9th July Update

I'm really sorry everyone. I cannot believe it's been 6 weeks since I posted an update...I'm not sure how that actually happened, but oh well...it did.
So, there has been some progress made over the past 6 weeks...as one would hope and expect!
The oldest progress to mention, I guess, would be the installation of the splashback in the kitchen...I really like it, especially around the window, but I assume everyone has their own opinion...a couple pictures below.

                     

We've also painted the closet in the theatre room...we've managed to completely get rid of the Jarrah-looking floor-to-ceiling closet doors that made the room really dark. It's hard to believe just how long little jobs like that can take...several weekends of priming, painting the framework, and glossing the doors...so glad that's over! Now we're just waiting for the pool ball cabinet knobs that Andy has ordered for his "pool room"!

                      

It's amazing what you can find in the back of the garage once all of the "stuff" in storage starts coming out! Andy took a time-out to re-arrange everything in the garage in order to make some room...unfortunately it wasn't for his project car or a boat or anything cool like that...instead, it was to make more room so we could store some things for a friend. That's ok though... :)

                     

Since I last posted, Andy also recruited some help in the form of one of our good friends, Ben, to help lay tiles in the laundry room. Of course, that first required waterproofing, which is a very smelly job...worse than gloss, I would reckon!

Waterproofing

Tiling

Andy also managed to get the soak wells dug outside the balcony, so that we'd stop making sand pits every time it rained! It has improved the condition of the backyard...if you even want to call it a yard at this stage...it's still just a pile of sand & dirt!

                            

                     

I would have to say, though, that the most progress over the past 6 weeks has been in the kitchenette. We got the flooring installed before the last blog, but that was as far as we'd gotten. We realized that the walls would need a lot of work before we'd be able to even fix a splashback to them, much less to leave them open. So, we spent an entire afternoon at IKEA on a Friday afternoon planning our kitchenette out...and the Saturday morning picking up all of the bits.

Also, I've had a go at plastering. After removing the skirting tile along the floor and the tiles along the backsplash, we realized that the walls needed a lot of work, so I did a bit of experimenting with patching plaster...not an easy job! And geez...sanding back to make it smooth is like sneezing into a pile of flour...it turns the entire room into a cloud of white! But after several weekends of plastering and sanding, we finally got the walls to a relatively acceptable level.

Then Andy was able to start building our IKEA kitchen...

                

 

               

And last but not least...we have, since the last update, moved out of our master bedroom into the main guestroom downstairs to allow for the renovation of our ensuite bathroom and then the painting and carpet installation in our bedroom. The bathroom guys started work last week with the full demolition, and they are due to complete the work early next week...so you'll have to check back for some photos! As part of the renovation, we made a last minute change to incorporate under-floor heating coils into the design...I cannot wait! The tile floor in that bathroom is always so incredibly cold! 

                     

Renovation guys with their mats set up for all of the destruction!

What used to be our bedroom, but has now been turned into a staging area for the bathroom reno!

What will soon be our "Walk-In-Robe" once the carpet & shelving is installed!

                      

An intermediate stage of bathroom renovation...we installed the underfloor heating coils after the demolition and plumbing work was completed...but prior to the screeding...more photos to come next time of the bathroom renovation progress! :)