Wet area tiling

I went and met the tiler on-site yesterday to check the tiles, grout and grates, I'm pretty sure it was what we picked.  The floor tiles are ceramic tiles Fidama Ash 330x330 and the wall tiles are Tempo Ice 330x500 laid horizontal.  Our SS was there as well and gave me an update on what's happening and what's booked in next.  It's great to have a SS that's so on the ball and positive about the build and MJH. 

Today is my birthday, my kids took me for afternoon tea and then we thought we would go and have a sneak peek at the house.  The tiler was still working at 4pm so we got to go and have a look. He had levelled all the floors, I didn't realise what went into tiling the wet areas.  He had tiled the ensuite and just about finished the main bathroom. I got a picture of the ensuite and I really like the tiles and now you can se how big it really is.

The skiting boards and other Lin 1 doors aren't on yet, maybe they are waiting for the tiling to finish now.  All the power points and holes for the lights have been cut out, we are booked in for painting next week, fingers crossed.

I got the plans for the house that is being built on the block behind us, its a MJH of course but not the same as ours and I'm very happy it's single story, not that it's close to us really only 37m away ha ha.  Hoping we will still be able to see the little mountain still from our back doors.  It will be good to have some neighbours even though the boys had decided their block was the cricket pitch and the block next to us is their footy field.

Tiles

We are slowly getting organised. We went and picked out some tiles on Saturday, we choose 3 we liked for inside and 1 for the alfresco area and front porch.  They are 600x600 Porcelain, we picked 2 that were white/cream colour and then a darker one just to see.  The one for outside is really dark to match the woodland grey stacker doors. 

We all picked the one on the right - Beige/Grey Swirl Sandstone Look

600x600 Swirl Lead Rockface Porcelain Tile

 

Kitchen = excitement plus

The kitchen is in!!!!!!!  The kitchen was delivered on Monday and installed on Tuesday and Wednesday, they also put in the 2m laundry cupboard and the 3 vanities.

We went to the house on Tuesday arvo and peeked through the windows and the ensuite vanity was in the main bedroom and its so long, we won't know ourselves with all the storage.  The laundry cupboard was installed and my first impression was yuck!!!!  I didn't like the colours i picked one bit, I was beside myself all night :(. The kitchen was only half done by then.

I sent our SS a txt to ask if we could meet him at 7.30am to have a look on Thursday morning, which we did.  The kitchen was finished (without the bench-tops and splash back) and looks great, thank god we copied off the display home and I didn't pick it haha. I had a good look at the laundry and it wasn't too bad in the end, I wish I had just got white cupboards.  Our vanities are the same colour as the laundry cupboards but with a different top (thank god)!

Kitchen upgrades & colours:

Cupboards - Polytec Createc Cafe Cream

2 banks of drawers with soft closer either side of oven

Benchtop - Essastone Macchiato 40mm

Glass splash back - Half Oilskin

Pantry - 2 Lin1 doors

Handles - they are the same size I was just to lazy to bend down level with the drawers

The laundry cupboard

Doors - malt

Bench-top Expresso Fabrini

The skirting isn't finished yet as they are waiting for a couple of the Lin1 Doors, pantry and powder room, then they should come and finish it all off.  Our garage door isn't on because when they came to do it the poor things got confused because one side of the garage is gyprocked (remember the workshop debacle) and they didn't know how to make it level so now they need to come back, problem solving is obviously not one of their strong points.  But these things aren't holding us up, the can all be there at the same time if need be.

The tilers are booked for Monday and our Ss said they should call me to go meet them and check the colour of the tiles and grout.  

Lock up!!!!!

All locked up!!!  The external doors are on and the front door, the big arse door with the lock I'm not coordinated to use is in.    All the internal doors and wardrobe doors are in including the $$$$ media room doors, I had to look through the back door to see them but they look pretty good.  They seem to only have the architraves to go.   

I went to get carpet samples yesterday, I knew what type of carpet because we only redid our house 2 years ago and it is brilliant, there is not a mark on it and when you vacuum it comes up like new, I just wanted a different shade.  I toyed with the idea of charcoal but its just to dark and cold for me, the lady helped me to pick so here is what I choose;

 I have laid the samples on top of the carpet we got 2 years ago, we all chose the carpet on the left except the kitten he kept on sitting on the darker one ha ha. Feel free to give your thoughts. 

While I was there I found a bed, king size that I quite like although it may be a little over the top!!

And of course I have to have the blanket box and the chaise lounge

I just need to measure and see if it will fit under the bedroom window 

We need to go and order our tiles next, apparently the price of flooring is going up so I want to get them before that happens.

Next week should be the kitchen getting installed, yayyyy!!! 

Little bits & pieces

I went for a look at the house today, I needed some inspiration to get me through the week.  After spending last week living it up in Melbourne and now back at work I need something to keep me going. But I try not to go there more than twice a week otherwise you just end up being disappointed if nothing is done. 

First things I noticed today were the Downpipes were all installed, wow there are so many of them, only one I don't like the position of is the one down the wall of the dreaded workshop, I knew it was going there from the plans but I suppose it doesn't really matter, they had to put it there.  

The downpipes will be painted woodland grey so will blend into the bricks like the windows 

 4 downpipes along the side of the house :)

The cornices are all finished and they look good, very nice job.  I loooovvveee the fancy one in the front entry ......

Front entry

Drop down ceiling in the kitchen 

 Kitchen, Family & Dining (I'm standing in the dining) and the other room is the media room 

And the waterproofing has been done in the bathrooms and laundry

Ensuite

Ensuite shower

Main bathroom, I didn't take one of the powder room but its really not that exciting :)

So that's the progress so far!! The fit out of the doors should be done by the end of the week and then I think our SS said the Kitchen would be in next week and then the tiling, so exciting.......

Our SS threw in the towel

Yesterday I found out our SS had quit!!  I rang his mobile but the head honcho answered instead. It's probably for the best as he was a very unhappy person, I think he lasted 6 weeks in the job, he had nothing positive to say about MJH which was a little weird.  Anyway looks like we get our original SS back until they get someone new, hopefully we will be in by then though. We are away at the moment so I'm really missing the house, buts its good to get away from it a bit.  I'm off to look around Melbourne suburbs tomorrow for some nice things for the house. 

1st big furniture purchase for our house

I finally decided on a dinning table and chairs. I have been looking since we decided to build, I ended up narrowing it down to 2 tables. One we saw at Berry Antiques store at Christmas time, we went back there a few weeks ago to have a look but it was sold, he said he could get us one but had to contact the supplier in Sydney.. The other was from Canalside in Alexandria, we went there last weekend and that's the one I choose, i love it so much.  It's 2.6m long and we picked 8 chairs, 6 cross back and 2 linen chairs (they cost as much as the 6 chairs ha ha).   The order should arrive by October so that works in well with us because we are hoping to be in around then, please MJH :)

The pic doesn't do it justice, the top is parquetry.

6 x Cross Back Chairs in the dark wood

2 x linen chairs, they are so comfortable but your not allowed to sit on them haha!!!

  

We still need to get a new lounge suite and coffee table for the family room, a lounge and slimline entertainment unit for the kids area, and some shelving for the media room. Oh and tiles and carpet, but that's later he he!!

Where there's a will there's a way!!

Great news!!!!!  MJH have come through again and fixed the ducted vacuuming after the gyprock was 95% completed!!! 

So the story goes, my husband told our SS before our electrical walk-thru that the motor was in the wrong spot..  We had our appointment and we told him we wanted it moved, a week later i went down to have a look and it still wasn't moved and the gyprock was 50% done, so we hit the panic button.  A phone call to the SS who said very rudely "we are not changing it, Management have said no, senior management" and I said "yes they are moving it".  I called our CLO (mind you this was at 4.30 in the afternoon.  Next day I sent an email to our CLO and my husband spoke to the electrical appointment girl and after some discussions and my husband cracking it we got a call from the Operations Manager to say they would have a conference call the next morning to sort it out.  Instead we got a call from the vacuum installers to arrange to meet to move it.  I met them on site yesterday, the guy was very nice and it was no trouble at all, the grumpy gyprock man was a different story he wasn't too pleased but I took off before they started to whinge and probably call me every name under the sun haha!

In the end we are really happy it's moved out of that bloody workshop, I don't know what I will do if something else happens in there.  Advice for your electrical appointment, they follow the plan that's it! Make sure everything is detailed and not just put in the middle of the room.  

Anyway, the gyprocking is finished as of today, minus a couple of holes where some pipes were haha, the cornice is sitting in the garage waiting.  While we were there 2 guys came with a bobcat digger thingy and looked like they might have been doing the gas connection or something. 

Here are some pics of the inside

The main entry

Kids lounge room (activity room)

The workshop - this is where they kindly gyprocked 

The workshop again

Standing near the kitchen looking out

Drop down ceiling in the kitchen - so glad we got it, we nearly didn't