After getting everything to a point where we were safe to live in the house, more on that to come, we were back on track. We were set to get everything ready to put the kitchen back together. One of the things on the list we had completed was moving the gas line that was already in the kitchen. We wanted to replace the electric stove that was initially there with a gas stove. We had some plumbing issues remedied as well. There were water lines moved and electrical boxes reworked. It was starting to feel like we were picking up steam again.
Out with the old kitchen and time to prep for the new kitchen!
Once all the plumbing and electrical issues were fixed Kevin started to put up the new sheet rock in the kitchen. The green mold-resistant sheetrock boards were a welcome change to the exposed pipes and wiring behind. With the walls all sealed back up it felt like we would “fly” through the rebuild.
Well, let’s just say if Kevin told me one more time that we were “close” to being done he was going to lose the ability to say anything! I was so absolutely tired of living in half of the house and beyond stressed with the whole situation that was unfolding around us. I needed to have some semblance of normality in this house of chaos.
Related: Basement Remodel Project – The Rebirth of the Man Cave
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Priming & Painting Time
Priming the walls and painting them seemed like progress. It felt like this remodel was going at a snail’s pace no matter what step we were on. It’s funny because I get to the point in projects where I am like let’s just slap this bad boy back together and get on with it. Kevin of course was on the complete opposite spectrum of adherence to the plan. He rallied his stance on the stick-to-the-plan and completed all the minute details as they should be done. This makes for a very interesting culmination of frustration when we are both at our wit’s end!
We knew that we wanted to use the same paint color, Steely Gray, that we had painted our last kitchen. We had both really liked it making it an easy choice. It really looks great against the white cabinets that I so dreamt of having in our old house! It was kind of nice not having to make a decision on this part. Knowing this was the color we wanted all we had to do was get a gallon of Valspar Steely Gray and paint away!
Related: Hello New Wall Color
Building the cabinets wasn’t hard just tedious when repeated over and over again.
Once the paint was dry Kevin started building the cabinets. It was a little bit of trial and error putting them together. They didn’t really come with step-by-step instructions. I found a video online that Kevin used to get his bearings on how to best put them together. After the first few he had the process down. It wasn’t that they were hard per se they were just tedious.
Kevin started with the bottom cabinets so that we could get them into place first. We couldn’t put the new floor in until the bottom cabinets were installed. We also needed to have the bottom cabinets in before we could get the countertops measured. I think that knowing this portion of the cabinets was necessary for the progression of the kitchen helped fuel the speed at which Kevin completed their assembly.
Glue, Screw, Nail, Repeat!
Kevin stayed in the breakfast nook with the Google Home watching whatever he pleased putting together kitchen cabinets. We joked that was his little cave. The joke was really on me because that left me to entertain the small people myself.
I personally think he liked that it was a construction zone so the boys couldn’t come back and “bother” him. As well as the fact that he knew I really didn’t want to be in the dust zone so he was also clear of me as well. He mustered through the monotony and got every cabinet built. We stored the upper cabinets in the living room until we needed them. If you asked me they sat there for a long time.
It really became exciting when the bottom cabinets were being put into place. I could finally visually see the progress happening. This being the first time we overtook remodeling a kitchen it felt like it was going pretty smoothly. Just taking quite some time. I got as tired of asking how much longer as Kevin got fielding the inquisition.
Nothing is perfect but everything can be fixed. For the most part at least.
I have to say that we were really impressed with the cabinets we ordered. They were all wood, sturdy, and well put together (especially if you ask Kevin 🙂 ) With that said there were still some that had some nicks and broken parts. However, I think this is inevitable when shipping anything. As with the ongoing theme in this house of Wayward, the initial company we bought the cabinets from was less than responsive when we contacted them with issues.
The first lady I talked to regarding missing some of our order and chipped doors insisted I send her an email regarding the issues. She said she couldn’t help me on the phone which I thought was odd. After calling back the same number but selecting the line for the warehouse low and behold the same lady answered. I told Kevin that I was pretty sure these cabinets probably came from someone’s basement.
After multiple failed attempts to get these issues remedied we found another company that did the same exact thing. They even delivered and didn’t have to ship! As we assembled the kitchen back together we realized we needed more cabinets than initially planned.
Corner cabinets are cut from their own cloth.
