Good evening everyone, and yes, Long Time No Blog...
Who would have thought the replacement of a rustic wooden staircase through the tangled Garden of Neglect would take so long...
and go on..
and on...
First remove old staircase.
Followed by all the builders rubbish found beneath it from a previous generation...
Draw string lines and experiment as to where 'the lady' wants her stairs to float...
Destroy a few more plants, and trample on the agapanthus...
Foggy mornings, followed by frosty mornings.
Ice on the windscreens,
and shivering tradesmen on the doorstep soon after 6.30am.
Made them muffins...
Maybe this will work out ... ?
Sort of coming together..
The Overseer...
Meanwhile, they also built us a handrail down to the pool area.
Mr C has had enough of walking down those rough stone steps with nothing to hold onto. We have to take care of the new bionic knee now.
Things are looking brighter...
and we approve.
I made the workers scones for Friday afternoon, but forgot to take a pic before they had demolished the lot.
Meantime, this iris could not wait to return to the garden, and bloomed in the holding pen temporary pot. What a stalwart.
I have been home much more than usual.
Because they come with questions and requests all day long.
There is other work going on as well, including a new laundry tub and cupboard.
But I did step out one day and buy some new bedroom curtains.
French blue, birds and flowers.
Of course.
This is where we are at -
Not quite finished, but definitely promising...
We have enjoyed a weekend to ourselves, including the movies.
They will be back tomorrow, bright and early.
Might make them a chocolate cake this time.
How do you feel about having tradesmen in the house for a couple of weeks?
I find they certainly seem to take over our lives, as well as our facilities, for the duration. These men are well-mannered, try their best, and quite obliging.
But they still miss things, forget things, get mixed up etc.
I suspect this will be enough home improvement malarkey for 2017.
Have a good week everybody.
xxxx
Birds and flowers, of course! You are a gal after my heart!
ReplyDeleteIt's tough having anything done at your home. One thing for sure, I bet your guys there are very grateful for all those baked goods! Scones? Be still my heart! (HA HA just noticed your tag "carb bribery"!)
Lovely view going down to your pool, and the new stairs with railing is a very good thing, so hang in there!
:-)
I suspect I will miss them when it is all over Kay. Glad you like the curtains and views too. Thanks for dropping by.
DeleteI had my brother-in-law and a couple of friends redo my deck and they noticed that the guttering needed doing and then the downpipes and about 10 other jobs. I'm one to look after the workmen too, and made slices and fresh coffee before I left for work and left lunch things too. I know they appreciated it and they left a tidy finish and did a great job. Not only saving me a tonne of money but the unbearable chasing around for someone to do the jobs. I am eternally grateful. He did this while waiting for a visa to return to work in PNG. If he had two weeks more, I bet he would have put up the extra room I need. Oh for your beautiful garden though!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful brother-in-law you have. I'd be so grateful too. The tidy finish is something we all love to receive I think. As for the chasing around, that is the most difficult part, and we are grateful to have found a builder who is prepared to line up the various trades for the small jobs.
DeleteThe garden says Hi.
The steps are looking very nice, and the handrail down to the pool will be a great safety feature to have. I always find it hard when we have workmen about. But it's so much easier when they are pleasant and polite. I've dealt with both ends of the spectrum, and the other end is not a group you would do any home baking for, that's for sure! :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you Kristie, it is a joy to fix up something around the home which has been an eyesore for ages. We have also had the other end of the spectrum when we did a bathroom. And I did not bake for them - No Way at All!
DeletePatricia, it's never easy having construction projects going on around the house. The workers have done a nice job though, and the stairs look great. I think it's so nice of you to bake them goodies while they're working. I'm sure they appreciate that. The handrail is a great idea for your husband now. It will be much easier for him to walk down the stairs. I love foggy and frosty mornings, so magical. Your French blue bedroom curtains are lovely. And the Lorikeets make my heart sing every time I see them.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the work will be done soon, and you can get back to normal days. However, sometimes during all the chaos, we meet interesting people and learn interesting things.
