Renovation Timeline: How to Meet Your Christmas Deadline

One of the most common deadlines for renovation projects is Christmas, and with the second half of the year, fast approaching (believe it or not!) now is the time to start planning your renovation around the holiday season. New beginnings, connecting with family and friends and the ability to tick the reno off your 2021 to-do list are just some of the myriad of reasons why you should time your brand-new bathroom or kitchen with the Holidays.    

Twenty-six weeks (or 182 sleeps) ’till Christmas may sound like plenty of time, but in reality, deadlines are fast approaching. While every renovation project is different, if you’re dreaming of hosting Christmas lunch in your beautifully renovated home, you have until the end of July to get the ball rolling! We’ve created a Christmas Renovation Timeline complete with key milestones and dates to give you a better understanding of what happens at each stage of the renovation project. This way, you’ll be able to plan your Christmas-ready renovation like a pro.  

Completed by 30th July – In-home Consultation 

The first step of the process is to meet with your Interior Designer in your home to discuss your renovation ideas, bounce alternative solutions around and begin the process of crafting your design resolution tailored to your specific needs. This meeting will take approximately one hour and is a very valuable first step in successfully encompassing your renovation and budgeting needs.   

Based upon this initial meeting, your Interior Designer will get started on your concept design and detailed quotation, so you can see down to the last dollar what your project will cost. Ideally, you will need to have this meeting locked in before the end of July to meet a December completion date for your renovation. Because as you are about to see, there are plenty of other steps and decisions to be made before we hand over the keys to your upgraded home. 

06th August to 13th August – Design Presentation

The second step of the process sees you invited into one of our showrooms to sit down with your Interior Designer to go through your personalised renovation proposal. This meeting will occur 5-10 business days after your initial in-home consultation, allowing your Interior Designer the required time to compose an itemised quote and unique layout to suit your individual renovation needs, this puts you 1-2 weeks closer to Christmas.

By the end of this meeting, you’ll have an accurate indication of how much your renovation will cost including all building work, trades, material and products and most importantly you’ll know what your new space will look like. This information will be yours to take home with you to mull over.

20th August – 5% fee collected to secure your project start date

Once you have mulled over the details of your concept design and quotation, you’re ready to begin your exciting renovation journey with the smarter BATHROOMS+ team.

To book your Christmas-ready project start date, a Design Specification Fee of 5% of your project total will be taken, and a building inspection will be booked in. At this stage, you will be 12 weeks out from your project getting started on site.

20th August to 3rd September – Building Inspection  

Now it’s time to get your dedicated Building Inspector out to your home to conduct an in-depth inspection of your home. He will evaluate your home’s condition, take final measurements, and confirm building logistics, such as locating your fuse board and confirming if you need a porter loo in the front yard.   

 A thorough building inspection takes about an hour per room, depending on the size and complexity of the project. Once the Building Inspector has gathered all the information they need, they will come back to our office with a wealth of knowledge about your project. He will then take another detailed look at your design drawings and quote to ensure everything is included and that your renovation will run smoothly when the build team gets started in your home.  This process will usually take your building inspector a week to finalise all of the paperwork and update drawings and quotations if required.    

03rd September – 17th September  – Selection Period  

 September is where the real magic happens. Well it’s all magic, really, but this is where you get to sink your teeth in and start making decisions. You’ll be invited to one of our showrooms to meet with your Interior Designer again for your selection meeting. Based on your taste and desires for your new space, your Interior Designer will prepare a curation of products, fixtures and finishes for your renovation project, and from there, you will pick and choose what’s in and what’s out.   

By the end of this meeting, you’ll have selected all the products, fixtures, fittings, and finishes that will go in your new bathroom or kitchen. Your Interior Designer will then update your project to reflect the final selections made at this meeting and send the information to the drafting team so they can begin working on your final project drawings.   

17th September – 24th September – Final Drawings Completed for Review  

Before any build team can begin on-site, a very important and highly detailed step needs to be taken. No Build Team can execute a vision without a detailed set of instructions, and this is the part of the process where we create them, in the form of construction drawings.  

By collating the detailed notes about your unique home from your building inspector and the material and finishes selection with your Interior Designer and Specifier, your draftsperson can now produce detailed construction drawings for your project. The main goal of this important documentation is to capture the full intent of your renovation project, so your vision can be executed by the smarter BATHROOMS+ team to perfection.    

At smarter BATHROOMS+ we strive to create the highest-quality drawings, including floorplans, elevations, joinery plans, and electrical layout, so no detail is left to chance. Our drafting team takes pride in producing them in a detailed but straightforward way so it’s easier for you to visualise, understand, and review your project before it gets your seal of approval.

24th September – 01st October –  Drawing Alteration Cut Off  

We’re getting near the end of the planning phase now. During this crucial week, you will receive the first version of your working drawings so you can review them, ask any member of the team questions, and if changes are required, now is your chance to do so.    

If you’re completely satisfied that everything has been captured to meet your vision, then your definitive construction drawings will be produced by the drafting team. 

01st October – 08th October – Contract Signed  

Along with your construction drawings, we will craft a comprehensive contract complete with all the products you selected for your reno and a detailed account of the building works that will happen at your home in just five weeks. When your contract comes to life, the talented Pre-Operations team will schedule your bathroom or kitchen renovation, with the start and finish date clearly detailed in your contract. A standard bathroom renovation takes five weeks for our expert renovation team to complete, and in this example, that’s exactly what we have allowed for.  

During this week, your contract is signed so that we can start ordering your products.   

08th October – Last Orders  

It’s so important that we allow at least five weeks of lead time for every product and material required on your job to be delivered to our Port Melbourne warehouse. This enables our warehouse manager to confirm the safe delivery of all your products before delivering them to your home on day one of your renovation to avoid any unnecessary delays. 

12th November – Project Start 

On the first day of your renovation (or job start date as we like to call it), you will meet on-site (AKA your home) with your Project Manager, who will be overseeing the whole renovation from demolition to the final fittings and everything in between. Your Project Manager is the captain of the trade team. They manage our trusted and talented tradies, ensuring they do an outstanding job that meets smarter BATHROOMS+ and Australian standards, and exceeds your expectations. 

Each week you’ll receive a detailed schedule of precisely what’s happening when and we stick to it! While our renovations are personalised and tailored to your needs, we have standardised procedures to ensure your renovation runs as efficiently as possible, preventing unnecessary disruptions or delays.  

17th December – Project complete! 

Time to enjoy your brand-new space! With a beautiful new bathroom or kitchen to come home to, the Holidays this year will feel extra special. With your dream space now a reality, there are plenty of reasons to celebrate! Gather your family for a delicious Christmas lunch, a dazzling NYE eve event, or simply put your feet up and relax in your gorgeous new bathroom or kitchen just in time for Christmas. 

Ready to collaborate with the Smarter Bathrooms team to make your dream renovation a reality in time for Christmas? Call us today on 1300 662 838 to speak to one of our experts or book a FREE in-home consultation with our award-winning interior design team to start your renovation journey!