IKEA Trip Last Weekend

I hit IKEA with Julia this weekend. I only spent 13 bucks, but I made big plans for a spending spree next time. I've selected a couple of sinks for the kitchen, a single bowl sink for food prep, and a double bowl sink for washing up.

I've also more or less selected a cooktop, though I haven't yet ordered it. I've spent multiples of my limit on my airline mileage credit card this month, it's beginning to get confusing. From one day to the next the balance owing and the available credit just plain don't jive.

The cooktop I want is the 30" Electrolux Induction Cooktop.

Things Are Progressing

I got the cabinets ordered, all of them. I could go over to Leslie and Arece's and take a picture I suppose, they're going to be basically the same. That's progress.

But the progress that's on my mind is slow renal failure for my dog. He had a couple of visits to the vet last week to check how he's doing since he's been on medication over a year now for his kidneys. It's progressing slowly, but it's progressing. I tell you it can never be good news when the vet asks you how old your animal is... So we put H on a new prescription diet with lower protein and that should be less taxing on his kidneys. "But you should start preparing yourself..." he said. I dismissed that. On the one hand I've been preparing myself for years. Beyond that there's nothing can do to prepare myself for my dog's demise. Except maybe go to the park more.

Cabinets Ordered and Change Ordered

I've been sick for the past several days. I probably shouldn't have played soccer last Friday, by that time I knew it was coming. In fact I was coughing off and on all day on Friday. I spent half the day in bed. But I'd been away from the game for 3 weeks and we were at low attendance among our women teammates. I guess I just couldn't help myself. I doubt it helped me, but I don't think it really caused any more illness than I would have had anyway.

Anyway, I got up this morning with the driest of coughs and achy all over. I called in sick at 7 a.m. and by 10 a.m. I could feel my fever break, my head cleared up, and I had energy that only comes from not being sick after having been sick.

I tried to order cabinets last Friday. I really tried. But Dennis, the guy at Dunn Lumber whom I've been working with to get my kitchen cabinet/floor plan layout figured out, he was out last Friday. Then I remembered that back in August when I tried to do this on one of my Fridays off, the same thing happened, maybe twice. The gal I spoke with on the telephone says to me Dennis is off every other Friday. Well a-freakin-ha! Dennis and I have the same days off so I kept missing him.

But, this week is different. I have no more summer vacations to plan nor financing to wait for (that finally happened the day I took off for England), this time I've got me where I want me! I took advantage of my day off and made an appointment to see Dennis at noon. At around 12:30, after figuring out where a microwave should go and what kind of box it should sit in, I signed the papers for half of my cabinets. That's all that would fit on my credit card that earns me air miles. So done... -ish. Hallelujah, I finally did it!

I'm back home going to transfer funds between my accounts so that I can pay my VISA off even before it gets the charge. I go to my trusty 3-ring binder for the house projects and I'm flipping through the pages from this morning's order. I figure I'll get the amount of the full cost of the cabinets in there, annotated, so it'll be easy to keep track of. Well, as I'm flipping past the elevation drawings I notice that I don't like the look of two of the cabinets. There are two narrow base cabinets one right next to the other. One's 15 inches wide, the other 9 inches, and the next, a sink base cabinet is 21 inches wide. All 3 of these cabinets hinge on the right. I dunno, something about it just looked wrong.

So, at 3:55 I took off for Dunn Lumber to see if I could change it. This was the first half of the full set of cabinets, this is the portion that Dennis was going to send in today, this is the portion I just signed off on and paid for. Why exactly that put me into a panic I don't know. I should know by now that if it's not built yet, it's not too late to change it. Even if it is built already, it's always just a matter of money and time. Time and money.

