The Clayton's Reveal...

This is what you'd call a Clayton's Reveal...
That is, the Reveal you have when you don't have the full reveal...yet!

Imre still has a few things to do inside on Monday morning, before he starts outside on the front of the house...finally!
He has to put the architraves around the bathroom door, wall niche and new door hole that Zoltan cut in last year sometime, put up 2 shelves for me in the kitchen and then he can start outside. But the insides still has curtain rods, curtains, pictures etc to go up, but that is not a big job and can wait for a rainy day.

Zoltan was over doing the Honeymoon cottage all by himself on Saturday and is nowhere to be seen today.
I think he is a bit upset his helpers did not turn up, as he wanted to get up to the stage where the height was all leveled off to prep for the concrete pour for a "footing" for the mez floor and rafters to sit on, rather than wooden beams.

But, he is getting on with it, not even stopping for lunch yesterday. Not good in the heat outside... probably 30C...but inside, still a nice 26C.

Had some lovely visitors yesterday...the original owners descendants!
They worked out what the hidden documents from 1909 were that we found behind an old mirror as we were repairing it.

It was a military day journal from pre-war days when the guys had to hand write their reports.

They also took me over to the graves of his ancestors in the old cemetery, just a few hundred metres from my place...Great grand father, grandfather and 4 children of the family of 7 kids. Tough times back then, with only 3 of their 7 kids making it to adult hood.

We enjoyed a very nice afternoon and it was great to be able to speak English with people and find out some more local history.

Hello from Bear...

Just picked some more tomatoes. They all self sown from seeds from last year. Amazing!

Between the gophers/moles eating the roots of my plants and Bear digging them up every second day...I'm lucky to have any flowers this year!

Zoltan back on the job on Saturday.

Yeah, well, it looks a bit ugly just now, but wait until it is all baby bottomed by Imre inside and rendered on the outside by Zoltan...You won't recognise it!

A tough job by yourself...

Verandah cleaned down for the first time. It is not a work shop any more! The potty you see is Bear's drinking water. He likes fresh water and it has to be changed every morning and night! But he does drink a lot of water. The pillars have to be taken right back to the raw bricks as whatever is under the top layers, keeps coming through and the top finish keeps gets eaten away and falling off!

Deck tidy and almost set up...8am on Friday breakfast!

Dining room needs a few more dishes and plates on the wall to make it Hungarian, but we are getting there!

The other side of the dining room.

The lounge room cum second bedroom eventually. Have to get a proper lounge, but this will suffice as I experiment with colours now the basics are all in place. Everything will be white to get a clean palate, then I'll add colour as I go. One step at a time.

Am not putting the antique mirror here now we cut the wooden panels out of the front door. The back lighting is too reflective, so will put it in the bathroom when we re-position the shower and loo after Xmas. The glass doors were going to create a cupboard to go underneath the shelf, but it seems to set quite a different atmosphere and I'm not sure that suits here.

You know the bathroom is set up when the light show starts!

Yup, all systems go!

Yup, all good now. Let the final tidy up begin! I just need to get some blue tiles to go around the skirting board area and for the life of me, can't think past that just now!

Hahaha...was having a laugh as I was moving the old vat the other day. I remembered when it was going to become a spa! That was until it fell to bits as the wood worms had eaten it away. So this is all we could salvage as we cut it down to where it was sort of OK for a few more years...a new coffee table for the deck.

Imre hanging the little bathroom cupboard...and little and cute as, it surely is... Just fits a deodorant and toothbrush in it. Hahaha, but it is cute!

Some cane baskets to go on the new shelf Imre just put under the vanity...then some blue skirting tiles around the room, then something for the floor. Tiles, timber, Vinyl, cork??? Then I'll work out what to do with the bench top...Estapol it in clear to let the pine show through, paint it, tile it, laminex it????

Hahaha...there is NOT a straight line in the entire house and poor Imre has to keep running in and out measuring every minute cut! This is the gap between each end of a 2 foot long shelf in the passage cupboard that he's repairing!He pulled out these old shelves on the bottom and is making nice clean ones for me.

