Adding to what Jonathan said, it sounds like your contractor was either figuring on you having a small fridge or somebody forgot about the requirements for clearances for a larger fridge. Bummer. You need space around a fridge for three reasons: One is to allow ventilation for the mechanical parts; two is having enough space to push the fridge into and out of place; three is --- with that wall on one side --- having the clearance for any door handles that open towards that wall so the door can swing enough that the crisper drawers, etc.are not blocked obstructed by a partially opened door. Also, be aware that the doors on many CD fridges need to stand a little proud of the countertop nose so that the back edge of the door doesn't bind against the countertop when swung wide open. So what do you do? As Jonahon suggested, you don't have to do anything if can go with a 29" to 33" fridge and if having fridge capacity of 18 cu. ft or less is okay for you. There are numbers of choices in CD models including single door/bottom-freezer models by Fisher & Paykel, Liebherr, Miele, and Thermador. These range from expensive to very expensive. To get a sense of what is available, try using the search filters on a site like AJ Madison. (If you aren't confined to a CD model, there are a lot more choices with greater capacity at much more budget friendly prices.) If you want more fridge capacity and/or SxS or FD styles, then you need to expand the space to fit one in. AFAIK, there might be one or two SxS CD fridges that are a skoonch less than 35.5" in width, but nothing you could actually push into place in the present space and you would hardly be able to open the wall-side door. Therefore, if you want more fridge capacity, you will all of the additional two inches (if not more) to give your fridge ventilation, to have the space to push it into pull it out of place, and to be able to open the doors.. If you are looking for a SxS or FD model in CD-style, you might find a CD model with zero-side-clearance hinges which allows you to butt the countertop side against the counter/base cabinets and maybe gives enough room to fully open the wall-side door). WIthout zero clearance hinges, you might need to position the fridge an inch or two further out from the counter edge that you might have hoped. Do download and read the installation instructions for any model you are interested in -- you want to be sure it will fit and work in the space you have. One other suggestion. Is that corner wall possibly an interior wall and non-load-bearing? If so, it might be possible for your contractor to pick up some additional space by making the wall thinner. Maybe framing with 2x3 or 2x2 boards. Hope this helps. This post was edited by JWVideo on Wed, Jul 9, 14 at 14:29

I have a LG waveforce washer which is based on the GE harmony, both made by LG. Ive had it for just over a month, though I havent experienced dry clothes or excesive sudsing in my machine (rock hard Water here) I can tell you this much. Your machine senses the load by how much resistance there is when it first starts and the impeller moves back and forth. The more resistance, them more water it will use to fill the load. I can and have used my cotton/normal cycle for sheets, but I do perfer to use my Bulky/beding cycle for it. It uses more water, and the sheets move around more "freely" As far as your water being soft, yes keep decreasing the detergent amount till you get the suds under control or changed detergents. I know if I add STTP to my wash, I can turn out some major suds, at least when I had a FL, making cool whip was not a problem LOL. Currently I can use Regular Tide, not HE lavender scent with no sudsing issue. Im sure my rock hard water has much to do with that. Plus al of tide Normal detergents do have a suds surpressor in them as stated on the tide website. I am more on a powder kick these days, it smells better and seems to work the same. I mainly use Tide and gain HE Recently Tried the new Wisk HE, works as good, smells decent, not too heavy and cheaper too. Persil rules though for cleaning performance and a truely clean rinse, but you gotta pay for it, not everyone cup of tea. I hope this helps you out some and keep us posted

bus driver: I actually really like that medallion. The problem is that the bathroom is contemporary and I wanted the lights to hug the ceiling with no other adornments around them. There is something called a goof ring and even that is too distracting to me. I think the solution might be to buy separate trim and reflector and use an LED flood bulb (the old fashioned way!). This post was edited by jerzeegirl on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 9:10

It's fun to read these suggestions! Some are very creative. I've wondered about a peninsula instead of an island. I've also toyed with re-configuring the pantry and powder room areas. Never thought about moving that living room door. I'm guessing budget and spouse will both constrain the extent of this project, but we can definitely look into moving or eliminating the prep sink, adding seating to the end of the island, and considering a range. For those who asked, the aisle between island and sink side is about 40 inches and between island and pantry/oven side it's more like 48 inches. The island itself is 44 inches wide. I think my sketch is a bit "off." Thanks, all!