tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91560415665777372152012-01-18T14:27:41.262+11:00After almost 8 years of following the property market, watching land prices, going to auctions... we took the plunge and purchased a block of land Melbourne's outer north east, and built our very first home!Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1611100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-44991429170267770082011-07-10T19:02:00.010+10:002011-07-11T19:51:23.699+10:00

Our long awaited pool room flooring went in on Friday! It's unique, and has turned out exactly the way we imagined it. Here's some progress pics... so happy to have proper flooring after 12 months of this concrete!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-77985210368935898512011-06-03T17:50:00.002+10:002011-06-03T17:56:12.449+10:00

Recently in Cambodia we purchased these paintings. As soon as we saw them, we knew they'd be perfect for the wall above the couch in the library. Today I found a site The Frame Shop http://www.frameshop.com.au/ and picked a black frame, entered the measurements of the canvases and ordered! Not quite sure how long the frames will take to be delivered, but they are being custom made, to suit the

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-51386526680711333302011-06-02T16:37:00.004+10:002011-06-02T16:41:48.935+10:00

Ordered these through Home Outlet late last year (the same guys who installed the plantation shutters in our family room and master bedroom). We delayed having these installed as we went overseas with the money we'd had set aside for the final payment! hehehe. Finally, they're in, and they are amazing. They change the whole feel of the room.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-38539739303109755042011-05-09T14:04:00.004+10:002011-05-09T14:15:19.783+10:00

I purchased this clock around October/November last year, but kept changing my mind on where it would go! Yesterday I finally decided!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-41015579825023859722011-05-09T09:33:00.004+10:002011-05-09T09:37:33.698+10:00

I purchased these maybe 2-3 years ago, orignally intended for the outdoors, but then I changed my mind thinking that would be a waste as they're quite pretty! They look perfect in our ensuite above the bathtub.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-37903412005904073132011-05-03T20:27:00.007+10:002011-05-04T13:44:25.040+10:00

House projects have been put on hold for the last month or so, as we've just returned from travelling Cambodia and Northern Thailand. We had an absolute ball! We'd wanted to travel to Thailand for years, so late last year we finally booked some flights and on 8th April we jetted off. Bangkok was amazing, a city we could never get tired of. We travelled north up to Kanchanaburi, and visited the

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-19767365342744226912011-02-07T18:39:00.008+11:002011-02-07T19:19:46.870+11:00

The master bedroom is now 99% complete! Plantation shutters went in just before Christmas.We're still chasing some suitable matching bedside lamps (considering wall lights to match the Madrid pendant in the centre of the room), other than that we're extremely happy!Carpet was laid a few weeks ago, it's luxurious, so soft under foot! We ended up going with the IQ-150 from Harvey Norman, it took 14

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-54734568619112011162011-02-07T17:41:00.007+11:002011-02-07T18:16:33.491+11:00

I'm a bit behind on updates, as we've been so incredibly busy! I'll start with the concreting... We needed a base for our future spa (still on order) and also the base for a shed (yet to order!). We hunted high and low for a concreter in November/December. We maybe phoned around 12 different concreters throughout the area, and almost gave up and put the projects on hold until after the New Year,

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-1005885086931911542010-10-17T18:35:00.004+11:002010-10-17T18:44:08.708+11:00

So we've been in around 3 1/2 months now. We LOVE our colours throughout the house... but thought we'd add a few feature walls to give a few areas a bit more of a wow factor :) Family room... complete with our photo wall of our travels. We used Dulux "Charcoal Light".Hallway... we used Dulux "Bronze Fig".Master Bedroom... my favourite room! We used Dulux "Capsicum Red", and finally put our

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-75218112482951315082010-09-04T16:06:00.001+10:002010-09-04T16:08:59.485+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-80880149022766447282010-09-04T15:05:00.004+10:002010-09-04T15:10:52.747+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-83494082509581635622010-09-04T14:50:00.002+10:002010-09-04T15:03:27.853+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-26911436060445986952010-08-05T18:26:00.004+10:002010-08-05T18:30:47.425+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-81393519805359269562010-07-26T19:15:00.009+10:002010-07-26T19:26:18.914+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-82402821552291401832010-07-23T10:58:00.005+10:002010-08-16T15:50:29.839+10:00

We've been enjoying our home... HOWEVER it's time for a bit of a rant. We've been so patient with Henley regarding a few issues, but now we've just HAD IT.A bit of background... we had D'Amani and Baumatic appliances in our contract. An office person took it upon themself to create a variation without our knowledge and forward it to us in the mail to change all appliances to Technika... even

