Kitchen remodeling and pics [Archive]

Janey

07-03-2005, 08:58 AM

Pineknot - Thanks! My fiance, B, bought the house 15 years ago but did very little updating in the 15 years he had it. He's really excited to "finally have his house the way he's always wanted it."

Isn't the woodwork fantastic?! I love it! It might be causing us a little bit of "Scope Creep," though. In the beginning, I had considered stripping all of the paint off of the wood. Our first "DIY Home Improvement Project" was to strip away the 10 layers of paint off of the one window. But it took two days... and it still would've taken a lot more work to get it to the point where it was "stain-quality." When I looked at how much time that one window took... and multiplied that by the 15 windows on the first floor, plus all the base and crown molding... I said, "So um, can we just replace it?"

My contractor knows a place where we can get take a piece of the trim and pay $75 to get a die made to match our current trim, and then have them slice us off as much trim as we want. Which would be great... but I'd still have to strip/sand all of the mullions, which is the hard part anyway... so why not just replace the whole window? :eek: But we're already spending a lot more money than we thought we would on this project, so we've decided window replacement is in a separate scope. We're going to have a strange combination of white and stained woodwork for a while. :)

That has been the hardest part of our project: Knowing when to stop. ;)

Kristen78

07-08-2005, 02:00 PM

We did an entire kitchen remodel last year. It was all DIY too.

Here is our kitchen before
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4dc35b3127cce9c1543b2674c00000016108AcNGrZi0atL

That aweful wall was running right down the middle of the house, making a galley kitchen. We took the wall down and viola!

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5df32b3127cce9e1f6eaa9ff300000025118AcNGrZi0atL

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5df32b3127cce9e1f73eadf2500000016108AcNGrZi0atL

If you are having trouble envisioning how it changed, the sink + sink window are pretty much in the exact same locations. We had to move the window + sink over to the left about 12", but thats about it.

I LOVE my new kitchen!

Janey

07-08-2005, 04:11 PM

Wow, Kristen! That looks GREAT! Congrats. And your kitty looks exactly like my Macaroni. :)

What did you use on your countertops? Is that granite slab? What kind? We are deciding between granite slab, quartz, and granite tile ... ahhh decisions.

southerner

07-08-2005, 11:25 PM

Oh, let's talk countertops. I thought I wanted granite, but I have heard that it can stain and you have to seal it every year. I haven't done a lot of research on countertops yet, so take that for what its worth :rolleyes: I think I remember a lot of girls liked cambria on the other site?!?

Kristen, are those cabinets pre assembled? What kind are they and where did you get them? And can I be very nosy and ask how much you spent on the whole project? I have a bad feeling we are grossly underestimating how much everything is going to cost.

kjh924, what stage are y'all at now? Are you living in the house? Sorry if you said that already and I can't remember, its late :)

Janey

07-09-2005, 07:21 AM

All of the countertops seem to have plusses and minuses. There is an article on about.com (http://interiordec.about.com/od/kitchencounters/tp/tp_countertops.htm) that I thought was helpful.

Cambria is one of the Quartz manufacturers -- along with DuPont's Zodiaq, Silestone, and Ceasarstone. We liked a couple of the Cambria colors (Tenby Cream (http://www.cambriausa.com/consumer/color.cfm?color=0510), and New Castle (http://www.cambriausa.com/consumer/color.cfm?color=0410)), and one of the Zodiaq colors (Lunar Pearl (http://www.zodiaq.com/zodiaq/a/en/h/Colors/ColorDetailLunarPearl.html)). I haven't seen a Silestone or Caesarstone color that made me say "oooh - that's IT!" One drawback to Quartz that the about.com article doesn't mention -- as far as I'm aware, they can't split the quartz to make a thinner backsplash. If your counter is 3cm, your backsplash will also be 3cm. I'm not sure I want to lose that much counterspace -- I will probably want to do something else for a backsplash, if we go with Quartz.

We had considered Corian/Solid Surface. We liked the idea of an integral sink -- no grout lines collect grime and get icky. We thought that Corian was a cheaper option than Quartz ... until we went to Lowes and did some price comparisons. The Corian we liked was "D" schedule pricing, and the Zodiaq we liked was "A" schedule pricing. Because we liked the cheap Zodiaq, it was less expensive than the Corian. Corian was therefore out of the running.

Last Tuesday, I ran around to different Granite Yards looking at slabs. One thing I will say about Granite is that it is essential to actually go to the yard and look at the slabs. You cannot say "I do/don't like that granite" until you actually go see it in slab form. What I liked in sample/tile form was not what I liked in slab form. The nice thing about granite is that it is freakin' gorgeous. The veins are amazing! I thought this Wild West Green (http://www.michelangelomarble.com/en/slabsample.asp?stone=wild_west_green&size=large) was soooo freakin' cool. Not what I want for my own kitchen, but I thought it was great nonetheless. The bad thing about granite is the price. Well, and the sealing. But mostly the price. Sealing doesn't seem to be too big of a deal to me. Every April or whatever, you just clear off your counter, and seal it up. I haven't received the price quote back on the granite to see how it compares to the Quartz.

One thing to keep in mind, which I didn't consider when I started this project ... when getting quotes on your countertops, a SF price means just about nothing. It's a good guide, but really, when you're making a decision like that, you should compare Lump Sum prices, not SF prices. If you have 25SF of countertop, and you pay $85/SF for granite, that's $2100. If Quartz is $75/SF, that's $1,875 ... not a whole heck of a lot of difference to pay if you really love the granite, and are just okay about the Quartz.

Whoo - a novel.

Anyway. Southerner - They're just finishing up the re-plumbing and re-wiring, and they will be starting drywall next week. I don't have any kitchen photos at the moment ... except for one where I'm showing that they put the can lights in (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/23785771/in/set-545442/). ;) Luckily, I had an apartment when B and I started dating, so I just kept the apartment during the remodel, and he moved in with me. I'll be really glad to get out of this tiny space, and into the house!

Kristen78

07-11-2005, 11:42 AM

kjh924 - The countertops are Quartz. Cambria is the brand name. the color is VICTORIA. I love them!

southerner - The cabinets are cherry wood. We ordered them from Home Depot and they are Kraftmaid brand. They are all preassembled. They come in large boxes and are delivered on a huge tractor trailer truck. The cabinets cost us about $8500 I believe. That was after a 10% coupon we had for Home Depot. We spent about $2500 on the tile floor. Another $4000 on the countertops. I would estimate another $4000 on appliances. We wouldn't have been able to splurge as much if we had to pay someone to do the work for us though. I really dont even know exactly how much the whole thing cost. We were at Home Depot pretty much every week buying stuff like lights, wiring, electrical outlets, flooring supplies, etc...

The other thing to remember is that we had to tear down that wall in the middle of our kitchen and my DH had to replumb alot of pipes. So that cost more money too. Faucet was about $300 on ebay (brand new), and the sink was about the same. its a double bowl stainless steel sink. I bought my fridge on ebay too. It was the deal of the century I think. Its a Kitchen Aid Superba. $2400 brand new, but I bought it from a warehouse in MA for $999 and it was brand new still in the packaging. I think thats the deal I am most proud of :)

If you have anymore questions let me know. I think our remodel ended up costing more than we initially planned, but it was spaced out over 5 months so we didnt have to pay for it all at once.

southerner

07-11-2005, 01:45 PM

Kristen, what made y'all choose cambria over the other types of countertops?

We are thinking about knocking out a wall or making a pass through.

Kristen78

07-11-2005, 02:11 PM

southerner - I didn't like granite. I never saw a granite slab (in a store or in a picture) that I loved. they are all really busy looking for me. I didnt want the hassle of having to pick out a granite slab either. Plus I didnt want to deal with possibly sealing granite, or having to deal with stains. We thought about slate or soapstone but in the end decided to go with quartz. I only choose Cambria because of their colors. I think they have the best colors. But Silestone, Caesarstone, etc...are all basically the same thing, except they have different color selections.

Kimberland30

07-11-2005, 05:59 PM

Does anyone have pictures of cabinets that are white but the walls are colored? I'm looking for inspiration for our kitchen. TIA!

amorey

07-11-2005, 06:30 PM

We remodeled our kitchen last fall. We had a tiny kitchen separated by a wall from a tiny(8'x6') breakfast nook.

Before:

http://annandsean.com/wc/before8.jpg

http://annandsean.com/wc/before4.jpg

During

http://annandsean.com/wc/demo4.jpg

After

http://annandsean.com/wc/after2.jpg

http://annandsean.com/wc/after3.jpg

http://annandsean.com/wc/after5.jpg

Asha

07-12-2005, 12:01 PM

amorey - i must say that is one of the best looking kitchens i have seen in awhile. it has such an original style and class to it. you made good use of a pretty tight space.

Janey

07-22-2005, 05:25 PM

We got drywall! Woohoo! It's soooo nice to have walls again. :)

Standing at the opening to the dining room, looking into the kitchen:
http://photos21.flickr.com/27866879_bef63af68e.jpg?v=0

Standing at the mud room, looking toward the dining room:
http://photos23.flickr.com/27866940_40c0599543.jpg?v=0

I also uploaded a couple of perspectives on the eventual cabinetry... we have a delivery date of August 12. Hopefully they're not lying. :p Ignore the windows; those are just the cabinet guy's drawings. We are replacing the windows, but the replacement windows will match current -- 6-light Queen Annes. Also, the thing next to the dishwasher shows a recycling pull-out... that is getting swapped with the bank of drawers next to the tall pantry. But, eventually, our kitchen will look (more or less) like this:

http://photos23.flickr.com/26114895_95565e3cea.jpg?v=0

http://photos21.flickr.com/26114883_bb8ac5f3fb.jpg?v=0

southerner

07-24-2005, 07:43 PM

kjh924 I went back and looked at your pics and now I understand them so much more with the drywall in place. It looks great in there. You ready to be done yet? What have y'all decided on countertops? IIRC, you hadn't chosen last time we talked about them.

Update:

We had a general contractor come in last week and we're waiting on an estimate from him. We are going to have to do some custom cabinets since we want to make a half wall where the range is now. He really encouraged us to get new doors instead of him trying to match the outdated ones we have now.

kjh924, are yours custom or stock (sorry if you've already talked about that). Do you mind if I ask how much and what kind of cabinets you are getting?

Amorey, what are your cabinets? Your kitchen transforamtion looks great by the way!! What kind of countertops are those??

We took this upper cabinet down a few weeks ago and it already feels so much more open.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5dc04b3127cce902025eb015200000045108YbtWzlu34

We are planning on putting the frdige here (where the double oven is now) and making the wall on the left (over the range) a pass through to our non used extra "family room" We would lose those upper cabinets, but gain some under the counters where our fridge is now.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5dc04b3127cce902025cc804500000025108YbtWzlu34

Janey

07-25-2005, 09:47 PM

kjh924 I went back and looked at your pics and now I understand them so much more with the drywall in place. It looks great in there. You ready to be done yet? What have y'all decided on countertops? IIRC, you hadn't chosen last time we talked about them.
Ohhhh yes - sooo ready to be done. We are crossing our fingers that we are in the house before we're married on 9/24. The contractor says they'll be working for about 3-4 weeks after the cabinets arrive, which means that if everything goes according to schedule (those words make me laugh every time I say them), we'll be done around 9/9.

We still have yet to decide on a countertop. We got the price back from the Cambria and it is in our budget. However, we have not heard back from the granite guy on pricing yet, and I want that info before we make a decision. Plus now we have come up with a third option which I hope to research this Thursday: Composite Countertop (http://www.environmentalhomecenter.com/shop.mv?CatCode=PRODUCT&ProdCode=SQUAK_MOUNTAIN).

kjh924, are yours custom or stock (sorry if you've already talked about that). Do you mind if I ask how much and what kind of cabinets you are getting?
Our cabinets are "Semi Custom." They come from a company called Pacific Crest Cabinets (http://www.pacificcrestcabinets.com/). They have sort of a lame website, but there you have it. Their cabinets are "Stock," but they have cabinets every 3"... so there ia a 15", 18", 21", 24", 27", 30", 33" and a 36" cabinet box. The guy came out to do a measurement, and where the cabinets were off a little bit, they add an inch or two wide 'Filler Strip' at the end to fill the gap, which was fine by us.

We are going with the Shaker Style Door (http://www.pacificcrestcabinets.com/content/products/door_styles/images/pop_ups/woods1/shaker.jpg) in a Cherry Natural (http://www.pacificcrestcabinets.com/content/products/door_styles/images/pop_ups/woods2/artisan.jpg) finish.

As for what they cost... well that's sort of a story in itself. At the beginning of the project, we had an allowance with the contractor of $7,500 for the cabinets. They set us up with Pacific Crest, and we worked with the cabinet guy to get the layout. Once we were happy with it, we went ahead and initialed the drawings, and said "OK." Then the guy got back to us with the price: $13,500. Unbeknownst to us, our contractor never gave the cabinet guy our budget. By the time we got the cost on the cabinets, it was sort of too late to do anything, as there's an 8-week lead time on cabinets, and we needed to get in line so we could get the cabinets on schedule, so we could get into the house before we were married. So, we went ahead with it, but not without me letting the contractor "know how I really felt about that" and I think he will forgive the markup on the overage, which means they'll likely end up being about $12k.

All of that being said, Pacific Crest makes the best cabinets in town, and we will have a fabulous product when it's all said and done. (I just wish it was all said and done right now! :p)

Sonicstef

07-26-2005, 08:58 AM

Before:
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/Kitchen_FishLeftSide.jpg
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/Kitchen_FishRightSide.jpg

During
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/Kitchen_FullDemoDay1.jpg

After (but before we painted and got a kitchen table...the back wall is now red, the moldings stained to match the cabinets)
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/WeBAlmost_Finished_Big_Pic.jpg
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/WebAlmost_Finished_Right_Bi.jpg
http://www.sonicstefdesign.com/files/WebAlmost_Finished_Left_Big.jpg

We lurrvvee the new kitchen.

Janey

07-27-2005, 08:52 AM

Sonicstef - I love your Madura Gold! :D It was the first one I saw when I went to the slab yards that made me think that maybe I did like granite after all. What a transformation - you must be really happy!

Aug2002Bride

08-05-2005, 08:09 PM

Hey Kristen!

I wanted to ask you if you knew what brand/color the yellow paint is in your kitchen!?? Im thinking about doing my dining room in a yellowish!

thanks
Karie

southerner

08-07-2005, 10:36 AM

so, it looks like we are going to get all new cabinets. Everyone we talk to urges us to do that for several reasons. It would update the look of the kitchen. To find a few doors to match the old ones would be hard (or so everyone tells us) and it would only be a little more moeny for all new cabinets :eek: It's hard b/c I know most of the people we are dealing with are out to make a buck. I would love new cabinets, but if we do get them, not everything we wanted (ie converting from an electric to a gas range, solid surface, new flooring, etc.) will fit into our budget. Such hard decisions!!!

How did y'all do it, have a budget, then decide that you wanted to spend more/less on certain parts of the remodel. Or did you allow your budget to conitue to grow? We are thinking we can just do the flooring, backsplash, etc. in the winter months and save up for those.

kjh924 this is cabinet delivery week for you. Sending good thoughts....

Sonicstef What kind of cabinets did YOU get?

suzubeane

08-07-2005, 11:52 AM

Southerner, if you have an Ikea nearby, you should check out their kitchen line. Very user friendly DIY, and they were rated #4 by Consumer Reports - higher than Kraft Made, and a lot of other brands you can get at kitchen and home centers. Obviously, less expensive - its' Ikea! You can download the kitchen brochure (a PDF file) on the Ikea website. We nearly went this route, and I still intend to when we do the bathroom. Our nearest Ikea is 2 hours away, but we thought it was worth it.

Also, I don't know if this is the thread where I mentioned this once before, but Home Depot's Mill's Pride cabinets were rated number 7 by Consumer Reports.

If you haven't already, check out the Kitchen Forum (http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath/)at the Garden Web; there's always an Ikea thread running, plus lots of other great ideas and people willing to disucss things.

Janey

08-07-2005, 03:39 PM

I will second Suzubeane's suggestion to check out Ikea. One of the architects in our office used Ikea for their kitchen. He and his wife put the cabinets together themselves, and have been really happy with the end results.

How did y'all do it, have a budget, then decide that you wanted to spend more/less on certain parts of the remodel. Or did you allow your budget to conitue to grow?
Well, we started out with allowances from our contractor. As I said before, we were sort of surprised by the cabinetry cost. For that one item, we allowed our budget to grow. Other than that, though, we have stayed pretty much on target, at least with the allowances. We keep having "Scope Creep" that is causing our budget to grow by leaps and bounds, however. :o I think scope creep can kill ya more than item creep can -- it's easy for me to draw the line on items... it's really hard for me to say something like, "No, I do not want to replace these 80 year old windows that have big globs of paint on the mullions, and even though they're double-hung, the tops don't come open. Let's just leave those how they are."

Southerner Thank you for your good cabinetry thoughts! Update from my end: We're still on target for cabinet delivery this Thursday. Appliances show up on Wednesday (woohoo! No more Brita!). Flooring & electrical trim start the following week.

Last Thursday, along with some help from my momma, I painted the kitchen a Martha Stewart/Sherwin Williams color called "Chopstick." It is a light-but-bright yellow. Since the room is a big yellow box at this point, it looks pretty bright in there, but I think once the cabinets & appliances are in there to cover some of it up, it will tone itself down a little. (The bathroom, hallway, and a couple of closets also got painted, but this is the kitchen thread. ;))

Also, we have finally made a countertop decision. The decision was made easy when we got the price back on the granite: $7,200. :eek: It was about twice what they had quoted us for Quartz, so we are going with Cambria New Castle (http://cambriausa.com/consumer/color.cfm?color=0410). It is very similar to Dupont Zodiaq's Astral Pearl, but the Astral Pearl has more of a green undertone, whereas the New Castle has a more warmer undertone. I think we're going to like it a LOT! :D

southerner

08-08-2005, 08:04 PM

suzubeane We don't have an IKEA anywhere near us and I think I'd feel funny ordering something I can't see and touch, is that weird of me??? Thanks for the link you posted, I'll go check it out.

