Where to start! Well our renovator's delight was built in 1972 & very little had been done to it since by 3 previous lazy unmotivated Owners. Original kitchen, laundry & bathrooms. Open face red-brown internal brick walls EVERYWHERE. Mission Brown exposed beams, woodwork & floor tiles EVERYWHERE. Disgusting dust & spider-ridden 20 year-old shantung curtains EVERYWHERE. We purchased it in June 2006 & have been working on it ever since. The Man-Of-The-House & I have done everything other than some plumbing & electrical work because we are 'tight' & because we've done it before & like a challenge. Every room is a complete gut job & we haven't even started on the 2,000sq. metres of rambling garden.This is the story of the house behind The Laurel Hedge.THE HOUSE AS WE SAW IT ON THE FIRST DAY - ALL SLOPING SIDES & WEIRD ANGLES
The open plan living room/dining room, while not totally finished is on its way. To read more go here.
BEFORE (from the Realtors brochure)
AFTER
We've totally gutted & renovated the Main Bathroom. To read more go here.
BEFORE
AFTER The Guest Room is complete. To read more go here. BEFORE
AFTER
The Master Bedroom is complete. To read more go here.
BEFORE
AFTER
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MILLLLLLLS!
ReplyDeleteI love what youve done with the place, my goodness, its amazing what a good decorating style and 100 gallons of a good creme paint will do!
BRAVO, darling..
xoxo
Wow wouldn't even know it was the same room!! Became a follower - feel free to stop by mine i have a giveaway Thanks :-) Your blog is interesting! I can't even remember where i found it ( or how) :-)
ReplyDeleteWow! I love what you've done to your home - I especially love your master bedroom! It's beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing job you have done Millie!!!!
ReplyDeleteB is building a house
hi, i have just started painted a 1974 built unit with mission brown beams (in adelaide), i have put on 2 coats of undercoat & the brown is still showing through, what undercoat & what colour paint did you use in the lounge room - your house is lovely, it is giving me motivation to keep going!
ReplyDeleteHi foxyroxy - the Mission Brown paint can be a real problem, so totally understand the angst you're experiencing. We used a 4L. can of Dulux Shellac Stain Blocker Primer - White. The beams needed at least 2 coats before the brown stopped bleeding through. As it's alcohol-based you'll need to buy a big bottle of methylated spirits to rinse out the brushes you use with the primer. The walls are Solver Parchment (full stength). Hope this helps - GOOD LUCK!!!
ReplyDeleteMillie ^_^
Hi, just stumbled across your blog.
ReplyDeleteI used to live in Aldgate, so I know Stirling well. A beautiful part of the world.
I love what you have done with the renovations.
Your pale palette is an expression of today's mainstream good taste just as in its day was the 'bricks and timber' scheme you have replaced. Who's to say that in twenty years new owners might not shake their heads and mutter about the awful off whites and creams of the early 21st century?
ReplyDeleteThere are two points to be made about the existing decor at your house, neither of which precludes your complete renovation, but which should at least be considered.
First, as an artefact, your house was designed to display natural surfaces - timber, brick etc. To an extent, redecorating is the replacement of one element - the decor - of an original design which integrated natural surfaces with the forms and volumes of the house. Which might not matter, certainly not to you - fair enough.
Then there is the idea behind the exposure of the materials' natural surfaces. It's about honesty in appearance - a brick wall looks like one, timber looks like timber. At its extreme, joints are fully expressed with visible nuts and bolts. However, there is no law that says the construction of a house should be evident to the eye; it's just an architectural approach which comes and goes in fashion. Consider what William Morris was trying to do, then look at the sleek lines and invisible joins of 1930s Modernism.
I'm not saying this to be critical - just so that you are aware that you are replacing one fashion with another.
Hi Millie.. great to have 'stumbled' upon you via twitter.. my website.. www.thecapeclub.com is filled with my passions - Vietnam - I escort small groups there to discover all her hidden charms! I love what you're doing to your home.. well done.. its never easy! I also love your way with words.. keep them flowing! - all the best for 2012. Vietnam? .. http://vietnam-hiddenrichesofacolonialpast.blogspot.com/ -
ReplyDeleteloving the progress you have made, what an incredible transformation - I love how calm it is now, compared to the busy brick!
ReplyDeleteExcellent work sweetie :)
Gorgeous house!!!
ReplyDelete♥Linsey
Beautiful Millie, One question did you purchase or make your own stripe bed head?
ReplyDelete