The worst bathroom in Rome...

ANOTHER PROJECT ON THE GO....

2009-11-13T21:51:00.003+01:00

As if I don't have enough on the go already!!!!
But I can't help myself!! I love starting projects!!

Before I forget - Update on the bathroom cabinet - we now have the mirrors on the doors!!! All I need now is to buy the lights. I'll post a pic when it's 100% finished!!

Okay so the new project is for the boys' room! Even though they have a whole wall of cupboards they still need more storage! Well Alex does. He sleeps in the top bunk bed and has one long shelf above his bed. It's always got lots of toys and bits and pieces on it and it looks a mess!!! Also books seem to slide off it! The bunk beds are in an alcove which is about 20cms wider than the beds.
I'll take a pic of it soon but here's an idea of what it's like at the moment....

And this is what I have in mind....

Cupboards for storing mess and shelves for books!!

Seeing as I have the living room project to start soon I wanted this new project to be quick and easy. Two days ago I went to Ikea and bought the doors (pack of 2 for €14 - Effektiv) then yesterday I bought the wood and today I put it all together!!!
How's that for quick and easy!! It still needs sanding and painting and then I need to add the handles and the little thingies that stop the doors from going in too much.

Here's 2 pics from today....

Tomorrow I'm getting out my trusty little sander!!!

:-)

PROGRESS....

2009-10-09T20:52:00.007+02:00

I finally got around to painting the bathroom cabinet, hanging it on the wall, attaching the doors (still to be painted) and buying the mirrors that will be stuck onto the doors.

Even though it's not finished we're already using it!! It's so good to have a place to put everything instead of having it cluttering the area around the sink.

This weekend I hope to find time to finish the doors. Here it is after one coat of paint....

And here it is on the wall....

On the other hand, work in the living room has not progressed at all!!
:-(

BACK TO THE BATHROOM....

2009-09-20T17:22:00.007+02:00

Well, I'm still perfecting the plans for the living room TV unit. In the meantime I decided to go ahead and make a cabinet for the bathroom. I've been looking around to buy one but the ones that fit my requirements exactly are way too expensive and I didn't want to get one from Ikea either. So yesterday I whipped up a cabinet. Well it's not finished yet but it won't be long. Finally after all this time I think we're near to finishing the bathroom!!

Here is the structure, still missing one panel on the back and the doors. It's 100cm wide, 90cm high and 10cm deep (without the doors which will be mirrored).

My cat is modelling it for you!
;-)

SLOWLY. VERY SLOWLY....

2009-09-08T10:53:00.004+02:00

Work on the apartment this year has been going very slowly. We've been away for almost 2 months so all projects have come to a standstill.

I've been planning to build a TV unit for the living room for a long time but my ideas about how it's going to look keep on changing. Last week end we dismantled the old units and hung the new TV on the wall. So now we are in desperate need of the unit. Hopefully this will make me get around to making it quickly as we need the storage!! We have boxes of stuff all around the living room!!!!

The pic below is a PSed pic of my first ideas....

My newest ideas are to have it less bulky and a bit more streamlined. I think it looks better but obviously gives me less space for storage. Here it is in two different finishes. Excuse the quick Photoshopping!

I'm also working on some shelves for an alcove we have in the bedroom. Too messy to take a pic at the moment.

So, what do you think of my ideas for the TV unit?
The kids are back at school next week so work will (hopefully) start then!!!

:-)

IDEAS....

2009-05-09T15:16:00.005+02:00

Just some ideas....

Saw this pic at Inspiration bubble.
Unfortunaltely I can't remember where I found the two pics below.

LIVING ROOM PLANS....

2009-05-09T13:02:00.008+02:00

Haven't had time to draw up the proper plans so just did a real quick pic to give you an idea of what I have in mind.

Originally a smaller TV was in an Ikea unit on the wall to the right. That has already been dismantled. There used to be shelves on the wall where the huuuuge new TV is now. BTW, I had imagined the new TV to be smaller than this so had to rethink my original plans for the the new unit.

Anyway, this is a very rough idea of what I hope to make!! I have to get the plasterer in first to straighten the edges of the alcove as they are very wonky!
The units above and around the TV will be quite shallow - about 23cms including the door thickness and will be flush with the wall, and the lower ones will be 40cms deep. In the middle under the TV the unit will be divided in two (not shown in my doodle) so there'll be a draw down the bottom and on top a pull down door that will hide away all the gadgets - sky, ps2, wii etc....

I only hope I'll be able to make all this!!!

P.S - I just realised I started this blog a year ago today when I was planning to renovate kitchen and bathroom!! :-)

HELLO BLOG. REMEMBER ME....

2009-04-30T14:51:00.003+02:00

It's been a very long time since I posted here!!
I've had nothing to post about as absolutely nothing has been done to the flat in the last few months. Well that's going to change soon as this weekend I'm pulling out the tool box!!! This time I'm attacking the living room!! I also have a very long list of unfinsihed DIY jobs to tackle also.

I'll be back later or tomorrow with details of what I plan to do!!

:-)

LET THERE BE LIGHT....

2009-01-19T09:43:00.007+01:00

We've had wires hanging down from the ceiling since the July waiting for me to make up my mind what lights to buy. I wanted something similar to these....

...but ended up getting these cheapies from Ikea (€8.99 each)....

Here they are up in my kitchen (will get a better pic in the daylight!)....

You can see the unfinished door frame in the last pic. I'm still waiting to have the new sliding door installed.

Still have ~~soooo~~ tooo many unfinished projects on the go... :(

THE CUPBOARD....

2008-12-10T15:01:00.005+01:00

On the summer holidays my dad (who was here on holiday) helped me put up the frame and the doors on my mega-cupboard! Too heavy to do all by myself!
Since then it's been a very slow process. A few weeks ago I put in 3 of the shelves and we've been using the cupboard. Today I finally got around to putting in the remaining shelves (with the help of two curious cats!!!)
Still not completely finished as it needs painting! At the moment it looks like a huge cardboard box!!

I hope to have it all painted before Xmas! Then I still have the mirrored bathroom cabinet to make!! But that will have to wait until 2009!

RECENT PICS....

2008-11-14T18:08:00.011+01:00

This is what my gorgeous bathroom looks like now! Okay, on a normal day, you'd see toothbushes etc on show, a make shift mirror resting on the sink, various kids' toys near the bath and the toilet roll sitting on the edge of the bath!! I still haven't bought the loo roll holder and towel hooks!!! I need to sand and paint the door and arhitraves, finish the built in cupboard, make the cabinet and also decide on the lighting! At the moment we have a bulb hanging from the ceiling!! I really shoud hurry up and finish it all as I still have the living room to renovate! But I promised myself not to start a new project until I completely finish the bathroom AND the kitchen! Plans for the living room include lots of built in storage and a big flat screen TV! ;)

BITCHINGETC FAME....

2008-11-13T14:34:00.005+01:00

Yeah, my bathroom made it onto the cover of Livingetc!! Well, not quite, but I'm just as happy!! Thank you sooo much Griffo!!

Unfortunately the bathroom still isn't finished!! I still have to make the bathroom cabinet and finish the cupboard for the washing machine. Will post more pics tomorrow!

Thanks again Griffo!!

BEFORE AND AFTER....

2008-07-07T10:50:00.028+02:00

Well after a weekend of cleaning and organising, the kitchen and bathroom are presentable....

I think the before and afters are self explanatory....

Still lots of things need finishing....

What do you think???

DAY 30....

2008-07-04T23:04:00.008+02:00

37 days ago Alessandro and Stefano, my 2 trusty workmen, began work in our little flat. We had a really horrible bathroom and an out dated kitchen to renovate! Today was the 30th working day and also the day that they packed up ALL their tools and left!!

Here's what went on today in the mad rush to finish....

Stefano had to sort out the problem with the shower enclosure being too tall....

