Wednesday 19 December 2018

Now for the finishing touches


Well, the kitchen and bathroom renovations are finished apart from painting over a few scratches which were made when the cabinet makers had to come back and add something to the cabinets so that they went right to the wall as the painters couldn't get into the little space. The blinds were put up yesterday which was very timely as the kitchen faces the west and we are expecting 36C on Friday.

 

 Also yesterday the three aircon units were connected up so we have those to use when the heat really gets too bad for the oldies :-)

In this post I want to record the colours we used for the kitchen for future reference. I first saw the green tiles in Wendy's blog post My New Kitchen . I fell in love with them and looked high and low for something similar. The closest I could find were Johnson's Crisp Apple Gloss which aren't quite as dark as they look in the above photo as I used the 'foliage' setting. Seeing as these tiles are on three walls we went with a light colour for the cabinets which is 'Antique Wiluna White' with a gloss finish and 'Sand Pebble Natural Finish' for the bench.



The light green on the walls is 'Whipcord Green' from the Taubman's White and Neutrals range and the ceiling and window trims are an off white which I will have to ask the painter about regarding the colour. The green walls change colour depending on the time of day and we probably should have left it at half strength but when the painter was first putting it on the walls it just looked white although he did say it would get darker once it dried but I said just go to full strength. Anyhow it looks okay.



I realised that you learn a lot when doing renovations the first time.  I was out when the windows were being painted and when I came home noticed that the inside of the window now looked a bit shabby as the windows would have had to be removed to paint the inside section which would have been a huge job. We also had security windows installed and then I realised I should have cleaned the outside of the windows beforehand. Oops!




Some sections like this coffee nook are a work in progress while I decide what to put on the shelf under the cabinets.


Another work in progress is the pantry while I sort out how I want to store everything. While I would love to have all the bottles with pretty matching labels I know it is not going to happen in this household so have just written on the tops for the moment until I get more organised.




Another work in progress....what to put on these open shelves just inside the doorway.

 

The cabinets are quite high so I won't be able to reach the clock above them anymore to change the battery so at present it is perched on one of the shelves until I find one that will stand up.




The planks which everybody loves and so do I as they don't show the dirt...ha ha...are 'Chic Chevron' from the Imagine Masterpieces 'FAUS' range which are quite new apparently. They were the only ones the CEO liked so who was I to argue :-) I like anything that doesn't show the dirt.

 

A mistake we made was to order brown security windows for the whole house to match the front door which was already in place. As the CEO wanted to keep the old push out timber windows rather than replace them with aluminium ones, the screen had to go on the inside and the brown just looks dreadful so I am going to have it replaced with white. The blinds were installed in there yesterday as well so now it feels more comfortable having a shower rather than having to drape a towel over the windows :-)


The shower is really small but is designed so that we don't have a glass door or need a shower curtain. I used to keep my soap on a 'shower caddy' of sorts which hung from a hook in our old bathroom. There are no hooks in the new one and there really is nowhere to hang it so I am on the lookout for trays to put my handmade soap on so that it isn't sitting in water. We have some old plastic ones in use at present until I find something more suitable. If you intend to make your own soap you have to make sure it doesn't sit in water or else it will get soft as it doesn't have the preservatives in it that bought soap does.




As the bathroom is so small it was difficult to find room to put up towel racks so we had to compromise with a couple of hooks as well to hand towels on. The builder was able to fit in a rack for a towel and one for the bathmat. Just as well we are now empty nesters.



One of the CEO's friends twisted his arm to change all the doors so we now have a green front door which I love. However, this is the colour it was when it was picked up from Bunnings and is yet to be painted. Sob sob! I am wishing now that we had chosen green trims rather than dark blue as then I could have a green door. LOL!

The painter will be back at some stage to finish off the painting and then we will have a break from renovations and tradies being around. It has been very stressful especially on the days when there were a lot of different tradies in the house and the noise from the powertools was unbelievable. We are going to have some work done on the laundry next year and once that is done the floorcoverings in the back section of the house can be laid finally as they needed to be done years ago. After that, we will just put up with the paint peeling off in some of the rooms in the rest of the house until we have recovered. They haven't been painted for thirty years or so but we can't rush these things  :-)


34 comments:

  1. Oh, everything is so beautiful, Chel. How exciting to have a new kitchen and a bathroom.
    I love those shelves under the cupboards. They are very useful.

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    1. Yes a friend had those shelves so I added that to the list for the cabinet maker.

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  2. It's all looking lovely, Chel. I adore your apple green tiles!! Won't that air con be such a blessing in the heat come Friday, you'll be nice and cool at home. Meg🙂

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    1. Meg it is betting hot already and the fans are keeping the house cool so far thank goodness. I am not looking forward to the electricity bill when we start using the aircon.

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  3. So wonderful to see it all being done. I love the apple green!

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    1. Thanks so much. I hope your renos are finished soon too. It is worth all the disruption and noise in the long run.

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  4. wow so many decisions to be made, and I am so glad it is all done in time for Christmas, hope you can put your feet up and relax!

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  5. Christmas will be quiet for us as there will be no patter of little feet around here unfortunately as the family holidays up north over the break. Maybe next year they will make the trek down south.

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  6. It looks great Chel! What to do with the soap is always hard. When we did our bathroom I bought a beautiful wall-mounted soap tray and loo-roll holder to match all the tapware and fixtures but when it came down to it, I loved the new steamlined finish, couldn't decide where they should go and, more importantly, I couldn't bear to drill into the new tiles! The soap lives in a dish on the window ledge in the shower (yes, I have to constantly monitor the wetness of the soap) and the paper sits on a ledge by the loo, and the fancy fixtures are living in a box!

