This week is not such an interesting week in our renovation world. We are continuing to move things out of the areas that will be worked on by the tradespeople and to get a jump start on the job of painting and the prep for it. Today the moulding from around the doors to the bedrooms and bathroom were removed and there was mudding and sanding done in several areas. The hopes are to have the children's bedrooms all done except the floors in about 10 days when the subfloor will go in. Perhaps the installer will get the flooring into those rooms while he's here doing the subfloor. One can always dream.... The kitchen and hallway will also be at least primed ahead, if possible. The more that is done ahead, the better. The hopes are to have everything done by the end of July so that we have August to just relax and enjoy it before the school year is set to begin again in fall.
Today the plumber dropped by with good news for us. The changes we are looking to make will be quite easy for him to do in a matter of a few short hours. So, we will call him once the bottom cabinets are out and he'll come to make the re-routing changes to the existing plumbing in the kitchen and bathroom. The charges for this shouldn't be too outrageous and that is a relief when you are looking to make changes.
So, the rest of the week we're hoping to get the priming done. There are a couple areas that will require more than one coat because of some totally wild colours we found under wallpaper. I still have one wall of wallpaper to remove and two rooms to wash down. Not very exciting... but certainly a necessary part of the whole process.
Dee..
Monday, May 12, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
appliances..
Part of the timing of this renovation is the arrival of new appliances. We chose a set by LG for the quality of their electronics. They are smooth white and I'm very excited about them. I have found images online but some are not exactly as they will be. 
They will give an idea though... The fridge is a bottom freezer French door model with water and ice maker. We've never had water in our fridge and this will be handy, I'm sure. The stove has a flat ceran top and has
convection and self-clean options which will certainly be nice. The one in the image here is black but the actual is
white with blue inside the oven. The microwave is also blue, almost like enamel, inside. It is 
white, and not the stainless you see here in the image. And when we called to arrange for delivery, we found out that they are upgrading our model to a newer one free of charge because the one we originally decided on is no longer available! Bonus! :) It was a very nice surprise. Oh, and the microwave is an "over-the-range" model which is totally new to us. I hope it will be convenient though it's the perfect way to save space. The dishwasher is semi-integrated with a stainless tub inside. It also has some different options like doing a half-load at a time. I've only ever had portable dishwashers and always secondhand ones so this will be a real treat! I'm a little nervous about cooking on the stove because of the ceran top but hopefully it won't take too long to get used to once it's arrived and all. I'm sure there will be a learning curve to most of these new appliances and it will be challenging for the first while.
Dee..
They will give an idea though... The fridge is a bottom freezer French door model with water and ice maker. We've never had water in our fridge and this will be handy, I'm sure. The stove has a flat ceran top and has
convection and self-clean options which will certainly be nice. The one in the image here is black but the actual is
white with blue inside the oven. The microwave is also blue, almost like enamel, inside. It is 
white, and not the stainless you see here in the image. And when we called to arrange for delivery, we found out that they are upgrading our model to a newer one free of charge because the one we originally decided on is no longer available! Bonus! :) It was a very nice surprise. Oh, and the microwave is an "over-the-range" model which is totally new to us. I hope it will be convenient though it's the perfect way to save space. The dishwasher is semi-integrated with a stainless tub inside. It also has some different options like doing a half-load at a time. I've only ever had portable dishwashers and always secondhand ones so this will be a real treat! I'm a little nervous about cooking on the stove because of the ceran top but hopefully it won't take too long to get used to once it's arrived and all. I'm sure there will be a learning curve to most of these new appliances and it will be challenging for the first while. Dee..
bathroom reno plans..
Today we started the plans for the bathroom to be renovated as well. We have hired another dad from a homeschooling family we know and the timing was a little tough to coordinate because of the subfloor situation. It looks like things will go ok though. It will be happening within the week (or so) before the kitchen cabinets go in.
We didn't have a lot of options for a vanity or for faucets in the bathroom but we did manage to find ones we are ok with. We wanted something with some storage underneath and in our very cozy bathroom, this one fit the bill. The bonus is that the mirror comes with the vanity. The wood is cherry and so it has a reddish tint to it. The other options were white (which I'm sure most people have seen) and black. We felt the white was too
ordinary and while the black was nice, it was a little too dark and the solid colouring would show scratches and such more than this wood grain one.
The toilet is an Eco-Friendly Kohler product in white and we chose a seat with a quiet close lid. It will likely be a blessing for those middle of the night trips... LOL We found out that when we get around to choosing accessories like towel bars, we can get matching flush handles for some of the styles. We don't have those figured out yet, but have done some browsing.
