It's been a long time coming but with the advent of Dad getting a job, the big reno is underway. Tom (16) has a double bedroom down the back of the house but with a double bed, sundry drawers, consoles and stereo paraphernalia, its quite a squeeze. One that really gets my goat when i venture in, with trepidation, to find the dirty clothes and to change the bed sheets before they start growing mould.
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| As you can see the carpet has to go and also i don't think the buttercup yellow walls suit a 16 year old boy. |
It was actually about two years ago, Tom's been quite patient, that we discussed opening up the wall to the bedroom next door and making one giant room. One that will allow him a small sofa bed for friends and room for all "his stuff". Presently it is in boxes and spread out all over the house. Oh, we have four bedrooms and only 1 child so with one allocated as an office there is one spare that gets filled up with junk when visitors arrive and never finds its way to being cleared.
The Pièce de résistance of the renovation is a wall unit that Tom has designed many times over. It takes up one wall leaving a gap in the middle to fit his bedhead (ie the bedhead is recessed into the unit).
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| Hard to see but is has spaces for just about everything including the fridge (bottom RHS) which he already has. |
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| Actual measurements. He did all this himself. Its about the 10th version and he spends nights dreaming about it putting it on paper and then presenting it to us the next day hoping that it will get started soon. |
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| Can you imagine this filled with heritage platters and large ceramic bowls that will actually be used? |
So while i was doing a 21.5 hr weekend at work (after a 40 hr week) they went shopping for a tin of paint and came home with not only the paint but packs of bamboo flooring. At $61m2 its not so bad for just his room but calculate that out over the whole house and i think that we are going to have hotch potch flooring for many years to come. Some rooms will have the now 18 year old cream carpet (Yuk) and gradually the bamboo flooring will creep throughout. They did call the "Finance Minister" for the final OK and my only criteria was that whatever they bought had to last 25 years plus, had better not sound or look like plastic or vinyl, and that when it did reach the family room. it flowed seamlessly onto the deck through the french doors without looking mis-matched. Now is that too much to ask for? I'm not sure they took it too much into consideration but i was pleased that the bamboo boards are eco friendly and it is a solid piece and not a veneer. Later on, if needed, it can be lightly sanded and restained.
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| Actual Colour under bright light. |
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| Tongue and Groove for easy installation. - this is the colour it normally looks inside and will go well with the merbau deck later on. |
You might be wondering who is going to do all this work. Well look no further than the 3 of us. Its usually an exercise in family disharmony throughout the process but we do good work. Now that Tom is older he is taking on more jobs himself. Today he taped up the room to protect the stained architraves and put some filler in any holes. It just needs a light sand and tomorrow he will start painting. I've asked my sister over to be a friendly adviser and ladder holder (cause he's doing it himself, he tells me) and i don't imagine it will take more than a day to do the one room. He's not waiting for Dad to open up the second room as he figures he could be waiting another year. His focus is getting that wall unit built that he designed and the walls and floor have to be done first.
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| Important paint attributes for teenager' bedrooms - Exception Washability, Superior Stain Resistance, Highly Scuff Proof. Most importantly it is Vivid White - at times he was planning on Black with white splotches! |
Only problem is that he is near the kitchen and i got in trouble at 5am this morning making too much noise while i was getting Dad's breakfast and making his lunch.
Where do these kids get their spunk from?
All of that planning and he is a teenager...another accountant in the making methinks ;). My son (now a fully fledged accountant working in Melbourne City) created a most innovative plan to rid himself of his new baby sister when he was 6. As an only child his life was great...all of the attention, all of the time, no diversions or disturbances and so when my daughter was born he decided that enough was enough and he was going to sort it. He devised a complex and clever trap to catch her baited with sweets and it consisted of a hole and branches to cover the hole...needless to say we kept the plans and they exist to this day...sometimes it's important to be reminded of ones childhood don't you think? Anyway, kudos on allowing the teenager to have his own space. It might even pay off in the end! I am chuckling (under my breath...it's only 5.18am...) about that Mario hat. The son-and-heirs Texan girlfriend went hunting (with his stupid permission) on his ex housemates FB site and found some highly amusing photos of him that he didn't realise existed. It's a wonder you didn't hear the plaintitive cries from where you live (he lives in the city) but she resisted all forms of bribery and managed to share them with us all...memories...dressed up as Mario... ;). What firm do you work for by the way? The son and heir works for RSM Bird Cameron in the city :)
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