Kitchen Mini-Reno - The Cabinets

<center></center><center></center>This week is a little crazy. Our church does a stay-away camp for hundreds of teenage girls in our area that I was asked to help with and that finally, after months and months of meetings and work, is happening this week. Balancing the end stage planning of that really fun project with all the recent house projects going on here has been a little tricky, but also so exciting! It feels like things are really starting to <i>happen</i> this week! The <a href="http://instagram.com/p/oyWueDQW-3/" target="_blank">bookshelf installers came yesterday</a> and they are a good halfway there and the other projects are ahead of or at least right on schedule. I only hope this pace continues until our big photo shoot deadline at the beginning of July (Knock on wood!).<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo DSC_0583.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/ALBUM%2021/DSC_0583.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><img alt=" photo aDSC_0445.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aDSC_0445.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><br />So, the kitchen. Many of you have weighed in as I've bounced around different thoughts and plans. I've swung from wanting to do a full-blown-knock-down-tear-out kitchen remodel to "let's just leave it all as-is for another year or two and then renovate" - and every version of a remodel in between.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo ssDSC_04481.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/ssDSC_04481.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><img alt=" photo IMG_0815.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/ALBUM%2021/IMG_0815.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><a name="more"></a></div><br />One of the first things I try to figure out about a new client before we start working together is their change tolerance. Some people need more time on decisions, some people move very, very quickly. Usually somewhere in between yields the best results. Unfortunately, I swing a little more on the side of "very quick" decision maker when it comes to my own house choices, which comes back to bite me sometimes. I've been trying to learn how to slow down and pace my decisions, but I am super comfortable with change. I'd love to move to a new house every year if I could! Or at least I'd love have a new kitchen every year if it wasn't so expensive and wasteful! :)<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_08071.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/ALBUM%2021/IMG_08071.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4785.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4785.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><br />Anyway, what I'm getting at is that I spent a little more time thinking about what I wanted to do in this kitchen than I might normally spend, and I still waffled right up to the very end on how much money and effort we should put in here. This room is a head-scratcher for me. It really, really bothered me how much I didn't like the room we spent a huge amount of time in every day. But I think we've finally figured out a longer-term plan that makes sense for the house and for us.<br /><br />I'm sure you remember that we're going to need a new roof here in the next year or two. The roof (which is going to cost a ton) is higher priority than a fully brand new, re-worked kitchen. So we decided to spend the next 1-3 years putting our pennies away for a new roof and a new kitchen. And in the meantime, we'd do a Jenny style make-it-work remodel in the kitchen. Because of the photo shoot, I can't show you one or two angles, but I want to share a lot of the process with you over the course of a couple posts. We're about 90% done now and I can't believe how new the room feels! And it also feels bigger! A huge part of the change was removing the granite.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo aaDSC_0500.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aaDSC_0500.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><br />I really tried guys. I wanted to make this work, but it was a doomed relationship from the start. It's not you, Granite! It was me all along.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo aDSC_0508.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aDSC_0508.jpg" /></div><br />Slowly and carefully we scored and pried, and the granite was removed. The cut out parts by the sink and cooktop ended up snapping, but all the other lengths were successfully salvaged and are being reworked for another family's bathrooms.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo aDSC_0490.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aDSC_0490.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><img alt=" photo IMG_4931.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4931.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">And we used plywood to build countertop bases for concrete. I was really tempted to go with stone, but it was a pretty obvious choice to go with the concrete overlay. It looks great and it's CHEAP. Like less than $100 for all the materials required here (concrete, plywood, concrete color additive). Actually scratch that. The sealer I bought this time was about $100 alone, but it was worth the splurge. It's really good and it's food-safe, which is so important for a kitchen space, obviously. I'm totally getting ahead of myself though. More on concrete later.</div><br /><img alt=" photo IMG_5015.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5015.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">After removing the granite, it seemed like a good time to have our handyman install a vent hood. There had been a downdraft vent at one point, so we just had to open up the drywall and connect the new overhead hood with the existing vent to the outside. It was so simple and I have been SO HAPPY to cook lately. :) No ventilation is bad, bad news, guys!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_5026.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5026.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I wish the hood didn't show at all, but we only had a couple of inches to work with (the HVAC vents are right above this, so we couldn't get any more height - grrr) and this was the thinnest vent we could find for the money. It's worked out though - we ended up running concrete all the way up the back wall, so now it's a lot less noticeable. I'd rather have an inch or two of hood visible than no hood at all I guess.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_5021.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5021.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_5020.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5020.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">You probably noticed the color change on the cabinets here. This is the primer coat, so it's brighter than the final color (Ben Moore's Swiss Coffee). We wanted to go with a really warm white to balance out the cool wall color (Titanium). The floors are probably going to get a change too. We had a few drips and spills while doing the cabinet frames and the concrete so we need to do touch ups anyway. Might as well go a little lighter.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo aaDSC_0431.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aaDSC_0431.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo aDSC_0423.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/aDSC_0423.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">The cabinets were updated with some L-shaped corner moulding, cut with my miter saw and installed with a really cheap pinner gun I got on clearance at Lowes. It took a full day to get just the moulding on (sooooo many cuts), but I love the cleaner look of the shaker style fronts. We saved a ton of money by going this route and salvaging the cabinet doors, drawers and frames, so it ended up being worth the effort.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4766.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4766.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I bought a new spray gun with a wider spray radius than the Critter. I will defend <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-best-and-easiest-to-use-spray-gun.html" target="_blank">my undying love for the Critter</a> til the day I die, but it does spray a little slower and finer than the bigger guns. I found <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CLWWQIO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00CLWWQIO&linkCode=as2&tag=littgreenote-20&linkId=FFVEH4LLV3RBWEP4" target="_blank">this Grace airless sprayer</a> at Lowes on clearance (they have the BEST deals on clearance tools!) and it's been pretty great. The airless feature means you don't need an air compressor. You just plug it in, fill the cup with paint and start spraying. I'm really happy with how fast it sprays and how smooth the finish is. This is the primer coat below, after we had sanded and caulked the new moulding.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo cIMG_4937.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/cIMG_4937.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">After taking these photos, I sprayed a second coat and covered the drawer sides and glides on that pass, so everything is white now. It is such a clean look.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4341.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4341.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The cabinet frames are not the best, but they function and now they're much prettier. I'm waiting for the hardware still and I'll show some afters soon and talk more about the counters. We went with black and I'm pretty much in heaven with the combo of the dark counters and the creamy white cabs. Good stuff.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_5029.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5029.jpg" /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">I'm so happy we decided to just make the big stuff work for another year or two. To me, a few days of hard labor and a couple hundred bucks are work it to have a prettier kitchen, even if it is just a temporary fix.</div></div></div>

