Tuesday 22 October 2013

Absent but still here .....

It has been an amazing, frustrating and emotional time since my last post. I am back on deck and working hard to have the new shop up and running as soon as possible. So lets recap on whats been happing here at Casa Fabulous shall we?
We left Moranbah on Sunday October  13th and drove through the night to arrive at Ballynde Street in the early hours of Monday morning ~ around 3am.
With mounting trepidation and excitement we opened our shiny new front door and walked inside to finally ~  after 18 weeks ~ see what all the money, drama and stress had become......
Both of us walked around for about 30 minutes not saying anything as we were in complete and utter shock.

The house was dreadful and while there were no tears or tantrums ~ the disappointment was literally crushing. Remember Hesham from Brisbane Floor Sanding & Polishing beautiful floors?
They were white ~ covered in plaster dust and boot prints, sneaker prints and various other prints I could not identify ( remind me never to become a CSI as I would fail miserably identifying clues)
The kitchen benchtops were smeared and coated with the same white residue. The rubbish and CRAP in the front and back yard was indescribable.......

We set to work at about 3.30am after discovering the hard way that the Downstairs Toilet was still not finished or working after 18 weeks ......... and did not stop till late evening when we fell into bed. It has been a very very long week and a half but we are finally making some headway. Endless cleaning, endless Tradies finishing "little jobs", endless tip runs to clear away the mess and rubbish.


*sigh*


I could go on and on about how horrific the whole thing has been and continues to be ~ I could go on about responsibility and finishing a job properly ....... but you know what? *shrug*

Moving on ........

How bout some pics?

Before Kitchen

AFTER ~ Kitchen




Kitchen After

Best thing I ever did was remove the Dining Room.

 
Dining Room ~ Before




Dining Room ~After

Still learning how to use the new camera and trying to take some worthy pics to show you what we have done. I have also been revamping the old furniture and should have some before and afters tomorrow.
Yesterday Mr Fab said:

"Enough ~we need a break from all this so lets take Dexter to the Beach "


Dexter
 
We did and it was beautiful .....

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Wednesday 9 October 2013

It's Time to go ..............

Yep ~ 3 days left here in The Bah ~ It has been an interesting 7 odd years in a small town I can tell you! Made some amazing friends and learned some very very valuable lessons.
I like to think ~ those lessons made me a better person?

I hope so!

The final days are here and our Trades are running around making sure it is all done to perfection. I was chatting to Mat The Painter last night and asked him was he proud of what he had done?

I asked him how he felt about taking a tired old girl with good bones and a huge heart ~ and turning her into a Supermodel!

Check out these quick snaps!

 
Black & White

Excited to try the Rain Forest Shower!


The Welcome to Our Home!

One of the main reasons we decided to begin The Long Distance Renovation was because this house is a GOOD house. The rooms are slightly bigger than the average standard high set 80's Queenslander and it was fully contained underneath. The area is very nice and our views from the ManDeck are brilliant.
Since the first day we walked through our Old Girl 14 year ago we just felt ....... well we just felt like we were .......

Home.

Our latest update tells us the Rangehood has been fitted / Electrician is finishing on Friday / Jase The Tiler just has to grout the Kitchen splashback / Downstairs Floors go in today / Last of the Blinds today / Screens are finished/ Doors are on and Mat informed us the only shoe print marked part of our beautiful  floors is in the lounge section. He actually wiped the stairs down to make sure they were all ok ~ Bless him.

We have learned so much and while I am quick to say I will never do it again ~ I have a feeling I may change my mind. I love seeing how our Home has changed.

Sunday is almost here ......

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Monday 7 October 2013

Last of the Packing

The last of the packing is almost done. We will be finishing the back yard today and cleaning up the empty Pots and outdoorsy type stuff ready to go on Saturday ..... Yes ....... Saturday .......
I cannot believe it is all so close to being OVER.

As of 7am today we have had no dramas but the day is young and yesterday all concerned absolutely assured me they would be done when we arrive next Monday 14th at some ungodly time of the morning.

