A Star is Born

Born, in this case, meaning installed. In order to create the template for our marble countertops, they had to install our farmhouse sink that I've been totally obsessed with very excited about for oh, about two years. We were so excited to see it in place.

The guys arrived at 7:30 am to install it, when it was still pretty dark, so the task light makes for a kind of funny photo. Don't the guys look angelic? I think it's pretty fitting.

So I waited until lunchtime to snap some decent shots of it. I love how the white plays against the dark lower cabinets, and the clean lines of the shiny white fireclay. Want to see it closer?

Closer still? Can you tell I'm a bit enamored? 

Here's the view from above. They offset the drain so that the garbage disposal is off to the side below, since these sinks take up quite a bit of space and reduce storage in the cabinet below. Not that I really care about that - it's so pretty!

With the sink weighing in at 132 pounds, it requires some pretty serious support. The guys built a 2x4 frame that holds it in place in the cabinet below. 

And finally, here's the money shot. I love the side view, with our inset drawers flush against the cabinet fronts, and the sink protruding just the slightest bit. The curved edges look so nice sticking out of the dark cherry cabinets.  

So at this point, we have the countertop templates made, and countertops are set to be installed on Halloween - less than two weeks away! This week the cabinet installers will return to do finishing touches, and there's been talk of some possible trim work. Next week is hardwood refinishing (yay!) and the following week is big. Countertop installation on Monday, followed by painting and completing tile work. Then trim, installation of fixtures and lights, etc. and we can call this thing done! While there's still a lot to do, and probably close to a month before we get there, the end is beginning to feel in sight.

I'm in Love!

Look what arrived today! We've been getting mad deliveries from all the stuff I've ordered, but this is by far the one I've been most excited about. And it did not leave me disappointed - it's beautiful! All 180 pounds of it. Yikes!

Nino liked it too. Don't worry, he and I talked and he does not plan on making a habit of sitting in the sink once it's installed. 

In other news, the wrecking crew continues to make amazing progress. I'm thrilled to announce that demolition is complete, and the rebuilding stage has begun! They encountered one surprise though, and that is that *someone* (I suspect the same person who plumbed our bathroom drain with hose clamps) notched into about a half dozen of our ceiling joists, significantly weakening them.

That's not all! The notches caused the bathroom floor to sink, so they poured a concrete slab in the bathroom floor to bring it back to almost level (it was definitely still not level, just for the record). So, there's now a big hole in our bathroom floor/kitchen ceiling.

Our contractor assured us this is not a big deal to fix, so before they put up the new walls they need to reinforce a few ceiling joists, and replace some bathroom subfloor. I was very pleased to find the materials already here when I got home today - 2x8's for the joists and plywood for the subfloor . . .

 . . . as well as a big pile of studs! Proof that rebuilding has begun! And these guys aren't just laying around - check out the brand new stud wall already built in our office!

 

This is the framing for our new half bathroom, as well as the new smaller closet we're having built to replace the closet we knocked out to make the kitchen bigger. 

And see those metal slides in the middle of the photo? That is the first of three pocket door frames to be installed in the house! This one is to enter the half bath from the office. The others will be for entry to the bathroom from the upstairs hallway, and to the closet from the kitchen. All three frames appear to have been delivered today, so I suspect we'll see them in place in the very near future.

 

The crew working on our house has been really great about keeping original pieces that are reusable, so here you see two original doors as well as quite a bit of original oak trim. We'll reuse these two-panel oak doors for the half bath and closet downstairs, and the trim will be be reused throughout all the downstairs construction. 

So this is where we are - just three days in. We're very impressed with the pace of progress, and love this whole setup where we go to work and come home to find all kinds of surprises! So far all good, so hopefully it stays that way. As far as next steps, we have a plumber coming Monday, as well as our cabinet maker for final measurements, and then the electrician comes Wednesday. How's that for progress?

Now that demolition is finished, I'm ready to clean up the plaster dust that's settled throughout the house. And then I'll probably have some cereal for dinner. Because that's just what you eat at times like this. 