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-3838802050023655982010-07-17T08:36:00.004+10:002010-07-17T08:41:37.684+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-30017210149810474092010-07-15T20:18:00.004+10:002010-07-15T20:23:30.577+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-47820383813007654572010-07-15T19:53:00.003+10:002010-07-15T20:08:55.020+10:00

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-30938807588628801752010-07-15T19:47:00.002+10:002010-07-15T19:50:19.593+10:00

happened on June 30th! We have the keys!!! Met our handover guy at the house first thing to go over the items on our final inspection defect list. Everything looked good! Then drove down to Henley to pick up the keys, hand over the final check, and receive our BBQ pack gift... oh and a bag of light globes!!!Drove back to the house, fitted temp blinds then headed to work.July 1st we spent our

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-14604786537082816562010-06-18T19:50:00.007+10:002010-06-18T20:14:24.345+10:00

We had our final inspection on Thursday! PCI (post construction inspection) / NHP (new home presentation)... whatever people want to call it!We had 52 minor defects, mostly paint touch ups. One door was completely missing the dead bolt lock, render on the facade to be redone, ensuite ceiling to be re-painted, chips in door frames filled and repainted, ensuite window (glass panels are still not

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-988721339208927752010-06-10T18:29:00.003+10:002010-06-10T18:30:35.767+10:00

...arrived in today's mail along with the final invoice! Yet another step closer to getting our keys...!!! Will be giving notice to our real estate for this rental tomorrow!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-82675470094702172082010-06-09T12:46:00.002+10:002010-06-09T12:47:39.359+10:00

Our file went to the handover department yesterday... and today we have received a call to organise our PCI date! PCI will be next Thursday... June 17th. Another step closer to getting our keys!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-52315501054825458432010-06-03T18:42:00.003+10:002010-06-03T18:47:08.818+10:00

We had a very exciting phone call today from our lovely admin. The curved Baumatic range hood we thought we'd never be allowed to have will now be supplied after handover with the remainder of our appliances! The original Baumatic range hood on our contact isn't available anymore, so we were going to get this substitute. However, after asking very nicely, and our admin taking the time look into

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-61202413903213847002010-05-29T20:24:00.006+10:002010-05-29T20:42:13.655+10:00

Crews have been busy cleaning the interior of our house. We drove by early this morning, had a peek in the window. Still no overhead cupboards in the kitchen... Still the incorrect rangehood... Cant really see too much more, as we have obscure/translucent glass on a few windows.There's a handful of yellow dots inside... happy to see them on the window sill of the family room window. We're told

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-32415456933255968642010-05-16T11:59:00.004+10:002010-05-16T12:14:28.339+10:00

We've been eyeing these babies off for a few months now... after seeing Hels bought them in white, and was really happy with them, we went ahead and bought ours in red!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-53374377950549906642010-05-16T11:55:00.001+10:002010-05-16T11:58:30.757+10:00

Our kitchen sink and fabulous mixer tap is in!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-48580226144260069322010-05-13T22:20:00.002+10:002010-05-13T22:24:02.368+10:00

The render is finished! It makes such a difference having the little contrast trim around the portico.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-18017302224730772342010-05-03T19:24:00.002+10:002010-05-03T19:30:27.014+10:00

The render commenced today!!! Still need to do the profile feature bit the same colour as the house... but it's almost complete!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-62657620217425552972010-05-02T08:24:00.003+10:002010-05-02T08:47:42.162+10:00

Drove our to the block yesterday. Very excited to see fly screens fitted to the windows, and door handles on the cupboards and doors!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-46457115468206527412010-04-28T18:33:00.005+10:002010-04-28T19:16:12.073+10:00

We had a walk through with our SS this morning. Bathtubs, basins and toilets are in. Floor tiling is complete. We're slowly getting there!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-70605570488228311082010-04-26T16:43:00.004+10:002010-04-26T17:02:27.088+10:00

We set out this morning in search of flooring for the remainder of the house which Henley are not tiling for us. We have the master bedroom, the 3 minor bedroom and front living room to carpet, and the Pool room to have some sort of timber boards.We didn't take photos of the carpet, but we chose a solution dyed nylon in a twist pile and a very dark charcoal colour, and the below timber laminate

