Now listen up .... in just about ten days the Great Mini Escapade with "Sally" is about to launch. The show gets underway on Monday 27th February 2012. It is confined to the South Island and the destination for each day will be revealed the day before - not because of lack of planning but to keep the suspense level at a high pace.

First post will be on the 27th and daily then until completion! Stay tuned and enjoy!!

Let there be light ....

Well - almost all of the electrics work - as shown by some of these pictures. The painters finished yesterday and the kitchen bench glass splashback was installed today. It is a deep red (Pohutukawa) colour and looks very rich and moody. The last of the appliances (refrigerators/freezers and microwave) arrive on Friday. Carpet will go down in the next few days downstairs (the old stuff) but the new carpet upstairs will have to wait for a while until the bank account recovers. The last picture is of the bathroom which is looking just great with a super tiling job done by Bartek Wypych. Tomorrow the plumbers start connecting the kitchen and bathroom (taps, toilet, shower and appliances). We turned on the hot water today so are really approaching completion. The air conditioning was completed also, but there is a glitch as it appears the compressor has been under-spec'd and will need to be upgraded to a bigger model to support the system. Strange that it needed the units themselves to tell the company that it couldn't support the demand.... I will await their offer with interest!!

Moving back this weekend although there are still things to be done but at least it is survivable.

Enjoy the pictures.

Unfrocked!

Well, today was the day the scaffolding came down - all of it. It took a team of four over half a day to remove the scaffolding. The last job was to complete the capping of the chimney top which we finished last week. I spent the weekend installing burglar alarm lights and cleaning windows that couldn't be reached without the scaffold in place. At $2,000 a month it was a relief to see it go.

Half of the place is now powered up with most of the lights operating. Kitchen benchtops went in last week and what a beautiful finish. The granite has a textured finish and a deep black lustre. Cupboard doors are yet to arrive for the stained ash cupboards. One picture will show the finished look of the white kitchen cabinets. Kitchen appliances have hit a small glitch with the provider being put into receivership by the bank last Friday but we are now dealing directly with the importers and no money has been lost. They will arrive in about ten days now that the house is secure.

The last few days the tiler (Bartek) has been busy in the upstairs bathroom and the job is just superb and that should finish by the end of the week. Next week the house will be closed up for three days as the floors are sanded and finished. Painters will be complete by the end of this week as they finish off the downstairs areas. Today the chandelier was placed in the stairwell - and it works. Much debate about size and finish but it looks terrific and will go well with the wrought iron balustrades for the stairwell. All is looking well for the move back in a couple of weeks.

Kitchen treats ...

I had hoped to get you some views of the house without the external scaffolding - that will have to wait another week. All the exterior plastering is complete with a beautiful job being done by the tradesmen. It just needs the painted coating on to it before we can remove the scaffolding. Tomorrow the gutters and downpipes are installed and over the weekend the stoppers will be in the garage and laundry tidying that up ready for painting.

Early this week the kitchen was delivered from Germany and it is about halfway assembled. These pictures were taken as the benchtops were measured this morning by Ross and Reg and patterned for the granite to be cut. Andrew who is doing the kitchen installation will be back next week to complete the cupboard units. The Germans are impeccable in the quality of the kitchen but how the guys know what to do I do not know. All the labels and data is in German - no English at all. It will take about two/three weeks before the granite is ready and then it will start to look like a house. We have lights in the kitchen working off a temporary circuit and most of the top level is complete except for the floor areas and a couple of walls. Tiling should start in the upstairs bathroom by the end of next week.

Stay tuned!

Stoned on Friday ...

Yes - this week we have been deep in the schist!

Dave Tudor from Hamilton came up with his mate and over the last three days they have done the stone panel by the front door. In a couple of weeks, when the plasterers have finished, they will complete two columns under the balcony by the pool in the same material. The stone is from Central Otago and is extremely hard to work but reflects the work by stone masons of past years. It also reminds me of the good Pinot Noir from that very harsh region where Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings was shot. In fact the quarry where these stone was obtained is within just a couple of km from the very site. (We are almost famous ... by association.....)

Well - I guess that was 2009!

The last day of the year..... where has it gone! The project has been going for more than six months now and we are looking at another month before moving back - at least to the upper level whilst downstairs is finished off. The last couple of weeks has seen a slow down by many contractors as they get into the holiday/party mode. That is fairly frustrating. Builders left a couple of days before Christmas and will be back in mid January with only a workforce of two or maybe three.

The stoppers and painters (bless them) have worked right through with the exception of Christmas Day. They have done a great job and the exterior rear of the house is finished as is virtually all of the interior upstairs. The exception is a couple of feature walls which will be done last, when we finally decide on colours. The turret is also being held back until the ash wood flooring is complete to avoid damage to the paint finish. I have stripped and restained the old garage door and it matches the front door perfectly. We are ready to have all the rear scaffolding removed - just awaiting the gutters to be installed. The dining room and the new rear bedroom only require lights and carpet to complete.

The other good news is the kitchen is ahead of schedule and due to arrive from Germany on the 12th January. That will get the cabinet units installed in the following week and then we get the granite benchtops templated and made. Some portions of the kitchen are being made locally and will follow after the cabinetry is in place.

Getting plastered!

Well today saw the first of the plaster going on the exterior of the house. This layer has small polystyrene beads imbedded in it and after this layer, there is a layer of re-inforcing mesh and two more layers of standard plaster. The stairs also went in today so the new look at the entrance is now becoming evident. These stairs will be covered in oak wood flooring.

Our first setback saw a rainstorm on Friday damage some of the ceiling panels that had been installed just the day before. About a quarter of the ceilings has been removed and will be replaced tomorrow at the builders expense. Two parapets on the roof were awaiting cladding and leaked. Bugger!