We're done! For now.

December 20th marked the final day of work on our kitchen by our contractor. This is as much of a miracle as the rescuing of the Chilean miners and the delivery of Chirstmas gifts by baby Jesus (in Colombia, gifts are delivered by baby Jesus, not Santa).

We are still planning to put in a glass tile backsplash in the next month, so the "after" pictures are still on their way.

The updates on the final day included adding a cabinet panel to the front of the dishwasher, installing the dishwasher and disposal as well as the faucet. We also installed three paper lanterns above the island, but we're not planning to keep these for too long (we just haven't found anything we love). We are really happy with the way that everything has turned out, and we can't think of anything we would have done differently (with the same budget). Hopefully we will still feel this way when the tile is in!

Counters!

The kitchen has been at a standstill while our countertops were being made over the last 16 days. We went with Silestone quartz - somewhat like granite, but not a natural stone (it's engineered) so it has consistent color and pattern.

So finally after a long two weeks, they installed our counters yesterday. At the same time that the counters were installed, they undermounted our sink (an Overstock.com find by the brand "Kraus"), and we were able to put our little dish soap pump at the side of the sink. They also put our cooktop in (although it's not installed or connected to the gas line yet).

Having counters makes an enormous difference. It feels like we are really close to the end. Our friends were over last night and sat on bar stools at the island while we all looked at magazines and books and just hung out. Exactly how hoped it would be. It makes a huge difference in the overall feel of the house.

We are desperately missing running water and a working sink and dishwasher, as we have been without these things since before Halloween. Luckily these, and nearly all of the rest of the finishing touches will be done this Monday. After that, we have the tough choice of backsplash tile (which we plan to install on our own after the holidays), lots of cutting of drawer liner, and organizing to do. So fun!

Day 35

The kitchen work has slowed down as we are now at the point where we are waiting for the countertop to be made. This only takes 10 days but feels like the slowest process on earth since nothing else can really happen until it's in.

The big news is that we are actually able to put some things in some of our cabinets and drawers! Check it out:


The rest of our cubbies have been set in place too. Not sure what we will put there yet, but we were happy to see that the space is a little taller than a coffee mug:



And looking at the window:


Also, my new favorite part of the kitchen is how nicely the refrigerator is boxed in:




Yes, that is our dog Emma in the background probably barking at our front door. And yes, that is plywood serving as a makeshift counter. And yes, that is the Steelers schedule on the fridge.

Day 30

Small spaces, small changes

The changes that took place in the kitchen today are small, both literally and figuratively. This means that small goals have been fulfilled. Their small size, however, does not negate their large importance in any way...for we must always remember what a wise man once said about small goals:

"I like to set small goals that might lead into larger ones, like making toast; this might lead into making a sandwhich and possibly my own space program."

It's with that spirit in mind that I bring you today's kitchen update. Here we have a couple of pictures of the storage "cubbies" (as we affectionately call them) which will sit atop our wall cabinets. These are small storage spaces, but were a way for us to use space that would otherwise simply go to waste if it were a soffit. This is because our ceiling was not high enough for us to use the tall wall cabinets. So our plan is to mostly use these small spaces to hold our cookbooks, which we will wrap in nice colored paper. Ooh-lala.

These have not been permanently set in place, and thus have gaps between them and the cabinets.

Another small change is the addition of the oak transition pieces (stained to match the cork), and the staining of the replacement oak slats that were dropped into place in the areas where the walls were removed. They will get polyurethane coats soon, but for now have merely been stained.

Day 27

Have you ever seen footage of how they move the space shuttle into place in order for it to be launched? It's an insanely slow process, and takes about a week or so. I know this because I went to Cape Canaveral once. Anyway, the reason why I bring up the space shuttle being moved is because today Mr. Refrigerator finally made his way back into the kitchen...where he belongs. It was a slow move from the dinning room, and in a way it was a move that was far more significant than that of the space shuttle (at least for those of us who live in this house).

