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

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!

IMG_3662

 

IMG_3663

 

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!

Advertisement

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

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:

Faucet

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:

HD Faucet

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!

leveling cabinets

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…

Bathroom kitchen

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!

IsabellePierre

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! 🙂