Take care, dear Patricia. I loved this post today, as it lets me know what's going on in your world. : )
love, ~Sheri
The carpenters are very neat, something I greatly appreciate. We should have done that handrail years ago, but somehow it never made it up the priority list. But now we are all good for a few years, we hope. Funny about learning interesting things - the string lines fascinated me. They put them up and down quite a few times as they went along.
DeleteGlad you enjoyed the post, and Hi from the lorikeets who are out there feeding and chirping as I type.
Your new steps and handrail look wonderful, and the garden will soon recover. How good of you to bake things for the gentlemen - no wonder they kept coming with questions and requests - maybe hoping for some more goodies??!!!!. Now, you always have to be on hand when building anything - it's just the way it is. Life becomes the build!
ReplyDeleteSo true, Sarah Liz, Life has become the build - just like back in May life became the hospital. During my walk this afternoon I took three more phone calls related to The Build :) We will feel very posh when it is all finished, and the iris are back in their home. A stair-warming BBQ is planned for Friday - when Little Aussie will be here.
DeleteThe steps look really great and I am sure you will enjoy using them when it is all finished. Projects like this always seem to take more time and thinking about than we anticipate don't they!
ReplyDeleteThank you Amy, just a few tweaks tomorrow and they will be finished. I am calling it the Stairway to Heaven, and the guys think I am mad...
DeleteYes, always takes longer than you think. Was supposed to finish last Wednesday lol!
I think that you know that I cannot bear tradesmen around the house - inside or out.
ReplyDeleteI have just had a new shower fitted, and foolishly have decided to have the kitchen revamped, not a full scale do, just new worktops along with new oven etc. They said they will do it all in only 2 days hope that they are right. Great when all is done and dusted and off they go for good down the drive.
Glad your steps are nearly finished, they look good - you will be happy when they have left and the plants have re-established themselves again.
Once a year is enough for us re the tradesmen too. Good luck with the kitchen. I tried to add in new benchtops and cook top in my kitchen with the current work, but they insisted new wall tiles had to be added in, and on and on with this and that. Kitchen cancelled for now. I am looking forward to having good new steps, and re-working the garden along the sides.
DeleteOh Patricia...this made me laugh! I HATE having work done....so annoying!
ReplyDeleteI love at the cottage...when you arrive, it is done! Hahaha!
Enjoy your week...
Cheers!
Linda :o)
Hi Linda, agree, it can be quite annoying, especially when they don't notice mistakes until later. Today is fix-them-up day. Plus chocolate cake. You must have a good system at the cottage, work done in absentia!
DeleteThese young tradesmen work so hard physically, for about 10 hours each day here, and they really like their carbs! Chocolate cake today :)
ReplyDeleteTrish, having work done by tradesmen takes over your life, certainly. I like the stairs and handrails are a must! The "overseers" seem to approve too.
ReplyDeleteWhen you own a house with a yard, the products keep you very busy.
Oh Trish, I deleted your comment on my latest blog by accident. I am so sorry. I have done so to you twice, both times I hit that delete button on a comment when I am in a hurry. Of course I mean to hit the button next to it to "publish." Nonetheless I typed you an answer. :)
Meant to type: the "projects" keep you very busy.
DeleteHi Debra, The handrail was the best idea! The steps are finished and look really good. Don't worry re deleting stuff - it happens to me all the time, perils of the internet :)
DeleteI hear ya Trish! We have had workers here for projects many times through the years. It's always kind of "pain" to have the here - but I'm always so appreciative when it's done. I like to bake for them too. ;) Such a Gal after my own heart. Glad you're getting some fun time out too.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your nice cool baking weather! xoxo
Same for all of us, it seems. We are almost finished our long list of little projects the contractors have done. And we are feeling very grateful indeed, and wonder why we left so many things undone for so long! Good weather for baking, for sure. xox
DeleteEnjoy your new stairs. We have been doing some house and yard repairs and changes too. Must be the season.
ReplyDeleteThank you Darla. I still can't get used to the new stairs, and how easily I can run up them. The old ones were very steep and as I am very short, they were quite difficult for me. Glad you are getting some work done also.
DeleteEnjoy your new stairs. We have been doing some house and yard repairs and changes too. Must be the season.
ReplyDelete