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yuene

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Everything posted by yuene

  1. Welcome to RT, woody! Wishing you a smooth reno! And wow! The MBR is really huge. =)
  2. yuene

    Fx-ea

    Nice la. Looks so neat and tidy! Glad to see your reno proceeding so smoothly! More pics!!!
  3. Ne0: I hope so... I had to redo some stuff because I realised I made a mistake, so things will be delayed by a few days, I think... Nice to see your reno moving forward at such a fast clip! Day 5-14: Things start shaping up... AND a very expensive mistake (on my part) Sorry for the lack of updates, people; it has been a very busy two weeks, trying to settle the 3 fur-kids in my mum's place, living out of a couple of suitcases and trying to adjust to the new timing for work. I have to say this: I really hate living at my mum's place, because it takes me 1+ hours to get to my workplace as compared to my old timing of 15 minutes! Gone are the days when I could sleep until 8 and still reach my workplace on time (well, more or less). And it's so far away from anything, the moment I step home, I feel too tired to go right back out! Very uncomfortable for a night owl who likes to go out dancing late. URGH. Anyway, I popped by last Saturday to check out the progress, and also to discuss the cabinets with my contractor. While I was there, I realised that they were doing up the dividing wall in my MBR. Even then, something about it bugged me--it made the other bedroom look very small. But I shrugged it off and let the work carry on... While I was there, the workers came to change the piping in both bathrooms: Looks pretty good, I must say. No more rusty pipes! It was kind of weird seeing the brown stains on the pipes in the past; it made me wonder if that was from...eeeee okay never mind. A few days later, I dropped by in the evening to check out the progress. The wall was up... but now the other room was FAR too small! It wouldn't be able to serve as both the study room and the future children's room; there simply wouldn't be enough space. On the flip side, the area designated as my walk-in wardrobe was now huge, and I mean HUGE: the thing was almost 4m deep! Immediately I knew I wouldn't be able to live with something like that. At the same time, I knew knocking it down and shifting it would cost money, and my poor hb would probably flip on hearing that I'd allocated the room space wrongly. So I tried to imagine ways to live with it--putting the baby crib in the walk-in wardrobe, putting the bed there instead and the wardrobe outside, putting the study inside there with the clothes... It all didn't work, largely because the space is long AND narrow. So...I picked up the phone and dialled. Contractor ©: Hallo? Me (Y): Eh... Sorry ah... if I said I wanted to change something now, would you kill me? C: ?? Change what? Y: Errr.... could I shift the bedroom dividing wall...back .... C: HAAAAAAH?! To cut the long story short, he said it was doable, but he'd have to get a quote. He called me back shortly and it was $800 (OUCH) to shift the wall back; plus, it would hold up the reno a couple of days while they moved it back. After a short discussion with my poor dear hb, I finally called back and told him to shift the wall back. In order to ensure that the same thing wouldn't happen again, my contractor made me go down on Hari Raya to my house to confirm the new position of the wall. In the end, we agreed to shift the wall back in by 3ft, so that the space can be used either for the writing desk, or for putting the baby's cot. All throughout the site visit, I was apologising profusely to the subcon, but he was really nice about it. While I was there, I looked around and a couple of things had been done in the meantime: My kitchen wall's been screeded! Well, at the time, only the left wall had been screeded, but they'd commenced the process on the right wall as well. Very smooth! I told my hb that I was tempted to just leave the whole kitchen like that, and screw the cabinets! My hb was pretty much -___-||| Also... My MBR bathroom wall tiles are coming up! I knocked on each tile, and they are all solid. The tile lines are also very straight, with very small gaps between the tiles, unlike the ones done previously, where the alignment was totally off on quite a few of them. But then again, the entire bathroom has yet to be done, so I shall wait and see. But still! I'm pleased with the tiling so far. Plus, you can also see that the pipes have been changed (no more super messy pipes!), and I'm quite pleased that my tile selection turned out nice so far. Hopefully we will see more progress by the middle of the week, when I next do my visit.
