WEEK 19 - IS IT DRY YET?

Monday, March 14, 2011

Still not dry, but showing signs.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Still waiting, still a little tacky

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

We are almost there, but not quite.  Dave says he could give it a try.  What’s one more day at this point?  We decide to wait until tomorrow.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!  Top of the morning to you!  With the luck of the Irish, Dave arrives and puts a coat of oil based polyurethane in the kitchen to protect the checkerboard.

This is our lucky day!

Friday, March 18, 2011

Still commuting from PA, I stop by the house to pick up some more clothes.  Dave arrives and gives all the rooms a light sanding before he puts on the final coat.  The floors are finally finished!  Now we wait for the floors and stairs to dry once again! 

Saturday, March 19, 2011

I check out the floors before heading back to PA.  They look fantastic!  The floors are dry enough to walk on with socks so I head upstairs to crack open some windows.  The poly is a bit strong.

PROGRESS = PATIENCE

WEEK 18 - CHECKMATE

Monday, March 07, 2011

Isaak returns and I catch him up on the paint issues.  Everything has a domino effect.  Since there are no mouldings Isaak cannot finish the living room.  Since the mouldings are not installed the painter cannot get started in the living room and stairway.



A highlight from last week!
Our Powder Room vanity!

Isaak spent the morning removing the cupped tile in the powder room.  Now we wait for the new tile to arrive and hope it is not curved.  After that was complete Isaak decide to install the floor tile in the powder room.  The small tile was enough to drive Isaak a little crazy. 

We come home to find a beautiful new powder room floor.  The tile needs time to set up therefore we cannot walk on it.  Tomorrow it should be dry and set enough to grout.   The tile is fantastic and we are so glad we selected it.

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

Not much on the agenda today.  Isaak grouted the powder room floor.  He completed a few odds and ends and then had to pack up his truck with all of his tools.  Tomorrow we start working on the kitchen floor, so the entire first floor has to be emptied again.

the new powder room floor! 
and no that is not the new throne!

`

Wayne & I spent most of the evening clearing out the first floor.  Isaak has removed all of his tools and I have packed up the powder room and the back porch.  Wayne is busy rolling up the rubber mats.  Let the vacuuming begin!  It is time for a seriously cleaning of the floors before our artist arrives tomorrow to create a floor design for us.  It is amazing how much dog hair the house accumulates.

The last evidence of Isaak's helper.

It winds up being a late night and we are both a little sore and very tired.

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Today was an exciting morning.  Dave was here to lightly sand the kitchen floor area in preparation.  Seems like the serious deep clean last night was for naught.  No Isaak until the floors are done.

Tomi from Art, etc. arrived with Joe to create a checkerboard on our kitchen floor.  Tomi and I reviewed some color choices for the contrasting squares.  I was amazed and impressed at the amount of time and calculations require just to layout the pattern.  I believe they arrived around 9am.  By the time I left at 11:00am Tomi and Joe were just starting to tape off the squares.

Calculating measurements

Snapping chalk lines



Spots before my eyes!



More blue tape

The first finished square

After a few meetings I call to check on the progress and they are just finishing up taping.  It is almost 3:00pm.  Wow, this is more work than I expected!  Tomi stained one square and Joe sends pictures via e-mail/smartphone.  The color is great!  Not too dark or not too light.  Tomi and Joe continue to stain the squares and remove the tape at the same time.  They finish up around 6pm just as Wayne arrived home.  He could see the floor from the front door and was absolutely amazed, and I happened to be on the phone with Tomi at the same time, while Joe was sending me pictures.  Technology is awesome!  Tomi & Joe are thrilled to get both of our reactions at the same time.  We expect this to be dry by Thursday, and then Dave can come back and completely finish off the first floor with the final polyurethane coats.

a view from the front door



GORGEOUS!

I have a morning seminar at one of our cabinet manufacturers, west of Reading, PA; so the dogs and I head out to spend the night at Mom’s in PA.  This will cut my morning travel in half and keep the dogs away from the wet checkerboard.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Nothing is scheduled for today.

Wayne gives me a call when he got home and says the floor is still tacky.  It looks like we will have to give it another day to dry.  I suggest to Wayne to turn up the heat. 

Friday, March 11, 2011

I head to the office from PA.  Fred and Roxie are happy to stay with their cousin Cooper.  Later in the day I stop by to see the floor.  This is the first time I get to see the floor in person…wow!  The pictures were great, but to see it up close is truly amazing.  Thanks Tomi & Joe!

I think the floor is still a bit tacky.   Dave says he will stop by later in the day and check it out. 

Dave calls and says it is definitely a no go!