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-59900476695905147922010-04-14T21:24:00.002+10:002010-04-14T21:30:53.679+10:00

Went via the house tonight... and we have a garage door!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-68371535808647700682010-04-13T13:08:00.004+10:002010-04-13T13:13:32.854+10:00

We had a walk through with our site supervisor this morning. The tiling has started, and should be finished by the end of the week!Below is the ensuite...Below is the main bathroom, and Bob our tiler...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-61661377323845906492010-04-09T08:57:00.003+10:002010-04-09T09:11:50.851+10:00

Now we're getting towards the business end of our build, we've revisited our landscape plans. We keep coming back to the same layout in the backyard, but we're a little undecided with the front. We've met with a local concreter to discuss what we're after, as the driveway will be the starting point. We have grand plans to deck the side of the house and build a pergola to completely enclose the

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-78545416833023357662010-04-08T17:58:00.001+10:002010-04-13T19:11:04.158+10:00

The caesarstone benchtops are on! We've used Zulu in the kitchen, and Cracked Pepper in the bathroom and ensuite

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-37988257560624666982010-04-08T17:54:00.002+10:002010-04-13T12:24:35.148+10:00

The beautiful glass splash back is on! Happy we nagged our admin about have starphire glass. In the kitchen we're now still waiting on our overhead black Perspex lift up cupboards and more door handles.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-32708369269810694222010-04-08T17:51:00.001+10:002010-04-08T17:51:01.096+10:00

The painting commenced a few weeks ago. The quality of the work has been really good to date... however the painters have continually been smoking inside our house. We've brought this issue up with Henley about 3 times now, and they have had words with the painters... as it's against their OH&S policy.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-71450806227636469462010-03-08T13:53:00.002+11:002010-03-08T14:07:02.304+11:00

Our beautiful front door is finally on!!! It's a 1200mm pivot door. Corinthian Infinity.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-74910435985567937742010-03-01T10:15:00.005+11:002010-03-01T10:33:13.509+11:00

We went hunting over the weekend for a dining table to suit the space we have. Now that our island bench has gone in we have a better idea of space and how the area will work. Months and months ago we fell in love with an Australian made Messmate hardwood (recycled telephone poles) table at a store in Essendon.We headed out to Focus on Furniture http://www.focusonfurniture.com.au/ (where we've

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-6500989306336460912010-02-23T17:26:00.003+11:002010-02-23T17:52:09.699+11:00

IS FINALLY IN!!!We're so excited! ...however they've made a mistake with some cupboards. The two cupboards that are above the wall oven should be Laminex LUSTROUS ELM, but they've done them in the same colour as the underbench cupboards (FOSSIL). Will see if it grows on me over the coming days... otherwise will let them know they need to replace them.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-32578578363079570562010-02-11T20:56:00.002+11:002010-02-11T20:58:30.122+11:00

Day 119:Our architraves have gone on, and the internal doors have been hung. Downpipes are on the outside. Kitchen cabinets have still not arrived.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-19306973422746538422010-02-06T19:24:00.002+11:002010-02-06T19:26:36.895+11:00

...have been delivered, along with the doors for wardrobes and pantry. We also have architraves sitting and waiting to be put up. Our eaves have almost been completed, however other than that, not a huge amount of work has been done over the last week.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-73542870599796538412010-02-01T19:44:00.003+11:002010-02-01T19:55:10.987+11:00

Day 109: We have cornices up. We assume the inspection of the plaster by Boral went ok. Looking forward to seeing some cabinets going in! Hopefully sometime this week, fingers crossed.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-67637809339030621182010-01-30T20:35:00.003+11:002010-01-30T20:55:52.369+11:00

We head to Melbourne's Pool & Spa Expo today. Just for a browse... and ended up buying a spa! It's exactly what we were after! The show price was pretty reasonable, but we managed to barter down another $500 off that price too! We didn't get the standard blue colour, instead we followed our internal colour scheme of blacks, greys etc, and went with 'Pearl Shadow' with a cedar outer.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-39036444431177089882010-01-29T17:35:00.002+11:002010-01-29T17:40:15.130+11:00

A wonderfully talented person has created a 3D image of what our kitchen will look like, including the colours. There's a few design flaws... only a tiny few... like the laminex feature on the kitchen bench comes down at the sides (so bar stools fit underneath)... and there's no bulk head over the over head cupboards. Other than that, it's pretty spot on...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-9304836985752855232010-01-29T11:49:00.002+11:002010-01-29T11:54:29.015+11:00

