LIVING ROOM RENO
Until next time…
How did you work as a team? We both knew what we wanted the renovation to look like and trusted each other with decisions; Emmett did the renovation and I did the interior design. Emmett would say: “Right, I need to paint the master bedroom tomorrow. What colours have you chosen?” We used tradies for plumbing and some tiling but all the handiwork was done by Emmett and me. Any challenges you faced? The main challenge was living amid a renovation with a newborn. I’m sure Emmett felt pulled in all directions – he was trying to finish the house and
I wanted him to spend time with our new son. Luckily Jed was a dream sleeper as Emmett constantly had nail guns and tools going right outside his door!
Is there anything you would change? The site is quite small for a child and a dog and we only have a single garage. That is not ideal for Emmett – he’s a tradie; he needs space. Would you renovate again? We love living here and love the area. We have not had many spare weekends over the past few years but home is wherever your family and things are, so we look forward to another project.
Any reno tips? Always allow a contingency in your budget. We estimated a $100,000 renovation budget but, towards the end, that was too tight. We over-spent by about $20,000. Also, it is worth shopping around and pricing options before you make a decision. I saved on curtains by buying fabric on sale.