When we initially were planning out the kitchen layout I wanted to knock down the wall between the kitchen and the family room. Of course, this was an absolute no in Kevins’ mind. So when he went to install the corner cabinet in the kitchen where I wanted to reconfigure he was met with quite the challenge. Since the angle is not “normal” he had to figure out how to get a cabinet in there. I reminded him that if we had knocked the wall down we wouldn’t have had this problem. 🙂
We initially bought a standard cabinet but I suggested we needed a corner cabinet of sorts. Kevin absolutely hates when I’m right and I was spot on in this case. We ordered a corner cabinet but still, it didn’t fit quite right. This made him feel validated that we were both wrong!
So to get the corner cabinet just right he had to do his favorite thing of all, customize. I love to tease him that he loves to reiterate when he has to do “custom cuts” or “custom” anything. 🙂 Once he worked out the angles and modified the corner cabinet fit like a glove. Luckily the upper corner cabinet didn’t need to be altered at all!
Bottoms in time for the uppers!
Once all the bottom cabinets were in and secured Kevin moved on to installing the upper cabinets. Of course, this step required the purchase of a self-leveling laser as well as some “helping hands” to hold up the cabinets. He explained that he need them to hold the cabinets level while he screwed them into the walls. I offered the use my free helping hands but he informed me that this was not the same thing. Purchases made all in the name of a new kitchen!
Related: Our DIY Full Bathroom Remodel Project
Deciding on the kitchen flooring in a sea of options.
When it came time to pick out flooring finally we knew we wanted a lighter wood-colored laminate floating floor. For some reason, I thought that since we had an idea of what we wanted it would be an easy choice. Well, there are tons of light wood color options to choose from.
I really liked the barn wood look but wanted something with a more subtle grain. A lot of the barn wood-type laminate we saw had lots of different grains going on. Even though I loved the colors it seemed like everyone I liked had too much going on in it. After looking at Lowes and Home Depot we finally settled on a vinyl floating floor we found at Floor & Decor.
It was time to install the kitchen flooring finally!
It’s amazing how quickly Kevin was able to get the floor installed. Even though I wanted it done the day we bought it, that’s here nor there. Kevin had to explain to me that the flooring had to sit in the house to acclimate to the environment inside. Of course, I thought this was complete malarkey but after looking it up he was right! I have to say because the kitchen was done in pieces each part seemed to go fast. At least fast in themselves but in the total scope of the project, it felt like it was lagging on and on.
Once the flooring in the kitchen was down we had to move all the stuff out of the dining room. We were storing the furniture in the living room as they were working on the fireplace. So to get the flooring done throughout we had to find new homes for the “stuff” that was overflowing.
To say that the whole project was overwhelming doesn’t seem to actually encompass what it was truly like. There were so many moving parts going on at once. It seemed like one thing after another was wrong but regardless we were still moving forward somehow. I suppose there’s no other place to go than forward.
Kitchen countertop shopping was probably the only time in my life that I went to buy a piece of rock that cost thousands of dollars!
Even thinking about it now it is quite strange to think that to pick out our countertops we went to this huge warehouse of large pieces of stone and man-made slabs. The idea that these slabs of rock cost thousands of dollars is just normal these days but really it is a crazy concept to think about.
The boys absolutely loved running up and down the aisle looking at all the different types of granite, quartz, marble, and others. It was fun looking at all the colors and styles. However, I quickly realized that it wasn’t all that fun as the warehouse wasn’t airconditioned. We narrowed our favorites down to two granite countertops, White Ice, and Dallas white Ice.
It’s funny because Kevin kept looking for prices but there are no prices per se. The stones were labeled by level and the higher the level the more the price. It all depended on the exact piece you got. I looked for what I liked and Kevin focused on the levels!
After deciding on the two counters we liked out of the bunch we got quotes on what each one would cost. Though the white ice was about $1,000 more we decided that we liked it more and over the long haul it was worth the extra money. At this point in the game, it’s just money. You never really think about how much each part of your kitchen costs till you replace every part yourself!
Kitchen Appliance Time
With the countertops on order and the new gas line moved for our new stove it was time to pick out our new kitchen appliances. We recently bought new appliances at our old house so we knew that we wanted Samsung again because their customer service was really good. It was more of deciding which Samsung appliance we wanted. We needed to get a new dishwasher, oven, and overhead microwave.