Looks like another weekend of waiting, at least the floor looks beautiful!

PROGRESS Prevails,

but is still tacky!

WEEK 17 - A WEEK OF HURDLES!

Monday, February 28, 2011

Sunday was a long day for us.  I repainted the ceiling again!  Changed the color of the kitchen walls, added a second coat to the accent wall and finished up the powder room.  Wayne worked on getting the living room cleaned and prepped.  I finally quit painting around 11:00pm

Powder Room

  

Isaak is here at his usual time, but no assistant today.  The interview process begins once again. 

I knew there was not much to do in the kitchen for him, that’s why I wanted to get the powder room painted.  Isaak can now direct his attention to the bathroom!  We start off the morning by locating the placement for the bathroom light fixture.  This will make his job a little easier having more light to see.  The light fixture has a little chip in one on the glass shades, so I have to reorder a new fixture or a new shade.  Always something!

We look at the kitchen ceiling and decide I am not a very good painter!  I love the new wall color, but hate my ceiling.  So I called Marchello the painter and asked him to quote me a price on the ceiling only.  The eggshell finish is too challenging to work with.  Therefore I ask Isaak to hold off of installing the lighting trims once again.  Marchello and I made arrangements to meet later in the day.

I came home early to meet Marchello and he gives me a great number and agrees to have it done on Wednesday before John comes back with the crown moulding.  “While you are at it Marchello…”  Those words are so expensive!!!  …please quote the living room and hallway.  We’ll see what happens when I get that quote.  My back will certainly appreciate it, and there is so much prep work to be done.

Isaak is already gone for the day.  He has put on all the wall plates throughout the kitchen and dining area.  He has finished the final skim coat on top of the shower base and installed the honed jet mist sills for the shower curb.

Wall plates up!
Gorgeous countertops!

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

March is here!  WOW!  That was fast!  My expectations were to be completed by the middle of March.  We have plans to move back into the kitchen this weekend, and start using it on a regular basis.  The backsplash tile will hold us up for a while, and the stencil and final coats for the flooring.  So for the most part we are almost there.

No Isaak today.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Tile day for the powder room! Soon this room will be complete and we will have a second toilet again!  Oh yes, it’s the little luxuries in life that count!

John and I are off completing a final punch list down the shore today.  If he does not get back to his shop by 5:00pm, I will not have crown moulding tomorrow.  John leaves the jobsite after 6pm so I already know not to expect him tomorrow.  That’s ok for me; I did not want them to rush the finishing.

I get home all excited to see the tile completed, but only a half of one wall is completed.  And it looks horrible!!!  Not any fault of Isaak’s, but that of the manufacturer.  Some of the subway tile has a slight cup or concave curve to it.  I had run into this problem several years ago with the same color but a larger 4 x 8 tile.  That was the reason we switched to the smaller 3 x 6.  With the cupping and small grout spacing the tile looks more like a basket weave pattern than a brick pattern.  This will have to come down and new tile will be re-ordered.  What a bummer!

The highlight of the day is the ceiling looks fantastic!  Marchello used a Benjamin Moore Aura paint made strictly for Kitchen and Bath in a flat finish that looks awesome.  All my streaks and edge lines are gone!

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Isaak is bummed to find out that John is not coming today with the crown for the kitchen and living room.  So we spend the time selecting the right heights of the pendants and chandelier.  Most of these are predetermined in 6” or 12” increments since the lights are hanging from rods.

That is one of the advantages of working with Isaak.  Since he does it all and there is an unexpected hiccup in the schedule, he can move on to do something else.  Therefore Isaak never wastes a day!

I get a phone call late morning from Isaak apologizing that he had to leave because his mom is having chest pains and needs to be rushed to the hospital.  He is all apologetic about leaving his tools and things about the kitchen.  I tell him not to worry about the kitchen and concentrate on driving and getting his mother to the hospital.  Wow this family does not get a break. 

Fortunately it is a combination of stress, anxiety and a case of vertigo.  No signs of a heart attack! 

I head back to the house around 4:30 to meet with our floor guy Dave, and guess who is there?  Isaak is back already finishing up the installation of one of the pendants.  Wow this man constantly amazes me.  His dedication to his work is fantastic.  Isaak has managed to get all the lighting trims on and bulbs in, chandelier up and one of the pendants installed, clean up his tools and out of here by 5:00pm.

Dave and I talk about the floor and make plans for the final finishing the floors next week.

Wayne comes home to find the house a glow with light!  And there is a lot of light!  Of course all the fixtures are not meant to be all on at the same time; each is task specific.  And in keeping with our traditional excitement; we go around and play with every switch and dimmer there is!  It was another long evening of just gazing at our new kitchen in awe.  So after too much time has passed it is time to go out for dinner.  Neither one of us wants to cook and dirty up the kitchen!