Here you can see Mr. Refrigerator in his new home. The oven is now working, as is the microwave. It's also worth noting that the light fixtures under the cabinets are plugged in and working. Don't believe me? Check out this super sweet picture:

Oooh. Ahhhh.

What else happened today you ask? Well, vents were routed under the cabinets, and the final electrical details were taken care of. That includes small things like outlets in the island.

What's left to be done? The list is getting smaller, but it includes:

- Install cover panel to cover up dishwasher

- Install storage compartments where the soffit would be (these are being built off-site)

- Install transition pieces from cork to hardwood

- Finish and stain pieces of hardwood to match existing hardwood (this includes the area by our front door, which we haven't really talked about in this great blog)

Besides that, the countertop will have to be included. It will only be then that the sink, faucet and dishwasher can be hooked up by the plumber.

Day 26

Baby steps today...baby steps that came in the shape of a microwave oven, and functional outlets, switches and light fixtures. The microwave took a significant amount of time, since the vent going up to the roof had to be re-routed. This is because we wanted the vent to actually vent to the outside, not just re-circle the air.

Not much else to report today, except that the countertop was templeted (I think I just made up a word), so it should be here in about two weeks.

Hello Mr Microwave, I'm pleased to meet you.

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Light fixtures are in. Nice.

Day 25

Things have been a bit slow as of late, due to the Thanksgiving weekend. Still, if you close your eyes and you listen closely, you will hear the sound of cheering and excitement off in the distance, and that's because we're almost on the home stretch.

Today, more small details having to do with trim were done. But that matters little because the oven was put into place, as was the dishwasher. We do not have the cover panel for the dishwasher yet (I hereby officially shake my fist at Ikea in anger). The panel will match the other cabinets, and will thus make the dishwasher hard to find for those unfamiliar with our kitchen layout. This will make for very fun games of "find the dishwasher" during family gatherings. A new family tradition begins. How fun!

This picture will serve as a clue during the fun games of "where is the dishwasher" that we will play from now on. By the way, I fully expect to win a Pulitzer Prize for photo journalism because of this picture.

Dishwasher aside, seeing the oven in place felt like a bit of a milestone, even if we can't use it right now...because it's not plugged in yet. The electrician will be here this week to do his magic (by "magic" I mean making things work), as well as finishing up the outlets, light fixtures, and switches. This will also allow us to move the fridge into is permanent home, and away from the dinning room, where it has been squatting for some time.

It will be in this sacred compartment that many delicious cakes and pies will be baked. Its matching cooktop will be installed very soon. It will be on that sacred cooking surface that many plantains will be burned.

Lastly, it's worth mentioning that the small cubbies of storage space that will sit atop the wall cabinets (instead of a soffit), are being built off-site as I type this. They should be in later this week. Hooray for storage! Woo-hoo!

Said storage compartments will be housed atop these cabinets. Note the artistic qualities and considerations that make up this beautifully framed photograph. Eat your heart out Ansel Adams.

Day 20

Today lots of smaller things were done including trim under our cabinets, side panels on end cabinets, floor trim, etc. One big noticeable change is that our drawers and most of our cabinets have pulls on them now.

A lot of the larger equipment has been moved out of the house and we were able to move our dining room table back to the dining room, hang our curtains, dining room light and some of our pictures again. Things seem a little more normal now despite the fact that our refrigerator is in our dining room and we don't have any other appliances or a sink, and of course nothing is in our cabinets yet.





This is the space where our new dishwasher will go:



About 10% of the reason we did this entire project is that our last dishwasher was awful. I refused to get a new one any sooner because I kept thinking we would eventually get around to remodeling the kitchen, and it would be worth putting it off so that we could get all new appliances at one time and not pay for installation twice. The old dishwasher was not craigslist worthy - it went straight to the dumpster and I cheered as it left! Our appliances get delivered later this week and this space will be filled by early next week. Even if I can't use the new dishwasher for a few weeks, it will be so nice to know that it's there waiting for me.