  4. Hahahahahaha! But it's quite true, too. It's usually those who have a bit of wealth though. Yup, my flat is rising from the ashes! Rather slowly though, I might add. I popped by today and the toilet's been screed... the pipes have been changed and I think waterproofing has been done (there were these strange bright blue patches on my floor near my drain traps), but not much otherwise... Yeah! Though I might add, just barely--plus moving three cats was no fun; we didn't have enough space in the carrier, so we had to put poor Elaine in the cat harness and carry her the whole way! Poor thing was traumatised and refused to budge from the designated cat room in my mum's place until the last two days, when I carried her upstairs to sleep in my room. Cece was raring to get out by the second day, and figured out how to open the lourved windows by the fourth day....
  5. *gasp* CONCRETE SCREED FLOORING!!!!!!!!!! I WANT!!!!! So pretty... I see you all went for the industrial look?
  6. Day 3/4: the sands encroach Progress seems to be moving fast. Last night on the way home after work, I asked my parents if I could pop by my place to check on the progress. I'd received an mms earlier from my contractor showing me the debris clearing. So while my parents picked up the bicycle from the repair shop, I walked over to my house. I wasn't expecting to see his workers still at work, especially since It was past 7.30pm, but there they were, shovelling wall bits and what have you into wheelbarrows and carting them out one load at a time. The first thing that came to mind, I have to admit, was "ummm, shouldn't they be stopping the loud works already? What if the neighbours complain?" Then, I felt really guilty for making them have to stay so late just to clear the stuff. I felt a bit like an intruder in my own home, but when the worker shot me a quizzical look, I replied "I'm the owner" and he left me alone to look around. The wall with my hammer and tu long dao and yi tian jian were gone *boohoo*, and the toilet and kitchen tiles had been hacked. I couldn't get a nice picture, but the house was filled with piles of sand. I suppose this means my place will start on wetworks soon. No updates for today.
  7. When I do that, I'll invite you and samgalz over for a drink! Wooo~
  8. Or like when you have a walk-in Heineken beer fridge lor! Then you can also go AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH hahahahhaha Come to think of it, maybe I should change my walk-in wardrobe to that...idea...
  9. Ooof! That's a long way to the start of your reno! By that time, I think if you hang around RT until then, you'll have so much knowledge on renovations, you'll be the RT expert! But anyway, don't worry too much ya? I'm sure there will be good IDs and contractors who will be available to do your reno! Try to choose an ID that is proven to know his/her limits on the number of projects s/he can handle; I think that would be a good sign that your ID is pretty responsible. And yes, I designed my own house layout, and I'm getting my contractor to do it as to my specifications, partially because we're on a rather tight budget--we're not doing a lot of things that I would really love to do (like hiding wire casings in carpentry). I'm sure it won't look as fabulous as the ID planned and designed homes, but as long as it looks decent and I'm comfortable with it, I think that will be fine. Haha, his company is in Bedok... found him from reading RT threads... I think it's pretty obvious who he is (just follow where I've been posting!), but I shan't say much until the whole thing is over. reizzz: Me too! Hopefully will be able to get a good painter...
  10. Wahaha! Cannot leh, his daily mms is turning into the highlight of the day... Later he hear already then thake the tu long dao and whack us....
  11. Haha! When that happens you must chia reizzz to lim kopi, since he gave you the idea!
  12. Haha, how did you manage to get a promise like that out of your hb? Poor titanax, I can already see him cleaning the crystals one by one... you bribed him with good food is it?
  13. Wah raus! $10 per photo... if he liddat we all will pok-kai also lor! Bad Edmund!
  14. Hahaha reizzz and samgalz, I also say lor! Good la, help to make me more relax also... my husband saw the thread, and was like 'diaoz....' Thanks
  15. Hahahahaha! Ya I just realised lor. Because... Update on Day Two: I received a message at 4.30pm that said: Hacking finish liao, only left the great wall of china My toilet's been hacked out! Felt kind of bad doing that loo, because I'd only had it overlaid 3.5 years ago, but the job was very poorly done at that time, plus there were strange smells (!!!!!) from time to time, so I decided to get that done too. Hacking of the kitchen has been completed too. And then things start getting weird... So after I received that message, I sent back: "My that wall huh? Haha I was telling the rest online that I wanted to draw some cartoon under the hammer..." The reply: Oh wat u wan draw come I draw I laughed, and then replied jokingly: "Haha!!! Draw smiley face lor wahahaha Next thing I know: His caption: Sledge hammer met the sabra sword Then: Now we got the yi tian Jian n tu long tao vs sledge hammer AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! I think he's enjoying it more than me lor -____-|||
