Getting plastered

Kitchen when we bought the house

The too-high floor is destroyed

The new floor goes down

The walls are roughed up for tiling, and the gas/electric/water fixtures are marked

The pipes are installed, the windowsill brought out to a right angle, and the tiling is done

We start to build the Ikea kitchen

And the kitchen is (mostly!) finished

We’re in the house three months and it’s starting to feel like the house we dreamed of. After those first hard weeks with no gas or lights, we’ve enjoyed a normal-ish life here, even surviving half a metre of snow. The kitchen is a real pleasure to work in. The photos show it from July to December.

Very little progress with the works has been made since moving in – partly because we need a pause, and partly because we’re short on cash and doing things ourselves takes ages!

Just about everything is unfinished, but on the way.

• Electrics are done, but we still need to find light fittings we like – we’re in the bare bulb stage! Our home cinema is far from finished. Roscoe is determined to work out how to “crimp” the LAN cable to bring a signal from the computer in the study to the projector in the lounge. Lots of internet help guides have been consulted! Given that we can’t afford the projector for the next ten years, he’s got time to learn.

• Plumbing is a shambles – since we took a radiator off to paint behind it, we haven’t been able to fully bleed the system, so heating isn’t perfect. The main bathroom is a mess which annoys me daily – our under-sink unit is a couple of planks on cement, our fitted mirrors are awaiting funds, our tap drips (apparently unfixable, because I didn’t drill a big enough hole in the tile to get the bloomin’ thing out again), and worst of all, the shower leaks profusely. The plumber has tried to fix it with silicon to no avail, so we’re waiting for another visit. And the second bathroom still needs a division wall built before we can plaster and tile, etc. But that’s for when I have time and money to get the builders back.
• White paint is spreading through the house – on days when I feel keen I pick up a roller. It’s slow because the old walls need polyfilling and sanding, and then the coloured walls need lots of coats of white. But it’s getting there, and has a big effect. We may even get ambitious and paint an accent wall red in the bedroom next.
• Woodwork is no more complete than two months ago. Our front doors should be done soon, and we’ve seen the pieces in the falegnameria (carpenter’s workshop). Our internal doors are such a stressful subject that they were put to one side for Christmas, but now we’re on the hunt again. I’m still determined to have solid wood doors, but even hollow ones cost an occhio (eye) here. I’ve ordered one basic pine door in Italy for €160 as a test run. It’s much cheaper than alternatives, so I’m wary. But if it’s ok, perhaps we’ve found a solution. And then we’ve still to think about skirting boards…
• Plastering of the basement level is further on. Roscoe has done a great job of the hall down there, and is now an expert at stucco rustico (nicer than it sounds!). He’s still to do the bathroom ceiling and the large guest bedroom – at a few square metres a day, it’s slow going. When he’s done, I’ll follow with a huge area of floor tiling – a job I’m dreading!

Beside all these tough jobs, there are the fun bits. We’ve just ordered a brown leather sofa for the lounge, and we’re thinking about planters and benches to get the most out of our gorgeous terrace.

It feels daunting, but we’re aiming to finish for Easter. We’ve set €5k aside to do the job, but it will probably take €6-7k.