Shelves = $25 Total so far = $4693

We had a space with no cabinet to fit between the microwave and refrigerator so we decided to put some open shelves up. We had to buy some brackets at THD for around $25. Of course we had scrap lumber from the cabinets and in the miscellaneous stash that we have in the garage. I can't remember if I included the cost of the stain in an earlier blog, but if I forgot, I'll add that later. We still need to put the cabinet above the fridge, but we are going to work on that tomorrow. We also still need to finish the backsplash tiles, but we need to borrow a wet-saw again this weekend. For some reason, we still have not ordered a replacement for the door that THD damaged. We were there yesterday, but we thought maybe we would order something different and so . . . here we are. We have been managing to stay busy though on a bunch of other stuff. This kitchen is going to be super functional for me. That is why I wanted to put the shelf up, to keep all my supplies close to the stove. I also decided that I liked the hanging cupboard for can goods, etc. Nothing gets lost in the deep back space of the closet style. I had to rearrange things (again). I am including a shot so you can see what I mean. I am also showing you, the little hanging place Matt made for my broom and mop (I say "my" broom and mop, because I am the only one who uses those two things). That was the best angle I could get a shot from. Matt also built me a little shelf under the window so I could put some plants on. Much more little stuff to do! Can't wait until the final before,after pics!! I am tired so I will have to proof-read this tomorrow. I am sure my grammar and math are off. OHHH and I love, love, love my new dishwasher. I never knew my dishes could be so sparkling clean. I guess the old one didn't really work as well as i gave it credit for.

Working on the backsplash. Scrap material = $0

Matt had started on the backsplash with some slate. Well, we had unused soapstone and he cut strips to go along the counter. Matt had to pop off the slate bricks taht were in place and fit the soapstone in. I think it turned out excellent and gives the counter a finished look. We still have a ways to go on that general area but we are making progress. Still holding at $4668.

Update: Punchlist list is long but Spring Break is just around the corner.

When we first started this project I had hoped to be finished by today. I had some girlfriends that were going to be up here from Denver for the Romp to Stomp (snowshoe 5k for breast cancer). Well that did not happen, but we did our snowshoe anyway. My friend, Lorraine, has a condo in Breckenridge, so we are going to hang out there. Matt, meanwhile, ordered a giant lighted sign for outside his office that came all the way from Austin, Texas so he is busy installing that this weekend. Spring break will be a mad house around here, so that sign is more important than my kitchen right now. Matt's website can be seen at www.gatewaytothesummit.com Oh and it is snowing! And the best news of all? I HAVE WATER AGAIN!!!

Sink and Faucet: $240. Total so far: $4668

I think we may actually stay in budget (barely).We purchased a sink on ebay ($105 including shipping) and a faucet ($135 with shipping). This was way less than half of what THD was trying to steal from me. Yesterday morning, Matt and Tim cut the holes and mounted the sink and faucet. Meanwhile, Murphy hates any vacuuming, so he was under the cabinet "getting" the shop vac the entire time it was running. Tim's dog, Kylie, was fascinated by Murph's attack mode and while Murph was doing his thing, Kylie kept nipping him on his little behind. It was really cute to watch. Other news: We are still waiting on that door, but THD is supposed to be giving us a discount because of the mishap with the other. Oh and we have to put up the backsplash and about a million other punchlist type things to do (including fixing the empty spaces on the upper cabinets).

My mom has pretty good insight.

So last year I was at my sister's house and we were going through some old stuff that she had saved. One thing was a letter my mom sent to her when she was in college back in 1985. Well, it was classic Mary Kelley. Here is a little excerpt: Dear Sherry, It was really nice to have you home, even if it was for such a short time. . . I enjoy having you home to cook with . . . Lori has no interest in cooking or sewing. That is two things you do very well. Because she is five years younger than you, it seemed like she had depended on us for the cooking. But now that she is the oldest daughter at home, she still is not interested in it. . . I tell her what are you going to do when you have a family? She said we will eat bolony sandwiches on paper plates. I know she is just kidding! But still she is such a Baby! How funny is that? My sister let me have the letter and i framed it and put it in the kitchen. I can cook OK, but I am nothing like my sister in that department - - - and so a little reminder to the family is nice and . . . lo and behold we have been eating on paper plates and I think that is perfectly fine :) PS: I like that she capitalized "Baby" to get the point across.

Holy Smoke! Sink hole complete.