Jason Our fab Tiler doing his thing

Had to show you our Upstairs Toilet ~The Marble Border runs all the way round the Bathroom as you know ~ I continued it into the toilet for a flow effect .....

(*snort* I love to pretend I know I what I am doing ...)

I am loving the little step down bit ~Jason made the decision to do that and we applaud him as it looks fabulous!

Blinds should be finished today and the Downstairs floor started .....

I am really really trying to not stress and

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx


Sunday 6 October 2013

Week 17 ~ End of Hell week

Thats right ~The end of Hell week although with this morning shenanigans it is shaping up to be worse. As you would know it was Kitchen Install week. Before I begin my waffling ~ Let me be PERFECTLY clear. We still think the Kitchen company we chose and have paid a large sum of money to ~ create a high end quality product.
What has done our head in?

We were dissapointed to find that they also use the "Thats not our Job" catchphrase.

I was stunned!


See the torn ceiling and gap in the left corner?

More Gaps

We are NOT gap people. We wanted stylish and seamless

The kitchen went in and WOW is all I can say ~WOW! It looks amazing in the pictures but I noticed a tear in the ceiling at the top of the cupboards and of course worried myself into a flap ~ as ya do. To be honest I am pretty sure I was thinking ..........
Pfffttttt it will be nothing and I am a sillybilly ......

Then the phone calls started .... yep it seems that while we paid $862 to:

" To Fill the space above your cabinets and extend to the ceiling" ..... apparently that does not include Cornices.

Whats your take on that statement Reader? They made MDF Bulkheads and installed ..... with a gap around the whole thing and cut out bits near the Cornices. When asked by our Builder about what was going in ~ he was told ~ That's not our job to do Cornices. We then feel stupid that we obviously misinterpreted what we agreed to.
I called the Kitchen People and were told they had discussed this ~ Ummmmm no ~ I am absolutely positive I would NOT have paid $862 for MDF strips and a gap. POSITIVELY positive on that one.
Once again it is a lesson ~ DOUBLE and then TRIPLE check everything. Even if you think you might be annoying people? Remember it is YOUR hard earned money so make sure you TRIPLE check everything. Also remember we are doing The Long Distance Renovation so maybe it is easier when you are on site all the time?
Bottom line is ~Our Builder called the Kitchen People then they called us to inform us they would pay to have the Cornices replaced.....

*Blink*


Provincial kitchen starting to come together

Our Blind and Floor chap arrived this morning and called to say he could not do the Floors downstairs because of the rubbish ~ *sigh*
Another round of calls with everyone blaming everyone else ~ of course that is the ones who actually answered their phones.
It also appears our Rangehood did not go in as planned last week and is sitting downstairs on the floor. I had to call to find out.
A simple email or text message or call to advise what is happening. We are starting to believe that unless you have actually done a Long Distance Renovation you cannot empathize or understand how awful it feels. That must be the reason why people seem to dismiss us when we try and find out whats going on!
The above picture was kindly sent to us by our Blind chap to show us his work. You can see the Cornice chap has been in and put the Cornices up as we thought they would be and I am thrilled with how much better it looks.I am pretty impressed with how it is starting to look and cant begin to describe how excited we are about arriving home in 6 short days. We know there will be massive amounts of work ~cleaning up and moving stuff from both balconies (Thats where the Trades put anything) ~there will be hosing and sweeping and preparation as we have a day full of deliveries and all of them will be coming up through the Back Man deck so that area must be cleaned of all the dust from various workmen.

So the update in the last week is:
* Final Grouting in upstairs Bathroom and Downstairs Laundry
* Splashback in Kitchen
* Ceiling in Bathrooms/Toilet/Kitchen
* Stairwell Painting
* Shower screens and Downstairs toilet
* Downstairs Floors
* Security screens

When we arrive next Monday 14th ( we are leaving earlier to ensure we can get the work done before the movers arrive so will arrive about 3am and start work) we will have to:

* Clean Mandeck and hose down
* Clean Zen Balcony and Hose down
* Start cleaning up the garage and moving rubbish outside to load in trailer
* Mr Fab will collect trailer
* Clean down each room including washing the shoe prints from the newly polished floors even after Trades were asked NOT to wear shoes ..... (we have pictures)
* Collect lighting from Carseldine
* Unload car and start to unpack in preparation for the Movers arrival

I am feeling overwhelmed .....