Yesterday we received our 'lock up' invoice. The biggest of all invoices! Being 35% of the total contract price. We're not actually 'officially' locked out as yet though, as the external doors haven't gone on yet... this may happen today, or it may be next week. Our 1200mm pivot door is on order from a supplier in Sydney, it should turn up soon... it'll be exciting to see it on, instead of

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-14268919989469227782010-01-23T21:05:00.003+11:002010-01-23T21:30:17.815+11:00

...started today... and finished today!So... today our plasterers turned up... (they were booked in to start on Monday)... about 6-7 of them piled out of a van... started our plastering... and finished our plastering!!!However... when we were down the road (at a neighbour's house) we noticed the plasterers in our backyard... they were taking our bricks! We rushed back to the house to find them

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-18991204792312716382010-01-21T08:33:00.003+11:002010-01-21T09:00:20.579+11:00

Day 97: We organised a meeting with our SS for 8am Wednesday morning to discuss a few issues we have with the front door and the aircon and some plumbing... By the time we arrived at the house, our front door issue had been resolved! The aircon issue is still being debated between Dandy Air and Henley, and our plumbing issue had also been resolved. The bricks had been cleaned, the site had had a

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-45760631777480820832010-01-21T08:15:00.003+11:002010-01-21T08:32:46.113+11:00

The lining under the eaves has started to make way for the render at the front of the house.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-8093668560947777512010-01-20T22:00:00.003+11:002010-01-20T22:17:42.350+11:00

The extra $1300 we spent on internal insulation was definately worth every cent. To install the stuff ourselves would have taken forever, and it's a dirty job! Apparently the guys who installed this did it on a Saturday and in 30+ degrees!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-52920191366098025392010-01-06T21:24:00.002+11:002010-01-06T21:27:57.641+11:00

Day 83: The arch on the portico is up! And it's bricked! We have a 'slight' issue with our front entry door... didn't notice much before until the portico posts were bricked... but the entry door frame is VERY far off centre. Sent an email to our admin so hopefully we'll have this re-positioned asap.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-33824074346654453412010-01-04T11:26:00.003+11:002010-01-04T11:30:54.489+11:00

These photos were taken on Saturday. The brickies have almost completed the job. They only need to complete the front now, and the pillars in the portico, and the window sills around the whole house, then clean the bricks. There's one sloppy section near our ensuite that will hopefully look better after the bricks are cleaned, but there's gaps without mortar, so hopefully they do a decent touch

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-87419190728390802062009-12-29T13:50:00.002+11:002009-12-29T13:53:49.034+11:00

Day 75: Made another purchase... (lets call it my New Years Eve present)... this 3 seater teak bench is a match to my previous buy, the Balinese day bed. Today also marked the return of our brickies. Heading out later today to take some more photos of their progress. They still have a few days work left, cant wait to see it completed. (And yay to them for working during the holidays when most

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-37934868596646106762009-12-25T07:35:00.002+11:002009-12-25T07:39:43.856+11:00

Day 71 is Christmas day!Someone (me) bought me a Balinese day bed! Hand carved, from recycled teak. Ooh! Perfect for the front entry of the house. I also bought 3 coco rib mirrors to hang above the buffet :)

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-51411804468048721832009-12-23T18:31:00.003+11:002009-12-23T18:36:36.151+11:00

Day 69: Our brickies are absolute stars. I visited the block this arvo not expecting to see any progress... and what do I see? Two brickies sweating away in the heat. What stars! I had a bit of a chat, they plan to continue tomorrow (Christmas Eve) then come back Monday to complete it all. Monday is a public holiday, so I'll be baking some cup cakes to take them as a treat.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-16739784575799793692009-12-15T20:31:00.006+11:002009-12-15T20:41:40.205+11:00

Day 61 and the brickies continue. They started on the rear of the house today... and have completed the south side, as far up as they can before they come back with scaffolding to complete the top section.Frame overhang issues were also fixed... steel dynabolted to the slab.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-16532664478376642712009-12-14T14:30:00.002+11:002009-12-14T14:34:38.541+11:00

Day 60: Our brickies have started! Looks great so far! Looking forward to heading back tonight to see how much more they have done.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-64490920529039432112009-12-12T09:00:00.003+11:002009-12-12T09:11:25.026+11:00

