Hi Connie, It is a much busier time for professionals than it was 12 months ago, I understand why you may be going through all this. Here are 2 things to try. Try the Houzz Professional pages if you haven't already. Be clear on the phone about your timeline and budget and see what that nets you. If it doesn't work, I recommend coming to a builder via a different route. Perhaps via a subcontractor of a key department (plumber, framer, etc), an involved architect or a designer. Our professional relationships are so important to us, if a trusted builder asked me to take on an additional client to help their company out, I would expand my office staff etc to meet the demand, as we are all repeat business for each other and our livelihoods depend on the quality and quality of our professional relationships. As far as you physically performing labor, in many cases, tradespeople who spend all day every day performing tasks on an expert level save you money because they are doing it much, much faster than a DIY could and will likely have the experience to avoid mistakes that can cost you time and money or, in a more subtle way, there may be something you do that makes it more difficult or time consuming or costly for the trades that come in after your work- that could be avoided. Overall I think you should stick it out on the contractor search! You need one, there are so many good ones-- hang in there!! Good luck- this is no one's favorite part!

I love the option to work in a private office while still feeling connected to the larger open plan space. And who doesn't want a huge blackboard to creatively brainstorm?

Cleaning the bathroom is a breeze, I have a nylon scrubber that I buy from Coles or Woolies and the cheapest shampoo I can find, after my shower I put a couple of squirts of the shampoo on the scrubber, run it from top to bottom all round my shower ( I have a large double head shower ) and over the floor then spray clean warm water from the top of the wall and let it run down the walls and glass area till the soap has gone, the shower in our 2nd bathroom doesn't have a spray so I use an empty Peters 2 litre icecream container keep filling it up with warm water and run this down the walls, hop out of the shower walk away and let it dry by itself -- once it is dry I have a perfectly streak free shower, for the bath and the vanity basins I use the same method, wipe them over with the scrubber and shampoo, flush with the warm water and leave, wipe the vanity tops, the area around the bath and window area with a damp cloth and hey presto a beautiful clean bathroom, this all takes only a few minutes and I always have a clean bathroom.

It's many years since we've had an eat-in kitchen, but my current renovation incorporates an eating area in the kitchen because, frankly, I'm tired of the extra work to carry things to and from the dining room and the extra cleaning created by always using the dining room even for casual meals for just two of us. We have had bar stools at the kitchen island, and the grandkids use them, but my husband hates them and refuses to eat at bar height or even at a lowered 'ledge'; on the side of the island. So my kitchen reno will include a table on one end of the island, at regular table height and large enough to seat 5 if necessary. There is a large sliding door to the veranda close to where that table will be positioned, so it should be a pleasant place for casual meals and I expect we'll eat most meals there. I'm so confident of that, I'm converting the dining room to more living space and putting our big timber dining table in the alfresco area, which will be semi-enclosed, with open parts security fly-screened. The dining area we use when we have guests will be super-casual, with a BBQ in one corner and swim spa in the other. I just don't see a purpose for formal dining anymore, especially living in a sub-tropical climate.