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Wednesday 2 October 2013

Awww come on ~ you are kidding right?

So it has been another couple of days where I have spent hours on the phone sorting things out.
But lets recap.
Finally had all the Tradies return my calls and messages and tell me they are all on track ~ hope it stays that way.They are all telling me they will be done by Monday.
Kitchen Stone Tops have been confirmed AGAIN  for this Friday along with the Bathroom and Downstairs Laundry / Guest Bathroom.

Our Floors have been finished and OH MY GAWD! They are seriously fabulous and we are super impressed with Hesham from  Brisbane Floor Sanding & Polishing  He not only calls on completion, he also sends you text messages to update during the process AND in our case with the whole Long Distance thing ~ SENDS PICTURES!!


Before

Before

The floors were an absolute mess when he arrived as no drop sheets or protection was even thought about because the Trades all assumed they were being repolished so why worry?

*sigh* 

To Heshams credit he took it in his stride but a pretty easy job with minimal damage ~ maybe a light sand and re coat? ..... Turned into a monumental job with a massive amount of sanding and then coating. He has signs everywhere and I have sent long and boring / nagging text messages to all concerned and asked them to Become Fairies ..... To float like Fairies .... to think like gentle delicate Fairies. I also suggested maybe they could pretend it is THEIR floors they are floating Fairy like above and being Fairy gentle and using Fairy dust drop sheets and covers on their tools ......I have also made it very very clear ~ Damage it? Then YOU pay for the repair ..... look at the next pictures and tell me it is seriously not the most swoonworthy floor .....



Leading into the Guest Bedroom near Toilet and Bathroom

  
Our Bedroom
   
The lounge looking into Book Nook

The Stairs *faint with joy*

The Stairs initially caused a bit of a ruckus as I said I wanted them "Hamptons Style". We had brand new stairs installed so why not make them Fabulous? This will be the VERY first thing you see when you come in for a visit to either FS VINTAGE or ~ have arrived to simply sit on The Mandeck and relax with a beverage.
The Painter now has to go back and do the Stringers as he thought we wanted them polished ..........
I will now spend the next 5 days worrying myself sick and it could have been avoided ~ if everyone had stuck to their time frames ......

But it is a Renovation and none of it is meant to go smoothly is it? All the above pictures are with the first two coats applied and the next one is with the final coat which will dull down to a semi gloss which is what we wanted. 


*Blissful sigh* The Kitchen Floor.

Tonight has also been interesting. We were looking at The Lounge Looking into Book Nook picture when I said to Mr Fab ....

Me: Hmm wheres the plug for the TV?
Mr Fab: Should be on that wall *makes picture bigger*
Me: There is no plug or TV Ariel socket
Mr Fab: *scoff* There has to be
Me: Nope
Us: *blink blink*

I sent the Sparky a text message after checking the multitude of fully paid invoices and it now appears there are Two Phases of Electrical work ~ Phase One is putting in the wires and Phase Two is pulling them all through and doing the plugs / outlets ........ 

 Awwwwwww come on ~ you are kidding right?

Our Electrician had changed the appointment we booked and confirmed so basically we would not have been able to set up the TV or DVD player for another three days after we move in ..... not a biggie in the Grand Scheme Of Life but we were both a bit excited to have finally brought a little luxury ~ a new TV for the first time in 7 years ......

Rebooked for him to go to the house on Friday .........

I have to hose down and clean the Zen Balcony because of the dust and dirt before I can go out there and be Zen .......... Just sayin

12 Days to go folks ~12 days to go.

 Is it ok to buy wine by the case?

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx







Monday 30 September 2013

Distract me ....... please ....

I have decided to take the Fat Mum Slim Photo Challenge. A pleasant distraction from Drama .....



