House
Real condition, ugly jobs, boring fixes and the work needed to turn an old place into a usable family base.
Public build log
Old house.
Real budget.
No fake luxury.
I’m turning an old house into a usable family base — one fix, one tool and one money decision at a time. This is the record of what works, what fails and what I would actually do again.
Livable first Buy less junk Track the money Pretty later
Current phase
Make it livable before making it pretty.
The first win is not a perfect house. It is a house that works: dry rooms, safe basics, usable tools, controlled spending and fewer stupid surprises.
Latest notes →What this is
Real build. Clear record.
Not a glossy renovation fantasy. The useful parts are the decisions: what to fix first, what to buy, what to skip and where the money really goes.
Tools
What is worth buying, what should be rented and what only looks good in the basket.
Money
Budgets, buffers, hidden costs and the decisions that stop the project from becoming a hole in the ground.
System
Simple checklists, storage, routines and planning so the build keeps moving without turning into chaos.
Position
Nice design. Real subject matter.
The site can look premium, but the content stays grounded: old house, real constraints, family base, tools, costs and honest trade-offs.
No fake luxury. No pretending the budget is infinite. No acting like every problem can be solved with a mood board.
Rules
Rules I actually use.
Livable beats pretty.
Dry, safe, warm and usable comes before decoration, mood boards or any fantasy version of the house.
Fix function first.
Water, heat, electricity, storage, access and basic comfort matter more than surface-level upgrades.
Buy fewer, better tools.
If it gets used often, buy it properly. If it is heavy, rare or needed once, rent it and move on.
Cheap houses hide real costs.
The listing price is only the start. Roof, wiring, heating, drainage, transport and mistakes decide the real number.
Latest notes
Notes from the build.
2026.06.24 The keys are not the finish line. A cheap house is only cheap on the listing. The real cost starts with repairs, systems, tools, transport and mistakes. 2026.06.22 Rent once. Buy repeated painkillers. If a tool is needed once, rent it. If it saves time, saves your back and gets used every week, buy it properly. 2026.06.19 Livable first. Beautiful later. A working bathroom, safe electricity, clean storage and one warm room beat every Pinterest board on earth. 2026.06.18 Every renovation choice is a money choice. Materials, tools, labour, transport and wrong decisions all pull from the same budget. Choose the next move clearly.
Manifesto
Build the base first.
The mission is simple: make a real home base, keep the money under control and document the decisions clearly.