How do I bathroom / kitchen / extension? etc.

The dream.

That looks lovely! Are your walls polished plaster or Bauwerk? Super nice either way.

Thanks! Walls are lime plaster with a slight colour in them

Any recommendations for companies that might do a 2 pane fold outward window? I’m looking for about 1400x1400 and my googling is drawing a blank…

Velux windows. How hard are they to DIY? I'm pretty handy and have built a log cabin, staircase handrail with spindles, under stairs cupboards etc. And can it be done from inside the loft?

I've been quoted £50k for a full loft conversion but I am wondering whether I could just install velux, put up some multifoil insulation blanket, batten and plasterboard, sister up some timbers to reinforce the floor and stick down some flooring for a quick second office.

Seeing them installed on mine I’d say they are relatively easy. The flashing is prob the hardest part plus making the roof good.
50k for just a dormer or L shaped (two rooms)?

Flying mullion?

Sorry, was referring to bifold.

Erm not specifically - plenty of fabricators/fitters will be able to do that. But I guess it’s down to finding one with a window system that can do bifold operation. It’s quite an unusual size I guess - in between door and window.

The roof of the ground floor extension will soon need re-doing as it was done in felt in the late 90s. From what our structural engineer told me we can't have tiles to match the house's roof as the fall isn't steep enough. He suggested raised seam roofing panels but I've read it quickly gets quite costly and found you can also do fiberglass for pitched roofs.

Has anyone had either installed or considered them and would care to share their thoughts? It's for a 5m by 3m roof.

I’d say I was average level handy, a friend and I put in two Keylite roof windows a few weeks ago, 1st one took a day, second took half a day. He had done it a few times before and I wouldn’t have been happy trying to do it alone even if I knew how, but given I was quoted £3.5k per window for materials and labour then I was happy to give it a bash with some (experienced) help.

Summary = pretty easy.

TBF everything is pretty easy when you have a mate who has actual experience of completing the job successfully before and has already learned the lessons that the job teaches you before he works on your gaff with you!

I mean, when you put it like that…

3.5k per window!!! How big were these things? Two years ago I paid £800 for two Velux windows to be installed by a roofer. Did them both in a day with an Ed Sheeran look-a-like helper.

Didn’t include the windows but they were about £400 on top and no scaffolding needed.

Not big, it felt like a ‘can’t be arsed’ quote, and I was sufficiently motivated to do it myself after that. I was also dissuaded from insulating properly as I’ll use it infrequently in winter and when I do I can bang a little heater in there as needed.

Fwiw the most expensive largest velux possible are sub 1500, so that’s 2k of labour per window. I’m sure you could have done those maths Tbf.

Yes, I did the maths and decided to do it myself? I knew the precise cost for the window and flashing already, I didn’t fancy going through the palavar of trying to find someone else, and a friend had, in the mean time, offered to help.

Yeah wasn’t sure if you knew window and flashing cost.

Few photos of the place now it’s done - think we’ll have pro shots done at some point but 🤷‍♂️

• I love the aesthetic of the Douglas fir floor but it is soft.
  
• Really pleased with the lime plaster even if maybe it’s a little anachronistic
  
• The house is so much lighter and brighter - and the space feels just tons better to live in
  
• Speccing built in furniture has meant we have so much storage that we don’t have things out but storing them is easy - the house looks like this most of the time.
  
• lighting makes a huge difference to the rooms, not something I’d considered before really but fewer spots, more dimmers and different types of light really make a difference.
  
• Everything costs 30% more and takes time
  

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think we’ll have pro shots done at some point

Your architect/ builder may well want to do this at some point, I'd suggest it to them after a while if they haven't asked and they may well pay, or split the cost.

Maybe call a lifestyle magazine and get them to do it. Get copies of anything unpublished as part of the contract?

Sorry yeah they’re organising/paying (I think it’s part of the contract.)

So many beautiful details here, you must be over the moon. The interface of stairs/balustrade/ceiling being so neat and tidy is particularly satisfying.

Love the cupboard under the stairs into corridor into living area. Very fun to find room for playful features like little corridors in a design not overtly 'fun' btw

Also - wasn't there a question of a curved wall and some original paneling at one point? What was the final answer if you don't mind sharing?

think we’ll have pro shots done at some point but 🤷♂️

I do special rates for forum builds!

Thanks very much, very kind! But yep really pleased with it and it's genuinely made a huge difference to how we live. So great. I do look back and laugh at the original budget and what EC said we might be able to get for this but we did more than originally planned and at some point I will forget about it...

I don't have a good pic of that part but this one kind of shows it - we had a curved wall which then leads into a panelled section where our office space is. Currently this is an Ikea desk (behind the Artek wooden screen) the plan is to get a built in desk which will have built in storage and cable routing! right now it's a little messy. We're debating whether to keep the shelves which ( @dbr ) built or go for something built in.

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