Home work

Work continues on our magnum opus, with our focus now directed at refurbishing our studio to convert it into a self contained flat.  According to the neighbours it was once a one room cottage for the local forest ranger featuring a double brick room, scrim ceiling with fireplace and brick floor (several layers placed over a slab of natural sandstone).   More recently it had been carpeted and inhabited by a succession of tenants, although it was in a fairly dilapidated condition when we acquired it.  A second more modern extension included most of a bathroom and laundry.

We're intending to squeeze into it when we get around to our major renovations and will use it for guests and eventually perhaps as teenage accommodation.  Given the Sydney property market, however, it might become twenty something accommodation too...

Dave made a four day weekend out of Australia Day and we filled a 4 cubic metre skip with the old ceiling, shower, basin, doors and a pottery kiln (apparently the building hosted pottery classes and we keep finding some of the products as we clear the garden).

Our builder started in early March and only has a couple of days' work to go.  Bathroom tiling is slated for this week.  We've been keeping busy saving money by doing various things ourselves such as insulation batts, the majority of the external weatherboard-style cladding (the builder got us started and finished off the fiddly bits), some of the internal tongue & groove ceiling (we're aiming for a beach-house feel) and trench digging for drainage and so the sparky can add a new power circuit).

Once the builder is done we still have to paint the inside, put the flooring down + skirtings, install the kitchen cupboards, organise a kitchen benchtop, get the plumber back (taps, toilet and vanity installed) and sparky for lights and electrical sockets. Outside there's painting, a retaining wall, fencing, paving and some planting. So there's still plenty of work ahead of us.

Hopefully you'll enjoy staying in it when you visit!

Last year we had to remove about 10sqm of 5-7m high bamboo growing around the cottage.

Original condition

Dave removes the old pottery kiln & laundry

The original ranger's cottage (1 room) had a wobbly brick floor  topped with mouldy carpet.

The builder reconstructed a section of highly dodgy wall.

Internal framing.  Looking towards kitchenette (left foreground) with laundry cupboard; bathroom behind.

Gutters, facias, battening and initial sarking for the weatherboards.  New windows in.

Gyprock

Flick poses an excellent question, but there was a certain satisfaction in completing the cladding (below).  For one thing, we learnt how to use an angle grinder.

The tongue & groove ceiling goes on.  Main room (above); bedroom (below)

Eaves boxed and looking very cottagy.