An appreciation for how far I’ve come

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This gallery contains 10 photos.

You may have noticed that I’ve taken a small break from blogging about my adventures in renovation…. This is because I have taken a small break from the renovations themselves!  I am happy to report that I was actually able … Continue reading →

Next steps…

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To finish off the kitchen I still have a “few’ things to take care of…

  1. finish the toe kick
  2. install new base
  3. install ice maker
  4. pull cable from attic for tv
  5. replace drywall
  6. install backsplash
  7. install over the range microwave
  8. replace light fixtures
  9. replace window covering
  10. finish patio door surround
  11. replace cabinet pulls
  12. refinish cabinets with wear
  13. paint and decorate!

Last night I spent some time researching window coverings for the large window in my kitchen. I started off looking at Smith + Noble and ordered some free samples of wood blinds with a tape ladder which would cost around $235 for the single window. I also looked at roman shades, but at $800 that is just not in this Renolista’s budget!!

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As much as I like plantation shutters they are just too pricey for a home I’m not planning on staying in long term, so this was a nice compromise! It adds style and the look of the wood without the custom price. However, not one to make a rash decision I looked at a few more sites including Blinds.com and found that not only do they have some screaming good deals, but they also have some VERY nice faux wood blinds as well!

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All include a tape ladder with many color choices. I ordered some samples from both sites and am waiting anxiously to receive them! Anything will be an upgrade from the metal cheap-o blinds the previous owner purchased for the sale. I think window coverings will make such a difference in the new space! Now if the USPS would just hurry up and drop them off….

 

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HandyDad to the rescue!

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I have spent the last 6 months of my life hand-washing all of my dishes.  I have come to find out that I am not the hand-washing kind of girl.  How people live without these time (and manicure) saving machines I will never know!  Behold:

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Now that my floors are in, we can finally make some of the changes I’ve been impatiently waiting for…. dishwasher included.  The best part?  My HandyDad snuck over to my house while I was at work to install it for me!  Best. Dad. Ever!!!

I hope everyone has a safe and fun 4th of July with your friends and family!  I picked up these little treats from Icing on the Cupcake as a giant thank you to DesignMom and HandyDad!

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Cheers!

Floors galore!!!

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Today was the day.  I FINALLY have my Provenza hardwood floors in both my kitchen and my entry!

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Love love love the floors!!!  Clearly I still have to install the new base, and install a border around the toe kick of the cabinets, but we are getting there!  If I cant squint my eyes in just the right way I can picture the backsplash on the walls instead of exposed studs and insulation… the base already installed, and all appliances installed…. and I tell you, it looks BEAUTIFUL!

With the time off over the extended weekend I’m hoping to install my dishwasher (almost can’t contain my excitement as I type this!) and we will see what else we can accomplish in this 100 degree heat!

Wall art!

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Wall are is something I struggle with… I hardly find myself inspired.  However while shopping for the faucet of my dreams, I happened across this piece that I thought would fit well along a tall, long, open wall in the kitchen!  I think with paint on the wall this canvas piece will really stand out!

It’s time to retire my bathroom sink as my dishwashing center!

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It took some time, some finagling, and a lot of silicone but I finally have a sink, a faucet, and for the first time since I moved in… a garbage disposal.

Presenting my Home Depot finds installed in all of their amazingly beautiful glory!

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As you can see, I sort of bucked the under-mount stainless sink trend that has taken the design world by storm. There is a good reason for this. I really really really wanted an under-mount sink, but I really really really didn’t want to pay an extra $350 for the installation. After some convincing I realized that unlike my beautiful friend Kaylene and her picture of perfection family, my household of one was pretty low use on the kitchen front. Was it worth it for me to pay the money for an under-mount sink when I have so much control over what happens? Probably not. Now that I had resigned myself to a top-mount, I had to find the perfect sink.

While shopping I really disliked the look of the stainless top-mount sinks. The visible edges were unattractive and frankly I despise the water spots that constantly seem to appear on the sink itself. That didn’t leave me with too many options until I found the granite composite sink that I ended up purchasing. Ah, so much to love. I love the fact it is not a shiny white sink, in fact it is a matte white with a little bit of sparkle (and those who know me know I DIE for sparkle). I also love that it is more geometric… not so rounded and pretty. It’s bold. It makes a statement, And partnered with the industrial pull down faucet? Perfection.

I’m pretty happy with my deicision to go with a top-mount sink, and in fact that $350 ended up buying not only my sink but also my faucet so I consider it money saved!

To the left of the faucet we also installed an air switch. A much nicer alternative to a standard wall switch to turn on the garbage disposal. It is costly ($60) but I like the added safety of not having to touch a switch with wet hands, but I like that it frees up the space on the wall for outlets.

With all of that being said, I do have to give a shout out to my other silent partner in this reno project… My Interior DesignMom. I like to joke around and call our relationship design (me) – review (DesignMom), but she does deserve credit for pushing me out of my comfort zone and introducing me to a different esthetic. In fact she is the one who so vehemently convinced me to go top-mount in the first place, so between my HandyDad and DesignMom I consider myself a pretty lucky homeowner! Next up (or in)? Hopefully my new hardwood floors this week!

Alas, the day has come!

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This Renolista is the proud owner of new granite countertops!  Much to my surprise the installation crew showed up to my house a whole 10 minutes before my scheduled installation time… something that never happens!  They were presented with the finished product from last weekend:

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It took about 6 hours to complete the leveling of the cabinets… and only resulted in one neighbor asking about the noise.  HandyDad FTW!  He was paid handsomely in margaritas… something the renolista enjoyed one too many of as well… I digress!

