Fabrics

Friday 22 April - After a four hour drive last night we arrived at Pinxton, with a very pleasant overnight stop in a local pub - we even took part in the pub quiz, not officially but it was good to get some questions correct.  We also 'helped' a lone participant who was not using his phone to get the answers, unlike others!

We arrived at Whalin Upholstery around half eight, were greeted with coffee and an explanation of the types of seating foams and mattress choices - hmmm time to try them out then. Where do you start, we had coverings for dinette seating, portholes and outside cushions as well as the cross-bed mattress to make decisions on.  

Just some of the material books to look through, with coffee of course

We started with the dinette, fabric or leather? we'd brought the back of one of our freestanding chairs to help us decide, these are red leather, and we know that it is difficult to 'match' strong colours, we went through all the sample books, having first taken them outside to compare with the seat, in daylight.  There was a red that was almost a 'match' but knowing this may fade/weather at a different rate and shade to our chairs we stayed clear, surprisingly Martin picked out cream! now which cream would look best? there were three to decide between, time to leave this and come back after pondering.

Next the seating areas at bow and stern, something weatherproof and that would complement the wood in the bow and the boat's paint colours when done, again out into the daylight, along with a cushion cover in a likely choice, and a decision on the contrast piping, main colour 'beige' but has a golden tinge with blue piping.

Now back to the portholes, bungs, curtains or blinds of some kind.  From the outset we've not wanted curtains so they were easy to rule out, I had thought that roman blinds might have looked ok, but as the build has progressed we like the character of the wood and the round shape of the portholes, so bungs were decided on.  Comparing suitable materials with our bedding was quite quickly done, so the bungs will be covered in a gold material on the inside with a vinyl backing coloured in the same blue as the outside cushions piping.

Porthole bung material

Hoping this will all come together when in place

We Left Whalin, after a good few hours, happy with our choices.  We were now in a position to stop off at Bluewater Boats on our journey home.

Paint - how many colours?

14 April - Our boat build is progressing really well, it appears that we cannot stop smiling as soon as we step on-board.

Having been given a paint chart to ponder at our last visit, we've spent some time looking at the colours outside in natural daylight.  We've looked through our photo store of pictures taken over several years to see what style of paint panels and coach lines we like the look of, and have pondered previous boat builds from our builders photo albums (there are lots!) to see how they might work on our boat.

Our three main colours are Navy Blue, Cream and Red, we'll be meeting with the painter to finalise their positions in due course, as well as the signwriting style, location etc, this will transform the outside of our boat from build view to finished look.

We'll be having solar panels on the roof too, so some time was spent measuring up to see how and where on the roof space they will fit.

The covered bow area is coming on a treat, with the seating area now taking shape.  We love the feel here, it's so calming and a real social space, the oak is giving a really nice hue.  We've tried to think about how we use different spaces at home, as that should translate to how we will use areas on the boat.

We really love the feel of this bow area

Sockets and switches are being installed through out as well as the low profile LED ceiling lights, we hadn't seen these to begin with and it had to be pointed out to us, blinded by trying to take everything in, it's difficult to absorb everything, but we never feel rushed.

Low profile LED Ceiling light

Our Morso Squirrel Multi-fuel burner and entertainment centre will start to take shape now, having decided on a smaller TV we think this will help to make a neater looking unit.

The bathroom is also coming along, the shower tray, enclosure and shower wall panels have been installed, as well as the shower, the basin is also situated on the countertop. 

Shower tray, enclosure and shower wall all in place

Cannot wait for our next visit, our boat is starting to get some character, and regular visits are giving us the boat fix we both need.

One of us has finished work

25 March - one of us has finished work, a milestone indeed.

We've been busy buying goods for the boat, fire, oven, hob, microwave, sink, shower etc.

The inside of Sonia Louise is really coming on a pace, we have the bulkheads in and the wardrobes and cupboards formed in the bedroom and galley, as well as the dinette taking shape.

On the outside of the boat the undercoat is being flatted back ready to receive  another coat.

Our covered bow area is also getting some character of its own, the metal roof is now lined on the inside with oak T & G and which has a lovely warm hue. There will be seating here and a fabric cover to keep any wet stuff out when needed, but during warm dry days the cover can be rolled up etc. to create an open airy feel.

Here are some of the latest photos.

Covered bow area, this will have a fabric cover to enclose the space in winter/bad weather

Bedroom, looking out to the bow

The dinette taking shape, with side hatches either side