Lots of Progress!

Well, there are good things happening since my last post! Last week the upper cabinets went up and the vent for the microwave was installed.  I actually came home to a hole in the roof!

This is where my GAS STOVE will be

That strange framing above the cabinets if there for the crown molding.

Yesterday had me smiling from ear to ear as the doors went up and the drawers went in.

I found out today that the countertop will be here at noon on Monday! That will be one exciting update with hopefully floor, back splash and appliances coming soon. P.S. Dinner tonight was steak bites with peppers, onions and mushrooms cooked in the electric fry pan and delish if I do say so myself!

Taking Shape

It is starting to take shape! The base cabinets are in and the counter top is ordered!

The corner is where the sink will go.

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The empty spot on the right is for the dishwasher, the other on is for my GAS STOVE!

We had a visit from the city inspector. It seems we didn't pull a permit. Well, almost $500 later we are legal and everything is on track. The upper cabinets has been brought in to aclimate to the room and shoud be istalled this week along with the floor!

Maybe the reveal will happen before Mother's Day. Silly me, I was thinking about hosting Easter!

Update! The countertop will be in two weeks from today! I think I will have a kitchen soon.



 

Progress is a good thing as Martha would say

Progress is a good thing. Our cabinets were delivered and drywall finishing continues. It is really starting to look like a room!

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I know I have mentioned in the past that I am a remodel TV show junkie. While I am shopping at Lowes or Home Depot, I fantasize about what it would be like to be approached by the likes of Josh Temple, Alison Victoria or Ahmed Hassan of the “Crasher Series.” In reality I have to believe that once the people are crashed, all of the supplies are ordered and they come back and act like it is the next day.

Truth is most cabinets take at least three weeks, most flooring needs to be ordered, and those fancy countertops take at least two weeks after the measure, which cannot happen until the base cabinets are in place. Drywall needs to be installed, taped and mudded. Then there is the sanding, and just maybe more mudding and sanding. At least the “Crasher” shows include an insanely big crew, and some others barely show the crew.

 I have Jeff, with occasional help from Lloyd. He has done an incredible job. He is very methodical and will not cut corners, I appreciate that, and the bottom line is that it takes time. Every day I come home from work hoping for some major progress. I realized today that I have gotten that progress, but sometimes it just doesn’t show. All of the plumbing is moved and ready to go. The electrical lines are moved and in place for the new dishwasher, under cabinet lighting and did I mention my new GAS stove? And by the way, the gas line has been moved half way across the kitchen for my new GAS stove!

Demo Continues.....

It is interesting to watch the series of events when doing a remodel.  Some days it is obvious what took place, and others make you wonder.  I watch way too many of those Kitchen Crasher type shows and have a real false sense of what a project of this magnitude is really about. We have been lucky. There haven't been any major "surprises" when the walls came down, but there has been plenty of shifting of electrical, plumbing and water lines. In reality, there is no crew of guys who trip over each other to get everything done in three days.  There is just Jeff, with a little help from Lloyd, who works methodically to make sure everything is done the right way. Wow, do I appreciate that. I know I won't have a visit from Holmes on Homes to correct the work that wasn't done right.

Good news! The cabinets are being delivered next Monday. Some drywall is going up as I type this, and did I mention that I am getting a gas stove?  The line has been run and is ready to go.

Can you see that pipe coming up from the floor? It is my gas line!

If you look at the floor, it is down to the original felt and floor boards. Lloyd took up what was left of 4 floors. The current, the one before that, the one before that one and the original 1953 green with black vein linoleum, which, by the way coordinated with the black with grey vein linoleum counter top. I can still picture the Swingline can opener just to the left of the stove!

Progress is a wonderful thing.

Demo Has Started…………….

Well, we had a couple of false starts.  Demo was slated to begin on Monday, February 4^th but it didn’t happen.  Next it was really going to start on February 11^th. I was so sure of it that we called my favorite brother Terry (who is Lloyd’s brother from another mother) to come over and get a head start on the demo.  They made pretty quick work of tearing out most of the cabinets and the tile bar.

My two favorite guys after a morning of demo!