 

 Day 1: Something Colourful






Yeah Yeah ~ I know its kinda sorta still about packing as this is on the wall waiting to be wrapped up but it has distracted me for a bit and let me find my Zen .....

Day 2 ~ Light



I suck at photography but I like doing it ....... 


Day 3: Me Today



Day 4: In Motion

Stay Fabulous


fs vintage
xx


Week 16 and 2 to go .....

Week 16 is officially here and today is SUPPOSED to be the Benchtop install day ~ along with Floor sanding. In the last week I have not been able to sleep. Seriously bad disjointed dozing is more accurate as my mind is full of ridiculous stuff that does me in at 2 am. So ~ in an effort to refocus I decided to update this Blog as I love woffling on about the comings and goings and doings of FS VINTAGE and love that you read. I had to figure out how to add those cute little icons on top of the About Us bit ............
I must be the most non computer savvy geek on the planet as I could NOT figure out the whole HTML? whatever it is code thingy. I was awake at 2 am so thought I may as well put my awakeness to good use. Around 6.30 am ~ it all finally lined up and worked.
*serne smile*

I felt like a bonafide Computer Geek at that stage ........

You can click on any of our pretty links and follow our zany ramblings .........

The week dawned bright and clear so I began what has become a Monday Morning Tradition by making my round of Phone Calls. God forbid anyone calls me ~ so I call them.
 
It appears The Kitchen ~ which should have been in at least 2 weeks ago ~ is again delayed because the Kitchen Sink did not arrive. Keep in mind ~ I didn't make the install dates or the "I can fit that" Date. These people told me over and over that this would be done and that would be finished by such and such a date. After confirming a heap of times ~ I would THEN go and book whatever else needed doing in line with them. To be fair ~ I do understand when things go wrong .... when life or the weather gets in the way ...... but I have to admit I am a leetle bit over not being informed of what is happening. I am a serious easy going gal but you know what? Reached the end of my tether people. It is a very very long tether and I am at the end .........
I had the Floor Sander on the phone in a blind panic because he was stressed about the Floors being damaged by Trades who go in after him. Then Chris The Builder on the phone trying to sort out who should have done what over the weekend. No work can be done upstairs now till after Friday as the Floors need to set before anyone walks on them. They must also use Drop Sheets and wear NO SHOES so as not to damage the newly polished timber. I know one thing for absolute certainty ~ damage it love?
Pay for it.
All the Trades I could contact assured me they are professionals and have dealt with polished timber floors before and will not make so much as a whisper of a mark .......

*Blink Blink*

It all goes back to Mates Rates

Kitchen from ManDeck

The Tiler did not answer any of my calls over the weekend ~ I had extra tiles lined up but could not find him and as of 5.30am on Tuesday I still have had no answer to any calls or Txt messages. The Floor Sander had to do a far bigger job ( originally the floors were not that bad and needed a light sand) as The Painter had not used Drop sheets so the entire floor was white and he had to sand to the very edges to get it all ready for sealing. It also seems the painting is NOT finished so the Floor Sander was having a nervous breakdown about them all damaging his work. But The Painter is not finished because The Tiler had his tools and tiles in one of the bedrooms and he has not finished for whatever reason .......
The Kitchen BenchTop is apparently going in on Friday now ~ along with the Bathroom and Laundry ~ and I wondered out loud when someone was going to CALL us?
It appears there is also a massive hole in the Lounge Room which is NOT as we thought finished because apparently The Plasterer has not finished ........ because ~ and remember folks I am going on hesay and theysay ~ someone else has not done what they had to do.
On top top of all this? There is also apparently NO ROOM  in the garage as all the Trades have simply dumped whatever rubbish they had ..... exactly where they last had it.
Which leads me to finally finding out the answer to the interesting question:


Shelves


Guest Bedroom Painted

Who Does The Rubbish?

It appears in the Renovating Rule Book ~ When you use a Builder for your entire Reno and he provides the Trades then he will have a skip bin or dispose of the Rubbish. When you have to use a Builder and find your own Trades then those aforementioned Trades simply dump their rubbish where they want and YOU are responsible but lets get 16 weeks into a Build before we let someone know shall we?