All done and another suitcase unpacked. The painter has to come in August and paint the windows, doors, trims and anything else that needs it. Will leave the pine shelves and just apply a clear stain when the painting is done...or maybe if the shelves are painted white it would suit better? Who knows just now, but will wait until everything else is painted first. The green plastic bags contain some of the lovely fragrant candles I bought for Xmas pressies for my family in OZ and forgot to take over last time! When you open the cupboard there is a lovely smell of potpouri smells mixed with fresh pine. Lovely.

Behind the bathroom door...will leave this cupboard open and add more decorative cane baskets for things.

Used the base of an old oil lamp for a vase. Perfect for short stem roses!

Imre adding the curtain tracks in the lounge room...

We called in to collect some things for Imre and guess who was working on repairs at the shop? You'd never run over a Hungarian worker in these bright colours!

Now, THAT'S a screw. Imre uses this size for the curtain tracks!!!

See the lovely brackets Imre made. It seems he loves woodworking and enjoyed very much, making these. He made 6 for the kitchen too and it only took him about an hour all up.

No home is complete without a picture of Phantom...AKA Gerry Butler...sighhhh. Oh, and Emmy Rossum as Christine from the awesome 2004 movie. The best ever Phantom of the Opera version. A visual and musical feast to behold that one never tires of watching...over and over. Have to buy a new POTO DVD as I've worn out the second one now...Watching it on line is not the same as on my little DVD player.

i

OOPs, I forgot my room...I have a second mattress on my bed...nowhere to store it until I set up more beds!

 OK, so after a few 13 hour days and 5 in a row of full 12 hour days, 5 suitcases, 3 wardrobes, 2 sideboard/dressers, the big red box, 3 drawers and a wall unit have all been cleaned out, unpacked, and anything made of material (clothes, drop sheets, dust covers, linen, and all) has all been washed and put away...finally.

It is so peaceful walking through the place, (traipsing the whitewash powder from the floors all through the house with me...)but at least it all sorted, ready for the finishing touches, painting of windows, doors, trims etc, then finally lighting and flooring.
One thing...if I do decide to whitewash the floors, I'll definitely be sealing them with clear Estapol...

The cellar gets done in a few weeks when Imre completes the front of the house. Then when the cellar is done...not much to do there apart from the safety rails around it and a good sweep out, some lights etc, the exterior of the house can be painted.

So today is the first day in years and years that I have planned to do nothing at all. It is my reward for a job well done and tomorrow, a new phase of works begin.

Have a great week and will catch you all next week with more pics of repairs and renos.

Bye for now and lots of love to all,
M
xxxxx

WOW!...The Last Floor Has Just Been Painted...

Wow, I never thought the place would look so nice and airy after first coming here!

Am truly amazed at how much difference the ceilings and walls made to the place after Imre did his  "baby bottom smooth" finish throughout.

Am so pleased I decided to re-do everything in the entire house in the one finish.
It is truly beautiful and retains the look and feel of authenticity that I sought to preserve in this 100 year old property.

Whitewash was a country thing in the wars and this was all of that, so I feel really happy that it is almost, "as was" way back when!

Ahhhh, sighhhh, so happy...and relieved the big stuff is finally done.

Imre starts on the verandah and front of the place next and that will probably take a month.

He started fitting shelves in the bathroom old fireplace area on Friday and will hang a cabinet over the vanity on Monday and then he can start on the great outdoors!

Can hardly wait for that makeover.

Roses back in bloom again after a break!

Imre finishing off the last of the painting in the end room...

Beautiful as a baby's bottom...

Now to finish off this end of the end room...

All done... and the ladder packed up...

Hahaha...one way to test colours! Put a coloured blanket over something and let it reflect!

Washing and mopping the floor after 3 big sweep ups.

Once this dries, I'll paint the floor and take off all the drop sheets...

Gone! OK, still have a spare mattress here, but will find the bed for it somewhere under all the stuff in the front room!

All big cushion covers are in the wash...After Imre does the front of the house and the verandah, , he'll come in and do the stairwell safety wall/railings around the steps down to the cellar. That's the big mess on the floor to the left.

So excited! My first addition to the new walls! An old coat rack! Imre gave it to me...May paint it salmon colour, not sure yet. Will wait until everything is in place for all the finishing colours.

