A transformation – the study

We’re onto the finishing stage! The walls are getting patched up, tiles are going down and Roscoe is frantically sanding and polyfilla-ing walls ready for painting.

One of our builders is an expert plasterer, and his work is a joy to behold. The first room to be finished is the little study which is open onto the hall as you come up the stairs onto the living floor. I’m finally sharing Roscoe’s vision for this area – it’s very open and bright. Originally, this space was a bathroom – you were faced with a wall and a door as you came up the stairs. It’s fantastic to see the transformation.

First, Roscoe and I knocked down the wall with a mallet (Roscoe) and a sledgehammer (me). Secondly, the boys had to drill away lots of cement and chip away at well-stuck-down 70s tiles! They pulled out old lead pipes and blocked off the old scarico waste pipe (we put in a new safer one). The walls were every shape but square, so it took the skill of the muratore (builder) to get them vertical and at right angles. Finally, we relaid nice old tiles from elsewhere in the house, and, after the electrician buried lots of cable tracks for our AV system, the walls were finished and plastered.

Very satisfying!

Cost of works to date:

Previous total: EUR 10,091

Shower mechanism, pop-up waste, siphon EUR 92

Labour EUR 1,300

Cement EUR 72

Shower tray (cantina loo) EUR 88

5 ring stove EUR 233

Bronze tap for terrazzo EUR 23

HDMI cables EUR 32

Labour EUR 1,300

Cement and bricks for basement bathroom wall EUR 37

Sand for cement EUR 28

Petrol for the truck EUR 20

Shower mixer tap EUR 26

Bottom toilet EUR 40

Labour EUR 585

Stone for window sills EUR 300

Rubble disposal EUR 40

Petrol for the truck EUR 20

First half payment plumbing EUR 5,500

Cream tiles for kitchen floor EUR 137

First half payment wiring EUR 1,870

Fixative and paint (1 can each) EUR 35

Outdoor lights for terrace EUR 20

Round sink for basement loo EUR 54

Bidet tap EUR 22

Shower head for basement loo EUR 23

HDMI wall plates EUR 55

Labour EUR 1,560

Rubble disposal EUR 20

Petrol for the truck EUR 20

Plaster, sand, bricks, cement EUR 95

Plaster, cement, fixative EUR 70

Kitchen wall tiles EUR 55

Sundries from builders' merchants EUR 48

Mosaic for centre of guest bedroom floor EUR 35

Wallpaper decoration EUR 35

TOTAL EUR 23,981