new design

Boy - today is post-o-rama! I did a quick mock-up in Photoshop with appliance examples. The silver drawer on the left of the sink is a Fisher & Paykel dish drawer from Lowe's (of course). It installs in a cabinet and we're going to put our microwave on a shelf above it to make more counterspace.

And then right back in - head first!

We went to Sherwin Williams and looked at stain colors. Our cabinet guy uses Sherwin Williams - so that made it easier. We decided to go with Birch wood (although I may see what the cost difference is for Maple). And it'll be stained a medium brown color. Next we went to Lowe's and bought our range and figured out what the dishwasher will need for installation. We upped our budget on the cabinetry so we couldn't get all the appliances at once. So I decided to get the most expensive piece now, and this way I can have the countertops installed as soon as we get back from the cruise. Here is the Frigidaire 30-inch range that we chose - we went ahead and got the convection (now I can REALLY burn dinner) It was only a couple hundred more than the conventional in the same style. We did draw the line at the convection conversion computer that added $500 to the price though! (although reading online, it looks like it has some level of conversion - convection cooks 30% faster, so you have to alter your baking times.... I'm sure it'll really affect the frozen pizzas and brownies!!)

Big E also got the electrical stuff to install in the cabinets - there is a bit of a challege as the electrical comes up through the floor - but I think we have a solution that is both code legal and not too offensive to the eye. :)

Then we went to IKEA to make a decision about the custom door fronts. Turns out she had a list of all the sizes of the doors - we double checked them and they're rounded up an 1/8 of an inch. But, it made us feel more confident about ordering custom doors. We also decided to do the island all in stainless and add MDF end pieces to the tall cabinets on the wall. We will paint these with chalkboard paint - IKEA had new cabinets made from chalkboard material, but they only came in cabinet door sizes. So we'll just go to Home Depot and get 2 pieces cut to size and paint them ourselves. Just that alone will save us $350 on the 2 end pieces. (they're $200 each). We also added a "stainless-look" toe-kick. This is just stainless formica on particle board. We wanted the dark grey, but it was backordered and I didn't want to wait 4-6 weeks to get my damn cabinets (see photo of hole in floor). Here's some photos of the box jungle on it's way to my house. I had to pay $15 extra so they wouldn't deliver the kitchen before the floor was complete (IKEA bastards). So it'll come next Saturday morning, then that afternoon we're due in Huntley for E's Mom's b-day. Hopefully I'll have time to do a quick inventory and then return/exchange any mistakes on our way out there. **sigh** So much work!

A break from the kitchen

Observe the man of the house in his natural environment. Clever monkey!

cabinet doors and old cabinets

SO I emailed the people at Scherrs and got some questions answered. They WILL cut the hinges for me - so that settles that! And they use sherman williams stain, so I have to find a Sherman Williams store and choose a stain. Hopefully they'll also have examples of the clear coats - I can't decide between satin and glossy. hmmm. We were going to go to IKEA tonight and order the cabinets and measure for the doors, but it's snowing like crazy, so we're going to reschedule. We also are ordering our stove for the kitchen soon, hopefully that will be here in a similar time frame to the cabinets so I'll be ready for granite countertops (if I can afford them!)

I posted an ad on craigslist for the old cabinets $100 / OBO and I've had several people interested - some will pay more if I can send better photos - I'll get right on that tonight! Best way to dispose of stuff is craigslist - as long as you have it dirt cheap, you don't have to worry about it!

That's all for now - hopefully by the end of the week we'll have our boxes ordered and stove ordered and I'm hoping they'll come early next week (after the floor guys finish on Friday night or Saturday morning).

That is the next task - trying to move out 70% of our stuff so the floors can be repaired - that should be interesting.

Got a cabinet quote

Searching around, a lot of people recommend scherrs.com so I thought I'd get a quote. So I sent my estimates of the sizes (stupid IKEA doesn't tell you the exact door and drawer dimensions - and I guess this is why). I had them quote a alder wood with a dull finish. And the estimate came back about 2x what I thought it'd be - granted, there's shipping involved, but I was shocked none the less. This goes back to my core problem of being a horrible cheapskate! But, it's still not terrible - I wrestling with the cost now. If I do the custom fronts at this price point, I'll have to wait to buy the appliances - which doesn't necessarily end the world as we know it. But up to now I was pretty much right on my budget. Of course Greenmaker my yet save the day - we'll see what they come up with. Their cabinet manufacturer is in Wisconsin, so maybe that will make a difference?? My main concern is putting too much money into the kitchen. If I were in a house, I'd be tempted to invest more, but since it's a condo, and a tight market to boost - I don't want to go too crazy! I dunno. I'm just rambling now, so I think I'll keep poking around. Maybe my wonderful Mother will come and visit and go shopping with me one day and give me some alternate opinions (hint hint Mom).

IKEA alternative

In the search for different cabinet fronts, I found a company out on Pulaski in Chicago, Greenmaker Building Supply. I went in for cabinet fronts, which they will absolutely do. Although I will have to drill the hinges myself (or hire someone to do it). Or Michelle (salesperson) said that her company is introducing a new product line of modular cabinetry, made from sustainable forest and with no off-gassing VOC or formaldehyde in the varnish and cabinets. She said it is brand new, they haven't officially launched the product line yet, but she has been doing sample orders and the pricing is very competitive with IKEA. I like the idea of a greener cabinet, although IKEA is very concious. These cabinets would be maple on the inside and I chose a Alder wood, which Michelle said is common inside furniture, but is becoming very popular and it's more sustainable than old growth and slow growth trees like Walnut. I'll try to get a link to the cabinet makers site, that will show the door style I chose. It is liek a shaker cabinet only with a 6-8" frame instead of a 2" frame. It makes it look very modern. But it's mostly drawers anyway - which will all be flat-front.

Here are the cabinet styles from Michelle:


and here are the alder stain options - I like the nutmeg I think (3rd row, first example) This company has tons of options... I like the idea of being able to get that custom kitchen look without that custom kitchen price!!

Found a floor guy

Thanks to a recommendation from a friend, we found a floor guy. He came from Angie's List and was reviewed well. The only issue is that he wants to sand the floor in the entire apartment so you won't notice the repair. whoo-hoo! So I think I can pile a lot of the furniture in the bedroom and bathroom - at least that area is far enough a way to not notice too much. Removing everything would be almost impossible. We may be able to put some stuff in the basement temporarily as well. What a total pain in the butt!! I could wait and re-sand the whole place when we sell - but then it'll just look bad until then. **sigh**