We met with the kitchen specialist at LOWE'S tonight. He priced us some middle grade maple cabinets from KraftMaid and they were $7000 w/o installation. Alot more than we budgeted for, of course. And we have to get a downdraft oven/range and they aren't REAL common, so they're pricey too. So, now we're wondering if we should wait a few more months to save a little more money?!? This sucks......

Did anyone here convert from an electrical range to gas? How much did you have to pay someone to come in and add a gas line? I've heard it's worth the money you save on electric and cooking to convert it. I've never cooked on gas, so I don't know the difference, I guess. I'm also thinking of resale value for the house??

kjh924 I'm going to be so jealous of your solid surface counters. Post the pics of the yellow y'all chose, please mam :D

Asha

08-09-2005, 07:13 AM

southerner - personally, i wouldn't buy a house that didnt' have a gas range. i have had many bad cooking experiences on electric, so that alone puts me off. also, i once started a mini fire on one bc i didn't notice the electric stove was still turned on. plus, i wouldn't want to go through the hassle of installing a gas line where there wasn't one. i can imagine that might be pretty costly.

Janey

08-09-2005, 08:58 AM

kjh924 I'm going to be so jealous of your solid surface counters. Post the pics of the yellow y'all chose, please mam :D
I've been meaning to take pictures of the paint job, but keep forgetting. There is no light in the kitchen -- electrical or otherwise. They have removed the windows in the kitchen (and the bath) in preparation for our new windows to show up, so right now there is plywood screwed over them. It takes a cordless drill (and either a ladder, or a guy named B ;)) to take the plywood down. If I don't hurry up and get the pictures taken, though, I'm not going to be able to before they get a bunch of stuff in there, so I'm going to try to talk B into going over there after Fox Trot Class tonight. :)

I cut in by hand -- the first time I've ever done that! -- and I think I did a really good job. :D There's only one spot where I goobered the paint (and unfortunately it's in a visible spot) -- but I can touch it up when I paint the ceiling in the dining room. B pulled up the 80-year-old wood flooring in the dining room & den on Sunday, and I want to get the ceilings painted before the new floor goes in.

ETA: About the gas. B brought gas into the house and put in a gas insert in his fireplace, and a gas furnace. He plumbed for a "future gas range" at the same time. In this remodel, we are connecting a gas range, plus we plumbed for a "future gas dryer." I'm not sure how much it cost him to do the initial gas connection? But it was years ago that he did it. I am so glad he did. I can't wait for our gas range (http://www.frigidaire.com/products/cooking/ranges/free-standing/gas/prod_PLGF390DC.asp) -- it has a warming drawer! :D

http://www.frigidaire.com/images/images/models/PLGF390DC/PLGF390DC.jpg

Janey

08-11-2005, 07:07 PM

Pics of yellow room, as promised. The wall color is Sherwin Williams/Martha Stewart "Chopstick" ... the ceiling is "Sea Oats." It actually dried a lot lighter than I thought it would. It was practically Lemon when we put it up, but now it's closer to Butter (phew :p).

http://photos22.flickr.com/33292269_5ab67ebc62.jpg?v=0

http://photos21.flickr.com/33292340_963b4c7ace.jpg?v=0

(if anyone was interested, I also took a picture of the bathroom paint -- Squirrel's Tail (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/33292434/in/photostream/))

The appliances came today. They had to uncrate our refrigerator to bring it into the house, so it's the only one I've seen so far - the rest are still in the big boxes. But ... the fridge is sooooo pretty. I can't wait 'till they hook it up!

Cabinets come tomorrow! Woot!

southerner

08-11-2005, 07:34 PM

Wow, looking good in there/ I love that half wall in your bathroom. It akes the spcae look so open. Good luck tomorrow, can't wait to see the pics!

southerner

08-12-2005, 05:54 PM

cough....cough......

kjh924? Start talking and showing please.....

Janey

08-12-2005, 10:06 PM

Wish I could ... but no cabinets today. :( They will come "sometime next week," according to our contractor.

I was totally deflated. I'd gone to Builder's Hardware to pick up the rest of our cabinet (http://www.knobbykneeds.com/images/Amerock/Amerock-Full/1580-WID.jpg) hardware (http://www.knobbykneeds.com/images/Amerock/Amerock-Full/1581-WID.jpg), and then I went to Blackstock Lumber to choose a crown molding (for the other rooms) -- something I'd been putting off for a while. And then I thought, "Well, maybe the cabinet guys will be there by now! I should go check!" So I went over to the house. When I got there, it was like a ghost-town. So I call our carpenter, and he says, "Oh. Yeah. I meant to call you yesterday..." Bleah.

So instead of watching our sparkly new cabinets come through the front door, I ran around shopping for a mother-of-the-bride dress with my momma. That we were successful shoppers made the day a positive one. :)

Ah well. I suppose it's not all bad news, anyway. The silver lining is that the new windows are also due to arrive 'early next week,' so they may be able to install the windows before the cabinets after all, which is much more preferable than cabinets before windows. The other good part is that because there are no cabinets staged in the dining room, that means B and I will be able to pull up the subfloor in the dining room tomorrow.

Janey

08-19-2005, 05:01 PM

We got Cabinets! Woohoo! :D They're staged all over the living/dining room... but here's two pictures ...

http://photos23.flickr.com/35463343_4afa8b8d8d.jpg?v=0

http://photos33.flickr.com/35463266_7d796e9caa.jpg?v=0

I think I'm going to love those big pot drawers. :D I took a couple of other pictures of what everything looks like staged in the Cabinets! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/sets/784739/) set in Flickr.

The windows & doors also showed up today... they'll be installed next week. Things are going to start to move really fast now. Thank goodness!!

kemaji

08-20-2005, 06:36 AM

MrsHill -- If you don't mind my asking, what kind of cabinets did you get? I love them!

Janey

08-21-2005, 10:04 AM

Sure, Kemaji - they are from a company called Pacific Crest Cabinets. The door style is Shaker, the wood is Cherry, and the finish is Natural. Pacific Crest is a local company, but you can get their cabinets through Lowes, at least in this area.

southerner

08-21-2005, 08:37 PM

so glad you kept your avatar or I wouldn't have recognized you kjh924 :D Hope no one else has it (just kidding...)

Cabinets look great!!! Are y'all installing them yourselves? Or paying to have it done? Our quote from LOWES was $2000 for installation :eek: If we get the KraftMaid cabinets from there, we might install them oursleves?!? Does your cabinets have any fancy pull out drawers/organizers, etc.? The "bells and whistles" that we can add later are expensive too. We could shave some money off there....

Anyone out there install their own cabinets? Was it easy enough to do with three people that have never done it? DH and FIL are both pretty handy and could put them up on a weekend (I think!)

Janey

08-22-2005, 10:18 AM

so glad you kept your avatar or I wouldn't have recognized you kjh924 :D Hope no one else has it (just kidding...)
My avatar is a gamer-geek thing... I'm guessing there aren't too many of us around here. ;) I just felt like a robot with a serial # of kjh924. I asked Katy if she'd change it to MrsHill, which I felt was much less mechanical, and she did.

Cabinets look great!!! Are y'all installing them yourselves? Or paying to have it done? Our quote from LOWES was $2000 for installation If we get the KraftMaid cabinets from there, we might install them oursleves?!?
It's in the contractor's scope to install our cabinets. In fact they started work at our place at 6am today -- I assume installing windows first, then cabinets? We'll see. Lots of work to do over there now that the windows & cabinets have shown up. It's going to be fun to go over there after work every day this week and see what's been done. :) I don't know that we couldn't install the cabinets ourselves. I'm not sure what it takes? But with 4.5 weeks until the wedding... well, I think I'll let the contractor worry about that part.

FWIW - I've heard good things about the KraftMaid cabinets. In fact one of the interior designers at work recommended them, when we first started talking Remodel. We do some retirement community projects and they use KraftMaid in some of those.

Does your cabinets have any fancy pull out drawers/organizers, etc.? The "bells and whistles" that we can add later are expensive too. We could shave some money off there....
We did get a few upgrades. When we met with the cabinet guy, we really tried to make decisions that weren't WAY out of our budget, so we always chose either the low option, or the 'middle' option of what was available. Of course, we ended up way out of our budget anyway. :o I'll try to get pictures of the upgraded things once they're in, but this is what we did:

-- The interiors of the drawers/shelves are cherry laminate (they actually look like real wood & have the pacific crest logo 'burned' into them). The cheap option would've been just to have white, but we didn't want to open up our drawers and see white - it just screamed 'fake!' to me. The expensive option would have been full plywood box drawers, but that would've been really expensive, and we didn't want to go there.

-- There are tilt-out sink trays by the kitchen sink. I thought this would be handy to keep a sponge, the sink-plug-thing, and such in there. The trays pop out and can be ran thru the dishwasher if they get grimy.

-- There is a recycle pullout that has 2 cans. Now we will have lots of room for cleaning products, etc, under the sink.

-- We have an upgraded Lazy Susan. The lowest option was to do a plastic one, but it felt sort of chintzy. We got a wood one that has a little lip on the shelves so things don't fall off. There was one more option that was above ours -- I think it was stainless steel and would hold a ton of weight? Something like that, but it was a big-money upgrade, and we didn't think it was necessary for us.

-- There is a skinny cabinet next to the fridge; the upper 1/3 of that is vertical divided shelving, for trays, cookie sheets, etc. The lower 2/3 was going to be a pull-out thing with shelving (so the whole interior of the cabinet pulled out), but then I decided right at the last minute I just wanted an empty cabinet to hang a broom-holder thing, and put the step-stool in there (I am 5'1"). So that is now just an empty cabinet.

-- There are glass doors on the cabinets between the windows, and we will have lighting inside those cabinets. B was iffy about this, but I talked him into it with the idea that we could get semi-obscure glass. Also I tried to sell it to the architect in him by giving him some mumbo-jumbo about how great to 'carry the idea of the windows across that side of the space,' and he bit. ;) The window mullions sort of match the mullions on the cabinets. The windows are 6 light Queen Anne, cabinets are 9 light. But I think it'll look great.

-- There are 4 shallow-drawer type pullouts in the tall pantry cabinet.

I think those are all of the upgrades we did. I'd like to get a "mop/broom holder" for the broom closet pantry and one of those things that pulls out underneath the sink for cleaning products, but I figure we can add those ourselves later. I'd also like to get a paper towel holder for under the sink on the cabinet door. I'd like to keep as much off the counter as I can. But, I figure we can do all of these things on our own, later. I'm just excited to see things moving again!

marchfamily

08-24-2005, 10:30 AM

Our contractor starts demolitian next Tuesday. We still have SOOOO many details to work out....

southerner

08-24-2005, 11:53 AM

mrshill those are a lot of the "bells and whistkes" we want too. By the way, good luck at the wedding. I think it's soon according to your sig

marchfamily don't forget to take some before pics!!! What kind of work are y'all doing? Getting new cabinets? Kind of countertops? Etc.?

marchfamily

08-24-2005, 12:32 PM

We are remodeling 2...yes, 2 kitchens and baths. We own a two flat and are renovating the tennants unit and ours. Both of our places are circa 1950. Totally ugly and dated (think lime green and little tiles as far as the eye can see). Just bringing us into this century will be an improvement.

Tennant: basic bath - white tub, sink, toilet, laminate floors. Kitchen - oak cabinets, laminate counters, laminate floors.

Ours: bath - similar to upstairs, but with upgrades. Kitchen - Maple/Shaker style (finish to be determined), Corian counters (color to be determined), ceramic floor (although I'm still pushing to refinish the hardwood floors), ceramic backsplash, etc.

All of these are pretty major remodels, complete with tearing out the plaster walls, filling in windows to no where and putting up drywall.

Any advice would be welcome. My next 6-10 weeks should be torture!

Janey

08-24-2005, 10:22 PM

Marchfamily, I hope you keep a photojournal of your remodel! That has been a most rewarding part of the journey -- taking pictures of every step, and seeing just how far we've come.

Southerner - the wedding is rushing at us like a crowd at a european soccer game. :p Tomorrow I have 10am appointment with videographer followed by noon appointment with the contractor (and the estimator ... here's where we get to bang our shoes on the table and argue about whether or not it is fair that they credit us for the markup on the cabinet overage, hear me roar ...), then I'm off for a dress fitting at 3pm. Friday brings a meeting with the reception site followed by a meeting with the photographer. Then we pull up wood floors & underlayment this weekend. This is me lately: :eek: :p :confused: :D :( ...I think B thinks I might be going insane!

We got windows and a bunch more cabinets in the last 2 days, including the uppers. Now it really looks like a kitchen. I won't post more pictures (this thread is already fairly photo-heavy), but I will give a link to the updated Flickr "Cabinets!" (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/sets/784739/) set. It was pitch black when we went over there to take the pictures, so I couldn't really tell what I was taking pictures of until the flash went off, so if they're not straight, that's why...

marchfamily

08-25-2005, 05:47 AM

We picked out our cabinets last night and the cabinet place did a kitchen preview for us (computer animated view of the kitchen). E-Gads...I am so excited. We ended up doing Maple cabinets, medium finish, shaker style for our place. Oak cabinets, light finish, shaker style for the tennant. I'll try to post a before picture and the preview over the weekend.

What are your thoughts on cabinets? With the maple/medium finish, stainless steel sink and appliances - would you go with dark corian? P.S. Our floors will be a lighter ceramic tile.

southerner

09-01-2005, 08:20 AM

MrsHill, how goes it?

Janey

09-01-2005, 08:50 AM

Not too many kitchen updates. They did put down the bathroom floor tile (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/37478954/), and they are doing the tub surround tile today (I think). Yesterday they put down the kitchen flooring (Mannington Resilient). Our carpenter said that they protected the floor and moved the appliances 'mostly where they go.' Which I assume means they're in their spots, sorta, but they haven't actually installed them.

I haven't been over to the house in a couple of days. I'm going over there today, but with the protected flooring & stuff staged in the kitchen, I'm not sure what kind of photos I'm going to get.

Hardwood floors (the hardwoods are going throughout the first floor of the house excepting the kitchen/bath) start September 5; electrical trim, plumbing trim (we also rewired & replumbed the whole house) and countertops start the week after. Finish carpentry starts the week after that.

It will be nice to have lights and a toilet again... haven't had those luxuries since June.

suzubeane

09-01-2005, 01:51 PM

MrsHill - I looked at your photos on flickr and I wondered ... do you have floor plans posted somewhere? I can't get a good handle on how you're reconfiguring the space. (I'm fascinated by construction; it's an occupational hazard!)

Did you work with an architect? Or come up with the plan yourselves?

gizzyntaz

09-01-2005, 04:10 PM

We are under contract (complete kitchen remodel)...work to begin mid-October. DH & I aren't handy, so we are having a company do it. They will do everything but the floor and painting... We'll have the flooring folks and the painters come in the week after they finish. I'm hoping for a 3 week duration, start to finish (a girl can dream, right?)

We live in a townhouse built in 1982 and we won't be staying more than 5 years. We are doing just enough to help resale tremendously, get enjoyment while we are here and not spend too much money (well, that really didn't happen ;) )

I'll take pictures and post as we go through this process...

- Alison :)

Janey

09-02-2005, 03:51 PM

Suzubeane - I do have floor plans in .pdf but they have my street address on them, which I don't really want to post for all the world to see. ;) I've asked B to print them to .pdf without the Identifying Features; hopefully he'll do that before he leaves work today.

B is an architect, so he already drawn up his house in AutoCAD. We reconfigured the space ourselves w/ tracing paper and colored pencils over the course of a couple of weeks. Then he drew up the demo plans and the remodel plans, and we handed them to the contractor. Even though B does not do residential work (he is currently lead architect on a large High School), he has lived in the house for 12 years. Throughout those years, he was always thinking things like, "It'd be so great if I could bust out this wall, put this over here, and do that with this..." So he had already thought out of a lot of the layout.

The kitchen/bathroom/1st-floor-hardwoods is Phase Ia. Ib is finishing the upstairs (DIY this winter/spring). Phase II is building a deck on top of the garage and painting the house RED. :D Phase III is finishing out the basement. We also plan to replace a few windows per year (5 down; 10 to go).

gizzyntaz - How exciting! You will be starting right as I am finishing. :D Like I said to marchfamily... keep a photojournal. It's really fun!

Marchfamily - Earlier in the thread I posted a big thing about the pros and cons of different types of countertops... and keeping that in mind, I will have to answer your question with a completely useless 'it depends.' We have a medium finish cabinetry and went with a lighter-colored Cambria, but it's totally user-preference.

Janey

09-02-2005, 07:36 PM

Suzubeane, I've got Floorplans:
The First Floor Demolition Plan (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/Demo-FirstFloor.pdf) shows where we started. The dashed lines are what was demolished. The First Floor Plan (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/FirstFloor.pdf) shows where we are headed.