These are new gladdies I planted this year. Very small compared to the previous years ones. Both dogs dug them all up while I was in Belgrade in April/May, so I'm lucky there are any at all. Bear HAS to go this coming 2 weeks as the guy who was taking him has problems with his wife's health. She has to have a lot of surgery, so obviously, they just can't take bear now, which is a pity. I'll have to have him put down, worse case, if I can't find a home for him, as I really do not want a dog. Blessed nuisance in more ways than 6! I'll never take pity on an animal again by bringing it home, unless I have a compound for it and a caretaker to look after it. It will go straight to the pound...or whatever they have over here, otherwise. I've learned my lesson with a dog and a cat. Loved the kitten though...

Hardly any flowers as he digs everything up and I don't like them chained up, so there is an exit strategy for Bear.

The only things he didn't dig up were the self sown tomatoes!

And the roses!

Meanwhile, Imre had an hour to spare before calling it a day on Friday, so he prepared the new kitchen window area for rendering next week.

Oh dear. I'm sure the original house must all be in the bin or bottom paddock by now! Thank goodness the window and door painting man comes in a few weeks.

Some bush flowers to finish off a busy week.

 I haven't seen or heard from Zoltan re the Honeymoon cottage for 2 weeks and have no idea what's going on.
Will have to go visit him to-day, Sunday, to find out if he's going to finish it or not.

Imre will have to do it if Zoltan doesn't want to or can't complete building the shell, as there is only about 10 or so weeks left of drying weather to get it done.

A bit of a blow, but ya gotta roll with the punches...or go nutso if you don't!!!

Just had 4 friends pop in, which was a lovely surprise, so will run and keep on washing all those blessed drop sheets, blankies, cushion covers etc, while the sun is shining.

It's been hot here outside 30-39C for the past week, but nice inside the place, cleaning up, unpacking things, sorting out things and so on.
I haven't suffered at all from the heat either thus far, as inside it has been a lovely 26C.

Love you all,
Cheers
M
See you next week with hopefully, the big reveal!
xxxxxx

The Entry and Bathroom are Completed! Ta--Dummm...

Wow, it is amazing what a coat of paint can do...well, several actually, but you get the idea!
Imre completed painting the walls and ceilings in the entry and bathroom this week and completed the wall in between them both.

There are still nice fancy architraves to be added on the wall niche, bathroom door and the doorway between the end and middle rooms Zoltan cut out last year.
Will do all of that on rainy days, as Imre has a lot of detailed outside work to do right now.

We are ready for the lighting to go in now on another rainy day and then all that remains is to get the the curtains in and floors done at a later date. I still can't figure out which will create the right mood, now that everything is coming together better than expected.

To get everything inside up to the 90% completed stage, all that remains now is a few days or so in the cellar, just sweeping down the rubbish on the steps that has fallen thru the cracks in the cellar door onto the steps and floor below, repairing the cellar door to use as a floor, rather than having a big sheet of timber over it, putting in lighting etc.
All rainy day day work now that the rooms are recognisable as rooms and not storage rooms anymore!

Then on another rainy day Imre will build a safety railing around the stairwell before I have my first medieval party...which I have not yet planned, but hope to once the house interior is finished soon.

Will leave all the lighting to do in one swoop, in a few weeks time so we aren't running back and forth to the shops for bits and pieces every 2nd day! I'll walk around in the entire house for the first time...yes, the first time... and see where switches should go, where the lighting would be best placed and so on.

Should there be dimmers? I like dimmers, they create nice mood lighting, but will it be too modern?
I also like ceiling fans as they create nice feelings, esp at night, whirring around, nice and comforting, plus they also do a greatjob of circulating air!
The Honeymoon Cottage and Big Room both will have ceiling fans, but am not sure about here yet.

I can't believe how good the entry looks now with its little wall niche all cut in for the antique mirror to hang in there, plus a vase of flowers on the sideboard ledge we'll create in coming weeks.
It's more important Imre get outside now and get on with outside work while the summer is here.

Honeymoon Cottage Update...
Ordered more cement, lime and a few more pallets of bricks as the guys can't/won't use the mud bricks on the corners etc as they set up the rebuild bases. They want secure corners, so they used the thermal blocks and have only used a few rows of mud bricks so far.