What they left was the sink, thank goodness, and a small part of the countertop. I was really excited for Monday when the work would begin. Well, Monday turned into next Monday, and then the next Monday, which turned into Tuesday, but the demo began.

I need to explain that our contractor is taking care of his father who had some serious health issues.  He needed to make sure his dad was stable before he could start work. I will not say that I wasn’t disappointed every day I came home to no progress, but I understand the importance of taking care of family. Lloyd used that time to remove most of the tile backsplash and I removed all the ugly wallpaper that needed to go on an unexpected snow day!

We are still eating very well because I have become really good with an electric frying pan and a hot plate. Master Chef has nothing on me, in fact that could be a really good idea for a reality show.  How to feed your family without a working kitchen! But I digress…

The day that the demo actually began, I came home to a tent of plastic sheeting enveloping my kitchen and I was grinning from ear to ear.

The demo has begun!!!!!

Demo Starts Monday! Let the games begin

 

Our contractor, Jeff Rye, is an old friend from high school.  Lloyd is really excited to be working with him on our kitchen. Jeff came by the other day to make a list of supplies he needs to rough in my dream kitchen, or (should I call it a space like they do on TV?) We have had the cabinets and appliances purchased since December. The backsplash tile was picked out right after that. The countertop was difficult but that decision is also made. Then along comes Jeff.  “Have you picked out your floor?” and “What about a paint color?”

I thought I had the floor decision made.  After all, I had brought home 15 samples from various vendors. Grand Oak it was! We are going with laminate flooring for durability in the kitchen, but wanted it to blend with out existing 50’s hard wood floors. I sat back for over a month with the thought of Grand Oak.  With Monday looming and the need to purchase the floor I hit the pavement again, just to be sure. First I hit Lowes because my original choice was from Home Depot.  I brought home three more samples. God blessed us with a snow day today so what the heck I went back to Home Depot and brought home another three. As I was scrutinizing the choices with the cabinet sample I started second guessing myself. I had it narrowed down to four when I walked by the table of rejects. Something screamed out at me to try this one again. Pergo Presto Virginia Walnut!

It looks great with the cabinet sample and although darker that I originally thought I wanted,  it will blend nicely with the existing floors.

Now, on to the paint color. As Scarlet would say, "I'll think about that tomorrow."

 

Here I go! I have thought about starting some kind of blog but never quite knew what direction I should take and now I am on a mission. We have decided to remodel our kitchen and so many of my friends and family are just as excited for me as I am that I thought it was a perfect time to start.

Here is a little background. My house is the house I grew up in.  After my parents both passed away, Lloyd and I bought the house. We have a 50’s ranch with about 1100 square feet. I have a 12 x 9 kitchen that for many on by block back in the day served families of 6, 7 and even 10 people! It is really hard to fathom how people did it back then. When we moved in back in 1996 I thought I died and went to heaven, with the exception of the electric range. The kitchen was remodeled by my father around 1990 for the second time.  He was the KING of projects and made those projects look easy. He took pride in finding a way to do it easier and cheaper. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t do and anything he could not fix. It has taken me over 15 years to decide that it is ok to do it all over again.

When you finally decide to take the plunge, there are so many decisions to make.  All of a sudden those pictures you have in your mind from the countless TV remodel shows you have watched for years are swimming in your head, and what you thought you liked is no longer an option. One thing that is non-negotiable is a gas range.

Cabinets, countertops, floors and the backsplash are on your mind 24/7. Do you have any idea how many sites are on the web with suggestions? Way too many!

I had to tell myself STOP.  You don’t have a huge room, you don’t have room for that island or peninsula or anything else that most of those TV kitchens get, so we need to get real.

Here is the before and soon I will post some of my ideas for the after.

This is the counter top repair. I blistered it with a hot pot about 14 years ago. We just happened to have extra Formica in the basement and Lloyd was able to put that piece in after I totally destroyed it.  Did I mention that I am excited to get a gas stove?

Like the red microwave? I don't, but it was free and when mine broke and it fit in the shelf.

This floor actually looks better in this picture than is does in person!

This bar was a DIY project that served it's purpose but I won't miss it!