What is next to the kitchen is a dining nook (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/15201678/in/set-168325/) which was way too small for use (B had installed shelves over the built-in benches & used the space as a Pantry), so we tore it out. Next to the stove was a chimney that was used to heat the whole house with coal back in the 20's. A later owner converted to Electric, and then B converted to gas... we figured it was time for the chimney to say See Ya. When B re-roofed just after he bought the house, he had them take the chimney down below the roofline. With this remodel, we had them take it the rest of the way out. Next to the chimney was the old broom closet. That was demoed, and we filled in the passthrough next to the broom closet for additional kitchen space. We also had them widen the opening between the kitchen & dining room just a bit, since we were just going to leave it as a cased opening. Shutting off parts of the house from other parts of the house is a lot smaller concern now than it was in 1925. ;)

The off-topic portions of the remodel are as follows ...
- We took over one of the bedrooms' closets (now it's a Den/Office, since there is no closet) to expand the bathroom. We also reconfigured the closets in that area.
- There were a pair of french doors (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/15202965/in/set-168325/) that lead from the dining room into the living room. We removed those doors from that opening and cut a bigger opening from the living room into the Den, and will use the French Doors there. The dining/living room opening will just stay as a cased opening. I wanted to close that opening in a little bit to make the dining room less of a hallway and more of a room, but the plaster is so fragile in this house that if you sneeze on it, it might crumble, so I just thought - let it be.
-The drug dealers (did I mention that our house used to be a marijuana growing facility?) did some interesting fly-by-night remodels, including attaching the previously detached garage to the house, flashing right across one of the master-bedroom windows (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/15202562/in/set-168325/) & caulking right against the glazing. When B moved in, you could stand in the room and look out the window either down into the garage, or up onto the roof. Sorta like bifocals, I guess. B cut the glass so the window was operable and just put plywood underneath; we had the contractor actually put a drywall patch in there & a new awning window which matches our six-light Queen Annes.
- The drug dealers also installed a very impressive electrical panel (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/15202657/in/set-168325/)---in the master bedroom closet. We had them flip the electrical panel around 180 to the mud room (it's against code to hang things in front of the electrical panel), and they also moved the electrical service to the house (it would've been a code issue for Phase II, Building A Deck). They did some other interesting things with that -- they furred out the wall in the closet, closed off the basement opening from the kitchen to the basement, and created an opening to the basement from the master bedroom ( :confused: )... all of which either B fixed prior to us being engaged, or we fixed in this remodel.

If you were curious, I also uploaded the Second Floor (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/SecondFloor.pdf) Plan & the Basement (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/Basement.pdf) Plan. The large room upstairs will be the Guest Room; the room at the end of the hall has really cute ceiling-lines and will be The Baby's Room. The basement is a full-height basement, and will eventually have a guest room (post two-kids), a rec/play/toy room (I am practicing already: "If you're going to make that kind of noise, you go down into the basement!"), another full bath, and a laundry/sewing room.

Sorry for the slight hijack... the kitchen remodel is part of a larger whole. ;)

suzubeane

09-03-2005, 04:27 AM

If you were curious, I also uploaded the Second Floor (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/SecondFloor.pdf) Plan & the Basement (http://home.comcast.net/~kjdsea/Basement.pdf) Plan. IF I was curious? IF? You had to ask? :).

Thanks for posting all of that - I'd seen your photos before, and was having trouble figuring out how everything went together. (I often lurk/post in the "new construction" thread, and get frustrated not having plans to refer to constantly!)

I won't hijack the thread any further; I'll just give you the link to my old home journal on the wc: Tales of a Do-it-Herself Remodeler (http://boards.weddingchannel.com/thread.jspa?threadID=471584) where I've posted plans of our undertaking (which are also fairly extensive - when a friend heard this about my plans she remarked "when architects go wild!") My LJ (see signature) has the continuation, and if you want to know how it's been going, see my contribution (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?p=157245#post157245) to the "Brutal Honesty" thread!

Congratulations on your wedding ... I can't imagine making all the wedding decisions and all the remodeling decisions at the same time!

marchfamily

09-06-2005, 01:45 PM

The contractor started the demolition of the kitchen and bath today! Wahoo!

tsmom

09-07-2005, 05:24 PM

Just subscribing and will post pix of our war (aka remodel) when I get a chance!

southerner

09-17-2005, 12:53 AM

mrs hill??? marchfamily???

how's the kitchens coming along?

We have decided to do out over the winter break (from work). That gives us a few more motnhs to save some money, so we can get the cabinets we want, so I'll just live vicariously through y'all until then ;)

tsmom, you promised pics :p

Candy

09-17-2005, 07:40 PM

We are in the process of getting granite estimates. :)

Janey

09-20-2005, 01:06 PM

How in the world did I miss new posts in this thread?! Maybe I got unsubscribed during the reorg? Ah well. Candy, I can't wait to hear how the granite estimates go for you! And tsmom, gizzyntaz, and marchfamily -- can't wait to see your updates!

Not much new on the Kitchen. We're in kind of a holding pattern for a while due to the new hardwoods, and waiting on our Cambria Countertop. The place that does the Cambria apparently has so much work that they've started a second shift. Good for them, but annoying for us! Our countertop is due to be templated on Oct 10, and will be installed shortly thereafter. I guess that is a bit of advice, Southerner: get schedules for everything way way beforehand, so you make sure things show up more or less when you want them to... especially if it's a DIY & you're living in the house... talk to people EARLY and plan WELL and OFTEN. :)

They did install our microwave and frigerator, so now I can eat diet food when i'm over at the house instead of having a nice excuse to eat out, which has been detrimental to my waistline. Over the course of the remodel, I've gained about 7 pounds... not exactly what you want to admit, 4 days before your wedding, but there it is. :rolleyes:

mrsdrummer

09-22-2005, 08:54 AM

Ok, It still needs paint but we're getting there.
Before
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d603b3127cce93c02a54404800000026108Das27lm1E

After
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d703b3127cce9465a8f99d5900000015108Das27lm1E
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d703b3127cce9465a8e01c7000000015108Das27lm1E
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d703b3127cce9465a8e19d4100000016108Das27lm1E

southerner

09-23-2005, 06:54 PM

mrsdrummer what did y'all do? new hardware? new flooring? new appliances? Looks good, do you know what color you are going to paint it?

mrshill good luck this weekend or congrats?? I know your wedding is right around now. When we asked about Cambria at Lowe's they told us it was on bacorder for 12-16 weeks :eek:

Janey

09-26-2005, 10:25 AM

mrshill good luck this weekend or congrats?? I know your wedding is right around now. When we asked about Cambria at Lowe's they told us it was on bacorder for 12-16 weeks :eek:
It is Congrats now. :) We're off to Crystal Mountain for the rest of the week, but I wanted to drop off a picture of our kitchen floor now that it has been uncovered. I think it turned out really nicely! It is Mannington Resilient, Acadia Ridge. I think the color # is 41214. The feet belong to Chris, our Carpenter, who was installing the crown molding around our cabinets. :)

http://static.flickr.com/29/46802473_66be76927f.jpg?v=0

Lizard

09-27-2005, 06:09 AM

LOVE that floor!! :D

We are starting the process of planning, organizing, idea-gathering, etc. for our kitchen renovation. I stopped off at Home Depot last night to get some preliminary countertop prices, and I was really surprised to see that Corian, Silestone, and granite were all nearly the same price. Corian was slightly cheaper, but granite was actually cheaper than Silestone if you chose a custom edge. That was really amazing to me, because I'd figured we'd have to do Corian to stay within our budget... we might be able to do stone counters after all. :)

The one thing I really loved about Corian though, is the integrated no-seam sink that they offer. I'm sure I'd like an undermount just as much, but both DH and I couldn't stop running our hands around the Corian sinks... LOL. They have a ton of them at 50% off this week as well.

cubbear

09-27-2005, 09:48 AM

the floor is beautiful!

Janey

10-01-2005, 06:41 PM

Thanks, Lizard & cubbear!

Lizard, we went through a big bunch o' countertop drama a few months ago... I wrote some on it earlier in the thread. All three options seem to be good surfaces -- I too loved the no-seam sink. But B liked the super-hardness of the quartz, and I loved how it looked, so it won out (the granite was twice the price of the quartz, so it lost). I'm sure whatever you choose will be great!

cling_and_clatter

10-04-2005, 12:04 PM

I'm normally just a lurker, but I wanted to show off my renovated kitchen! :D We live in a small townhouse that we totally gutted and redid this year. The kitchen cupboards were falling apart, had been painted *horribly* (meaning there was paint all over the toe-kicks and rangehood) and the floor was lovely 80's flowered lino. Plus, there were no base cabinets on the left side of the kitchen, just a fridge; there was no counter space.

Before:
http://web.unbc.ca/~fremmers/photos/townhouse03.jpg

http://web.unbc.ca/~fremmers/photos/townhouse05.jpg

After:
http://web.unbc.ca/~fremmers/photos/townhouse04.jpg

http://web.unbc.ca/~fremmers/photos/townhouse06.jpg

dzil

10-04-2005, 12:07 PM

cling_and_clatter, it's beautiful!!! I'm going for a similar look when we remodel.

southerner

10-04-2005, 12:14 PM

clingandclatter looks good, what kind of flooring is that? has it scratched easily?

mgrace

10-04-2005, 01:49 PM

Wow, amazing job clingandclatter!

Janey

10-05-2005, 08:31 AM

Holy Moly, clingandclatter! What a transformation! Congratulations!

Also if you don't mind me asking - what is that paint color? It's great!

Lizard

10-05-2005, 08:42 AM

Clingandclatter, that is almost EXACTLY what we're trying to do in our kitchen, look-wise. Beautiful!! What did you use for countertops?

cling_and_clatter

10-05-2005, 08:53 AM

Thanks you guys :o

southerner - the floor is just regular 8mm laminate flooring. I don't remember what brand right now...it hasn't scratched at all, but we did take a little chip out of it when were hauling 8 ft closet doors out of the house that had really sharp edges. I find it very easy to clean and it always looks nice - we have it on the entire first floor (minus the half bath) and in our bedroom.

MrsHill - the paint is "caraway" by Behr. I love it.

Lizard - the countertops are just laminated stuff, the cheapest you can get. I just picked a pattern that looked kinda granite-y.

This wasn't exactly a dream kitchen remodel - the cupboards and countertop and hardware cost us $3000 Canadian - so I'm glad that it turned out as good as it did.

Julss05

10-08-2005, 08:34 AM

We badly need a kitchen remodel! No pictures to share yet but I can describe. We have a small L-shaped kitchen with dark stained wood cabinets, fake butcher block countertops, and ugly country designed laminate flooring I'm in the process of pulling up. Oh and lets not forget the huge florescent rectangle lighting:rolleyes:. There was a bar in the middle of the kitchen which made it feel even smaller so I ripped that out. After pricing cabinets we decided it might be best to try to salvage the existing cabinets by stripping the dark stain to lighter wood. Two doors and hours of sanding later we aren't that far along but the lighter wood is an improvement. My dad suggested we just paint the cabinets to save us money and time if we don't get new. He owns his own business installing cabinets for Lowes. Unfortunetly he doesn't live nearby otherwise I'd have him install new ones.;)

For those who kept their original cabinets or considered it, what did you do to remodel them? Since we need new flooring, lighting, and countertops it would save us a lot if we could keep the cabinets!

We are looking at light wood or light colored cabinets (not white) with a darker quartz countertop in either a black or green stone color. The fllooring we have partially decided on real wood (maple color) and track lighting up above and under the cabinets.

suzubeane

10-08-2005, 09:40 AM

Julss05 - We combined three spaces to make our new kitchen, and are keeping the pantry cabinets. It's not quite the same issue you have, since we are stripping layers of old paint off, to be able to put a new even coat of white paint on.

I think your dad has a point about the stained cabinets. Stain is not like paint - it goes into the wood, and it can't really be stripped easily. You end up sanding off the whole top layer.

However, you might want to visit the maplecraft USA (http://www.maplecraftusa.com/)website. They have many products for anyone who is refacing cabinets and/or replacing doors.

Jennifer

10-10-2005, 08:19 PM

Julss05 - I'm in the early stages of a kitchen facelift/mini-remodel. We decided our cabinets were in great shape and really the best layout for our small space...but I HATE the 1990 yellow oak and plain doors - we ordered new doors from MapleCraft USA (they'll be here next week) and are painting with a creamy white paint and an espresso glaze. We're also replacing the counters, backsplash, appliances and installing recessed lighting (we have the big rectangle light box too!) - so far things are looking really good - we're excited an it's saving us a ton (time, money and hassle!) over ripping out the old cabs.

I'll post pics in a couple/few weeks when we are further along!

Janey

10-10-2005, 08:20 PM

I finally have some photos of an uncovered kitchen! Not that it's done ... they came to template our countertops today, but we don't get them for another three weeks... the guy said that they're running 4 shifts per day -- they're now running 24/7 to keep up with demand. CRAZY. Anyhow... i'll make the pictures small, but you can see the big ones at our Flickr site (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/) if you wanted.

Standing in the dining room, looking at the right hand side of the kitchen:
http://static.flickr.com/33/51371717_43a38f5e23_m.jpg

Standing at the lazy susan:
http://static.flickr.com/32/51371549_1ce093b6dd_m.jpg

BTW suzubeane, I saw your LJ with all of the pictures. That is looking great! I love those apron-front sinks. We'd considered getting one of those too.

Secret_Squirrel

10-11-2005, 09:40 AM

Wow, such great inspiration in this thread!

DH and I are getting ready to redo our kitchen which is in dire need of attention. I swear, I am jealous of some of the "before" pictures here.

Cabinets: The original 1963 cabinetry. Painted over a bazillion times with glopy hunter green, it covers the hinges and has dried with thick drips all over the place. One of the drawer faces broke shortly after we moved in and now just hangs there, resistant to our gluing attempts.

Counters: The original laminate countertop. Worn through in a few places, delaminating in others. Other counters are 4x4 tile in avocado, with perma-gunk in the grout. Disgusting.

Sink: The severely scratched white sink has the porcelin worn off in several areas. It stains constantly and needs to be bleached clean.

Appliances: White and black range, no vent hood. Almond refridgerator and my dishwasher is on wheels - yes, it rolls over to the sink and is hooked up with a hose every time we need to use it.

Lighting: dark, dark, dark! Look at the picture below. I can barely see what I'm cooking on the stove (at times, I've used a flashlight so I can see).

Layout: It could be a galley kitchen, but no one ever installed counters or cabinets along one long wall.

The previous owners did install a new laminate floor, which we will keep.

Here's the picture from before we moved in. It looks nicer here than IRL:
http://cache2.windermere.com/Photogallery/69/prod1022469.jpg

I've put up temporary wire shelving along the far wall to make it more functional until the new cabinets are installed.

We're doing all the work ourselves, which should make this job a real adventure! Are Ready to Assemble cabinets as easy as some people make them sound? They're tempting because they'll save money, but I'm afraid they'll make everything a lot more complicated.

suzubeane

10-11-2005, 10:05 AM

BTW suzubeane, I saw your LJ with all of the pictures. That is looking great! I love those apron-front sinks. We'd considered getting one of those too.Heh - thanks. The plumbing under the sink is done now, and because of where the drains are on the apron sink, the PVC traps are snaking all over the place. I'll be lucky if I can fit a little trash can under there! So you might have made the right choice going without the apron. :(. Who knew?

(If anyone wants to check these out, my remodel pictures are all public in my LJ - link below. I'll post some here when we get closer to completion.)

We're doing all the work ourselves, which should make this job a real adventure! Are Ready to Assemble cabinets as easy as some people make them sound? They're tempting because they'll save money, but I'm afraid they'll make everything a lot more complicated.S_S, if there's an Ikea near you, you should check out their kitchen line. They were very highly rated by Consumer Reports - even more highly than some NON-RTA cabinets. Plus, Ikea makes things easy for the DIYer.

IMO, your kitchen has great bones for a DIY project (If you're not planning on changing the layout too much.) Both the runs of cabinets are flanked by full walls on three sides - this will make flaws easy to hide, and the cabinets and counters will have a lot of structural support without a lot of extra effort on your part. (Islands and peninsulas don't have as much inherent support, and because you can see them from all angles, it is hard to hard flaws - which all remodels have, because nothing is really square and perfect!)

suzubeane

10-11-2005, 10:10 AM

we ordered new doors from MapleCraft USA (they'll be here next week) and are painting with a creamy white paint and an espresso glaze. Jennifer, I keep recommending MapleCraft USA, but I haven't used them myself yet. I have a few doors and faceframes I'll need in other (non-kitchen) areas of my house before I'm done - I'll be interested to hear about your experience with MapleCraft.

Secret_Squirrel

10-11-2005, 10:50 AM

S_S, if there's an Ikea near you, you should check out their kitchen line. They were very highly rated by Consumer Reports - even more highly than some NON-RTA cabinets. Plus, Ikea makes things easy for the DIYer.

IMO, your kitchen has great bones for a DIY project (If you're not planning on changing the layout too much.)

Thanks, Suzubeane. I really wanted a walk-through kitchen when we were house hunting and we passed on one house with a beautifully remodeled kitchen, but it was tiny and a dead-end. Now we've got a big project, but at least it'll be what I want when we're done and it'll be mostly cosmetic stuff - no walls or plumbing have to move. :)

We do have an Ikea about 35 miles away and we're going there this weekend to check out their kitchens (and eat meatballs ;) ). I've bought a lot of stuff from them and it's never been that hard to put together. Still, a whole kitchen is another matter. My dad's used both pre-assembled and RTA in his projects and says the pre-assembled stuff is a snap to install. So we'll get prices, look at our budget and schedule and see what hurts the least!

suzubeane

10-11-2005, 11:01 AM

We do have an Ikea about 35 miles away and we're going there this weekend to check out their kitchens (and eat meatballs ;) ). Ooh! So excited for you! I didn't end up using them because I wanted to keep my existing (80 year old) wall cabinets, but I will eventually be redoing my upstairs bathroom with Ikea.

If you haven't done so already, download the new (2006) kitchen planner tool from the ikea site, and play with it before you go. Then put your plan on a disk and take it with you - you can plug it into a computer there, and keep going with your design.

Also, check out the kitchen forum (http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath/)on the GardenWeb - there's always an active Ikea thread.

Secret_Squirrel

10-11-2005, 11:31 AM

If you haven't done so already, download the new (2006) kitchen planner tool from the ikea site, and play with it before you go. Then put your plan on a disk and take it with you - you can plug it into a computer there, and keep going with your design.

I'm on a Mac at work, so I'll have to try to download it at home - it'll take 26 minutes with our dial-up connection - yikes!

