Kitchen Renovation Updates

Howdy folks!! Next week I will be back to more regularly scheduled postings and some new recipes. Until then I thought I would share some renovation pictures of our kitchen. #disaster #houseinchaos

Here is a before picture. Trust me when I say the pictures do it far more justice than the space actually deserves. 

It was usable but extremely dated. The dishwasher didn't work. There was limited counter space. The cabinets were awkwardly sized. Furthermore, the floors in this space were actually about 3/4 inch higher than the rest of the house and the height of the cabinets. If you were in there for long periods of time you could feel it in your back. 

So here we are three years later. (Sorry for the horrible yellow glare.)

First we moved everything out of the cabinets. There new home was the dining room. We got a new hutch for this project #Craigslistfind We also got a new metal shelf for the basement for extra storage.  The rest found a spot on the floor.

We are living through this renovation, baby and all. My goal is to make it as seamless as possible. Despite my best efforts it hasn't really been seamless but we are doing OK. 

We call this portion the L-shape. We debated about keeping this part of the counter. Without it we would have one open space to the kitchen table and informal TV room. However, we would lose a lot of counter space without this section. 

In the end we decided to keep the counter, although it won't come out as far from the wall. Not having the overhead cabinets would make the space seem a lot more open and light. There are two big windows on either side for natural light. 

Our gigantic closet in the hallway is going to be where the refrigerator ends up, a pantry area, and a mud bench to put coats, shoes and bags when you first come in. 

My job was to move things out. Most of this stuff when to the basement. Mr. J took down the shelving and started tearing out the floors. 

Next up the rest of the cabinets came out. This was much simpler than original thought. My parents came down to help demo and watch the baby. Four adults are way better than two.  

The last step for now was knocking out the backslash. It was on the wall real good. Mr. J ended up taking a hammer to it and then yanking it out drywall and all. I am already dreaming of subway tile. 

We have ordered appliances. The electrician came to move some outlets, rewire, and get everything ready.  Cabinets are set to be installed this weekend. Mr. J is busy removing all of the floors and patching some of the walls and ceiling before then. More updates to come next week.