Day 57: Evidence that bricking may start this weekend! Unfortunately though... the brickies have not so neatly stacked bricks in the alfresco... which has broken through the wrapping... and somehow snapped our frame!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-4917936436811376762009-12-12T08:55:00.003+11:002009-12-12T09:00:37.220+11:00

Day 56: Our front entry door frame that has been laying in the garage for the last week is in! We were wondering when they would put it in! No signs of bricking yet...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-73500111642197203352009-12-10T09:29:00.001+11:002009-12-10T09:31:53.870+11:00

Day 55: Still no bricking... (although today the weather was perfect, so we're a bit annoyed)... but we do have a solar panel. Clearly I'm not tall enough to get a good photo... this is the best I could do!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-20155221767732517802009-12-08T19:47:00.002+11:002009-12-08T19:53:08.553+11:00

Day 53 and we're wrapped!!! Bricking was meant to start today... but because of the typical Melbourne weather (19 degrees and bucketing down with rain in summer!) the bricking didn't start. Tomorrow's forecast is for cloud... but no rain, so we're hoping the bricking will begin.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-23851051743840889972009-12-03T10:12:00.003+11:002009-12-03T10:25:38.422+11:00

Day 48: The roof tiling has been completed, and they did a great job! We asked for left overs to use for repairs in the future, but not a single tile was left (that wasn't shattered into 100 peices on the ground)... Lastly, our front facade windows were put in the correct locations. The 3 awning windows are now all in line, and the non-opening window is at the right on the set back wall. Much

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-87623161873090647402009-12-01T21:39:00.005+11:002009-12-01T21:45:47.235+11:00

started today! Day 47... they were delivered this morning, and by this evening half the house has been completed!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-39702435718094619572009-11-30T19:43:00.004+11:002009-11-30T20:26:15.757+11:00

Day 46: The gutters and fascia have been put up, and are 99% complete! Starting to take shape now... only another week until bricking is scheduled to start!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-47085017355278856862009-11-27T11:30:00.005+11:002009-11-27T11:53:04.176+11:00

Day 41: Massive storms and flooding across Melbourne did not stop the plumbers from putting in the pipe work!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-70278765922316017322009-11-25T21:45:00.006+11:002009-11-25T22:19:42.241+11:00

Day 40: The timber framed windows are in (however they are not in the correct positions - bit of obvious stupidity - maybe related to the empty beer bottles we cleaned up on site?). The 3 awning windows are meant to go TOGETHER, and the non-opening window is meant to go on the right, I would have thought it would be obvious???The posts for the portico (to be bricked) are in, although not yet

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-21678086991444852122009-11-24T21:43:00.003+11:002009-11-24T21:49:27.934+11:00

Day 39: Roof trusses almost completed, portico started, temp fencing appeared...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-18648932005113883682009-11-23T22:35:00.004+11:002009-11-23T22:40:32.468+11:00

Day 38 today, the roof trusses were delivered on site and erected!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-70859092965126016712009-11-17T21:10:00.003+11:002009-11-17T21:20:31.124+11:00

are mostly in! All except one for the pool room, and the timber windows for the facade. Pretty peed off to see 4 kids hanging around and tresspassing in our neighbours house. Found a smashed window on our site, and after the kids took off, we inspected our neighbours house and found smashed windows in there. Kids make me so damn mad!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-13418103634552838012009-11-16T21:16:00.004+11:002009-11-16T21:23:26.278+11:00

Day 31: The frame looks almost complete... except for garage and roof trusses. View from the front...Master bedroom...View from pool room looking into dining/kitchen, with family room in the background...Pool room...Standing in the the alfresco looking into dining/kitchen...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-83862952665717809942009-11-14T18:03:00.003+11:002009-11-14T18:05:42.302+11:00

...on a Saturday! It's day 29 since site scrape and our house has taken 3D form. Woohoo!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-26332395886100326312009-11-12T15:49:00.003+11:002009-11-12T15:54:34.328+11:00

Day 27: The frame has started!!!From the front...From the back...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-52795420124165068762009-11-09T22:25:00.002+11:002009-11-09T22:30:39.009+11:00

...was poured today!!! The front view - dead centre...View from front left...Box of goodies left as a slab warming present?...View from the back of the block...Thirsty concreters?...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-3926349276934691182009-11-08T17:36:00.003+11:002009-11-08T17:40:26.030+11:00

Day 22, guys worked on a stinking hot Saturday boxing up the foundations ready for the slab pour. View from the front View from the back

