Planning and waiting for Demolition

(Picture of our kitchen before the remodeling starts)

This remodel is going to be a big change for us, so we are going to chronicle the whole event with pictures, milestones, achievements, and to be realistic, faux pas, surprises and lessons learned. It will be a way for our family to keep up to date and for others, learn from our experience.


First a little background.
We did a lot of planning with a designer, who we will identify as ST. For now we will keep her name anonymous and if all turns out well, we will reveal her name. We met ST when we toured a House of Design here in California. We loved what she did to the kitchen. It was different and innovative, which we love.

I also want to clarify that I am one lucky woman. My husband is so involved in this whole effort compared to what I hear about other husbands who will only emerge when it is time to write a check to the contractors. Sometimes I feel like there is a role reversal. He has some definite ideas and I at times, can take it or leave it. Just leave me alone so that I can go back to work...or, I will say, "ok, whatever". What helps tremendously is that he has good taste.

His hobby (honestly!) is working around the house. He has installed our travertine floors, tiled all our bathrooms, completed woodwork, and so much more.

We married late in our lives and we have developed our own definite tastes. I lean towards modern and he leans towards traditional. Our entire house is a tribute to Compromise. If we lived in separate homes, our homes would be different from the home we live in together. Over the years, there times when portions of the house were left undone for a long period of time because we could not come to an agreement.

Enough background, let's talk about planning.
So all last year, we poured through magazines, pulling out pictures of what we liked. ST talked about ideas and drafted a design. We met, talked and updated the design. Then we did it again, then again. The major changes are that a wall will be torn down, the ceiling raised, cabinets and appliances will be replaced.

How did we find our contractor? We have 2 contractors, basically. The first is the construction contractor who worked for another designer in ST's office who was very pleased with his work. We talked to Doug and another contractor who did a kitchen remodel for a friend of ours. We interviewed both and we asked for bids. We decided on Doug because his estimate was lower, his references were positive and in talking with him, he was low-key, down to earth and fair. Gosh, I hope our people skills are working properly.


The other contractor is Bill who will be building our cabinets. ST took us to visit his shop (very impressive) in Costa Mesa to see some samples of different cabinet styles and see other projects in progress that his crew was working on.

How did we choose our cabinet style?
All last year, we poured through magazines, pulling out pictures of what we liked. As usual, no consensus. One day, we were in L.A., attending the theatre. Afterwards went to Kendall's, a restaurant/bar we love. In the kitchen/bar area were the cabinets we came to agree would be in our own kitchen. We took a picture of it, which is shown here. Keep in mind the cabinets are a bit worn, but it is the same general type. With a different stain and modern handles, it will be somewhat of a Modern Craftsman, if there is such a thing.

Habitat for Humanity (HFH)
We have fairly good appliances and wondered what we would do with them when they were replaced. It would be a shame to just leave them on the curb on trash day. So we called Goodwill and Salvation Army. Surprisingly, they told us they would not take the appliances. But a friend of ours suggested HFH. Sure enough, Scott from the local chapter came out to look at our appliances and said HFH would pick them up. Now, they do not put the appliances into the houses they build. Instead, they have set up warehouses for used appliances, sell them to the public at much reduced prices and use the proceeds to buy building materials. The big benefit for us is that the good appliances will be picked up and recycled by being useful for someone else. They will also take other items such as cabinets, electric fixtures, window shutters, etc.

Appliances
We are going all out on the appliances since this is probably the only kitchen remodel we will be doing. So we are going for our Dream Kitchen, sans the size. We are getting a SubZero built-in refrigerator, a Thermador stove (shelf and fan, too), and a Bosch dishwasher. Some links are provided to the models we are getting. We bought them at Pacific Sales and they will be delivered next month.

Demolition Planning
We will be moving our microwave to the little bar in our family room, getting the outdoor grill ready and we will move the refrigerator to the garage. Max will relocate some items in the garage so that we can put the pantry items in the coolers on the floor. We anticipate we will be without a kitchen for about 2-3 months.

We bought moving boxes for items we don't use often and plastic bins for items we do use often so that we can locate those items quickly.

Go to this link for more Pictures of the Kitchen (Before).