They said once they get up past the window lintels they will use a lot of mud bricks, so here's hoping.

It rained this weekend then a freezing cold wind blew from the north and it was delicious! 
Obviously the guys did not work in the rain.

A lovely neighbour walked in on Tuesday and offered to show me something for sale in her tool shed...guess what it was?

Yup, 2 massive, full glass "folding type doors", a front door with architrave and fly screen door and 4 big windows...all as heavy as lead as they are all double glazed etc. I hope she is selling them as that's what I thought she said and she doesn't speak one word of English!

We'll see by this time next week, what I thought she was asking...

Now I'll hopefully have all the windows and doors for the big room, except the nice arched west window I want upstairs so I can take sunset pics without trees, chimneys and caravans being in the way!

Imre can easily build this one for me as the arch is not that bad and all the panes are fixed, so it should be a walk in the park for him!

Something like this window I'm thinking for the mez floor in the big room.

Am happy I don't need to try and make either the Honeymoon Cottage or the big room look old or antique.
They will be built to fill the spaces they originally occupied, but this time, planned spaces I create with to-days nice bright interiors and fit outs.

What a relief.

In hindsight I should have done the Honeymoon Cottage first, lived in it, then re-built the big room, sorted it out, rented them both out, then did this one. They will be so much easier as I'm creating spaces for purposes, where here I am trying to suit existing spaces to be as authentic as I'm able, pretty, sunny and light, but still retain an air of authenticity!

No easy task, as I'm finding.

However, it is good and we must be all but sorted out now as I unpacked all my crystal yesterday!

To-day, after I paint the front room floor, I'll unpack the linen and empty the few remaining boxes and last 2 of 6 suitcases I've gathered over time from my trips back and forth to OZ.

Have bought really big, cheap cases in OZ, which have been excellent as storage containers for my velvet curtains I brought from OZ and all my lovely white bedding etc. They have been life savers for things I can't find here yet.

I know I can get beautiful linen that I really want, later on in UK, Zagreb (Croatia) and Prague, so am not that worried for the final fit outs all round, but do want things I love around me now, as I continue the rebuilds.

Unwrapping my crystal yesterday, I noticed the date on the wrapping paper was 2010...dohh.
My life on hold that long???

Yes, I brought some of my crystal over, piece by piece, in my carry on luggage each time I came back from OZ...even the beautiful crystal candlesticks, which, funnily enough were bought at Wallace Bishop Jewelers, Gold Coast, years ago, but I just noticed were made in the Czech Republic! hahaha...

Breakie made with all local ingredients except a shaving of cheese on top of the quiche.

Had a roast turkey leg and veggies for tea yesterday...Sooo good! I did the par boiled french beans in butter and garlic and tossed with toasted, slithered almonds! Yummmmooo...

Then a lovely neighbour came with these freshly picked blackberries and raspberries for dessert.

There are so many yellow wild flowers here. These are just a few from my jog the other day...

They come up nicely in a vase...

Hahaha...well, the tool shed didn't stay tidy for long! Imre will be putting in shelving in the next few weeks, once we see how we also use it for storage in the meantime.

Here goes the bathroom wall again...this time moved back 5 inches and not a temporary wall! Hence the break in the lino join...That will be temporary though until we replace the temporary lino with something else. Tiles, wood, thick vinyl tiles, Parquetry???.

Looking good. the big area will become a wall niche for a mirror etc.

Sort of completed. Architrave goes around it and then maybe I'll paint it a pale colour on the indent? There will be wall bracket lights too on either side. Adding this niche to the wall has changed the entire feel of the house and now I'm really bamboozled regarding the floors. Something better than I had planned will come up later on, I know it, so am not worried at this stage. Still mega work to do all over the place yet!

My plum trees...laden down with fruit.

All over the village, branches are breaking off trees as the fruit harvest this year is amazing and bountiful.

Every 2nd morning I get out here and smash up a few more bricks and level them off... Saves going to the gym!!!

My sister calls these flowers/weeds, "living snow." They cover the paddock and I'm loathe to mow the grass, while they look so lovely.

