Embarking on week 6!

Has it really been 6 weeks since we started this reno?  Wow thats a long time of living with such disorder!  I crave organization and not living out of boxes!

Things are really coming along tho!  There is still a ton to do!

Scott has been working hard getting everything ready!  Since I blogged last my appliances were taken out of my kitchen except the sink.  But thats gone now too :(  Doing dishes in the tub these days and using lots of paper products!

Scott taking down my make shift sink!  

Confirmation came today that the cabinets are arriving this Wednesday!  Thats in two (2) days folks!  So looking forward to that!

We no longer have studs for walls but real dry wall!  Woot!  Tonight the house smells especially like dry wall mud.  Its not an un pleasant smell but definitely different;  like wet plaster.

Different angle looking out into the family room.

This is the outside water faucet pipe.  It had busted and was being held together

by some material that just fell apart when Scott touched it! Yikes!

I think I have gotten used to the dining room being opened up and walls taken down!  Some of the owners of the house had put in a doorway between the hallway and the kitchen.  Im assuming this was to heat that part of the house with the wood stove.  It kind of jammed up the pantry door and the area was narrow and small compared to the large room.

The previous doorway with plastic up to catch the dust!
It had a bifold door.

The door was taken down and the door jam and wall above it.  We also opened up that doorway by 5 more inches.  Its much more open!

The columns screamed 1970s!  We are reusing them on the island however and I think they will look awesome there!

This is our cooking and eating area along with the kitchen storage right now!

 My apologies on the quality of some of the pictures!  Some of them were quick snap shots with my phone on the way in or out of the house!  Its been crazy busy!

Scott is working on the ceiling and gonna sand the dry wall so everything is covered in plastic!  I can't wait to clean up and get the painting and flooring started!  Its getting exciting!

End of Week 4!

Today was a day of many emotions.  Hey people!  When they show videos of the family losing it and crying because they can't stand the reno of their house anymore...its real!!!!

So its been a month.  And the worst isn't over.  But I can be a little AR about the cleanliness of my home, namely the keeping the sawdust out of everything AR.  So when my contractor decided he was going to saw and plane and sand the wood tops to the island and bar today instead of working the electric as I expected, I lost it.  Communication is the key.  Scott and I will make a better effort.

Sanding the top!

Check out all the sawdust!!!

 My oldest, who had stayed home from school today sick, was made to help me move everything out of the family room!  I had planned to move out, but it was made a little more urgent by the sawdust flying everywhere.  Then I ripped up the carpet and the padding underneath and went around the room prying up all the staples (no fun).  I removed some of the nailed boards on the perimeter of the room. Don't know what they are called you carpet experts, but they are no fun to get up.

NO more carpet!  

rolls of carpet and more staples in the floor

 Prying up all those little staples is hard work and not so easy peasy on the lower back!  Ouch!

Always go over the floor 2-3 times as they are ALWAYS stragglers!

And wear hard soled shoes so you don't get a staple or a nail in your foot!

Don't you love my foot attire?

Not really taking my own advice but thinking about going into the 

flip flop sock business lol!

More Sawdust!

 And the flooring came!  All sweet 62 boxes of beautiful dark walnut, five inch boards.  Life was ok again and I am in love!!!  Then another truck pulled up and the Fed Ex man handed me a huge box with my wonderful redilicious barn lights in it!  So exciting!

We put a little bit together :-)

Family room holding all the flooring

Its just beautiful! Gonna change the whole space!

Two of these beauties came today!

They will both go over the island.  We were checking the length.

 So some big things happened today.  1. Scott got the island top and the bar top cut to the dimensions needed.  They are sanded and ready for their first coat of stain.  Dark Walnut to match the floor is my choice!  2. The carpet was removed in the family room and the flooring came (still in boxes)!  3.  The island lights came!