But after nearly all day in the bathroom he managed to install it and honestly now that the extra tiles are grouted and the other piece of glass is up it is hardly noticeable.

Salvatore went and picked up all the wood for the washing machine cupboard. Not sure when I'll be able to make it but I'd really like to do it asap as that will be the only storage in the bathroom at the moment.

In the kitchen it was go go go all day!!! The worktop arrived!! Poor guys that had to carry it up a lot of stairs, it was sooooo heavy! And it was soooo hot! It was great watching them install it. But OMG the "glue" that they used took my breath away!! As well as the 2 main pieces for the units, they had to make the breakfast bar thingy and the peninsula that divides the kitchen from the dining room. I am so happy with the end result!

Whilst the worktop guys were busy making my kitchen lovely, the 2 delivery guys turned up with the dishwasher and my new fridge (the right one this time!! - I checked it before they installed it!!). So at this point my little flat was rather crowded - me and 6 guys!! Luckily by lunchtime they had finished, leaving only Alessandro and Stefano!! So then it was a matter of attaching sink and tap (love it), the oven, cooker and touching up the plaster around the peninsula.

So here are a few pics of my nearly finished kitchen....

There are still lots of things that need doing or finishing. I'll try to do as much as I can before we go away on our summer holiday down south. But first the kitchen and bathroom need a really good clean (as does the rest of the flat) then I can start putting things away! I can't wait!

p.s. will take some pics of finished bathroom after cleaning it tomorrow!

DAY 29....

2008-07-03T19:05:00.011+02:00

What a day!!!

Well lots got done today. I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel! Almost!

First thing this morning the guy called to give me the price of the worktop which was actually less than I expected, although still alot of money! He also told me that it wouldn't be ready until Wednesday!!! Poop!

Then Salvatore realised that the fridge wasn't the one that we ordered!! Yesterday when it all arrived I was so busy looking at everything else that I didn't even notice! So after a small arguement on the phone, Raimondo (kitchen guy) agreed to change it. There is a cost involved and he's not sure when the new fridge will arrive. Double poop!!

After I went to pick up the wood and mdf that I ordered last week to make the washing machine cupboard frame and doors, guess what?! Not ready! Not even started! It was on their to-do-list for NEXT week! I really had to restrain myself from exploding in anger and frustration. Triple poop!!!

So even though I'm having a really poopy day things did progress here in my little flat. Alessandro finished all the electrical stuff - my blinds go up and down at the push of a button - the downlights are in and look great - and all the light switches and plugs are working. Stefano touched up the paint work in kitchen and bathroom, fixed the skirting boards, attached the shelf/ledge under the window in the bathroom, sealed the sink, loo and bidet with silicone and finished off a few other odd jobs.

Then just after lunch I got a call from the worktop guy - Worktops arriving tomorrow morning!! I have no idea what made him change his mind, I'm just really glad he did! Yeah!

Next a call from Raimondo - fridge and dishwasher arriving tomorrow morning too! Double yeah!!

To make things even better the man I nearly assaulted in the wood shop calls to tell me he personally has cut all my wood and mdf ! Triple yeah!!!

At this point I felt like dancing, all seemed to be working out well, then Alessandro called me into bathroom to show me that my gorgeous super shower enclosure didn't fit properly on the shower tray and that it is taller than the height of the tiles! Quick call to Sandro (bathroom shop guy) who assured me that it should definately fit. And yes, it DOES fit, they were putting it on wrong!! I wish they hadn't scared me like that! But the problem of the height remains! The only solution is add another row of tiles above the shower. I don't particulary like this solution but I think it's my only option! Compromises!

Sorry about this long boring post. I'll make up for it tomorrow with a whole lot of pics of my hopefully (almost) finished kitchen and bathroom!!!

DAY 28....

2008-07-02T22:10:00.005+02:00

Kitchen day!

This morning it was a mad rush to get everything finished before the kitchen delivery. When they arrived Stefano was still on the ladder painting the ceiling!! This is what it looked like this morning....

And this is what it looked like 3 hours later....

Almost finished!! The dishwasher still hadn't arrived this morning so will be delivered on Friday. The 3 guys that delivered and installed the kitchen were great! Really fast, acurate, polite and funny, all qualities not normally associated with delivery guys! They do expect a tip! Not wanting to offend them I asked around before to see what is the "expected" tip for a kitchen delivery - around €50. Oh well, they deserved it!

After they left the "worktop guy" came and measured up and made a plywood pattern of the worktop! I was told this would be ready in about 3 days but he said it's more likely going to be Tuesday!!! I pleaded and begged that they do it sooner.... Friday would be perfect. That way on Saturday Alessandro could put in the oven, the sink etc... I've also asked him to give me a quote to make a breakfast bar or what ever they're called! Who knows how much a 130cm x 35cms piece of composite worktop could cost?!? Oh, plus 2 side panels each 35cms x 90something cms!?! Well, I'll know tomorrow when he calls!

On the other side of the flat in the bathroom Stefano "fought " all day with the bidet. Being a back to wall bidet he had trouble getting it right as all the pipes are hidden! It kept leaking but he couldn't tell from where. At one point I think he was ready to throw the bidet out the window! In the end he sorted it out!

There's still a long list of things to do in the next few days but at least all the major work is over and done with!!! I just have to do a major tidy up and clean! It's so disgustingly dirty!!!

p.s. before leaving Stefano rested the cooker on the kitchen cupboards and attached the gas as they've done every evening. I lit the gas so I could boil the water for some pasta but after awhile could smell gas!! Aaaah, so many problems with the gas!!! We ended out eating take away pizza!

DAY 27....

2008-07-01T14:55:00.003+02:00

Tiling in the kitchen has finished!!

Apart from the grouting on the left side....

I really like the overall effect but.... once all the tiles were up we realised that 1 tile is a different colour!! See bottom right tile in the pic below.

It's not a big deal as it will behind the cupboards but that one tile is the sample tile that i brought home from the tile showroom. It's the colour that I chose. It's a more creamier white where as the ones that I have are a colder starker white. I don't know if this is good or bad yet. I guess we'll see tomorrow when the kitchen is installed!!

Stefano is in the bathroom as I type putting up the remaining tiles that I picked up this morning.

There are so many "little" things that need doing before tomorrow morning when the kitchen arrives. Alessandro has to finish doing the wiring, fix some of the plaster, put in the down lights, touch up some of the paint on the wall etc etc...

p.s. ONE MORE SLEEP....!!!

DAY 26 CONT....

2008-06-30T18:31:00.006+02:00

Well I didn't get my fully tiled kitchen but we're nearly there....

Missing still 12 tiles on the right side and also 12 tiles on the left. Alessandro is still confident all will get done in time.

I've been attacking the bathroom door as we're leaving the original frame but changing the architraves. So I've been out buying all the necessary wood and nails, scraping away at the old paint and generally covering myself in dust and pieces of old paint! How glamourous!!

p.s. 2 more sleeps....

DAY 26....

2008-06-30T13:40:00.006+02:00

Yesterday was Matteo's birthday!

It was a really hot and sunny day so we and what seemed like nearly all of Rome headed out to Lago di Vico (about an hour drive away). We had lunch at a lovely restaurant that overlooked the lake. Just as we finished there was a sudden summer thunderstorm which drove nearly everyone back home!! We resisted and after the storm the boys had a swim in the deserted lake!! A lovely day away from our dust infested flat!! (grazie a Paola, Valerio e piccolo Dario!)

Okay, back to the renovations....

Finally the kitchen tiles are going up today!! Yeah! Well, they have to as on Wednesday the kitchen is being installed!! Hopefully by the end of today I'll post a pic of a fully tiled kitchen....

I LOVE VINEGAR....

2008-06-28T19:42:00.003+02:00

Bath problem solved! Phew!

I didn't use any fancy products, just good old diluted vinegar!! Perfect! I'm in a better mood now!

BEAUTIFUL SMOOTH WHITE WALLS....

