Another House Update...

Anyone who has done any amount of remodeling will probably understand what I'm about to say... it seems you take a step forward, and two steps back when you begin to tackle remodeling a home!  That is what we have been experiencing as we attempt to ready the home to move into.

I busied myself painting the cabinets that were left in the home when we purchased it.  I had priced similar cabinets at Home Depot, for about $700.00.  I decided I would save the $$.  The Home Depot cabinets were base model cabinets, without finish or stain as well, so I decided to use the cabinets we had, which needed painting.



We began by removing doors and drawers...

Sanding them down, wiping off the dust...

And then began painting...

I was not pleased with the Clark & Kensington paint that we chose, because it required 3-4 coats of paint.  I wished I had taken the time to go back to Home Depot to buy the Behr Marquee paint, which goes on like a dream, and needs generally only one, maybe two coats.  But... since I had already bought the paint, we continued to use it...

... the process just took a lot longer though.

Here is the base of the cabinet, painted and ready to go.

... and with the doors and drawers in... there are two missing panels to this piece, but our dear friend, TS, created the two missing pieces for me, which haven't been installed yet.  He has been quite the genius at work, figuring out solutions for difficulties we encounter along the way!



So far, I am very pleased with the cabinets.  I have purchased the door knobs and drawer handles online, and when the time is right, those will get installed.... (I am learning patience is a virtue in this process!)  I would love to see the handles and knobs installed, but the holes have to be drilled out, and so this is a project that is on the back burner for now.



The cabinets were hung by our dear friend TS and our son.  We ran into a snag because the ceiling and walls are uneven.  We are currently trying to decide how to hide the gap between the ceiling and the cabinet!  I bought some 1/4" white plastic moulding to see if that would help hide it, and when we get a chance, we will see how that works.  Other ideas include fitting a piece of wood into that gap, or filling it with caulking.  Any other ideas out there for a solution?  :)



The cabinets are not fancy, for sure... but since we are trying to keep costs as low as possible, they will do!



Another snag that we have had to deal with is the placement of the dishwasher.  The previous owner must have been someone who never spent much time in the kitchen, or doing dishes!  For reasons quite unknown to us, the dishwasher was placed smack up against the wall, with a drawer bank in between the sink and the dishwasher.  This has created a lot of problems for us, in deciding whether or not to even have a dishwasher.  However, come to find out, the water to the sink is connected to the dishwasher, and a lot of plumbing would have to be changed out to disconnect the dishwasher.  Sigh.  So, even though I was willing to give up a dishwasher, it seems it HAS to be there, for now, because of the mess of the plumbing work.

This then poses another problem.  For the dishwasher to open, there has to be enough room for the door to open flat, and we are talking about inches here of room because on the wall underneath the hanging cabinets, our stove, refrigerator and small drawer bank need to go as well. We will have to get a small refrigerator, and stove in order to make it all workable.

Then, our latest project involved finishing the back of the bar area.  This area faces into the living room, and needed to be finished.

I found this bead board at Home Depot for $21.97 for a 4' x 8' sheet, and we are going to use this to finish out the side and back of the bar.  I was quite excited to see this come together!

It was nice to see how pretty the bead board is going to look, and gave me hope for the kitchen after all!

And so, that concludes  all of the progress that we have made so far!

There are several difficulties that we have encountered (electrical, plumbing and uneven walls/ceilings) that have still to be dealt with, along with the uncertainty of what appliances are going to work in that small space.  However... I've decided that this home is never going to be "perfect", and that there will be imperfections I will have to get used to, and the most important thing is that it will be our home, and a place where we can live simply, and where love abounds... isn't that the most important thing?!

It helps to remind myself of that when situations present themselves, and solutions must be found.  But... isn't that the way with all remodeling projects?  I've talked with different ones, and when the dust is flying, sometimes it is hard to believe it will ever be finished in such a way that will be pleasant and enjoyable.

I am continuing to be reminded that joy can - and must -  be found in the journey, and even if everything takes longer, costs more, and is different from what I thought it could be... in the end, all will be well!

Have any of you experienced this with remodeling?  Just curious, and want to hear your thoughts and ideas on this project... and many hugs to all of my dear readers today!!!