The problem with trying to fix it, is that the two flanking pieces are not able to be used.. if they wouldve coped them into the stone, then you could cope a mitre and wrap the stone. If it were mine, and I wanted it changed, I would remove the top 8 inches of stone (or whatever it takes to get below the molding backer strip).. Then I would fabricate a small "soffit" for the stone to die into at the height of the molding backer strip.(approx 3 inches deep) Run the crown around the soffit and then have the stone relaid to meet the soffit. You could also build a small "niche" fo the stone to tuck under, so they wouldnt have to provide a perfect cut to the bottom of the "small soffit" Labor intensive?? Yea, I guess, but certainly not the end of the world, given the stage that you are at. Its unfortunate that what is supposed to be a focal point in your house, has become just that, only negatively.. I take it that the stone was laid before the decision to crown the room.. If not, then it certainly was something that the trim carpenter shouldve brought to light.. and maybe he did, but he got told to do it that way by his superior.

Thank you all for your input. Jim, the first thing you should know is that Wood-Mode has told me that they do not stand behind how good or how bad their dealers or dealer/builders are. They consider the cabinet designer/dealer to be their customer, not the homeowner. I didn't realize that Wood-Mode and Brookhaven dealers are completely independent from the Wood-Mode corporation and not really endorsed by Wood-Mode. I had thought we'd have better project continuity using a design/build firm. That said, other cabinet manufacturers may be no different. I don't have experience with other cabinet brands. If I were shopping for cabinets again, I would ask about the relationship of the cabinet shop with the manufacturer. I'd want to talk to the manufacturer to see if they even accept phone calls from homeowners with questions about the products. Wood-Mode corporation doesn't want to talk to homeowners about its Brookhaven and Wood-Mode cabinetry. I think it would be very useful for anyone shopping for a design/build company to look at the five most recent projects that the company has done using the brand of cabinets that you are considering. Five kitchens would be my minimum. I would think even the smallest firm should be able to show you five completed projects. They should be recent projects so you can see the quality of work for the current crews they are using. A list of references with completed projects with scores of homeowners to contact would also be reassuring. It would even be great to see projects that are under construction. Ask about how problems are handled. When you visit those job sites or completed kitchens, talk with the homeowner, look not only at design but also at miters, attachments, details, color matching. Ask if there were any "surprises." Open cabinets and look at how the cabinets are attached (or not!). Look at how the cabinets are affixed to the wall. Are screw holes random and ugly? Is as much care taken with cabinet interiors as with exteriors? Familiarize yourself with building codes. For example, are the kitchen counter outlets done with 15 or 20 amp circuitry? If the design/build firm is also selling you appliances, are they actually authorized dealers and installers, or are they middle-men who really shouldn't be doing the installations? Don't accept, "We've installed Sub-Zeros before" as a substitute for credentials. I think a warning sign is when a company says, "We don't recommend you pull permits because. . . " Permits are a homeowner's minimum protection for at least the safety aspects of the project. Our building inspector volunteered this "I wish we inspectors could write up aesthetic issues. I'd give your contractor pages of corrections to do." I have also noticed that several random Wood-Mode design and build firms that I checked had unfavorable complaints listed with the Better Business Bureau. Some Wood-Mode dealers have histories with no complaints. That is no guarantee that all is well, but it is better than a history of unhappy customers with unresolved complaints. Not all unhappy customers will complain to the Better Business Bureau, but some will. The Better Business Bureau tells you about complaints from the past three years and gives some clues as to whether or not the customer was ultimately pleased or not with the project after filing a complaint. Additionally, make sure you have all details about cabinet interiors and exteriors in writing for every cabinet. One last thing, look at the edge moldings for boxes in cabinets. How well do they match your finish? Is a good match important to you?

I actually agree with the painters on #'s 1,2 and 4....well, sort of. There is no reason to prime when changing colors. This is a very common misconception that homeowners have. The only time you may want to prime is if the new color is a deep red or some poor covering color. For something like that you may want to use a grey primer. Or, since Aura has arrived, you can just use that. Two coats of Aura will cover anything 95 percent of the time. The rule is primer doesn't cover and that's not its job. It's job is to seal and provide a good base for your topcoat. Primer actually can be more expensive than paint. I use primer sometimes that retails for $45 a gallon. There are plenty of paints out there that cost less than that. But, if you are using a high quality primer, it is likely that you are also using a high quality paint as well so most times the primer is cheaper. I never prime over patchwork. The reason is that it is a complete waste of time. If I am using a washable paint, then I can just use that washable paint as a primer. I see no reason to actually get out a seperate bucket, roller, grid, brush, etc because I can accomplish the same thing with my finish paint. The key is to put enough coats of paint over the porous patching compound so that it 'catches up' with the rest of the wall. If your paint is soaking into the patch and not soaking into the wall around it, then it will flash. I'm sure this is what your painters are missing. Most paints these days look fine with two full coats over everything to avoid flashing. Now, if you are using a flat paint as your finish, spot priming patches is the absolute last thing you want to do. Again, primer seals so if you spot prime a patch, the wall will be sealed there so that when you come along with your topcoat, the paint will not soak in over that sealed spot like it does on the rest of the wall so you will get a flash. As for your painters, I believe that you should go to great lengths as any type of contractor to please your customer so they are certainly failing there. I also believe it is our job to educate the customer so that they know what we are doing is the correct procedure. We should supply our own tape and we should know that good paint cannot be bought at Home Depot or Lowes. I honestly think that ANY washable coating usually looks splotchy after one coat so that is normal and patches are usually still flashy after one coat. That second coat should even everything out. This is really why most real pro painters bid everything for two coats...it's pretty much an industry standard.

There are two fixes I see at this point: Hold the crown down so that it reads closer to level which will result in a gap at the ceiling and then "float" the ceiling with compound. In concert with this you can also likely back plane the crown to help "bend it" and that will help. You will likely still see it but it'll be an improvement. It is a known technique to address this issue. Your guy should know how to do it. Second option - rip it out - rip out the sheetrock and shoot the ceiling joists with a laser and level it. Sounds extreme and it is at this point but it's also your house and you should be happy. Now, I completely disagree with everyone that's saying its an old house and its a remodel. It's relatively easy to get this right if you are paying attention. It always comes down to time, price, and/or quality. As the saying goes pick two. As you are the client, you set the tone. And if the tone you set is speed or price then this is not an atypical outcome. If the tone you set is quality then frankly your GC should have shot the ceiling with a laser before he rocked and hung the cans and got a sense for how much he was out. Then told you, perhaps showed you with the laser and provided a price for leveling it down. Then you own the decision. Frankly, that's our standard operating procedure - primarily because you hired our firm and we do it once and we do it right. but also because I don't want the call and I certainly don't want you unhappy. But there are levels of contractors and it also assumes that you have sent the signals that you care about quality. If you are at them to finish and they are relatively on schedule then you are culpable as you set the tone. Is he on a bid and did you go low or push for him to catch the low bid ? Do you want it right or do you want it right now ? But if you were all about quality and paying a fair wage then it's all on him. You have to decide what you can live with it and where you are budget wise. I'd have to see the rest of the kitchen to make the determination as to the preferred course of action. But as we like to say Do it Right and Do It Once so I think you should talk with GC and come to some arrangement to at least try to remediate the problem. Heck, it's right in the kitchen and the job has his name on it. And don't be cutting any checks until you have the conversation.