Our good friend Tim came up from Denver yesterday to lend a hand. Not only did he fix the brakes on Matt's truck, he helped with the messiest job ever-- cutting in the sink hole. I won't go into all the details, but let me just say it was a huge pain in the ass to cut! On top of that, we all ingested about a pound of dust!! And unbeknownst to me, Tim is helping us on his birthday- what a great guy (thanks Tim! and Happy Birthday).

Finally, Finally, Finally countertops: $1013. Total so far: $4428

The day I have been waiting for finally arrived. We put the countertops in! Well, once again, I use the term "we" very loosly. My brother (also named Mike) came over and he and Matt cut the counters and hauled them upstairs (our kitchen is on the second level of our house). Our neighbor, David, came over, unsuspectingly, at the perfect time. It was definitely a three man job getting those mammoth pieces of rock up those stairs. But, alas, they made it! Then the magic happened-- we rubbed in the mineral oil and there they were, a thing of beauty (thanks Mike and David!). You may be thinking to yourselves-- hey these dummies didnt put in a sink. Well dont you worry, the white piece of paper there on the counter is the template for the place to cut out our new sink. Can't wait-- but I am not going to bother dusting for the thousandth time until that is finished! On a sour note, The @#$% Home Depot broke a chunk out of our custom ordered door and now we have to wait another 2 weeks for a new one. One last thing, check out the amount we have spent. We are seriously cutting things close! Can we stay in budget???

Dishwasher: $500. Total so far $3415

WOO HOO! we are getting close. We picked up our dishwasher ($500) from THD last week and were able to configure the appliance into the cabinet space. Our wonderful neighbor Jeff came over Friday afternoon and Saturday morning to convert the power to the disposal into an on/off plug and he was able to work electrical magic of some sort to make the other part of that plug into a constant "on" for the dishwasher. That was a big deal to us--as we could have never figured that one out on our own (thanks Jeff!). Friday night my sister and her husband, Mike, came over. Mike owns a company called Punchlist Construction www.punlistsummit.com and, needless to say, he is a handy guy to know. We had one oddball space that we needed a bottom cabinet in. Well, he was able to deconstruct-reconstruct and wham bam we had a new bottom cabinet. Coincidentally, drawers from an unused double cabinet were able to fit exactly into that space and we configured a cool pull out trash thing (that was Chase's idea for that space). Dont you love it when stuff works out? Thanks Mike!

Update: Floor is almost finished. Backer board: $30 Total so far: $2915

Matt replaced all the drywall on the backsplash area and we will wait and finish that as our last project. Meanwhile, our countertops are here (on the front porch). Each slab weighs 300 lbs. Wow. How do we even lift that? We have to have all the bottom counters in before we can set them, obviously. That means we are a few days off from that. Matt will have to fabricate the countertops for the sink, etc. (which I ordered on ebay) so that should be pretty intense. But the floors must come first. Matt set the remaining tiles last night and we will grout tonight. I also hung our "doorbell" on the side wall. Seriously this giant dinner bell or whatever it is-- was hanging outside our front door when we moved in as, I think, a notification system. This thing is so loud it could wake the neighborhood. I am feeling a little nostalgic and decided to hang it in the kitchen as seen in that first picture to the left of the fridge. (I replaced the pull with some old cutain ornamental things that I had just lying around). Thats all there is to report.

Adios 1970s.

It is official. All the orginal cabinets are gone. Before we tore out the kitchen sink, good old roll-around-joe gave his final performance as my dishwasher. He actually does a great job, but he will not be missed. Just for fun, I am including a picture of my best friend, Murphy (the absolute greatest tundra-dwelling chihuahua in the universe). When we tiled the kitchen he refused to walk across the floor (he was the only one that liked the linoleum). Matt is going to tile the rest of the floor this evening and I am on hiatus from cooking for a few days as we have no sink.

Update: Slate wall after grout

Here are some pictures with the grout in place. Matt did that last night while I watched the Academy Awards. Ignore all the trim stuff and decor. I am working on that.

"Brick" Wall = $125. Total so far: $2885

Well we got down to business on the wall this weekend. We bought some 12x12 slate tiles at THD for for $1.67/sq.ft and cut them down to brick size. We were originally going to cut the slate into smaller sizes, but the wet saw kicked the bucket half way through. We decided to go for it as-is, because on our tight schedule, we could not afford to wait another day. After the cuts were made, I washed the tiles and Matt started putting them on the wall. My sister came over with a bottle of wine and we had ourselves a little show watching Matt in action. This morning I wiped the wall down with a silly sounding product, something called "impregnator." I just take orders and am not sure of the product's purpose. I think of a few funny lines about the "impregnator"-- but think its not appropriate to say with the kid in the room. A note about the slate. THD had pre-cut tiles that were $6/sq. ft. We figured that we could cut our cost down to one third just by spending some time making the cuts ourselves. I think it turned out pretty well. In the end, we had to borrow a wet saw from our friend Tommy to finish the job. (thanks Tommy!). The slate still needs grout . . . but right now Matt and my brother, Mike, are at Janet's getting the rest of the cabinets. On a side note, Janet and I are becoming friends-- bonding over our mutual remodeling projects. She is going to come over for dinner and to visit her (my) cabinets when we are all finished.