I knew Dennis had a 3 o'clock appointment, so I figured he'd probably still be there at 4. Sure enough, his 3 o'clock was just wrapping up when I got there. I occupied myself looking at mouldings and granite--ooh Uba Tuba looks better than I thought!--while I waited for them to finish. When they did finish, I poked my head back in Dennis' office door. "I'm back!" I said. His computer was dark and his files were put away. "No problem," he said, though, he can put in the change order when he gets the confirmation of the order in the first place. Whew!

So, half the cabinets are ordered and paid for; the rest, later this week. Then I just need a cooktop, an oven, 2 sinks, countertops... and that might be it!... for the kitchen. Man, that would be awesome.

...Not!

That didn't work at all. I spent very little time on the internet while I was abroad. And I didn't bring (take?) my laptop along. Blogging was simply not in the cars, er, cards. I did do a little catching up after vacation, however. I did that on Barb and Bruce's blog.

Highjacking the Blog to the UK

Well, there'll be nothing happening on the house for the next few weeks as I'm in the UK. I'm visiting Barb and Bruce & Co in Cambridge today and tomorrow we, Sarah and I, head north. We're not sure yet whether we'll go all the way to Edinburgh, or stop part way for the night. We're going to the Hearts vs Rangers match in Edinburgh.

Bruce is in London tonight for a conference today and tomorrow, so we're a houseful of women and girls tonight. Ice cream and wine for everyone!

We had a great talk about how school is different and spelling especially different. Miranda's missed a lot of -our and -re words on her quizzes. I played cards with Olivia and Sophia. Miranda's reading the 3rd Harry Potter book, completely rapt in her own wizard world. Actually, now they're all having ice cream... well, all but Olivia who refused it because it isn't chocolate.

Tomorrow we'll walk them to school in the morning and then get a car, and hopefully do something with Barb before we hit the road.

The Bathtub Is In

Two weekends ago Dave came to build in my bathtub. He came over with John and we talked about how it would go, a 5 foot tub in a space roughly 6 1/2 feet long. I couldn't help myself, I wanted to know what it would take to swap (back) the locations of the shower and the toilet. After reviewing the work it would take, I gave it up. Dave wondered if we should go ahead with the plan as it was, or if I wanted some more time to think about it. 'No, let's go ahead,' I said.

But I was pretty bummed about it.

Not 10 minutes later I called him back and told him to tell John NOT to build it. I wasn't sure of my decision. It was (and is) hard for me to believe that it would be that onerous to replumb the toilet to the stack just 18 inches away. But Dave had said something about not wanting to cut into a joist--to put in a toilet drain--and compromise the structure of the floor supports, especially so near to the bathtub. I'm not sure that would be necessary... but I digress.

After a week of stewing over it, I've given up all over again. The shower stays. The toilet stays. Forward ho with the bathtub! So Dave came back this past weekend and put it in place. I think he's been back again on Monday and Tuesday to finish up the plumbing and clean up. It looks pretty good now, better than the picture since it is cleaned up.

Now I've got some errands to run again. I need to buy shower hardware to get the valve which needs to be put in place before the tiling can be done. And I need to get my tub faucet. I don't think either of these will be prohibitive--even for me--but, well, I seem to have a knack for making things more difficult than most.

She's Baaack!

I've moved back into my house. It was rough going the first couple of days, the hot water was shut off and there was a circuit or two out of commission. Dave came and sorted that all out, including capping the gas line that went to the old stove (whew! glad I didn't try my luck at starting the gas water heater!... Actually, that would have been okay, the gas was shut off at the meter which I never would have figured out or dared mess with unadvised).

But, now that that's all settled, it's good to be back. I managed to get back into the house just 2 nights before the annual "Take Back The Night" night of block parties everywhere. It was dumb luck that I managed to pick a route back to the house that I could actually take all the way back to the house. That was the same day Dave came to fix the gas and the electric. When he arrived at the house he said "how come you're not out there with all your neighbors?"... Uh, no good reason. So I went to the nearest block party--or second nearest, there were two within half a block of my house, which seems a little ridickle to me.