2008-06-28T17:58:00.007+02:00

and a not so beautiful smooth bath....

You probably can't see in the pic but my bath is covered in dirt that just doesn't want to budge. I've already cleaned it and a lot of the dirt has gone away but it's still feels rough and it's not lovely and smooth anymore! >:-( I'm going to soak it in some warm soapy water then see if it'll come off ....

Wish me luck!

DAY 25....

2008-06-28T11:55:00.005+02:00

Oh poop! No tiling going on today.

Stefano is finishing off the untiled part of the kitchen. As I said before, he's a perfectionist, so I'm going to have the smoothest walls in Rome! This morning he also drilled holes in the bathroom floor for the bidet. Alessandro will be here after lunch to do the plumbing bit!

There's alot of white dust floating around as my walls etc are being sanded. The boys are home too so are walking back and forth making sure that every room has it's fair share of white dust!!

I'm going to see if I can convince Stefano to paint the dining room as well! That would save me from doing it!!

DAY 24....

2008-06-27T22:12:00.005+02:00

New day, new problem, well actually 2....

First problem - we couldn't find the drain for the sink! It was meant to be delivered the other week together with all the other stuff. And it's on the list that the delivery guy gave me which I also signed!! I should have checked all the stuff better.... So once again I had to go and visit Sandro at the bathroom showroom. Just as I arrive, a delivery guy walks into the shop and says to someone that there's a special delivery for Peta! Perfect timing!! My long awaited for taps (sink and bidet) have arrived!! Sandro also sneaked another sink drain into the bag with the taps. Sshh. Problem 1 solved!

Second problem - my lovely sink is attached to the wall and I don't really like the way you can see the supports. Originally I thought that they could be set right under the shelf parts of the sink but it wasn't possible. From above it's okay as you can't see them, but from far away or low down (eg. when you're in the bath or sitting on the loo) you can see them. Problem 2 NOT solved.

See the pics below....

Taken standing.

Taken sitting on the loo (on the closed seat that is!).

See what I mean? It's meant to be a floating sink. Do you think it's a problem, is it worth worrying about? Or is it fine as is? Here's another pic taken standing back.

In the kitchen walls have been sanded and given the first coat of white! The tiles have been brought up from the garage and tomorrow Stefano is going to start putting them up!

I still haven't decided about those pendant lights. I'm going to have a look on ebay....

p.s. 5 more sleeps (until kitchen arrives!)

DAY 23....

2008-06-26T19:49:00.006+02:00

Is it normal that one can get excited over the fact that the loo is attached AND it flushes? Probably not...

The bath tap was also installed today, as was the radiator/towel warmer.

Holes where drilled in my lovely dropped ceiling. Problem being the size of the holes - only 7.4cm diam. Workmen's hands were too big to get through to reach the wires so who ended up balancing on the ladder doing it? Moi!

The missing tiles were meant to arrive today or tomorrow but of course they are still sitting in the warehouse somewhere in Sassuolo (northern Italy). After many phone calls we managed to arrange for a delivery for Tuesday, which was the best they could do.

Today I also ordered the wood and mdf for the washing machine cupboard. I'm getting it all cut to size so it will be ready next week sometime. I'm going to wait until the bathroom is completely finished before I start on the bathroom cabinet as I'm still not sure how big I want it.

I'm not quite sure what will be going on tomorrow, maybe some tiling in the kitchen?!

p.s. 6 more sleeps.... :D

DAY 22....

2008-06-25T19:30:00.005+02:00

Seven more sleeps until the kitchen arrives!!

Today I bought the downlights from Leroy Merlin as the dropped ceiling is up and ready! I just have to decide exactly where I want them as tomorrow morning Stefano will install them.

I was also looking for the small pendant lights but with not much luck! I didn't see any that i liked at Leroy Merlin or Ikea. I then went to a "snobby light shop" to get some ideas but they were waaay too expensive (very lovely but unjustifiably expensive!!). Then in a "normal light shop" I saw some very similar to these ones in the pic below, maybe they were even smaller (7cm diametre) which is good, but... they're not that cheap either and I'd have to order them - 15 days! Actually I don't really know how much to expect to pay for proper lights as I've always had cheap Ikea ones!

Here's a sneak preview of the loo! I had to warn the kids not to use it as it's just resting there!!

DAY 21....

2008-06-24T20:13:00.009+02:00

"The Gas Man! - part 1"

It was last Tuesday when I called Italgas who promised someone would come within the following 2 days. Nothing. So today I called again. Before getting put through to "operator 219", a recorded message told me that all calls are recorded for safety reasons. Fine with me. So after explaining it all to "219" sounding as desperate as I could, he asked me if I could smell gas. No. Then he asked again. No. Then he asked to talk to the one of the workmen. And what did he ask Alessandro? Could he smell gas! No! And again CAN YOU SMELL GAS? Only at this point did Alessandro understand what was going on and answered that yes there was a small gas leak. It seems that only in cases of gas leaks they can send someone around in such a short time and being a recorded conversation he couldn't say so. "Operator 219", wanting to help us out (it must have been my desperate voice!!) had been trying to suggest with an unseen "wink wink" to say there WAS a leak! In an hour we had the gasman in the flat!!

"The Gas Man! - part 2"

So finally he arrives. All he had to do was fix a stuck tap! To cut a long story short, he managed to take the tap off, fill our whole flat with gas, set the gas alarm off twice, muttering to himself the whole time about how on earth is he going to fix it etc.. and in the end Alessandro had to help him to fix it with a simple bolt. Scary to think that in real cases of emergency people would have to depend on him!!

Anyway, this morning Raimondo came around to check the kitchen. All seems okay except we have to move the gas pipe about 15 cms. No big problem, especially now that we can turn the gas off!! Delivery of my much awaited for kitchen has been confirmed for Wednesday the 24th am! The "worktop man" is coming over Wednesday afternoon to measure up and then back again three days later to install it!

Stefano has been working on the dropped ceiling....

And Alessandro has been grouting....

And I've been looking for lights....

These are just 2 types I saw at Ikea. Not exactly what I'm after though.

DAY 20....

2008-06-23T21:50:00.006+02:00

The tiles are finished! The tiles, not the tiling! We need 13 more tiles. Hopefully they'll arrive on Thursday. In the meantime the left hand side can be grouted and the loo and shower enclosure can be installed.

Today in the kitchen the electric motor for the out side blind was put in. The beginnings of my gas meter cupboard can be seen below.

This hole was made in the kitchen wall near the gas meter as required by Italgas (not for spying on the workmen on the building next door...). Tomorrow we'll have to paint the area around the hole on the outside as big chunks of plaster fell off the wall whilst Alessandro was drilling. We are 3 floors up!! Luckily no one passed by below!

Tomorrow morning Raimondo, from the kitchen shop, is coming by to check on pipes and wiring, then if all is good, the kitchen will be delivered next Tuesday. So that gives Alessandro and Stefano a week to get the dropped ceiling in, the tiles done, the walls painted and whatever else needs doing done! I can't wait!!!

KITCHEN LIGHTING IDEAS....

2008-06-23T10:14:00.011+02:00

Alessandro has gone to buy the materials needed for the dropped ceiling. I have to decide where I want the lights....

I've seen loads of pics of lovely BIG kitchens with lovely lighting. I just have to see if it would work with my tiny kitchen. Here's a reminder of how skinny the kitchen is.

There will be 3 under cabinet lights plus the light on the range. I was thinking of having a row of recessed spots running length ways and then 2 small pendant lights hanging down on the other side over the worktop / "breakfast bar" whatever it's called. Just did a quick "photoshop" to show you where it will be....

Here's some examples of the combination lighting (spots and pendants) in huge kitchens that I found at Trends.

This one above just has the spots but I love it!

Then to fill in the gap above the overhead cabinets I'd like this kind of lighting...

I'm sure all of this is way too much for a small kitchen.

DAY 19 CONT....

2008-06-21T21:26:00.006+02:00

I think I am really really going to appreciate my new kitchen with dishwasher after having to wash the dishes in the bath!!!

DAY 19....

2008-06-21T14:21:00.005+02:00

Today is the first official day of summer! And it's really hot!! Too hot!! But the work must go on....

Stefano finished tiling the left side of the bathroom and has started on the right. My washing machine has once again been hooked up so I can do a week's worth of washing. This time it's in its very own cupboard!! Nothing got done in the kitchen today but they did hook up my cooker so we can eat in tonight! Unfortunately that means washing the dishes in the tiny sink in the shower room!

Tomorrow is Sunday! Yeah!

DAY 18 CONT....

2008-06-20T21:53:00.008+02:00

Well I thought alot more tiling was going to get done this afternoon but Stefano and the tiles weren't getting along. Quite a few tiles broke as he was cutting them to fit around the bath and the shower. Luckily we'll be able to use alot of the broken tiles in other places around the window and the door. Good thing about Stefano is that he's a perfectionist. The end result will be great! It looks finished in this pic but there's still the right hand side wall to do.

As for the kitchen, the walls are ready for tiling!! And you can now see the floor. Tomorrow they're going to hook up the cooker so we can at least make coffee in the morning! This morning I went out for coffee and cornettos. Tomorrow is Salvatore's turn! ;)

I also have to make a little cupboard to house our famous gas meter. So tomorrow I'll have to invent some way to do that! Was thinking of making a frame and having a panel instead of a door that would attach with magnetic strips!!???

BTW we now know that if it's not an emergency, you can't count on the gas man!! He never showed up!!

DAY 18....

2008-06-20T14:16:00.006+02:00

Workmen are on their lunch break so as always I've gone and taken some more pics! Tiles are going up, not without some breakages....

And the kitchen is starting to look more like a room again....

DAY 17 CONT....

2008-06-19T21:15:00.005+02:00

Finally the kitchen is ready to be plastered. Yeah! But as you can see we have no where to cook or wash!!

And the side of the bath has been blocked in ready for tiling. The area inside the cupboard where the washing machine will go has also been tiled but I don't have a pic of that!

I had to call Sandro (from the bathroom shop) as we don't have enough tiles. I was so thorough with measuring everything so I don't know how it happened. I'm going to blame it on Sandro as he had the plan of the bathroom and calculated how many square metres were needed. I know I should have double checked.... Anyway this means that I have to wait a week for the extra tiles to arrive! Stefano will tile all the important areas (where the loo, bidet, sink and shower will go) and leave the "unimportant" areas to last.

DAY 17....

2008-06-19T14:03:00.011+02:00

Tiles on the bathroom floor are now grouted. Stefano had to do it twice as the first time he cleaned too much of the grout away leaving (what I thought was) a too deeper groove. So he redid it and now it looks better and I think it will be easier to clean. Am I too fussy!?!

Then he put the tiles on the wall behind the bath and now he's gone on lunch break!

Seeing as the gas man didn't show up we've decided to go ahead anyway. Before the kitchen units are installed he'll have to come and fix the gas tap but in the meantime Alessandro managed to move the external gas tap just by bending the pipes. Let's hope he knows what he's doing...

I now have scaffolding at eye level. Oh well, it'll give me something to look at when I was the dishes (or load my new dishwasher) when the kitchen is finally finished!!

DAY 16 CONT....

2008-06-18T18:34:00.005+02:00

There's too must dust!! Being an open plan kitchen I couldn't close a door to contain all the dust like I could when they did the bathroom. It's absolutely everywhere!! The dining room and the living room are just filthy!! I don't have the kitchen sink either.... And the gas man didn't come.... I feel like crying....

DAY 16....

2008-06-18T13:51:00.005+02:00

Still waiting for the gas man to come.....

Stefano has been busy tiling!!

And Alessandro has been making more holes in the kitchen walls for the power points but is anxiously waiting for the gas man so he can go ahead with moving the pipes!!

DAY 15 CONT....

2008-06-17T20:32:00.010+02:00

Good news and bad news today.

Firstly the bad news. After taking off the last of the old tiles in the kitchen Alessandro was going to sort out the wiring and the gas pipe. The wiring wasn't that much of a problem (just some trial and error pulling on the wires to see where they came from and where they went!) but to deal with the gas pipes we had to turn the gas off at the gas meter. Well we couldn't. It was completely blocked! If it broke whilst forcing it we'd have a big problem on our hands so we had to call Italgas - the gas company. They'd send someone out straight away if it was an emergency - eg. a gas leak, but since it wasn't an emergency someone will come in the next 2 days. So that has slowed us down a bit and also means someone has to be in the house at all times ready for the surprise visit from the gas man whenever that may be! Oh, it will also involve more money. That's the stuck gas tap on the left....

Once all the tiles were down we also discovered that the strangley shaped wall in the corner of the kitchen could be partially knocked down. Sounds like good news but it's not as my new kitchen has been built specially to go around that stupid little wall!! Oh well, too late now to change it! BTW, Raimondo called yesterday and my the kitchen has arrived, so I guess that's part of the good news!

Here's the wall. The right half of it is completely unnecessary. We discovered it used to be the old flue.

Now the good news. I went to the bathroom show room for the umpteenth time, this time to take back the shower drain (Alessandro already had one), to change some other piece of the loo drain and to see if they had some sort of support for the sink. Apparently my wall and the few big screws supplied with sink won't support the sink all on their own. The supports that Sandro showed me in the catalogues were either ugly, too expensive, needed ordering or all three!! Then he went to the store room, came back with two nice chrome supports, winked at me and told me he's giving them to me in exchange for the shower drain, which cost about a tenth of the price of the supports!!! So I guess my infinite number of visits to the showroom in the last month or so has been worth it! ;)

And things are progressing well in the bathroom. The shower base and bath are now in! And tomorrow morning the floor tiles are going down!! Yeah!!

Here's what the kitchen looks like "nude", with all the tiles gone!!

This is what we found behind the sink unit. Interesting place to put a tile like this when all the other tiles were plain!!

DAY 15....

2008-06-17T10:34:00.004+02:00

I'm surrounded by workmen!!! I have 2 in the house and a whole lot of them out the window....

This is the view from our kitchen window. The scaffolding is going up this very minute on the building next door. Good bye privacy!

DAY 14 CONT....

2008-06-16T22:04:00.005+02:00

Well I managed to de-tile only some of the kitchen but will continue tomorrow morning. Stefano rested the cooker on an old unit and reconnected it to the gas so I could cook dinner - a pack of mushroom tortelloni! Matteo ate his sitting on the floor with his plate on the wicker pouf!! We do have a dining room table but it's completely covered in "mess". Will have to sort that out tomorrow too.

So, how's this for a minimal kitchen?!

DAY 14....

2008-06-16T14:20:00.009+02:00

This weekend was spent doing non house related things. Although Sunday evening I did have to make alot of space for my goodies that arrived this morning! Yeah!! The truck driver/delivery guy was really stroppy but that didn't matter! It was like Xmas!! Poor Alessandro and Stefano had to carry everything all the way down our drive way and up a flight of stairs to where the lift is, although not everything fitted in the lift so that meant another 2 flights of stairs! Anyway, this is what my dining room looks like at the moment....

Actually the bath has now been moved to the living room, which is also full of boxes! This morning I emptied and dismantled the lower part of the kitchen! Glad to see that go! But now we are without a kitchen! Take away pizza sounds good for this evening!

As expected things are taking longer than planned. I was hoping all would be finished (or nearly finished) by early next week as I'll have both boys home then!! This afternoon after 4 o'clock (you can't make noise from 2pm to 4pm) I'm going to take off the kitchen tiles. Then tomorrow Alessandro is going to start putting up the dropped ceiling. In the meantime Stefano is sanding the walls in the bathroom and making the support for the bath!

