Moregeous Monday Moments

That’s blood that is. Real blood. Nope, it’s not an early Halloween post but it is indicative of just how much of ourselves Mr M and I have poured into the newly installed and finished timber bays here at Moregeous Mansions. Back in December 2014 I posted about timber versus plastic for the smaller extension windows and it did make me smile when I just read it back. I’d considered painting those teeny weenies a winter trauma, boy did we have it all to come.

Yesterday the final batch of scaffolding was unhooked from the house after she’d been wrapped in steel at various points throughout the last two and a bit years. Balancing on dirty, slippy, (blood soaked) planks and clambering up cold steel poles has almost become a way of life here. I can’t quite believe it’s finally over and we can turn all our attention to indoors.

Since the start of November we’ve been up and down ladders for fun, come rain or ice, installing, fixing, sanding, stripping, painting and sealing. We’ve had joinery and roofing help as it would’ve been utterly impossible to get these beasts in on our own, the sections of hard wood timber weighed a tonne and there are some things my back just says no to! But much of it we’ve done ourselves and it’s been a hard winter juggling this work and some of life’s non-renovation challenges. I am glad they’re done, to be very honest.

One of the things we’re most proud of is fitting these super complicated decorative timber cornices (thanks to Jon at Bigg Hands for advice!). They’re copies of the original timber work, made for us by Dresser Mouldings, and there were tears and traumas whilst putting them up for fear of getting them wrong. But we battled on, did it and now adore them. Oh how the painful memories soon fade 😉

Equally as beautiful now they’re all repaired and painted are the decorative cuspings which drop down like huge flowers from the barge boards. Many of their intricacies had been lost under layers of paint over the years and each one took a couple of hours to strip back, sand and sort out. All 21 of the little buggars beauties.

Even the new hoppers are designed to match the period features and sprayed RAL 7016 for a cohesive look, nice huh? (from Yeoman Rainguard)

I know someone who’ll really miss the scaffolding and that’s Builder Cat. She’s literally been by my side throughout the Big Bay Bonanza, scampering up the ladders, tarting on the box gutters and watching her domain from 30ft in the air. Many builder have a faithful dog by their side but here it’s pussy power which rules the roost. Get on with it, I hear you cry, lets see the blinkin’ windows! Oh go on then, seeing as how you’ve been so patient and supportive over the last few months, keeping my chin up when outside winter work got me down and I needed some social media lurve. On a crisp, sunny Monday at the end of January, we finally got to see the fruits of our labours revealed, ta daaaaaaaaaaa……..

The rotten old timber, the modern plastic guttering, the thin single panes – all gone and replaced by solid hard wood, decorative features and warm double glazing. The ‘before’ doesn’t really show how bad they really were but trust me, they were awful. Mr M and I are in equal measures delighted and knackered, as is the curse of the self-builder/renovator on finishing a big job. It’s time for a holiday I reckon. What am I saying, of course it’s not…. now we need to finish the inside to do justice to the outside!

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noted that’s only five pictures and Moregeous Monday Moments always features six. A little renovator’s treat today, we took some video content of the process (you know, to watch when there’s nothing on Netflix) and I thought you might like to see it. It gives a sense of what we’ve been toiling over and how momentous finishing these bays has been for us.

This week will bring utility room developments, bathroom finishing and guest room decorating, so until next week, see you on IG Stories and Twitter….. x