Thanks, Pop!
Showing posts with label cabinetry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cabinetry. Show all posts
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Built-Ins!
After only 17 months, we are finally getting the built-ins in the living room and dining room!
I got quotes/estimates from 3 different places. Home Depot wanted $7500 for stock cabinets (for both rooms) and basically just hoped they'd be able to figure out a way to make the floating shelves with the materials they could get their hands on. Another local cabinetry store wanted $6k, again for stock cabinets for both rooms.
Looking online, I found a local cabinet maker whose day job is custom cabinetry for celebrities' private planes. Assuming he'd be completely out of our price range, I didn't contact him for a while. Then someone convinced me to at least call and ask, and I am SO glad I did! We ended up with fully custom, gorgeous cabinets, complete with full-extension drawers and pull-out shelving (and, most importantly, the floating shelves I'd been envisioning for two years) for just over $4k.
First, the Living Room - Before:
We had to wait a couple of extra weeks on the countertops, but it was worth it!
If you squint hard enough, you can envision what this will look like with a flat panel TV above the fireplace with a floating shelf mantle and glass tiled fireplace surround. We'll get there.
Aaaaand, the Dining Room - Before:
Then we had to have a soffit built (I'm still very anti-space-above-the-cabinets.)
And finally, the cabinets went in, a little bit at a time.
I decided I couldn't live with the natural finish in the glass-doored cabinet, and the cabinetmaker was kind enough to redo it. We got our wine and wine glass racks in, too!
Still waiting on the countertop - a nice remnant of Ghibli granite.
Update: The granite finally arrived on December 17!
I got quotes/estimates from 3 different places. Home Depot wanted $7500 for stock cabinets (for both rooms) and basically just hoped they'd be able to figure out a way to make the floating shelves with the materials they could get their hands on. Another local cabinetry store wanted $6k, again for stock cabinets for both rooms.
Looking online, I found a local cabinet maker whose day job is custom cabinetry for celebrities' private planes. Assuming he'd be completely out of our price range, I didn't contact him for a while. Then someone convinced me to at least call and ask, and I am SO glad I did! We ended up with fully custom, gorgeous cabinets, complete with full-extension drawers and pull-out shelving (and, most importantly, the floating shelves I'd been envisioning for two years) for just over $4k.
First, the Living Room - Before:
Luckily, modifications to the original house plan included the small wall on the right to anchor the built-ins. I've long had a vision for exactly what I wanted here (thick floating shelves above base cabinets with doors and possibly drawers), but no one seemed to understand what I was trying to describe/draw/model for them.
We had to wait a couple of extra weeks on the countertops, but it was worth it!
Aaaaand, the Dining Room - Before:
Then we had to have a soffit built (I'm still very anti-space-above-the-cabinets.)
And finally, the cabinets went in, a little bit at a time.
I decided I couldn't live with the natural finish in the glass-doored cabinet, and the cabinetmaker was kind enough to redo it. We got our wine and wine glass racks in, too!
Still waiting on the countertop - a nice remnant of Ghibli granite.
Update: The granite finally arrived on December 17!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Moving & Granite Photos
So, as promised, here are the pictures of the garage - empty and then full. Almost nothing is in the room it belongs in, mostly because many of the rooms aren't actually finished. And then, of course, there's the little factor that 80% of our stuff was stored in the old basement, garage, or attic, and we haven't really figured out how to redistribute that in the new house.
(Good thing I labeled these pics, eh? Because otherwise you wouldn't know which was empty and which was full. Der.)
In other news, the kitchen countertops are a work in progress. In theory, they're done by now. But 3 hours ago, they were still a work in progress. On Wednesday, they came to install the horizontal surfaces and (theoretically) drill holes for the faucet. Well, the north side was completely done, and the island was partially done. One granite piece for the east (stove) wall had a huge ugly patch on it, so that one went back. The other piece for that wall didn't have a cabinet to rest on, so it went into the garage. And, for some reason, the bartop didn't get secured to the island framing. So it's just resting there with giant signs that say "TOP NOT SECURE!! DON'T LEAN ON!!!" (Got it. Thanks.)
Today, the granite guys arrived at about 8:30. They were going to bring a replacement for the patched top, put the top on the newly-installed cabinet, put up backsplashes on the island and east wall, and drill faucet holes.
THEN we can unpack the kitchen!
There was some talk of getting the plumber out here this afternoon to install the kitchen faucet. That would be divine, but I'm hot holding my breath.
The good news is that we love the granite. I love it more than Dennis*, which is a little unusual, since I didn't really *want* granite in the first place. (I just wanted non-laminate; granite was the least expensive/most available alternative.) It's quite a bit darker than the sample, which turned out to be a very good thing. And it works really well with the floor tile, cabinets, and appliances. All in all, a great kitchen. (One day, there will be a stainless steel tile backsplash to go with it. And undercabinet lighting. Really there will be.)