These are the tiles that I ordered for the bathroom floor which looked just like this in the showroom under the bright showroom lights....

And this is what they look like in the flesh!! When I opened the box I thought they were the wrong tiles! But it's not a problem as I actually like them even more!! They are a browny olivey grey colour if that makes sense.

DAY 13....

2008-06-13T19:45:00.008+02:00

The only part of my plans for the bathroom that was really undefined was the corner cupboard for the washing machine.... The builders were just going to continue the existing wall up to the ceiling but weren't sure how to finish it off and make it look "nice". All their suggestions didn't convince me but I was told they were the only feasible solutions. Well after a sleepless night trying to work out how to do it I came up with a feasible and aesthetic solution!! It was hard enough explaining it to them, pointing and doing little sketches, that I'm not even going to try and write about it. But I will say that they are going to make the wall, tile and plaster it and I am going to make and fit the cupboard! I just hope that my carpentry skills live up to my expectations!!! In my head it's going to look fantastic... (fingers crossed again please!)

Here's the wall going up....

And the shower area has been water-proofed.... (that "stuff" smelt bad!!)

And the first layer of plaster went on....

In the meantime in the kitchen I got to work emptying all the overhead cupboards. Threw alot of stuff out too! Here's a pic of kitchen before (taken in 2003).

Then we took the cupboards down and moved the fridge into the living room right next to the sofa!

The tiles looked like they were just resting on the walls!! We managed to pull them off with our fingers!!

They were stuck on with blobs of what looks like flour and water paste!! At least it'll be easy to take the rest of them off on Monday!!

Tomorrow the workmen aren't coming around which is fine with me!! I have to do a million other things. 1 sleep in a little bit. 2 do lots of washing. 3 prepare Alex's bags (which means rush out to the shops and buy all the things on the list that I still haven't got! Bad mummy!) as on Sunday he's off camping for a week!! ....plus lots of other things.

Then on Monday at 8:15 my goodies are arriving! They were going to deliver them today but that would have meant having a bath, shower, loo, bidet etc sitting around the flat taking up our precious space!

DAY 12....

2008-06-12T15:08:00.005+02:00

Finally the last bit of wall has been filled in and smoothed over ready for the tiling. Tomorrow I'm hoping all my "goodies" are being delivered! Yeah!!

The bathroom still looks very unfinished as it's all grey and messy but really alot has been done. Here's some photos to show the different stages...

I'm not quite sure what's going on in there at the moment, but I can hear alot of noise!! I don't dare open the door!! Will update later!

DAY 11....

2008-06-10T14:57:00.008+02:00

This afternoon Alessandro mixed up this sand and cement mix directly on the bathroom floor!! It was then used to fill in all the big gaps in the floor. Alot of the stuff also ended up all around the rest of the flat!!! All their tools and building material are kept on the balcony off the lounge room so they are constantly going back and forth....

By tomorrow the floor should be dry and Stefano can then finish the walls ready for tiling!

Today I got a call from Sandro from the bathroom shop informing me that the tiles have arrived, as have the loo and bidet!! Yeah!! Tomorrow we'll arrange a day/time for the delivery. I was sooo worried that they wouldn't arrive in time as I'd left ordering them to the very last minute! I just couldn't decide. Maybe if they hadn't arrived in time I would have learnt a lesson about the bad effects of procrastination! :D Although I still have the kitchen to worry about! It should arrive just in time..... (fingers crossed please!)

DAY 10....

2008-06-10T13:47:00.011+02:00

We're half way though day 10. Not much dust (so far). Phew!

Stefano has been working on the walls and Alessandro is installing this thingy (see below). It's the motor that will allow the outside blinds to open and close at the push of a button instead of pulling on a cord. Apart from obvious aesthetic reasons, there are also practical reasons why we're installing this - you'd have to climb in the bath to open the blinds!!!

You can see the "cord", or what ever it's actually called, to the right of the window.

The walls are starting to look like walls again!! By the end of today I think (hope) most of them will be done!

DAY 9....

2008-06-09T20:45:00.004+02:00

What a mess today!!

The workmen finished all the wiring today, which involved making a hole into the hallway! Then to pass all the wires from one side of the room to the other a little "tunnel" had to be dug into the tiles on the floor. This was done with an electric saw which made soooooooo much dust that I couldn't see across the room! Everything was completely covered in dust!! I also had my freshly washed clothes hanging out to dry...

So I am exhausted! I have cleaned a billion times since the workmen left but the dust is still there!

Apart from making all this mess they also started covering all the pipes and making the wall that hides the cistern. There will be a 10cm wide shelf on this wall that gradually narrows as it nears the window. The original walls are definately not at right angles!!

DAY 8 CONT....

2008-06-07T18:27:00.003+02:00

That's better!

The workmen have gone and I already have the first of many loads of washing on!!

DAY 8....

2008-06-07T10:28:00.002+02:00

Even on Saturday morning Stefano (workman) was here at 8 o'clock. I hate getting up early on the weekend! Today is also the first day of the boys' summer holidays!

Anyway, we now have fully functioning water pipes in the bathroom. At the moment the drains are going in, which also means that this evening my washing machine can be hooked up temporarily (until Monday)!! I've done some handwashing during the week but am in desperate need of the washing machine for sheets and towels! Guess what I'll be doing on Sunday!

Salvatore went this morning to IperCeramica to pick up the kitchen tiles which are now down in the garage! I'm still eagerly awaiting the arrival of the bathroom tiles which will be needed this coming week!

Will take a pic of the bathroom this evening when the workmen leave even though there's not much to see. In the meantime, here's a pic of the plants in the kitchen to add some colour to this blog!!!

DAY 7....

2008-06-06T12:46:00.006+02:00

I can't believe it's already day 7!! I really don't know how you others survive full house renovations that go on and on for months or even years! This is about all I can handle!

I like to complain but really I'm enjoying the process, just not the noise and ALL the mess involved. The bathroom is off a little hall way (don't know if it qualifies as a hallway as it's only about 2m long!), as are our and the boys' bedrooms. As much as I clean up at the end of everyday and keep the bedroom doors closed there's always a layer of dust everywhere.

This morning the concealed cistern for the loo has been installed. I went with the cheaper one, the Valsir, as I have to contain the costs.... Here it is with all my new water pipes.

And here's a quick pic of the tap/door handle with a pen to show you how big it is!!!!!

DAY 6....

2008-06-05T17:13:00.006+02:00

Well things do seem to be getting better!

Can't be bothered writing much about it as it's ever so boring but this -

is now this -

....and there was no need to break anyone's (apart from mine that is) ceiling or walls! We decided to change the pipe and the bendy part only. The vertical pipe can be reached from below when/if the neighbours from below want/need to change it!

So now Alessandro and Stefano are back to doing MY bathroom!

Today I went and picked up the tap for the shower and got a surprise! The lever is huge!!! It kind of reminds me of a door handle! It's lovely and it feels very solid and well made but I repeat, it's huge!!! This particular tap wasn't on display at the showroom so was chosen looking at a little pic in a catalogue. Will take a pic later...

In the meantime I have to decide about how to flush my new loo. In the shower room we installed a concealed Geberit cistern. Today Alessandro brought over a similar one made by Valsir. Internally they are pratically the same and he has used both brands successfully in the past. The only difference can be seen in the photo below. Top one is the Valsir and bottom one is my Geberit in the shower room. Opinions? (BTW top one is about €30 cheaper....)

DAY 5....

2008-06-04T14:28:00.004+02:00

This morning was spent trying to find a solution for the pipe problem. It now seems to be under control. We still have to break the ceiling and wall in the bathroom down below. And as for our pipe that goes up, we'll just change the piece as far as we can go. Neighbour from above assured us that when they changed it the "bend" was in ok conditions. Let's hope he was right, otherwise we'll have to destroy his lovely new bathroom floor to fix any future leaks etc..

Here's a pretty pic of the offending pipes!

