Before, during and after
Upstairs, our Istrian house was in much better condition than downstairs but there was still an awful lot of work as the roof had to come off – and go on again. There was no inside plumbing, so two new shower-rooms needed creating and everywhere needed rewiring.
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- … an ensuite shower-room.
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- In the attic, there is an enormous master bedroom … with…
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- … the shared shower-room with a huge shower.
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- … cosy bunkbed room… Next door is …
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- … a sunny twin bedroom… and
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- At last it’s finished. On the first floor there’s a bright, airy landing…
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- For additional safety we’re told to add railings, a rope and foldable top step to the attic – now no-one should fall down those stairs!
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- The beds arrive (just a pity they’re dark wood, when I ordered light!)
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- … downstairs, Toni varnishes the floors.
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- In the ensuite Miro installs the sink into its wood surround … and…
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- … the air conditioning is installed. This one’s in the attic, the other is downstairs on the landing.
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- Time for the finishing touches. The shower-room’s tiled and the door has arrived…
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- New bars and windows arrive in the attic. (It was meant to be a single bar, this grill’s a mistake, but it’s too late to change. GRRR!)
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- …downstairs. It all gets two coats.
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- As is the shower-room below.
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- It’s time for a coat of paint. First in the attic… then…
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- Everywhere needs rewiring. It’s channelled into the exisitng walls… and …
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- … it’s built into the new ones. With the pipes and wiring installed, the attic shower-room’s almost ready for plastering and tiling.
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- Miro finalises the altered staircase, adding an extra step to replace the one he removed above.
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- Below, on the landing, all the old paint and dirt is cleaned off the beams and they’re ready for painting.
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- An insulated roof is installed with strong new tiles and the ceiling is boarded with the beams left showing.
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- The same happens in the attic for the master bedroom ensuite shower-room.
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- Then the walls go up.
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- … then concreted in.
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- Work starts on the shower-rooms. The pipes and shower pans are fitted on the first floor… and…
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- … in a big pile of rubble outside.
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- … we need a new roof. The old one is stripped back to the beams with the tiles ending up ….
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- … the attic stairs will need moving slightly to make enough space for an ensuite shower-room … But first…
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- We need a shower-room on each floor. (This large gash, made in the thick walls, will hold the downpipe running between them)… and…
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- … four small windows: two on each side.
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- … a large attic with good head room, lit by …
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- Up remarkably sturdy stairs there was …
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- … swallows nested on the beams.
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- … there wasn’t an unbroken window pane in the place. Ivy grew into the small bedroom… and …
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- The bedrooms had solid wood ceilings and their walls just needed a good clean … but …
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- It was all in remarkably good shape with solid floors and walls. There were even doors.
Also see:
The restoration tale continues with the house Downstairs, Outside and The barn
Compare the difference with some before & after shots.
For more ‘before’ photos see Outside and the house Downstairs and Upstairs
Or follow our restoration tale.