Friday, March 4, 2011

I am so excited for today.  The crown will go up and the roll-outs and dividers will be installed.  We can finally start moving back into the kitchen.  Wayne has taken a vacation days for today and Monday so the unpacking can begin!  Isaak decided it might be a bit too crowded today, so he is off at another one of his clients fixing up snow and ice damage.

John and Joe arrive and are impressed with the paint colors and lighting fixtures.  I’m complaining about the little things of having the screws in the canopy aligned a certain way.  Yes, I am very detailed oriented, which others refer to as anal-retentive.  By the way does that have a hyphen? ha ha!  I am explaining to John how the little things bother me, but the big things do not bother me as much.  When it is big, like curved tile, there is only one solution to make it right.  John says he is happy to hear that because the crown moulding was not dry enough to make the trip today.

Yes, I was disappointed, and I could tell John was just as disappointed.  We all take great pride in our work, and when a client is disappointed we all feel personally responsible.  I reassure John that this is ok!  I much rather have it done right the first time than spending the time fixing it up later on.  There are many other things they can be doing today.  Now I have to break the news to Wayne.

The guys spend the day adjusting end panels, locating hardware and starting the fascia mouldings.  After the first fascia moulding or crown carrier is installed I notice a difference in color.  The doors are much creamier than the moulding.  These are definitely two different colors.  John checks with the shop and even though the formulas are marked the same on the paint, there is a difference. 

Now we check all the base mouldings, casings, shelves etc that were painted after the doors and drawers.  All of these match the moulding and not the doors.  This was definitely an error at the paint shop, not the cabinet shop.  Wow the mood of the room dropped severely as all our hearts are weighed down with disappointment.  But there is only one way to make it right.  The pieces will have to be repainted to match the cabinets.  I feel bad for John, because he can not recoup this time in labor. 

Joe installing hardware



And the winner is....



Awesome spice cabinet!

See there was still lots of great things that happened!

This will be the biggest hurdle of the project, but it does not keep us from using the kitchen.  It will just postpone our moving back into the kitchen.  Now the backordered backsplash tile might have a chance of being installed first which will be easier than trying to cut around the mouldings.  I have to find a bright side!  The kitchen is going to be great! 

PROGRESS may seem dimmed, but it is still shining!

WEEK 16 - PROGRESS SHINES BRIGHT!

Monday, February 21, 2011

After a long weekend of staring at the kitchen I questioned the paint color.  The Tidewater blue was a little too vibrant in the evenings, but looked great during the daytime.  Now that all the windows are trimmed and the wall cabinets installed, it will be a bit more laborious to change the color.

John was here bright and early dropping off base mouldings for the kitchen/dining area.  Isaak wants to get them installed so he can finish up the electrical, since I decided to put the electrical outlets in the baseboard instead of the walls.

I come home to find all the first level of base mouldings completed, and the remainder of the window sills completed.  Isaak has also installed the mouldings on the living room side of the pocket door and replaced a few other mouldings that were damaged during the demolition.  He also put some well needed weather-stripping on the door to the garage.  Now that door will stop singing everytime wind blows.

The hardware has been narrowed down to two options:

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Isaak was happy to find the box of under cabinet lighting in the kitchen.  It finally arrived yesterday!  He had been asking for these pieces for a few weeks now.

I tried to get out of the house early today for a training seminar with Kemper, but that did not happen.  I spent time with Isaak going through the different components of the linear lighting system we are using under and inside the cabinets.

After a day of cabinet training, I head home to feed Fred & Roxie and let them have a little romp time in the snow.  I find the Lutron components on the front stoop.  Hooray light switches and outlets are here!

Now that the dogs are fed and happy, I meet Wayne for a Viking cooking demonstration in Fairfield hosted by Karl’s Appliances.  These events are the best.  Not only do you get to learn about the product, but you also get a cooking lesson and you get to eat the results! 

Maybe there is a Viking in our future.  One nice thing is that Viking is still made in America.  Definitely a long day!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Before heading out to the gym, I spend the time to layout the electrical Lutron components to ensure I ordered the correct pieces.  Whew…all is good and accounted for!

It was a long day of catch up the office today after spending a full day and part of the evening in training seminars.  I come home to find all the outlets and switches are installed.  Isaak did not install the trims for the recess lighting because he knew I wanted to paint the ceiling again.

Baseboard outlets.  Great way to make them disappear.