Doorknobs, Paint and the Home Depot. Cost = $46. Total so far: $2760

We were in Ft. Collins yesterday and picked up our door handle. Matt found a brand new, in- the- box handle/deadbolt for $89 on craigslist. It is beautiful! Anyway, it was located a few miles from Matt's parents' home. The day we saw it on the net, Don ran right over went and got it for us, commenting that it was "way nicer than our door" (he did not know we had a new one on order). This handle would easily retail for $300. Of course Don and Judy would not let us pay them back, so I am not including the cost in my calcs. (Thanks Don and Judy! Love you guys. ) (Matt tried to tell his dad that he found an Orange and Black Mustang on craigslist and was wondering if he would mind picking that up too :) )

I painted my little wall column with chalkboard paint ($12 plus special roller $6) but I can't put chalk on that for a few more days. Matt is going to build little narrow pocket shelves out of extra cabinet materials for cookbooks, etc. I think my 1950s replica phone looks pretty cute there right now. I also put some stain on the hanging pantry thing. I think it looks good with the cabinets. I may change my mind later. Who knows? Also note that Matt put up the backer for the stone ($28) on the old pantry wall.

One final thing. Matt has a tendency to make fun of my "Oklahoma-speak" (such as "feel of this" instead of "feel this"). Well he thought it was funny the way I referred to Home Depot as "the Home Depot." Well people --we were at Home Depot last night and guess what? The name of the store is "THE HOME DEPOT." I took a picture. Stay tuned for what we got at THD-- to be blogged about at a later date.

Over the Range Microwave $230. Total so far: $2714

Last week we bought a microwave at the Home Depot ($230). We were able to install it yesterday and I think it looks pretty fancy. We needed to put an electrical plug inside the upper cabinet and our neighbor Jeff was able to help us out (thanks Jeff!). (Matt grouted Jeff's bathroom so it was a pretty good trade). I am hoping to get some painting accomplished today. We want to put chalkboard paint on one wall but it requires a totally smooth surface, so we have been putting layer upon layer of dry wall mud to get that perfect finish. Matt and I are going to pow-wow this afternoon and put together an agenda for getting the rest of the projects finished. Oh I can't forget, check out my unique magnetic spice holders on the side of my fridge. I saw these in a magazine and I had to have them. I ordered them from a company called Bayvillagestore.com. The postman brought them yesterday and I promptly filled them and put them in place. Also note that Elvis remains on the fridge. All my other magnetic clutter had to go to the beer fridge, but I didn't have the heart to send Elvis down to the laundry room. Just in case you are keeping track, I did not include the spice canisters in the remodel cost. It is really an unnecessary accessory so it doesn't count. But in case you are curious, they were $3/each for a total of $36.

Life goes on (sort of).

Well when we are not working our regular jobs, working on the remodel (or blogging about it), we try to have a regular life. Saturday was Valentine's day. Of course we were way too tired to actually go anywhere. Instead, I made some pasta (in my still functioning kitchen) and we had dinner in our pajamas and watched "The Princess Bride" on TV until we fell asleep. The next morning we are able to go pick up some of the upper cabinets. After spending a day of removing, clearing and repositioning, our house looks like we are awaiting a visit from the Red Cross. We don't look much better. Matt, Chase and I spent the better part of today trying to get things back in relative order. We still have a lot to do. Other updates to report: we have a sleek new dishwasher and a new back door on the way and the counter tops are ordered (Brazilian soapstone) but they will not be delivered until February 28. Is it possible that by the beginning of March we will be finished??

Drywall is no fun part II. Cost: $41. Total so far:$2484

Apparently if you do drywall repair, you have to put the texture back on the walls or else it will look terrible. I thought I had the perfect solution to our little problem: "orange peel" texture in a can for $14.95. Well, I learned that was not going to cut it (pretty sure I can return that). Sooooo we spent a night taping a plastic tent around our workspace. Our friend Zeke has a painting business and owns all the necessary ladders, plastic tenting, other supplies and most importantly-- he has the expertise. Matt also attached a red rosin paper to the floor ($11), and the fun began. Zeke sprayed the texture on the walls and it was all over in a matter of minutes. (Thanks Zeke!) The next day, after it all dries, I paint the walls. Wouldn't you know it? I am about a smidgen short on having enough paint to cover the walls, so I am forced to buy another gallon at the paint store ($30). I have been sick and run down and am not really feeling up to the job, but Matt has been working so hard, so I am compelled to trudge along and get it done. Coincidentally we run into Janet (cabinet lady) at a random gas station in Denver. She says her cabinets will be delivered in 2 weeks. Sooner than we thought. The race is on!

