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Post by OnlyMark on Jul 31, 2012 22:24:56 GMT 2
Quick update - after a pratting around on the phone with IKEA I eventually managed to get some replacement doors/draw fronts for the damaged ones originally delivered. 'Got them' in that I slipped to their place in Malaga to pick them up. However, after refusing to sign for their receipt until I checked them, I found that even one of the replacements was damaged. I told them I was going for breakfast and to have yet another one available for me when I return - which they did. So I hot footed it back to the house and fitted them. I also put the cooker on some bricks until I get a proper plinth built at the same time as the breakfast bar and did a big clean up of the floor etc. Photos yet to come.
The upstairs bathrooms are being a bit of a pain as the workers seem to need quite constant supervision so as not to put the wrong tiles in the wrong places. But, it is coming on, plus the floor in the main bedroom area of the largest bedroom has been finished. Photos when it's all finished and cleaned up. Don't quite know when that will be though so bear with me. That's all for now.
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Post by Voy on Jul 31, 2012 23:16:00 GMT 2
well done in getting the replacement doors!
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Post by happytraveller on Aug 1, 2012 10:39:32 GMT 2
Looking forward to the next photos !
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 3, 2012 16:10:37 GMT 2
So, last picture of the kitchen until the floor is cleaned properly, the plinth for the cooker is built, a door for the storage room/larder and the breakfast bar to go behind the cooker area. A rather badly stitched together panorama photo - Moving on to the bathrooms - this is a photo, as best as I can do with my point and shoot thing, of a shower area in one of them. They'll all have different designs/tiles, but to explain a little - to the right where the tiles are missing will be a wall built out of glass blocks and to the right of that, out of shot, will be a built in washbasin, mirror above it and a toilet to the side. It's all tiled so getting it wet isn't a problem. You can see some bare brickwork near the floor which will be covered in tiles and used as a shelf to rest your shampoo and soap on. Iain would put there is Remington ladyshave for his bikini line and getting his legs smooth. Just above that you can see where the tap would go and right at the top is a small dot where the shower head will stick out - The bathroom is of one of my daughters'. All the kids have chosen their own tiles. I've now ordered all the tiles in total and all the flooring for the top floor plus the doors for the bathrooms and rooms themselves. Hopefully this will be quite well on when I leave in a bit less than three weeks.
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Post by happytraveller on Aug 3, 2012 18:13:57 GMT 2
Love love love the kitchen !!
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Post by Voy on Aug 7, 2012 0:32:48 GMT 2
me too ! and as blue is "my" color, I'll take that bathroom too!
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Post by Big Iain on Aug 7, 2012 10:36:16 GMT 2
Great looking kitchen. I don't really like to have to bend over in the showers to pick anything up. Years in prison will do that to a person. I'm more of a wax kinda guy anyway.. The house is taking shape, I just looked through all the pics again and am impressed with the way it all comes together from plan. Must be hugely satisfying.
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 9, 2012 10:42:37 GMT 2
I'm impatient though Iain. I see what has been done and what is yet to be done and trying to estimate how long it will take. I could always just throw money at it and get it done sharpish, but then probably there'd be too many compromises and I wouldn't be there to sort out all the little questions and details. So I have to sit and wait. With it being the holiday time in Spain there is just one worker and his lad doing it all at the moment, so it takes ages.
The workers have 'finished' one of the bathrooms this morning - but 'finished' to them means there are still no electrics in it, no built in mirror, nor is the plumbing finished or tap for the sink, shower tap and head installed. Their system seems to be to do the same thing to each bathroom so that they end up being all finished at the same time rather than completely finishing one before moving on to the next. Planning ahead, I also now need to see if a permit is needed for the pool and what they'll accept. I suspect that a 'water deposit' is ok, but not a swimming pool. So we'll see. Also, furniture - my wife is having the time of her life perusing all the furniture places, brochures etc etc. I just nod my head and say, "Yep, that looks fine".
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Post by Voy on Aug 9, 2012 14:28:08 GMT 2
I'm with your wife! - what FUN - to have so many spaces to make homey-- but being me,I 'd start with flea markets and antique stores -- the furnished pictures are going to be really awesome!
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Post by auntieannie on Aug 9, 2012 15:07:03 GMT 2
When my parents built a house in Spain, with a view to go there on holidays and to rent to friends when they weren't there, they furnished it with nice but nothing special furniture in the local style.
Very quickly, the people who live by stealing, roving from empty tourist house to empty tourist house, found out that there was nothing to steal unless people were staying in the house. And every person/family who was staying in the house was informed of how to protect their goods. This kept trouble to a minimum.
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 10, 2012 15:13:18 GMT 2
We do have security grills on the vulnerable windows and doors Annie so I hope anyone would think it's too much trouble to try and break in to.
Voy, we're a bit short on flea markets, antique stores and the like. We are looking though at what there is.
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 10, 2012 15:31:46 GMT 2
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Post by Big Iain on Aug 11, 2012 0:39:37 GMT 2
Those glass building brick-thingies are brilliant. Any idea what the final tally of tiles will be for the whole house!!?
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 11, 2012 9:33:35 GMT 2
I'll get back to you on that one Iain, I never thought about it but you've got me thinking now.
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Post by Big Iain on Aug 11, 2012 21:27:17 GMT 2
Close on to a thousand I would think? Sounds like a job for the kids on the first rainy holiday day!
