As I mentioned in my first post we were lucky to have our builder on board from the outset and have discussed every element of the project with him. He's a very creative person so his ideas have been very helpful. Part of what scares me most about doing this project is that I am not really very creative, well not in an artistic way anyway. I am not very good with concepts on paper. I need to see the space before I can decide how it will look. I need to understand the light in the room before I decide which colours will work on the walls. I hate too much choice. I am not someone you will find scouring flea markets looking for some bijou piece of furniture. I can sew but I don't think of clever ideas of things to make. I'm very practical. A roll your sleeves up and get on with it sort of person.
So, yes I'm nervous about the creative design.
I do have some ideas but I will wait until I see what the space looks like before I think about it too much. I'm looking at kitchens and bathrooms and am looking around Pintrest for ideas. Due to budget constraints all of those will probably come via B&Q because a very dear friend is able to access a wonderful discount for me. Having been a wood kitchen person (and am at heart really) all these years I'm thinking of going for a very modern feel with a high gloss white or cream kitchen because part of our house struggle with light and I think this will help to brighten it all up.
Even designing the building was a struggle. One of the early designs was literally a two storey extension straight out the back. My concern was that it would look like a giant Toberlone! As much as I love eating Toberlone chocolate I don't think the building would forgive us for embodying that within its structure. I was also very adamant about the size of my utility room so we decided to wrap the extension around the sides.
Once that was decided upon it took several attempts from our architect to get the design right. I've learned that architects can draw perfectly lovely looking designs that are totally unbuildable so I'm grateful to our builder for overseeing the whole process and highlighting when the designs were unachievable.
Getting planning permission was a relatively stress-free experience. It was a slow process but there were no issues. We sought permission for a garage as well but that was rejected. Our architect didn't think we would get permission for the flat window at the front of the house and tried hard to talk us out of it and accept a dormer window. We were resolute on that though and prepared to go to appeal. Our architect was flabbergasted when permission was granted.
The most frustrating part has been waiting for the building regs so we can get going. It has taken weeks for the front of the house to be agreed between the architect and the structural engineer. We are excited about the triangular windows in the front and back and keen to see at least one of them in situ. However we now have to wait again for the steels to be made so more thumb twiddling will ensue. Having moved into rented accommodation now I am anxious to get moving as quickly as possible because I am currently paying double the bills I was previously plus our rented house is lovely and I'm grateful that we can afford to move out but it is very small and I am missing the space of our home.
One of the things I am hoping any readers of this blog might offer is help with ideas so if you have found an amazing website that you want to share with me the I am all ears! Also if you have any tips that you may have found really useful when doing your own build I would love to hear them.
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