It’s been a while.

It’s been a long, long while since I last shared an update on all that’s been taking place at our house. Eight months in fact! Since my last post (which you can read here) we’ve made heaps of progress. I left you with a house that was about to be subjected to a full re-roof treatment and windows (or rather gaps for windows) that were exposed to the elements, piles of rubble in the garden and a side extension that hadn’t been built.

Ok so the piles of rubbish are still there…I doubt they’ll disappear until just before we move in but I’m happy to report that the brand new reclaimed roof is now on, we have beautiful windows installed – full length aluminium numbers downstairs and sash upstairs and even a new set of bifold doors in place of the tired and grubby uPVC door in the living room. The side extension has been built and the roof for this is being crafted as we speak. I wanted to wait to post the most up to date view of the back of the house until it was on and tiled but you can keep up with our progress by following me on Instagram should you so wish.

I think I actually cried when the windows were installed. It made the house feel more complete and I finally felt as if we were getting somewhere and although the back of the house doesn’t quite look as it exists in my mind’s eye, I know that in a year’s time once the (already purchased!) wisteria and rambling roses have been trained across it, we’ll be a step closer to perfection.

Perhaps more significantly the whole of the upstairs of the house has been plastered; with the exception of a couple of walls to enable the plumbing to be fitted after tiling has been completed. First fix of both plumbing and electrics has also been ticked off the list too with the help of 24hr Electricians in Minneapolis. It feels more real now, larger even, now that walls as opposed to uprights of timber are in place. Ste has been up at the house tidying and painting this weekend so it undoubtedly is beginning to look even more finished than it appears in these images and we have an ambitious move in date of April so it’s all systems go!

So what next?

Well as Lauren mentioned in her DIY post last week, I’ll be resurrecting last year’s Rock My Room series very soon with my own bathroom project, two of them in fact. We’ll be tackling both the shower room and the family bathroom complete with luxe bath that I sneak peeked in Lauren’s post at the end of last year. Stay tuned as I’ll be kicking off this series very soon…

Aside from the bathroom project, it’s all go go go at the house. Doors are being ordered for upstairs and I’ve spent this weekend placing orders for architraves and skirting boards and investigating the best places to buy polished chrome flat plate sockets and switches. If any of you know of any websites that offer stylish designs at budget friendly prices then do let me know! Ste and I have put a deadline in place that all of upstairs should be complete (with the exception of carpets) no later than the end of February.

That’s not to say that things are at a standstill downstairs…far from it! Aside from the side extension roof which I mentioned at the beginning of the post, we’re keeping our carpenters busy by installing a brand new set of stair spindles, newel posts and handrail. I really didn’t like the old staircase at all. There’s also cupboards to be made, shelves to be put up and even more skirting boards and architraves to put in place. Due to the new extension we’re currently battling with different ceiling heights so our carpenters have been hard at work bringing them all to the same level; this seems boring but is absolutely essential for the final aesthetic. Again first fix are all complete on this level too and tonnes of stud work to hide all the pipes and cables has been knocked up to provide a smooth finished look. It’s so exciting.

We’re hoping that we’ll have the whole of the downstairs plastered by the beginning of March and to have almost completed the snug and the living room too….at least get one coat of paint on the walls anyway. The real work will be in the kitchen area where have yet to find a design we like despite our rather large Pinterest board. And that’s where I’ll leave you for today. Granted I feel that currently it’s rather unsatisfying from an interiors inspiration perspective for you lovelies so I apologise profusely for that…as well as for the rather unprofessional photography (Adam wasn’t free unfortunately to snap the bomb site that is my house!). That said if you are looking for an interiors fix then I recommend that you pop over to our sister blog Rock My Family for the most exquisite nursery tour on the blog today. It is so beautiful! I promise you that by the next time I post another house update things will have changed rather dramatically and it will be exponentially more exciting.

Until next month then…