Anyway, I went to the one a half block to the south (rather than half a block to the north), and met at least 6 of my neighbors. For me, (when I'm suffering the shame of having forgotten about the whole thing and so being unprepared with no macaroni salad of my own to contribute...) that was pretty good. I met Dennis from the corner, and Todd from the other corner, both of whom I'd met before. Then I met Jeanne and Kevin, and Jeff and Dave and Ellie, and Rita and Bill.. Hey! I remember more than I thought!! Anyway, they were all really nice, an it was pretty fun to say "I live in the house right down there, the one with the new porch." And listen to people ooh and aah over it. Todd, whose house was right there where the party was, had TONS of work done on his house before he and his family moved into it. I told him he was "the pride of the neighborhood." "Not like Dave," he protested. Dave used to live in the house right next door to Todd, until about 4 days prior to the party. Dave and his family moved into a house 4 blocks down the street, "the one that was raised up." O my god, I know that house. It's true, Todd's house is nothing compared to Dave's. And Todd--I happen to know--bought his house for 500K and said it wouldn't be liveable until he put 200K more into it--and he did!

Anyway, I still felt (feel) pretty darn good about my porch. Dave (my contractor) said it would be the nicest porch on the block, and I think he's right. Luckily Dave (my neighbor) no longer lives on my block!

The kitchen floor is grouted and sealed, and it's BEAUTIFUL. I need to talk with Dave and see if he'll just build a tub surround for the tub that I have. It's less than optimal, but it's a good brand, it's a nice tub and best of all it's bought and paid for and ready to go. I'll get a toilet this weekend from my folks, then I'll just need a vanity and that upstairs bath will be good to go! Then if I can order my freakin' cabinets it'll be almost done!

Copy Cat Cabinets

Here are some more recent images of my kitchen floor. There's now a transition strip of oak between the kitchen floor and the dining room, but other than that not much has changed. I need to call the tile guy and try to nail him down on when he'll do the grout and seal on the floor. I'm dreading that.

Well, after stewing on it for months, I think I've finally arrived at a cabinet choice. (If you knew how many times I'd thought that before now, you'd either laugh or you'd cry.) I ordered sample cabinet doors in quarter-sawn oak with "nutmeg" and "chestnut" stains. They both are beautiful, and they were even kind of spendy. But after looking at a couple of kitchen design magazines, I can't help but think I don't want more oak, and I want something lighter... I've arrived at wanting Shaker style doors in Maple wood with a "natural" stain--which may be the same as no stain at all but simply a few coats of urethane. Just like Leslie and Arece's.

I think I'm trying to brace myself for the buyers' remorse that I'll have after I actually write the check. For all the checks I've written in the past 3 months, I still get kind of sick each time I write one for an amount over about 2 thousand dollars. While the check I write for the cabinets--more likely it'll be a credit card transaction--is not the biggest one of the project, it'll be pretty up there, definitely in the top 3.

Big Day, Not Much Visible Progress

I'm getting to the point where I really need to drop some money on a couple of things. On deck for the day was getting 1 a bathtub, 2 cabinets, and 3 epoxy paint for the porch. Long story short: The Project - 3, Debbie - 0. Dang. I do feel like I've made some progress.

I went and looked at tubs again. I've narrowed it to 3. (I got this close once before, then I saw the price and went back to the drawing board. This time I shopped where I could see the prices of my options while I looked, it makes a world of difference).

I went to order my cabinets and changed my mind again. I've decided to go with a local supplier/builder, now I have a 2 week wait until the color/style samples I ordered come back. Hmph.

I went to several paint stores and couldn't find what I needed. I ordered a catalog and color samples online for a paint company in Florida. We (Laurie and Steve helped me HUGELY) looked at colors online, but I'm not sure I trust them. We looked at color schemes for other kinds of paint and picked something, now I just have to wait for that catalog in the mail and hope that there's a good match to what we're looking at. There'll be something I can use, but still, cross your fingers for me.

