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!

About our remodel --with "before" pictures

Our poor little kitchen was in desperate need of a remodel. We bought our bicentennial aged house (built in 1976) in 2004. The only new thing in the kitchen was hideous white linoleum. Our first steps taken toward the remodel took place in November 2007 when tore down a weird "wall" between the kitchen and living area (you can see how the "wall" looked on the day we moved in) . We took that down when we put wood floors in our living room. The wall held power, water (baseboard heating) and a phone line. I was able to barter the electrical and plumbing work from existing clients, so that really did not cost out of pocket (my brother moved the phone line for free. Thanks Mike :)

The real remodel began in earnest a few weeks ago when I found an entire set of knotty pine cabinets on craigslist for under $500. We couldn't afford not to remodel with that kind of bargain. Interestingly enough my mom knows the lady (Janet) who has the cabinets. Janet is remodeling her own kitchen and informed us that her new cabinets would arrive in 6 weeks (for that bargain price we have to remove and haul the cabinets from her house). Excellent! We now have a deadline for our remodel. Sometimes you need a deadline to motivate you-- especially when it involves grunt work. Speaking of grunt work, our 19 year old son, Chase, is around. Perfect timing! The challenge? Remodel our entire kitchen for $5,000. I think it can be done.