Bump out

Mattias installs the plywood on the counters. Now we can see what the "bump-out" on the island will look like. He also patches the floor and Matt installs the glass in the cabinets.

The Green Wall

Today I painted one wall of the bathroom a dark green. It is the wall with the sink, toilet and mirror, plus outlets and the big old window that we are going to cover with a shelf. Because of all the plumbing and the small area, I painted it all with a brush, sometimes lying on my side on the floor to reach behind the fixtures, but it was worth it, I think. Once the shelf is in and the floor is cleaned, it will look much better!

DalTile and the last of the floor removal

Today we went to DalTile to look at the slabs and pay for them. They looked fantastic, just like the samples, and we knew we had the perfect colors and material. Later that afternoon John and I took up the floor by the bathroom and laundry. We had a system down that got it done neatly in half the time it took before. We expect/hope that the washer and dryer will go in next week.

Work and Not work

We expected more work to be done today, but the cabinet installer came late saying the shop was closed and he couldn't get the parts he needed. Then Ray called to say there was no work that day as something else had come up that needed their immediate attention. Not sure how that all works, but we were disappointed. However, it was a regular workday for me, and we heard that the slabs were in, so that was good news.

The feel of the layout

Most of the cabinets are in, including the island, and we can tangibly sense the feel of the layout now. The amazing thing is that even with the big island, two people can pass each other anywhere with ease. The kitchen is attractive from any angle. There are lots of finishing pieces still to be added and the desk looks great also. There is tons more work on the rest of the house.

Week 4: Cabinets!

Week 4
Mon. 8/24: The cabinets aren't quite ready and will be delivered Tuesday. Mattias is back to build the platforms - kickplates -- for the floor cabinets. It was a trip to come home and see the foundations of the cabinets, like watching plants growing tall in one's garden.

Tue. 8/25: The cabinets are delivered into the garage and they are gorgeous! The color is fabulous, everything is very high quality and solid. We had arranged to meet with Cynthia and Ray in the evening and Cynthia has not seen the kitchen since we signed the contract. I think she was struck by the transformation and also very pleased. Together we all did a great design. We touched bases on the schedule and got an understanding of the order things would happen.

The counter guy is supposed to be out this week to measure and take the sink and cooktop. I haven't heard about the slabs yet, but he is supposed to be cutting the slab while the upper cabinets are going in. It takes about 5 days, so that might not get done until next week, but there is still lots to do.

We looked as hardware samples and decided on a style, but now have to pick sizes.

We need the window too. Where is the window?

Wed. 8/26: The pantry and floor cabinets are in - OMG, it's so exciting! We went to pick up the sink after work and it looks perfect. The island and oven will go in tomorrow, maybe some of the wall cabinets. It's rather intoxicating. I am trying to picture where everything will go. I want to have a garage sale and buy all new cookware. In the 5-1/2 years in the house, we kept our utensils (forks/knives/spoons etc.) in a box on the counter.



I call the window place and find out the window came in but with the opening the wrong way, so they returned it. Much consternation but they will try to get an ETA tomorrow morning.

Week 3: Plaster work, paint and the floor demo

Mon.- Thur. 8/17- 20 : The taping and plaster is done expertly so that you can't see where the room was divided and the new walls are blended into the old.

Wed. 8/19: The brother-in-law of the nice lady who does facials at Spa Simply Skin comes over in the evening to give us an estimate on tile. We consider either tile at both entryways, or all the way across the floor between island and cabinets. The kitchen place asks us which hardware we want, and we have no idea. Turns out they don't have the samples of the styles we are interested, except one or two. We keep looking at the pictures on the Internet and try to narrow it down. They will bring samples wit the cabinets Monday.

Thur. 8/20: I ordered the slabs from Daltile after getting estimate from Marcos, Capital City Granite. They should take about a week. The sink and slabs should arrive about the same time - we hope. The plastic sheets are all down, and we get used to coming in the garage door and walking through the kitchen.

Fri. 8/21: We go to Manuel Joseph and order the downdraft. We learn some things about telescoping downdrafts and our guide confims Cynthia's recommendation that the GE Profile is the best. As with the other appliances and sink, we open and account to get 10% off and 6 months to pay - thank goodness everyone needs our business! The oven and cooktop are due next July, the dishwasher , exhaust and sink are due in January, haha, right after Christmas.

We saw a Jenn-Air cooktop on a deep discount and couldn't remember how much the one I ordered cost, which was a Maytag. John decided the knobs on the Maytag were a problem. We were all ready to take the other one back and buy this but needed to look at the one at home. Once home, we saw that the Maytag cost less, so we decided we were quite happy with it. Does seem sort of odd - the cooktop made by the washer company; but I think they bought out another mfr. The walloven is a GE profile, and really neat, because it's not only convection, it's a double oven in the space of most singles. It can roast a turkey in the bottom and cook a pizza or cookies in the top. The dishwasher is a Sears Kenmore; not the most expensive but lots of cool features. Anything would be better than the old one we had, which only ran water on one side and forgot to rinse.

