This is getting deadly serious...

We're close. Very close.  But I also realized that a year ago I was naive enough to think that this would be an easy endeavor. HA.


At least now our structure is sound as a pound. So here's where we are:

• Cupboards are up but still need to be sanded down and painted.  We're painting them Ashwood Moss by Sherwin Williams.
• New hardware needed... I can't get brass out of my head...
• Countertops have been ordered. We went with Supreme White granite.
• New stove and fridge are arriving tomorrow!
• Subway tiles with dark grout on the backsplash.
• Oak flooring to match the rest of the downstairs. Not my favorite but it'll make the place feel bigger if it's continuous throughout...
• Paint on the walls of course... 

And other fun stuff but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Hehe... This is me face planted after a
business trip.

Nudity

I must warn you, these photos are incredibly offensive. Our kitchen is naked. That said, here's where we are:

Side note - I love this pic of John. He looks chubby. And he
really isn't. At all. But he lets his belly stick out, which cracks
me up.

What are you looking at you're wondering? Quite honestly it's too hard to explain. Or I'm lazy. Basically John keeps uncovering structural issues and he is a perfectionist. And he watches lots of Holmes on Homes. So he's doing lots of stuff to prepare for installing new hardwood floors, the ceilings, and recessed lighting. He also moved the plumbing (with the help of our neighbor/friend who is a plumber) so the sink will live in a new spot. See last picture. Everything you see in these pics in terms of cabinets, appliances, etc. are temporary. It's just so we can have running water, a fridge and a stove while we're going through this. I am still malnutritioned.

Anyway now for the fun part. The "new" cabinets! Insert image of Lindsay doing a toe touch cheerleading jump. (PS - I wasn't a cheerleader. I was on the drill team though. Obviously.) We had to abandon the idea of the hardwood cabinetry for a variety of reasons, but mainly it's either super expensive to buy them, which we were never going to do anyway, or it would take John forever to make them from scratch. Not his fault but he's single-handedly doing this kitchen so we are going another route. The original plan, which I still love and it will suit the style of our 150 year old house, is the grey cabinetry I posted about months and months ago. 

The best part? We found a whole kitchen for sale on Craigslist for $500. I think they'll look awesome painted grey and with new handles/pulls.

We won't use the top trim part, just the cabinets. I know we can transform them to where they look custom. Recently Erin at Elements of Style did a whole post about grey kitchens. I got super excited, since it's the same idea we're working towards. Check out the pics she found: Green Grey Kitchens. 

Big Baby Steps of Progress...

More progress... because Spring is the busy season at the boat yard, it might seem like we're making baby steps but they are BIG baby steps. For sure.

Ta-da! Used to be a window...

View from outside

View from outside part deux

Door is in, and the window moved over to the left

Half the tile (so far) came up, new subfloor down

KITCHEN UPDATE!

Well when we started the project we really had no idea what we were getting into. Actually, I think John expected it, but it still doesn't cease to amaze him how structurally unsound our house was (IS!) To me it just all looks scary beneath the covers.

So the following pictures are really just to show you how crazy strong it is now. No more bouncing at my desk upstairs when the dogs run by. Sound as a pound.

This is to illustrate how nail happy the previous "builder" was. This is the old subfloor.

There are now 12 inch spaces whereas before we were pushin' 20+. AND you'll notice a new supporting beam running through the kitchen, which replaced something that more closely resembled a twig. Crazy man did it by himself. I was sure to leave the premises when this all went down.

Every poop pipe gets wallpaper in this household.

Major Catch Up Part 2: The Kitchen

The ceiling came down. There was much debate about taking the whole mess down but John did it. We will gain a couple of inches and we can ensure it's all level, which it wasn't before. The way this house was built leaves much to be desired. John is constantly scratching his head in wonderment. Random shims and scrap wood make up the structure of our house. Awesome.

Supporting beam

POSITIVITY ALERT! The new Samsung microwave was installed over the oven with ventilation outside. It's like a beacon of light amongst the rubble.

Old insulation. Disgustin.

It's officially a non-functioning kitchen. GAME ON.

What Did You Do Today?

JL finished up a wall of insulation...

Added some drywall...

(not without drilling a screw into his thumb, the big dummy)

And me?

What started as this...

ended up as this!

Bye-bye oak! Who knows how long we'll keep the full bath this way but it's a quick fix!!! And for an impatient gal, sometimes it's the best way to go.

1/3 Gone

Yep these two beams are holding up the house. The drywall came down and John discovered that the previous supporting structure was in poor shape, was really small, and in some spots wasn't even sitting on anything. Ugh. SO some structural enhancements, shall we say, need to be done before the fun stuff starts. Ah the joys of ancient dwellings...

Stove is moving over a foot to the right and more cabinets and countertop will go on the left of the new stove

Closer view of the lacking support

Yes those are cobwebs that we found when we took down the... whatever it's called.

Our Kitchen Before

Well... this is our kitchen. Wait wait. WAS our kitchen. New walls, ceiling, painted tile floor,appliances coming SOON! This kitchen is just too... old and sort of country for me. And white is not a smart paint color for cabinets when you live with John Linsley.

Cleared off counters to left. You'll see why soon.

Horrible ceramic tile floor...

Old appliances

Fridge and wall of storage...

Ick

Beat up cabinet doors

Pictures of demolition coming! Eeek!