In addition to the Lutron, Isaak installs and mounts the three Seagull Lighting transformers in the basement.  These transformers will power all the under cabinet and interior cabinet lighting as well as the track lighting on the basement stairs.  Each set of lighting has its own switch therefore each needs its own transformer.

Transformer City!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Today Isaak installed the Seagull Ambiance low voltage linear lighting system under the wall cabinets. It is a very cool system that I use in many kitchens; but this time I am experimenting with the LED version.  After doing some research on LED lighting, the light temperature of 2700K – 3000K with a color rendering index(CRI) of 90+ will put out a great colored light.  This system comes with a warm light and a cool light version.  Most of us gravitate to the warmer light, since we are a species that was raised around fire.  Yes this LED system was a more expensive, but I will be able to recoup my investment within 4 years considering it is costing an average of $0.16 per lamp per year to operate.  We will probably recoup that even faster considering how we can use this lighting system.

I have used this system many times before with xenon lamps.  It has always been my favorite for an even task light across the kitchen counters.  But halogen and xenon under-cabinet lighting all come with a concern about heating up your cabinet.  There is no way around it unless you go with a fluorescent lamp which many people do not like the color.  I have ruined a box of microwave popcorn in the showroom by leaving it on the bottom shelf against the heat.  Only a small portion of the bag popped when I went to make a snack.  I could not figure out what was wrong since we have the same popcorn at home, and then it dawned on me that I had left the under cabinet lighting on all night.

The xenon has been the top rated for brightest and lower heat than the halogen, but now the LED can step in with very little heat.  You can actually wrap your hand around the LED light on this system and not get burned.  In addition to the cost savings on energy, this particular LED lamp can be used to replace the halogen and xenon lamps on earlier versions of this lighting system.  So you would not need to replace all the under-cabinet lighting components, only the lamps.  Very cool!  No pun intended!

Kermit the frog is so right when he sings “It’s Not Easy Being Green” and it’s not cheap either!!!  There are many advantages to being as “green” as we can be, but it is also expensive.  I searched for a recessed LED for the kitchen and finally found one that fit all of my requirements.  A fantastic color of light, dimmable, the right temperature, deep recess and certainly bright enough!  The only thing was it blew our lighting budget out of the water.  I hemmed and hawed over the pricing and came up with a suitable compromise.  I selected a recessed housing, that’s just the can part in the ceiling, that could be retrofitted to accommodate the Cree LED recessed fixture that I would like to have.  Over time I expect the fixtures to drop in price, and we can start to change them over as save up.  It’s nice to know we can still change over to the LED’s as our budget permits.

 

So there is my LED lighting lesson for the day, sorry to go on and on, but the right products are out there now and it’s time to start integrating them into our homes.  Be careful of those recessed LED fixtures in the big box stores.  They may cost only $50 - $60 per light, but they may not have the right temperature, CRI, brightness, etc.  And most people are unhappy once they get it installed.  Make sure you know what you are buying.

When I got home today I found that Isaak had installed all the tracks under the cabinets, but only installed one lamp on each run.  What a tease!

Knowing this was a short day for Isaak, I head home early to get some painting done.  The ceiling in an eggshell finish has been giving me quite a challenge.  So I do the ceiling one more time and then put up our accent wall color in the dining area while the ceiling is drying.

Friday, February 25, 2011

I saw Isaak this morning and asked why only one lamp?  He chuckled and said he wanted to space them out with me.  So we spent a half hours laying out all the lamps approximately 4” on center.

We will have to wait for the interior cabinet lighting to be completed when John comes back.  I am lighting the vertical sides of the glass cabinets so we can maintain the wooden shelving.  The wiring needs to go behind the hinges, therefore John will have to rout these out on site.

The peninsula is still covered with a plastic drop cloth from yesterday and I notice there is tape across the microwave’s clock.  So I ask who the clock-watcher is.  Isaak gives me a perplexed look and his assistant fesses up to covering up the clock.  There is a clock on the thermostat, clock on the microwave, a clock on the range and of course a clock on his cell phone.  Apparently it was too much for him.  A little strange don’t you think?  Time must not be his friend.

Later in the day Isaak calls to let me know he no longer has an assistant.  He was fired today, which was no surprise to any of us.  Isaak has pretty much single handedly done the entire remodel without much help even when he had assistants here.  Oh Bruce!  Wish you were not retired you and Isaak would make a great team!

We come home to find all the under cabinet lighting installed.  Not quite as warm as I expected, but that may come from the blue painted backsplash.  I expect the light color to change a little once the tile goes up, but I am so excited to see it installed.  Isaak you rock man!



We love the new lights! 
When are you going to paint the garage door?



 

The TV/Phone hutch



Another week down, and

PROGRESS is continues to shine brightly!