January 11th - flooring

Pressed ahead with the flooring. Andrew finished upstairs and the half-landing - beautifully, while I carried on downstiars until the oak boards ran out late in the afternoon. As with all other materials on the project, I'm going to need another 20 square metres of oak to complete the job. Ho-hum - another £500 goes whizzing out!
Before he left, Andrew helped me to take the patio-doors off and plane about 5mm off the bottom, to give them clearance over the flooring. As they were, they wouldn't have opened at all once the flooring is laid in front of them. Laying the flooring is one of those compulsive and addictive jobs. The very obvious and rapid aesthetic change make it very rewarding and enjoyable.
Insulation arrived from B&Q, who had it on offer at half-price, which brought it in marginally cheaper than anywhere else. It was in a van with a load of garden equipment, from which the frost had thawed en route, so the bottom end of each roll was pretty wet. Hopefully it'll dry out OK, but it might take a couple of days in the unheated house.
There's also a big pile of dressed timber for skirting and architraves impeding progress around the dining room. Anna oiled a couple of planks to see how it looks. Very light-coloured finish, and I'm undecided whether I like it or not. Anna does, so of course my opinion is purely academic!
No photos again, so you'll have to try to imagine a wall-to-wall sea of dark oak.