Between Two Pheasants...

We are done (read 98%)! The tile is in and the appliances have been put back in place. We have a rug and something hanging on the wall (gasp!). It's been a looooooooong twisty road, but so worth it. I couldn't be happier with how it has all come together. So, about that 2%, here's what's left: Toe-kick under cabinets need to be painted. Quarter round trim around baseboards. Chips in paint from moving the fridge and the counter installed. Electricians back to figure out what's going on with two electric outlets. New oven and stove. I'll let you know in two years when we finally have it 100% over the finish line. So, how about some final pics? Yeah!

Are you thinking, "how can this kitchen renovation have five parts? Yes. Me too. We do have new hardware on the cabinets though and we installed it ourselves! Thanks to Lowes and a really good friend in Kansas City who sent me a 10% coupon so I could save some real money on these beauties.

As previously mentioned, we are STILL working away at the kitchen. When we first started the kitchen, I hadn't thought about when we would replace the floor. Though, with everything starting to look pretty sweet, the floor had to go. Below is a close up of the floor (and a cute, mischievous baby #tbt).

It's already mid-July? How did that happen? Of course we are still plugging along on the kitchen remodel. I think this marks two months without an oven/stove and a mudroom since our fridge takes up most of it. But, who's counting? By the end of May, Jesus had finished painting and we had our new Schoolhouse Electric Lights installed. Here's a close-up of the over-the-sink light. Since this picture was taken, we've exchanged the bulb with an Edison bulb. It's not as bright, but it's more period-appropriate.  Here are a few side by side shots of before and after painting. What a difference! Next post will be all about the floors and there is some drama involved!

One month later and a lot of progress has been made on the kitchen. Ugh, but it's not done. We are inching toward the finish line. OF COURSE it always takes twice as long as you originally plan. After the cabinet doors and drawers were in, Tom and Nate took out their aggression the counters and back splash. By far it was the most gratifying as well as messy part of the reno. We are so lucky to have talented and amazing people in our world. Tom and his lovely wife, Betty, are our neighbors who have renovated/restored several homes. (They also give us fresh chicken eggs and figs from their tree) They gave us the confidence that we could take out the counters ourselves and even offered to help. While they worked, I pulled out all my mom-tricks to keep the girls occupied outside. In process pics:

Remember this kitchen? Yellow cabinets, goldish yellow linoleum floor, heavy curtains, portable dishwasher, beige tile and oh so beautiful wallpaper. The wallpaper wasn't actually too bad and I've seen this large scale print come back into fashion but it was being held to the wall, in some places, with duct tape.

Our wonderful painter finished the entryway/stairs two weeks ago, and I haven't had a chance to blog about it since because I have been staring at the walls. Who am I kidding? It's the crazy holiday season and there has been no time for blogging! We picked the color Oyster Bay by Sherwin Williams for the walls and it is gorgeous! It's green, it's blue, it's gray. Depending on the light and time of day, it could be any one of these colors and they are all beautiful. We even got the thumbs up from Jesus on the color choice, which made us feel even better. Check it out! In these pictures, the green really shows through.

Hooray! Hooray! The dishwasher is installed and has been used...a lot! It's a beautiful thing, and I can't believe we lasted this long without one. The contractor was great! He removed the old drawers to make space, installed and leveled the dishwasher, rebuilt a portion of a very narrow corner cabinet so it is more functional, and hooked everything up. He even installed a garbage disposal, which has also made a huge difference--though I'm a little nervous about how this will work, long-term, with our old pipes. Fingers crossed! It took a few weekends to accomplish but it's finally in! Here's a picture of the kitchen when we moved in. Making space for the dishwasher:

To say that Nate and I are tired of hand-washing dishes is a major understatement. So, we took advantage of the Lowe's Labor Day Appliance Sale and bought a dishwasher for the kitchen! Hooray! 20% off plus $75 gift cards was too good to pass up. We scored this baby for $600 instead of $800. GE 48-Decibel Built-In Dishwasher EXCEPT, that we don't actually have a place to install it yet so we have a meeting with a contractor/handyman today to review our options. I would like to remove the drawers next to the kitchen sink to put the dishwasher in the most logical place. Someone else, who shall not be named, would like to install it where the current portable dishwasher (that doesn't work) resides. Of course, that seems like the easiest fix, but it's a little further from the sink than I would like. Regardless of the solution, we are hopeful that by October 1st, we will have this baby installed and crankin'! Wish us luck!

Another quick project we did the minute after getting keys to the house was take down the wallpaper in the kitchen. We both kind of liked the bright yellow/brown/white flowers, but it was either falling off the wall or being held to the wall with duct-paper. Super classy. It had to go!