And, at long last, our front porch columns have been put up. We also (finally) got a front step and gutters, but I don't have photos of that. (It rained last night/this morning - the gutters work great!)
There's still a long list of large and small items to go, including everything from closet shelves and the occasional missing doorstop to light and sink installation. And we've barely begun to unpack anything, since everything is still so much in flux. Got to get moving, though. This baby is due in 105 days!
In Old House news, we close this afternoon. Obviously, I love, love, love the new house, but I still cried like a baby (ok, like a hormonal pregnant woman) when we left the old place last night. We have so many great memories there. And, when it's empty like that, it seems to have so much potential; before we were so stuck in the rut of feeling like we couldn't do anything and still live there at the same time. (Remember the hardwood floors? We lived in the basement for a month!)
So, here's to (official) new beginnings.
* edit: I meant that I love the granite more than Dennis loves the granite; not that I love the granite more than I love Dennis. He was very saddened by the original phrasing. Let it be known that I love Dennis more than I love the countertops or any other part of the house or the house itself.
(Good thing I labeled these pics, eh? Because otherwise you wouldn't know which was empty and which was full. Der.)
In other news, the kitchen countertops are a work in progress. In theory, they're done by now. But 3 hours ago, they were still a work in progress. On Wednesday, they came to install the horizontal surfaces and (theoretically) drill holes for the faucet. Well, the north side was completely done, and the island was partially done. One granite piece for the east (stove) wall had a huge ugly patch on it, so that one went back. The other piece for that wall didn't have a cabinet to rest on, so it went into the garage. And, for some reason, the bartop didn't get secured to the island framing. So it's just resting there with giant signs that say "TOP NOT SECURE!! DON'T LEAN ON!!!" (Got it. Thanks.)
Today, the granite guys arrived at about 8:30. They were going to bring a replacement for the patched top, put the top on the newly-installed cabinet, put up backsplashes on the island and east wall, and drill faucet holes.
THEN we can unpack the kitchen!
There was some talk of getting the plumber out here this afternoon to install the kitchen faucet. That would be divine, but I'm hot holding my breath.
The good news is that we love the granite. I love it more than Dennis*, which is a little unusual, since I didn't really *want* granite in the first place. (I just wanted non-laminate; granite was the least expensive/most available alternative.) It's quite a bit darker than the sample, which turned out to be a very good thing. And it works really well with the floor tile, cabinets, and appliances. All in all, a great kitchen. (One day, there will be a stainless steel tile backsplash to go with it. And undercabinet lighting. Really there will be.)
And, at long last, our front porch columns have been put up. We also (finally) got a front step and gutters, but I don't have photos of that. (It rained last night/this morning - the gutters work great!)
There's still a long list of large and small items to go, including everything from closet shelves and the occasional missing doorstop to light and sink installation. And we've barely begun to unpack anything, since everything is still so much in flux. Got to get moving, though. This baby is due in 105 days!
In Old House news, we close this afternoon. Obviously, I love, love, love the new house, but I still cried like a baby (ok, like a hormonal pregnant woman) when we left the old place last night. We have so many great memories there. And, when it's empty like that, it seems to have so much potential; before we were so stuck in the rut of feeling like we couldn't do anything and still live there at the same time. (Remember the hardwood floors? We lived in the basement for a month!)
So, here's to (official) new beginnings.* edit: I meant that I love the granite more than Dennis loves the granite; not that I love the granite more than I love Dennis. He was very saddened by the original phrasing. Let it be known that I love Dennis more than I love the countertops or any other part of the house or the house itself.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Aaaaaaand..... we've moved!
It's done! We've moved! Alllll of our stuff is in the new house. (Empty vs. full garage photos to come.)
It's... weird. We still have no curtains, so it's a little like living in a fish bowl. And of course, it's not finished, so it's sortof strange to live in a construction zone.
And it's a pretty big house, actually. After all of that Alice-in-Wonderland-like "it seems big," "it seems small," well, it turns out to be pretty big. It's a long walk from the bed to the bathroom in the middle of the night. And from the master bedroom to the guest room. And, oh, across the living room. Fascinating. I wonder how it will be when there's actually furniture in there.
Anyway, it's wonderful. I do feel a little strange in such a giant place (well, a lot more giant than our old little cottage), but I think I'll get used to it reeeeally soon.
In other news, our front columns have been put up, and some of our kitchen granite was installed today. The granite looks pretty darned good. A bit darker than we expected, but that turned out to be a good thing.
