It's my birthday!

I turned 17 today! I've received some lovely gifts and spent the day with great friends and family. I'm looking forward to my 18th year and all of the exciting prospects ahead of me!

Last weekend my family tidied up the garden at Almora - lots of weeding, pruning, trimming and some replanting. We are preparing the house for tenants, but that plan will be on hold for a bit longer than anticipated because...the house is lined with asbestos.

It's important to remove the asbestos immediately especially since the plaster is already cracked and falling off, and we want it to be safe for the people who rent it. If you don't know what asbestos is, it is basically an ingredient that was used in building materials three or four decades ago. Except now, it has been discovered that when fibres from those materials (e.g. from cracks in the wall) are inhaled, they can lead to serious illnesses decades after they are breathed in and can sadly cause death. It is imperative that the house is free from the toxic material and fitted with safe plasterboard.

I'm not too sure how the whole removal process works, but you can be sure I will document it!

I thought I'd give you an insight into my Art that I do at school. Our latest outcome had to involve a canvas, but not be a conventional painted landscape. I opted for an installation, with the canvas being the surface. And I always do something involving interior design or decoration.

 

 

As you can see in the above photo, I painted a wooden effect onto the canvas. This was achieved with a wood grainer - my new favourite tool! It's rubber and is simply a ridged version of a squeedgie. It has curves and loops that create the grain effect when used.  I painted the base coat of the canvas in a sandy acrylic paint, dried it, then did a quick coat of watered-down brown acryclic over the top. I pulled the wood grainer down the canvas, and you have to rock it to get the "holes". Go google it! It is such a neat tool.

 

So my installation is a table setting! I went to IKEA and bought everything that you see on the canvas. I didn't have a theme in mind, I just knew I wanted it to be pretty, have the pieces work together but not match, and look realistic - hence the Nespresso capsule on the coffee cup and the ready-burnt candles. I can imagine this setting being on the balcony or deck outside in the Summer. It was so fun to put together. I didn't glue anything down to the canvas becuase I want to be able to recycle it all for next year in Art.

I hope you're enjoying this blog! I am looking forward to when I can tell you all about the construction side! 

xo

A foot in the door to Architecture

Most of my readers would know that I have designed the plans for the renovation. Architecture is a passion of mine, and it complements Interior Design. I have a CAD architecture program that I use to create floor plans called EZ Architect. It is basic software that has allowed me to draw up countless versions of the extension to the house (and to many others that I have played around with). It doesn't automatically show elevations like ArchiCAD does (a very high-tec software) however, but in my mind I find it easy to picture the different angles, dimensions and basic form.

Yesterday, Thursday 12th September, 2013, we met witht he council to discuss my plans. We also talked about how to go about getting final approval. The heritage advisor and a town planner were in attendance. They asked us if we were the design team becuase I had the floor plans with me. I took it as a compliment! The whole meeting was like having a vision into the future for when I am a professional designer. The council duo looked through the house briefly before we discussed the plans. We stood around the kitchen bench - here:

I realised I hadn't included a picture of the kitchen. It looks pretty neat in the photo, but don't let the light fool you, this room is as poorly maintained as the rest of the house! You can sort of the see the garden through the French doors, which I will blog about later I'm sure.

In regards to the plans, some things we learnt about include:

• Boundary lines and how much room to leave between neighbours (one metre on the second storey). 
• A new roof guideline for between the old and the new parts of the house, i.e. there must be a one metre flat roof under the eaves between the heritage building and new extension. This simply distinguishes between old and new.
• The internal walls of the heritage building can be moved wherever.
• Existing additions from decades ago to the now heritage building can stay if they are restored, but not enlarged or altered, e.g. highlight windows.
• Potential objections from neighbours and possible processes and time frames for complaints.
• Specific site lines from the street which impact the height of the second floor.
• And, the town planner said a smooth sailing application will take about 3-6 months for final approval. I am optimistic and hope that is the time frame for our plans!!

We will take my plans to an architect soon to get the profesional drawings developed (which will include elevations, the streetscape, etc.) as they obviously need to be done correctly and properly. But in a few years, I will be capable of such technical drawings and will be creating them for my own clients.

As we were leaving the meeting it had just finished raining heavily, and we suddenly noticed a puddle of water coming from the living room ceiling. There's a big a hole from an old fitting next to the current light that has been left open, allowing water to run through. We've had to catch the drips with a bucket and newspaper. So, we'd better get a move on with the planning permits!

TGIF

xo

Take a tour

You have waited long enough to see the photos of the house! I have anticipated even longer being able to go inside and take my paparazzi shots of every detail. And now, I can share them with you.

This is the front of the house. Can you see already what I mean by dire? The rusty tin roof is the biggest giveaway. But you need to look beyond the maintenance issues and imagine this house restored to it's orginal beauty. The facade's colour palette will work in harmony, the roof will be silver, the garden will be manicured, and the chimney will probably be non-existent. I'll keep you posted on that detail. You can see the sign "ALMORA" I told you about in my previous post. As soon as I saw it I said, "Almora! I'm changing the blog name!" I want to find out more about Almora - were they first owner? Is it more than just a town in India? What does it actually mean?