Travertine!!

That's right, I'm going to have a kitchen floor after all. Whew! That was close! Egads! That's a level on the floor. Does that thing work? I couldn't look. I mean, I couldn't walk on that floor yet, so I really couldn't look.

Exterior Repairs and Finish Work

Will and John are putting up trim and siding on the west wall, outside the kitchen. Hey, what's that I see on the kitchen floor?....

The Upstairs Floor Predicament

The upstairs floors are nearly done. The sanding wasn't exactly quick, but the shine sure was. We had a bit of a conundrum with the stain color. We had to decide whether to maximize hiding of the flaws and match the old reddish brown trim, or to keep it light and try to coordinate better with the new oak. Well, I decided on the latter--about an hour after I'd decided the former. Luckily I caught Dave while he was at the store with the varnish colors in front of him actually. This is some kind of "honey" or "wheat" color treatment and I think it looks pretty nice. I like that rustic/rugged look. Yay!

Kitchen West Wall Trim

Here's most of the west wall. The trim beneath the windowsill isn't done yet because we had to figure out how it would go with the backsplash underneath it. Some of the heating mat is visible through the thinset on the floor/subfloor.

Progress in Wood

A couple of days progress in the kitchen and upstairs. There's a new rail in the foreground and new trim around the windows, door, and beam. Nice detail at the ends of the beam. The clamps are still holding on the cap for the new newell post.

Oh yeah, and the wiring is hooked up too, see I think those lights are on! :)

Nothing To See Here...

Hi,

I just thought I'd post a quick update, no new pictures though. The house has been "no change" for about a week and a half, until yesterday. Actually, they were working on the upstairs "loft" floor, sanding and staining. Stain color was the big decision of the morning. We're not re-flooring, so nothing's going to look new, but it will look different and considerably better (I think).

The tile guy, Sim, apparently had some staffing issues a week or two ago, that was the reason for the hold up. But he got started, or rather picked back up, in the kitchen yesterday with the heating mats that will go in the floor. It's a considerable expense, but I'm ECSTATIC that it's going in. Warm floors. So nice.

Dave said he made a list of tasks that need to be done before painting. Cool.

I still need to order cabinets. I had another appointment at Lowe's on Monday. It's all settled except the south wall, which I'll figure out today... sometime. Agh!

Wohoo! It's A New Porch!

There it is, my new porch. I like it. I was worried, because it was/is a little different from what I expected, but I have to say it looks better than I expected it to. Whew! Thank heaven for Dave who argued for this design when I was considering bearing the expense of changing it.

It sure helps illustrate what else I need to work on on the exterior. Luckily, Dave's helping me with that too.

Porch Progress and To Be Tiled

So the travertine has been delivered. 2 pallets of it sit in my front yard, less 2 tiles I'm now carrying with me to help me shop for countertops.

The porch forms came off yesterday and Dave was working on a skim coat of fine cement to cover the high fiber aggregate that comprises the bulk of the porch. The thin outer layer should turn white over the next few days and then gray after that. I like the shape of the recessed panels, they look nice. I'm trying to withhold judgement on how I feel about the rest of it until it's finished. I'm already pretty sure I'll mostly just be happy to have it done. See a few recent--from today--pictures on flickr of the front porch progress, the saws for the tile work, and the kitchen and bathroom cleared out for the tile work.

Tomorrow Sim will lay thinset in the kitchen, then a layer of electric heating mats, and then a second layer of thinset on top of that. There will be a similar treatment in the bathroom, I'm not sure, that may have to wait for the tub surround to be built in. Which means I need to select and buy a tub pronto. I have my 3 top candidates, but there's one clear favorite. I'm not sure it's feasible though since it would require moving plumbing again. Actually, I'm sure it's feasible, I'm just not sure it's worth the time and trouble, plus it's the most expensive of the three models I'm looking at. I'll have to have a real heart to heart with Dave in the morning and see where we end up. I mean I like the tub, but not if it means I'd have to take a second job...