I suppose that will be 26 minutes well-spent. It sounds cool!

suzubeane

10-11-2005, 11:42 AM

You can download it at work, then put it on disk and install it at home. (I think!)

kari

10-11-2005, 12:02 PM

We are in the process of re-modeling our countertops, sink and faucet. Our house is only 4 years old but they put in white tile with white grout and my DH is anal about the grout staining. Sooooooo we're going with Silestone (DH ruled out granite, which I wanted, because it is porous and you have to seal it every year) in Kona Beige. It's pretty. Our walls are yellow and the Silestone has yellows, beiges and light browns in it. My DH works for a plumbing supply company and got the granite sink and Grohe faucet for very reasonable price!

We haven't started yet, waiting for the sink to come in.

shouldaeloped

10-11-2005, 12:21 PM

I have a question for those of you using Ikea.

according to their website, the pictures look like the cabinets are all on legs? is that accurate or is there something else that goes there? and wouldn't a kitchen look funny with all the base cabinets on legs?

am I missing something???

we are currently redoing our entire kitchen and need cabinets. holy smokes are they expensive. . putting quite a crimp in the budget!

thanks in advance.

suzubeane

10-11-2005, 12:50 PM

I have a question for those of you using Ikea.

according to their website, the pictures look like the cabinets are all on legs? is that accurate or is there something else that goes there? and wouldn't a kitchen look funny with all the base cabinets on legs? They ARE all on adjustable legs (that's the European way, but lots of builders here are starting to do it) but most people also buy the toe kicks, which clip onto the legs.

There are a few users here on CC who have used these cabinets; amorey and weddingsby come to mind. You can start a new thread and "page" them.

shouldaeloped

10-11-2005, 12:54 PM

suzubeane- thank you for your response!

southerner

10-11-2005, 01:34 PM

first of all, MrsHill, it looks FABULOUS in there. I'm jealous!!!! I can't imagine what it feels like to have made so much progress :rolleyes: Sorry about the countertop drama! You got Corian, right?? That stuff is so in demand now, it's crazy.

suzubeane thanks for allowing me to "snoop" in your LJ. I never realized the extent of work you were doing until then :eek: Tell me about stripping the cabinets. Worth the time they took? We could save so much money if we just stripped ours down, but they are like what Secret_Squirrel decribed hers as
Cabinets: The original 1963 cabinetry. Painted over a bazillion times with glopy hunter green, it covers the hinges and has dried with thick drips all over the place. One of the drawer faces broke shortly after we moved in and now just hangs there, resistant to our gluing attempts.

I have the broken drawer fronts and beat yours by a year (1962), Secret_Squirrel ;)

welcome to the new "kitchen crew" (shouldaeloped, Jennifer, Julss05 and Secret_Squirrel, kari :p

gizzyntaz

10-11-2005, 02:23 PM

I guess I should post an update. We were supposed to have the contractors start the kitchen demo/remodel this week. It's been postponed because the cabinets were delayed. I'm not too upset though, as I just got back from traveling with my son ALONE for a week and then had visitors (ILs) all weekend.

Our project should get started in about 4 weeks. We still have to pick out flooring and a paint color. I will only have a teeny tiny piece to paint though, so I may wait until the kitchen is completely done before picking a color.

Secret_Squirrel

10-11-2005, 03:42 PM

first of all, MrsHill, it looks FABULOUS in there. I'm jealous!!!! I can't imagine what it feels like to have made so much progress :rolleyes: Sorry about the countertop drama! You got Corian, right?? That stuff is so in demand now, it's crazy.

suzubeane thanks for allowing me to "snoop" in your LJ. I never realized the extent of work you were doing until then :eek: Tell me about stripping the cabinets. Worth the time they took? We could save so much money if we just stripped ours down, but they are like what Secret_Squirrel decribed hers as

I have the broken drawer fronts and beat yours by a year (1962), Secret_Squirrel ;)

welcome to the new "kitchen crew" (shouldaeloped, Jennifer, Julss05 and Secret_Squirrel, kari :p

Thanks for the welcome!

And you know what? I was wrong, our house was built in 1962, too. So we are icky-old-cabinets-and-broken-down-drawer twins!

1962 must've been a bad year for cabinetry, eh?

southerner

10-11-2005, 06:24 PM

Secret_Squirrel

10-12-2005, 10:15 AM

icky-old-cabinets-and-broken-down-drawer twin, how old are the laminate floors in your kitchen? Are they in good shape? My mother is encouraging us not to get laminate. She says hers scratched real easily.

"icky-old-cabinets-and-broken-down-drawer twin"

LOL!

Does your mom have light-colored laminate floors? Because my mom put light-colored laminate in her kitchen and she said the same thing to me (this is getting spooky, lol). My mom's floor is also about 10 years old, and I think they've improved it since then.

I haven't noticed any obvious scratches and we've been there for a year. I've scrubbed it by hand a time or two, so I've been up close with it.

We haven't been easy on the floor, either. My kids have roller-bladed on it and I've dragged heavy furniture accross it. It might leave a clear "rub" mark, but it doesn't penatrate the surface and wipes right off.

One thing I'd be careful of is using glueless laminate. It doesn't have a good seal and water can get into the seams in a wet environment and it could damage the sub-floor or swell the plank. We put the snap-together floor in our bedroom, but I wouldn't use it in a kitchen.

Also, we bought cheaper stuff at first (I liked the finish on it). It was a PITA to install and kept chipping. We took it all back to Lowe's and bought the Armstrong floor (we didn't buy Pergo b/c I like a little woodgrain texture and Pergo is all smooth). It was a *much* better product and has held up well so far - only 8 weeks, but we did move a bed, dresser and wardrobe across it.

suzubeane

10-12-2005, 11:32 AM

One thing I'd be careful of is using glueless laminate. It doesn't have a good seal and water can get into the seams in a wet environment and it could damage the sub-floor or swell the plank. We put the snap-together floor in our bedroom, but I wouldn't use it in a kitchen.Aack! I am using glueless laminate in my kitchen!

I picked it because
a.) price
b.) It is very forgiving, and I combined three rooms into one - i was lucky to get the sub floor as even as I did, and ...
c) I was able to get a wide plank; It's going to look great in my period kitchen, but I could never have afforded a wide plank real floor.

I guess we'll have to try to wipe spills up fast!

Jennifer

10-13-2005, 04:14 PM

Thanks for the welcome to the "kitchen crew"! I'm hoping I'll have "after" pictures soon - but we're DIYing everything but the gas line install (4 long painfull days instead of the one day it was estimated at!) and the granite counter install - and of course we're at work during college football season (DH is HUGE fan with season tics for the local team) - and when both of us are crazy at work - but this disaster is getting old - so I'm moving as fast as I can!

suzubeane - I'll let you know how our MaplecraftUSA doors are - we're placing 2 orders - on primed paint grade and one order of unfinished wood (same design) - so I'll get a good idea of quality.

Janey

10-14-2005, 10:55 PM

We finally got a date for the countertop installation: 10/27! WOOHOO!! I'm so excited about these freakin' countertops that I almost feel like I am posting about a BFP. ;) 10/27 is also my mother's birthday, as well as her mother's birthday. A happy day for many reasons.

The wood floors are getting their final finish coat of Swedish Finish put on them on 10/25 and the floor guy says it takes 3 days for the floor to get 'as hard as it's going to get' so we will have to usher the countertop folks in & out through the back kitchen door. I hope that's okay with them, and I hope our countertop fits through the back door. :p

Do you gals realize what this means?? Since I'll have to have all of the painting done by 10/24 -- I will finally get to post in the Paint Color Gallery (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=301&highlight=paint+color+gallery) thread! :D And OMG -- then the thread of threads that shows that something is actually completed -- Before & After (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=5)!! Holy Moly! I, MrsHill, will finally have an AFTER! :D Of course not to mention the fact that I'll finally get to move into my house with my new husband! :D

Jennifer (et al) -- know that before & during pictures are good to see too! We want to see the pictures!!

southerner

10-15-2005, 06:54 AM

AWESOME MRS.HILL!!!

I'm jealous :(

maggieb

10-15-2005, 11:55 AM

Lurking as we're in the extreme beginning stages of a kitchen remodel. We just took out a home equity loan to renovate our entire house, so I am currently looking for ideas for the kitchen. We probably won't start until next fall though. Currently I am in love with the Barefoot Contessa's kitchen, but realize that I am dreaming.

amorey: Where did you get your flooring? That's the look that I'm potentially going for.

suzubeane

10-15-2005, 12:46 PM

suzubeane thanks for allowing me to "snoop" in your LJ. I never realized the extent of work you were doing until then :eek: Tell me about stripping the cabinets. Worth the time they took? Oops ... sorry I did not respond to this before.

First of all "snoop" away! It will be a LONG time before I can post any respectable "after" pictures, so the progress shots are all I've got!

About stripping: It totally depends on the cabinets. Ours are probably Douglas Fir (the standard back then) really tight grain and very strong. They are literally built onto the wall (again - the standard back then) so I know they are tough.

In your shoes I'd seriously look into refacing - check out that Maplecraft USA site. They have doors of all different qualities (for painting or staining) and face frames, too.

suzubeane

10-15-2005, 12:51 PM

The wood floors are getting their final finish coat of Swedish Finish put on them on 10/25 and the floor guy says it takes 3 days for the floor to get 'as hard as it's going to get' so we will have to usher the countertop folks in & out through the back kitchen door. I hope that's okay with them, and I hope our countertop fits through the back door. :pWe had a similarly tight schedule with our floors and the scheduled move-in date, and were also told three days to harden. The floor guys also told us to put the temperature way up in order help things along, so you might want to ask them about this. (We turned our heat way up, but then our furnace broke, so needless to say I was freaking out about the move-in. It all worked out OK, though.)

suzubeane

10-25-2005, 02:41 PM

Hey, kitchen remodelers ... I have a poll in my LJ now asking opinions on what kind of faucet I should get. I've been obsessing over this on and off for months, and I'm coming down to the wire now - really need to decide.

The issue is that I have a large apron sink in a smallish kitchen. I find that most faucets that supposedly go with apron sinks are just "trying too hard" to look old timey. Many of the "gourmet" faucets are just too huge for my sink wall, but standard faucets are too small.

Have a look at the link in my sig; if you don't have an LJ account, you can tell me your preference here. ;).

Thanks!

PaulsGirl

10-25-2005, 03:42 PM

Here are ours: (we did it all ourselves!) It was more work than I care to remember, but at least it's done.
Before:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4d805b3127cce9c716d6ecff300000035118ActWrFozctL
After:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d822b3127cce91a0ea39a2bf00000025118ActWrFozctL
Before:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b4d805b3127cce9c716d6acff700000035118ActWrFozctL
After:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5d822b3127cce91a0ea3e238800000025118ActWrFozctL

Janey

10-25-2005, 08:48 PM

Hey, kitchen remodelers ... I have a poll in my LJ now asking opinions on what kind of faucet I should get. I've been obsessing over this on and off for months, and I'm coming down to the wire now - really need to decide.
I can't figure out how to vote, but my favorite is the Pegasus Series K 700 Old Fashioned Pull-Out faucet, or one like it. I like that it has the pull-out nozzle, and I like that it only has 1 handle. I bought one-handled faucets for both the kitchen & bath so I wasn't screwing with 2 handles to get the temperature right when I had soap on my hands/my hands on a pot/whatever. I also like that it is 'high' -- you won't be banging pots/dishes on it when you bring them up out of the sink. Does it swivel? I can't tell from the photo.

FWIW, we bought this Moen Extensa faucet (http://www.fixturesdirect.com/display.cfm?productid=7560SL&finish=Stainless&manufacturer=Moen) (at least I'm pretty sure that's the one, but it's been so long now I really can't remember). It's not right for your apron-front sink, but maybe others are looking for faucets too.

Also FWIW, I don't think you're weird at all for drawing faucets & pasting them where a faucet would go. ;)

Good tip about turning the heat up, except that we don't have any heat at the house, and won't until the 28th (Maybe. Theoretically. Assuming they do what they say they'll do when they say they'll do it). Countertops come on the 27th; plumbers come on the 28th; we move in on the 29th. Again, theoretically. Anyway, after that, you won't see me much till The Cable Guy comes... but when I come back, hopefully I'll have some countertop pictures. :)

southerner

10-26-2005, 05:25 AM

Paul's Girl, your kitchen looks great! Are those IKEA cabinets? What type of floor and countertops are those. you have a unique layout too!

suzubeane, headed to your LJ now. I haven't even thought about faucets yet :rolleyes:

dzmattie

10-26-2005, 11:23 AM

We are currently working with a builder on our new house and going to pick out the kitchen on Friday. Thanks for all the info and pictures. I was wondering - what web sites do you use for ideas? I have found it kind of hard to find free sites that have good pictures of different styles of kitchens....we have an allowance for the cabinets....not sure if it is alot or not.....

southerner

10-28-2005, 12:14 PM

mrshill big weekend for you....can't wait to see :D

Janey

10-28-2005, 03:18 PM

The countertops are soooo pretty!! :D I can't stop touching them - I run my hands over them and get this eyes-glazed-over look - haha. I can't wait to post pictures of them. But the plumbers are there today hooking everything up (including the furnace... it'll be nice to have temps inside the house abouve 53 degrees) and so I didn't want to be in there snapping photos. The dishwasher leaks around the motor, apparently, so they are calling the appliance guys to come out and take a look at it. Also sometime during construction, they broke a piece on our hot water heater and so can't hook that up today. Ahhhh - the joys of remodel.

We are moving in TOMORROW Finally (woohoo!) and so I'll be AFK until the cable guy shows up to hook up the internet, and we figure out how to make B's Mac & my PC network up together. I'll be back with pictures then!

suzubeane

10-28-2005, 03:27 PM

How'd the floors, come out MrsHill?

We do PC/Mac. We have the DSL line come into a router, then it splits and goes into the PC's modem. When DH wants to hook up his notebook, he just plugs into his part of the split. We're wired for Ethernet, but his half is still up in the attic! (From before that mad rush to wire before the walls got closed up. I'm sure you can relate. ;).)

Janey

10-28-2005, 03:58 PM

The floors look fantastic! The guy did a great job. We got flush wood vents, which also look wonderful. There's a large intake grille in the dining room where they had put in a flush cover as well, but this one is a wood grate; it doesn't have louvers. I was expecting it to have louvers like the rest of the smaller vents, but I realize now that it's too wide to be a louvered vent.

Speaking of the wood floors & intake, here's another tip for anybody hiring out a remodel: At some point (or points) during your remodel, you will come home and see that your contractor has done something differently from what you expected to see. When that happens to you, don't freak out, hyperventilate, jump up and down, and declare your hatred for whatever it is you just saw to the nearest human being even if they have nothing to do with whatever just happened.

Instead, take a deep breath and just say: "Huh. That is not what I expected to see." And then sleep on it. Maybe for a few days, even. You (and your nearest human) will be much happier for it. :) Just because it wasn't what you were expecting doesn't make it wrong. And it also doesn't mean you won't like it in a few days when you realize that whatever they did was probably better than whatever was in your head anyway.

I feel like I've grown as a human being through this process. :p

Screw this - I gotta go over there and take some pictures to post tonight. I'm way too excited not to! (so much for growing. ;) )

suzubeane

10-28-2005, 04:08 PM

I was expecting it to have louvers like the rest of the smaller vents, but I realize now that it's too wide to be a louvered vent. Returns aren't louvered because they must always be open. My return air duct is being relocated (we're operating without a real one now) and the original one was so big it looks like a subway grate! I'm having it cut down for it's new location. You probably already know this, but you can get reproduction iron ones in some of the restoration catalogs.

I think we need to start an "old house remodeling thread" so we don't keep hijacking the kitchen one!

Janey

10-28-2005, 09:00 PM

Suzubeane, good idea on the Old House Remodeling thread. If you start it, I'll join up when the cable gets hooked up. In the meantime, I got some photos of our Cambria Countertops:

Countertops:
http://static.flickr.com/27/57064969_6f925329c1_m.jpg

I think our cabinets look sleepy in this photo:
http://static.flickr.com/32/57064784_85cc7d89f9_m.jpg

Our kitchen counter from the perspective of a can of beans:
http://static.flickr.com/33/57064575_a789d98117_m.jpg

More photos at Our Flickr Site (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/).

suzubeane

10-29-2005, 04:15 AM

Very nice, MrsHill! I think Newcastle is my favorite Cambria. And I do think that's an Extensa faucet by the way. (you knew I'd notice. ;).)

I don't think I ever noticed your crown moulding detail before before - at least not as much before it was painted.

Congratulations! I think I'll wait on the "old house remodeling" thread until after you're back, since I don't know anyone else who would join. :). Maybe I'll start it up as a group in the "Group Threads" section.

numberlady

10-29-2005, 04:33 AM

MrsHill, I just wanted to post that I love your kitchen remodel. The cabinets and coutertops are beautiful!

Janey

10-29-2005, 07:04 AM

Thank you both! We're soooo excited for moving day. :D Neither one of us could sleep; we were up at 5:30.

The Extensa is the right faucet... but it's the wrong finish. It's supposed to be all brushed chrome; they installed a bright chrome/white one. They'll fix that.

I also forgot to take a picture of the sink ('course, there were dishes in it, which could be part of the reason I 'forgot'). B wanted a large single-basin undermount sink, so he could fit a big roaster pan or a Baby in it. We got a deep single-basin Elkay. It's actually deeper than I thought it would be. There were deeper models than ours... but man, I can't imagine how far you'd have to bend over to get into the bottoms of those!

maggieb

10-29-2005, 07:39 AM

I'll post in an old house remodel thread although we won't actually start remodeling for a little while. We're just about to start interviewing contractors/designers/architects.

southerner

10-29-2005, 03:54 PM

I think I'll wait on the "old house remodeling" thread until after you're back, since I don't know anyone else who would join.

Raising hand!!

Mrs.Hill, Looks awesome!!!!! I'm so jealous that you're done :(

southerner

10-30-2005, 01:09 AM

hey ladies!