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-80782392552652716592009-11-06T19:24:00.003+11:002009-11-06T19:34:42.371+11:00

Headed out to the block tonight to see the foundation work. It's the most exciting part so far! ...except... the bloody damage done by the concreters to our plumbing. View from the road...View from the rear of the block...Downpipe No. 1 near meter box damaged...Downpipe No. 2 off laundry bent over...Downpipe No. 3 off bed3 now non existent!! the mungrels just covered it up completely. Aaron

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-22304460007286891402009-10-30T14:29:00.004+11:002009-10-30T14:36:38.237+11:00

14 days since site scrape - the long awaited port-a-loo has arrived! Hoping this means some tradies will be putting in some serious hours on the block.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-43261537561033935042009-10-23T20:02:00.003+11:002009-10-23T20:07:18.921+11:00

We have a meter box!!We have plumbing for our ensuite and laundry!!A view from the side of the block!!A view from the back of the block!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-45619285327597259192009-10-21T07:21:00.003+11:002009-10-21T07:26:00.671+11:00

4352 bricks were delivered to the block yesterday, with 5168 to come!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-43439985594918148962009-10-17T12:48:00.002+11:002009-10-17T12:50:26.153+11:00

started yesterday! They've managed to shatter our storm water pipe. Great! Hopefully it doesn't get blocked.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-46461189381833629552009-10-17T09:21:00.001+11:002009-10-17T09:23:23.998+11:00

After much debate, the Geneve light will have to go in the WIR instead of the laundry. There is a chance that it will get mouldy, even without a dryer in the room. Sooooooo... option two is this pretty little Grace fitting. It's completely plastic!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-39102510483975816272009-10-16T14:39:00.004+11:002009-10-16T14:46:00.602+11:00

Just incase anyone was worried that I hadn't shopped for a little while... here's some new purchases from Beacon!!Our new Geneve light for the laundry - I had pretty much made my mind up on getting the Vogue (if you all remember my WIR pendant dilemma issue)... then I walked into Beacon and HAD to have this one instead!We searched high and low for a pool light, even found the Beacon Eclipse (

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-18279991913616153882009-10-15T20:17:00.002+11:002009-10-15T20:18:29.865+11:00

So excited again today! We have a water meter!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-6530171269615338352009-10-14T17:24:00.001+11:002009-10-14T17:28:11.581+11:00

This Henley sign appeared on our block yesterday!!! Woohoo!!! How exciting!!! A sign!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-71362291995162018032009-10-09T12:12:00.000+11:002009-10-09T12:13:07.385+11:00

WE HAVE SITE START NEXT WEEK!!!Received a phone call from our SS before...He's heading out to our block Monday, and we should have the site scrape by the end of next week!! Then the slab the following week. Everything going to plan we should be at lock up by the christmas slow down (mid December - 6/7 Jan)... So excited!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-83497322641720338662009-10-07T17:33:00.002+11:002009-10-07T17:35:33.009+11:00

Purchased this baby off ebay... $800, complete with 2 end seats aswell. Exactly what we're after, at less than half the price we were originally looking at!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-44904836197081293122009-10-04T23:02:00.003+11:002009-10-04T23:04:19.924+11:00

Someone posted this link on the Homeone forum. This is the numerology of house numbers- http://www.miltonblack.com.au/num/housenumbers.htmWe're number 23, so 2 + 3 = 5. So we're a number 5 house.A Number Five house conduces to bring about the interplay of thoughts and emotions, usually harmoniously. It is a place where people often visit just to exchange ideas or gossip. Solidarity and stability

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-42197994673947069742009-10-02T17:25:00.000+10:002009-10-02T17:25:00.282+10:00

Received our final drawings in the mail today! Woohoo!!!But no woohoo for them sneaking in a variation for us to sign for Technika appliances when they already agreed to keep the D'Amani. Even our rangehood which was Beaumatic, they had changed to Technika! I spoke to our admin, she was very apologetic, she hadn't double checked the paperwork as someone else mailed it out. She's going to scrap

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-3141302926154050552009-09-27T19:50:00.003+10:002009-09-27T20:16:34.800+10:00

Thanks to our MIGHTY boys we had an AWESOME weekend! 'Carn the MIGHTY CATTERS!!! Lets do it again in 2010!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-47990413731026775892009-09-25T14:31:00.007+10:002009-09-25T19:10:10.163+10:00

