You ought to be in pictures...

Today I received a call from our kitchen designer asking if I was interested in having our kitchen appear in an upcoming issue of a decorating magazine published in our area. Well, yeah! They are coming early next week for the photo shoot. So much to do before then. I still have a dozen boxes to unpack containing house decorations and my vast assortment of baskets, the drapes in our living room and dining room need to be hung, not to mention pictures. This past week I've been enjoying having a sofa to sit on, so not much has been happening in the way of decorating. Guess I need to put it in high gear!

Our stairway is coming to a completion. I'm totally impressed with the workmanship that our contractor has shown. Because he was not able to get the newel post and handrail delivered within a reasonable time frame, he crafted these from scratch. I'm sure they are better than something we would have received from a factory. Thanks Wayne!

The cap and trim on the newel post as well as the handrail are cherry. Beautiful!

Painting is done!

It took two weeks, but the painting is finally done and well worth the wait. For the kitchen, family room, living room, and half bath we choose BM Powell Buff (HC-35). The living room, hallway, stairway, and second floor hallway are BM Lenox Tan (HC-44). All the trim is BM China White. After having white walls and golden oak trim for 15 years, you can imagine the huge transformation this has made to the first floor. Unfortunately, these pictures don't do the color justice, as they were taken with my cell phone. Better pictures will be posted later.

Tomorrow the new carpet in the living room will be installed. The last major thing to be done is finishing the stairway. Again, the change from carpeted stairs to hardwood is amazing.

Finishing touches

Today saw one of the finishing touches in the kitchen...the installation of the end brackets and shaker pegs under the two upper cabinets. Together with the under cabinet lighting, it really makes a warm look.

Baby Steps

With the kitchen 99% complete, work has moved to other parts of the first floor remodel. One of the major changes involved with the remodel was removing the wall between the kitchen and dining room. This past week the trim was added to the opening. I'm still getting use to the look of the posts, but they are growing on me. I'm sure paint will make a huge difference.























We also picked up the two stools for the peninsula over the weekend. Very comfortable at a surprisingly good price. Right now it appears we have dueling laptops.
On Sunday we took a trip to a rug store in MA. I had seen an ad in a magazine from this store. The ad had a rug pictured that caught my eye. When we walked in, the first rug I saw was the one from the ad. Loved it! When I inquired as to the price, I was told something almost comparable to the price of all our cabinets and more than what we paid for our appliances...in total! After picking myself off the floor, we asked to see something more reasonably priced. On to the other side of the store we were taken. Still too much. Long story short, we ultimately ended up in the basement (bargin?). After regrouping, we started looking at runners. I had been thinking about a runner in the kitchen in front of the sink area. We came home with something on trial for the week.

I can see clearly now...

One of my favorite things in the kitchen is the new triple casement window. The two outside windows open out and the center one is fixed. With our wide granite window sill, I'm able to put plants on it without a worry. I'm actually attempting various herbs...we'll see how that goes considering I certainly do not have a green thumb.

Last weekend we moved most everything back into the kitchen. It's been great being able to cook with the new cookware I received for Christmas and to eat on something other than paper plates. I love how the backspash behind the cooktop turned out. The beadboard under the upper cabinets has also been installed. All I'm waiting for is the wooden end brackets and shaker peg boards.

We brought our new stools home from the storage unit. They are extremely comfortable and I love the way they look. The stools for the peninsula should be coming in next weekend. From the island, we're able to see the newly installed tv above the refrigerator. I love that I'm able to close up the cabinet to hide it away.

The half bath is well on it's way. The vessel sink is now operational and the beadboard has been installed. All that's left is the top trim on the beadboard, the mirror, and paint. It looks like a totally different room.

Bob and I keep saying to each other that we love the kitchen. It still doesn't feel like our house yet...I'm sure that once we move all our furniture back in, then it will feel more like home. Right now I can't help but think I'm cooking in someone elses kitchen.

Appliances, Lighting and Tile. Oh My!

Last Thursday saw another huge change in the kitchen...our new Electrolux Icon appliances were installed. When I arrived home from work, my kitchen looked like a tornado hit. Four trades people were hard at work, tools everywhere. Not only were the appliances installed, but all my lighting is in. It's amazing the difference pendant lights and under and in cabinet lighting can make.



The beadboard on the back of the island and peninsula was also installed. I'm very pleased with the look of both and can't wait to see the beadboard under the two upper cabinets as well as in the half bath.




Speaking of the half bath, I'm getting mixed reviews on our Toto dual-flush toilet. Since I work in a department that has Energy in it's name, sustainability is at the forefront of my mind. Of course I had to have a dual-flush toilet! The fact that it looks like it came out of a Jetson's cartoon is the part I think the guys are having a problem with. At this point, I can only report that I love the look, as there still isn't a door on the bathroom.



I spent the morning on Saturday cleaning the interior and exterior of each appliance as well as reading the user guides. Yikes! Eight user guides! Last night I had the opportunity to use my gas cooktop for the first time. Got to love a 17,000 BTU burner! And I was glad to find that cleanup was extremely easy. Used the new dishwasher also. So much quieter than our old one.

Today the tile backsplash behind the cooktop was installed. It's the same tile as our fireplace surround, so I knew I would love it. Tomorrow the grouting will be done and hopefully the beadboard under the upper cabinets.

Granite is in!

What I envisioned as being an exciting day, something like getting married or having a baby, started out extremely stressful. But in the end, everything worked out fine and we're extremely pleased with the end result.

Tile Work

Today the grouting was done on the fireplace and half bath tile. I love how both turned out.

Granite Template

Big day today with the template being made for the granite. I was able to be there for the majority of it, which was a real learning experience, since I've only seen this done on tv. We will have approximately 98 sq. ft. of granite. I'm told this is a bit larger than the average kitchen. The granite is scheduled to be installed next Monday. It's going to be a very long week!

Fireplace Tile

Today the tiler came and did the tile around the fireplace in our family room. We recently replaced our old, very dated gas fireplace with a newer model. This one actually works! The tile that we choose is a porcelain 2 x 2 with warm colors. We'll be using the same tile for the backsplash behind the cooktop. I came home midday and was extremely pleased with what I found. Our existing mantel is made of cherry and has shaker pegs underneath...great for hanging my baskets and Christmas stockings! The tones in the tile really pick up on the cherry. It's gorgeous!

This picture really doesn't do it justice.