DevelopaDream

I am happy to say that this week we have seen some real progress at the hall. After the disastrous first spray saw paint flaking off the walls and ceiling; Dave Smith my very experienced and professional painter saved the day by helping out the spray painter guy with tips on the need for adequate preparation of surfaces before attempting to paint. The two are now working really well together with Dave doing all the preparation and Steve following with the sprayer, making swift work of this enormous task. Dave is then following on afterwards with expert finishing of the paintwork; which is no mean feat given the size of the windows and shutters. Fortunately all the windows are in good working order making it easier to paint and it has been idyllic up there in the sunshine looking out at the amazing view across the park. The main drawing room is now finished and looks stunning, it never ceases to take my breath away when I walk in there.
Having chosen some fabulous Porcelanosa marble tiles, I was soo looking forward to seeing the completed bathroom and en-suite yesterday. The Nairobi Crème looks amazing in the en-suite with the new walk in shower, lowered ceiling and lighting but the main bathroom is a disaster. Taking on more than he could cope with, the tiler co-opted in some help and what a mess the guy made! However I will not panic and now that I have the main contractor demanding that it be sorted out, not a man to be messed with, I have every confidence that it will be sorted this week. Though where the tiler will find more Cappucino polished wall tiles from I am not sure as they were out of stock at Porcelanosa last week. If there are any stockist out there who have some can you email me please as I have a feeling we are going to need them.
After what seems like endless tester pots of paint we have finally chosen all of the paint colours and with the help of my dear friend Nicci Onions from O design in Lichfield, I have finally sorted out the fabrics for the curtains. Nicci has a great eye for colour and though we argue sometimes with me being adamant that I really don’t like certain colours, I do trust her judgement and she is nearly always right.
The kitchen too is all ordered and I am very excited, I have chosen the Victorian range from Charles Yorke http://www.charlesyorke.com/kitchens.html I am sure it will look amazing in the turret. Dave is finishing painting it all ready for the installation in a couple of weeks.
The big quest this week has been lighting, with no ceiling lights in the whole apartment I am so disappointed not to be able to have a chandelier so I have been on the hunt for reasonably priced but drop dead gorgeous wall lights. With lots of space to light I am trying to find three arm wall lights but there are not many around and are proving quite expensive which mounts up when you realise that we will need thirty two wall lights in all, as well as floor lamps and table lamps. So if there are any lighting suppliers out there who would be happy to do a deal for such a large order, please get in touch.
While I have written in my book about the importance of keeping to budget, it is important to make sure that you allow sufficient in your budget to do a good quality job but at the right price. This has been a challenge with this project because this sort of property demands a high level of finish. A cheap kitchen just wouldn’t do, neither would cheap tiles, given that we have such amazing original flooring in the main drawing room. So sourcing high quality products at reasonable prices is challenging and time consuming, thank goodness for the internet.
We are all working over Bank Holiday so we should see the project getting nearer to completion towards the end of next week and I look forward to sharing my , trials, tribulations and triumphs as the week goes on.