I hope I'm not stealing anyone's thunder, but I started a thread for some of us "old home remodelers". here's the link (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=9688)

suzubeane

10-30-2005, 05:44 AM

Thanks, southerner!

southerner

10-30-2005, 10:56 AM

:D see you over there!

southerner

11-01-2005, 08:37 PM

suzubeane, tell us about the cabinets.

mrs.hill, you on Cloud nine or what??

Pineknot

11-01-2005, 11:22 PM

Mrs. Hill,

You sure have come a long way with your home. I love the colors you picked for paint and that new kitchen is beyond fabulous.

GREAT JOB!!:D

Janey

11-10-2005, 09:41 AM

Pineknot, thank you! :D What a compliment. Now that we're in, & I've chosen the colors for the rest of the house, I've decided I don't like the kitchen color. It doesn't blend well with the tone of the other colors, which I love. It's too harsh -- too green, maybe? Anyway, I'm going to try to find something a little more buttery when I do the 2nd coat. My mother has used a Benjamin Moore color that I think is great; as soon as she tells me what that was, I'll go down and compare it to the other colors to see if it'll work.

Southerner - yep, cloud nine! Except for that the dishwasher still doesn't work, so I'm still washing everything by hand. I feel like all I do all day long is Dishes! I know that not everybody has a dishwasher, but man, I certainly have been spoiled by one. In any case, the dishwasher guy is coming out TODAY to fix it (hopefully) and then I can bring the rest of our dishes down out of storage.

southerner

11-25-2005, 10:46 PM

Mrs.Hill, would love to see/hear any updates. Looking for some motivation (and hope) :rolleyes:

suzubeane, do you have new cabinet doors for your kitchen yet? Show us the faucet that you ended up choosing.

sneaksmom

11-26-2005, 11:56 AM

I just joined the site and this is my fave thread so far. Have any of you tiled your own backsplash? or have any good pictures of very simple backsplashes? (my kitchen is too small for patterns or murals) Am debating a very light celadon-y color or just a beige-y stone. The rest of my kitchen was remodeled before I moved in, but I think this would really help my kitchen seem more finished.

southerner

11-26-2005, 12:00 PM

tenofcups

11-26-2005, 12:25 PM

My ex-husband tiled our backspash. I wasn't home the day he did it, but I know he did it from start to finish one day while I was at work and I think it only took a few hours. FH and I will be doing ours shortly, but we haven't picked out tile yet.

suzubeane

11-26-2005, 04:32 PM

I am in the middle of working on my kitchen floor (pictures later!) but here's the faucet I chose:

http://www.sigmafaucet.com/images/sigmalrgimages/kitchenbar/350kitchensgllvrlargenewjm.jpg

I discussed how I chose it my LJ here, (http://www.livejournal.com/users/suzubeane/18363.html) but in a nutshell, it was a process of elimination. ;).

Wasn't the cabinet door discussion in the "old house remodeling" thread? At any rate, I still do not have the right doors, but after the floor is complete, I'll get in touch with the cabinet guy to see what's up.

southerner

11-26-2005, 08:06 PM

Wasn't the cabinet door discussion in the "old house remodeling" thread?

Yes it was, but I didn't know if anything had changed (i.e. you got them yet) and I don't know that everyone in this thread is over there.

suzubeane

11-27-2005, 05:10 AM

Yes it was, but I didn't know if anything had changed (i.e. you got them yet) and I don't know that everyone in this thread is over there.No, no - I was just confused. Not that there are any developments, but I didn't want to start the saga in one thread, and continue talking about it in another.

For anyone who wants to read about my cabinet door trials, I wrote about 'em in the remodeling thread here (http://www.constantchatter.com/showpost.php?p=306965&postcount=45).

By the way, my floor is not done yet (big surprise!) Pictures tonight. (Probably ;).)

Julss05

11-29-2005, 10:21 AM

Paulsgirl-Looks good! Did you keep the same hardware? If not how hard was it to replace?

We haven't gotten much further with our remodeling:(. If we had the money for new cabinets and for someone to install everything it would be done already (maybe next summer). In the meantime we've given up on refinishing the wood so the next step is to decide what and how to paint the cabinets. To avoid streaks I think we are going to try some spray technique. For those who painted what did you do?

cindylou

11-30-2005, 10:11 AM

I just finished painting my cabinets and did a ton of research before I started. I read about a paint called Cabinet Coat. It is self leveling which means that it doesn't leave brush marks. It also cures to a very hard finish in about 2 weeks. The cabinets look FABULOUS! I chose a color called Fencepost which reminds me of the gorgeous light brown cabinets I always see at Home Depot. I am so happy with the finish and color. Yes, it was a lot of work. I had to remove all of the doors sand them, clean everything and then paint, paint, paint. I used 3 coats because I wanted it be a nice finish. After we install the new counter tops next weekend, I will post pics. It may seem like a huge task (I have 22 doors!), but if you're going to paint cabinets, I think you should go the extra mile and do it right so what you paint will look good and the finish will last longer.

tenofcups

11-30-2005, 09:28 PM

We just finished painting our cabinet doors -- in time to get them up the night before we had 10 people for Thanksgiving! No pics yet (I promise I'll have them soon!), but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the way they look.

We used semi-gloss paint from Lowes, the same paint that we've been using for all our trim downstairs. THis project was all mine so I'm intimately familiar with the process now!

First I removed the doors and hardware, then cleaned them with TSP since who knows the last time they were cleaned.

Sanded the front and back of each door.

Primed front and back of each door.

Sanded front and back of each door again.

Painted two coats on the back of each door.

Painted two coats on the front of each door.

In between, sanded, primed, sanded, and painted two coats on the frame of each cabinet, including the inch or so of the tops, bottoms, and sides of the inside that were the same wood (didn't do the entire inside or the shelves).

It took DAYS to do it since of course, everything has to dry in between and we had a ton of doors and drawer fronts (14 doors and 14 drawer fronts). I actually carried them all up to our third floor den, where we have a lot of extra space so I could set up several to dry at a time (and watch TV while I painted ;) ).

To do the actual painting, I set each one on a waiter's tray holder that we have, which is similar to a horse -- that way I didn't have to worry about the edges sticking to anything as I painted. To let them dry, I brought up several long pieces of wood so the cabinets could sit on the wood, again without the edges touching anything. I used a combination of brushes and small rollers, depending on which part I was painting.

We bought new drawer pulls for all the drawers and cabinets, as well as new hinges, which also made a BIG difference in the overall look.

Will be back with pics, hopefully tomorrow!

Janey

12-01-2005, 07:17 AM

Hooray! cindylou & tenofcups - I can't wait to see pictures! :D We painted the cabinets in my townhouse from 70's dark chocolate brown to white, and it made all the difference in the world.

villanelle75

12-22-2005, 12:00 PM

Everyone's progress is so inspiring!

I have a question I'm hoping someone can help me with. We are going to put up a tile backsplash over what is currently wallpaper that has been painted over. Is there any reason we can't just tile right over this? Will the mortar stick okay? Any issues to be aware of? TIA!

suzubeane

12-22-2005, 12:33 PM

Hmm, villanelle - I'd be concerned that the weight of the tiles would eventually start to pull at the paper, and the tiles could loosen.

I suppose you could do it, and then just repair any tiles that may loosen up.

But it might not be that hard to remove the wallpaper. I use one of these:

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000DI7WP.01-A16O0K72OMD7US._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

It's a Paper Tiger wallpaper remover. You score the paper with it, then use a garden sprayer to saturate the paper with a mix of half vinegar, half warm water.

Wait about 20 min for the paper to saturate through, then spray again, and scrape off with a scraper. They have all this stuff at Home Depot. They also have a chemical for removal, but try the vinegar first. I found it worked better.

southerner

12-22-2005, 12:36 PM

Wallpaper removal isn't tough, just time consuming. We scored our wallpaper with the tool suzubeane posted, then held a steamer to it. Better safe than sorry, right?

villanelle75

12-22-2005, 12:43 PM

I was afraid of that. If we remove the paper, would we then be able to apply the tiles directly to whatever is under it, presumabley just drywall? Will tha wallpaper pull the paper surface off the drywall? Removing wall paper sucks but I can handle that, especially since it is a fairly small area, but I fear that re-drywalling is beyond our modest skillset. What are the chances that once the wallpaper is off, the surface will need more than a slap of joint compound here and there? (If it makes a difference, I suspect that the wallpaper was the original builder's finish so it's probably the first layer on the drywall.)

suzubeane

12-22-2005, 12:47 PM

What are the chances that once the wallpaper is off, the surface will need more than a slap of joint compound here and there? (If it makes a difference, I suspect that the wallpaper was the original builder's finish so it's probably the first layer on the drywall.)There's no way to know until you remove a little to see. If the builder did not prime the walls first (and some don't - Lord knows why) then you're better leaving it there.

Why not just try to remove a little and see if it comes off without damaging the wall?

southerner

12-22-2005, 12:54 PM

the walls in our bathroom weren't primed and we didn't find out until we removed three layers of wallpaper

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5dc01b3127cce94a7df34dac900000056108YbtWzlu34

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5dc01b3127cce94a7df355bf800000046108YbtWzlu34

:eek: It took three layers of sheetrock mud to get a smooth surface again. Do a small (inconspicous) area first.

villanelle75

12-22-2005, 12:58 PM

Sounds like a plan. The wall paper just kind of stops at a point a few inches below the top of hte stove/oven so I cna acutally get under it to pull up a little section quite easily. I guess if it is naked drywall, we will put the tile over the paper and hope for the best, and if it is a good surface, we'll pull the paper and hope for the best. Thanks!

Cr8nme

12-22-2005, 07:26 PM

here is my complete kitchen remedel

before:

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp7%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79%3E WSNRCG%3D32327%3B%3A7895%3A%3Cnu0mrj

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp58%3Dot%3E2328%3D%3B%3A9%3D%3C6%3A %3DXROQDF%3E23236%3C987%3A4%3C2ot1lsi

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp46%3Dot%3E2328%3D%3B%3A9%3D%3C6%3A %3DXROQDF%3E23238%3B57746%3A%3Aot1lsi

Cr8nme

12-22-2005, 07:28 PM

after:

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp336%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79% 3EWSNRCG%3D32333995%3C%3B443nu0mrj

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp335%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79% 3EWSNRCG%3D32333996335%3B9nu0mrj

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp337%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79% 3EWSNRCG%3D32333996335%3B%3Cnu0mrj

Cr8nme

12-22-2005, 07:30 PM

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp337%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79% 3EWSNRCG%3D32333995%3C%3B449nu0mrj

http://images.snapfish.com/3458543%3A9%7Ffp338%3Enu%3D3237%3E%3A%3B8%3E%3B79% 3EWSNRCG%3D3233399633627nu0mrj

FYI: the blower/hood over the range is now covered in wood that matches the cabinets!

southerner

12-23-2005, 10:09 AM

Cr8nme, that looks great!!! I'm very jealous :( How much of it was DIY and how much did y'all hire out? We are going to be knocking out a wall and putting a half wall up just like yours. Is that column there b/c the wall was load bearing? I can't tell from the pics, but were your ceilings the same in the two rooms you joined?

tenofcups, you still owe us some pics.

Julss05, what did you decide to do about your cabinets?

suzubeane, finish the floor yet?

sneaksmom, did y'all decide anything about a backsplash? I'd still love to see pics of your remodeled kitchen.

I'm looking for inspiration, can you tell?

Cr8nme

12-23-2005, 10:56 AM

Southerner,

THe ceilings in the two rooms have different texture for the moment...btu they were the same height. The other room had popcorn. As far as DIY we basically had someone do everything. Everything was done by two really good friend of mine who does things like this on the side. The only company I hired was for the cabinets and coutertops and the istallation of them. The columns are there b/c I didn't want to pay $1500 for a 220 outlet(We moved the stove) so they routed it through the attic and down the column. Cost me about $150! The half wall is ony there to make the island more stylish. It definately wasn't needed. Before there was just a freestanding island

southerner

12-23-2005, 12:04 PM

Cr8nme, Who designed your kitchen layout? We still have a lot of decisions to be made about that. You have so much open space btw the cooktop and sink. Where did you order your cabinets from? Are you putting your microwave to the left of the sink?

Cr8nme

12-23-2005, 04:10 PM

Southerner, I designed the kitchen layout. It was really easy to do once I had cooked in the old kitchen :rolleyes: I also made sure there was at least 5 feet between the stove and the sink. Since the oven is also there. It is a slide in range. I got my cabinets from a kitchen and bath company here. Yes the microwave is going in in the cubby space left of the sink but I am still waiting for it to come in.

cindylou

12-24-2005, 03:07 PM

I picked up DH after one of his many business trips one night in early November. He'd had a few glasses of wine on the plane and came in and said... "I just hate this kitchen" and that's how this whole thing got started. We were initially going to put in all new cabinets. Then after he sobered up the next day;) he said, why don't we try painting it first and see what happens and we'll save up and do the kitchen right in a few years.

Here are the befores...

http://static.flickr.com/39/76983401_cdec02add1.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/25/65848944_3ba1d160ce.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/30/65848945_0906cee885.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/35/65848946_3d71c29104.jpg?v=0

Excuse all of the mess. (I took the last one after we started the project) We removed the cabinet and the desk in this last pic and put in a large pantry type of cabinet.

cindylou

12-24-2005, 03:19 PM

As I posted in the Before and After thread, it's not totally done yet. DH still has some trim and cabinet stuff to finish, but my part is done. The entire project was DIY. I painted the cabs, walls, saying above the patio door and backsplash. I made the curtains, the cornice above the kitchen sink, and reupholstered the barstools. The laminate wood floor and countertops are new. The new hardware on the cabinets matches the switchplates which I just love. I just love the whole thing actually and I am really happy with how it turned out!!! (And the kids are are obviously really happy with the chalkboard door...)

http://static.flickr.com/42/76978592_df8d10752e.jpg?v=1135462253

http://static.flickr.com/6/76978593_1b527b6cb3.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/37/76980085_05490a9aa3.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/36/76978589_8f1e36ef9c.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/6/76978588_797989d95b.jpg?v=1135462400

http://static.flickr.com/37/76980082_0046f96be8.jpg?v=0

craftgenius

12-24-2005, 07:02 PM

cindylou - WOW! That is quite a transformation!!! You guys did a fantastic job! The cabinets look brand new! I also love the backspash. That whole thing is PAINTED?? WOW!

Ummm

12-24-2005, 07:34 PM

cindylou - very nice! i thought the backspash was tiles!

tinkerbelljenny

12-25-2005, 12:10 AM

cindylou It looks so pretty! I LOVE the backsplash!

julietchicago

12-25-2005, 09:25 AM

Wow!!! Cindylou...I LOVE LOVE LOVE your kitchen! How fun!! Thanks for the inspiration!!

cindylou

12-27-2005, 07:31 AM

Thanks everybody! It is really nice to hear that people like what you've done when you worked so hard to do it. And yes, I painted that backsplash. Took me about 10 hours and I ended up with 2 really sore elbows, but it was totally worth it...

Janey

12-27-2005, 08:58 AM

It's nice to see activity in this thread!

Cindylou, that kitchen is amazing. Awesome, awesome job! cr8nme, your kitchen looks about 1000% warmer now! :D

Asha

12-27-2005, 09:31 AM

cindylou - you did such a wonderful job. it's such a cheerful room now. my fave part are the tiles!

ee_chick

12-27-2005, 11:26 AM

What a fantastic transformation cindylou.

tsmom

12-27-2005, 03:36 PM

I am so sorry I have been meaning to do this for ages now!! Love all the updates and hope this works! (copied from my lj)

here are a few of the house before.... basically we have filled in that pit area, knocked out the wall between the pit and the kitchen which makes the pit (now the family room), living room and kitchen like one big great room.  These are the before.... I know it is kinda hard to figure out - but here go!!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Front.jpg
See the door in the pix below -the one in the left corner - that went to the kitchen and that is the wall that we knocked out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Loungeintothepit.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Kitchen.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Kitchen2.jpg

The door in the pix below is the same on in the 2nd pix -
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Breakfastarea.jpg

tsmom

12-27-2005, 03:42 PM

house mid demo
So so ready for everything to NOT be covered in sawdust!!! This is not a place for an 18 month old!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/stepupfrompitintooldkitchen.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/frompitintokitchen.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/fromkitchenintopit.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/CopyofPitwithnocarpet.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/tamongsttherubble.jpg

The Job Foreman!!!

tsmom

12-27-2005, 03:52 PM

House - mostly done :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/116-1628_IMG.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/116-1620_IMG.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/116-1617_IMG.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/116-1618_IMG.jpg
I dont have a pix of with the floors uncovered but I will look around.
Our drawer pulls just came in and they have fixed a couple of items but I am happy to say the workers are not there every day at 8am :)
Have a great weekend!

suzubeane

12-27-2005, 04:04 PM

tsmom - great use of space! I'd love to see pictures of the "unpitted" area, too! (If not here, then come over to the Older Home Remodelers (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=9688) thread.)

What is the name/color of that granite?

tsmom

12-27-2005, 04:12 PM

suzubeane~ the last pix shows the view from the far kitchen wall to the "unpitted" area. I will see if I can find a better pix. You can just see a bit of the fireplace on the right of the pix. We have since re-done it but that should give you an idea.

The Granite is called "verde vu-vu" DH said I only liked it because of the name. We originally wanted a golden/cream color but our designer was way too wary of stains etc b/c of the kids!

tsmom

12-27-2005, 04:32 PM

Here ya go - this is old but this is a view of the pit once it was filled in (same perspective from kitchen to living room) This was before they put the penninsula in.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/kitchenintofilledpitraisedfplacenew.jpg

Here are our drawer pulls and the floor - There is a color difference but it is hard to tell in this pix.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/118-1876_IMG.jpg

suzubeane

12-27-2005, 04:40 PM

suzubeane~ the last pix shows the view from the far kitchen wall to the "unpitted" area. I know! I just wanted to see more! (And now I want to see some from the fireplace looking back at the kitchen. ;).)

