Air condition is called aircon, the combo air conditioner & heaters that you hang high on a wall are called swingers. Countertops are called benches, yards are called a gardens, closets-wardrobe, bonus room-rumpus room, hardwood floors or any wood is called timber. Living in the country is living in the Bush. Carpenters are called a Chippy, electrician -Sparky, brick layer-bricky, plumber-dunny driver. Downtown is called CBD. Neighbor is spelled neighbour. If a room is painted and decorated in updated colors & pattens they are called “Fresh”. If a house is updated in higher end-sophisticated materials it’s called “smart”. Fittings-are basically light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, appliances. Color is spelled colour. Picture rails are still pretty common. Queenslander-is a traditional style of home in Queensland that has a bungalow/Victorian/country/cottage feel. “security screens” are popular on windows & doors-which is a metal lattice. Full fences around your property are also popular.

If those prices don't include the electrician's costs of connection then to me they don't match up and I'd say your supplier/installer can't do maths lol. Pricing will change between supplier and of course electricians, and of course I'm working off the impression that the floors are flat where you want it installed. If the quote includes the electrical work, as in it covers everything besides tiling to where you can switch it on, then it looks reasonable to me and sits around the ballpark of what we paid. With the electrician's connection costs included then the figures match up better between the bathrooms and the living area, looking at it from a total per m2 viewpoint. If it includes the floor covering as well, then I'd say get on the phone and book the job straight away before they realise their mistake lmao. For instance if the quote is just for material and install, without electrical connection then the two bathrooms are quoted at $166.66 per m2 and the living area is quoted at $53.57 per m2. A large difference at cost per m2. If however the quotes include the electrical connection then you can average out the m2 cost across all three rooms and it amounts to $73.53 per m2. The electrician would be charging the same price for connection of each room (with only minor differences) if there is nothing out of the ordinary in any room. That means it's a static cost in each room that could make the bathroom quotes look inflated, and the living room look on the cheaper side. When you have a m2 quote on something across multiple rooms of different sizes, it's important to factor in anything outside of materials that's included in the quote. Assuming the install could be considered standard (whether it be underfloor heating, tiling, carpet, etc.) there will be other costs involved such as labour hours, wiring connection, installation materials, etc. Some can be considered static such as the electrician installing a single thermostat in each room, whatever actual size that room may be. Others will be more fluid such as labour hours for the tradesmen doing the install - will take a lot longer to lay tiles in a room of 56m2 than it will to lay them in a room 6m2. Whenever you are given a quote involving installations by m2, it's important to get them to detail what exactly is included in the quote. If you don't do this you run the chance of ripping yourself off. Let's say you get 3 different quotes from underfloor heating suppliers who all give you different prices but without details. One may look more expensive than the other two but actually be cheaper overall due to including everything up to 'turn on' phase, where the other two may only include supplying and laying the underfloor heating with you having to organise your own electrician after install.

Hi Alex and Christie, I am installing a kitchen this week using a product I have used before and that I really like. It's Mirostone - a 100% acrylic product which feels and looks just like the reconstituted stone - it even feels cold like stone - yet it's much cheaper than any reconstituted stone I have found. Being 100% acrylic it's not porous which also means it's very hygienic. It's resilient to marks and staining so will be good for rolling out pastry dough. However, it should be treated with care like any benchtop and a chopping board or hot surface board used when required. Marks and stains can be easily sand-papered away - that's right, sandpaper - but because the stone colour goes through to the base, you aren't left with a discoloured patch. It only comes in 7 colours from white to grey, but it's a really nice product. I believe it is available Australia-wide from the distributors in Adelaide (where I am based). Good luck. Cheers, Penelope

Thanks for the feedback Matthew! The Iris is definitely a favourite! We look forward to seeing some pictures in your upcoming project. ☺️