And it all came tumbling down ....

Well two days into my holidays and I want to quit. It has been 2 weeks of hell!

It all began two weeks ago when my supplier of the tiles said he would deliver the tiles. After two weeks of saying they would deliver it today.... then calling back that night and saying tomorrow morning with excuses ranging from wrong phone numbers, being let down by help, wrong tiles to shipping incidents and having to order more. Lies Lies Lies!!!!! Promises and guarantees galore that it would be tomorrow and he would personally deliver them. This apparently from the two directors of the company! The first guy apparently got fired over it, but he is still at the company?

I now still do not have my tiles or my money back. They brought down a cheque (they said cash on the phone) and said do not deposit until tomorrow. Well I did and the teller got her manager who gave a look horror after looking at the screen and said they couldn't give me the money. I missed a phone call that morning saying the money hadn't cleared by that wasn't the look I got from the teller! And seriously who runs a business on a 0 bank balance!!! So now after two weeks I still have no tiles or money and to be honest here I don't think that I ever will. I only found out recently that he owes money to two other people I know!

The tiling was meant to be finished yesterday so I could install my kitchen. Well, that isn't happening now is it. It has put me back to square one. I have spent the last two days researching tiles or other alternatives and I still haven't found a thing that I like. It has been such a big stuff up.

But wait that is not all..... my fans that I have been waiting 9 months for which were due to be released December 2013.... no Jan 2014... no March 2014 ... no June 2014..... now September 2014! So they cannot be installed at the end of my two weeks holiday as planned....

But wait there is more.... the kitchen that was meant to be here next week called and said that the runners I ordered are out of stock all over Australia and they need to be imported.... so I need to wait a few more weeks for them to arrive!!! They have only had my order now for 5 weeks and now they discover that they don't have the runners!!!!

But still that is not all. I decided to get a tiler in so I didnt have to worry about laying it. I even got him to self level as I didn't want to mess it up as I haven't ever been 100% happy with my self levelling job. Well he added too much water and it is now all powdery. I can rub it off with my finger. USELESS! Now I have another job to do... clean it off and prime AGAIN!

So the two months of careful planning have come crashing down into a huge pile of dung!

FIREPLACE

Ahhh finally the fireplace is in. The installers did a great job. Top blokes too. Just need to wait 24 hours for silicon to set then I can break the sucker in, just in time too. The forecast for this week is cold! Yippee. 

A clever use for sisalation fasteners

Usually when doing a paint job, to speed things up, you put the object you are painting on some nails embedded in a piece or wood or something like that. The reason you do this is so that you can paint one side turn it over and paint the other without having to wait for the paint to dry on one side before turning it over. It speeds things up and saves time. But what I used before was off cuts of wood and screws. That was until I discovered that I could use my sisalation tacks. They are terrific as they have  a flat base and sharp points. I also don't have to measure out the screws or anything. All I do is lay down as many strips as I need. I am sure I am not the first to do this but I did discover it again for myself.

The kitchens finally ordered

Finally we made a decision about the kitchen. There were so many decisions to make and having never had to design one before I had no idea. I still have to make benches and install it but they will do the rest. Hopefully it will be delivered in 5 weeks so I can install it during the holidays!!! Well thats the plan. Ezikit were terrific. 

Also tomorrow the fireplace goes in..... yeah... 

Fireplace feature wall and hearth.

I promised Heather that the fireplace would be in by winter... well it is booked for the 3rd of June, only a couple of days late. I spent many a night and morning getting it ready, doing my bit, so I could meet the deadline. The wood had been deliver and mostly chopped up so we are ready to go.  We are very very very excited to get our wood heater in! It has been three winters without one.

Close up. The timber is from the old studs. The nail holes would have been from the weather boards. 

At this point I was like wow that is big! I wondered if I had made it too big and high. 

'Apparently' if i painted the new cement slab with my waterproof primer I could lay the tiles within 2 days. Hmmmm

Done. The tiles are black slate. Interesting to lay. 

The children love it. They are using it as a stage. Only the corner pieces to do.... I might get the tiler to cut them for me. 

Erin missing a few teeth and with her new glasses. 

Now back to the roof. Except I looked at the extra timber they delivered to finish the roof off and I found out that they had cut them wrong again!!! I have no idea what to do. Time is short, the mill is shutting down and so is the other mill down the road. 

Next on the list is tiling and kitchens. I have quotes done and have pretty much decided on whom I am going with. Just need to finalise the kitchen measurements and get back to Ezikit. All in a week! The bank balance will be haemorrhaging from now on....

Lining out the roof

Hello!

These holidays were fruitful but I am feeling very unfulfilled as a builder. I spent the first week putting up the roof lining and the second in Launceston holidaying. I had a great time but I haven't finished the roof lining or installed my hearth ready for my fireplace which all could have been done in the two weeks. So I am torn between the great relaxing time I had and staring down at the unfinished work I started. These school holidays have also coincided with the Easter holidays and ANZACs holiday so I have also been ripped off two long weekends to get some extra work done during the term.

I must admit though it is terrific to finally have most of the stud work covered, it gives it a finishing feel instead of a construction feel and the insulation and windows have made a huge difference to the temperature in the front room. Well, here are some photos of the evolution of my roof.

The strip on the right is what I still have to do. It will involve a bit of fiddle as there are struts and rafters in the way. The mill who is proving my timber had given to too little and the new stuff they have brought it isn't that terrific. I am not to pleased with them. I hope it all works out. I still need to put some finishing trims on the whole thing as well. 

Up in Launceston I went to the design centre where they have all these innovative designs and creations made out of wood. I like going there and stealing some ideas. 

These stools were made from large burnt chunks of wood.

The autumn coloured stone is what is going to be a feature wall behind my fireplace.  It will have a timber surround and a black slate hearth. All going well it should look terrific. 

This is a photo of the tiles I have selected for my kitchen. They are porcelain and are a stone look alike and represent the latest in digital printing technology where no two tiles are a like. Also they are so life like that I keep trying to feel the ridges I can see but there are none. I really like them.  I had planned for a darker tile so i could have a light carpet in the lounge... now I am unsure on the colour of the carpet I want. A big bonus was that I got the last of a print run so I was able to get them for less than half price!! Yippee. 

Painting....

Well, I thought once I hated painting until I realised it wasn't the job it was the tools! I love painting with my new HVLP gun! I absolutely fly through the job and it does a fantastic finish. Cannot wait to paint something else... hmmm i do still have 12 doors in the bedroom I haven't touched. Since I have 70m2 of timber roof to paint I am glad I have it. I still have to sand it all by hand though... man that is a bit rough. I am doing it in batches at the moment. The second photo is only 1/4 or 1/5 of what I have to do, crazy. I hope it is worth all the effort. I am working pretty hard before and after work to have it all painted and ready to be installed by the school holidays. Goal is still to have the fireplace in before winter.... tic tic tic.... time is running out. roof, hearth, feature wall, fireplace!