You guys must have had to have the hearth lifted and fireplace re-worked - not to mention the window sill. (and window head?) Totally worth it though. I really like the way you achieved a more open floor plan that is not totally open - there is still a division of space. Did you work with an architect? kitchen designer? Were you living there during construction?

tsmom

12-27-2005, 05:42 PM

hmmm ok I am at work and dont have a ton on this computer but lets see... This is from the Living room (pit) looking into the kitchen. You can see the boxes of crap so that pretty much answers your next question. We lived in our condo for "most" of the demo part but had to move in and live in a tiny corner of the formal living room while they finished. Can you say sick of take out!!!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/Pitfilledlookingintokitchen.jpg

You can see we did move up the fireplace and put in a new window (we accidently cracked it) - ended up changing the size b/c the old one was crap and they don't even make the same size anymore. Replacing the other windows in the house is at the top of our list.

This is a good view from Kit to liv - I wanted to make sure that when you were in the kitchen you were still part of the family and that you could see and hear what was going on...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/peninsulafplacebeyond.jpg

This was while we were working on the fireplace - we cut 2" off the legs, stained it to match the floors, and tiled around... you can also see the new window.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v495/superpie/118-1891_IMG.jpg

jrsygirl

01-10-2006, 10:26 AM

So its been a while since I posted our kitchen remodel and we're still not done-done. With our twins almost here my DH is bugging me to pick stuff so he can finish before it never gets done.

We still need:
backsplash
paint
ceiling molding

So Saturday he sent me out and said don't come home without having ordered tile for the backsplash! So I picked it out and actually just ordered it today..

So we are tiling these two areas behind the sink and behind the stove(the microwave is gone this picture is old and we finally installed the microhood over the stove in the second pic and the last cabinets over the stove)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/IMG_0072.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/IMG_0072.jpg

So the tile that will go in both areas is tumbled italian travertine stone: I love it. It really picks up the red in the cabinets and the flecks in the counter.

http://photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/th_tile.jpg

Behind the sink though in the cutout we are going to do this surrounded by the same travertine.
http://photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/th_medallion.jpg

On all the other walls I am going to do a venetian plaster finish paint. I just need help picking a color..any ideas? You can get it mixed in any paint color..:confused:

The room is really light and connects to our family room..so I want to keep the palette the same. This is kind of blurry but the only picture of the room I can find at the moment
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v231/hbd511/IMG_0064b.jpg

suzubeane

01-10-2006, 10:44 AM

hard to see the pics, jrsygirl. They look like thumbnails - can you edit with the full size ones?

jrsygirl

01-10-2006, 01:27 PM

ugh- now they're HUGE ..sorry!:confused:

Janey

01-10-2006, 05:52 PM

jrsygirl, I love your choice of tumbled travertine! We wanted to use it all over our bathroom and then ran the other direction when we saw the price. :p Good choice as a backsplash!

jrsygirl

01-10-2006, 06:06 PM

Thanks!!

Yes my husband was shocked but since I was just following orders what could he say?:D Beside..I think he was just so glad I made a decision he didn't even care. Kep in mind the kitchen has been in its current unfinished state since LAST January (yes a year!!)

suzubeane

01-11-2006, 06:11 AM

I promise I'll weigh in on a color choice, jrsygirl, but I'm just popping in to say my soapstone is getting installed RIGHT NOW! I'm so excited! And nervous!

I'll post pictures later ... :)

suzubeane

01-11-2006, 09:15 PM

As promised ...

http://static.flickr.com/40/85510179_036e9540cd.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/41/85510515_9877885dd6.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/43/85511075_b90d22c398.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/36/85511422_b6cf6cc045.jpg?v=0

I'll post more tomorrow after I put the stove back in place. I'm just so exhausted now - the faucet was a bitch to install, partly due to the spaghetti of PVC drain pipes under it. Lots of swearing, bumps and bruises.

Janey

01-11-2006, 10:10 PM

Oh oh oh OH! Suzubeane, that is the epitome of fantastic. :D :D And great choice on the faucet!! I'm sorry that it was so hard to install... but you must be soooo pleased with the results!

southerner

01-12-2006, 01:45 PM

where's those pics, suzu?

Are you happy with your soapstone?

I know you agonizied over the faucet ;) Looks good.

someday....someday.....

suzubeane

01-12-2006, 10:01 PM

I'm here ...

I didn't have my stove in place when I took those earlier pictures, so I took more this morning. What you don't see is the table we're using in place of the eventual island; I moved it out of the way for photos

http://static.flickr.com/39/85645915_33eabab357.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/37/85645966_d6667b287b.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/9/85645957_a6d6433150.jpg?v=0

I finally put plastic over the area where we'll eventually have some kind of range hood

http://static.flickr.com/42/85645931_8238356298.jpg?v=0

Whoops! I didn't notice all the mats strewn in the back hallway when I took the picture. I had them all over the floor when the installers came in.

Thanks for the compliments, MrsHill and southerner! I guess the faucet is nice, but I still like my first choice (the $600.00 one :eek:) much better.

I'm a bit nervous about the soapstone, because it has some "mottled" areas that aren't absorbing the oil as well. Or maybe they're absorbing faster? I think that's it. Either way, I don't really know if I'm supposed to buff the remaining oil off, or what!

Julss05

01-20-2006, 07:45 PM

Well, looks like we'll definitely be remodeling the kitchen this spring!:D I'm so excited! It won't be a major gutting of the kitchen. We're leaving the cabinets in place but they will be painted, hardware changed, new countertops, backsplash, and floor put in. We had to take out a loan to get some siding put up which is a story in itself but because of that we'll actually have some money left over to redo the kitchen. We have no idea what colors we are using for the kitchen yet. We talked about picking a countertop we love first since that will probably be the most expensive and work around that. I'll be sure to post before and after pictures when we get started on it I'm guessing in March/April? I'd bet I'd win for ugliest kitchen:p. Thanks for sharing all your redos, it has been inspiring. I think I'll jog over to the HGTV site for a few more ideas.....

cindylou I was wondering where you got the cabinet coat? I think if I can convince DH that our cabinets could look like that he'd try it;). Does it come in a variety of colors?

southerner

01-22-2006, 12:31 PM

suzu, About your kitchen:

I Forgot to ask this, is your oven a dual fuel? Looks like you have a gas top and an electric oven? We have electric now, but are considering converting to gas. Some people (in this thread (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=9254)) recommended dual fuel.

suzubeane

01-22-2006, 01:26 PM

It's just gas, southerner. It's a very inexpensive gas range with an electric pilot. (The pilot light is what lights the burners - there's one in the top, and one in the oven.) The old kind (the ones I grew up with) had a gas pilot light - it was a little flame that was always lit, and when you turned on the gas for the burners, they'd light off that flame. But now they make them with electric pilots, so you don't always have a small gas flame on all the time. I love cooking with gas, and am not afraid of it, but I know if you didn't grow up with it, it can be disconcerting. The electric pilot light makes people feel safer.

We moved to this house with our appliances - they're about nine years old, but in very good shape, so we kept them.

Are there any other appliances in your house that work off gas? (furnace, water heater, dryer?) If so, changing your kitchen to gas is no big deal. If you hire a plumber to do other work, he or she should be able to take care of bringing the gas line to your kitchen.

kerrykate

01-27-2006, 04:56 AM

We bought this house a 6 weeks ago and are completely renovating it before we move it. I think the kitchen could have won an award being one of the ugliest kitchens in america. I only have before and during pictures right now but it's already a huge improvement!
Before:
http://images.snapfish.com/345%3B59978%7Ffp335%3Enu%3D325%3B%3E979%3E932%3EWS NRCG%3D3233493593%3A8%3Cnu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/345%3B59978%7Ffp336%3Enu%3D325%3B%3E979%3E932%3EWS NRCG%3D3233493592577nu0mrj
During:
http://images.snapfish.com/345%3B59978%7Ffp338%3Enu%3D325%3B%3E979%3E932%3EWS NRCG%3D3233493592593nu0mrj
After:
Hopefully soon!
Dh is putting new windows in the house this weekend so hopefully he'll get the new kitchen and bathroom cabinets in next weekend.

southerner

01-27-2006, 05:30 AM

kerrykate, you must come post your kitchen in this thread!!!! (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=5407)

You have nice space to work with. What type of cabinets and countertops did you get? What an improvement already. Let me know how your DH does putting in windows. My DH is wanting to do a window in our bathroom that we're remodeling right now.

eta: is that tile flooring? Have y'all DIY or hire out? Looking good, I'm inspired.

southerner

01-28-2006, 01:43 AM

We haven't ever gotten back to the kitchen since the bathroom drama, but I uploaded some pics that I haven't posted in here yet.

When we moved in:
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b5dc04b3127cce94a7df0ca09500000045108YbtWzlu34

Taking down that upper cabinet made a huge difference.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df04b3127cce96b228b5fe5300000016108YbtWzlu34

This is the wall we want to take out. We want to make it a half wall b/c we don't want to lose the "family room" space on the other side.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df04b3127cce96b228b27f6400000016108YbtWzlu34

This is the family room on the other side of the wall. It has a fireplace in it that we want to retile when we do the kitchen to tie the two rooms in. Yeah, pardon the lava lamp :rolleyes:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df04b3127cce96b228be7f6800000016108YbtWzlu34

I don't think we'll get back to it for a few more months still :(

southerner

01-28-2006, 01:49 AM

Are there any other appliances in your house that work off gas? (furnace, water heater, dryer?) If so, changing your kitchen to gas is no big deal. If you hire a plumber to do other work, he or she should be able to take care of bringing the gas line to your kitchen.

DH wants to move the fridge water line himself. He won't hire someone :rolleyes: He's not going to be messing with the gas though. The fireplace is gas (actually only a few years old), so I've heard it's easy to convert, like you said.

suzubeane

01-28-2006, 04:25 AM

DH wants to move the fridge water line himself. He won't hire someone :rolleyes: He's not going to be messing with the gas though. Hey, no need for rolled eyes - after the shower project, your DH is more than qualified to move the water line for the fridge! Seriously, moving or changing a water supply is not hard; it's small potatoes compared with some of the other stuff you guys have DIY'd.

Sounds like your DH has a similar affliction as I do - not wanting to pay an arm and a leg to a tradesperson to do something you could do yourself, even if it would take you longer. I'm going through the same thing right now with my oven - can't figure out why it won't light, and don't want to call someone
because I fear it's something really easy to fix. And after all the work I've done myself, I resent paying anyone anything! It's been an interesting evolution.

About making that wall "half" - if you look in kitchen magazines now, you'll see that that trend is less popular than the "over sized kitchen island as room divider." Someone on the Garden Web had a really similar set up as you have, and went the kitchen island route instead; I really like the result - the rooms still seem like two rooms, too. I will try to find pictures of that kitchen for you - she's posted them all over the Kitchen Forum. She used a very expensive cabinet line, but you could achieve the same thing less expensively, I'm sure.

suzubeane

01-28-2006, 06:07 AM

southerner, I couldn't find the one I was thinking of, but this person (http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/skivino26/my_photos) had a layout like yours and removed a wall. Unfortunately, she doesn't provide really great "after" pictures of what they did with the space. I'll keep looking for that other one I've seen.

For anyone looking for kitchen ideas, someone on the Garden Web Kitchen Forum started a blog of Finished Kitchens. (http://finishedkitchens.blogspot.com/) These are all members of the Forum who posted there for help and ideas, then came back to show the finished product and give advice to others. I'd recommend going to the slideshow page (http://finishedkitchensslideshow.blogspot.com/) (scroll down if you don't see it at first) and clicking through for ideas. People are usually pretty good about sharing ideas. Also, once you find out the user name of someone whose kitchen you like, you can go to the Kitchen Forum (http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath/) and run a search on their name to get more info and/or pictures. It's not a vBulletin format, so it's frustrating if you're used to this - still a lot of good information to be had.

southerner

01-28-2006, 08:49 AM

suzubeane, As usual, you find some great resources. Thanks, I'll go look around. Yep, that's the same exact dilemma that I have about DIY vs. hire out. I think for the kitchen, I'd really like to hire out though. DH wants to do a lot of the work himself. Although we've yet to hire someone, I think the money would be well spent b/c of the time the project could get finished in. I don't know how you've been w/o a kitchen fo so long. That wall is load bearing anyway. As for taking out that wall, I actually would love to have an island separate the two rooms. That was my first idea. There's two reasons I'm hesitant. #1 is that when we move the fridge (to the far right where the double oven is), it actaully sticks out in the family room a bit. We'll need some paneling built around it still, since there would be some fridge sticking out. We thought it might look better as a 1/2 wall instead of no wall with the petrusion there. I totally explained that awfully, I know. #2 is that my parents (who know a lot about real estate value) said, that we should keep the family room a family room b/c it would be nice to have it for potential buyers who would like the extra room. We do have another informal den. Also, open spaces like that can be awkward.

So much to think about *sigh*

suzubeane

01-28-2006, 09:15 AM

I don't know how you've been w/o a kitchen fo so long. That wall is load bearing anyway. We've been without a *complete* kitchen, but not without a *functioning* kitchen.

I had my load-bearing wall taken out by pros, and did the rest myself, and w/a cabinetmaker (as you know.)

In your shoes (with your skills) I'd come up with a plan, then do most of the demo. Have someone lined up to do the beam, and schedule your demo around that. Get the beam done, and do the rest yourselves. Ikea cabinets are designed with DIYers in mine. I know you don't have one near you, but it would be worth the trip.

People set up temporary kitchens all the time. I know you don't have a basement, but you have two Living Rooms, right? It's nice to have running water in a temp kitchen, but not necessary. Search for "temporary kitchens" on the garden web. People have shared ideas on that in the past. (Man I wish they'd use a better BB format. So much great info get lost there and not archived. The *users* do more to preserve the info than board admin, unfortunately. That's how the blog I posted earlier came about.)

southerner

01-28-2006, 09:43 AM

Sucks to hear that about the Garden Web forums, DH will surely get hooked when the time comes ;)

Our temp. kitchen isn't going to be in either one of the living rooms. We have a formal living and dining room (where you've seen all the saws) in the front of the house. We do have a lot of room in the house, so for that I'm thankful.

suzubeane, What did your *functional* kitchen consist of? Yours wasn't *complete* b/c it didn't have running h2o? We'll lose our oven and cooktop during demo.

anyone else set up a temporary kitchen?

eta: you're a big Ikea cabinet fan, eh? I want to pay someone else to install them, so it gets done fast and correctly though. DH wants to do it himself.

suzubeane

01-28-2006, 09:56 AM

suzubeane, What did your *functional* kitchen consist of? Yours wasn't *complete* b/c it didn't have running h2o? OK, I may have written something misleading - we had a temp kitchen set up in the dining room, and then a functional kitchen, which is the kitchen itself - we're using it even though it's not done.

For the temp kitchen, the dining room was set up with:

Table and chairs
Old dresser we use as buffet
Microwave
Toaster
Coffee Maker
Canned Goods, Dry Goods, and Paper Goods
Before the kitchen had a sink, we used the Janitor's sink in the basement. We had a Britta pitcher for water, but you can also get one of those "drink barrels" with a spigot.

The kitchen became functional when I put the temp (plywood) counter on. It had:

working sink
working dishwasher
working fridge (moved in from dining room)
working stove (oven not working, unfortunately)
Microwave
Toaster
Coffee Maker
So it's functional, but we still need to finish

Cabinet doors
Backsplash
Range hood
Paint
Door, molding and trim.

southerner

01-28-2006, 10:12 AM

ah gotcha! What a process! At times, I really am ready to be done remodeling this house. Just reading all that makes me realize what a project this is going to be :( I hope you can figure out what's wrong with your oven soon.

What are you going to do for a backsplash, suzubeane?

mlfallis

03-01-2006, 11:29 AM

I finally get to join this thread and it seem to have been dead for awhile :(

I hope everyone has there kitchen done.

We bought my FIL's house and the first thing we are doing is the kitchen and flooring in adjacent rooms. Nothing was done in over 25 years, and I mean not even a coat of paint. This is what it looked like with my FIL's stuff still in place.
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df27b3127cce9621164b268800000025118AYsXDFmzZOK
Looking into the kitchen from hall
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df27b3127cce9621119466cc00000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
Look towards hall
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df27b3127cce96212049a7a100000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df27b3127cce96212142660200000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
Looking from the hall into the once dinning room

mlfallis

03-01-2006, 11:32 AM

As of Feb 21
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6dc03b3127cce970bc76150fe00000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
Looking into Kitchen from hall
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6dc03b3127cce970bc76ed1c100000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
Look to hall (in kitchen)
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6dc03b3127cce970bc32950b400000016108AYsXDFmzZOK
Looking into once dinning room

I should also explain that we are taking down three wall and making the kitchen and dinning room all one room and taking down the wall dividing the den from the kitchen.

This is our kitchen design
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6df11b3127cce96a803380d8a00000036118AYsXDFmzZOK
The island is where the existing kitchen is.

KRK

03-01-2006, 12:22 PM

Can I join you ladies? suzubeane that link you posted to the finished kitchens is great!

Demo on my kitchen (and my whole house) started today! :)

This is the before picture
http://shim1.shutterfly.com/procgserv/47b3cf36b3127cce9854871a6c2200000007108AZsXDlq5cM-

Nothing is really wrong with the kitchen. It's just plain BORING! So we're going to put more personality into it. We're keeping the same layout, but just adding nicer everything.

We've purchased:
30" Dual Fuel Viking Range
http://www.vikingrange.com/cooking/cook_images/vdsc_sealed_30_large.jpg

GE Monogram Counter Depth fridge
http://products.geappliances.com/ProdContent/images/t06/0000010/r10464v-1.jpg?table=Images&methoddecider=18&recid=10464

Jenn-Air® Pro-Style® Built-In Dishwasher
(My DH and I are asian and we don't know how to use a d/w. hahaha...so this is a very expensive dishrack! Or, maybe one day we'll learn how to use it.)
http://www.jennair.com/products/images/jdb1250awp_cob_370.jpg

My hubby also found this farmstyle sink on clearance at The Great Indoors. It was originally $1K and dropped down to $100. I couldn't believe that we got a cast iron sink for so cheap!
http://www.catalog.kohler.com/onlinecatalog/300x350/ccc12893.jpg

Thankfully, we don't have to live through all the renovations, because it would be a nightmare with a 13 month old running around. We still have 2 weeks until the close of escrow on our current home and will be living with my mom until most of the major work is done.