Then late last night when I thought the entire day could not have anything else happen ..... The Electrician called to say he had forgotten to write in his diary when I booked him 4 weeks ago via email and confirmed ................ he had booked flights so could not come to finish the Electrical work on the pre booked four weeks ago confirmed date .........

As ya do.

I have decided I must be the most old fashioned and daggyiest person on the Planet ~when I say I am going to do something? I do it.

Bit tired of all the excuses people ~ Do your job can you? Just get on with it.

I did call The Blind People and also mentioned I wont be paying the entire balance until the three windows downstairs are finished. Yep ~ because the Plasterer didn't finish ..... The Plumber didn't finish .... The Tiler still has to Waterproof .... so the Painter can finish ~ after The Setter finishes .... so the Blind people can measure for a blind that will take 8 weeks from whenever they finally get to measure and must be in by the second week in October to beat The Christmas Cut off ........

On a Brighter Note? I sent a massive missive via Text to The Downstairs Floor chap about what is happening and his reply?

"All Good"

He is coming in next week ~the last 6 days before we move back home to do the Downstairs Floors and install the Plantation Shutters and it is ...... "All Good".

Let's just wait and see .......

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Friday 27 September 2013

Kitchen ....... Its a happenin thang ... Oh yeah

Week 16 is here and we are heading toward the end and Moving Day. We have been in a kind of limbo the past few days as we have heard nothing from anyone. Nothing at all ....... not a call or txt or picture ... zip, nada, no comprendo senor.
I finally decided enough is enough and called everyone to see where they are all at!

Its a happenin thang people *insert really cool disco moves here*

All the Lads are working toward the end and all of them say they will be done and dusted by the time we arrive. The stone Benchtops are ready to be installed on Monday and a round of frantic phone calls ensued as the Floor Sander is going in to start sanding back the floors on Monday.

So for your viewing ~a not normal Blog post ~ an extra special Blog post ..... May I present .....

PICTURES!!!!!!!!!!

 
*swoon* The Kitchen Carcass

I didnt think I would be so excited to see this!!! Yes it is a mess but OMG!


*faint*



Bathroom just before screen install
 
The Floor ~ designed by me and saved us heaps!


 
Love the square mixers

 
I wanted everything in the Bathroom to be squared ~the ONLY round things in the room will be the vintage Mason soap dispenser and the Chandelier 


New Toilets ~ Image via Google
 I am so darn excited and absolutely squirming with anticipation and pretty sure I wont be able to ......


Stay Fabulous


fs vintage
xx

Tuesday 24 September 2013

Restyled & Fabulous

As I have been packing everything up to go home I have been coming up with ways to recycle and save money.
I had spent the weekend cleaning up an old standard glass top outdoor setting we have which has sat outside in the blazing Moranbah sun for a few years now and is the worse for wear ~ BUT ~ still has a few BBQ's left I am sure. Nothing flash ~ nothing spectacular or Ohhhhh Ahhhhhh worthy but serviceable.
A couple of the cushion covers have definately seen better days so I popped on to Google to see what the cost of replacements are so we could use this on The Mandeck till we find exactly the one we want.

*faint*

The cushions would cost more than the actual entire Outdoor setting???? Its just to sit at for a refreshing beverage and a bite to eat for goodness sake!

So ~ I remembered these ....... actually I remembered these at about 2 am when my brain was still in overdrive....


Coffee sacks

Hmmmmmmmmmmm I wonder....... Could I?

Yes indeed I could!



The new chair cover!


1 x Old Outdoor setting resurrected with Coffee sack covers ~Just a little bit Fabulous?

What do you think?

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Monday 23 September 2013

Tradies & Tiaras ~ Week 15

Leftover from Week 14 ~ Kitchen was delayed ....

Of course it was delayed......
Of course the only rain that Brisbane has is when our Kitchen is being painted .....

*sigh*

Ok Mrs Positivity ~come on down!

