Last Sunday’s blog ended with the hope that this week we would actually start putting things back on the walls of Granary and stop striping and scraping them off (or scaping as I appear to have written! Note to self – must proofread!)
Thankfully, we have done just that, and it has made a big difference – not least in my confidence that we will be finished in time!
The 2 big changes have both been downstairs, in the dining area and the family bathroom.
Way back in January, we removed most of the render on the internal walls of the dining room. As most of it wasn’t well adhered anymore the removal was very simple as it pretty much just fell off. The re-rendering has proven a little tougher.
Rendering is something I really don’t enjoy doing, so a friend offered to assist us but, as we were using a product that they weren’t very familiar with, they didn’t enjoy it very much either!
However, having done so it looks so much better and is a major leap forward.
The second big change has been the tiling in the bathroom. We have decided to use the same tiles and configuration as we did in the Priory bathrooms when we refurbished them in 2020. We like the style and guests have commented on how good it looks.
I am not a fast tiler, or a very good tiler if I’m honest, and as a result it has taken a few days to complete. I’d hoped to do it in less than 2 but we were also kindly invited to a birthday BBQ yesterday so that was a pleasant interruption to progress.
The tiles and finished boxing make the bathroom look much more complete – it will be great when I grout next week. Real progress and certainly when compared to how it looked a few weeks ago.
In the margins of these 2 major changes, I have continued to prepare other walls and surfaces to paint. The kitchen area is starting to look good and we have repaired, filled and generally made good where the old rotten beams were replaced and repaired. I am now confident that when it is painted it will look amazing.
I mentioned in last week’s blog that the wisteria was looking as though it would burst into flower. It has but it is not as spectacular as we’d hoped – still attractive but difficult to see properly in the photographs.
While spring is with us, it has been amazingly dry. This has the double advantage that I can do a lot of the dirtier work, such as tile cutting and render mixing, outside Granary and I am not having to cut the lawns several times a week. The only things that seem to be growing with any vigour are the dandelions.
Next week should see some more great leaps forward in Granary. When the grouting is done our plumber is coming back to permanently install the fittings and I am hoping to make progress putting the kitchen in. – we may even start painting some of the walls! These will be 2 more major hurdles complete and we may even finish with time to spare – very unlike us with gîte refurbishments!
Kenavo.