Day 18 - 19

Yesterday and today the remainder of the cabinets were installed. Some minor adjustments need to be made, and under cabinet light trim needs to be added, but everything is pretty much in place now. Today we had a new window installed, which definitely made a huge difference since the old one was about 60 years old. I'm not a big fan of white vinyl windows, but there just aren't many good options in a normal price range.

I was pretty happy to see this pantry and space for our fridge. Our pantry in the old kitchen was a stand alone cabinet that was meant for clothing, so I felt like this would be a major upgrade!

Still quite a ways to go before we see a countertop, but everyday we're further along!

Day 17: Progress!

So much has happened in just two days. Yesterday the kitchen was fully painted, but today several things happened:

-Corner post was installed
-Flooring was installed
-Some of wall cabinets were hung and the island cabinets were placed

Needless to say, the kitchen is looking quite a bit different today.

The corner post is one of our favorite parts of the kitchen. We saved a few hundred dollars by purchasing a beam that was part of a barn that had recently been dismantled in Leechburg, PA. The barn was built nearly 100 years ago and we felt it would be a nice contrast to the modern look of the rest of the kitchen. For the last few weeks a few 2x4s were holding up our ceiling but now this solid oak beam is doing that job.

The cork flooring is also in (with a few patches of hardwood on the outskirts of the kitchen that still need to be stained to match our other flooring):

Several of the cabinets are in and I'm already dreaming about how I am going to organize the things that will go in them!

Day 15: Plastic comes down!

Today was the big day. The sheets of plastic surrounding the kitchen have been removed and we can now get a real sense of what the new kitchen feels like without two of the four walls that used to surround it. It is pretty great! The ceiling was primed today and since the kitchen ceiling now joins the dining room ceiling, the whole area was done.

Believe it or not, there was still more patching and sanding today as well!

This is what the area looks like now from our living room looking into the kitchen:


From the dining room looking towards the front entrance.

Things are starting to look better but we still have another 3-4 weeks to go!

Goodbye stove

I posted our old stove on Craigslist today. Goodbye old stove, you served us well.


Hello future built-in oven and cooktop! I look forward to working with you!

Day 12: Cabinet assembly

No, the kitchen did not magically get to the point that cabinets can be installed. Unfortunately, we've still had a couple more days of drywall finishing - patching, sanding, then more patching and sanding. So the kitchen itself doesn't look all that different yet.

The big update today is that the Ikea contractor, QWR, sent a guy to our house to assemble the cabinets that were in that large stack of boxes in our garage. Unfortunately, Ikea sent us two wrong cabinets (birch instead of white) but QWR said they haven't had that problem before, and some minor inconveniences are definitely worth the money we saved by going with Ikea cabinets. I would not let it deter any of you that may be considering Ikea cabinets!

We now have a huge pile of empty boxes that will need to be recycled next week, and this lovely string of cabinets.


Tomorrow, there will be more sanding so hopefully I will have a better update later this week!

Day 10: Drywall Mudding

Today the drywall was tapped and mudded. Not sure if that's the right term for it or not.

Days 6-9

Last Thursday, Friday and this Monday the electrician was here to add switches, outlets and recessed lights. The photos aren't too exciting, but you can see some of the changes in the photos I took today. more importantly, today they drywalled over the few areas of the kitchen that needed it. One of the larger areas was the small wall that was built where the entrance to our kitchen used to be (the small white wall in this photo). This area will be mostly hidden when the kitchen is done because a pantry will be placed in the corner, leaving just enough room for the switch. On the grey wall you can see an outlet that will be behind our pantry. We will have rollout shelves so we're planning to put our coffee maker in our pantry and there will be a cutout at the back so that we can plug the coffee maker in.



This is the other side of the small wall:




The ceiling around the beam was also drywalled:




As well as the area on the ceiling where the wall between the dining room and kitchen was:



The plumbing was capped off and new drywall was installed around it:




Last but not least, the subfloor was screwed into our floor joists...not sure why this wasnt done before...it must have been right? I guess our contractor was just making sure it was!