Next time I calmly announce we are living in the house while undertaking a major renovation then I want you to take a dirty great back swing and slap me silly because I will obviously be in a delusional state and will need a good flogging to set my head straight!
We have renovated before, though it was a while ago now, and I seriously thought it would be a bit of noise, a bit of dust, and as we hardly live in a quiet, pristine organised environment how different could it be... well I was so far off track it is insane.
The noise has been epic, the dust has moved through the house in drifts, and the mess and living out of boxes thing has been quite the challenge. Not that I don't mind the obstacle course nature of it, I think that is quite fun. The opportunity to do a commando roll to get to the broom is a joy everyone should experience. But five weeks in and I am kind of over it.
It isn't just the noise and dust, it is also the need to be up at sparrow's fart to greet tradesmen who are either crazy early, or epic-ally late depending on which opposite you require... if you have to get somewhere then you can guarantee the will be at least an hour late, and if you have been a tad tardy getting yourself together, then you can guarantee they will all be very early!... I swear the patron saint of all tradies must be bloody Murphy and most of these guys spent their whole lives worshiping him I tell you. They have all been amazing when they are here and we have been blessed with the nicest bunch of tradesmen ever and are doing amazing work, they just have no sense of time... seriously... their watches must all be synced up to a weird alternate sun because they turn up according to tradie time zone..
Tradesmen and their rather flexible schedules aside we are making progress... one bathroom was completely demolished in a two day jack hammering marathon... another was half demolished... those two have been rebuilt, a third has had a light reno, so outside of some painting they are sorted...
Floors have been ripped up and changed over to a gleaming loveliness. The kitchen was demolished and after more than a week of camping with no sink, oven, cook top or bench-tops we are finally approaching a usable area again... almost
As I type the pergola is being upgraded, doors and windows are being prepped for moving, and built in banquette seating is being designed and fabrics chosen, which is the fun bit of course...
which means in a few short weeks or so we will be done except for the painting and decorating of course
and the new front fence, garage door, jungle garden cull and painting the outside of the house... dear god it is never going to end
so I am doing what all creatives do when life is out of control, I am channeling that need for control into my art and doing some quite realistic styled watercolors. I just try to zen out on the need for observation and detail.
happy painting all...xx