Janey

03-01-2006, 05:35 PM

Welcome KRK & mlfallis!
KRK - those are some lovely appliances. Are you planning on keeping the cabinets?
mlfallis - what year was your house built? We also have curved crown molding & french doors... though we moved our doors.

Without further adieu... I have some "mostly after" kitchen photos. First, I'm going to post a couple of BEFORE pics, cause I don't think I ever posted them in this thread.

The pantry in this photo is where the pantry is in the new kitchen:
http://static.flickr.com/10/15201802_aede549017.jpg?v=0

The wall on the right side of this photo is now gone; the cabinet on the left is now where the glass-front cabinet is:
http://static.flickr.com/12/15201746_d99b7f8c91.jpg?v=0

This old dining nook is now gone, and the window now sits practically right on top of the new countertop:
http://static.flickr.com/14/15201678_9b23aa45cf.jpg?v=0

The new stove sits just about where the old stove sits. There is a walled-in furnace chimney to the left of the stove in this photo; it's now gone. Next to that was a broom closet, and next to that was an opening to the stairwell that has now been closed in and is where the new broom closet sits:
http://static.flickr.com/10/15201875_bb84063c5a.jpg?v=0

Janey

03-01-2006, 05:57 PM

For better detail, all of these photos can be found in larger form in the "Kitchen Mostly After (http://www.flickr.com/photos/seahills/sets/72057594073030550/)" set on Flickr. In any case... here are the Mostly Afters:

The floor is Mannington Resilient Flooring. I've posted a photo of it in this thread before, but it was really dirty due to construction. Here it is clean. Everybody thinks it's tile until they walk on it and it is warm and soft, and then realize it's vinyl. It was one of the least expensive choices we made in our remodel, and we're really glad we did it. It's warm, soft, and cleans like a dream.
http://static.flickr.com/54/106566098_464909d879.jpg?v=0

Standing at the dining room, looking toward the right hand side of the kitchen. The windows are in the same spots as they were in the Before photos.
http://static.flickr.com/49/106565903_d6656ea7ca.jpg?v=0

Standing at the dining room, looking toward the left hand side of the kitchen. This is also the best photo I took of the refrigerator. It is a Whirlpool ED5SHAXM (http://www.whirlpool.com/catalog/product.jsp?src=REFRIGERATORS&cat=96&prod=128). I chose this one because it was very highly rated by Consumer Reports, and it had the features we wanted. It is "Satina Stainless Look" which means that it looks like stainless, but does not fingerprint as easily, and it also accepts magnets. We love it. :)
http://static.flickr.com/40/106563304_02528adb74.jpg?v=0

Sitting on the corner where the coffee pot is, looking out:
http://static.flickr.com/19/106566301_b8b1892463.jpg?v=0

Standing at Mudroom door, looking toward the dining room. I ended up changing the paint color. We had started out with Sherwin Williams/Martha Stewart's "Gaslight," which ended up being a little too green. This color is C2's "Cornsilk" (in Sherwin Williams paint still) which is a little more gray-toned, and better matches the tones in the rest of the house. The plate hanging on the wall was a wedding gift from a friend who brought it back from Spain.
http://static.flickr.com/48/106566603_18b0424cf2.jpg?v=0

Stay tuned for some detail/feature shots...

Janey

03-01-2006, 06:15 PM

This is kind of a weird photo of this cabinet... but the glass is "Seedy" glass, and there are glass shelves (we have 1 more that has not been hung yet) and puck lights inside the cabinet.
http://static.flickr.com/34/106566458_7e0034a835.jpg?v=0

The new dishwasher. As with the Refrigerator, we went with Whirlpool due to the high rating it received from Consumer Reports. The model we chose was the GU2600XTP (http://www.whirlpool.com/catalog/product.jsp?src=DISHWASHERS&cat=108&prod=418).
http://static.flickr.com/50/106563440_4cc744587e.jpg?v=0

We looooooove the new 5-burner gas stove & microwave! Again, consumer reports was my jumping-off point for the stove... but really, there was only one stove in our price range that had the features we wanted. It has 5 burners, continuous grates, a large oven, and a warming drawer on the bottom. Both the microwave & range are Frigidaire, but they don't have our exact model any more (Frigidaire apparently changes their appliance Model #'s about once every 9 months). The closest models to ours are the PLGFZ390EC (http://www.frigidaire.com/products/cooking/ranges/free-standing_gas/prod_PLGFZ390EC.asp) range and the PLMV169DC (http://www.frigidaire.com/products/cooking/microwaves/over-the-range/prod_PLMV169DC.asp) microwave.
http://static.flickr.com/52/106563593_568eda333f.jpg?v=0

Cabinet detail shots coming up...

Janey

03-01-2006, 06:23 PM

I figured I could do these photos in a smaller size.

B wanted an undermount, single-basin, great big, deep sink... and he got it. Our sink is 28Lx16.5Wx11D by Elkay:
http://static.flickr.com/41/106563160_8e8b1f903b_m.jpg

The pull-out garbage & recycling containers are so handy. Especially since the City of Seattle will fine you if you do not recycle!
http://static.flickr.com/37/106561862_c67bbed972_m.jpg

We love the big pot drawers. There are four of them, each with a different type of pot in them. This is the "Sauce and Stock Pot" drawer.
http://static.flickr.com/55/106562002_cd14cbda0b_m.jpg

Large pantry cabinet with pull-out shelf/drawers. Having the pot drawers and the pull-outs in the big pantry cabinet make me want to add pull-outs in the cabinets under the windows. That's on my eventual wish-list.
http://static.flickr.com/43/106562116_bb2699b58d_m.jpg

The cabinet below the cabinet in this picture is just a big empty cabinet for the broom, mop, bucket, etc. The cabinet above is divided for trays, and it's already full!
http://static.flickr.com/49/106562261_8b04470157_m.jpg

I wish I could figure out how to divide this for additional tray space, rather than having shelves in here. That's on the eventual wish list as well.
http://static.flickr.com/47/106562356_5807157381_m.jpg

I've been promising these pictures to Southerner for MONTHS now. Since I've finally gotten the painting done... and the kitchen in a state of Mostly Clean... I finally feel like I can post the Mostly Afters. We still need a backsplash... I think we're going to be doing some white semi-opaque recycled glass tiles from Bedrock Industries (http://www.bedrockindustries.com/)... but I've got a bit of looking to do before we decide on anything.

ee_chick

03-02-2006, 07:56 AM

Mrs.Hill your kitchen looks beautiful.

Janey

03-02-2006, 12:43 PM

Thank you, ee chick! We're both really happy with how things turned out. :) We're so glad that both of us can be in the kitchen cooking without bumping butts with the other (unless we want to, of course).

southerner

03-02-2006, 04:33 PM

MrsHill, you're thebomb.com :p Hope you'll still visit the thread when I finally get to my kitchen, I'll have lots of questions for you and suzu. You have a ton of counter space, I'm jealous. Also, we want most of the extra features you have, esp, the pull out garbage and pantry shelves.

Janey

03-02-2006, 05:37 PM

Yay! Glad you saw the pictures. :D

I couldn't believe how great the kitchen was for my party this weekend. We had a "hot drink station" over by where the coffee pot is with coffee, multiple teas, 12 Lenox cups/saucers, sweetners, etc. We had a cold drink station by where the tall salt/pepper shakers are, with glasses, cokes, and juice (who knew I'd want an ice bucket - how cliche - but I did want one!). And then the big counter had a buffet of plates, napkins, forks, lasagna, caesar salad, and garlic bread. It worked SO AWESOME I could hardly believe it.

You know what's funny ... when we met with the cabinet guy, he looked at our layout and said, "You have way too much counter space over here. What you need to do is fill in these two windows, put a window in the center, and put your sink there instead of over there by the side." We told him we were going to leave the openings where they were because the exterior is brick and there's no way we could get it to match later. So he said like a big know-it-all, "You're never going to use it. It's totally going to be dead space."

Uh-huh. :rolleyes:

- I bake bread there with the big kitchenaid and all my ingredients out on the counter.
- I make salads, chop veggies, and prep meat there. Since it's right across from the fridge, it is so convenient! I keep the cutting boards in the cabinet right under the knives (which makes for a lot of wasted space, but I'm not sure how I'd get around that).
- As I found out this weekend, it makes a fantastic buffet!

What do cabinet guys know, anyway?? :rolleyes:

KRK

03-05-2006, 10:40 PM

MrsHill I love your cabinets and all the extra features your kitchen has.

Here's a picture to answer your question:Are you planning on keeping the cabinets?
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6dd24b3127cce979b1f2686b100000026108AZsXDlq5cM-

The kitchen has been gutted. We no longer have a ceiling either. We'll be ripping out the old aluminum 8ft slider and replacing it with a 6ft. I'm also getting similar cabinets, but a darker stain.

I played around with the Kitchen Visualization Tool and it came up with this
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6dd24b3127cce979b274b07f000000016108AZsXDlq5cM-

suzubeane

03-06-2006, 05:08 AM

KRK, I'm confused - you said you were keeping the same layout, but your visualization looks reversed.

:confused:

What software did you use to generate that rendering, by the way? Looks cool! Got any plans to show? :) (I'm a sucker for plans.)

I do have one word of caution for you: Your window is comes awfully close to the corner where you have cabinetry. Make sure whoever does the ordering has left room for a transition between your window casing and your cabinets. If your cabinets are not custom, it's a pain to tweak the transition between them and the millwork around your window. You might end up with window casing that is "cut off" on one side (and won't match the other side) just because the fit is too tight with the cabinets.

I usually leave 4" - 6" of wall around any door or window casing before anything built-in starts. That way, the casing looks even on all sides, and you can get a paint brush or tile in there to finish it.

Janey

03-06-2006, 09:23 AM

KRK, I can't see the pictures. :/ It seems other people are having trouble with Shutterfly as well, they said in another thread that they do not support hotlinking photos any more. (If you are ever looking for a new photohosting service, I've been really happy with Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/).)

Suzubeane, that's probably why they made our glass-front cabinet so narrow. Though I think they did too good of a job making it narrow -- I wish it was a little wider -- just 3-4". I could fit the dishes in there more efficiently. :/ Ahhhh, the things you realize after the fact.

southerner

03-06-2006, 02:29 PM

KRK, When you posted your kitchen in this thread the other day, I had no idea that "livening it up" and "keeping the layout" meant that :eek: I guess that is subjective and means something different to everyone ;) What did you do with all the old stuff like applicances and cabinets? I hope you thought to donate it b/c it was all in perfectly good condition. Hell, I'll take that stuff. Who's doing all that work? My budget is much smaller than yours :o

southerner

03-06-2006, 02:31 PM

paging kerrykate!!!!!!

I was hoping you'd come back in here and show us your progress. Y'all were mostly DIY IIRC, so I'm dying to pick your brain and see your work.

mlfallis

03-07-2006, 05:45 AM

Question for those of you that are done your kitchens? How did you determine the number of lights you wanted? We are putting in pot lights and I can't decide how many I want.

suzubeane

03-07-2006, 05:52 AM

Rule of thumb with recessed lighting is to place them 2 feet from corners and then at points between if you need them. Use the highest wattage you can afford in your electrical panel, and put them on a dimmer. You can always dim them or use a lower wattage bulb if it turns out to be too bright, but it's much harder to go in the other direction.

I have a dimmer switch that has both a dimmer and an "on/off" feature. This allows you to set it to a brightness you like for general use with the dimmer, and turn it on and off to the same brightness each time. Then you can also turn it up or down depending on what you're doing in the kitchen. (i.e. cleaning vs. entertaining.)

KRK

03-08-2006, 04:32 PM

I'm really sorry, ladies. I've been posting when it was really late and I was extremely tired so I didn't explain things very well.

Suzubeane Whoops...we are keeping a very similar layout. I did add cabinets on another wall and removed the wall cabinet to the right of the window. The visualization tool just shows you what your cabinets, flooring and walls would look like. However, that's not exactly how my cabinets are going to turn out. You can play with the visualization tool on www.diamond2.com.

MrsHill Sorry about the pics. My kitchen at this point is down to the walls and studs. I'll try to move my photos later.

southerner I should have mentioned that I was going hog wild with all the renovations. I'm constantly always adding more and redoing stuff. Isn't that always the case when you remodel? The cabinets were built into the wall and we couldn't salvage them. All the appliances were given away to family or friends. My dad and bro are contractors and they're doing the work.

mlfallis My kitchen is really small--it's only 12 X 12.3. We're installing cabinets on 3 walls and a 6ft slider is on the remaining wall. Which leaves us with an 8X10 area to light. We used 4 lights to light the area and they're about 2ft from the cabinets. Another light was added above the sink.

Julss05

03-09-2006, 04:48 PM

Well we are officially knee deep in our kitchen remodel! I think last time I posted I said we were going to paint the existing cabinets which we did but decided not to do that because the cabinets themselves were in bad shape. Instead we bought unfinished cabinets from Lowes and finished them ourselves. It saved us about a $500-$1,000 from designer cabinets but took extra time on our part. Would we do it again? No! But the cabinets turned out great!:D We have most of the kitchen painted and top row of cabinets up. The next thing will be putting in bottom cabinets and countertop then installing wood laminate flooring.

Our house is a disaster! Luckily we have a den off the kitchen that is being used as our work area. We decided to wait on tiling the backsplash and adding door knobs later when we have more time to think about what we want. The old cabinets we gave to friends to use in their garage so we sort of recycled:). I've been taking pictures along the way and will share once it's closer to being done.

Mrs.Hill Love your kitchen!!

Good luck to everyone else remodeling! This is been quite the learning experience! One thing I've learned is that our next house will already have a nice kitchen that doesn't need to be remodeled;).

southerner

04-09-2006, 10:54 AM

paging kerrykate, KRK. Julss05 & mlfallis!!!!

I was hoping y'all would come back and give us an update :o

It looks like alot of your pics don't show up anymore :(

southerner

04-09-2006, 11:03 AM

reposting my pics, so I don't have to go back and edit them.

Kitchen before:

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a131/wcsoutherner/47b5dc04b3127cce94a7df0ca0950000004.jpg

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a131/wcsoutherner/47b5dc04b3127cce94a7df0aa0930000002.jpg

Below: This is the wall that we want to take out. We're thinking we're going to move the fridge to where the double oven is right now. You can see that we took the wallpaper off and those upper cabinets are out already.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a131/wcsoutherner/47b6df04b3127cce96b228b27f640000001.jpg

Below: We plan to move the dishwasher where the microwave is now. I need to look into our microwave options. I'm not sure I want to use counterspace for one.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a131/wcsoutherner/47b6df04b3127cce96b228b1fe570000001.jpg

We're planning to get to it this summer. We keep pushing it back b/c of other things :rolleyes:

mlfallis

04-09-2006, 12:57 PM

Well we have been coming along pretty well with our kitchen. We had a two month plan from the day my IL's moved out (we bought their house) to when the cupboards were being installed. We are now a little over a week until that happens.

I will copy some of my jounral entries so you can see the progress we made before the floor went in.
Looking North
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A339%7Ffp346%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A658998nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A342%7Ffp342%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A645793nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A376%7Ffp346%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323359%3C773988nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A378%7Ffp33%3B%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A% 3EWSNRCG%3D323362999753%3Anu0mrj

mlfallis

04-09-2006, 12:58 PM

Looking South
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A342%7Ffp33%3A%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A% 3EWSNRCG%3D323357%3A64578%3Bnu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A376%7Ffp343%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323359%3C773987nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A378%7Ffp342%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323362999%3A3%3B5nu0mrj

mlfallis

04-09-2006, 01:00 PM

Into Den
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A342%7Ffp33%3A%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A% 3EWSNRCG%3D323357%3A64%3A944nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A342%7Ffp345%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A64%3A955nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A376%7Ffp343%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323359%3C779%3B46nu0mrj
http://images.snapfish.com/34672%3A378%7Ffp339%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D3233629997545nu0mrj

KRK

04-11-2006, 11:24 AM

mlfallis

I am so jealous that you're so close to being done. I especially love how large and open your new space is. Those large bay windows are gorgeous! I'm so green with envy right now. :D

southerner
I don't have much of an update since not much has been done to my kitchen. We hired an electrican to install recessed lights throughout our house. He did a great job installing the lights, but cut off almost all the electricty throughout the bottom floor. So the contractors couldn't drywall or repair any of the walls until the problem was resolved.

The contracts did move the plumbing for the fridge to the opposite wall. (See the pic w/the large rectangular hole.) They've also started installing the 220 line for my dual fuel range.

The window, slider and cabinets have been ordered and hopefully they'll arrive soon. Until then they're not much else to do, expect for dryall.

Here's some pics of the current state of my kitchen.
http://static.flickr.com/47/127023553_4ade3e9cc0.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/52/127023454_551d5e8c2a.jpg?v=0

mlfallis

04-11-2006, 11:36 AM

Thanks. It helps to have a plan and a FH that can be a plumber/electrican. As of today I am only one week away from having my cupboards installed and I can't wait.

You will be suprised how fast things will start to go once you start putting up drywall. Then the end is in sight.