Stefano is now busy digging the "paths" in the cement where the new pipes will go. Drilled cement sure does make alot of noise and dust!!

P.S. Decided on the big white glossy (bathroom) tiles for the kitchen! Sending hubby to pick them up this weekend!

DAY 4 CONT....

2008-06-03T22:07:00.003+02:00

Day 4 started well but ended not so well!

In the afternoon we discovered a pipe under our tiles that belongs to the flat below! We kind of expected it to be there as when the flat above us was renovated they discovered one of our pipes under their tiles. Actually it isn't just any old pipe, it's the pipe that brings all the water into the house!!! This pipe is old and rusty and looks like it could break any second!! So we suggested to the people down below to change it and they agreed willingly (also to pay for any extras). This is what we did with the guy from above. Problem is that the guy from above's plumber only changed the pipe directly under his bathroom floor. There's also the part that bends and goes down into our wall, which he didn't change. We realised this now as to change our neighbours from below's pipe we'll have to also break into their ceiling!!!

Sorry to bore or confuse you, but what this means is about another day or two of work involving breaking neighbour's ceiling and trying to sort out our main water supply pipe which is hiding up in our other neighbours newly renovated bathroom! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

DAY 4....

2008-06-03T13:57:00.004+02:00

I'm glad to say that the last brown tile has gone!! This morning Stefano and Alessandro transformed the bathroom from this -

to this -

Even in this messy state it looks so much better without the tiles!!

All seems to be going great with bathroom. I went to the showroom this morning and my "goodies" are starting to arrive. Shower base, bath and taps are there already! The rest should be there by Friday at the latest Monday (even though I'm sure it will more like Wed or Thur which is fine anyway). Other good news is that the existing divider wall that was there before (the shower cubicle wall) can stay and will be part of my built in cupboards. We were afraid that once the tiles were taken off it wouldn't be strong, but it's very sturdy! So that's saving some time and money.

Am still playing around with different ideas for the tiles in the kitchen. One idea is to have these big tiles laid horizontally. I like it. The workman thinks it won't look good and it'll look like a bathroom floor! But hey, it's my kitchen not his! (fingers crossed....)

RECYCLE....

2008-06-01T16:05:00.010+02:00

Today's Sunday so no builders. Peace and quiet!

Yesterday I took down the Ikea shelves that were in the kitchen. Not wanting them in the new kitchen I went round the house seeing where i could use them. I also had 2 sets of Raan towel hooks and the old ceiling light, Nittio, from the bathroom (once again all from Ikea) to find homes for.

Well, they all ended up in my walk in hall cupboard, which has always been a mess as everything was just piled in there. Now I have a proper light in there, shelves on the wall so I can store light bulbs, sewing stuff, batteries, tools or what ever I want and lots of hooks so i can hang umbrellas, tennis rackets, shopping bags etc ... It's still a bit messy as I still have to organise it properly but I'm happy I was able to reuse these things!

It also means I have a good excuse to buy new bathroom accessories and light!!

DAY 3....

2008-05-31T12:55:00.005+02:00

This morning at 8 am Stefano (workman) arrived!! Kids and I were up but still in pjs and Salvatore was still in bed! At 8:30 he was already banging and drilling. I'm sure our neighbours want to kill us!!

Anyway, today has been pretty much like yesterday, just getting rid of all the tiles and digging out the pipes. In the meantime I finally got around to giving the top part of the cupboard a final coat of paint. The surrounding wall just needs painting which will get done when the kitchen is painted as these two rooms are adjoining.

Also painted these shelves for the hall cupboard. Mmmm, what else can I paint...?

DAY 2 CONT....

2008-05-30T22:55:00.003+02:00

Just another pic of the bathroom. This is how I found it when I came home this evening. Great workmen also swept the floors in the entrance, hall and living room! Okay, it wasn't spotless but it was lovely not coming home to find mess all over the place!

I meant to say earlier, we used the new shower this morning! It was wonderful! Although it will take a little getting used to showering with transparent glass doors! Used to showering in that horrible brown cubicle with opaque plastic doors, it felt like I was showering in public! :D

Alessandro (workman) called this evening to say that there's problems with bath taps! They were meant to be here by now but they are still somewhere in northern Italy and won't be delivered for 2 weeks!! I don't know if things like this happen all over the world but they sure do happen here. Now I'm starting to worry about all the other things that are due to arrive next week (plus Monday is a public holiday!). I think tomorrow I'll be calling around checking! And calling a courier to see about getting the taps delivered directly from the factory (more money but worth it if it will speed things up)!!

DAY 2....

2008-05-30T13:00:00.004+02:00

Workmen have gone to lunch. I never thought I'd be so happy to see a pile of rubble!! What a lovely sight!!

DAY 1....

2008-05-29T17:41:00.012+02:00

Was really more like "DAY 1/2" as Alessandro and Stefano (the workmen) came at about 2pm and left around 5pm. They put all their tools and some material in our garage (well, our rented garage which is in the building next door). Then we had a talk about how I want the bathroom and kitchen and I showed him on the internet the things that I've ordered. It seems that it's all possible, except he screwed up his face when he saw my lovely tiles!! I have ordered straight edge (non bevelled) tiles which I was hoping to have laid with out or with hardly any gap. According to him this isn't possible. I have to have a 2mm gap. I'm not convinced and will look into this later this evening. In the bathroom I actually don't mind the gap, but was hoping to have an almost steam line/seamless effect with the kitchen tiles. We'll see....

Then I had to go out and see Matteo do an end of year thing at school (one of the many that I have to attend in the next few days) and when I got back I had this to see -

Finally we have a shower door!! Yeah!! We can't use it until tomorrow morning as the silicone has to dry! Here's another (very similar) pic of the new doors!

Tomorrow morning the demolition begins! Not looking forward to all the dust and not having my washing machine, but am looking forward to getting rid of the old bathroom. Alex and Matteo (and I) have graffitied all over the tiles with those permanent pens! Alex got carried away yesterday and even wrote his name on the window frame. Luckily I got to it before it dried and managed to get it off. The windows are staying!!!

Looking forward to using the new shower tomorrow morning! ;)

WE HAVE TILES....

2008-05-27T13:09:00.005+02:00

This morning I went to Sandro at Valentini showrooms and chose the tiles!!!

I don't know whether I feel relieved that I have finally chosen them or panic stricken thinking that I've chosen the wrong ones!! So, after all this here are the tiles that we're having... Comfort Living from Marca Corona .

Floor tiles - 45x45cm Olive. Wall tiles - 60x30cm Ivory. They are much nicer in the "flesh" (I hope). Here are the two colours shown separately

As for the kitchen he couldn't get me similar white tiles for such a low price so tomorrow I'm going back to IperCeramica and ordering them there.

I also ordered a new radiator for the bathroom.

TILES GALORE....

2008-05-26T14:24:00.012+02:00

First I went to IperCeramica where the tiles are quite cheap but there's not that much choice. I came away with 3 samples for the kitchen and one for the bathroom.

This white tile (without the roses!) costs €16.95 a metre IVA included but it isn't matt like i was originally looking for.

Here's my sample of it propped up in my kitchen next to a smaller matt tile.

Then I went to IdeaCeramica where there was a huuuge selection to choose from. But much more expensive! A similar tile to the one above, Esprit from Viva costs €40.50 plus IVA (20%).

So I'll most likely go for the cheaper one for the kitchen and splurge a bit on the bathroom! IdeaCeramica have this collection, Work from Sant'Agostino, big 60x30 tiles cost €37.00 + IVA. Another collection that I liked is Natural Trend, depending on the size of the tiles prizes go from €36 to €45 + IVA. Couldn't find them on the site but took a quick pic in the shop.

Last but not least from the "cheaper" shop there was this one for €17.95 including IVA. Not a great pic but you can see it has lines on it and is a bit darker in the "flesh". Have to talk to hubby and see how we're going with the budget!!

