The Kitchen Remodeling Saga Continues…

The furthest I ventured this week was to my workshop, in anticipation of the final stage in our on-going kitchen remodeling project.

We began planning this project five years ago, but were immediately stymied by two obstacles, beginning with my refusal to discard the custom cherry cabinets the previous owner had installed around 1996. Yes, they were slightly dated, but they were solid cherry, with that wonderful reddish-brown hue that only comes with age. Second, the kitchen had a blue tile floor that, like the cherry cabinets, was slightly dated but in fine condition. But it was blue….

It only took us four years and six months to come to the conclusion that we could live with both the cherry cabinets and the blue tile floor, provided we installed granite countertops, added more cherry base cabinets to form a peninsula, replace a sliding glass door with a traditional door, rearrange the windows, improve the lighting, replace all of the appliances, and paint. Whew!

Demolition took place this summer and the project has moved forward in “fits and starts.” I threw the fits and then things got started. Sometimes. The first phase went smoothly as Gus Adams and his crew (known to all of our Grove Park Inn exhibitors as the “Porters” for our load-in and load-out at the Arts and Crafts Show in February) took out the old exterior wall, installed the door and window, and rebuilt the wall, then installed the cabinets. That only took five days, as Gus and his guys are great.

Then, the waiting began. First, waiting on replacements for a couple of damaged base cabinets (two weeks). Then, waiting on the granite countertops (two weeks). Then, waiting for the backsplash tile to arrive (four weeks). Then, waiting on the tile layer, who never did arrive (three weeks).

But last week our replacement tile setter showed up as promised and in two days Jon (pictured) laid up the tile and grouted the backsplash.

While we purposely picked a solid color of tile (blue, to compliment the floor and the cherry cabinets), we had to add an Arts and Crafts element: namely, two scenic loon tiles we purchased from Eric Olson at the Grove Park Inn Show two years ago (see photo, before grouting).

Of course, even the best of plans can go astray, as the tile setter accidentally reversed the two loon tiles. Fortunately, Leigh Ann walked into the kitchen before the mastic had set up and spotted the error in time for the tile setter to pop them off and switch their order.

Now the only thing we have to wait on is the trim carpenter to come in and finish the little details.

And the biggest problem with him is that he is me.

Like I said, “fits and starts.”

Until next Monday,

Thanks for stopping by!

Bruce