Drum roll please!!!!

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Ah yes, working from home has never made me feel more accomplished!  You may notice I’m still lacking in floors… walls… and a backsplash but that is on the way!  You might also notice that the countertops don’t come all the way up to the window either, and there’s a reason for that!  We decided to create a differentiation in height from the countertops and build a bit of a lip.  We will then tile it with the same subway tile that I will be using for my backsplash.  At this point I’m thinking this is the direction I will be going for the backsplash:

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Thoughts?  I’m planning a tight set and thought the darker grout would be a modern twist on an old standby.

However, before the excitement of the tile begins we will still need to install my new sink, faucet, garbage disposal and air gap!  Never in my life did I think that I would be excited about a sink.  I also got a special delivery as the installers were here:

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Those would be my hardwood floors!  Between floors and countertops there is just too much excitement for one day!  I’m hoping to have the floors installed next week…  Fingers crossed!  Now that I have both the countertops and the flooring in the house I think the colors are going to work SO well with one another!  I’m planning on installing the sink etc. tomorrow to give the epoxy under the granite time to set.  I’ll post pictures once it’s done! 🙂

A treat, for the finished product

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This weekend I managed to wait in line for over 45 minutes with hordes of people in the Macy’s home department.  Why you ask?  Because they had a $10 off coupon that day and I managed to get caught up in the near black friday craziness that ensues when Macy’s sends out a coupon… even a coupon for only $10 off.  I usually don’t drop dead in my tracks when I go shopping for flatware.  It’s functional and not always visually appealing.  My dearest mother bought me a new set about 2 years ago because she said my target set had to go…. only problem was that the new set wasn’t much better.  So when I found this set, I almost died.

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This Bellasera set is made by Henckles and is made as one solid piece with a very interesting knife design.  It’s curved to fit the palm of your hand just right and can also be set to stand up as a unique alternative to the flat knives I’ve always purchased.  The best part?  On sale for $109.99 from $140 with an extra $10 off.  I can’t wait to break them out of their packaging and give them a new home in my new kitchen!

Good things go to those who wait…. or do they?

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I’m a planner.  I planned out every piece of this kitchen before I ever started down this renovation journey.  However, just because it is planned out doesn’t mean it will work out… this is a lesson I learned this weekend while I was driving to pick up my pre-selected faucet at Ikea.  You may remember said faucet from my previous post about granite vs. quartz found here.  And also below:

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I counted this as one of only a few faucets I found attractive during my search because if it’s clean lines and low price point, and considering it was Ikea I figured no rush to run over and pick up up because they’re practically a self-contained warehouse, right?  Boy was I wrong!  Not only was this bad boy sold out here locally, but also in the bay area as well!  They offered a guaranteed delivery, but even then it would make it to my house ON my installation date which is cutting it a little too close for my comfort.  So an unplanned search of my local Home Depots began.  Not one to make a choice on my first visit, we began driving to 3 HD’s in search of the (near) perfect faucet for my new kitchen.  Eventually I settled on this beauty:

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I really didn’t want a faucet with multiple handles because I am planning on installing an air switch for the garbage disposal and needed space for the air gap for the dishwasher, and this faucet gave me the capability to install it as a single hole vs a 3 hole.  I also appreciated the modern, sleek lines and the ability to pull down on the faucet head.  This is something the my Ikea faucet wasn’t able to do… and of course, this came at a more expensive price!  Instead of the $99 I had spent in my mind, it set me back  $150.  I’m sure I will learn to love this faucet  just as much as the previous one… but since HD doesn’t price match completely different faucets from different stores, my laziness in heading to Ikea cost me a bit more dough!

Once the faucet debacle was settled, it was on to leveling the cabinets to prep for the countertop installation!  Here’s my handydad, Jack, in all of his glory helping me with this incredibly grueling process!

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Long story short, none of the cabinets were ever attached to the walls… so it was quite the process to build the supports and to move the cabinets to allow for a semi-level and quite heavy countertop.  Robert Powell did us dirty on this kitchen.  At the end of the day I took that rustic kitchen look a step further…

End result

As you can see, I can no longer use my oven or range, and I’m missing a sink.  So I had to officially take this reno living to a new level I never thought imaginable…

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That’s right.  I’m washing my dishes in my bathroom sink.  The things we do in the name of home renovations!  You might be able to see two bowls in the picture.  Those belong to my parent’s French Bulldogs Pierre and Isabelle.  I know this blog is about the remodel/design of my new house, but I can’t help but share how cute my step-pups are!  Behold the cuteness!

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They had alot of fun running around my house in the 90 degree heat this weekend.  The sniffed around, guarded from strangers, used my leather rug as a toilet, and puked from the excitement.  Even so, it was great to have some life running around my house for once instead of the bugs and dust who seem to have made quite the home here!

Today we will set the plywood down on the cabinets and finally be able to relax and enjoy Father’s Day!  Hope everyone had a great weekend! 🙂

They say patience is a virtue…

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However patience isn’t something I’m known for! In exactly one week I will be the owner of some very new, very fancy, and very real countertops meaning my days using plywood as a support system are nearly over! I still have to make my way over to Ikea (hopefully not during the weekend as to avoid the crazy families shopping for furniture) to pick up my faucet, and have been feverishly calling my flooring company to get the delivery date of my hardwood floors. As much as it is all starting to come together, I’m still so far away! Until then, plywood and dust are what my dreams are made of! I can’t wait to post pictures of the end product!