Congratulations!!!! I too feel that I am finally on my way. DH started working on the lighting today. We also moved the frig in anticipation of removing part of a wall. Floor guy is coming the week of Sept. 14th and hopefully contactor will start cabinet install the next week. I've had some of my appliances for 1 1/2 years, as my remodel was partially delayed for my indecisiveness and mostly due to my job loss. But we are forging ahead!!!! I was "cleaning out" my kitchen folder today and found layouts from 2 years ago(thanks again Rhome!!!).

Hopefully we will both be posting finished kitchen pics sooner rather than later and will have minimal hiccups along the way.

Ooh, hurry up and finish. I've been eagerly anticipating your kitchen, pillog.

Malhgold, I'm so glad for you!! I can't wait to see your finished kitchen! It's great that it's finally getting done.

Thanks, Writersblock. It's going to be a doozy. :)

I with you, pllog, my entire summer has gone by as well and I thought it was only going to take a week to get the entire kitchen installed. I can hardly wait to see your kitchen, too, so, yes, let us see some incremental pictures ;-).

Karena, I hope your kitchen is getting along too! It's still going to be awhile to get the tiling done and everything, but it's exciting that the materials will arrive soon!

Since you asked, here are some incremental pictures. There isn't one of the finish because you can't really tell in the pictures I took of the end panels. In person, it's lovely :) Just a bit shinier, and the depth of color comes up with the knuckles and strips.

Unfinished doors and drawer faces and a bit of the molding:

Doors and drawers removed to the shop for finishing. Masks in place for finishing of the trims on site. VERY low VOC. The first day of spraying I had a little respiratory difficulty because they didn't seal the door on both sizes. The finish smells like flowers ;). Second day, with the door double covered, no problem at all.

It was so much fun watching the electrician doing backbends to install the lights. They're multi-colored LEDs.

Finally, a pretty picture of the laundry room. The cabinet doors are the same plywood as all of the cabinet boxes in the kitchen. So pretty! Prefinished. The bit of mask paper is for the tiling yet to come (it's washed out in the picture, but the mortar bed is there on the wall). The sink stand was built by the cabinet maker. SO much prettier than the one made by Kohler.

Oh my gosh Plllog, I am so excited for you and it is looking spectacular! Keeping fingers crossed on the tiles (16 page order, woweee).

Not that I don't love the kitchen, but I LOVE the laundry room cabinets! I think plywood is underrated as a design element. I've seen so many interesting things people have done with plywood. Maybe it's the graining that I like. Lookin' good!!!

Malhgold,

Thanks! The plywood is no VOC, 5-ply, maple veneer. The thing about this stuff is that it's so special that they put top grade veneers on it. A lot of the A sides are more like AAA, and the B sides aren't bad, they just have a lot of heartwood. When I saw this stuff, I told the cabinetmaker that it would be a crime to paint them. (Way into a wood guy's heart, right?) So he found a place that could do the pre-finishing. He also chose out the very prettiest pieces for the doors. It's all very good, but some actually deserves to be inside the cabinets. :) I think if you wanted to do a whole kitchen in this stuff it would cost as much as any slab cabinetry because you'd have to pick through the sheets to get just the really pretty ones, and the material is pretty darned expensive anyway. But it's gorgeous isn't it?

LOL, Ruby!!! That's what sticks in your memory? How's this one: 2 pallets!! Thanks for the good wishes.

Plllog, I'm so happy for you that you are seeing a light at the end of the tunnel! Congratulations on things coming into place.

Love your laundry sink! Have you posted somewhere what model it is? I'm looking for something like that. I'm assuming it's from Kohler?

Still working on the floorplan, but am very hopeful, so much help and insight on this forum! And, I too, bought my appliances long ago. Would LOVE to see them in their place!

Here's to a great week for you! (coffee toast)

Thanks, Susie. The sink is a Kohler Bayview. You have your choice of how many holes. The three hole faucet I spec'd was discontinued and most others are the wrong size and shape. I finally found another one after they'd already made the cabinet door to fit over the taller single hole one I got (though I do kind of love it). So I got a soap dispenser (might be very useful), but I still have an extra hole. Oh, well. C'est la vie. Make sure you get the right number. :)

Anyone have any good ideas how to decorate the spare hole other than an ugly plug?