Lets recap : The removalist is booked. We are using the amazing Rite Price Removals Moranbah ~ Kylie promptly returned our calls , gave us a fair quote, allowed for my brain being in neutral , forgetting things and kept us in the loop constantly.  You need moving? Go see Kylie and tell her fs vintage sent you. All booked and deposit paid for pickup on the 12th October.

The Tiles Have begun ....

The Bathroom Tiles ....

We are doing floor to ceiling in The upstairs bathroom, toilet and the downstairs Laundry/Guest Bathroom. We are also using the same tiles throughout the house. Yeah Yeah ~ I know it was the perfect opportunity to try something different but honestly? We had reached the stage of bone weary where we thought ~ Lets just do it already. Heaps easier for the Tiler thats for sure. We also chose to lay the tiles on the side. Well no that is actually not entirely true ....
I chose to lay them on the side after seeing a friends renovation and saw she had used this idea so I pinched it. Mr Fab HATED the concept and thought it was a little bit to crazy and odd and non traditional.
Pffftttttttttttttttttttttttttttt seriously?
I think it looks AMAZING! (Guess who now thinks it is Fabulous?)
The Border is interesting. It is strips of Marble Tile in various degrees of Black & White with random stainless steel. Yep you read that right ~ stainless steel. Very Industrial, Very FS VINTAGE?        

Floor Tile almost done

The bottom Border came about because I had the tiles laid on the floor here to see what they looked like together and noticed at various times of the day and in various lights ...... the white was noticibly different.
*SHRIEK* (The bottom border was ANOTHER problem for the delightful Mr Fab ~ way too out there for him .......)

So I put one layer of the Border tile in between to see if it made a difference and ............. TA DAH ..... Now the tiles look to be the exact same White. I did not want  the room to look like the floor tiles were a creamy white and the walls a stark white .....
The floor ones came about because it was DOUBLE the cost for the Mosaic version of this look. I absolutely love the mosaic version but had to be strong and find an alternative. We found some large white tiles on sale along with the smaller black ones ..... asked Jason The Super Tiler can he do? ........... 
He did!
Perfectly Fabulous in our opinion! Plus saved us about $30 a square meter.


Inside of window

It's the little things that do you in .......

The Kitchen has been confirmed for install on Monday the 23rd of September. It was a major drama because it put EVERYONE back a few days and we were getting close to the Floor Sander deadline of the 30th start on polishing the Floors. The usual rounds of phone calls to everyone over a few hours and it was kinda sorta sorted out. The most easy going and laid back of the whole bunch is Mat The Painter. He is the most Zen person I have ever met ...
As you already know ~the floors need at least a week for to be really ready to walk on so I had organized that in the down week where nobody really needed to do anything. The best laid plans blah blah blah. Monday morning dawned bright and sunny so armed with my CAN DO POSITIVE ATTITUDE I made more phone calls to my gorgeous Tradies to confirm everyone was on the same ....... page?........ Planet?.... To my utter delight they are all on track to be out and gone by the end of the weekend so our Floor Sander can go do his thing. Chris The Scottish Builder confirmed the Kitchen chaps were installing the Kitchen Carcass ... ( I just love how they call it a "Carcass" ) and apparently the Stone people are there as well.

Oh yeah.

I cant get any of them to take a picture as it seems they are all ... apparently ......... old....... and therefore have no idea how to use the Phone camera ......
(I can use a camera and I am old .......... Do you follow us on Instagram

I still dont understand why the tiniest little thing can set a problem in motion that seems to be as big as Godzilla and causing as much destruction. I have come to the conclusion that Tradies & Tiaras go hand in hand .......
In between this place looking like the aftermath of a small but effective explosion I have been finishing a wedding order and some Vintage quart Masons ....



Everything for FS VINTAGE will be packed away this week and will not be reopened again till maybe the third week in October? I will keep you informed as the new and shiny shop is my number one priority .... after setting up the new King Size Bed of course.

Till next week when it is getting mighty close to MOVING DAY ....