  16. Hmmm, I didn't know can do that... are the aircon guys your own contact, or Edmund's aircon guy?
  17. Samgalz: okok, better not make him faint, later cannot complete reno on time then I know. Then everyone will come and hantam me. And ya, I was looking at reizzz's t-blog and thinking, "my god, run here run there, from Hafary to reizzz's then to mine, not 'chuan' meh this fella." Maybe he went mylica's this morning? And yes, I'm **** glad I booked him early! Otherwise really sian 1/2, wait another 3-4 months. Dunno which part of my house would have fallen off by then liao. Bleah!
  18. AHAHAHAHAHAHA! I will just disavow all knowledge of the pigface. But I must say that the pigs in the Angry Bird app is super funny!
  19. I think so too! Then when he comes down to inspect, they will be like, "Boss, just now got one siao char bor come here and leave this *points to pigface*"
  20. Hihi Carisella! Yeah, my contractor (he's not an ID, actually) seems to have a strange habit of sending mmses (just like he has a funny habit of putting in SMEG fridges in 3Ds), but not a bad thing, really; especially when I'm now a bit too busy to pop by my place to check on progress. I haven't been up there since hacking started, despite my workplace being 10mins away. And don't worry! I was also very kiasu (okay la, maybe not until choose carpentry etc)... I started planning my reno in early 2008! 2.5 years in the making. Looking back, I have no idea how I managed to have so much patience. Where's your BTO, and when is the date that you're expected to receive your keys? Day Two: A phone call... My contractor called at noon; he informed me that he was about to place the order for my tiles, but needed to clarify something. The first choice tile for my kitchen was far more expensive, being $4psf, whereas my second-choice tiles were about $2.60psf. If I went with the first choice, I'd have to top-up, whereas for the second, there would be no need to. So, being the cheapskate that I am, I said sure, go ahead with the second-choice tiles. He also informed me that he would be ordering the tiles in 60 x 60, rather than the 30 x60 that I originally chose them in. We'd gone through this before, when he told me that a 30 x 60 would have more grout lines and he promised to check for 60 x 60. He'll be dropping by the house later to take a look at the progress, so maybe there'll be more MMSes later today. reizzz, looks like lao niang here no chance to graffiti my own wall liao...
  21. Haha! I think they are taking that wall down today liao! Can you imagine... Worker about to raise hammer to smash on wall, then I run in, scream "NOOOOOOO WAIIIIIIIIIT" then when everyone freeze in place, I quickly go there, draw a pigface, take photo and then say "okay, carry on" I think the workers will all think I'm MAD.
  22. reizzz: Ya lor, the whole house everything else is drawn-on hammer with a marker, only that one is by masking tape--then again, only for that wall the whole thing is coming down. It look super cute la! I feel like drawing something underneath it samgalz: Thanks! Starting to feel quite excited about the whole thing. ^^ Wondering what the progress will be like later...
  23. Nice! I like your pebblewash! Looks like things are progressing fast on your end!
  24. Day One: The Hacking Begins So, after a VERY exhausting weekend (where my poor dad had to ferry me between Extra Space, my house and his house, and I had to run for training), the hacking begins! My contractor called me today to ask if I'd found someone to take down the aircon units from my house; I replied that I hadn't, and asked him to get his aircon person to do it--I know it's probably cheaper somewhere else, but at this point in time, I'm feeling so harried I'd rather pay the extra amount to get it done fuss-free! He also informed me that he would be going down in the afternoon to take a look. Halfway through my meeting minutes, I receive an mms: They've begun to chip away at the 70s-era tiles in my kitchen! The old cupboards are also going... (FINALLY) And... Apparently I've become a member of the Workers' Party in the meantime...
  25. Hi guys, Would really appreciate some help here. I need to get the aircons in my two rooms taken down, but I won't be installing my new aircons anytime soon (at least, not during this renovation--money is tight). My contractor informed me that they cannot hack down the units as the aircons have a gas inside them; therefore I will need to find someone who can dismantle aircons. Does anyone have a good contact? Please PM me! Thanks in advance...
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