Friday, May 14, 2010

Kitchen Remodel - Part 3 - the new creation

So last I left you,we were still in the tearing apart phase. We had just finished sanding and removing the doors.




After sanding the facing of the cabinets, we next painted on an oil-based primer in white. We had done research on painting over varnished cabinets, and 99% of the opinions were to put an oil-based primer on the sanded wood, then put a latex enamel over that.

Painting the primer on the face of these cabinets was not difficult and didn't take very long, however, (there's always a however, isn't there) the oil-based primer was incredibly watery and splashed and dripped EVERYWHERE. So it was a good thing we did this before the floor went in.

Also notice that the pink laminate on the walls is gone now. That ripped out pretty quickly and easily only to reveal _really_ damaged walls behind. We went and got some thin plywood to install there to cover up the mess.

So the priming is done, two coats of latex enamel was applied, the next step is to begin the floor work.






That began with a fairly new product that is an underlay for tile floors in place of the concrete backer board they used to use. It's much thinner, more flexible and quicker to install.

So that went down in no time at all and even though it was a bright orange, it was still a dramatic improvement over the linoleum that used to be there.


Now on to the tiling! We picked out a ceramic tile that looked like slate stone, a gray with a little texture to it.





This is how it looked just being laid and before any of the grout went in.
















I really like these tiles, they're a pretty gray with just the slightest hint of a smoky blue in them. Very pretty.





Here they are once the grout was applied. The grout color is called "Raven." It has a dramatic effect on the subtle colors in the tiles, the pictures don't do them justice.











Okay, next step is to finish painting the cabinet doors and reinstalling them, then add the new hardware, oh yeah, I think I have pictures of those. Let me go find them....











These are the pulls for each of the drawers. I can't find a picture of the knobs, but they're the same material and coloring as the pulls, just round knobs with a slight circular ridge in the center. After the doors and hardware are installed, we have to put up new wood to fix the walls, strip wallpaper and then begin painting the walls, and of course, the new counter top will be installed. Okay, back to work so I can get the next round of pictures up.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi, very nice. Lots of work...Arent you tired?
p

VV said...

Tired, yes, still working on it though. We have a progressive dinner tonight, working on the kitchen tomorrow and the counters go in on Monday.

tshsmom said...

LOVE your floor...and the new hardware. Still reserving judgment on the painted cabinets until I see the finished project.

You're not hosting part of the progressive dinner, are you?

VV said...

Tshsmom, we cooked our appetizers and took them to one of the neighbors houses to serve there. We all did French food tonight. It was one of the tastier dinners we've held. We love our floor too. It is so pretty! The pictures really can't show all the subtle shading and soft colors in the tiles, they're really nice. You just wait and see on the cabinets, once that black counter top goes in, you'll see the look we were going for and it will look great!

tshsmom said...

I loved the tile before the grout went in. When I saw the tile with the grout, I couldn't believe the difference it made...gorgeous!

OldLady Of The Hills said...

I am so enjoying your record of this amazing renovation....I am very interested in how long this part took in "real" time....If has happened very quickly, you must have quite a crew of people working....It Is FANTASTIC!

VV said...

OL, I think we've been working on this 3 weeks now. The tile guy did his part in 3 days. We have been painting the cabinets doors today (Finally!) as the weather has not cooperated with us thus far. As it is, they're calling for rain this afternoon, so we're just hoping the primer has time to dry before we have to carry everything into the garage. We've also been putting up the blue walls between the cabinets and counters. I've been taking pictures, so you'll see it all soon.

PENolan said...

Hey! I think I have the exact same tiles

VV said...

Pen, cool! How are they holding up? We're worried the first time we drop a glass or something on the floor that they'll chip.

CK, here’s the tattoo

  From sketch to transfer to tattoo