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx



Monday 16 September 2013

Week 14 ~ Hello Kitchen Week

Ohhhh yeah ~ Finally after all this time ~ it is KITCHEN WEEK!!!!! On the 19th of September our kitchen will be installed. (Along with the Bathroom cabinet)

*squirming*

We made a last minute decision to change the Laundry cabinet top to stone last week and our wonderful kitchen Dude ~ Paul from Starkey Christoe Kitchens made it happen. We just thought if the rest of the house was stone tops then we may as well go the whole hog and ~ DO IT!
There have been hold ups and it all goes back to the whole Mates Rates thing. The Downstairs Guest Shower and Laundry Room is not finished due to other commitments by our tradie so the walls cannot be finished which means the Plasterer cant finish which means the Tiler cant finish which means the painter cant finish and so it goes on ..... I said from the get go I did not want to have to use the Mates System but unfortunately we had no choice. To be fair ~ the Lads have done an amazing job and we cannot wait to see their work! So ~ we have contacted Paul and asked for the Laundry cabinet to be postponed till the 27th September and have fingers crossed it is all done and ready to be finished by then.

Downstairs Guest Area

fs vintage shop all plaster boarded and ready for paint!

I cant even begin to talk about the sheer frustration I am feeling at this time. This last few weeks to the finish line is doing my head in and while I strive to make sure everyone is happy ........ I have reached the stage where I just want to scream :

GET ON WITH IT ALREADY!!!!!!


At least Chris The Scottish Builder has sent us some pics! He is definately getting better isnt he?

I do so love a Nook & Waterproofing in the Bathroom

Brendan our AirCon Dude from Cross Air has installed all our Air Conditioners so that is ANOTHER job out of the way. Pretty neat and tidy job huh?

Main Bedroom Hitachi Unit

Units mounted outside


We had confirmation today that all our screens and doors ~ from Absolute Security will be installed on the 8th October. Adam has been amazing and damn if he is not working round all the little ups and downs involved with a Long Distance Renovation.
It also seems all our Upstairs Waterproofing has been done today and the Tile Bed is done tomorrow in preparation for the TILING!!!!
Then of course the Bathroom Cabinet ~2 pack Cupboard with Black Rock Stone Top and Square Basin goes in on Thursday!
Today we have a Removalist coming to quote and we hope to lock that in ~ it seems all the ones I have contacted have no time to get back to us ........ so it looks like this one may be the one!

Oh my this is starting to get super exciting!

Till Next Week

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Wednesday 11 September 2013

Show me the MONEY





A short one today about manners and money.

I would like all the Tradies to give me lets say .... $50,000? Or $3000 or even a deposit of $1500? ....... THEIR money ...... money they have worked hard for.
I will then take their money and not bother to email, phone or even text message them a simple

"got it thx"
"I have finished your ... (insert whatever here)"
"Going well pic to follow"

Doing a Long Distance Renovation means basically we cant see ANYTHING. So ~ we watch the aforementioned money going out of our account .... we spend literally hours on the phone sorting out so called "issues"and we see NOTHING.

You do get the odd one who lets you know whats happening but overall? ............ NOTHING.

We do understand being busy but it would be brilliant to know whats going on ..........
I cannot even begin to describe how excited we get when one of them does send us a phone picture........ its not a biggie ~ just keep us in the loop is all we ask.

It is just 4 weeks till we walk through our new front door and see where all this stress and drama has gone ....

Will you join me on The Zen Balcony for a chilled glass of something refreshing?


Try and .........

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx

Sunday 8 September 2013

Fabulous Renovation ~ Week 13

Week 13 has come around and I was right when I said I would go into a blind panic and think ~ OH CRAP WE ONLY HAVE 5 WEEKS!!!!!
Spent the weekend doing furniture so it is ready to go straight in when we arrive..

Fs Vintage ~The Shop


We were discussing the new  fs vintage  shop and I have to say out loud ~ although I probably will regret it and hear about it for a month ....

Mr Fab is brilliant!!! For some bizarre reason he seems to be able to think of the little details which somehow alude me.
(I like to think it is because my head is full of other more creative things ......? *cough* probably not.)

