wider;
- Laundry Door - I put a venetian door in the laundry;
- We upgraded the internal garage door to an external grade door;
- Porcelain tiles to all wet areas;
- Fly screens and doors to whole house (I'm considering deleting this and doing it after handover);
- Airconditioner - upgraded to Actron 4 zone.
Kitchen
- 2 x drawer banks on either side of cooker;
- Range hood vented externally;
- Soft close drawers and doors;
- Overhead cupboard finishes (silk finish)
- Pantry doors - Lin 1 doors;
- Pantry door handles;
- Stone bench top to 40mm;
- Upgraded the glass splashback to a higher grade glass splashback;
- Underbench fitted bin - yeahhhhhh I GOT A BIN (you have no idea how amazing this is, after years of plastic bag bins hanging off cupboard door)
Media Room
- Lin 1 cavity doors to entrance;
Laundry Room
- I fully fitted out the laundry room in a design of my own.
Family Room
- Added an extra shelf in all the kids wardrobes (we have 2.7m ceilings so there was plenty of space above the shelving for an additional shelf).
Ensuite/Bathroom
- We changed the sinks in all the bathrooms and we changed the tapware;
- Added pop up plugs to all the sinks;
- Upgraded the shower surround to silver;
- Upgraded the actual shower head thingy (yes that is the technical term);
- Added a bank of drawers to the vanity in the ensuite;
- Added a second sink to the bathroom (for the kids)
- Put in shower recesses to both showers
In addition to the selections on the day we also increased the heights of all of our internal doors and stacker doors to the higher doors as we have the 2.7m ceiling and we deleted the drop ceiling to the kitchen area...
... and I think that was it.
Bring on the electrical appointment!
Did anyone else love the colour appointment as much as I did?
Sunday, 24 February 2013
You had me at....
So where are we with regard to the build...? We are in no mans land. We have done everything we can to this point and we are now on hold until the Bank decide to join the party. Don't you just love waiting on the Bank.
In the meantime....
I've been keeping myself busy
I've been having a little cushion party to myself today... wanna see
 |
| all pics courtesy of Etsy |
Anyone else have to suffer with a slow bank?
Saturday, 23 February 2013
The most important room...
If you are a man and reading this then I apologise, I am NOT referring to the Media Room {sorry but my husband will likely post on that topic in the near future}.
They say the kitchen is the most important room in the home - all I know is that so far it's been the biggest headache of the home so far.
Colour is my biggest issue. I've always wanted a white kitchen, but after analysing other colour choices, namely the floor, I'm not sure a white kitchen will work.
Here is what I'm contemplating...
Can you see where my thought process is heading with this? Mixing up a little of the dark browns with the white benchtops and possibly throwing in a couple of white cupboards {not sure about that yet}.
Another headache is the lovely build in bin idea - YES! I have lived with plastic bag bins for years so you have no idea how exciting this prospect is ~ however nothing ever seems to be easy when it comes to my choices. The only area on my island I can put it, is where the microwave is currently positoned to be built in. This means I need to move my microwave. The only place I can think to move it to is inside the pantry - anyone have any thoughts on that? Not sure I like that idea.
They say the kitchen is the most important room in the home - all I know is that so far it's been the biggest headache of the home so far.
Colour is my biggest issue. I've always wanted a white kitchen, but after analysing other colour choices, namely the floor, I'm not sure a white kitchen will work.
Here is what I'm contemplating...
Can you see where my thought process is heading with this? Mixing up a little of the dark browns with the white benchtops and possibly throwing in a couple of white cupboards {not sure about that yet}.
Another headache is the lovely build in bin idea - YES! I have lived with plastic bag bins for years so you have no idea how exciting this prospect is ~ however nothing ever seems to be easy when it comes to my choices. The only area on my island I can put it, is where the microwave is currently positoned to be built in. This means I need to move my microwave. The only place I can think to move it to is inside the pantry - anyone have any thoughts on that? Not sure I like that idea.
All input welcome - post me your thoughts below :-)
Tuesday, 5 February 2013
Pre - decor decisions... ahhhh
It's been a crazy few weeks and to be honest I've kind of put the house on the back burner. Don't get me wrong its still buzzing away there at the back of my mind, mostly to do with the kitchen and my indecisiveness over what colour I want and how many drawer banks etc, etc.. {Just incase your wondering I'm still undecided}.
Obtaining quotes for tiling & carpets and 'thinking' about obtaining quotes for driveways and landscaping, sometimes its just easier to live on pinterest and houzz and keep dreaming - making the dream a reality can really be a right pain in the a**e.. I'm beginning to see the value in Interior Designers.
However the only interior designers I have access to come in the form of magazines, and the internet so I will continue with the dream until I have some progress to report with the build.
Obtaining quotes for tiling & carpets and 'thinking' about obtaining quotes for driveways and landscaping, sometimes its just easier to live on pinterest and houzz and keep dreaming - making the dream a reality can really be a right pain in the a**e.. I'm beginning to see the value in Interior Designers.
However the only interior designers I have access to come in the form of magazines, and the internet so I will continue with the dream until I have some progress to report with the build.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)