The tub is a standard steel tub in white and the faucets match those chosen for the sink. They
are Price-Pfizer and a nice quality product. We were happy to be able to hold them in the store, see and feel what we'd be seeing and
feeling for years to come. They are single lever, mainly for ease of use for my husband who has difficulty using one arm very much. The reason we went with the basic steel tub is also related to that difficulty as we need to attach a grab bar to the side of it. There will also be a grab bar at the back end of the tub and along the side wall. They are white and will blend in with the tub surround when we decide on it. It will be white and likely with some built in shelving for housing shampoos and such things.
We are contemplating whether we will need more storage than what these things will give us but we'll likely decide that later. The flooring will be the same as what is planned for the kitchen... and we have yet to decide on the lighting and accessories like towel bars but we know that we will definitely be installing a fan which we do not currently have. And that will be the final main floor window to be replaced as well. We have also purchased a curved bar for the shower curtain to hang from and I'm looking forward to that. So, that's the skinny so far. :)
Dee..
We didn't have a lot of options for a vanity or for faucets in the bathroom but we did manage to find ones we are ok with. We wanted something with some storage underneath and in our very cozy bathroom, this one fit the bill. The bonus is that the mirror comes with the vanity. The wood is cherry and so it has a reddish tint to it. The other options were white (which I'm sure most people have seen) and black. We felt the white was too
ordinary and while the black was nice, it was a little too dark and the solid colouring would show scratches and such more than this wood grain one.The toilet is an Eco-Friendly Kohler product in white and we chose a seat with a quiet close lid. It will likely be a blessing for those middle of the night trips... LOL We found out that when we get around to choosing accessories like towel bars, we can get matching flush handles for some of the styles. We don't have those figured out yet, but have done some browsing.
The tub is a standard steel tub in white and the faucets match those chosen for the sink. They
are Price-Pfizer and a nice quality product. We were happy to be able to hold them in the store, see and feel what we'd be seeing and
feeling for years to come. They are single lever, mainly for ease of use for my husband who has difficulty using one arm very much. The reason we went with the basic steel tub is also related to that difficulty as we need to attach a grab bar to the side of it. There will also be a grab bar at the back end of the tub and along the side wall. They are white and will blend in with the tub surround when we decide on it. It will be white and likely with some built in shelving for housing shampoos and such things. We are contemplating whether we will need more storage than what these things will give us but we'll likely decide that later. The flooring will be the same as what is planned for the kitchen... and we have yet to decide on the lighting and accessories like towel bars but we know that we will definitely be installing a fan which we do not currently have. And that will be the final main floor window to be replaced as well. We have also purchased a curved bar for the shower curtain to hang from and I'm looking forward to that. So, that's the skinny so far. :)
Dee..
renovation prep update..
We have been boxing things up from the entire main floor and moving as much as possible to the basement. It initially started because the livingroom would house the new cabinets until the install but then when we decided to do ALL the flooring, it just seemed prudent to move as much as possible down here. Wow, is it tight! LOL
In addition to all the moving of things, the gazillion walls (really only 10) of wallpaper are being stripped, the walls washed and prepped for priming and painting, and a temporary kitchen set up. Most of that is now done so the plan is to do the priming before the cabinets and flooring go in. We feel quite ready in spite of the fact that our cabinets arrived about 3 weeks early and so the dates for everything are moving up. It's really getting quite exciting!
Dee..
In addition to all the moving of things, the gazillion walls (really only 10) of wallpaper are being stripped, the walls washed and prepped for priming and painting, and a temporary kitchen set up. Most of that is now done so the plan is to do the priming before the cabinets and flooring go in. We feel quite ready in spite of the fact that our cabinets arrived about 3 weeks early and so the dates for everything are moving up. It's really getting quite exciting!
Dee..
Flooring update..
Well, my earlier post about the kitchen renovations should probably be revised to include all the correct information but I thought it would be nice to leave the original decision there so this one becomes an update. :)
We had a little issue with Home Depot not getting us a quote even after paying for AND having a measure done. As a result, they have reimbursed our deposit/measure fee and we went to several places looking at what was available. The first place was Parkland Carpet One. They were very professional and had a wide variety of materials available. We chose some very nice flooring though I wasn't really totally happy with it because it was outside the colour scheme I was contemplating. They gave us a measure and a quote about a week later. There were a couple places we went where we didn't even really get to browsing. First of all we are all about customer service and these places were more than lacking. Secondly, they just didn't have the products we were hoping for... or maybe they did but due to poor customer service, they didn't get a chance to show them to us.
