Well, all the floors are covered with plastic and 1/8" plywood at my insistence, so the jobsite looks far from finished. The painters are almost done wit the the second floor. All the wooden closets are also duco-ed, the cornices with flat duco, the walls all done.
They are currently doing the doors and I just chose a walnut color as opposed to an orangey color. Looks more "old world". I've learned so much about varnishing in the last 2 weeks and now I can tell whether the varnish is a good craftsman job, or if it's just varnished for the sake of stain and protection. Also learned that I won't save much by using plywood instead of solid wood (cabinet doors, doors) specially since I insist on a particular quality of finish. I would have been better off with solid wood, and then the varnishing is simpler. With plywood, the have to do the process 7 or 8 times, with solid wood, you do it twice only. Hmmm...
We have two weeks to get things in order because we're going on another trip that will keep us away for 3 weeks! I wonder what's going to happen to our workers. I want the carpenter and the electrician to stay until we actually move into the house and live there. I'm sure I'll still have many things done--shelves, install lighting, etc.
Having occasional lunches with friends who are also renovating their homes has been a very educational experience. From validating my own design details, to sourcing suppliers and contractors. I got the glass supplier from Marge and Nicole, learned that flexible plumbing pipes would have been better (for my style of renovating) from Bee, and sourced the ironworkers for my trellis grills and canopy from Joy! It's nice to work with suppliers who have passed very discriminating friends--then all I have to worry about is design.
