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).

Cabinets, Backsplash, Tiles and Countertops

Countertops
ST told us that if we wanted a bright, lively backsplash, that we should pick a plain countertop and that black would be dramatic. Originally, we thought about Concrete. A black concrete countertop could range from a dull to a waxed shiny finish. We even bought a couple of books by Fu-Tung Cheng. Awesome look, but we started to think about the practicality of concrete. Is it a fad or will it be around for awhile? How durable is concrete?

So we did some research on the internet and here are some of the concerns. The concrete may get scratched or nicked, but Max said he could seal it. We would have to wax it periodically to maintain the shine. Cracks could be evident and the counter would be as good as the contractor who made it.

We also looked at granite which has been around for awhile. Since we were looking at black, the ones we found had too many gold or silver speckles in it which we thought would detract from the colorful backsplash tile we were planning on installing. Then we looked at silestone or cesarstone which is basically composite material mostly quartz chips that are ground and bound with resin. It is much more durable, looks like stone and has more of a consistent design. We got quotes on both granite and cesarstone and they were pretty comparable.

Then we happened to go to a granite store and looked at the slabs in their inventory. The absolute black looked beautiful. We also saw it in a kitchen showroom and that reinforced our choice.

While we were in the showroom we saw a green countertop. Don't worry, we aren't going to green. Originally, we thought about going with a triple-bullnose. But then we saw the green countertop that was just a basic square edge, maybe 2-3 inches with a slight bevel at the edge. It looked sleek and thought it would go great with the ziggurat type moulding we had in mind for the cabinets.

Tiles and Backsplash
Select this link for pictures of the tiles for the backsplash. Aren't they dazzling? We haven't made a choice or designed the pattern yet. But we just know it will be colorful, hence the basic black choice for the countertop. The only hesitation I have is that someone said that it will be difficult to see ants on black countertops. Ugh...ants. I hate ants and our town sits on an ant hill.

Back to the cabinet styles
Why are there so many choices and decisions to make? Today, Max just got back from our cabinet contractor Bill, who made a sample of the cabinet style we chose. It is called a Shaker style. Now we have to make a choice of insert or overlay. Insert is when the cabinet door is flush to the frame, so there is about an inch that might be lost in space. Overlay is when the cabinet door closes over the frame. So the look is whether or not we want to see more of the frame or not. Max has "a vision" and wants the insert. I would like an overlay.

Okay people, the demolition starts Monday and to coincide, Bill needs to know our decision. If we choose the insert, it will take longer to make and we will be without a kitchen for a longer period of time. (at this time we are still mulling over that decision).

By the way, I did pack another few boxes of kitchen items. We have a box set aside for items to go to Salvation army and boxes of items to give to Lauren's (my niece) girlfriend Megan.

Cabinets and Finishing

Styles, Types and More

I knew that there were many different styles of cabinets and it took us awhile to come to a decision on a style we both liked. Months of indecision. Once we decided, then Max said, "Do you want an overlay or insert design?" What?

Now I am learning something new and never took notice of this before. This is an overlay and as you can see, the doors cover the frame completely. It also has a European-style look to it especially if you choose the frameless style as shown in this picture.

By the way, these pictures are taken from a great book, "The Smart Approach to Kitchen Design" 3rd Edition which we bought at the Expo Design Center. Lots of great pictures for ideas and advice.

Now the insert or inset (oh, whatever!) style, the cabinet doors are inside the frame. The vision Max had in mind is to make the cabinets look like a piece of furniture. Here are examples.

At first, I was concerned about the loss of storage space, but it looks so nice! Also, when I figured that what we have now is pretty inefficient use of space and the new design will actually have more storage space.

Finally, we were thinking about the crown moulding. To stay with the "we are going more modern thinking" we came across this picture and Bill, our cabinet guy said, "Sure, we can do that".

So here is the crown moulding. I think Bill said it is an Ziggurat design. We are also incorporating the same style for the island toe kick.

Now the catch with the insert design is that of course we have to submit a change order. Most of the time, the change order goes up in overall price. But this time a portion went down. Why? Well, let me tell you. One thing we found out is that the insert design requires that the finishing has to be done onsite. The cabinets are installed so that the doors are flush to the frame. Then the finishing can be done. Well, Bill's company doesn't do onsite finishing, so we had to find somone else to do it.

So, the demolition was delayed a week while we got a couple of bids from finishers recommended by our Designer ST and a friend of ours, Bette. Bette's finisher came in way lower than ST's finisher, plus we saw his work when we visited her condo. He can be a bit slow, but it is understandable because of the demands and that he is an Artist. We did check and he does have the time available based on our estimate on when the cabinets will be installed. When he came to our house, he saw our dining room chairs which are french antiques. He said he could finish our cabinets to match. Zowee! We were sold.

So we finally decided on the cabinet style, type and finish. Then Bill came over and we went over the design in detail to confirm, redline and signoff each page of the final cabinet design. Then he measured our kitchen again to confirm our original measurements. He was very thorough and spent about 3 hours with us. Here's Bill and Max.

Then here is the sample Bill had made up for us. By the way, the wood will be Alder and the inside will be Maple. We are planning to get a sample of the Alder wood, have it finished so that we can shop for hardware that will complement it.

Bill is a great guy and we will be using him again!