The fact that I bought a house is finally starting to kick in. Although it still feels surreal at times. The state of the house is making my head spin sometimes. Especially everything downstairs. There’s SO MUCH that needs to be done. Because many people ask me what it all concerns, here’s a little update. In this phase, I’m hopefully going to turn this house into a home.
A few contractors have come by for a quotation for the major work. Things I really can’t do myself or with help from friends, like running pipes, converting electrical wiring, and installing new drains. And as everyone warns you: there’s always more to a renovation than you think. For example, a separate circuit is needed for the induction cooktop, heating pipes are unfortunately in the way of the kitchen, and a crawlspace turning out not to be a crawlspace after all.
Kitchen on the way
Meanwhile, I’ve already ordered the kitchen, because those tend to have a long delivery time. I’ve already made some initial concessions on parts and materials to save on delivery time. After all, I will be paying for two houses for months, and the renovation is breaking the bank. So, great, the kitchen will be delivered ‘already’ at the end of February.
But now I’m starting to worry again that the contractor might not be able to finish the major work by then, which will leave me with another problem: a kitchen that arrives and has to be left on a floor that will need to be empty to be leveled. It’s a logistical puzzle that I’m trying to solve the best I can, but with the shortages in the construction industry, it’s certainly not easy.
Renovations
A brief summary of the necessary renovations: the toilet door needs to be moved because you currently can’t sit and close the door. Moving it is easy because it ends in a ‘useless’ section of the hallway. A small sink also needs to be installed because I find it disgusting to touch doorhandles all around the house with your ‘toilet hands’ before washing them.
The current bathroom needs to be moved to the smallest bedroom. That room is conveniently located for the new pipes and the drain: above the downstairs toilet, below the central heating system, and next to an empty built-in cupboard, so everything can be concealed relatively easily.
The old ‘bathroom’ — read: cupboard with a shower head — will become a toilet. I made this choice for two reasons. First of all, the new bathroom would be too cramped if a toilet were installed in addition to a bath, shower, and sink. Second, I think it’s convenient for multiple people living in a house, that one can shower and another can still use the upstairs toilet.
I recycle things where possible. For example, I’m keeping the sink in the current shower to save some money and I’m reusing the door and frame from the downstairs toilet.
The downstairs floor needs to be leveled. The parquet was forcibly pulled out by the previous owners, and it’s a real ‘Swiss cheese’. And not in a good raclette way. The pipes in the kitchen need some minor adjustments, although in my kitchen design kept the changes to a minimum.
Unfortunately, some pipes are in dire need of replacement, and that’s better done now that everything has to be opened up anyway. The electrical wiring in the wall facing the garden needs to be adjusted because a circuit needs to be added for the induction cooktop. The meter box dates back to the 1950s anyway, which isn’t ideal considering the appliance usage of 2025. But here too, I have to make choices. Replacing the entire meter box now would be ideal, but it’s not financially feasible. And comfortable cooking, peeing, and showering are really the most important things right now. The central heating is also really outdated, so I’m praying it holds up for a while longer, because that’s not really something I can afford to have on top of the other necessary renovations.
Peninsula
I ordered the kitchen from IKEA. Their design software really made me angry. What a terrible system: one too many left or right clicks and you’ve added a window or an extension to your living room, and I couldn’t find an ‘undo’ option anywhere. Luckily, there’s a design service in the store where they draw the kitchen for you. You pay 50 euros for that, which you get back when you order the kitchen. A great deal, if you ask me. They were really helpful there and saved me a lot of frustration. A great tip if you’re considering a new kitchen at some point.
My kitchen turned out simple: dark taupe matte cabinets, a dark anthracite countertop, and matte gold handles. Part of it goes against the back wall, and the rest is in a small peninsula. And lucky me for my renovation budget: there was a 15 percent discount on all appliances, which is quite rare.
I decided on the kitchen after two design meetings of a few hours. I’m happy with how easily and quickly I make decisions. A well-developed intuition helps, and not having a husband to disagree with also helps. Of course, it would also be nice to have someone beside you who thinks along, I’m not going to lie. But unfortunately, that’s not the case at the moment. Who knows what’s still in the pipeline? The pipelines I’ve checked so far unfortunately only contain corrosion and dirt.
Time
Time flies, and it’s a challenge to do all of this well while working a busy job. But it should be doable. There’s also an advantage to the longer timeframe: I can pay close attention to when certain things are on sale and thus save some money on items I didn’t need immediately upon accepting the house, like the flooring and bathroom furniture.
At the same time, that’s also the tricky part: there’s so much demolition work to be done in various places that things like painting or applying wallpaper aren’t effective right now. And I prefer to lay the floor after painting so I don’t have to worry as much about spills or covering everything up.
As you can see, it’s a puzzle that keeps me busy. Hopefully, I can give you an update soon with some progress. For now, I’d like to thank everyone again for all the support and kind congratulations, and I wish you all a happy and, above all, healthy 2026. And I also wish myself all the strength to make it a livable, cozy place in 2026. <3
Love,
Bridget