Though I did try to talk Kevin into just replacing everything along with getting a new fridge too! Especially since Lowe’s was currently running a promotion that the more appliances you bought the more you saved. He wasn’t about to budge on his stance of a firm no. A girl has to at least try!
After looking at appliances at multiple stores and deciding on what we wanted I ordered our kitchen appliances on Lowe’s website and they were delivered the next day! I was excited at the prospect of actually being able to bake or cook on a stove.
The dishwasher was also a game changer but not one that was a quick install. We still had to wait for the sink and counters to be installed before we could install the dishwasher. Once the new kitchen appliances arrived Kevin installed the oven and microwave. It’s funny how it didn’t look like much because there was so much left to finish. Just having the microwave and oven installed was a visible confirmation that things were moving forward.
Related: New Kitchen Appliances
The kitchen countertops had finally arrived!
It always seemed that every time a contractor or someone working on the house was scheduled to come Kevin was never home. I know is 2023 but regardless there is this underlying feeling that I have experienced regarding how these people treat me compared to when Kevin is home. Regardless of what kind of contractor came out the number quote when I was home alone with the kids was always extremely higher than when Kevin was home. This leads me to know that I shouldn’t have been shocked with the countertop installers either.
When the huge truck carrying the large heavy pieces of what would be my cookie-making surfaces arrived I was so excited. I guess I knew in the back of my mind that the counters would be heavy but when 6 men showed up to carry and attach the countertops I was a bit shocked.
Taking a closer look is a necessity in all facets of life.
It “seemed” like a pretty seamless process once they carried each piece in and had it placed just right. I’m sure it is way more involved than that. When they were done one of the men showed me the sealant I would need to use on the countertops once a year and they were out of there.
Yes, the countertops were beautiful. I absolutely love how they look with the cabinets and wall color. The issue arose when I looked closer at the sink cabinet.
They had cut the sink cabinet crooked and shoved shims to level the white farmhouse sink we had picked out which were visible. As well as leaving a huge crack in one side of the cabinet near the base of the sink.
I know things happen and every project comes with its pitfalls but it was like since I was the only one there they hurried up and left before I noticed. We were working through another contractor at the time who used this installer as a third party. That in itself is a whole other story that really grinds my gears thinking about it. Let’s just say someone tried to bondo the cabinet and painting white over bondo is not a two-coat job.
With the counters installed minus the added need for repairs, it felt like we had smooth sailing ahead in our kitchen renovation!
The installed countertops meant there was hope for completion of the kitchen on the horizon in the near future. In perspective, we were closer than when we started but we still had the little details to finish up. At this point, the things that were left to do in the kitchen were more detailed items. The trim, casing, crown molding, backsplash, cabinet doors, cabinet pulls, and the like. I really could not wait to be out of the makeshift kitchen in the formal dining room and actually in a real kitchen.
The seven months that this project took to get to a place where we could actually use the kitchen felt like an eternity. Well worth the wait but still. In the scheme of things I know I am very blessed that this was even an option and that I have the things I do. It was just the culmination of all of the unseen things unraveling at the same time that made the whole experience that much more stressful and arduous.
The process seemed as long as this blog post seems to me. Never-ending and ever going. I think to understand what it is truly like living through a DIY kitchen remodel you have to get the timeline is never actually defined it is ever changing and always unexpected.
A sink and a dishwasher are so undervalued in a kitchen. Their value is overwhelmingly apparent when you are washing dishes in a utility sink in the laundry room.
Since the sink was finally installed with the countertops we were able to finally run the water lines. This meant we could connect the dishwasher and install it in place. I went to Home Depot the minute Kevin said it was time to install the kitchen faucet. I did my usual online searching for who had what at what price but settled upon one from Home Depot. It was the look I wanted and in the right price range.
The faucet was easy to install and was the sleek farmhouse addition I wanted. I will say that you do get what you pay for. Not that it was cheap by any means but there was some leaking at the sprayer pull. Along with some of the other things in the kitchen, it will do for now!
For the dishwasher it was perfect! It washed dishes so I don’t have to, well at least for the most part. 🙂 I decided that I wanted to get the more expensive one with the silverware tray on the top which I absolutely love and would buy again. The fact that I no longer had to wash dishes in the utility sink in the laundry was a game changer. I felt like things were really starting to come together.