The other place we went was End of the Roll. We hadn't even realized that they dealt with large amounts and even full rolls of flooring product. From the name, we just assumed that they had mainly smaller pieces - those that would fit in cozy rooms but not necessarily run through a length of a house. We had a recommendation for them though, so we decided to check them out. When we walked in, we headed down to the side of the store past the main desk and all we saw were those aforementioned pieces. We were about to head out and they stopped us at the desk and asked us to give them 5 minutes after explaining what we were looking for to find something we'd be interested in. They did a great job!
This is really a poor sample of the flooring, which is put out by Domco under the name of Fiber Floor. This sample is what was available for browsing online though and I tried to adjust the brightness to be at least a little closer to what I saw though it's definitely not exact. It should give a bit of an idea what it looks like though if you gaze at a larger sample it looks a lot more grey/blue with just a little of the browns. The grey/blue will complement the countertop we chose and the wall colour we are planning to work with. The browns will complement our cabinetry and that should really tie it all together.
The subfloor is scheduled to be installed beginning on the 23rd of this month so things are moving right along. Actually, the cabinets arrived late last week and were delivered (and inspected) on Tuesday morning. They will go in on the 29th if all goes as planned. They are beautiful though not quite as light as I had originally hoped for.
I'm not sure I mentioned that because we are putting down new subfloor it just made sense to do the entire main floor in new flooring at once. We didn't like the idea of having some of the floor higher than the rest for a time. So, the pattern above is what will be installed in the kitchen, hallway, back entrance, and bathroom. Another pattern was chosen for the bedrooms and the livingroom. It is a Tarkett product (also Fiber Floor since the two companies merged a few years ago) and is a wood grain look although it's actually a sheet vinyl product. It should go well with pretty much any colours we might choose for the rooms.
Both flooring styles have a 15 year warranty and good wear layers so our hopes are that we may never have to change it as long as we are in the house... but we'll see what the future holds. We should be set for a good number of years anyway. :)
Dee..
We had a little issue with Home Depot not getting us a quote even after paying for AND having a measure done. As a result, they have reimbursed our deposit/measure fee and we went to several places looking at what was available. The first place was Parkland Carpet One. They were very professional and had a wide variety of materials available. We chose some very nice flooring though I wasn't really totally happy with it because it was outside the colour scheme I was contemplating. They gave us a measure and a quote about a week later. There were a couple places we went where we didn't even really get to browsing. First of all we are all about customer service and these places were more than lacking. Secondly, they just didn't have the products we were hoping for... or maybe they did but due to poor customer service, they didn't get a chance to show them to us.
The other place we went was End of the Roll. We hadn't even realized that they dealt with large amounts and even full rolls of flooring product. From the name, we just assumed that they had mainly smaller pieces - those that would fit in cozy rooms but not necessarily run through a length of a house. We had a recommendation for them though, so we decided to check them out. When we walked in, we headed down to the side of the store past the main desk and all we saw were those aforementioned pieces. We were about to head out and they stopped us at the desk and asked us to give them 5 minutes after explaining what we were looking for to find something we'd be interested in. They did a great job!
This is really a poor sample of the flooring, which is put out by Domco under the name of Fiber Floor. This sample is what was available for browsing online though and I tried to adjust the brightness to be at least a little closer to what I saw though it's definitely not exact. It should give a bit of an idea what it looks like though if you gaze at a larger sample it looks a lot more grey/blue with just a little of the browns. The grey/blue will complement the countertop we chose and the wall colour we are planning to work with. The browns will complement our cabinetry and that should really tie it all together.
The subfloor is scheduled to be installed beginning on the 23rd of this month so things are moving right along. Actually, the cabinets arrived late last week and were delivered (and inspected) on Tuesday morning. They will go in on the 29th if all goes as planned. They are beautiful though not quite as light as I had originally hoped for.
I'm not sure I mentioned that because we are putting down new subfloor it just made sense to do the entire main floor in new flooring at once. We didn't like the idea of having some of the floor higher than the rest for a time. So, the pattern above is what will be installed in the kitchen, hallway, back entrance, and bathroom. Another pattern was chosen for the bedrooms and the livingroom. It is a Tarkett product (also Fiber Floor since the two companies merged a few years ago) and is a wood grain look although it's actually a sheet vinyl product. It should go well with pretty much any colours we might choose for the rooms.Both flooring styles have a 15 year warranty and good wear layers so our hopes are that we may never have to change it as long as we are in the house... but we'll see what the future holds. We should be set for a good number of years anyway. :)
Dee..
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)