Here it is again in to see it in a different light.

So I'm a little bit closer to deciding. Any suggestions and opinions are more than welcome!!!

DECISION TIME....

2008-05-26T09:55:00.001+02:00

I'm off to Iperceramica to (hopefully) buy some tiles!

Fingers crossed please!

CHANGE OF PLANS....

2008-05-25T19:27:00.003+02:00

Just had a call from Alessandro (workman).

He just called to let me know they can start this week!!! Aaaahh!! Panic!! I thought he was calling to postpone once again. So instead of coming on Tuesday 3rd June (giving me the long weekend to empty the bathroom and organise everything) they are coming on Thursday 29th May! That's only 4 sleeps away!! Oh yes and there's that other small problem - I STILL HAVEN'T GOT MY TILES!!!

WORK IN PROGRESS....

2008-05-25T16:07:00.005+02:00

Remember my built-in cupboards? Well I got the doors up last week and they were a tight squeeze!! I was worried that when painted there was going to be no way that they would close!

Miracle!! They close AND open!!
Lesson learnt by me - next time allow a few more millimetres!!

Still missing the door for this little hole in the wall. You can see how crooked and uneven it was before. I only "fixed" the edges where the door will go. The electrical company have been meaning to come for months now to change the meter. Apart from storing the meter this little hole in the wall also holds our keys. Well, it will once I put the door up, which will have lots of hooks on the inside.

LOO ROLL HOLDER....

2008-05-25T12:00:00.004+02:00

This is what we are so lucky to have at the moment.

This is what I put in the small bathroom, nice and simple (and cheap), Sagan from Ikea.

And I'd like somthing like this for the new bathroom. This is Duo from Blomus but I think I need to find something a little bit less expensive!!

CAMOUFLAGE....

2008-05-24T14:42:00.006+02:00

Now that my digital camera is back in action, I took some more photos of the current bathroom!

Whilst taking them I realised that my hair is practically the same colour as the horrendous tiles !!??? What this says about my hair, I'm not quite sure!!! Not a good photo - it's blurry and I had to crop it as I had one eye closed!!! Camouflage or not I will be so glad to see the tiles go!

And here's a mix of all the new yummy things! What a difference!! Still no final tile decisions have been made! Must decide asap!!

GOOD NEWS...

2008-05-22T23:08:00.007+02:00

Yeah! The postman delivered my new battery charger for my digital camera yesterday. Which means 2 things, 1- I can finally take some photos after nearly two months and 2- I'll find the missing charger in a matter of days!

I've been painting the cupboard doors and the shelves as promised and yesterday I went looking for a light to put over the bathroom cabinet but didn't find anything that I liked. Under the cabinet I'll put some waterproof led lights. I found these on ebay ! The 40cm one with 15 led lights is perfect for my cabinet which is 45cms wide!

BRIEF UPDATE....

2008-05-21T22:34:00.002+02:00

Not much going on....

1 This morning I sanded the doors on the built-in cupboards ready for painting, got out the paint tin, only to find it almost empty! Paint shop tomorrow!

2 Alessandro (the workman) called and confirmed that he and Stefano are definitely coming on the 3rd of June to start work. He's already changed the date twice in the past!

3 I still haven't decided which tiles to get!!

4 Kitchen lighting needs looking into. We are having 3 lights under the overhead cupboards. The ceiling will be dropped about 20cms (currently 3.05 m) to cover up some beams and will allow us to put in some downlights or whatever!

5 I need to go and look at some integrated fridges as the one that Raimondo (from the kitchen shop) suggested was way tooooo expensive. I think it'll be cheaper if we get it elsewhere.

6 Waiting anxiously for Sandro (from bathroom shop) to call and tell me that my orders have arrived.

P.S.

2008-05-19T14:53:00.001+02:00

The built-in cupboard now has doors!! (still need painting tho...)

THE SINK....

2008-05-19T13:41:00.008+02:00

I had to change my taps again so have just got back from the showroom. I think Sandro is beginning to think I like him! I'm always there!!

The taps for the sink and bidet are okay (from Zazzeri) and the bath tap panel thingy is okay too (from Fantini), it's the shower tap that I had to change. Seems that Fantini only do the square / rectangular panel one with the thermostatic tap. The normal tap is on a circular panel! Which to me seems rather stupid! So I now have ordered the shower tap from Zazzeri too, which after all this fussing around, I like the best!

Whilst I was there at the show room I also ordered some other boring stuff - various fixtures for attaching the sink, loo etc to the wall.

BTW this is the sink that we're having. Space Contract from Globo. Not sure of the dimensions of the one in the pic as they come in 80, 100, 120 and 140cms. Ours is the 100cm one. Originally I wanted a sink with drawers or a cupboard underneath. In the end I went for this sospended one and will maybe get a small unit on wheels to go under it if i need more storage.

You can also get 2 towel rails to attach at either side or a glass shelf. Thought the towels rails might be nice until i heard the price!! Each one cost €135, that's €270 just to hang your towels up!! The shelf was about €450, that's more than the sink!!!! This below is the 140cm version with the mega expensive shelf!

TILES....

2008-05-17T23:44:00.014+02:00

I'm quite undecided when it comes to the tiles.

KITCHEN. I love all white kitchens. Seeing as the composite worktop is a mix of white and pale grey I'm thinking of having plain long white tiles with grey grout. But then again there are so many lovely coloured tiles out there to choose from.... I saw a gorgeous kitchen in the showroom, all white with huge shiney black tiles. Somehow I think my kitchen is too small to get away with black tiles!

BATHROOM. Once again an infinite choice of tiles out there... And once again I love all white bathrooms, they're so fresh and clean! Having just done our small bathroom with ivory wall and floor tiles I realise that I'd be a slave to an all white bathroom! So I'm thinking stone(?) coloured wall tiles and, wait for it... brown floor tiles! No, I'm not keeping the poop coloured tiles!! Anyway I still have to decide on the exact colours but I'd like a contrast.

We'll be having the side of the bath tiled as I really don't like bath panels (sorry to anyone who has them). Question is, do I tile the side of the bath the same colour as the walls or as the floor?

The colours in the pics below are random, just to give you an idea of what I mean. I think the floor colour on the bath side makes the floor seem bigger. I must go and get some samples and have a play with them!

I can't remember where I saved this pic from, but I love the colours! This brown has absolutely nothing to do with the brown in my current bathroom. Lovely bath, loo and sink too!

KEEPING UP WITH LIL SIS....

2008-05-17T16:30:00.003+02:00

Here's a few pics of lil sis's nearly finished kitchen. I hope mine will look as good even though mine's no way near as big!!

BTW have you finished painting the walls and ceilings???

UNFINISHED BUSINESS....

2008-05-16T10:44:00.005+02:00

I probably could have called this blog "Unfinshed business".

Seems to be a habit of mine.... a bad one! Maybe admitting to this publicly I'll be shamed into finishing all the unfinished jobs...

1. The cabinet lighting in the new bathroom. All I have to do is buy them! The wires are already there waiting for me... Cabinet was put up after xmas!

2. The end of hall cupboard. It's missing a piece of wood on the top. I have to paint 5 of the sheves still. And I have to change the screws that hold the handles on, they're too long and the handles wobble! I made these over a year ago!

3. Built in cupboards in entrance/dining room and new door frame. I ripped out the old ones in November! I put the new frame and shelves up in December! It's all painted and in use but... it's missing the doors! Okay, I am working on this currently. I picked the mdf that I had cut to size on Wednesday! These are photos from December. It's not that unfinished!!

Shame on me! Promise to myself - will finish all 3 by next weekend!! Must find the charger for the digital camera.... and take some photos!

ANOTHER DIY JOB....

2008-05-16T09:56:00.005+02:00

For our smaller bathroom I made the bathroom cupboard as I couldn't find anything the right size!! Happy with the result (except for the broken mirror - that still makes me mad!!) I've decided to make another one for the "worst bathroom in Rome". This one will be bigger (and better).

