Muddy Dog 1, Kitchen Floor, 0

Soooooooo, the floors don't do so well in hiding muddy paw prints....... 

The BIG Reveal

The Kitchen is DONE.  And we have moved back in.  We can't find where we have put things, but that doesn't matter.  We have a stove! water! and no more construction dust (on the first floor, don't ask us about the second floor...)

The new entry way into the kitchen/loo/dining room with a proper coat closet

Left side of the kitchen

Right side of the kitchen

looking back to the front door--and the transition from the old floor and new floor finish (and basement door slightly ajar)

sink in the loo

square toilet

under cabinet lighting

vases and jugs on the glass shelves next to the hood cabinet

orchid and lanterns on the other glass shelf, on the other side of the hood

light and mobile in the sink window

fancy lighting of the stove's knobs

chef's pantry

with movable shelving for lots of storage

the galley kitchen--about 6 feet wide

Truly Great-- a magnetic wall for our collection

Will's office, with the return of his many orchids-- which are about to bloom again

the back door

other side of the magnet wall

dining room with a new corner (where the easel is)

the various openings 

We have a punch list, which include some painting touch-ups and dimmer switches.  The crew will return next week to go over our list and get everywhere done/taken care of.  We had a lovely brunch with 20 people today and the kitchen performed beautifully--it dually impressed with its looks AND its function. Plus, the brunch provided us with a deadline to get the boxes unpacked and the house put back to together.  We have pictures still to hang, and there may be a few more boxes left upstairs still.

However: the kitchen renovation is 99.8% complete and we are thrilled. 

Standard White, Italian Marble, and Tobacco

oh, someone is in the loo!

Tile work is done

The tile work is now complete.  All the grouting was done yesterday and has dried now.  We chose a "standard white" grout and it is a creamy color that matches the cabinetry.  We were both surprised at the difference it made in terms of making the glass tiles pop.  (Hehe, Will hates it when I say that.)  At first we were hesitant to put the tiles around the window, especially considering how deep the one window is, but it turned out all groovy, baby.

Close-up of the tile with grout

Next thing now marked off the list: ceiling and wall painting.  We choose the same color for the kitchen as is currently in our sitting room: Pratt and Lambert's "Tobacco".  For the new hallway/closet/bathroom, we went with a color several shades lighter but in the same color family as the tobacco.  It is called "Italian Marble" and I am slightly disappointed in just how light the paint is.  It is almost as if the walls haven't been painted at all.  It might be better once the trim is painted (which happens on Monday), or when we start hanging art, etc.  But for the moment, I am not really pleased with the color we chose in bathroom/hall area.

The walls with paint!

Now, however, I am over the moon excited about how the walls look in the kitchen!  The tobacco color looks perfect with the tile and the counter tops.  Our contractor and the painters were impressed with how bold we went.   

 

As a bonus, the column (pictured below) is where the magnetic wall will be!  So far it has about 3 coats of magnetic paint on it--which is why it is black in color.  We plan on putting a few more on before the tobacco color is painted on.  

The black paint on the column is the magnetic paint. 

I tested it with the few magentas I have out on the fridge: it works!! It isn't a super strong magnetic pull, like when you put two magnets next to each other.  Hopefully with more coats, it will be better. This column is where we are putting our magnet collection from around the world.  Not to mention photo sent to us, recipes, etc.  It will be just like our old fridge.  Only a wall, and therefore, cooler.

The best hardware store. ever.

Further Kitchen Developments

What, did you think that the kitchen was going to be done by the end 2011?  Ha.  We are looking at another month.  You know what that means?:  another month of construction photos on on the blog!  I knew you would be thrilled when I told you that. 

So. we have now: door/drawer handles in place.  Trim everywhere.  Walls resanded and ready for primer + paint.  Door knobs installed on closet doors, french doors into the dining room, and the bathroom. We also have a special bathroom lock that tell us if the loo is vacant or engaged.  

bathroom door with knob and lock

the loo is available! 

trim installed, ready for primer! 

doors into the dining room

closet dooors

double handles on the drawers

pantry

 Also, we have tile!  Two extra orders, two home deliveries and one pick-up late, we have the one wall of the kitchen tiled and setting.  Tomorrow: grouting in a light creamy white.  It looks amazing.  Running the tile vertically distracts you from the fact that we have an incredibly long galley kitchen.  

tile goes around the windows

where tile meets counter, sans grout 

 It is starting to really come together.  By the end of the week, we should have the whole thing tiled, grouted, and painted.  Makes coming home from work every day exciting!

Merry Christmas!!

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, 

and Happy New Year!!

from Miriam, William, and Stirling

It's beginning to look a lot like a kitchen, everywhere you stand....

I could go on, changing the lyrics, but Andy Williams might not be too happy with me.

Anywoo, the crew has cleaned up and cleared out for the week of the holidays,  leaving us with a taste of what the space will be.  The counter tops were installed this afternoon, and now, you can really see what the lay out is and how the space will function.

The widening of in the entry hall is a favorite change of ours.  Without the plastic barrier, you can now really see the new opening into the secondary foyer/bathroom area.   The doors of the  coat closet now close around a properly-sized space.  It invites you to walk into the house, hang up your jacket, and walk into this.....

The new kitchen sans tile, paint, and appliances.  But you get the idea with the cabinetry and the counter tops.  

After a few minor and some major issues, the space is coming together.  The hood cabinet is now  installed, with three glass shelves to come (two on the left side and one on the right).  The crown piece above the hood cabinet isn't fully set back in its final place, hence it looking like it overhangs the actual cabinet at the moment.

The monster of a stainless farmhouse apron front sink we purchased looks perfect now that it is installed and the behemoth of a faucet will fit as well (photos to come as it is installed).

The circular peninsula is begging for bar stools to be pulled up to it-- if only we could find some stools that we like!   And the window sills and alcove base look fantastic as it all pulls together.  What we found amazing is that the main counter tops are made in one piece.  So, the counter around the sink: one piece.  The counters underneath the double windows: one piece.  The counter top with the circular table: again, one piece.  The installers brought it in, laid it down and it fit perfectly.  They spent the majority of their time here fitting together and buffing the bits of backsplash you see around the walls near the dishwasher area and the area along the peninsula.

The material is silestone, a man-made material that is very much like granite, but doesn't have the care issues (staining, off-gasing) that granite has.  We chose the color "Amazon Grey."  It has some nice color and movement in the tops and looks spectacular with the tile and the wall paint we have picked.   

So, the crew is done for 2011.  They resume work on January 2nd, 2012.  They say that the whole space will be finished by mid-January.  In the first few weeks of the new year, we can expect: another round of drywall mudding and sanding (there are some issues with the finish work), painting, tiling, and electrical connection.   In the meantime, I am spending way too much time trying to figure out where all the pots and pans should be placed...