Wrigley was feeling left out after the whole Nino-in-the-sink thing, so here's his shining moment, sitting next to all the lumber piles. He's just one of the studs.

Getting Closer!

Remember all that stuff that I have to buy am so excited to buy for our project? Well today I made a big dent in my shopping list! And it was just as fun as I thought it would be. The lovely sink pictured above was today's biggest purchase, but there were several others as well - in red and crossed out below.

Long story short, all our plumbing fixtures (sinks, faucets, etc.) should arrive on our front porch in approximately 4-7 business days, as well as a few fun accessories. Our island delivery was delayed from September 1 to September 13 (boo!) but hopefully we'll have it assembled and ready to show off this week! 

Kitchen Shopping List:
1. island - I just ordered a walnut butcher block island today!
2. 4 overhead lights
3. 1 pendant light for over the sink
4. sink - farmhouse sink I've been drooling over for the past 2.5 years
5. faucet - to keep the sink company
6. cabinet hardware - knobs and pulls for all the cabinet doors
7. appliances - dual fuel range, microwave, dishwasher, scheduled for delivery in September
8. rugs - 2 2x3 rugs for the backdoor and sink areas, gifted from my parents last Christmas

Half Bathroom Shopping List:
1. sink
2. faucet
3. mirror - purchased from my favorite French boutique this weekend
4. towel hook - also purchased from the French boutique this weekend
5. toilet paper holder
6. vanity light - gifted from my parents 2 Christmases ago (originally intended for the kitchen, but plans change in 2 years!)
7. rug

Upstairs Bathroom Shopping List:
1. 2 wall-mount faucets
2. 2 medicine cabinets - ordered this summer during Restoration Hardware's bathroom sale
3. 2 vanity lights
4. 1 overhead light
5. 2 towel hooks
6. 1 towel rod
7. shower curtain rod - reusing our existing rod and roller hooks
8. toilet paper holder
9. shower curtain
10. bath mat
11. bath and shower faucet
12. window treatment - cafe plantation blind
13. cabinet hardware

As you can see, the kitchen and half bath are getting pretty close! The upstairs bathroom needs some love, so I'll have to get rolling on all those items soon - mostly lighting and hardware.

I keep telling myself that the arrival of all of these items will be a great reward for all the cleaning out we have to do this weekend to get ready for demolition to begin on Monday, but somehow I'm still not feeling all that motivated to pack . . . 

Spending the Savings

It's strange after nearly two and a half years of saving to be spending our kitchen savings, but it has officially begun! I've got quite a list of things to buy that go into the project, and I've begun chunking away at it. And to tell you the truth . . . . it's pretty fun!

Kitchen Shopping List:
1. island - I just ordered a walnut butcher block island today!
2. 4 overhead lights
3. 1 pendant light for over the sink
4. sink - farmhouse sink I've been drooling over for the past 2.5 years
5. faucet - to keep the sink company
6. cabinet hardware - knobs and pulls for all the cabinet doors
7. appliances - dual fuel range, microwave, dishwasher, scheduled for delivery in September
8. rugs - 2 2x3 rugs for the backdoor and sink areas, gifted from my parents last Christmas

Half Bathroom Shopping List:
1. sink
2. faucet
3. mirror - purchased from my favorite French boutique this weekend
4. towel hook - also purchased from the French boutique this weekend
5. toilet paper holder
6. vanity light - gifted from my parents 2 Christmases ago (originally intended for the kitchen, but plans change in 2 years!)
7. rug

Upstairs Bathroom Shopping List:
1. 2 wall-mount faucets
2. 2 medicine cabinets - ordered this summer during Restoration Hardware's bathroom sale
3. 2 vanity lights
4. 1 overhead light
5. 2 towel hooks
6. 1 towel rod
7. shower curtain rod - reusing our existing rod and roller hooks
8. toilet paper holder
9. shower curtain
10. bath mat
11. bath and shower faucet
12. window treatment - cafe plantation blind
13. cabinet hardware

So, we have a good start on our shopping but quite a bit more fun to come in the next few weeks. We met with our prospective cabinet maker today, so should have good numbers on the project in the next few days. Things are moving along, and we couldn't be happier!