Home Renovations and Covid

[mellowyellowgirl]

Did anyone do any major renovations or buy lots of furniture to make themselves more comfortable during lockdown?

I'm shuffling around like a mad hatter this week to get all the tradies lined up so I can install my pool heating and get some electrical work done.

We accepted a different model of pool heater from the one we wanted because we're worried that if there's another lockdown, we won't be able to get anything finished.

Basically we would normally be renovating like snails but fear of lockdown has made us push our projects like crazy.

Hubby accepted a piano that wasn't his first choice because the model he wanted was floating on a boat somewhere. Plus it was heavy and we weren't allowed to have people carry it inside.

Anyone experiencing similar issues? They closed Bunnings and banned tradies in the last lockdown so I'm hoping to get the house in tip top shape for the next one.

 

[lambskin]

Funny you should ask… during the lockdown I painted a few rooms in bright, very bright colors. Will live with the chartreuse hallway and stairs, but the coral and champagne walls in the master bedroom are going to be redone an oyster white color. Daughter #1 bedroom is mauve painted when she was in middle school is now going to be a pale light mossy green. Daughter # 2 room will go from a beautiful teal to a very pale grey. The pandemic made me go against the grey trend. So the house looks cheery but I am sick of cheer! We had the handyman over for the day and he fixed things that drive us nuts. He has enough interior work for two weeks!More outside than inside major projects are needed. But two girls in private colleges and my upcoming dental implant has put the breaks on any big ticket item! I do worry about building material shortages however.

 

[jaysonsmom]

We are taking advantage of my “working from home” status. So far we have had our whole exterior repainted, garage doors replaced, our fences replaced, and now going through back yard re-landscaping

 

[Matata]

I did. New living and dining room furniture, window coverings, painted inside of house, demolished corner fireplace in living room and built new one. I was fortunate to get furniture ordered and most delivered before everything fell apart. Even though we started in March, we just got the last 2 pieces a few weeks ago. I've since decided to replace bedroom furniture and probably won't see it delivered until 2024.

 

[Bron357]

We did a bathroom renovation DURING lockdown. That was fun. They had just smashed everything out of the bathroom and laundry and then………. Hmm Hmm……….hmm hmmm………..
3 months later ..ta da..
Seeing as DD is going to Melbourne for her scholarship stint in Jan we have to hope neither NSW or VIC launch another lockdown.
My understanding is that with the level of vaccinations, they won’t “close everything down” again. They might continue to require masks anytime inside and limit patrons to pubs, bars etc but not “lock down”.
Heres hoping.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

Here's hoping @Bron357

Meanwhile you will not be able to pry my mask off me! I whined about it endlessly at the beginning but I'm used to it now!

I was going all conspiracy theorist on the pool heating guy about how I need the heater ASAP because I'm scared they're going to shut down anytime and the pipes will run out etc etc. He thinks I'm nuts!!!

 

[RosieR]

Yes! New flooring in our entryway and kitchen, new kitchen, new windows and back doors, new lighting and a ground floor re-wire. It’s been an incredibly stressful 7 weeks. Still not 100% finished. The day after the whole kitchen was ripped out I tested positive (with a home lateral flow test) so all the work had to stop and trade workers go home. I followed up with a more accurate lab PCR because I had no symptoms which was negative so all work could resume. This happened twice! I’m working with 7 different contractors so of course when one job gets delayed it effects all the others. We also need a new sofa as our existing one is really old and gives me back ache. The one I like has a 16 week lead time due to the virus and shipping issues.
This is work we have been putting off for the past 3 years. 2020 was the kick in the butt I needed to get things going.

 

[Missy]

Nope. But I want to completely redo my primary bathroom at the beach house. It's in beige and I dislike beige. It's a perfectly lovely bathroom which is why I haven't redone it yet. It's in marble and tastefully done. Just not to my taste. I want all white with some blue accents in my primary bathroom (bathroom in our bedroom). I have a gorgeous claw foot tub I would keep. I would just need to retile the shower, the floors and redo the counters and sinks. I want bigger deeper sinks. And I just love modern clean lines with minimal accents. So my dream bathroom would be less busy than this photo below but similar color scheme.

 

[chrono]

Last year:
Power washed the house
Shampooed all the carpeting

This year:
Got the all windows recaulked
Replaced and repainted parts of the drywall (too much work!)

Next year:
Tear down the deck and replace with a sunroom! The contractors will start at the end of winter.

 

[Austina]

We completely repainted our whole house during lockdown, did masses of work in the garden, totally decluttered and got rid of anything we didn’t want (local FB free site), all in preparation for our international move.

 

[Elizabeth35]

We sold our big house during Covid (November 2020). Downsized from 8000+ sf to just under 2000 sf townhouse.
New place, we have removed yucky 80's popcorn ceilings, replaced first floor tile floors with hardwood, painted everything including trim, new carpeting upstairs, new kitchen backsplash, painted kitchen cabinets, all new lighting, new powder room, gutted primary bath including converting tub to walk in shower, gutted secondary bath. Oh--removed original fireplace surround and mantel and replaced with new stonework and mantel, and new hearth. Re-stained deck and installed natural gas grill. New garage door. Upgraded electric and replaced all outlets and wall switches. New reverse osmosis water system, new range, microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, washer and dryer. New AC unit.
I think the only thing not new at this point is the furnace and the hot water heater--lol.
Thankfully the unexpected boost in prices over the last year got me out of the doghouse on the renovation costs.

 

[whitewave]

Power washed the house, had the exterior wood doors sanded and stained, cleaned inside from top to bottom, repaired holes and repainted the interior walls (holes like from old hangings, not like fists through walls). Getting all the exterior columns and white trim repainted this week, bought several pieces of wall art from the artists themselves, changed out fixtures, etc. bought new rugs, etc… néw lamps.

a total refreshing of the house, inside and out.

 

[allycat0303]

We bought a house in the US and gutted it. I have to say, it’s been entertaining.