MLA

04-12-2006, 06:56 PM

We didn't do a complete remodel, but we did change the look of our kitchen quite a bit. We put in new countertops and a new faucet, along with a new oven. We also replaced the floors and changed the lighting fixtures. But the footprint of the room didn't change at all. Here are some photos:

Before:
http://static.flickr.com/53/127718677_5c79fad3ae.jpg?v=0
(That's the previous owners' stuff)

http://static.flickr.com/53/127718054_f9d7042505.jpg?v=0
http://static.flickr.com/46/127718053_e323edbba8.jpg?v=0
http://static.flickr.com/52/127718052_611c76fa35.jpg?v=0

MLA

04-12-2006, 06:58 PM

After:
http://static.flickr.com/50/127711614_3c598e3a1f.jpg?v=0
http://static.flickr.com/49/127711613_fc2ce9ed73.jpg?v=0
http://static.flickr.com/49/127711615_bd607d35af.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/51/127712779_8577731130.jpg?v=0

Janey

04-12-2006, 07:16 PM

Nice, MLA! Way to add some color -- both on the floor & walls! And YAY for getting the microwave off the counter!

MLA

04-12-2006, 07:24 PM

Nice, MLA! Way to add some color -- both on the floor & walls! And YAY for getting the microwave off the counter!

Thanks, Mrs.Hill! We've always lived in apartments and haven't been able to have color on our walls, so when we bought this house, we decided to go all out. I'd forgotten we got a built in microwave. :o I'm really glad that DH was so adamant about getting one. I thought we could do without it for a while, but it's made a world of difference in terms of counterspace for us.

Natrat80

04-12-2006, 07:36 PM

MLAYour kitchen looks great-so warm and inviting. I love the floors-can you share where you got them and the brand please?? We're looking at wood for our living/dining and I love the color of yours.

MLA

04-13-2006, 07:13 AM

MLAYour kitchen looks great-so warm and inviting. I love the floors-can you share where you got them and the brand please?? We're looking at wood for our living/dining and I love the color of yours.

Thanks! My floors were actually being liquidated from Lumber Liquidators. I think they’ve been discontinued. They’re 4 ¼ inch wide maple planks, made by Medallion in Canada. They’re stained and came pre-finished.

We found, though, that Brazilian cherry was about the same color as our floors, so if you’re looking for the same color, that may be something you want to look at. And if you have a lumber liquidators in your area, you should definitely check them out. Buying our wood from them and then hiring our own installer saved us $6,000 over Home Depot and Lowes, and what we would have gotten at Home Depot/Lowes wasn’t as nice as the wood we ended up with.

Pineknot

04-13-2006, 10:22 AM

MLA,

You really gave your kitchen character. It looks fantastic.

MLA

04-13-2006, 07:07 PM

MLA,

You really gave your kitchen character. It looks fantastic.
Aw, shucks. Thanks!:o

polarama

04-17-2006, 11:23 AM

Work has started at our house...the real excitement began today when the cabinets arrived...
http://static.flickr.com/1/130238691_4ca53f4111.jpg?v=0

I've been posting pics throughout the reno over at
my flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/polarama/sets/72057594099983733/)

honeygirl

05-28-2006, 08:51 PM

Bump to see if there are any new kitchens!

We're "this" close to getting our kitchen remodeled. At first we were going to just change the flooring, counters and appliances. But we've decided to just do everything at once (adding cabinets). We're also re-doing the flooring in other rooms (halls, bathrooms) at the same time, so it will be a big job.

I don't have any good pictures of it yet, but here's a "before" picture from when we moved in a couple months ago:

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/anneg/c2611204.jpg

mlfallis

06-25-2006, 07:31 PM

Well our Kitchen is finally done. Here are some photos
Before:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A288%7Ffp346%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A658998nu0mrj

After:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A293%7Ffp33%3A%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A% 3EWSNRCG%3D323386786%3B939nu0mrj

Before:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A288%7Ffp346%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A6537%3A5nu0mrj

After:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A293%7Ffp33%3A%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A% 3EWSNRCG%3D323386786%3B924nu0mrj

Before:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A288%7Ffp342%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323357%3A658999nu0mrj

After:
http://images1.snapfish.com/34742%3A293%7Ffp344%3Enu%3D3268%3E%3A44%3E34%3A%3E WSNRCG%3D323386786%3B92%3Anu0mrj

(Before pictures are previous owners stuff)

KRK

06-29-2006, 09:03 AM

mlfallis love the transformation and new setup of your kitchen.

My kitchen still isn't completely done. Our appliances don't get installed until Friday and I still have lots of accessories to purchase. But, here's a quick look of my new kitchen.

http://static.flickr.com/63/177328104_2684217b8f.jpg?v=0

http://static.flickr.com/58/177328130_21cc50cba2.jpg?v=0

akacharlotte

07-03-2006, 11:28 AM

MLA

07-03-2006, 02:01 PM

MLA I have to say thank you to you. We want to renovate our kitchen and we decided on white cabinets a very dark gray, almost black countertop but I was stumped on floors. I'm trying to convince my SO that hardwood would be a nice option but he is not so sure. I'm going to show him your afters.

BTW, what type of countertop do you have? My fave is Zodiac Quartz(I think that was the brand).:confused:

Thanks! :) Hopefully my afters will convince your DH. We've been really happy with the wood floors. They're not as low maintenance as a ceramic tile -- you have to be sure to wipe up any spills pretty much immediately, but other than than, I think they're great. We really love them.

Our countertops are actually Corian (color is Maui). We wanted the smoothly integrated sink, which you can only get with a surface like Corian, so we decided that was the best choice for us. Also, we didn't want to over-upgrade the countertops. In our neighborhood most homes have laminate, so the Corian was already a bit of a step above most of the houses here. We didn't want to go too overboard. ;)

Jessica

07-03-2006, 03:54 PM

I'm jealous of all of your beautiful, new kitchens!

Here's (http://paintedcabinet.com/) a website I found full of inspiration pictures, some scanned from magazines and some from peoples kitchens.

julietchicago

07-21-2006, 06:38 PM

Please post pics of your kitchen cabinets! We will be putting in new cabinets this fall and I am still unsure about which style/color I want to go with. Would love to see what other people have selected. Thanks!!

suzubeane

07-21-2006, 08:45 PM

Master Kitchen Remodeling Thread:
Kitchen remodeling and pics (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=1258)

And some others:
IKEA Cabinets (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=7221)
Painted cabinets, not white? Need ideas! (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=22457)
Guide to Kitchen Cabinets -- Help! (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=19763)
Show me your painted kitchen cabinets (http://www.constantchatter.com/showthread.php?t=20523)

Pineknot

07-21-2006, 09:19 PM

Jessica,

Thanks a lot for posting that site. It has so many different color combinations and styles, you can really get many ideas. :D

mamax2

07-22-2006, 12:34 PM

This is a new construction, not a remodel. We are, obviously, not living in the house yet so please excuse the dust!

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b230/mama2girls/IMG_1394.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b230/mama2girls/IMG_1392.jpg
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b230/mama2girls/IMG_1393.jpg

There's also another side of the kitchen (it's U shaped, essentially) that mirrors the side you see w/the hood, but there's a microwave/wall oven/warming drawer instead. There's also a center island not shown, but you get the jist as to the color, etc.

These are Brookhaven cabinets in Maple w/a pewter glaze.

julietchicago

07-22-2006, 02:55 PM

suzubeane - Thanks for the info. I've seen all of those. Looking to see cabinet colors & details only. Thanks again.

mamax2 - Those cabinets are really gorgeous!! Thanks for posting.

suzubeane

07-22-2006, 09:27 PM

I've seen all of those. Looking to see cabinet colors & details only.Gottcha. I was just trying to help keep the forum tidy, but it's probably better if the people who already posted their cabinets in the master kitchen thread just post again here.

Good luck with your project!

nya

07-23-2006, 03:47 PM

Here's our cabinets:
http://image60.webshots.com/60/3/67/26/2538367260083285002jEWZKa_ph.jpg

honeygirl

07-30-2006, 06:04 PM

Has anyone used "Legacy" cabinets? We're going to have them and are struggling on making a decision between two styles and two colors (light and harvest light). However, we have chosen our granite! We spent hours yesterday going to a few different stores and decided on "Kodiak" also known as "Delicatus Gold". We selected our slabs (2) and are very excited! Now if we could just get the cabinet's selected we'd be ready to schedule the start date.

K&H's mommy

07-30-2006, 06:12 PM

This is our new house and the cabinets. They are maple with a nutmeg colored finish.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v602/NICU_nurse/IMG_9404.jpg

Reebs

07-31-2006, 05:05 AM

K&H, your kitchen is amazing!! I love the color of the cabinets and the granite. What a nice combination. And I love how you have the full granite backsplash...very classy.

I unfortunately would be embarassed to post my kitchen cabinets but I just wanted to post about Showplace Cabinets. We got our bathroom vanity made by them (they specialize in kitchens though) and it turned out beautifully. I would highly recommend them. High qaulity but reasonably priced. It is custom so you can choose most everything. Here is there website: http://www.showplacewood.com/

And here is a pic of our vanity:

http://images1.snapfish.com/3477582%3C2%7Ffp344%3Enu%3D3278%3E755%3E%3B33%3EWS NRCG%3D3233843383%3A%3B8nu0mrj
http://images1.snapfish.com/3477582%3C2%7Ffp342%3Enu%3D3233%3E742%3E553%3E2324 74264443%3Bot1lsi
http://images1.snapfish.com/3477582%3C2%7Ffp33%3A%3Enu%3D3278%3E755%3E%3B33%3E WSNRCG%3D32338433749%3A9nu0mrj

K&H's mommy

07-31-2006, 09:51 AM

Thanks Reebs. Your vanity is GORGEOUS. It definitely doesn't look reasonably priced!!! ;)

honeygirl

10-05-2006, 08:51 AM

Bumping up this thread b/c my kitchen is being remodeled right now! There are 3 men tearing it apart this morning. :) First the cabinets go in (legacy, medium maple), then the counters (granite, Kodiak) then the flooring (engineered hardwood, light maple). We still need to choose our appliances and finalize our hardware choices. But, the big decisions have been made.

southerner

10-06-2006, 12:49 PM

honeygirl, You haven't chosen your appliances yet? How did you know the measurements of the cabinets w/o them? I was under the impression that you pick those before you do cabinets? I see they aren't putting the hardwoods under the cabinets. I guess there's two ways to do that. Who's doing the work? A GC?

Did you change your floorplan from this? (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showpost.php?p=762103&postcount=218)

honeygirl

10-06-2006, 01:19 PM

southerner - I know, it's probably bad that we haven't bought them yet. We had been looking, but then got caught up in the cabinet, flooring and grantite decisions.

We are using standard sizes for the stove and dishwasher, but the refrigerator is another story. We've kept the floor plan pretty much the same, just extra cabinets next to the dishwasher (above and below) and a bigger island, moved slightly. But the cabinets are slightly different sizes. So...there is a bigger space now for the refrigerator, which means we'll have to buy a BIG one so it doesn't look weird. I'll post photos soon to show what I mean.

We have a GC who is doing the cabinets and counters (but different guys doing each, not sure if that is normal) and a seperate company for the flooring. We had the flooring people first and they referred us to the GC. It is kind of a mess b/c we found out later than the GC could have done everything (including flooring), but b/c we'd already started with the first flooring place they wouldn't (ethics I guess). We have a different guy doing our electrical stuff, although the GC could have done it also.

Does that make any sense? We didn't know what we were doing in the beginning and have felt kind of clueless on a lot of the decisions/timing.

honeygirl

10-09-2006, 08:59 PM

We're on the 5th day of the remodel. We ordered appliances this weekend and they'll arrive next saturday. We went with all LG appliances (range, side by side refrigerator, microwave and dishwasher).

So far the cabinets are in and the flooring started today. Here's a photo from today:

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/anneg/kitchenday5.jpg

And here's one of the new cabinets, I love them!

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/anneg/newcornercabinetsday2.jpg

Janey

10-10-2006, 08:06 AM

Looking great! What is in the skinny cabinet next to the range -- trays?

relly

10-10-2006, 08:15 AM

Honeygirl - your cabinets look like mine, but ours are lighter. Our microwave and oven are black also.

I’ll have to take pics and post.

We’re not quite as far along as you but pretty close.

Your kitchen is looking fantastic! Isn’t it so exciting.

honeygirl

10-10-2006, 09:38 AM

Looking great! What is in the skinny cabinet next to the range -- trays?

That is the spice-rack drawer! Here's a better photo of it:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y11/anneg/NewSpiceCabinetday2.jpg

Honeygirl - your cabinets look like mine, but ours are lighter. Our microwave and oven are black also.

I’ll have to take pics and post.

We’re not quite as far along as you but pretty close.

Your kitchen is looking fantastic! Isn’t it so exciting.

Thanks relly. Our appliances arrive this weekend (the old ones are in the photos) and will be chrome/black. I'm so excited! We're trying to sell our old ones on craigslist. :rolleyes: I'd love to see photos of your remodel.

relly

10-11-2006, 07:10 AM

honeygirl - here you go, it was taken last nite so it's a bit dark. I'll take more this weekend.

We are not only doing our kitchen but our entire house! :eek: So finances are very tight. Plus we just had twins 6 months ago. Anyways, our appliances are used, dishwasher from my parents, white fridge also from them which we'll paint black, stove and mircowave from a kitchen my husband was remodeling and they were throwing out and we were just getting started. So we gave away our nice white oven, and moved our white microwave to the guest quarters.

We need to pick out our faucets this weekend. Our sinks should arrive within a week then our counters can be cut and installed.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid216/p10a59adaae67f468fed32880eaa2b700/ec94c013.jpg

honeygirl

10-11-2006, 09:22 AM

Your cabinets do look a lot like ours. I love the height on yours, as well as the lighter color. Are they Legacy by any chance?

I can't imagine being without a kitchen while taking care of twins!! I guess I'll stop complaining now. ;)

We are having some headaches with our fabricator. We thought that the sink was already ordered (and paid for), but turns out it wasn't. So it's holding everything up. To make matters worse we found that our slab hasn't even been transfered from the store (to the fabricator) yet. We thought he requested it ages ago (since we'd given him a fat check). Sigh. I may be without a kitchen for longer than anticipated.

betsyboop

10-15-2006, 11:28 AM

Janey- I notice a while ago, you mentioned that you had a furnace chimney going next to your stove that you removed. How did you go about doing that? Doesn't your furnace still need a chimney? We have a similar situation between our stove and fridge and I'd love to be able to just get rid of it if that's possible!

suzubeane

10-15-2006, 11:41 AM

Not Janey (obviously!) but depending on the kind of furnace, you might be able to vent it out the side of your foundation. There are codes to consider; in MA, yours are probably similar to mine. It can't exhaust over a walkway or driveway, and it can't be fewer than five feet from a window or other basement vent.

If a masonry chimney is no longer needed, it can be demolished, but if it goes through other finished floors of the house (basement and/or upper) and through the roof, it is a huge pain and probably fairly costly. On a house that is one or 1 1/2 levels, or where it is going through unfinished space above or below, it would be less of a pain.

Janey

10-15-2006, 03:39 PM

betsyboop - When the house was built in 1926, it had a coal furnace, complete with "Coal Room" and chute where they shoveled the coal into the basement. It was a brick-and-mortar furnace chimney that went basically right up the middle of what is now the kitchen area. An owner previous to B installed electric heaters in each room that had a switch and a fan that blew electrically heated air into each room (soooo inefficient!). When B moved in in 1992, one of the first things he did was convert the house to gas heat (he also put a gas insert into the fireplace and plumbed for a gas range at the same time). He had the gas furnace installed in the far corner of the basement, and vented it to the outside from there -- basically what Suzubeane was saying. When he re-roofed the house, he had the roofers take the chimney down to just below the roofline. Then when we did our major remodel last year, he had them take it the rest of the way out.

It was apparently pretty easy to bust the thing out with some sledgehammers, esp. since the mortar was so old. The kitchen was the only finished floor where the chimney was; we have unfinished basement below and attic space above (our house is 1.5 stories + basement).

I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any more questions.

betsyboop

10-15-2006, 04:41 PM

Oh, ok. That doesn't seem like something we're going to be able to do. We got a couple of estimates earlier in the summer for a new boiler and found out that our whole set up in the basement isn't up to code. If we leave it as is, it's ok, but if we change anything we'd have to get everything up to code. We ended up not needing a new boiler after all (long story), so I don't want to go to all the trouble of getting things to code just to gain another couple of sqft of counter space in the kitchen;)

betsyboop

10-15-2006, 05:51 PM

I thought I'd post a couple of pictures of our kitchen here since we just started our remodel this weekend.

Our "befores" are from when we just moved in, so there are a lot of boxes and stuff in the way, but you can get the idea.

Of note, there is that weird little indentation on the right side above the counter. That is where the water pipes for the bathroom are (the bathroom is right above the kitchen) so the cabinets are cut away inside to make room. We added a dishwasher to the right of the sinka month or 2 after moving in.
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g56/bugs1234_2006/47b3d708b3127cce9e5b7da545be0000001.jpg

Moving clockwise, we had to use this trolly thing to store our food because the only wall cabinets were the 2 in the previous picture and we kept our dishes in there. Note the ancient fridge- we just replaced it about 6 months ago and we've lived here for 3 years:o
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g56/bugs1234_2006/47b3d708b3127cce9e5b7da745bc0000001.jpg

This is a terrible picture, but it's the only one of this corner of the room. You can kind of see the jut out of the chimney on the right. It comes out about 1.5'x1.5'. There are 2 bottom cabinets there, one next to the fridge and one next to the stove (the boxes are on top of the stove). I hope that wasn't too confusing!
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g56/bugs1234_2006/47b3d708b3127cce9e5b7de8c4c30000001.jpg

And that's the whole room:D It's about 9'x12', I think, so pretty tiny. Our house is also pretty old- built in 1930- so it's definitely quirky. For example, there is no heat in the kitchen. When the house was originally built, there was a stove about where the fridge is now that was attached to the chimney. You can see where it was attached now that we have taken the wallpaper down and there are marks on the floor where it stood. At some point, someone put in a regular stove/oven and no one ever put in a radiator. Oddly enough, you really don't need it anyway. Somehow the kitchen stays up to temp with the rest of the house.