Renovation Update 8

Rabacon is back at the house! They are picking up where they left off - installing the rest of the baseboards and cornices, constructing a half-wall in the green room where the TV will go, etc.

In the meantime, we're waiting for Alecto to return as the ones who were assigned to the house are currently busy with other projects. But we don't mind too much since they had been waiting since October last year to come back - what's a few weeks compared to five months?

Cusm Furniture, on the other hand, is now on hold until the electrical guys from Alecto relocate an electrical outlet that's in the way of the laundry cabinets.

As to my last post, we've decided that paying Php 30,000 for a space planner (no decorating included just the lay-out of the furniture) is not in our budget at this time.

Window Shopping: Space Planner

The section of the house causing the most anxiety is the living and dining area as they share the same tiny space. So I was thinking that we might be able to save a little money and lower my stress level by consulting an interior designer for space planning.

The goal was to prevent costly mistakes such as buying the wrong type and size of sofa because once purchased, it cannot be returned especially if it's custom-made. We also wanted to know how to best maximize the space considering the activities we wish to do there - eat, entertain and seat as many guests as possible and still be able to lie down on the couch and watch TV.

Now I've emailed a number of interior designers, most of whom were featured in Real Living, but one was "friendlier" (so to speak) than the others: Kristine Anne Neri.

A. SCOPE OF WORK / DESIGN AREA
• Interior Design, Development and Furniture Specification – Living / Dining Areas

B. WORK PROCEDURE

CONSULTATION PHASE
• Initial meeting with the client
• Site Analysis; To conduct ocular inspection of the site and the vicinity
* All noted above where substituted with Email Correspondences instead

AFFIRMATION PHASE
• Signing of contract / proposal

INITIAL DESIGN SCHEMATIC PHASE
• Rendered perspective / images reflecting over-all
• Approval of Schematics for finalization

CONTRACT DOCUMENT PHASE
• Preparation of drawings based on approved Design Documents consisting of drawings and specifications setting forth in detail the work required for the completion of the project

- AR (Architectural Plans) ; FF (Furniture & Fixtures)
a. Floor Plan / Furniture Layout
b. Rendered Interior Perspective
c. Color Schedules (Color Schemes; Stain finishes etc.)
d. Material Boards
e. Fabric swatches for Curtains
f. Fabric swatches for furniture
g. Furniture Schedule
h. Details and Millwork; Cabinetry Details and elevations with finish tags
i. Other details and plans needed for the completion of the project

This contract is not inclusive of signed and sealed Engineering Plans (Electrical, Plumbing and Mechanical Plans)

C. DELIVERABLES
• Visual Presentation (E-file)
• Contract Documents / Construction Drawings

D. WORK DURATION
The Design Service to be rendered for this project is set at 1 month including the design phase. It will commence a day after signing the contract. The Design Phase of the service will be set for 2 weeks.

E. PROFESSIONAL FEES
Given the above scope of work, work procedure, deliverables and work duration, the Professional Interior Design Consultation fee is as follows:

Total Contract Price : Php 30,000.00

F. SCHEDULE OF PAYMENT
50% Down payment - Upon Signing of Contract and Issuance of Notice to Proceed
50% of Total Fee - Upon Submission of all Contract Documents

G. OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS

A. Purchase of Goods
1. All purchases made through the Interior Designer shall be billed to the client.
2. All purchases shall be subject to the client’s approval in the form of confirmations which will require a 50% down payment of the full amount as so the case may be, to authorize such orders. The date of payments of such purchases will be set forth upon each confirmation. Should the items to be purchased are off the rack pieces, full amount shall be required from the client.
3. Interior Designer shall not be responsible or liable for the quality, workmanship, appearance or warranty of all purchased goods.

B. Project Termination, Suspension or Abandonment
1. In the event of the termination of the project by the client, Interior Designer shall be compensated for services rendered. All funds paid shall be retained.
2. In the event of termination not the fault of the Interior Designer, the Interior Designer shall be compensated for services performed prior to termination. A written notice of termination shall be issued.

C. Contract Documents
1. All original drawings, designs, renderings, materials, models, photographs, samples supplied by the Interior Designer and shall remain her property and be retained by her after completion of the project. The clients may receive photocopies of the drawings.
2. The client has the assurance of the Interior Designer that all services shall be done in good faith.

The question now is, should we go through with this? Or will this be completely unnecessary?

Kitchen Journal 5

State of the Kitchen

Fences

One of our goals for this year is to put the fence up, but based on the quotation given it will cost us a total of Php 292,999! Note that this does not include the cost of the carport roof or the electrician...

Maricel told me that we can do it in stages so it will not be too much of a financial burden. If that's the case, then we should start with the three-sided perimeter fence. But at Php 182,164, the odds are still dicey unless our neighbors chip in with the expenses (i.e. share the cost of the wall) as that would take off Php 30,000 from each side.

We already have a neighbor on the right (if you're looking at the front of the house) but I haven't seen them since we first met a few months ago. The house at the back has yet to be turned over to the owner so we haven't seen them at all. The one to the left is non-existent at the moment.

Thinking that we might save money if we bought the materials ourselves, I asked Maricel for the "labor only" quotation. But she explained that everything is discounted as they will be getting the materials from her cousin who has a quarry. They also won't be charging for the delivery fee since they'll just use their own truck.

This will require a lot of careful consideration especially since I will be quitting my job soon. But here are our options:

1. Push through with the fence without waiting for the neighbors, but there will be no funds left over for savings, furniture, etc. Gate and garage floor not yet included.
2. Wait for the neighbors and hope that the rates will not increase too much by 2012. In the meantime, just buy a bed and save the rest for next year.
3. Skip the fence and use the money to add to the retirement fund, baby fund, a few pieces of furniture and a trip to Hong Kong.

Hmmm... I think it's time to buy another lottery ticket.

Renovation Update 7

Here's the progress report in pictures:

Kitchen Journal 4

The second part of the kitchen, which is located opposite of the main kitchen, is now underway. Technically though this is the laundry area, but the cabinets will have the same design and finish so that the entire thing will look like one unit. Here's what we plan to do with the storage space:

Laundry Cabinets - will house the ironing board and iron, detergent, hangers, dryer, and a cabinet for two hampers (where clean clothes will be stored prior to ironing).

Circuit Breaker Cabinets - this will function as the pantry so it will mostly be for food (e.g. canned goods, chips, cereal boxes, etc).

Broom Closet - the bottom half has two sections, one for the broom and dustpan and the other for the vacuum cleaner. The upper cabinets will be for the cleaning supplies, tools, and other miscellaneous utility items. We'll also have it changed to four rows of shelves instead of just three.