Share
We’ve embarked on our very first reno project, along our 3 lovely kids who are under 5 so basically I m on my own, while my wife is looking after the devils 
We are doing the following:
patching
painting
Carpet removal and hybrid flooring
build in wardrobes - I m thinking using Lugna as my space is only 900mm wide, is there any cheaper alternatives?
As per the images below I removed the timber board under the window as it sticks out and no furniture can fit, can you advise how to fill this hole now and make it flush with the wall… thoughts are to cut the board flash and refit but what else ?
do you have any advices on blinds or curtains?
How about light fixtures?
The rooms are quite dark and want to get lighter with the colour, art we bought brilliant white, is there any better colour options that will make the room brighter?
sorry for the mix bag of questions but we are so so busy.. any advice will be highly appreciated.
Thank you,
Marin
Hi Marin (@m-ivanov),
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is wonderful to have you with us.
It's brilliant to see you're getting stuck into some renos, I am excited to help out wherever I can.
As an alternative to Lugna, you might like to check out the range of wardrobe products from Flexi Storage. You can have a play around with their Flexi Home Solutions Planner to see what suits.
Is this part of the aluminium frame, or is there a gap here?
Cutting the sill back so that it sits flush with the front of the lip is likely the simplest option, as it will conceal everything it did before; you would just have to touch up the corners with a suitable filler and seal around it. The alternative, based on the fact that your walls appear to be rendered, is to install a render bead on the front lip and then render and fill everything to match the walls. This is why I ask if there is a gap, because this would need to be concealed if you were to do this.
For dark rooms, light-filtering roller blinds or sheer curtains work well. They let in softer light during the day while still giving privacy. If you'd like to do it yourself, you can check out How To Hang Curtains and How To Install Roller Blinds, or you could use our Curtain, Blind & Shutter Installation Service.
Swapping the existing fixture for a brighter LED oyster light could be an option, as they tend to spread light more evenly in darker rooms. If you want something decorative, a pendant light can work too, as long as the ceiling height allows. Keep in mind that any electrical work will need to be done by a licensed electrician.
Allow me to tag our helpful members @AlanM52, @Dave-1 and @Noyade to see if they have any advice or ideas they can offer.
Let me know what you think and if you had further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Jacob
Good Evening @m-ivanov
I remember my first room reno It had shocking wallpaper that was a paint to remove but we jest kept working away.
Your window sill, @JacobZ 's answer is where i would be going as well.
The built in cupboards, I always hesitate when I see "go cheaper" as I usually run into problems from then on Short story, I wanted a privacy screen to look a certain way, drew it up even and then changed my mind mostly due to cost. The new design will work yes but not look a snice Sooooo I kicked my own butt and have gone back to teh original design which is dearer and more work but I think it will look great. Same as the built in, Its worth spending a little extra as you want it to stand the test of time.
One thing I have notciced with built ins, is they tend to take up all the space inside the area. Id keep in mind growth of little ones, change of what they wear (as in sizing) and also what they would be keeping in the cupboard and make it flexible and changable as possible.
I like the idea of switch out a light, yes a sparky will be needed but really if I had to spend money, this is where I would spend it. The cheapest option is different lamp shades with different hue light bulbs, but a stylish (not outlandish) light can really push a room from being "ok" to being a wooooo
Dave
Thank you for the above.
Window Frame:
I’ve got a gap of about 30mm under the window lip. To address this, I cut the timber back flush with the wall and reinstalled it. I was advised that I could apply Bondcrete to the timber surface and then render over it, as Bondcrete would help the plaster bond to the timber.
Can you please confirm if this approach will work? If not, what alternatives would you recommend? It’s a fairly large gap to fill, and I’d like to bring it back.
Build in wardrobe installation(Lugna) : - Flex Storage does not have a 900mm options at all.
The shell does not fit for about 2-3mm so I m thinkg to grind back the bricks, couple of questions:
- After removing the render from the wall (it’s an external wall rendered on the outside), do I need to seal the exposed surface where the render was removed? Could leaving it unsealed cause any issues in the future, considering the wardrobe side will sit flush against the wall?
- How can I repair the broken corner I had to cut to fit the shell? I want the wardrobe to sit flush with the wall, and there will be two doors opening at the bottom.
Colours:
My question about brightening the room was more about which paint colour you’d recommend from the Taubmans range. We initially chose Brilliant White, but I later found out this is just a standard white, so the walls and ceiling will look almost identical apart from the sheen.
Are there any better colour tones you’d suggest to combine for the walls to create more depth and brightness?
Regards,
M
Good Morning @m-ivanov
Will go through your questions tho think they are outside my knowledge for most.
Q1
Window Frame:
I’ve got a gap of about 30mm under the window lip. To address this, I cut the timber back flush with the wall and reinstalled it. I was advised that I could apply Bondcrete to the timber surface and then render over it, as Bondcrete would help the plaster bond to the timber.
Can you please confirm if this approach will work? If not, what alternatives would you recommend? It’s a fairly large gap to fill, and I’d like to bring it back.
A1
I have not tried rendering over timber, so will have to leave a recomndation to one of the others
Q2
Build in wardrobe installation(Lugna) : - Flex Storage does not have a 900mm options at all.
The shell does not fit for about 2-3mm so I m thinkg to grind back the bricks, couple of questions:
- After removing the render from the wall (it’s an external wall rendered on the outside), do I need to seal the exposed surface where the render was removed? Could leaving it unsealed cause any issues in the future, considering the wardrobe side will sit flush against the wall?
- How can I repair the broken corner I had to cut to fit the shell? I want the wardrobe to sit flush with the wall, and there will be two doors opening at the bottom.
A2
I probarlly wouldnt grind back the brick work, That is a fairamount of grinding/dust (If you do make sure you wear protective breathing gear) I would be tempted to modify the cabinet and shelves. There are 5 fixed pieces after you remove a side that you could trim back 5mm- 10mm and then rejoin the side. I wouldnt seal the exposed surface. It may be fiddly but I think it would be easier than to reduce the wall itself by 3mm.
Fixing the edge to be sharp I would use UNi-PRO 500g Multi Purpose Interior Filler - 500g
One thing to consider is the left door opening. With the area so tight you will end up with the door handle impacting the wall or not being able to open. I would maybe reduce the width by another 10mm to accomodate this.
Q3
My question about brightening the room was more about which paint colour you’d recommend from the Taubmans range. We initially chose Brilliant White, but I later found out this is just a standard white, so the walls and ceiling will look almost identical apart from the sheen.
Are there any better colour tones you’d suggest to combine for the walls to create more depth and brightness?
A3
Yeah, picking colours is not my forte lol I like to keep it simple so i would suggest to go for your first preference, then offset the wall with a slightly darker white. As to specific whites, it comes down to you 😕
Dave