Here's some pics of the making of the cabinet and the final result (well, not quite final as it's still missing the lights!)

I was inspired to make it after seeing these other DIY cupboards - Thanks Mr G and TL for the ideas and advice!!

MORE €UROS....

2008-05-15T19:55:00.010+02:00

Had a call from Raimondo (from kitchen shop) this afternoon. I can't have the range hood that I ordered. I'd chosen the one that is almost hidden and can be pulled out when needed, so all you'd see was a 4cm wide strip on the bottom of the cupboard. I'm having very tall (92cms) overhead cupboards and they don't seem to make the 88 cm door needed to go over the hood! So choices are, go with one that has the little flap that you open which would be cheaper (and uglier) or add on €305 for a completely hidden one.

Update - Raimondo called back and he'll give me the super range hood for "only" €150 more instead of €305. Yet once again the overall cost is growing!!

Anyway, here's the general layout of the kitchen.

And here it is showing where the windows and walls are. The top two shelves won't be as high as they are in the picture. LST is the dish washer (lavastoviglie).

TAP DILEMMA....

2008-05-15T15:28:00.013+02:00

Thanks D for helping me this morning!! I had a little dilemma with the Fantini taps that I'd chosen. I'd originally thought that the sink and bidet taps could have the lever on the them too (like the shower /bath wall mounted ones) but it wasn't possible. So I thought about having the sink taps wall mounted too. But the sink that I like has a pre punched tap hole! Aaaah!

So this morning I went first to Sandro at the bathroom shop and ordered the sink and different taps from Zazzeri for the sink and bidet. They are very similar to the Fantini ones but they DO have a nice big lever on them!! Then from another showroom I ordered the Fantini taps (the ones I'd fallen in love with) for the bath and the shower. Then I went to the kitchen showroom and chose the final touches - the sink, tap, the shelves, under cupboard lighting, the handles etc... All that's left now is to go and order the bathroom and kitchen tiles. Oh, and pay for it all!!!

So, here's the DaDa Mono sink tap from Zazzeri which I think goes well with the Nostromo ones from Fantini .

As for the kitchen I chose the Neptune sink. I loved the Laser one but it was almost three times as much!!! And I chose the Active tap also from Franke which has a groovy pull out shower thingy!

TOO MANY DECISIONS....

2008-05-14T13:52:00.006+02:00

I'm beginning to think I should be doing or the bathroom or the kitchen and not both of them at the same time! Too many things to choose all at once!!

Raimondo came around this morning and the layout has been finalised! And the quote has grown.... I was originally going to keep our Bosch fridge as it's quite new, but in the end I've decided to go for an integrated one. Not a complete waste of a good fridge as we'll give it to my in-laws who are in need of a new one! That makes me feel less extravagant! So tomorrow I'm going back to Raimondo's shop to choose the integrated fridge and dish washer!! Then there's the sink! What do you think of these from Franke?

Neptune

Columbus

Laser

Enough decisions for one day....

THE KITCHEN....

2008-05-13T22:35:00.006+02:00

Well the kitchen is getting renovated too!

If you stand back and squint your eyes the kitchen isn't that bad... Close up it's a different story - chipped enamel sink, yellowing once white cupboard doors, doors that don't open properly, broken granite worktop, units that block the window etc... I think the kitchen was previously in another house and the old owners had adapted it to fit this kitchen.

We're getting our new kitchen from DoimoCucine. See the Tekna range. Raimondo from the kitchen shop is coming around tomorrow to measure up! Yeah!

Here's a photo of the kitchen taken in March 2003!! Sorry, don't have any more recent ones. Before moving in we changed the tiles which were beige / brown with flowers on some of them!! And last year we changed the oven and cooker.

More details and photos in next post!

ONE DOWN, ONE TO GO....

2008-05-12T22:38:00.001+02:00

We actually had 2 horrible bathrooms...

Last October we renovated the first one. It was very small and badly arranged. The toilet was squeezed in between the wall and a column! Unfortuately we couldn't move the columns but by taking a small piece (70x65cms) of the adjoining office and by moving the door we managed to create a spacious-feeling small bathroom with quite a large shower (100x80cms). Here's a few before and afters.

p.s. still missing the lights above and under the cabinet, and the shower door which is waiting to be installed! And one day I'll have to replace the cabinet door! I broke the corner of the mirror whilst attaching the handle!!!

THE LOO...

2008-05-10T23:15:00.000+02:00

The current loo and matching bidet are of course brown! I think the previous owners chose brown as they weren't too keen on cleaning, I mean why else would you want a poop coloured toilet!! Ewh!!

Yet once again I drove the man, (Sandro) down at Valentini showroom, crazy. You don't just rush into these things do you? You lie and jump on a mattress before buying it, you try clothes on before buying them, so why shoudn't you go round the showroom and sit on all the toilets numerous times before buying one??

Seriously though, Sandro has been very helpful and patient with me! It's just that I know what I want and after living with the brown bathroom from hell for over 6 years, I'm not going to settle for any old loo! Oh, I can also be quite choosy and fussy too! :-D

Anyway, apart from being comfortable, one of the main things was that it had to be easy to clean with no hidden nooks and crannies - you see I share this house with 3 males, two of which are still learning to aim properly!! >:-(

Oh, and it has to be beautiful, yes toilets can be beautiful!

Well the toilet and matching bidet have already been chosen and ordered and are on their merry way to my house. They should arrive in just over a week!

In the end I went with the back to wall Link toilet and bidet from Flaminia.

What could be more easy to clean than these!!

Here's a little reminder of current loo! The white toilet seat was our addition! The original one was... wait for it.... brown and made of wood!!!

BLING....

2008-05-10T14:00:00.000+02:00

I love shiny new taps!

Last year we renovated our smaller bathroom and I chose Tricolore Verde from Cristina Rubinetti. I love the look of them but I think for this bathroom I'd like something with a more "chunky" handle.

Would love to have Vola taps but can't justify spending so much on them!! Anyway I found lots of different brands that have similar gorgeous taps. But none of the ranges had the tap-spout-hand shower combo on a panel for the bath that i was after, like these...

Helen T suggested these from Hudson Reed which I could get online. They look great but I'm a bit dubious about buying them without seeing them in "flesh" first.

Here they are in HelenT's wonderful bathroom.

Then I found them!

It was love at first sight! (I know, they're only taps...) Nostromo from Fantini. Slightly (??) more expensive than the others I'd seen but they are exactly what I was looking for!

THE PLAN....

2008-05-09T19:59:00.000+02:00

Here's a plan of the current bathroom....

Apart from eliminating the offending brown / swamp inspired tiles, the plan is to have a larger bath (current one, apart from being brown, is only 140x65cms) and also to "hide" the washing machine. The idea is to build a floor to ceiling cupboard that will house the washing machine and have loads of space above it for storage, leaving the bathroom free of clutter! This cupboard will be in the place of the current shower. Anyway, more of what I plan to do later...

Here's the yummy shower enclosure that I ordered today...

It's Extreme 6 from Titan. Price is a bit extreme too... but I think it's worth it!!!

It would look great on a streamline shower tray, but for practical reasons it has to be higher than the floor level. So I've chosen this one from GSI. Its 72x100cms.

And here's the steel enamel bath from Kaldawei, 170x75cms.

I like that the shower base and the bath have a similar shape!

I drove the guy in the showroom crazy trying to choose it!! Oh well!!

WHY I CALLED THIS "THE WORST BATHROOM" IN ROME...

2008-05-09T09:00:00.001+02:00

I think it's obvious from the photos!!

After 6 1/2 years of living with this every so "lovely" bathroom we are finally getting rid of it! I'm in the process of choosing and ordering taps, sink, shower etc... and this is just a way to show family and friends (many of who are too far away to pop over and see for themselves) what's going on, and anyone else who is interested in house renovations!