Hopefully I can get some pictures up here tomorrow. Sadly, there are no pictures of the actual move. I was in Chicago and blissfully unaware of all of the details (but also not there to play photojournalist). I'm told we had a TON of help, so thank you, thank you THANK YOU to everyone who pitched in!
It's... weird. We still have no curtains, so it's a little like living in a fish bowl. And of course, it's not finished, so it's sortof strange to live in a construction zone.
And it's a pretty big house, actually. After all of that Alice-in-Wonderland-like "it seems big," "it seems small," well, it turns out to be pretty big. It's a long walk from the bed to the bathroom in the middle of the night. And from the master bedroom to the guest room. And, oh, across the living room. Fascinating. I wonder how it will be when there's actually furniture in there.
Anyway, it's wonderful. I do feel a little strange in such a giant place (well, a lot more giant than our old little cottage), but I think I'll get used to it reeeeally soon.
In other news, our front columns have been put up, and some of our kitchen granite was installed today. The granite looks pretty darned good. A bit darker than we expected, but that turned out to be a good thing.
Hopefully I can get some pictures up here tomorrow. Sadly, there are no pictures of the actual move. I was in Chicago and blissfully unaware of all of the details (but also not there to play photojournalist). I'm told we had a TON of help, so thank you, thank you THANK YOU to everyone who pitched in!
Saturday, June 14, 2008
new kitchen sink, some new pictures
Not a ton of progress since before. But still some good stuff. I'm really liking the glass tile accent in the master bath. The blue in there still seems somewhat garish to me; hopefully we can tone it down with some chocolate accents.
Only a few lights left to install (kitchen island pendants and guest bedroom light were on backorder), and more of the doors and trim have been installed. The baseboards (mostly) look pretty good, but the pantry door has now overtaken the coat closet door in the "ugliest door ever" contest.
Also, it turns out that the sink we shopped for 2 weeks ago won't really fit after all, especially with the faucet we chose, so we got a new kitchen sink. The old one had 2 identical bowls. This one has the asymmetrical bowls. Not ideal, but I think we'll find a way to live with it.June 23
Friday, June 13, 2008
The new (old) plan
Per Dennis...
Basically, we will drive on with the plan from three days ago. All interested parties are on board.
21Jun
We can move everything in except stove and kitchen small things, which is what we will do. Stove and Kitchen things will go in new garage.
23Jun to 27Jun
I/we live at new house sans stove, stocked kitchen, and occupancy permit. All other amenities should be on (water, sewer, gas, electric, AC....)
26Jun
800 lb granite countertop is installed
27Jun
Kitchen sink/stove is installed
We close at two.
------------------------------------
In other news, an even-more-hideous-than-the-others door has been installed on the pantry. Ugh. We may end up picking and choosing which ones to replace. If so, that one will definitely be on the list. (Sorry. No pictures yet.)
Basically, other doors and trim have been going in. There are a few more hiccups (drawers in the 2nd bathroom don't open all the way, kitchen sink might not fit after all, sewer still not hooked up, blah, blah. But the above plan seems feasible, so we're going with it.
Should be interesting living in a house with no stove and no sink for a week. Then again, we did it for a month last year when we refinished the floors. So it certainly can be done. And we'll have bathroom sinks, so we won't be completely disgusting.
Basically, we will drive on with the plan from three days ago. All interested parties are on board.
21Jun
We can move everything in except stove and kitchen small things, which is what we will do. Stove and Kitchen things will go in new garage.
23Jun to 27Jun
I/we live at new house sans stove, stocked kitchen, and occupancy permit. All other amenities should be on (water, sewer, gas, electric, AC....)
26Jun
800 lb granite countertop is installed
27Jun
Kitchen sink/stove is installed
We close at two.
------------------------------------
In other news, an even-more-hideous-than-the-others door has been installed on the pantry. Ugh. We may end up picking and choosing which ones to replace. If so, that one will definitely be on the list. (Sorry. No pictures yet.)
Basically, other doors and trim have been going in. There are a few more hiccups (drawers in the 2nd bathroom don't open all the way, kitchen sink might not fit after all, sewer still not hooked up, blah, blah. But the above plan seems feasible, so we're going with it.
Should be interesting living in a house with no stove and no sink for a week. Then again, we did it for a month last year when we refinished the floors. So it certainly can be done. And we'll have bathroom sinks, so we won't be completely disgusting.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Minor cabinet update
We also spent another $23,233 at Home Depot this weekend. (Ok, maybe not that much). We got a ceiling fan for the nursery (not either of our first choice, but hopefully it will work) and a light for the office. We also got light switches and switchplates and all of that fun stuff. And paint for the nursery. Wait. I already talked about paint for the nursery. Oh well. Apologies for any duplication.
For your amusement, some of the latest photos. I'm told that there has been significant flooring progress this week as well, and the plumber is supposed to be around, too.
May 31
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