We have wintered well here on Scilly.  Lots of interesting people have stayed with us; from steeplejacks and journalists to the brave souls flying out of Culdrose and the Trinity Lighthouse team, who service the Bishop Rock Lighthouse. Many an early morning breakfast has been cooked and served in time to enjoy some beautiful sunrises over Peninnis.

Sunrise over Peninnis (Dec. 2012)

We have enjoyed catching up with some familiar faces, the team from Western Power have been over, as have our regulars working up the airport and for the fire service.  We have even had the pleasure of looking after a few holidaying guests (yes, even in January!), those who really want to get away from it all and enjoy the rugged natural beauty of Scilly in winter. In amongst it all there’s been time for us to get out and about to enjoy the beautiful islands.

Rolling waves off the Garrison (Dec. 2012)

Whilst keeping the guest house ticking over, our main projects this winter have been the refurbishment of rooms 4, 8 and 9.  Alongside that we have been getting on with decorating other parts of the guest house, including a stint of outside painting on what felt like the only warm and sunny day in March.

The Wheelhouse from the beach – freshly painted ready for the season!

It felt hectic in places but in the last few weeks everything has finally come together. Thank goodness we have been lucky enough to have so much help along the way.  We are extremely grateful to Jen’s parents, Rob and Glenys, who have been here for most of the winter.

Let’s go back to the start, November 2012 – ripping off the plasterboard in Room 8.

Room 8 has looked better!

Once the walls had been stripped and denailed by Dan, it was time to call in the professionals.  A big thanks to David and Chris Evans, Scillonian builders by day & fisherman by night.  They have done a superb job this winter. No task is too big or too fiddly for these two.

It seems none of us have sat down for more than five minutes…Rob has been the on-site electrician, plumber, carpenter and sorter-outer of all things technical.  One minutes Dan’s up a ladder painting the ceiling, the next he’s off to fit the new skirting board in room 8!  Rob’s finished plumbing in the new bath in room 4 and nipped back to see Bob at the Builders Merchant for the second time today! Glenys is busy painting all those fiddly bits that everyone avoids, then she is making some gorgeous new cushions for the rooms!  Jen’s covered in dust from top to toe again from sanding, rubbing down ceilings and painting!  We’ve enjoyed working altogther and been living in paint stained jeans and jumpers all winter (hence no photos of us in this blog!).  We learned a lot this winter. We now know the quickest way to scrape off what seems like generations of anaglypta wallpaper, the difference between good bathroom silicon sealants and bad ones and realise that there’s more to putting in a new bathroom than meets the eye.

One of the exciting parts of running a B&B is being able to plan, research and update the guest rooms, adding those personal touches.  Jen and Glenys have enjoyed researching coastal inspired fabrics and linen to complement the Wheelhouse’s beachside location.  We have enough fabric samples to make a patchwork blanket! Last year we were heavily into ticking stripes and pastel shades, this year we’ve been brave and bold and introduced white linen with a stylish wave fabric and more stripes.

Wave hello to our new cushions (handmade by Glenys) for Rooms 6 and 7 and soon to be introduced into Rooms 1 and 2.

It’s been a lot of work this winter,  but well worth it.  We hope you agree… here’s a sneak preview.

Room 4 – cosy first floor double room with sea view

Brand new and sparkling en-suite in Room 4 with a bath/electric shower combination

Re-furbished Room 8 – a ground floor room with a lovely sea view

Room 8 – never looked better!

Room 9 – freshly decorated with the addition of a new small double bed

Room 9 – newly furnished with all the home comforts to help you settle in straight away

Room 6 – crisp white sheets and coastal inspired soft furnishings

And finally…our newly decorated entrance area

We’re really looking forward to our third season at the Wheelhouse. We had a full house over Easter, filled with lovely guests who had a fab time on Scilly. So, we’re raring to go and look forward to seeing you again or meeting you here this summer!

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