Happy New Year!

Just a quick note to wish all my blogger friends a Happy, Safe and Prosperous New Year!

Be safe!

I will be back in the New Year with more pics of the kitchen update. Tile will go down in January.

Carla

New Range, Drywall Repair and Kitchen Update

After much thought, I finally decided against repairing the Kitchenaid range and purchased this new GE unit. I think it will workout much better for me since I do a lot of canning and the Kitchenaid was a glass top and I couldn't do long periods of cooking on that type of unit.  This seems to be a nice stove but the coils take a  little longer to heat up, they sort of sound like a creaking ship, and the surface is not flat so I can't set things on it for added counter space. I did use the oven on Sunday and roasted a big batch of brussel sprouts.  The oven seems to work pretty well, about the same as the Kitchenaid which always did a great job. This oven, like my old one is also a Convection Oven.  I  also like that this model has the controls at the back of the stove instead of the front, this means not having to clean that area while cooking.

I also will be changing out the two black handles on the drawers and put on knobs. The handles are too large for these two drawers.  That means filling holes, sanding and painting again but the handles just don't work here.

I don't think I will be adding a decorative back-splash behind the stove like I was going to do.  You can see in the photo above that there really isn't much space behind it to add a tile design so that will save some money.

I am still thinking of adding some sort of an open cabinet cubicle on the right of the range hood. That will balance out the cabinets on both sides.  

I was able to find a drywall repair person that did the repairs for me on Friday morning to the electrical area and he also repaired the areas around the window and backsplash that had the 8 inch tiles.  When I removed those, they left a ridge that he scraped and then filled and texture sprayed. He did a great job and only charged me $120.00 to repair 5 holes plus the backsplash.

 This shows the repairs to the drywall for the electrical work.

This week I may be painting the walls, that way if I make a mess on the floor it won't matter!  The floor tile will be installed the second week of January (hopefully).  Then we move on to the countertop. We are still deciding on the color of the granite.  We decided against the brown tones and have looked at several slabs of  "Verde Tunas".  This granite has a lot of black in it and just a little green. I will go with one that has more black than green.  I am getting excited as the month goes on, knowing that soon all will be finished and I can start using my kitchen again.  

I have a very small garden this winter, with the kitchen mess I didn't want to have too much to care for, but here are a few photos.

Swiss Chard

Arugula

Red Leaf, Oak Leaf from "Farmer's Market Blend" Botanical Interests Seed

Beets and Cilantro

Radishes

Easter Egg and French Breakfast Radishes from Botanical Interest Seeds

Parsley planted from seed in September

Arugula Blend

Potato Plants 

 Fresh Picked this morning!

Raised beds resting for the winter.

All Smiles Today!

I am so happy with the way my kitchen is turning out!

I finished all the painting last week, and Tony helped me Saturday and Sunday putting all the doors and all the hardware on the cabinets.

It took a long time because the paint added a bit more thickness to the edges of the doors which caused the existing holes for the hinges to be a bit off on a couple of the doors.  Also I never noticed before when they were wood that they didn't all line up perfectly! It showed up when they were painted, all in all I am very pleased with the results.

We ended up choosing black hardware over the brushed nickel.  When I tried the hinges on the nickel, they didn't line up on most of the doors.  Not sure why because the style was the same as the black.  Things work out for the best and now that the black is on all the cabinets, I like it better than the nickel anyway.

We still have to patch the walls from the electrical work, affix the cabinet to the wall before the counter top and new sink goes in.  I also am thinking about painting the island cart the same color as the cabinets. 

 

We still are looking at samples for the counter top.  Tony likes the granite called Typhoon Bordeaux. The sample looks nothing like the slab we saw at Arizona Tile, but then the variation in the grain and color is different in each slab. The one we looked at had a lot of the sage green color and was much lighter than this small sample.  The brown tile in the photo is what will go on the floor and the small tiles are for the back of the stove area and under that cabinet.

So far my costs have only been for the paint; 1 gallon of Behr Semi-Gloss color is Bonsai Pot. The color will not come up on their website, but they have the swatch in Home Depot.  Then 1 gallon of Kiln primer.  I have 1/2 gallon of each left!  Cost for the paint was $39.98 and the primer was around $20.00.  The hardware (hinges and handles) came in around $140.00.  

Of course the counter top and tile installation will be $1500.00 - $2200.00.  I still need to buy the stainless steel sink, but I think I will come in close to my budget of $2500.00 for the whole project.  

Below are some before photos:

September 17, 2012

Making Progress

CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE

First coat of Semi-gloss Enamel on lower cabinets.

Drawers with First Coat

I added some (wood) trim to both sides of the cabinet.

This photo shows the trim I added to the center, where both cabinets meet and to the right edge.  There was a bit of a gap in the center and I think the added (wood) trim makes the cabinets have a more finished look. 

More trim on both sides of the dishwasher.

Above photo shows the cabinet frames with just the primer on them. I will paint those tomorrow with the Semi-Gloss.

This is the area under the sink.  It turned out nice and smooth. I will give most of these a second coat, I think, not sure if I need to do all the framing with a second coat but I think the drawer fronts and doors will hold up better with two coats. 

I added a wood corner trim piece here.  I really like the way this added trim is looking, my cabinets look much cleaner and finished now. 

Today, I paint the 16 doors, one side only! This photo shows them with the primer. This will be a two day project since the enamel takes a lot longer to dry.  I can't paint both sides the same day.

Another photo of the frames with just the primer. Hopefully I can get the doors and frames finished today.  I am waiting for the air to warm a little more outdoors so I can open up the windows.  

 Sorry for the blurred photo here, just wanted a picture of the doors.

Below are some photos of two Granite samples.  I am leaning towards the darker color since my floors with be the brown tile (see photos from previous posts) and I like a earthy color scheme in my home. I like the clean, white color of the Kashmir White, but I think it would be a little too Modern for what I am looking to achieve.  This weekend we will go to Arizona Tile and look at more Granite samples.  I am also thinking of adding tile to the back of the stove area and under those cabinets, then run it along the back-splash by the sink and that counter. Lots to think about! 

Often the goal is nearer than

it seems to a faint faltering man,

often the struggler has given up

when he might have captured the victor’s cup,

and he learned too late, when the night slipped down,

how close he was to the golden crown.

-Author Unkown

 More Inspiration Below

Traditional Kitchen design by London Kitchen And Bath Fixtures Maple & Gray

 

 

Traditional Kitchen design by London Kitchen And Bath Fixtures Maple & Gray

Painting, Painting, Painting

We finally finished all the sanding.  I painted the insides of the cabinets a bright white enamel; took two days.  Today I begin painting the frames with the primer and then on to the drawers and doors.

I am a little behind my schedule because I kept changing my mind on the cabinet color.  I finally stayed with a sage green color but chose another one.  I am using Behr paint color "Bonsai Pot".  It is a pretty sage green with a bit more blue in it. The color does not come up on their website, but once I get the frame done and a few drawer fronts I will post a photo of it.

For now here are a few pics of the inside of the cabinets and the mess I have in the kitchen.  I have 16 doors to do, both sides, and 8 drawer fronts.

I feel good today and ready to Move Forward, if I may use a line from our President. I am delighted that he was re-elected!

"Life is not just waking up one morning and saying ok I want this to happen,
it's about getting out there and going for it."

-Helen Grandison