I know, I know, I know!!! I have totally left some of you in the dark about the kitchen renovation (sorry JJJ) and I owe you an update. I have no good excuse~~~life just got in the way. Back in August when we got home from vaca life was just busy. Work was (and is) crazy and I always seem to have so much to do. The longer I didn't post about the kitchen the more I felt overwhelmed and didn't know where to start again.
OK...first I will tell you that the kitchen is 97.9 percent done. There are still minor finishing touches that need to be taken care of and they tell me that will be next week. I had a total breakdown this week because we are almost 2 months past due and I want those last few things done so it can be DONE. To be honest once the TV show they are filming our kitchen for got delayed, until January, it seemed like our kitchen progress slowed considerably. I just really just want the lock box off the front door.
Second.....there was a point there in August when we reverted right back to "construction" phase and it was so disheartening. I'll share the scoop on that stuff now.
Do you see that crown molding above the tall pantry doors? Well that was sticking out past that wall on the left side of the pantry. That could not stay like that so they had to build that wall out an inch or so.
Yep, that meant drywall, mudding and taping and more dust.
But now the crown molding is nicely tucked into the corner as it should be.
Oh this meant that our 4" baseboards had to come off and the paint job had to be re-done.
They did a great job with this fix and I am happy with it.
Our Walnut hardwood floors are sand on site. Well after they were coated there were 3 "chippy" boards that appeared. Apparently you can't tell the wood is bad until they are coated which I believe because they were installed for at least a month previous and I never noticed them. We even walked over one daily..alot.
The 3 boards were just bad. You could stick your finger nail under pieces and flick it apart. So what you see in these pics is the new raw boards being installed.
They had to sand the area between the green tape 3 times (over 2 days) and eurothane that area. Is it eurothane they put on? I actually have no idea what the floor coating is other than it's water based. Maybe.
Then to blend this they had to resand the entire floor...make that entire 2 floors, stairs etc. This sanding doesn't take it back to raw wood but preps it for another coating. We had to be out of the house for the weekend and Wendy put us up. Thanks BFF.
I was kind of sad this was happening but it worked out for the best because the floors looked so much better with the 4th coating. The wood must have really sucked up the first 3 coats and they looked great but after the 4th coat they looked even better.
There is one area by the back door that isn't blended "perfectly" but we are just fine with it as it's in the highest traffic spot for dogs and us anyway. The other 2 spots do look and feel perfect.
So speaking of crown molding this was the big problem for me and even if I wasn't picky it would have been a problem. The carpenter who installed our cabinets did a TERRIBLE job of the crown molding. He nailed them up and then used his finger (dirty hands to boot) to fill the hole and then painted over with a paint brush. I'm sure you can imagine the dirty looking smudges.
So, the contractor brought their cabinet sprayer to the house and he taped off everything to sand and respray them. They look AMAZING now and while it wasn't something someone wishes to have to do it was well worth the inconvenience.
The cabinet doors that are missing below (plus 2 drawer fronts) were taken back for respraying also as they had issues. They are back and all fixed up!
One of these green doors on the end was splashed with the floor eurothane when the floors were getting done and had to go back for respraying too. Unfortunately, it is now a different shade of green which through me in a tizzy for sure (tears happened big time). {{It has to be fixed!!}}. This island is my favorite piece and is the show piece of the kitchen and I would be forever bothered by it even though it's a subtle difference.
Like I said no one wants these things to happen and no one wants to be 2 months delayed but these things happen and I love my kitchen so much it's all worth it!
So we are being promised that our house will be DONE by next Thursday and then I will take final pics to show you everything. I've also been taking pictures of the organization in the drawers etc and while I'm sure many won't care one bit what is in my cabinets I still plan on doing a post. {{{JJJ will want to see cuz she is obsessed and sends me emails and FB comments demanding updates. heehee.}}}
Before I go.....I am on the hunt for counter height stools and these Tolix are the current front runners. They are crazy expensive and I love them but I'm not sure if I LOOOOOVE them. KWIM? Without being able to see them in person first I'm on the fence. There is a knock off version that is SO cheap (with good reviews) but they don't ship to Canada. Of course they don't. I'm almost afraid to ask you~~ Yay or Nay on these? in case you hate them. If you know of any great stools that you think would look good in my kitchen, please link me up!!
Now can somebody PLEASE come and help me unpack all the boxes and get this kitchen filled?!!!
