So if you know my husband and I; you know we don't let the moss grow under our feet. We are doers and he is really a doer. In the winter when the partying is over and the friends have all gone home to hibernate until spring, while most people are looking inward and outward on cold days (and this winter was a cold deep one) we start thinking of how to occupy our time for the many days of being stuck inside. What did we do?... tear out our old and many times laminated over kitchen. Now with an estimated project end of Valentines we (mostly Anthony) set to work. Together we designed and mulled over our ideas about the kitchen and the best layout. By day I ordered products, he problem solved some architectural issues. I wrangled children, cleaned and made meals, stepping in during nap times to help out and clean up with Anthony.
We are not the types to hire out work. We are pained to even rent a tool if we don't need too. With lots of free advice from Anthony's colleagues, here is our kitchen renovation in process.
Day 1 The ideas and chats about the process
Day 2 The kids have gone to bed lets move every thing out.
That weekend Saturday and Sunday demolition. Anthony tore out almost 2 inches of plaster and lathe from the ceiling, 2 layers of sheet rock on the walls with paneling over that. The floor consisted of layers of plywood and 3 different linoleum (not to mention all the nails) then plywood again with porcelain tile (that was popping up piece by piece). I think we gained almost 5 inches of vertical space.
We uncovered the oldest part of the house. A one room structure of hand hewn post and beam construction with a stairwell hole to the sleeping floor above. Someone close to 200 years ago cut down some trees hacked the bark off and mortis and tenon the beams together with dowels. No nails or screws just old fashion construction. History. Could we cover up that hand work? No. This was the original structure and it was missing one of four walls with the room upstairs bouncing on 3 supporting walls.
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| gutted room day 5 |
With some metal bracing, a steel plate and some steel strapping, we connected the original house to the rest of the house to sturdy up the joints. I am sure nothing would have happened it was just scary poor design on the part of Henry Tallman's crew to build the rest of the house in 1860.
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| No nails just mortis and tenon doweled beams |
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| steel straps |
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| there must have been rot and someone cut out the old and added new. Anthony tied everything together with more support Day 6 |
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| beams left exposed over the cabinet foot print Day 9 |
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| resident taper Day 12 |
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| Resident painter I helped paint too Day 16 |
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| Mr. electrician rolling out red rosin paper to set the new wide plank hickory floor |
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| Tired floor installer (having a beer break) We worked on this until midnight after the kids went to bed. Day 24 |
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| working towards the other side of the kitchen so we could move the last of the working kitchen to the new side of the kitchen |
Day 27 The cabinets arrive from rtacabinetstore.com They are affordable, all plywood (not particle board) with all the options and many accessories. The finish we decided was tuscan maple. All hard wood cabinet faces.
So projected end date Valentines Day came and went. I did make dinner, but still washing my dishes Cosmo Kramer style in the bathroom shower. That is starting to really suck.
1 month 5 days The sink cabinet is set and Ant is running the hot and cold and sewer to the sink. Hopefully I won't have to bend over the tub much longer to do the dishes. We are a family of 5 and I refuse to use paper plates. In the background you can see the framed out window openings.
We have moved our projected end date to our anniversary March 8th. Windows will be our reminder of this glazed anniversary.
From This
Cleaned up and lived in This until the tile floors started popping up
To THis
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