Team Flower

I can't recommend Richard enough - he was very efficient (he fitted and hung seven Victorian doors in a day) and was able to sort out the botched job of the person who had 'custom built the doors' from reclaimed Victorian originals but had made a whole plethora of mistakes. But none of these issues were a problem for Richard who found practical solutions and did everything within the original (and very reasonable) estimate, which had been based on the job being much more straightforward. He was very polite, helpful and nothing was too much trouble. Despite the issues with the doors, he never gave the impression of being fed up but was always bright and friendly. I also liked the fact that when he bought supplies, he gave me the receipts without me having to ask, so I could see I wasn't being charged any mark ups. His apprentice Taylor was also very polite and helpful and they worked together quietly without causing undue disruption and cleaned up meticulously after themselves. Although I don't expect there to be any problems as he made it easy for me to go around checking all the work at the end, he reiterated I could call him if there were any problems, no matter how small and he would return to fix it. I originally rang Andy, following the recommendations on this site, and he suggested Richard for the job as he was not available this week (I called on Thursday for work to be done the next day and the following Monday). Andy's number is already on this thread. Richard's number is 07724829283.

I would also recommend Col. For a very reasonable price he completely redecorated one of our rooms, including tearing off old artex wallpaper and crumbling plaster, relocating plug sockets, skimming the walls and ceilings and re-integrating a victorian fireplace from where it had previously been taken out. He is a gentleman and very trustworthy. We will certainly be using him again.

I've used both Plastering Art and Miles & Wilde in different rooms (due to availability) to put up cornicing and a ceiling rose in each case. Can't recommend them highly enough, they have transformed my house! We would never consider putting up our own cornicing again as the difference in quality compared to the sorts of things you can get in DIY shops is huge. In terms of price, I did get quotes from a few companies and I think the going rate is about ?36 per meter of cornicing. But so worth it.

We recently uncovered our old Victorian floorboards from under layers of past carpet and laminate. There were horrid sticky plastic tiles on half of one room and in another room, the wood had been painted black! They were in a really sorry state, with quite a few loose, cracked and sawn-into boards (goodness knows what the previous owner had been up to). We got a few quotes and went with Derek from Finishing Point (07956 545215), as his was the most reasonable and we found him very helpful to deal with over the phone (we had a lot of questions). The results were so good that I had to post a message - our house is transformed and the wooden floors are spectacular. The broken boards were replaced with reclaimed timber, then the rooms were sanded and oiled. Derek and his team worked around our hours (we work all day so needed someone we could trust who could come early to meet us before we left for work)and not only did they do a fantastic job, but they also left the house really clean. I was surprised how little dust was created. Derek went beyond the call of duty to be helpful - answering all our questions, being available when we called, making sure all the finishing touches were carried out to our specification. The final bill was in accordance with the quote he gave us at the start and we thought it was excellent value. I can't recommend him enough.