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Post by OnlyMark on Aug 11, 2012 22:51:51 GMT 2
As a rough working out, taking a tile to be an average of 20cm x 20cm, just in the upstairs bathrooms there are approx 3125. Then add to that the two bathrooms on the bottom floor, the master bathroom, the kitchen floor, the bottom room floors (both are marble floors so bigger tiles), then add on virtually all the other rooms/corridors/landing that have floor tiles and........... and............. In fact I don't now want to think about it. Wooden floors tend to warp here, as do wooden windows, because of the fairly big variation in year round conditions, so for ease of maintenance (especially for us as it will be empty more than occupied for now) there are tiles used as flooring everywhere. We don't have them in our bedroom, but most everywhere else there will be. We've scoured high and low for decent ones and ones that look and feel natural when they are put down to mimic a wooden floor.
As for the kids cleaning - jeez, it'll cost me a fortune in ice cream bribes.
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 3, 2012 14:08:09 GMT 2
It’ll take me a day or two to catch up on what’s been happening on here while I’ve been away but in the meantime I thought I’d slip a few photos in of how the house is coming along. Inside all the major building works have now been done and it needs a lot of cleaning and decorating. The photos show that a lot has been partially done but I need a good couple of weeks to go round it all room by room and put the final coats on to get it ship shape. Some of the colours wont be the final product as they were applied just as an idea at the time and as the building has progressed we’ve decided on occasionally a different colour scheme. You’ll notice there is also a lot of untidiness with bits and bobs everywhere as it’s all been a bit of a rush and with having two sets of visitors already (my brother and his family and a friend and her family) we’ve not had much time. Anyway, here goes. This is the access to the back of the house from the track at the front. The weather was quite wet and I had to lay a ‘crocodile bridge’ to get over the worst of the mud and water (if you go off it the crocodiles will eat you). You can see to the right of the photo the pipes and cables from the solar water and electric panels up the hill – If you come in the main wooden back door you get into the entrance ‘hall’ with its new floor – Just off here is a guest toilet and the TV room with a new sofa – Also is the corridor to the kitchen with the floor reflecting that of the entrance – The kitchen is just about finished with a door on the larder/pantry (might paint that door actually, not sure yet) – The table is one we’ll tile and put outside and we’ll have a different dining area one – Then you come through into the living room/reading/relaxing room that now has the French doors instead of an access door outside. There are steps out there leading down to the front yard but they’ll be taken down so access in to the main part of the house will just be via the rear, via some new steps at the side of the house –
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 3, 2012 14:09:54 GMT 2
Then we have the new staircase to the top floor. Previously this was a temporary metal set – The door underneath the stairs goes through to the ‘master’ bedroom of ours with own bathroom (previous photos in this thread somewhere). And so up the stairs – To the landing – There are four (bed)rooms with their own bathrooms and a store room upstairs. This one is the smallest which we’ll use as a room for the computer and some books but also a sofa bed – The door into the bathroom – Al the floors are new up here, the bathrooms finished off, the stairs built and the floors on the middle floor finished, then as the builders left they did the back patio (photo later) and departed somewhat richer. This is the bathrooms that we went a bit mad in and tried a few different things – Why did we try a few different things? Because it’s our house and we can. Moving to a couple of the other bedrooms – The strange ins and outs of the walls are due to strengthening pillars we had to have built because of the new floors and roof, but in this last photo the alcove is where a fitted wardrobe will be built. In all the bedrooms there are alcoves that will have fitted wardrobes we (or in fact, I) will build when I've time.
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 3, 2012 14:11:51 GMT 2
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Post by Voy on Nov 3, 2012 14:53:17 GMT 2
wow WOW!!! and I love love the tilework carpets in the hall.. brilliant!
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Post by ninchursanga on Nov 3, 2012 18:02:51 GMT 2
The tilework carpets are indeed!! And I just love your son's bedroom with that bed above the bathrooms. That's way cool.
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 3, 2012 21:05:19 GMT 2
It certainly has come on recently but nothing much will happen for I don't know how long now until we can save up. Putting furniture in it is going to be a nightmare. In the big bedroom space below where the bed is will be a sofa, desk and a few lying down and dossing about cushions on the floor I think. I'm not really the one who has the final decision on that.
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Post by Big Iain on Nov 3, 2012 21:36:08 GMT 2
I'm another lover of tiled floors, especially when it's going to be hot. I also love the wee bit of brick wall showing too. And the glass bricks work too. It's well planned, well done you guys. Can't wait to see it
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Post by Baz Faz on Nov 4, 2012 0:04:20 GMT 2
Congrats on your vision. It is all coming on wonderfully. I bet you are all excited at the prospect of summer there next year.
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Post by auntieannie on Nov 4, 2012 2:39:32 GMT 2
well... it's rather livable and lovely, now! well done!
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 4, 2012 7:21:20 GMT 2
The main bugbear for a long time has been having to stay there whilst it was a building site inside and traipsing dust everywhere. That should about end now.
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Post by happytraveller on Nov 5, 2012 8:57:45 GMT 2
Yep, I too love those floor tiles ! Wonderful house, you guys have done well ! When is the housewarming pissup ?
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Post by OnlyMark on Nov 5, 2012 11:26:54 GMT 2
I'm in two minds whether to wait for the pool being built or not. Probably I will wait and by that time we might have some furniture inside as well. It all feels a bit bare and cold at the moment. We need to do some serious saving but events conspire against me at the moment in that as my father ages it requires ever more frequent visits to the UK using up savings.
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Post by happytraveller on Feb 10, 2013 10:20:08 GMT 2
Up You Go !
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Post by missalaska on Feb 10, 2013 11:24:46 GMT 2
Shame happy, you are the lost and found department!
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