It has got a little boring around here hasn’t it, and who really wants to know what ‘s been going on with me? Yes it looks like it’s going to be one of those posts whichs goes on about having nothing to write about, which rambles along, and then actually turns into a post. Or not.

Tom posted a list of ‘Targets for 2010‘, and clearly defined them as “not new year’s resolutions” which is probably the way to go as I would say that New Year’s Resolutions usually have some negativety attached to them rather than being something positive to aspire to e.g. Give up sweets, drink less alcohol, etc.

So I might as well put a few targets on here, and see if I can complete any of them, and just like Tom I’ll try and keep you updated as at least I can always come back to this post as a reference.

1. Decorate spare room – I have a room that is currently storing junk, but which needs to be fully decorated (plastered, painted, carpeted, etc).

2. Pay off credit cards – I’ve currently got £2439.30 on my credit cards which is mostly debt I racked up whilst renovating the house having spent the majority of my savings on my deposit (plus some other bits). It is interest free until May, so I’ll try and get rid of some of it and then find another interest free card to transfer over to.

3.Lose a substantial amount of weight – OK, this is always in there. We know what needs to be done, so just do it.

4. Cycle to work at least once a week – I like cycling, I am only 2.3 miles from work, so I should cycle more. Yet again it’s that simple.

5. Take more photographs - and ones that other people may find interesting.

6. Visit more places - Okay so quite wide-ranging but I now have a ladyfriend who I would like to take to places other than Thanet.

That’s it for now then, and we’ll see how things go.

Been missing me? Well I’ve been a busy boy and have been working on the house in preparation for the housewarming party for which I still have lots of work to do. I had yesterday off work and managed to get a lot done at the house but it made me realise that I’d been putting off quite a few bits which could’ve been done earlier (silly me).

I’ve had to sacrifice 5-aside footy tonight and football training on Wednesday so that I can spend maximum time at the house as I’ve got the carpet fitter coming around on Thursday to fit the carpet in the lounge, hallway and staircase. I’ve done the rest of the carpet myself but thought I’d get the pros in for the tricky bits.

I did have one day of freedom though and went to France for the day with my football team for a general piss-up which was fun although we only spend a few hours in France due to ferry times, but half the fun is to had in the journey. This was of course from Dover to Calais, and not the Ramsgate to Boulogne ferry we have been waiting six months for.

Sunset from the ferry

I’ve realised I’ve tailed off a bit with taking photos of the house (and videos) but it seems I haven’t even got time for those although I did take a rubbish one yesterday of the front room I had been working on. I’ve got Friday off work and will use that day for finishing off little bits, moving stuff down the house, and generally making it look like a home…. and then I move in and have my party!

I haven’t blogged about the house for a while, so yesterday I took my camera with me and got a few photos which I’ve added to flickr. It’s amazing really how long things can take when I probably expected to be moved in when I bought the house just under four months ago. Four months isn’t actually a very long time when factored into life but it’s by no means a short time, and probably long enough to renovate and decorate a house but anyway I’m still plodding along, but this week I shall be spending a coupe of nights down the house, which I suppose can technically be classed as moving in.

Anyway.. here’s a few pics:

The Master Bedroom

Another angle of the master bedroom

Before and After - Boiler Cupboard in the Dining Room

Dining Room being decorated

As you can see I’ve now got my bed etc in the bedroom and put up the blinds on Saturday, and over the last week or so I’ve been working on the dining room. That has had to be plastered in some areas, then wallpapered, and then painted so that I can disguise any imperfections on the walls. This takes time, but it is certainly cheaper than getting a professional plasterer in, although maybe in a few years I can save a little and get this done.

I’ve gone for a yellow to brighten the place up as I didn’t want magnolia everywhere, and I think it will look good once I’ve finished. The dining room is where the old immersion heater was located and that was removed when I got the new heating installed, so I’ve been working on converting that into a storage space to keep pots and pans, plates, cutlery, glasses etc, which will give me more space in the kitchen for food storage and preparation.

The aim is to get the dining room finished this week, and then party time will be getting closer!

You know how when there’s something you really should be doing you can always find something else to do? Well I had today off work and instead of plastering and papering indoors I actually spent the day in the garden and put together a garden gate.

Old gate falling apart

The old gate as you can see was falling apart and didn’t provide much security and looking around there were no suitable ready made gates that would fit the exact size I needed I got out my carpentry skills and made my own.

Making a mess with my carpentry skills

It’s not really an essential thing for the immediate future but I tell myself that it’s made the garden a bit more secure and also made it look a lot nicer.

The finished gate

I put a door lock on it so that I can gain access via the alleyway without having to worry about bolts or padlocks which are usually on back gates. Next up is to put some fencing along the back wall so that I have some nice privacy and to also put on some wood-stain to protect the wood.

The lock on the new gate

I’ve also put done some purple slate scree in the flowerbeds (after weeding of course) and will put in a few plants at a later date. I really do like my garden as it’s a nice size and I can’t wait to have some BBQ fun there in the near future.

The garden looking a little nicer

Not bad eh?

Clean garden

The garden is probably the last area I should be paying attention to in the quest to renovate and decorate my house, but the weather has been so nice that I deviated and went to work outside. On Sunday I had a good weeding and pruning session, and then borrowed my neighbours pressure washer to clean all the patio slabs.