Update: Drywall is no fun.

As a result of the pantry demo, we had drywall in need of repair. This has been a tedious affair. Well not so much for me. My job has been observing, glass of wine in hand, and asking a lot of "why" questions. Anyway, Matt has been hard at it all week. I never knew that drywall involved so many steps. While we had all the materials and a tall ladder in the house, he also fixed the damage done by the "wall" tear out of 2007 and the butcher job done by the electrician moving our chandelier. As soon as this part gets wrapped up, I am going to do some chalkboard painting and Matt is going to "brick" the wall to look as though we tore down the pantry and discovered a fireplace. Should look cool. I am also checking into soapstone countertops that we have to fabricate ourselves. (When I say "we" I mean Matt-- but he is sweet and gives me credit for just being in the room). I have always loved soapstone and think it would look really great in the kitchen.

Custom Piece. Cost = $116. Total so far: $2443

So with my new bigger fridge and my eventual under the cabinet dishwasher (as opposed to my current roll-around model), I am going to lose some cabinet space. I find inspiration for a remedy to that problem in an article from Country Home Magazine dating back to 1998. By the way, I like to consider myself an "archivist" as opposed to a "packrat." The article was about a small kitchen remodel and the homeowner's use of the space behind the back door for a "pantry." My new cabinets have a pantry, so I don't really need another, but I can find plenty of other stuff to put in there. The article detailed the "specs" and Matt said he could build it. Yay! On Home Depot run #2 (more on that later) we buy the doors for our project (2 x $25). We have some scrap lumber at the house we can use for the rest, but not quite enough, so we have to spend another $26 at Ace. Then came the pricey gate hinges (another $40). Luckily Matt had some matching knobs lying around his office so those were free, my favorite price! Matt is working on the interior shelves right now (using melamine sheets that we had down in the garage awaiting a purpose). I am going to have to paint this "hanging cupboard" (as it is called in the magazine) at some point, but I need to think about that. I don't really have an accent color picked out --maybe a distressed black?? Any ideas? Also don't worry about that hideous back door. Its days are numbered!

Big Score! Stainless Fridge and Range for $1250. Total so far: $2327

Big Score. Matt found the deal of the century on craigslist. Thanks to some other guy's unfortunate worldly departure, we were able to pick up a barely used, in perfect condition, counter depth Bosch refrigerator (found on craigslist for $750). Matt's brother Dan brought it up from Denver in his horse trailer. Thanks Dan : ) How cool is that? I also was able to get a double oven electric range for $400. Not too bad. By the way, we are still using the kitchen while we do the remodel, so it is requiring some juggling. As the cabinets come off, they are stacked in the living room (so we can leave the stuff in them until we get our new ones). This project has opened my eyes to the fact that I have a lot of unnecessary crap! Why in the world do I have three colanders?

First Home Depot Trip- Tile $627. Total so far: $1077

We make our first home depot run and find tile for around $2/sq. foot. The total includes backer board, screws, grout and all that. We decide that in order to give the floor a custom look (as opposed to the cookie cutter home depot special) , we need to mix it up a little. We buy some ceramic tile that looks kind of like stained concrete in two different tones. Luckily Matt knows how to do this stuff. But let me back up -- the worst of the worst has to take place first. We spend countless man hours; use a heating gun, boiling water, a box cutter, all other sorts of tools and many hours arguing before the floor is finally stripped. %@#$# cushioned backed linoleum! Be forewarned if you undertake such a feat-- there will be swearing and maybe a few tears.

Day 1- 4 Demolition. Cost = 1 bruised hand. Total cost so far = $450

The first thing to go--the pantry. You can see the pantry in a photo in my previous post-- to the right of the "wall." We decide that in order to make space, the funky pantry has to go. Whoever built this thing was not messing around. Many nails were used. Matt and Chase put in several hours and a few beers making it disappear. The next evening, while Matt finishes demo-ing the pantry, Chase and I have some fun tearing out the backsplash. The first (and hopefully only) on-the-job injury occurs when I smash my hand. Ouch!