A comment about shopping: I buy fairly often online because I don't like taking the time to go to stores. However, I spent hours and hours on the Internet shopping for appliances (and the sink and faucet) and found everything locally for less. If you are lucky and flexible you might find the perfect thing on a deep discount from Overstock.com or a big distributor back East. But I picked out the brand and model I wanted first, then looked only for those, which eliminated random sales. Online you pay shipping but no tax. Here you pay tax but usually no shipping. I was happy to support local business and keep money in California.

Sat. 8/22: We go to Home Depot, learn about primer, go home, tape and wrap, and then we
all three spent a grueling hot afternoon rolling and brushing. John did the backbreaking ceiling; Richard did the walls, and I did walls and trim. John said I got carried away because I had to do the fireplace. It was time for the pink wall to go. I had to go back for more primer, but we were able to return two unused cans the next day. We even went back to the store again and found the perfect faucet. All that is left to buy is the disposal.

Sun. 8/23:
We were going to get Richard up early to paint, but he was up late and exhausted, so John and I went to the store, picked out a white from about 23, came home and finished in a couple hours. It wasn't as hard as primering, although I did the entryway and as much of the living room as I could.



Later that afternoon, we attack the floor, having to remove the masonite underlayment before the cabinets can go in. Turns out the masonite is attached with about 500 1-1/2" staples. This requires another trip to the store for more tools, since the tool we rented does not work at all. This was probably as hard or harder than the demo of the cabinets and countertops three weeks prior. Imagine trying to get some lift on material that is literally stapled every four square inches. What actually happens is you rip off the masonite, leaving behind hundreds of bent and broken staples, so that the floor looks like a medieval bed of nails.

That night and the next two, John and I became obsessed with pulling the staples out, because of the cabinets and wood floor going in. We have not heard anything from the tile guy, and we wonder why. The staple pulling results in yet another trip to the hardware store for special tools. We develop great staple-pulling skills. John yells at me to stop at midnight.

Week 2: Electrical, sheetrook

Mon. 8/10: The electrical wiring and boxes are put all over.

Tue. 8/11: Lights go in, 8 in a square. Mattias is very particular about how they are placed in relation to the layout of the room. We thought we had asked for a light over the sink as well, and we wanted to add one in the corridor, which Ray said was no problem.Water heater is taken out, and wow! John removes the old frame footing from the old wall by the family room, adding a foot to the width of the doorway, and that becomes much more comfortable. Some insulation done.

Wed. 8/12; Rest of the framing is done, and old stuff taken out. Insulation finsihed, sheet rock is put up, including over the big window.

The kitty cats don't like the plastic sheeting up; they are afraid of the loud banging but want to know what's going on.



Thurs. 8/13: More sheetrock, and now the room is really beginning to take shape. It's astounding how large the space seems without the water heater.The opening is cut for the new window.

Fri. 8/14 - We asked that the water heater get hooked up, and even though it was not part of the "rough plumbing," in the contract, they agreed to do it. However, poor Mattias had a lot of trouble with it, and spent much more time than he planned under the house. He was probably supposed to be off that afternoon and ended up leaving around 7:00. I think his wife got mad at him for working so late. We let him know we really appreciated his hard work. That was his last day for a week until Monday, the drywall finisher comes in and we're told it will take four days, then we paint.



This week we got estimates from two hardwood floor refinishers. We're happy to find out our original floor is top nail red oak, very common and easy to obtain and match, also to work with. One bid is a little lower but even then includes moving furniture and taking up the carpet; we feel we can lower the cost by doing that ourselves, so we plan to contact him later.

Sat. 8/15: The bathroom is so filthy I have to clean it. I literally scrub the sink and toilet, wipe the floor and then tape everything with plastic. Then I find I am able to order my sink through Lowe's, at a price lower than the Internet. It will take about two weeks.

Week 1: Demo Continued

Tue. 8/4: Mattias and Ray do lots of measuring and assessment of the low beam that runs across the length of the kitchen and appears to extend to the end of the hallway. After they leave John has the boys (anyone unlucky enough to be around) take down the ceiling, which includes all the insulation. A snowstorm ensued, snow was about knee-high.



Wed. - Thur. 8/5-6: The crew cuts and replaces the beam by lifting it up, creating a level ceiling and removing the wall next to the door. The bathroom wall is removed. The original plan called for the laundry closet to be the same size as the bathroom, but Mattias said it wouldn't work and made it just the right size for the appliances, leaving more room behind the island.

Fri. 8/7: Mattias works alone for the next 6 days. The garage entry door is moved over where the shower used to be. The laundry closet is framed.

Demolition derby

Here's what the kitchen looked like Saturday afternoon:

From Kitchen Remodel

And here's the same location Monday morning:

From Kitchen Remodel

Here's a slideshow from the demolition: