Random stuff

It's about time for some random pics I think:

Almost finished

It's floor sanding and finishing week - time to see what those Spotted Gum wideboards are truly made of. 

Hours and hours of pre-cleaning, as well as our diligent team of tradies getting stuff done led up to the arrival of the floor sanders on Tuesday. 

This effectively puts the house in lock-down mode, with no one else allowed in while all those lovely boards are brought to life.

Well. I did get permission to sneak in there in my socks early one morning and I managed to take a couple of spy shots:

Before:

After:

Looking good! I love before and after shots, so here's another set:

Before:

After:

Ok, so the glass fronted doors are not on yet, and the bench top is on the way still, and that is a really hazy photo for some reason - but how nice is that??!

I hope everyone on site is appreciating the significant upgrade in the tearoom!

The icing on the cake

I know, I know. Getting a bit behind. 

But with good reason, as we wildly dash about trying to get all the critical works wrapped up before the building inspector goes on Christmas holidays.

All our tradies continue to shine, working away solidly to help me out with that deadline. 

Since the last post, the icing for our pretty confection arrived and has been installed:

Even the Homemade Kids, who are thoroughly sick of the project, gave an enthusiastic reaction as we drove by on the way to school. I tipped the two older ones out and sent them off to class, and then hurriedly dashed back so I could make a fool of myself swooning over the lovely arches and balustrading on the front verandahs.

"Wow - cool!" Said the Homemade Baby.

"I just love it!!" I gushed to the carpenters. There may have been a tear of silly homeowner joy as I admired the crisp white timbers and graceful outdoor room that has been created.

For a while there I even thought T2 & Co. might manage to roll out a positive adjective or two. But one steadfastly keeps his opinions to himself (apart from the classic "well it's not my taste" drily offered last time I gushed over his work on the exterior).

The other one kindly suggested that my colour scheme is not quite right - but that it was about 90%.

I must be getting used to this particular dry cracker as I merely chirped back that that was an "A" grade and I was happy to take that!

 

Kitchens, I've had a few.

Over the years I've had the communal kitchen of college living, the bench top cooker of first flat life, the minuscule yellow and brown scrap of kitchen in our first marital home, the kitchen with the original 1920's Kooka, the kitchen with the mission brown stove, the mysterious appliances of my Shanghai kitchen, and my American life keeping me from the best kitchen I have ever had in Australia. 

It's become a running joke that I can't move into a house without replacing the oven, and boy have I had some interesting rangehoods!

So after nearly 19 years of marriage and countless house moves it is very special and very exciting to have a brand new kitchen totally to our own specifications.

For me, this is lovely.

 So pleased. And so relieved. 

Handles and bench tops still to come....

It's curtains for me.

Getting well and truly into the pretty stuff now. First of all, I met with up with the lovely Tania to explore a massive showroom of divine fabrics. The goal was to make selections for all of our drapery requirements. Colour-coded according to price, I naturally gravitated to the appropriately Code Red-fabrics.

Even Tania tried to re-direct me to the more financially-soothing Code Blue fabrics. Contemplating the neutral for the colour-fickle older girls, the blue-grey for the coolly elegant grown-ups, and the unashamedly pink for the final baby of the family. 

Let us digress for a moment and explore a little Goldfields history: back in Victorian times the grandest home was built in Castlemaine for the grandest family in town. To this day, that grand home sits as the jewel in the town's tourism crown (apart from its title as Hot Rod Centre of Victoria). 

The estate was fringed by more humble worker's cottages, simple in design. In fact, the Homemade House Northern Estate is one of those humble Victorian miner's cottages, harking from 1863. 

In an interesting coincidence, one of the direct descendants of the grand house family now comes to the owner of the simple cottage, as purveyor of carpet for the Homemade House.

Tiles, in situ

The floors are done, the bathroom walls are done. All looking good.

Butler's pantry

Girls' bathroom with vintage hexagonal tile

Master bathroom in Carrara Bianco marble tile

Girls' bathroom getting it's burst of jaunty colour

The kitchen is here! The kitchen is here!

Finally. Finally. The kitchen, and it's friends the pantry and the laundry have arrived. I may have shed a little tear of joy.

Yes, it's in a thousand pieces. But watch this space....