Wow, it looks great even when unfinished. You are nearly there!

Should I start packing? I'm coming when it's done, you know. WITH my family!

Oooh!! Party! Give me a little time to learn to use the machinery and load the freezer, okay? ;)

Yea, the end is in sight! I am so happy for you. The laundry doors are so pretty.

LoL pllog, isn't that funny? I guess since my tile order is set to be one line, 16 pages sticks out.

Re: 2nd empty hole. 2nd soap dispenser filled with lotion? As long as you can remember which is which!

[evil grin] Ruby, I think that tile order is wilder than the artist is used to, as well. :) It's because there are so many colors, and so many stencils, and so many shapes. If I were going for sleek and modern, I guess it would be a lot shorter. :) Instead, it's going to be a patchwork quilt and all cuddly and warm looking (or maybe just one big expensive mess!).

Great idea for the second hole. The stuff I use on my hands would never make it in a dispenser (think whipped cream, but denser), but I wonder if I could get stain remover into one?

Pillog - I was trying to figure out how I could do a quilt pattern on my backsplash - what kind of tile did you find with different shapes, etc.

plllog, can't wait to see it. Risky, certainly, but from everything I have seen of your space, it sounds like it is going to be amazing!

Re: stain remover. If it is liquid, I don't see why not (or hand-wash laundry soap).

Just thought of another idea for the 2nd hole...possible to get a mini vase in there perhaps?

Prill, it's not going to be a classic quilt pattern, More like something between classic patchwork and a simplified Katie Pasquini. Sunset over a pond. But if you want shapes, this artisan has shapes!

The tile is Architerra Northwest, with much of it from their "brocade" line. That's a matte glaze with stencil. I feel in love with it, but didn't make the connection to quilting cotton until I read that that was the inspiration for it :) They also have tessera shapes, some of which are inspired by patchwork quilt patterns including card tricks and drunkard's path. A drunkard's path backsplash would be phenomenal!

These are handmade and pretty expensive. My cousin did some star blocks on her laundry room floor with regular, glossy glazed tile. You can cut tile into whatever shapes you want.

Wow pllog! Thanks for sharing those pictures! You are going to have a top-notch custom kitchen for sure! I love the sink you chose, I bet you can hardly wait to use it. I know I can hardly wait to use mine, too.

You know, I've come to realize that the remodeling process is somewhat like having a baby. The birth can be extremely painful, but that pain soon subsides when one enjoys the beautiful baby!

I can hardly wait to see the final pictures! Keep us updated. What was the brand of under cabinet LED lights that you used? Are you going with LED lights for general lighting, too?

I think I'm back on track with my kitchen now and I'm working through the wooden hood issue and I am looking forward to getting my granite in shortly and then figuring out my backsplash once the granite is in. I've certainly had my frustrations and ups and downs with the process, but I guess it's the end that counts.

Cheers!

Karen

Oh, lord! I don't want a crying, hungry, poopy kitchen!

ROTFL!! Sorry. :) That's the image I got. But I do know what you mean. My big problem is that I wouldn't have been so blithe about roughing it if I'd had a clue the materials would be delayed so long. I would have done some things differently. But everything will be fine and I'm going to make great big salads for days and days (I'm SO tired of storebought salads).

Thanks for the kind words :) What it says on the invoice for the LED's is COK EW Powercore. I had a lighting designer who chose all the technical things (I just said, "I want that one") so I don't have more information. What I liked about these LED's is that with the different colors the result wash of light's color is nice. The main lighting is thin fluorescent tubes, both in a diffused down fixture, and an indirect bounced off the ceiling. These are color corrected with gel sheaths. In the corners, in front of the pantry, and in the butler's pantry are diffused halogens in the ceiling. There are also a couple over the sink that I may change back to incandescent depending on which looks better. My lighting designer says that the electrical supply company that he works for doesn't sell most of the LED lights on the market because they have a high failure rate.

I'm so glad to hear you're back on track! You're right that it is the end the counts. You'll be amazed how viscerally happy you'll be just to see the granite in. :) I felt that way when it was just the plywood that was getting grooves in it for the tile. :D

Just popping my head in for a minute here to holler that I can't wait to see this completed kitchen!! Things already installed are looking spectacular and what's-to-come is sounding dyn-o-mite! :-)