hallway – Rõika 15

Liquor cabinet and hanging art

It seems this is the year of work in the odd months, as again in June not much worth mentioning was done. We just enjoyed the nice weather, ate a lot in the garden and where happy in our great home.

In July we went on vacation, during which we collected all kinds of alcoholic beverages from the different countries we have visited and on the way back we also got a bunch of drinks from the Super Alco on the Latvian border. The price differences where impressive. But back at home there was the question where to store all these bottle.

We found the chimney wall next to the heater would be a good place. I showed Mo the shelving system I know from every time we moved home back in the Netherlands and combined with some nice oak shelves, we soon had a very nice liquor cabinet.

I also brought the art piece by Ed from the Netherlands and we thought it would look nice against the dark blue wall in the stairway. So months after I had bought the art rail I finally put it up. Another nice finishing touch.

Vacation and finishing things

The biggest part of July we were in Sweden for vacation. There we saw a lot of wooden houses and of course the majority of those houses are painted in Swedish red. But a handful are painted in a soft yellow. Combined with the white details as also seen with the Swedish red, it was a very nice combination. We made several pictures of houses painted that way and were starting to get convinced this would be the colour combination for our house.

Back in Tallinn the issues with the electrical system were fixed and I also cleaned up the last few wires in a cable duct after which the system was approved.

Next was finishing the construction for the roof over the back porch.

Electrical audit and start of porch

In the beginning of June we visited Ikea, I wanted to check out some curtains and especially the electric ones, as they could be added to the home automation. We found the price of the electric curtains was not worth it, but we did find the very nice Hoppvall cellular pocket curtains that would fit exactly between the windows in the studio. Because of the air pockets, it has an insulating effect, both against heat and against cold. We also found a nice rainbow coloured mat to replace a pretty worn mat at the backdoor.

Then finally the electrical system and solar panels were tested, so we can finally get some money back for the solar energy produced. It seemed they did not like it that an amateur had done the system, so they were really looking for issues. They only thing they could find was:

the switch cabinet was not grounded
the main switch and main fuse (which are in the same spot in every house) were not marked as such (I checked several houses afterwards but I have not found any markings).
I had made a 5 wire system (3 x phase, Neutral and (own) Earth) while in Estonia they use the 4 wire system, where there is a combined Neutral and Earth. Just a bridge between the two solved that issue.
The main switch for the solar system had to be next to the inverter, not in the meter closet, so now I can disconnect the system in two spots.

All in all, if those were the things they could find, I am pretty proud of myself

To be able to finish the roof over the lower part of the house and the covered veranda/shed, I had to build the veranda outside of the backdoor and replace the window from the covered veranda and put a wall there.

A very nice improvement of the covered veranda, as now finally the ugly stones got covered as well.

Start on the stairs

I finally made a start with sanding the stairs, which was much more work then anticipated. Mostly because the lacker that had been used had been waxed, so the sanding paper clogged up very quickly, so I had to clean it, then scrape and and then sand it. I am pretty sure that once it is done, it will be very beautiful, but for now there is still little progress.

Floor in the hallway and roof ahead

Now that all the dust in the studio is settles it is more then time to put the linoleum in the hallway. When the floor was in, it was time to build the cabinet we got at Ikea and once that was in we toasted with a glass of chartreuse to the good use of our chartreuse coloured floor.

One of the last upcoming projects will be to finish the utility room. There I have to replace part of a beam. After some measuring I looked through the old wood and found some pieces that could be glued together to create the required beam.

Meanwhile exciting times ahead. The new roof and solar panels have been ordered. It is always good to check prices. The wood Roofit had put on their estimate was much more expensive then i could get it ar Puu Market.
When they asked where I would order the rest of the roof and my reply was at the place that offers the best price, that part was also taken of their estimate.
So I ordered the wood at puu market and the roof at Ruukki. I picked up the wood with the help of Martijn en Ruukki came to deliver the roof.
Exciting times!

Finishing the hallway

Finally we start on the wall papering of the hallway. It is always a very rewarding job and this time it is no difference. And with the wall paper in, painting the walls is a logical next step. We start again with the boldest colour. The dark blue completely changes the appearance of the hall way and the light green on the rest of the walls really is a finishing touch.
The cherry on the cake is hanging my grandfathers garderobe. I found a very nice plug for the LED lights my dad added to it.
The final result is catalog worthy.

We decide not to put in the floor yet as we still have some breaking to do in the studio. For this we have the help of Glenn and Anton. Especially Anton seems to enjoy breaking the ceiling out. All breaking is done in one day. So time to create a new ceiling and put in the walls.

Painting the small hallway

To stimulate getting back to work, we decide to paint the small hallway, in the bright green colour we picked. It turns out amazing. Already after the first layer it looks great, and after the second layer it is clear.

We made a very right decision picking this bold colour.

Change of plan

The hallway is about ready for wall paper and paint. Mo asks if there is a way to get a closet in the hallway. The only wall that would fit a closet was reserved for the garderobe my grandfather had made, but after some brainstorming and trying around, we find the garderobe actually fits very nice above the radiator.

This means, I have to make a last minute change in the electrical system for the lights. The fact I have laid all electricity in pipes pays of now and the change is easily done.

Plaster the ceiling and a spotlight

The new year starts with plastering the ceiling. With all the practice I have been getting, I’d say I am getting pretty good at it.

We pick the final colours and decide on a bold accent colour in the form of dark navy blue.

Meanwhile we find a nice spot light for the couch area of the room. Amazing how the right light can improve the atmosphere in the room so much.

Walls in the hallway and colours

With the ceiling in the hallway in, the last walls can be placed. And the the time comes again to find colours. As we have picked a very bright green linoleum floor the hallway should also be bright. Possibly light green. We check some colours at ABC to let it sink in.

Later in the month I spend some time filling the connections between the plaster plates. And I build a rig to sharpen the circular saw blades.

Tag: hallway