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    1. Ha ha that's funny :-) Keeping the soap as dry as possible is always a challenge. However I don't want to out any hooks into the tiles to hang my old soap/shampoo holder up. Like you I like the streamlined look.

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  7. Loving the apple green tiles Chel. It's great having a pop of color that's pleasant on the eye. Enjoy.

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  8. It all looks wonderful, Chel!

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    1. Thanks Maria. Everyone assured me it would be worth the disruption.

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  9. love the green tiles! looks so fresh! won't know yourself with so many shelves now!
    looking great!
    have a merry christmas & a happy & safe new year
    thanx for sharing

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    1. Selina I still have a few empty shelves as I culled quite a few unused items before the renos started.

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  10. Lovely to see your renovations. I was discussing potential changes to my kitchen and bathroom with our builder yesterday. We are trying to bring things into the modern era while doing minimal changes ... I am not up to the cost or disruption of a full reno or the challenge of choosing fixtures, colours, tiles etc. Lucky you, that is now all in the past for you and it is time to enjoy.

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    1. Fortunately my hubby was given the money for the renos after his Dad died. His Dad would have been pleased they finally got done I am sure.

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  11. It's all looking super Chel, and that green is so fresh. Like your bathroom tiles too. It's Friday and hot, so I wonder if you have your air con on? I've had a painter and tiler in the last 2 weeks, finally finishing the laundry. Still the new benchtop to go, and tiles for the splasback, So I've been having fun looking for something nice and bright. But I agree, it's stressful having the tradies aruound and I still have to put everything back that's piled in the lounge room!

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    1. We had storms here after the dreadful heat, Nanette. We had no damage but other areas did and a couple of houses in thr SE lost their roofs. More storms tomorrow before it cools down for Christmas.

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  12. Nana Chel,
    The Place is looking great! The new air con will come in handy with these hot days we have been having.
    I wish you and yours a Happy Christmas and safe new year.
    -Shiralee.

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    1. Happy Christmas to you too, Shiralee. Hopefully we won't have another really hot day for a few weeks now.

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  13. Spiffy! :) It will make cleaning and organising a lot easier. If it were me, I'd want to swap out that hook near the bathroom sink, with a small hand rail. It would hold the hand-towel off the sink. You don't have to buy a full towel rail for a towel. It's called a hand-rail for hand towels. I'm surprised the builders didn't off it as an option. Other than that, I think your reno was a complete success! Love all the colour you chose, and the flooring. :)

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  14. Chris,I am not fond of those hooks at all but there wasn't enough room there for a hand rail unfortunately. The hooks were put on when I was out and I wasn't too impressed when I saw them. The bathroom is so small I am surprised we used to have a bath in it.

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  15. If you take a measurement Chel, and scouted online for towel rails, you'd find an array of different ones in different measurements. I found a suction towel rail that was 40cms at Bunnings, here: https://www.bunnings.com.au/fusion-loc-26kg-40cm-towel-rail-suction-bathroom-accessory_p4822958

    Or if you need smaller, there's a generic brand most cheapie stores stock, possibly even the big box stores (Kmart, Big W, etc) that's around 30cms, here: https://www.lifespace.com.au/towel-rail-300mm-white

    It may be your builders were limited with a set range, with their suppliers. Although I fancy that 30cm towel rail I linked too, may not be in keeping with the rest of your stainless steel fixtures - so maybe why it was not offered too. Not suggesting you have to change, but there are different options if you wanted to. :)

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  16. Thanks Chris. I was just looking at the hook this morning and wondering if we could change it but it is nailed or screwed into the linen cupboard so not sure if the hole could be covered up. We had to buy the towel rails and had had a look around but were concentrating more on where to hang the larger towels due to the lack of space. It doesn't pay to go out when the tradies are working obviously. My hubby probably said to them to just stick the hook somewhere. LOL!

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  17. I have been checking your blog daily waiting to see the finished renos. The green tiles are absolutely gorgeous, I love them, I love anything green! I'm so glad you have airconditioning, you deserve some comfort in the really hot weather! I hope you have a lovely peaceful Christmas! ❤🎄🎁🎉🎅🤶

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    1. Karen we christened the aircon units on Friday when it was 36C. Happy Christmas to you and your family.

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  18. LOL. I guess the easiest option then, would be to alter the hand towel. Fold in half and sew a seam across, creating a 1cm wide pocket at the top. If you can find a small coat hanger with an open end (normally for hanging men's dress pants) then just side it through the pocket, and hang on the hook. See this link for an example of the hanger: https://www.spotlightstores.com/bed/bedroom-storage/clothes-storage/lt-williams-trouser-hanger-eva-coated-5-pack/80137990?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI3ZTX0Ni03wIVwyMrCh2jqAhvEAYYBiABEgK7Q_D_BwE

    I'm kind of OCD when it comes to finding storage solutions in my own home. Because I do the majority of the tidying. ;)

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  19. Thanks for that tip, Chris. I was trying to work out how to adapt the handtowel earlier. It's a pity we can't remove the hook but it is attached to the linen cupboard unfortunately.

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  20. It all looks fantastic .tad jealous.....
    You can have a Happy Cool Christmas this year.
    Xx

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    1. Glad you like it, Judy. It looks like Christmas Day will be under 30C so it will be cool this year thankfully. No need for the aircon :-)

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  21. I am loving your kitchen Chel - all new and slightly green hey! The green tiles are lovely and I agree with you any flooring that doesn't show the dirt is a winning choice.

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    1. Ha ha Sherri, it is a not quite slightly green in the kitchen :-) I do spend some time checking out the flooring to make sure I am not trying to rub off something in the pattern that just looks dirty. In places it looks like some liquid has been spilled on it which throws me a bit. LOL!

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