Cross your fingers for me. Stove and oven shopping continue. Now countertops too. After that, I'll be past the immediate "big" decisions. The living room/dining room wall, the floors and the fireplace may just have to wait.

Porch Drama and Tile Delivery and Short Cut

I got a call from the tile guy today. My travertine is supposed to arrive this afternoon at the house. It looks like I'll be using electric mats for radiant floor heat rather than hydronic. It's simpler that way, and it's one more item checked off my list. That's progress I can use right now.

The concrete for the main wall of the porch is poured now. I freaked out about it on Monday night/Tuesday morning because the stairs and central posts looked WAY different from what I expected. I went back and looked at the drawings though and it looks okay there, so I'm going to go with it. I'm learning a lot of lessons about myself here, particularly in the realms of procrastination and attention to detail, critical thinking and communication. Whew!

I'm settled on the cooktop being in the island, though I still haven't made a selection or purchase of any particular unit. I'm thinking about hybrid induction/electric radiant models. I have this pattern of looking at gas cooktops until for a moment there's one that I like, and then suddenly I've thought too long and I hate them all. I predict that I will come back around to gas, something with an integrated downdraft that I might never use.

I'm likely to have a significant amount of light-colored travertine tile leftover. I got a deal on it, somehow it felt like an offer I couldn't refuse. You'd think I'd have learnt a lesson from the brick, but I didn't. It's not always worth it to have more than you need of a material for the same price you could get for exactly the amount you need. Know what I mean? The remainder of my brick will be buried under the porch. Another "time capsule" of sorts.
Tile guy says he'll travel, by the way. I happened to mention that I had a sister working on a house in Long Beach and parents in Longview doing a remodel as well. According to Dave, he does great work. I look forward to seeing it.

new concrete, windows, electric, subfloor, walls...

I went by the house today. There is still a significant number of bricks in the yard, but the piles have gotten a little lower. It's a little unfortunate as I promised my neighbors they'd be gone by last weekend. Oops. According to Dave though, passers by have been indicating interest, so there's still hope that more will disappear before this weekend of their own accord.

The new concrete footings for the porch are in place. I think we have two more pours before we're done, the main portions of the walls and then the porch deck slab. There are forms for the outer face and abutting the stairs, but not for the interior face yet.

In the kitchen they just finished mudding and sanding the walls. The outlets are in and most of the lights, I think... My attention to detail is beginning to flag I think.

There are new walls and plumbing in the bathroom, and a reinforced subfloor, but I have yet to buy new fixtures. My immediate need is for a bathtub. Then Dave can build the surround around it and then the tile contractor can come do tile. I've ordered a boatload of travertine for the kitchen and bathroom and will have some leftover. I also need to order cabinets, a cooktop, and an oven. Oy. It's going to be a long weekend.

One week later...

So many pictures (334 to be exact) from last weekend at flickr

Some shots are from the house, and some are from the rest of the activities surrounding the day. "We" got the porch off in like 2 hours or so! I put "we" in quotes because I didn't have much to do with it besides capturing a couple of photos. But while 4 or 5 people were working on dismantling everything, another 3 or 4 people were stacking bricks and wood separately so that the bricks could be reused and the rest of the rubbish could be tossed.

I learned I could actually make money on bricks as opposed to hauling them to a facility to have them recycled. It's only 20 bucks, but still...


Now that the porch is gone, the bathroom is demolished and the kitchen is sheetrocked, I really need to figure out my cabinets and floors. It's another big check when that gets done.

Bathroom redesign and plumbing happened this week. We need some steel reinforcements for the joists since we put holes in that for the toilet drain. I picked those up yesterday from Marty who had some "scrap" pieces at his workplace. DANG those are HEAVY! I don't know if there's work happening today or not.