We were discussing how we will set up the Shop and had an idea for the "counter" and also The Opening Night.
We decided we will have an Opening Night when we are settled and invite you all to come along and have a squizzy at what we have done to create a little bit of Fabulousness in our home. Mr Fab suggested we ask the local TAFE ~ do they cater? Of course they would so that has now gone on my To Do List for when we have basically settled in.

He is absolutely glowing with delight and joy at the moment because ........ The Man Deck has a roof and fans AND lights. He is anticipating his first refreshing beverage while surveying his Castle  .....

It still looks small to me but Mr Fab is happy

View from our Neighbors yard ~

Quite a productive week all round ~The Floors are locked in and we have decided to use Brisbane Floor Sanding and Polishing. We chatted to the wonderful Hesham who will be doing his thing from Monday 30th of September. The floors need at least a few days before being walked on and we will have to speak to the Blind and Floor chap to ask can he wear socks over his shoes please?
We have booked our blinds and the downstairs floors for the week of the 7th of October and in a perfect Renovation world ............ bahahahahahahahahaha........ Everyone will cross over without running into each other.
I have everything that can be crossed ~ firmly crossed that it all works out in the end.
Jason The Tiler is going in on Wednesday of this week to start the Upstairs Bathroom and Toilet *squeal with delight* I honestly did not think I would ever get so insanely excited about tiling .... but I am. So lets be honest ~ maybe we can only afford Marble in the border tile but the point is ~ we will have marble in the Bathroom ... *swoon*
It is still doing Mr Fabs head in a leetle bit that we are doing such a dramatic Black and White theme. I have to keep gently patting him and mentioning his Man Deck, cold Beverage, Feel The Serenity ........ that seems to calm him down and divert his attention.
Our only hold ups so far have been the : ~ Plasterer went on holidays so we cant get the Painting done till he returns and the Downstairs Bathroom has come to a complete stop.

*sigh*

The Upstairs is pretty much done except of course The Plastering which leads to the Painting. The kitchen is so close I can almost smell the muffins baking ........ actually that is impossible because it is a well known fact that I simply suck at baking muffins no matter how easy peasy a recipe is. Feel free to send me your Fail Safe Recipes as others have before you ~ so I can effectively ruin them. Must be a mental block .....

Progress of Upstairs ~See my new shiny fan?


The Downstairs Bathroom is a huge job ~ very labor intensive with concrete needing to be dug out for a shower waste trench, fixtures to be fitted and whatever Plumbers do to them, installation of the Laundry Bench and sink, Villaboard for the floor to ceiling tiles, plaster board (*see Plasterer on holidays) ceiling install and painted.
Appliances are booked for delivery so we are contacting everyone concerned to try and have a Time Frame in case we need to bring in anyone else ( MORE money *shudder*).
Today is a day full of lock down on the New Coffee Table,  King Size Bed *swoonworthy* , chat to Paul the Kitchen Dude to find out when he is installing and the booking in of our movers.
The house here looks like a badly managed Storage Facility with boxes and painted furniture everywhere so I am slowly going a little bit insane with antici ............ pation.
(Did I mention the one poster Print that survived the Rental Era of our Home was our Rocky Horror Picture Show Movie Poster? Still looks as Fabulous as it did when I first had it framed.....)

The Electrician was spoken to last night and he only has about 5 hours of work left including fitting the New Lights, moving the plug in the bathroom ( Ok ok I didn't even think about the 80's corner cabinet and where the plug was so had to make some mad Sunday Night Phone calls to sort that out) and little fit offs to complete the Kitchen. I have a list now and every single time I think of something ~ I write it down. I am really trying not to second guess and let my mind wander to things it shouldn't ~ like : Did I make the right choice in Floor and Wall tiles in the Bathrooms and will it look dodgy?. This leads to me up at 1.24am on a Date with Mr Google looking for pictures of Bathrooms with Floor to Ceiling tiles to make sure I have NOT made the wrong choice so I can sleep ......

All things come to those who manage to wait .....

Stay Fabulous

fs vintage
xx