There were some late nights and early starts in our first week home.  (We really need to get some window coverings for the kids' rooms!)  There was no time to sit back and relax with the deadline of Miss O's 1st birthday party on the weekend.  Lucky she was very helpful and gave me a hand to unpack!  ;-) 

We made sure the kids' bedrooms were completely unpacked along with the bathroom, living area, dining and kitchen and closed the doors on the mess in the other rooms.  I had some serious baking to do!  I really enjoy planning parties and did my best to create a special occasion for our precious Miss O under the hectic circumstances.  I was so thankful to have the help of my sister and mother-in-law!

I put to use some gorgeous pieces from Salt & Pepper's 'Dream' range to create a pretty pastel theme for the party.  My apothecary jars were trimmed with pastel stripe ribbon and filled with lollies.  The flower shaped fairy bread added some more pretty pastel colour.  My favourite chocolate mud cakes were piped with buttercream roses and I filled more patty papers with fruit balls and flower picks.

Instead of lollipop sticks, I decided to use straws and sit my cake pops down this time.  I'm really pleased with the outcome.  They were a huge hit with the kids and adults!

I made a triple layer white chocolate mudcake with fondant icing as the birthday cake.  I ran out of time to decorate the cake with anything but the number 1 birthday candle.  Thankfully the cake plate made it look a little better and at least it tasted delicious!

Sadly the outdoor kitchen bench top had not been installed so Hubby M knocked up a chipboard top covered with a party table cloth on the morning of the party.  He's such a champ!  It was a shame not to have the sink and tap for a drinks area as planned but was a great spot for the savoury food.

The backyard was not in any condition for small children to play so we decided our best option would be to hire a jumping castle and place it directly below the deck.   With very short notice Brisbane Jumping Castles came to our aid and provided a fantastic castle with a slide.  The kids had a ball!

It was a joy to celebrate the first of many special family occasions in the house with our loved ones and see the space work just as well as we had hoped.  It is definitely now our 'home'.

And seeing the happiness of little Miss O made all the hard work worthwhile!

We have colour and couldn't be happier!  We chose our paint colours back in 2010 when we purchased the house so it's a relief that we still love our selections.  Like Family Home Number 2 we were keen to make a selection from the Colorbond range and we decided upon Evening Haze as our main wall colour and Monument for the gutters and sills.  To help with the remaining selections we employed Dulux Colour Consultant, Suzanne Pike from Home and Office Revamps.  These are the exterior colours we settled on:

We replaced the gutters in Colorbond Monument.  Evening Haze has been painted on the chamfer boards and Natural White on the eaves.  The ceilings will also be painted in Natural White.  The facia, fretwork and railings are yet to be painted in Vivid White.

The plan is to paint the sills and handrails in Monument but we like the look of the white at the moment.  What do you think?  I'll share our interior colours soon.

In other news, the insulation and VJ ceilings have been installed on the deck and living room.

The ceilings on the verandah have also been insulated and lined and a couple of damaged posts replaced.

More chamfer boards were replaced on the western wall for a better integration with the existing boards.  This was a bit of a bonus as we were able to add more insulation to Master H's bedroom wall which heats up in the afternoon.

Unfortunately it hasn't been all smiles this week.  Despite previous advice from our certifier and town planner, Council is now insisting that we complete a Partial Demolition Application to put in our front door.  This is particularly frustrating considering there is evidence that there was a front door in the original house and that our entrance door on the side verandah was originally a window based on the sill check outs in the frame.  I'm all for protecting the integrity of character homes in demolition control precincts.  Our whole renovation has been planned to restore the home, as much as possible, to its former glory.  We are reinstating character features that had been removed.  It's not like we're adding a skillion roof or glass balustrades!  Anyway, more fees and time delays but my rant is over.  

The house has been a hive of activity this week with more framing and cladding by the builders and the painters starting on site.  We had a co-ordination meeting with the builder and cabinet maker to discuss the finer details of our kitchen and study.  I'll have to share the plans with you in another post.  I am so excited about this space!  We also met the electrician on site to finalise our power and lighting plans.  Meanwhile, I'm wishing Pottery Barn would start selling their lighting in Australia.  It's very difficult to source the gorgeous lighting in the images I have pinned on Pinterest.  And I'm not sure that I want the drama of importing and converting lights from the U.S.  

I have been out and about visiting lighting stores and plumbing suppliers to confirm our selections.  Having Master H and Miss O along for the trip always makes for an eventful visit!  We still need to settle on tiles for the ensuite but I think I have had enough for one week!



Painters have primed the timber doors and posts.

Flooring added ready for tiles in the ensuite
and pine flooring in the robe and retreat area.

Our old bedroom door removed and framed up
for the ensuite wall.



Framing for the main wardrobe in our master bedroom.
A new doorway cut in the hallway wall.




Framing for the guest bedroom.



Master H's bedroom door will be repositioned
to the new hallway and a robe will be on this wall
of the guest bedroom.

The hallway framing extended into the living area.
The study cabinetry will be on the left and kitchen on the right.



Chamfer boards added to the BBQ and bench area.
Battens added to the ceiling ready for VJ lining.



More ceiling battens and the primed door and windows in the living area.

Cladding complete on the bathroom wall.  Primed windows.



Cladding on the laundry/kitchen cupboard.



I must share our paint colour selections too.  Good bye poo brown and heritage green, maroon and cream! 

This week saw the installation of the remaining windows and more chamferboards to the exterior of the house.  We're still eagerly awaiting the delivery and installation of the front doors.  I can't wait to see the house after its facelift! 

 

New windows for the guest bedroom.

 

Loving the new windows in the retreat area and ensuite.

 

The new look for the Eastern side of the house.

Window replaced in the bathroom and
chamferboards complete on the extension.

The Western wall.

Chamferboards complete on the Western wall.

As I mentioned in our week 3 and week 4 updates, we have been unsure about the western wall of the deck.  Originally we planned to have a full-height wall and were uncertain how to finish the internal side.  We have now decided to lower the wall to allow a small splashback above the outdoor kitchen/laundry bench.  We can add shutters or a blind if necessary.  

Wall lowered for an open side to the deck above the laundry/BBQ.

The rear view of the house.

I must admit that I'm getting a little overwhelmed with all of the decision making at the moment!  I thought we had specified heaps of items but there are still so many little details to consider and I don't want to get them wrong.  I really appreciate your feedback and suggestions.