Yay for Ikea's planning tool. I've fitted out our entire WIR for $2250.92 using some wardrobes from both the Elga and Aneboda ranges... the price includes the wardrobes, the actual sliding doors to match, sets of drawers, and shelving for the inside of the wardrobes...Elga Wardrobe 145x58x203 White x 2 @ $400 eaElga Aneboda Sliding Door Transparent/White x 4 @ $80 eaElga Shelf White 2 pk x 3 @

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-67253727410993432192009-09-25T09:52:00.003+10:002009-09-25T09:58:17.439+10:00

So the ONE and ONLY girly room in the house will be as prissy and girly as possible... here's the "Princess" by Beacon Lighting. It was 50% off, what a bargain. Now I'm planning the WIR fitout (as Henley are leaving it completely empty for us).

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-15975499243100276992009-09-23T17:30:00.001+10:002009-09-23T17:30:00.525+10:00

We've had our hearts set on a light like this for the pool room. FINALLY we found one! I believe it to be the last one in Australia (through Beacon Lighting that is) Found it in Darwin... now it's just a matter of shipping it to us :)

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-46269339385831497122009-09-23T17:10:00.000+10:002009-09-23T17:10:00.371+10:00

After much debate, we received a phone call from the lovey 'R' at Henley this morning, and they will be supplying our D'Amani as per our signed contracts/tender docs from July 9th.

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-39069746021794810542009-09-22T13:27:00.002+10:002009-09-22T13:32:10.501+10:00

The word around is that Henley have changed suppliers of their kitchen appliances. We signed contracts back in July which included D'Amani cooktop, wall oven and dishwasher. We'd heard rumours and discussed the issue with others building with Henley and thought we'd contact Henley before they contacted us. Well, the end result being they will either offer us a $1580 refund on the appliances and

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-74851490427381883502009-09-20T14:46:00.003+10:002009-09-20T15:12:20.315+10:00

'Carn the MIGHTY CATTERS!!! What a match last night. I'm always really scared of going to the footy, especially during finals season... my heart cant handle close matches. Last night we sat amongst Pies supporters, most who had left by 3/4 time! Bring on next week... not sure we're ready for it though!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-33929627605779754862009-09-15T07:52:00.002+10:002009-09-15T09:57:45.670+10:00

A friend hosted an Oasis Homewares party a few months ago... check out the website http://www.oasishomewares.com/here's what I bought for the new house...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-91132983505338385032009-09-13T15:44:00.005+10:002009-09-13T16:12:15.963+10:00

Loving Beacon's sale at the moment. Today we bought 10 lights! 3 matching pendants each for the living and dining rooms. 1 huge pendant for the master bedroom, and a smaller version of it for the library (formally known as front lounge room), and also smaller versions again of the same model lights as the master bedroom and library for the 2 toilets and the small hallway near the spare

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-47397663864777617162009-09-09T19:28:00.002+10:002009-09-09T19:34:13.376+10:00

So... a talented friend of mine based in Melbourne has set up this fantastic website www.suddoff.comCheck out the wide range of natural bath soaps and body products that are unique, original and handmade. I know I'm going to buying heaps of goodies for my family for Christmas...

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-32001954590811935582009-09-06T14:45:00.003+10:002009-09-06T15:03:31.314+10:00

Our latest purchase, our new leather modular! We love it!It's from Plush Sofas, design is called "Melbourne", colour is a dark chocolate "Norway Bean", and the configuration is slightly different to this image, as we're having a 7 seater, plus ottoman. VERY VERY happy! So very comfortable.We changed our minds over the "York" modular at Havey Norman and it didn't come in full leather (it was

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-130889166308069692009-09-01T17:16:00.001+10:002009-09-01T17:16:00.986+10:00

...happened today! Our conveyancer rang - all went without a hitch! We'll be cracking open a bottle of Moet tonight to celebrate!! Woohoo!!!

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9156041566577737215.post-14094855407577447962009-08-24T19:09:00.008+10:002009-08-25T17:24:59.394+10:00

A few pics from our trip... we took about 7000 photos all up!Tower Bridge from the Thames, London, EnglandView from the London Eye, EnglandStaircase in the Vatican, ItalyColosseum, Rome, Italy (one of our favourite places)Duomo (Cathedral) in Milan, ItalyLa Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, SpainTintern Abbey, WalesStonehenge, EnglandEiffel Tower, Paris, FranceAmsterdam, The Netherlands (one of my

Aaron and Erinnoreply@blogger.com2