I had thought that by now I'd be posting pictures of us arranging flowers on the kitchen island and doing the whole 'Homes & Gardens' thing that they do on Grand Designs when Kevin comes back to see it finished and looking beautiful. Don't get me wrong, it is really beginning to look very beautiful, but sadly not finished and we are still not in...
The main reason for this is that we have parted ways with our main contractor. I won't go into details, but it has all got quite nasty. Their workers were all made redundant, so the good news is that some of them are now free to come and work for us as self employed tradesmen, which is great. We had a brilliant team on site and they really want to see the job through with us. It's been weeks of trying to unpick which subcontractors have been paid by the main contractor etc. etc. and I have to say incredibly stressful, but we have got some help and we are beginning to move forwards again. I think this could be a long process, but hopefully not one that will stop us from getting into our new home.
We have dealt directly with some of the sub-contractors to get other jobs done, like the rest of the flagstone flooring, which makes the long barn look ready for the viking banquet! The kitchen is well underway, and we still have some decorating to do, but crucially we need to get our sewage treatment plant commissioned, which after a few issues we are now hoping is going to be this week. Quite an important thing to get working!
I'm on the case designing some curtains for our unexpectedly complicated bedroom windows, finishing a last bathroom with tiling and now hoping to start planning lots of finishing touches (the fun stuff!) which will hopefully be the stress buster we need. I've also discovered Micro-Cement, which we've tested as the worktop in the Annex kitchen. It's brilliant, and more sensible than the concrete worktops I'd planned. We are now looking at a light colour for the main kitchen.
Andrew has been doing lots of clearing outside, getting as much rubbish out of the ground before the digger drivers bury it!! Heavy work, which is not easy and taking it's toll.
To cap the drama of the last few weeks, we also had a visit from the Fire Brigade - a skip fire! We believe some linseed soaked rags over heated in the very hot weather and it just went up. Thankfully this happened while people were there to spot it and quickly get the hose on it, or else it could have been disastrous as it was very close to the building ... it doesn't bare thinking about, so we are really counting our blessings.
Our ground-workers are actually doing a great job of sorting out the mess of land around the house, getting it to a point where we can hopefully sow grass this autumn and wild flower seeds ready for next year. And, by the winter we should be on track to plant lots of trees. It's looking very bare, but I can't tell you how glad we'll be to get rid of the last of the farm rubbish! More concrete has been crushed and used as a base for the terraces and paths. Tyre Mountain and Silage-Wrapper Mountain have both been excavated and moved to the front of the property ready for collection ( - if anyone wants any tyres, please help yourself!! - They make great swings, planters, cross country jumps, foundations for cob houses ... am I selling them to you?! ).
Hopefully, my next post really will be after we're in, but the way this last month has gone I am not making any promises. We are not setting any more deadlines that will disappoint, we don't need that stress.
You might be surprised to hear that we are still in love with the place despite all the difficulties we've faced recently. The only regrets are really just around our naivety. It WILL still all be very much worth it... xx
"Digo's World"
Digory, the ever smiling Labrador.
The image of what goes on in his
head must be set to a background
of 'muzak' (or elevator music).
What a joy!
... our dogs keep us happy!
If you've time, take a look at the
Gallery Page, as I've updated with
some more recent photos there :)
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