 

The lace iron fretwork I really like. I think it plays a big part in identifying the house as part of the Victorian era. Can you see the subtle Givenchy style in the design? 

The hallways is about 14m long. In my plans, there are three skylights to make it brighter and give it some interest. You can see in the photos how warped the floors and walls are. The first thing we will do in construction is restump, to level out the whole house.

 

 My old Victorian house (a double fronted one) didn't have it's orginal hand-carved archway, instead a door frame. I've always wanted pretty scrolls on an archway and finally I do! 

The fireplae in the main (and very pink) living room is quite tall, and I don't like the simplicity yet obscurity of it. To me, it just doesn't scream Vicotrian (elaborate, exqusitely carved detail), so I think it will be removed. However, I would replace it with a more typical Vicotrian-like mantel in a heartbeat.

 

The plasterboard is falling off everywhere in the heritage part of the house. How does it get to such a state without repair? Then to my surprise, I discovered the skirting boards are high! I LOVE tall skirts, they match the high ceilings and enhance the grandeur. I measured them, and they are 27cm tall! They're in all of the heritage rooms and have become my favourite detail.

The doors are all stripped bare. I don't like the exposed wood here. I want to see if we can replace the interior doors with exterior-grade doors to make them soundproof. It's annoying being woken up in the night by someone's late arrival back at the house and hearing them trapse down the hallway. The doors are shorter than modern versions as people 100 years ago were in fact a lot shorter! These ones measure 1900mm, where as they're normally 2000mm. Those 10cm actually make a big difference.

Know what I mean by "plasterboard falling off everywhere"? It's even (not) on the ceiling! And there's a close-up of the scrolls on the archway.

The front door features red stainglass windows which are sweet. The hallway door is, according to previous owners, really expensive glass and smashes easily. At first I thought it wasn't that gorgeous but it's growing on me. I imagined having a single French glass door here. 

There are ceiling roses in two of the heritage rooms, and they also comprise Victorian style fireplaces! I love the sprawling ceiling rose. You'll notice the torch spotlight in the photo. We visited the house in the evening and there was no electricity so it got a bit dark - more obvious in some photos. Out of the three fireplaces in the house, the one on the right here is my favourite. I like the squareness of the mantel. And there's no offending tile in sight. Until the bathroom.
Note: when renovated, none of the original fireplaces will operate.

  More cracking plasterboard. This part of the wall will hopefully have a door into a walk-in-robe (WIR) when it is renovated.
I love the window design. I hope they can be kept or replicated to make them double-glazed for climate control and sound proofing. There are radiators in three of the rooms - probably the most modern asset of the whole house!

The transition  from pine floorbaords in the heritage part to the 80s add on. I want to continue the pine, but restain it somewhere between blonde and dark colouring.
 

 Check out the bathroom-come-laundry! This bathroom should be in Belle magazine!
Said no one, ever. There is so much mould above the shower!

 

 And we return to the front of the house. It has so much charm! But the verandah overlaps the glass above the front door. I wonder if this was how it was origianlly done? Check out that gorgeous lamp. It is so large and beefy and adds total grandeur. It will be enhanced when the front of the house is painted.

  

The front yard is grossly overgrown, but nothing a little garden tending can't help! There's a tall, skinny gum tree growing here too. We will remove it ASAP becuase it is so out of place and apparently they kill everything around it to survive,  not to mention the roots that will move the house.

  

So there you have it! Do you like it? Can you see the same potential that I can? I can tell you now that the extension will not be modern (minimal, stainless steel, hard edges, sterile) becuase no one in my family is a fan of that style. We also believe that it is becoming a cliché because there is so much sameness in the house market with that style. It goes off trend too quickly and we want our house to cater to our likes and needs. But remember, for resale, you should always keep elements that cater to the needs/wants of the greater market, i.e. extra bedroom, bathroom, study, etc. Just don't make your house completely for the next buyer becuase you are the one living in it right now!

I hope you enjoy this journey along with me, so keep checking back here!  
xo

Casa Almora

We have officially obtained the keys to the house! That's right, it's the settlement day, Friday 6th of September, 2013! I have just come back from visiting the house and I took a whole bunch of photos becuase I was super excited. I am currently in the process of uploading them to my computer so that I can share them with you. I will make a new post tomorrow with the first photos!

You may notice that I have changed the blog name from "A sweet little rose" to "Casa Almora". Why? Well firstly, the original name I felt had little relevance to the blog. Then, upon visiting the house, I took note of the name on the plaque that is displayed on the heritage facade, "Almora". Usually the names of these houses belong to the original builder. So I believe that it is a nice tribute and acknowledgement to my house's history. "Casa" comes into the blog's name simply due to the mammoth sized restoration, renovation and extension this house will undertake.

The plans I have designed are almost finished. I took some measurements so that I could ensure my dimensions are accurate. I need to make a few alaterations, but hopefully I figure it all out. That's the fun of designing. I love the problem-solving becuase I explore so many other potential concepts.

I hope your Friday has been as fantastic as mine has!
xo