KITCHEN REMODEL: BEFORE & DURING

I used to blog a lot about our house.  And then I ended up with 4 really little kids and survival mode was all that we managed.  Just in the last year do I feel like I've been able to shift some of my focus back to our house, which has been exciting.  We are neck deep in a kitchen remodel.  We've lived in our home for 8.5 years, and to be honest, I never liked our kitchen from the moment I walked into it.  That said, it has served us well and is functional and pretty in its own way.  It's just not my style.  I felt guilty changing something brand spanking new.  8.5 years later, I definitely feel that we've gotten good use out of it, and John is graciously indulging me with this change of kitchen scenery.  I certainly spend a lot of time there.

Here's a shot from earlier today.  Sheetrock also went up, and I got a new sink after I took this picture!



After years of dreaming of this change, it feels pretty amazing to witness the transformation.  I am using the same contractor who redid our fireplace last year, and I have been so pleased with his work!  He also made it a goal to have us "out of the kitchen" as little as possible, which I really appreciate.  He's let me keep things intact and had cabinets built and counters ordered before anything was torn up so that it could all go in as quickly as possible.  The current goal is to be done by the beginning of next week - we'll see.  I know there are still things that can come up, so I am hopeful but also not holding my breath.

Here are our BEFORE pictures.





The first thing that happened was having the vent hood removed and cabinets installed above our existing cabinets.  They were built to match what we already have, because I liked my cabinets - just not the color.  The vent hood turned out to be built into the wall - it was made to last.  😳

(funny story about those tiles behind the stove.  We randomly bought them at Morocco in Epcot at DisneyWorld in 2008.  They actually fit in that spot perfectly, and though they are not a style I would choose now, it is still a fun memory.)

Last week was by far the most disruptive time we've had so far.  The painter came and ended up taping off my entire kitchen and garage to be able to spray everything.  He was quite perfectionistic, which I appreciate, but which took the entire week.  We were all fooled into thinking that the kitchen was not that big.  However, when he removed all the cabinets and drawers, it turns out, there are a bunch of them.  So, this stage took a few days longer than expected but was overall not too bad.  Though I was very glad to reclaim my refrigerator.

The painting really does make a huge difference in how bright and open it feels!



Since everything from my kitchen cabinets is getting to spend time in my dining room, I took this opportunity to clean and line all my shelves and drawers.  I also massively underestimated how much liner I would need and ended up needing to go to 5 different Walmarts to get enough of each pattern to finish the job.

Countertops will be going in during the next couple of days, as well as backsplash.  And in the midst of that, it's little details like outlet covers, glass in some of the top cabinets, as well as a little accent lighting.  I'm so excited about how it's turning out, which feels really good, since I picked it all based on looking at other kitchens I liked online.



Looking forward to the big reveal in a couple of weeks and to having full use of my kitchen again.  In the meantime, we are enjoying eating a LOT of CFA and ordering pizza.