Kitchen Mini-Reno - The Cabinets

This week is a little crazy. Our church does a stay-away camp for hundreds of teenage girls in our area that I was asked to help with and th...

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Bathroom Reno Progress and A New Sputnik

<center></center>Sometimes I like to jump right in to three or four big projects all at once. I figure that the house is going to be a mess and all covered in construction dust anyway, so why not knock out a few things at the same time? If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably seen my <a href="http://instagram.com/p/oCAWHSwW0g/" target="_blank">kitchen cabinet upgrade</a>, our <a href="http://instagram.com/p/oB0PnJQWwl/" target="_blank">new sink</a> and soon-to-be-stripped <a href="http://instagram.com/p/oEwopGwW4e/" target="_blank">faucet</a>, and some of our <a href="http://instagram.com/p/nvfBENQWxY/" target="_blank">bathroom demo</a>. And hopefully you took a minute to vote on our <a href="http://instagram.com/p/ns2TAewW9g/" target="_blank">exterior house color choices</a>. I need to share photos of the front of the house too, which we hired Jason again to help us rework. All the projects are moving at break-neck speed, so we're all feeling a little tired, but excited by the amazing progress on the house in a very short period of time.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4792.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4792.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /><img alt=" photo IMG_4795.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4795.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">We also hired the same guy who took out our well to help with removing the giant bathtub (his company is called Kyle's Moonlighting and Kyle is pretty much the nicest man in the world - totally recommend him for exterior/interior removal services!).</div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4807.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4807.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Once we got the tub and the vanity out, we called in some plumbers to get the pipes ready for the new tub and for a single sink vanity.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_5007.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_5007.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Next, we're tackling tiles. I'm going with one of the tumbling block patterns <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2014/05/on-hunt-for-tile.html" target="_blank">I posted before</a> I think. Of the two I posted, I'm leaning toward the lighter version peeking out up above and here below:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4996.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4996.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://instagram.com/p/n_WYxXwW9S/" target="_blank">I picked a stone</a> for the sink and I think it will go together beautifully! Can't wait to get going on this install. The floors need to be floated a little though to prep for the tile and to make the bathroom level with the wood floors. (The blue walls are getting a big change this week hopefully too!)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4991.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4991.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Oh, I also wanted to share that I found an amazing vintage sputnik a few weeks back at Modern on Melrose, which is a really fun vintage consignment shop on 7th Ave. It's becoming one of my favorite stores to pop in to - their selection is always well curated and the prices range from very fair to amazingly inexpensive. One of my favorite lamps in the studio (the one on my desk) was only $20 there. If you stop by, be sure to check out the salvage yard area in the back! </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4603.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4603.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4222.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4222.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The brass on the sputnik was not in the best shape, but just a little scrubbing with some soapy water cleaned up the grime and not-so-great-patina.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4225.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4225.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Aren't those "petals" amazing? </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4229.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4229.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo cIMG_4233.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/cIMG_4233.jpg" style="text-align: start;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">We're going to take down that pendant and move the electrical box to be centered over the tub and the window for the sputnik. Won't it be so pretty with the wall of subway tile and <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2014/04/black-clawfoot-tub.html" target="_blank">the pretty clawfoot tub</a>?!</div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt=" photo IMG_4992.jpg" border="0" src="http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jkomenda/Album%2020/IMG_4992.jpg" /></div><br />Sometimes fun decorating purchases help me get through the projects phase a little more efficiently! I'm getting anxious to see how it all comes together. :)

Bathroom Reno Progress and A New Sputnik

Sometimes I like to jump right in to three or four big projects all at once. I figure that the house is going to be a mess and all covered i...

Read more »