Building and Snagging

Building a new house on Saturdays is a long task - there are only 52 Saturdays in the year, but we continue to make progress.

Little M did some helpful floor preparation.

She primed the floor with some special paint.

I cleaned the last of our quarry tiles. The office is the last room downstairs to get a floor. We had no firm plans other than to use up what we had left over from previous floors or that could be found in the field (just like using up yarn really!). A ferret around with a wheelbarrow under the hedges turned up about 300 reclaimed quarry tiles. I cleaned them with a hammer and chisel. This has been my only bit of work at the house since September when I stepped away for a while.

Andy laid them in a chequerboard pattern and they looked brilliant. Not bad for left overs.

I returned to clean them after grouting and then gave them a coat of acrylic wax to seal them. This completed job means we can get the oak skirting boards done.

Meg put together the last bit of the kitchen: a trolley from IKEA. I was upstairs painting and came down to see if she was alright to find she had opened the box, found the right tools, read the instructions and put the whole thing together on her own. Girl Power!

The landing is now finished ready for a balustrade. What a costly affair that is! I am still trying to choose: a) What it should look like style-wise and b) How much money I am prepared to pay for one.

There comes a time in a house build of endless deciding, deliveries, jobs, problem solving and hard graft to remember that this was the site in 2016

This was the build in 2017 where it snowed the week the frame arrived and the fitters put it together in -4 degrees.

This was the house in 2018.

and this is it now at the end of 2019 ...

We are now doing all the internal carpentry. I am seeing all of the doors, architrave and skirting board I have so lovingly waxed with two coats of beeswax finally assembled. It gives a real sense of some rooms being finished.

There are a few bits of plastering left to do which is dusty but at least we have heating this year so it will dry out quickly so I can finish painting over the Christmas holidays.

Then after the woodwork, we can have a good clean up because the dusty work will be done. We are making progress indeed.

What next? Snagging. Going around sorting out all of the little things that didn't quite get completed or that were finished in a messy builder style, things which only a woman can see!

Jo xxxx