So pretty...

The end room...filling the cracks in the beams before painting on Monday...The raw bit of wall on the left, is for the door hole into the big room...once it gets built! Will paint all the floors white for this year and work out what flooring will suit best next year. Too much going on now and even though I have found the correct flooring timber, it isn't as wide as I want to give the feeling I want, so will give it a miss this year. Also, we will use all the timber I bought for the  middle room floor, on shelving, trims for the Summer Kitchen/Honeymoon Cottage etc, so nothing goes to waste here.

The other view of the end room. It just needs a fresh coat of paint to the walls and the entire ceiling painted white...beams and all. Was going to have the never painted beams stained, but can't be bothered!

A friend picking some wild little sunflowers from the side of the road...

They came up all right inside too.

A friend took me to Debrecen on Thursday to replace my Visa which was in my purse along with all my other cards etc and was stolen about 6-8 weeks ago.

Luckily I had paid Imre ahead of time, the day before and only had $5 left in my purse, so while that wasn't a concern, replacing my cards has been very costly. My driving licence replacement is $75 and the visa replacement ended up just on $80 with petrol and the visa replacement cost of $50.
Then I have to organise myself to replace my personal Visa card which was stolen too.

Luckily I had 2 Visa cards in separate places, and as soon as I discovered my wallet was missing at 7am, I transferred the last money from the card account to a sub account and then cancelled the card online, so was able to continue in OK, but the robbery knocked me around a bit. You feel violated when that happens, being alone here and so on.

I was out jogging just before 6am and the verandah window was open to dry the paint, as we had just painted it the day before...dohhh. The Police came at 9am and went after an hour or so, then 2 detectives came and were here for over 4 hours.
They locked the place down and sent my neighbours, who were here consoling me, sent us all outside the "CrimeScene!

I felt like I was in a TV show of 91210..or something!

The really strange thing was that the robber knew about my black dilly bag and unchained my purse, (which was on a 15 inch pretty solid chain,) from the little black dilly bag I've used for over 12 years.
The detectives thought the dog might have snuk in and took the purse...dohhh...As if???

The robber left my dilly bag on the end of my bed and unchained the wallet, deliberately!
Amazing...

So, without my visa I've been unable to travel to the places I'd planned in May and June. In the end I got over the incident and a friend offered to take me to Debrecen to replace my staying permit/entry visa/resident permit on Thursday, when I could face going thru' all the hoo-haa again.

It took almost 3 hours in the Immigration office...I had to do the finger printing, photo ID, fill in all the paperwork again and so on. I tell you, if you are a baddie or from a bad country, you'll never get into Hungary with their very EXTREME vetting, Thank the Lord!

Will sort out the 2nd Bank Visa card at Heritage in OZ, next week, now I've taken the first steps to get back on deck again. I can't travel with one card...I would not risk it, so I'm virtually "locally bound" for a while!

Next week, hopefully, we'll be able to see the place in some semblance of order...finally.
The windows and doors will all be painted by a professional guy in August, giving Imre time get on with repairing the front of the house and other necessary jobs, as we are running out of outside working time here.

Plus, he has to take his wife to the hospital, 90 klms away a couple of times a week for special treatment, so his work days are restricted now.

Next month is the last month of Summer...then the colder weather comes and painting and cement work don't dry as well after September ish...
I still have the cement paths all around the house to do, after the house is painted, after the front has been repaired...

Man, these season things are a real hindrance to progress on a building site over here.
It is taking me forever to adapt!
.

The long brown decorative trims have to be fixed, the cement trim around the windows has to be all pulled off and redone as it has all collapsed underneath the shell cover of paint and the brown cement things above the long brown things, have to be fixed as their ends have broken off too! Then the front fence will be replaced to the gate. It's only about 20 metres long, so will be OK and we may even be able to sneak it in this year, as the cement on the bottom 18 inches, can be done with special cement bricks, made for the purpose.

Then Imre has to render the entire house front, plus the red brick base you can barely see through the Iris and weeds, complete the lovely arch with windows on the far left on the end of the verandah, before any painting gets done outside.

Well, that's it for this very busy week.
Hope all are well,
Love to all,
Cheers,
Mary
xxxx