Now that the inside of the house is coming along, I didn’t want to keep traipsing inside to get water for cement etc and so I installed an outside tap, and then made use of it as I had to make some mortar for laying some brickwork.

The wall on the left hand side (generally the responsibility of the house on the right here in the UK) had several rows of bricks missing, but I couldn’t just put new bricks on there as it would be completely out of character , so a visit to the tip on Manston Road, Margate, and I got around 30 weathered and worn bricks, completely free. I did ask the guys at the tip and they said that as long as I remembered them at Christmas then that was fine to take them.

the top two rows are new

Another factor in laying the bricks was making it look a little haphazard and not completely straight. I had no problem with this!

I did run out of bricks but I’m sure there are plenty more up the tip, but for now I’ll have to put my efforts back on the internal aspects of the house and finish those off, but I have to admit that the garden was a nice distraction.

I also got paid today so after what seems like eternity with no money I can buy some more things for the house and get cracking again but will try and busget a little more this month.

I put down the carpet in the main bedroom so here’s a video if you fancy having a peek.

I was able to get down the house last night and actually put in a bit of work. I have to admit I’ve not done a huge amount on it over the past few weeks due to other committments, but I feel I’ve got back on track again now. When I first bought the place at the end of March I thought I’d be moved in by now, but coming up for 3 months later I’m not. The main reason I’ve slowed down is that I’ve got no money until pay day next week, but last night I realised there were quite a few things I really should’ve done which don’t cost any money. I should be ahead of where I am but I’ll put that down to experience and know that should I do this again I will be much quicker.

I finished the tiling around the bathroom room (already had tiles), I hung a door upstairs (already had door), I weeded the garden, I fixed the bath panels back on the bath, I peeled some wallpaper and I generally just felt a lot more focussed. I’m getting some carpet today and will fit that this week in the main bedroom, and then I can start moving more bits in.

It’ll definitely be a bit strange when I finally move in, but good at the same time as summer is here and I’ll be able to have a cracking housewarming party/bbq. I now know it’s not best to set deadlines of moving in but a couple of weeks is realistic now I think.

The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house and so it comes as no suprise that this is where I’ve spent the most money whilst renovating (apart from central heating). I’ve tiled the floor, painted the wall and ceiling, installed new units, new worktops, got new electric oven and gas hob, new sink, new taps, basically everything in there is new.

Before and after shot of the kitchen

I must say I’m quite happy with it considering the space I’ve got and the budget I’ve had, and all that is left is to sort out the tiling the splashback behind the hob and giving a new lick of paint in a few spaces where my grubby hands have been whilst I was tiling.

This month I am going to be proper skint and it’s the first time in a few years that I’ve said that. I’ve spent out quite a lot in the last month on doing up the kitchen which included oven, hob, sink, taps, worktops, plumbing, and even then I’ve still got to buy the finishing pieces such as kickboards and upstands which will all add more. I’m now a regular in Wickes, picking up items here and there, and it surprising how it all adds up with even a small trip for a few items costing a fair bit.

I do think that I’m over the main costs now though (central heating + kitchen) and can concentrate again on decoration with plastering, wallpaper, and painting coming in a lot cheaper due to my material costs. I still have the council tax to pay (due on 7th) and then I have to pay a gas engineer £85 tomorrow to connect my gas hob which will eat further into the remainder of my wages which I only received on Friday.

I know that once the refurb is complete then my costs will reduce again to the level I budgeted for myself but even then it will take a few months to reach an equilibrium. So I’m tempted to try and earn some more money. Getting a second job is out of the question as I need my spare time to work on the house, so I’ve opted to try out some online surveys! I know it’s a bit of a tinpot solution but looking around I could get a few quid here and there just for putting info in. I’ve set up a special email for it so that I can delete it if I’m getting too much spam, and will see how it goes. I can probably predict that it won’t be worth it, but any extra money will help.

I’m also having a look into Google adsense and will see how it fits in with the blog. If it’s just a small banner on the sidebar then fine, but if it’s too intrusive then I won’t use it.

Other ideas for raising cash are ebay, but I don’t have anything worth selling, or seeing about getting in a few quick web-design jobs through my Thanet Media site.

And as a last resort….

[paypal-donation]

I was working down the house last night and only got to see the 2nd half of the Champion’s League final between Manchester United and Barcelona, but from what I saw it looked like Barça thoroughly deserved their win and were the better team on the night.

As for my work down the house, which I know you find immensely interesting, I have now put together my kitchen units and will be buying my worktop tonight. I will then be able to put in my oven, hob, and sink, and then my kitchen will be almost complete. I’ll then just have to bring in my washing machine, fridge-freezer, and also put in my wall cabinets. It sounds a lot for a little kitchen but I can assure you I’ve measured it and it will all be fine as it’s still less than what was in the kitchen before I ripped it out.

n.b. As you may have noticed, I’m taking quite a few photos and videos of pretty inane things and some of them aren’t meant to be interesting as they are mainly for me so I have records of all the things I’m doing to the house. If you want to see them then that’s a bonus. This was also a chance for me to use Flickr video for the first time as opposed to Youtube or Vimeo.