Clamping the bar

Putting the island together

Island top

Bar all sawed and sanded

Scott posing with part of his masterpiece

Next week Scott starts on the dry wall and the electric work.  6 recessed lights, one light over the sink and two island lights will be installed.  Plus all new outlets in fresh, clean white!   Its starting to come together!  I hope I can keep it together until then!  :-)

Week 4 Day 2

Took some pics of the flooring I ordered!  I just love this!  5 inch wide planks in black Walnut finish! Flooring really changes your space and Im excited for this to make my family room and kitchen uniform!

Came home today to find my island and bartop wood had arrived!  Its gorgeous!  Milled in Dayton, VA by Lee Nicely, it is red oak and will be stained a dark walnut like the flooring.  Scott will be putting it together piece by piece.  I don't think I realized how big the island is going to be until now.  Wow!

Overhang will be about 12 inches on two sides of the island for seating.

THIS!

The steps were widened yesterday to double the width!  I LOVE it!  It totally opens up the space! 

This panoramic shot is of the kitchen right now.  Steps are not curved!

 Im really having a hard time picking colors for the walls.  Im pretty sure the island and the bar will be the rugged suede which is the swatch on the bottom right.  Wall colors are hard.  The cabinets in the kitchen will be white, the island the dark gray and appliances will be stainless.  I think Id like a light gray but don't want it to be too cold.  Ideas anyone? I have to get started sanding and getting the primer on the island and bar plus the walls!

The whole door should be white but I used a piece of paper and painted a little of it
white so I could see the colors with white a little better!

Rugged suede for the island and bar cabinets

 Spent some more time and money at Lowes today and ordered all of my appliances for under $2500.00!  Very happy for that.  They were all on sale plus I used a 10% off coupon that you can get on Ebay.  Its well worth it when you have big purchases!  Just make sure you read all the fine print!

Im searching for red industrial lights for over my island and my sink!  Love this one I found on Etsy!

End of of Week Three!

Scott had a short week last week as the weather was bad on Monday for turning off the heat and getting it back up and running when it was so cold outside.  Tuesday this was accomplished.  Thank goodness! ;-)  Friday he had some doctors visits so didn't work long.  Sad to hear that the doctor suggested cutting off his head but glad he's not taking his advice!

Wednesday and Thursday were carpentry days.  Scott set the island and worked on the

 floor where we cut off the elevation in preparation for the bar.  I am happy with how we have

recycled the existing cabinets into the island (the whole island is made of the old existing cabinets) and the bar.  This not only saved a ton of money but also saved space in the landfill!

The island is set! Not the vinyl is all gone!

 Scott also set the bar and is working on how to get that secured.

This is the bar (other side sitting area) and the new floor

The bar will be the same color as the island and have cabinets and a thick wood counter

The step will continue to the end of the bar widening it up and making it more appropriate
for the space.

More exciting than that is the countertop that was ordered!  I got my granite!  

It will be about 6 weeks before I actually see it in my kitchen but I still love it all the same!  Greg at Lowes again rocked this deal!  They are showing me the slab of granite it's being cut from so I know exactly what it will look like before they cut it.  Granite can vary in the colors and veins so its best to know what you are going to get before they cut and install it!

David and I took a break and went to eat at this awesome chicken restaurant in Harrisonburg called Chicken Pollo which is a Peruvian style restaurant.  Its kind of a dive but oh so yummy!

We ordered a whole chicken, yuca, beans and plantains   A+

Today I ordered the pop up outlet for the bar.  The kids think this is sooo cool! 

 They can't wait to have a charging station!

 Scott is at the house working on securing the bar and building the wider step, and I went out to Lowes with David.  Steve from Lowes gave us a great deal on the hardwood floors so I went ahead and ordered all of the flooring for the first level of the house.  1460q feet of it.  Bedrooms are carpet.  Bathrooms will be tile.  It probably wont be installed everywhere right away but at least it will match when it does get installed!  I love it!  Its black walnut wide plank.  I need to get a picture!  And I need a sugar daddy! $$$