This week the installation of our windows was completed. The house is now technically watertight. The windows were installed in three separate stages. We opted for anthracite grey frames in uPVC. Timber sash windows were our preference, but unfortunately our budget does not stretch that far. Choosing the colour was difficult, however we feel we have made the right decision.
The windows took 7 weeks to arrive, from the time we placed our order, so if you are undergoing a renovation keep this in mind. The number of windows to order was small but none of them were “standard” sizes so they had to be made to measure. Below is a before and after with the old white frames and the new grey frame. We intend on painting the reveal of the windows in the same grey and stripping back the paint on the window sills to expose the lovely granite underneath. That will be another post in itself so stay tuned to see how that all works out.
The front windows are sash, in keeping with what would have been there years ago. I cannot wait to take down the dusty net curtains, but for the moment they hide the mess in the front room from our neighbours!
In the last post I spoke about the new roof on the extension. These are a few photos of the inside of the extension now that the roof is on. The above photo shows an overhang on the extension. We were unsure about this feature but glad we decided to go with it in the end. I think it really finishes off the exterior of the building. We are planning to clad this and put some recessed lights into it. I think it will be a lovely feature when we are sitting out in the garden in the summer.
I have to admit, I am slightly obsessed with the roof light we have installed. It gives much needed light to the rest of the kitchen. The glass on the roof light is tinted in a blue colour. It is also self cleaning which is great! I’m always a big fan of anything to reduce housework / cleaning around the house. We have this covered now with OSB until the work is completed. Better safe than sorry.
Still on the theme of windows, we also installed a long slim window on our exposed brick wall. This is so we can open a window when we are cooking and let some air into the room. The only other window in the extension is our 4 metre wide glass door. This turned out better than we expected.
THIS DOOR…. Probably the best part of the renovation so far. It is finally installed. We saw this door in a salvage yard about 8 months ago and from the minute we spotted it, we knew we wanted it in our house. It was purchased from a window company who were going out of business and it never got installed in the job it was made for. We picked this up for substantially less than what we were quoted by the window company we used for the rest of the house. It is a major saving on what is already a very tight renovation budget. Moral of this story…… It pays to shop around and do your research online and see what else you can get for your money.
It is great to be at this stage of the renovation and hard to believe how far we have come since last October. Keeping focused is a struggle at times. Anyone who has undergone something similar has said the same. This is much bigger than we anticipated and it does consume our thoughts and discussions all of the time but it is exciting to see big developments like this. It reminds us that the struggle will all be worth it in the end 🙂
Thanks for reading. Happy St Patrick’s Day!
