SELECTIONS

I spent many hours researching, reading blogs and educating myself on everything build related. I feel like i still have a long way to go - it's hard to get your head around all the build jargon, especially if it's your first time to build! I am so thankful for stumbling on the homeone forum because i have learnt so much from reading posts and most of all, asking questions! The people on the forum have a wealth of knowledge and it's great to know there is a platform out there where you can ask the most silliest questions and get an honest answer and non judgmental opinion!

ELECTRICALS

I am so grateful for the many blogs I have come across during this research phase. Lots of tips and tricks to be noted. I have learnt what to look out for and what to avoid. Even though I know nothing about this area, I had an idea of what to expect so I spent a few hours on good old Powerpoint and made a slideshow of where I wanted to place power points, lights and switches etc (as per pic below). I used coloured dots to mark each placement on the house plan. I felt like I was on top of it. And I guess organisation and coming prepared is the trick to having a successful appointment. Not only does it make the appointment quicker, it also makes it easier for both you and the consultant.

The appointment was about 2 hours long, but it felt like it went extremely quick. Our consultant was fantastic in giving advice and she was quite impressed when she saw my slideshow! We didn't include a Provisional Allowance (PA) in our Tender but from online research, i know this figure can easily skyrocket. As the consultant adds items to your Quote, you can see the $$ amount at the bottom of the screen. We were reaching the double figures now!

LANDSCAPING

This was an interesting one. It was probably the only appointment where I was happy for the consultant to take the reins. We took a visit to Flower Power at some stage, took pictures and notes as well as online research on plants – unbelievably so much fun! We knew we wanted a deck, some pebbles and steps for the side of the house and told her down the track we may want to include a pool so she included this in the plan also by indicating the space as a "Service Free Zone" (ie Wisdom Homes can not build near or on this zone due to future pool location). Photo below is what i put together for the Landscaping Designer. I had researched the type of plants we wanted, taking into account the Newpark Estate's Guidelines.

COLOURS

Our colour consultant was fabulous. She was happy for me to take the lead! I walked in there with my samples and “portfolio” so she must have taken one look at me and knew I had it all figured out. She gave good advice and opinions that we took on board. But because I had already chosen most of the colours we wanted, the appointment went fairly fast! I gave her a print out of my Reece upgrades – I think she appreciated this because if I had only given her the item names, she would have had to look up item codes herself! I also brought all our chosen samples so she knew the look we were going for and was happy to run with it.

The Infamous "Portfolio"

DI LORENZO - FLOORING

In total, i would say we probably made about 6 trips to Di Lorenzo prior to our appointment. I agonised over making decisions because it's really tough! Even though you are confident about a choice, i found myself changing my mind multiple times! And even on the day of the appointment, i was still unsure about wet area tiles! We had a monochrome colour palette in mind so that was the easy part. So glad our consultant knew the look we were going for because she was able to make suggestions - i was open at this stage. The Di Lorenzo studio can be extremely overwhelming! 

We included floor to ceiling wall tiles for all the wet areas and opted for white matte walls and charcoal 600x600 tiles which were an upgrade, but totally worth it - i was in love the minute i saw it! The aim is to create a simple, minimal and classic monochrome look and i think we got there!

For carpet in the bedrooms, we opted to upgrade to the Redbook Green Ultra Soft range with 100% Triexta. And ultra soft it is! One of the many benefits of Triexta carpet is that Triexta is inherently stain resistant, as the fiber itself is hydrophobic (meaning it does not absorb easily). Redbook Green also guarantee against pills, which is why they have a lifetime warranty. I found many on the forum rave about this carpet so it was definitely worth looking into.

Below is the inspiration bathroom pic from Pinterest that made me fall in love with monochrome. We based our tile choices and the overall look on this picture:

TIMPELLE KITCHENS - KITCHEN / BATHROOM 

This was the appointment I had been anticipating with excitement – it was where all my ideas and designs I had envisioned could come to life! You can never prepare yourself enough for this appointment. It was also one of the items on the Tender we were fairly certain the budget can easily be blown into massive proportions! Luckily for Greg, our Kitchen Designer, I had already chosen all our cabinetry from Polytec and our benchtop from Ceasarstone. I also gave him my own drawings of the kitchen design I wanted – courtesy of Powerpoint! I was thrilled he was able to interpret my vision. We were on the same page!

Some of my design ideas:

- Powder Room vanity is custom designed as per the inspirational photo from Pinterest (above).

- Kitchen island is somewhat custom designed, one waterfall mitred end with the other end being a overhang. I wanted something different!

- I removed the sink from the kitchen island for a minimalist and seamless look. Thinking ahead about what you will be using the space for is paramount. Once I had the idea in my head, there was no turning back. I wanted my bare kitchen island even if it meant I had to have a smaller sink in the Butler’s Pantry!

- Because we converted the WIP into a Butler’s Pantry, a full fitout design was drawn up. I showed Greg a design I wanted him to follow. I wanted an L shape bench instead of a straight bench top due to the position of the built in pantry. I am so glad the measurements worked out!

I felt really good about the appointment - so curious for the costs involved though, because i knew my changes and designs were going to come at a cost!

This is actually us on the way to Prestons for our kitchen appointment at Timpelle... as you can see, I try to calm my nerves by being a goof ball!