I promised to be upbeat. So a progress report.
Of arrangements for the kitchen, I've got the units, work surfaces, floor, window, door and fitter sorted out and am waiting for the fitter to get in touch to tell me when the job can be done, which will inform the ordering of everything else - deposits have been paid. Weeza thinks I should have tiles behind the Aga, which is fair enough, but I haven't found anything suitable yet. I haven't given any thought to the colour of the walls. I've ordered a new, big upright freezer, which is arriving on Saturday. The reason I'm getting it now is that I need to empty the big chest freezer in order to move it. Ultimately, I'd like to just have my slightly smaller chest freezer and the upright, but I'll have to juggle between the three for a while first. I'll get a new tall fridge after the kitchen is installed, to replace the two I have now. The new freezer will go in the porch to start with, but the tortoise run will have to be moved first, the tots being outside all the time for the next few months.
I moved the lovely oak dresser into the dining room some weeks ago and I've put mostly blue and white china on it - some Lowestoft, also old Delft tiles and some other random china, I don't want it to look too tidy, of course.
A great many books have been moved upstairs, to a room with a very good floor (you know how heavy books are) and the bookcases had to be cut in half to get them into the room - that will be done on Thursday, when Wince is here. He'll put them together and then the books will go back. I've set aside a few hundred to dispose of, so far.
Wink is away for a week and I'm being very busy in her absence. I'm emptying the kitchen cupboards and taking a lot of things out of the larder, which I use for storage rather than for food. I'm putting pots and casseroles and plates and so on into the big dining room - unfortunately, I wanted a tablecloth today out of the chest that a lot of heavy stuff is on, so that ain't happening. I'll just have to wash a tablecloth, dry it and put it back on the table.
I have a lot of papers to sort out. That's a job for tomorrow. The start of it, anyway. There will be a lot I can get rid of and the rest will be properly filed - I always used to keep up with that, but it slipped a while ago and, once that happens, it's very hard to get back under control.
I've got a very big wine rack, a metre wide and I know where it will go in the end but, so far, I'm not sure where it'll be in the meantime. I want to declutter the kitchen completely in the next few weeks, though it'll make the rest of the house crowded. I also need to empty the study, so it can't go in there.
Within the next few weeks, I should hear from the listed building people about my application to alter the drawing room fireplace. They may need the chap from the council to come round - I don't mind what they tell me to do, as long as I'm allowed to do it. I really don't want to have to reinstate the bricks that will have to come out to get the old fireplace and chimney liner in, but surely they'll prefer me to have a stove than an open fire. It's going to make a huge difference to the warmth of the house in winter and be easier and safer - much as I love an open fire - and less polluting too. I don't have central heating and it really isn't feasible to put it in.
The house will be at sixes and sevens for the blog party, but it really doesn't matter. It's the company that counts. And the food.
4 comments:
No-one can accuse you of dithering once you decide to do something, can they?! Good luck with it all.
Definitely tiles behind the Aga. What sort of tiles, and what colour are you thinking of? I did a huge amount of research into tiles when we did ours last year, so may have some pointers once you have decided.
You could have the tiles laid diagonally beind the Aga, with a border around them, like a picture frame, laid square, if the tiles you pick are square, and all the others under the units are laid square, IYSWIM. It looks great!
- BW
The ones I have brought back to try were either black (to continue the Aga top) or neutral-ish. But one was meh, one looked, once we'd got several, dirty in places, one was a very big sheet, I think 70cm by 35cm - we'd need three, the middle one to be cut to go round the pipe where it is in the wall. I am sure the tiler would be horrified. It's too heavy and would be a bugger to cut accurately and fix in place. The fourth was also black, but we all think it's too small, because there would be an awful lot of grout to keep clean. My son in law thinks a light coloured tile would be best, I honestly can't tell. I draped a clean sheet for a backdrop and still couldn't get my head around it.
The Corian worktop will also go on the windowsill behind the sink. At present, I'm thinking that the tiles behind the Aga will also go on the windowsills each side, which are 30cm by - can't remember, let's say 50ish. But I could ask for Corian there too. Really undecided and don't want to make a mistake.
You won't regret the Corian :) Are you having the sinks that are moulded in? Which colourway?
What colour(s) are your units going to be?
I don't recall what colour your AGA is (green maybe?) but think black tiles will be far too dark behind it, particularly as I seem to remember that your windows are not very big? Are you making any sort of false wall structure above/behind the Aga so you can have a beam with concealed lighting etc (this will also hide some of the flue - unless yours goes straight through the wall - can't remember!)?
Because of the effect on the tile adhesive of the permanent heat, I think your tiler will not be happy with using anything other than small tiles behind the Aga either. Because of the Aga lids being up when one cooks, the tiles and grout never really get dirty at all. We have tiles with a ripply textured surface (like rustically handmade would be) and they look great. But, you could also consider using Corian (maybe even a different design)?
We had all our worktops and windowsills doine in Corian. Do have a 'lip' moulded in behind the sink tap so you can rest chopping boards and trays against it to drain, and do have 'waterfall edge' on the front of the surface with the sinks in (it's a small ridge, that you don't notice, but which saves disasters if one accidentally leaves the tap running). Plus, we have Corian heat bars (metal stainless steel rods in grooves) in between the draining grooves so you can put hot pans next to the sink (eg to drain them etc).
Ohhh it's a shame you probably won't be coming up before you do yours as we could show you all the things we have learnt over 2 houses and 4 rooms with Corian, plus designing and fitting and tiling a kitchen ourselves.
- BW
I'll look it all up, half past nine and I'm getting tired. The Aga is brown. I am inclined to think that a light tile is better, but I don't want to get anything patterned that limits me in future, nor anything boring. I'm really quite inclined to leave it until the kitchen is installed. I'll answer your questions in the next post!
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