Rams Cottage Blog....

The Final Update!

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:45:08 +0100

Well, it seems to have taken ages to get the final update to the blog out, but we are finally in, having moved back on the 27th June. The move was fairly painless, despite remaining in chaos (and we still are in some sort of chaos).

The carpets went down the day before we moved in - and all look great. The kitchen is now almost completed. We still have the island under the stairs to put in, and a plate rack, oh, and the stairs. What you see in the pics is a very temporary staircase (lovely though it is).

The chimney outside still needs work doing to it, but only after the staircase is in, so we can check the draw etc.

The builders have now left and the place is finally becoming our own again.

There may be some more updates once the grass has grown and the garden is looking a little better.

I suppose that since this is the last update for some time, some thanks are long overdue:

Elspeth Beard architects, who worked very hard on getting the designs to work, despite the local planners best efforts! Whilst this was a rather small job for them, they were great.

ABC Building - Steve & Andy, along with Pete & Kevin who have all been great to have around, and did such a good job. If you have to share your life with 4 builders for 10 months, then these are the people to do it with. ABC are to be highly recommended.

Trevor Ford for doing a stunning job on the fireplace.

John Cowley for the amazing patio. A great job & nice people.

And a great bundle of sub contractors: CJB plumbing who did a truly excellent installation, SF Coles electricians who ended up with more than they bargained for, but still came through and Jim Cannon for being a very fine plasterer and for working extremely hard.

I am sure there are others who I have missed, so if there are, let me know & I will revise this page.

So, its goodbye for a little while, we are off to enjoy a nice new(ish) house...

Please see Pics 31 for photos from the last few weeks.

Penultimate update!

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:19:54 +0100

This week has seen the entrance garden take shape, and close to completion. Another 22 tons of top soil have been delivered, and spread around. The pathways are now finished and looking great, if a little bare without any greenery in place. We have completed the “sheep pen” area for the recycling and bins, and more planting has taken place around the house. Ruth took the photos this week, so there are more photos of the plants than the house...

The new internal oak doors now have the handles I have made put on them, and the oak skirting board is going down upstairs and downstairs. The kitchen starts to go in at the weekend, and the carpets go down on the 24th, ready for us to move back in on the 25th. I will hopefully do the final update on Friday 26th.

See Pics 30 for photos from this week.

Nearing completion

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:13:55 +0100

We are hurtling towards a completed house at some pace now. This week has seen the fireplace completed, and looking fab with a flag stone hearth and the pointing completed all round. The plumbers have been in for most of the week, and very nearly finished the bathrooms and drains. The system was filled on Wednesday for testing, and unfortunately a small leak developed in the kitchen ceiling, which has had to be opened up for repairs, but its small and easily fixed. The electricians have also very nearly finished, and we have spent this evening basking in the warm glow of working lights around the house for the first time. The builders have been busy putting on the new oak doors to the new extension, and a small door to the old extension upstairs. I now have to complete all the handles & latches so that the doors actually work...! The small airing cupboard on the landing has been completed, and the family bathroom now just needs the glazing to be installed next week for it to be finished. The tiling is finished all round, and is looking great in all areas. All in all, a good week, with one more full week to go.

See Pics 29 for photos from this week.

Bathrooms, and more...

Thu, 4 Jun 2009 22:10:54 +0100

This week has seen further work in most areas. The patio outside is now almost complete. The front of the house has the gravel areas each side, and there is a small amount of pointing still to do at the side, and then its on to the steps up to the entrance garden, and the path to the car park area. The tiling has been completed in the kitchen, with a beautiful limestone floor now freshly installed. The two bathrooms have been tiled, and now just need the splash backs doing above the sinks. The plumbing has moved on a great deal, and is now very close to being finished. The bath is now finally in, after a great deal of effort finding new feet for it, since the old ones went missing!.
The builders have been working on the guttering, which is a complicated business, being cast iron, and is driving them mad! They have also been busy with building the piers for the seats around the water feature, and the upstands for the sink outside.
We have put in a new section of hedge, which came very well established, and now provides much more privacy to the front of the house. We have also now very nearly finished all of the painting, with just 1 coat still to go in the sitting room and utility room.

One other plus note is that the carpets are going down on the 24th June, which means we will be moving in on the 25th! Minus a kitchen and stairs, but at least we will be out of the caravan....

See Pics 28 for photos from this week.

Summer has arrived...

Sun, 24 May 2009 22:32:12 +0100

Finally, the summer has arrived, and we have been busy planting up the various beds on the rear patio. We got so carried away that we have moved the garden furniture into place as well!

See Pics 27 for a small selection of photos.