It's fixing to be a little crazy around here

[gja1000]

Well, they moved our countertop installation up a week, so now it is scheduled for next Wednesday, Aug. 3rd. They will remove the countertops on Tuesday, then install the new ones on Wednesday. Then we are planning to go out of town Thurs-Sun. so they won't put in the backsplash until the following Monday. Somewhere in there we will need to get our new stove installed.

After that, we need to have this big corner office (upper and lower cabinets and desktop) removed. It's too big to put anywhere else - like in the garage or shop - so I guess we'll sell it or give it away. I'll have to move all my computer and office stuff out for them to take it out. Then we have to get the new computer desk, we have it picked out and are just waiting for it to go on sale. Hopefully it will go on sale this weekend, and we can get it and I can move directly from the kitchen office to the new computer desk in the bedroom.

Last, I will get the kitchen and dining room painted. I can wait a while on that, it doesn't need to be done right away, but soon.

At any rate, it will be a bit crazy, dusty and messy around here for a while.

[judy]

Lots of work! I hope the computer table will be here when you need to move the computer!

It's going to be beautiful! I don't envy you the mess, but think of the beautiful kitchen at the end.

[Janet]

You are a much more patient woman than I Gayle. :) I would have to have everything done before I went anywhere. I would be thinking of it the whole time I was gone and not be able to have a good time. I am so anxious to see what it looks like when you're done. You'll have to take some before and after pictures.

[JJJ]

I'm sure everything will come out beautiful. One question, wouldn't it be better to get the painting done before all the new stuff comes in?

[judy]

Do you have pictures? Are you using the tiles you posted a while ago? They were beautiful!

[Tiramisu]

Yes, post pictures.

Judy, I remember your remodeling adventures.

[gja1000]

Yes, we should paint first, but the reason I am not painting first is that I MAY paint my cabinets. They are very nice oak, but they look somewhat dated. I'm going to get the countertop put in and see how they look with it. I'll probably hire a decorator for an hour to come in and give me her opinion. Then I'll make my decision. Plus we have to wait to paint till we get the corner office taken out, and that isn't done yet. We thought we would get it done before the countertops, but the countertops didn't take as long to do as they said they would, so since I am iffy about whether or not to paint the cabinets, I'm just going to wait and they will have to cover everything to paint. Backwards, I know.

[judy]

It will work out. Just get plenty of blue tape and tarps!

I love the decorator for an hour idea!

Sandy, I had forgotten about all of that work! My SIL did such a great job!
I'm still not finished, but really I can leave it like it is. I am so comfortable here!

[gja1000]

Here are some pictures. We decided not to go with the formica that was on the island - that was the black/brown formica that you saw in the picture with the backsplash tile a few weeks ago. We deicded to take the corner cabinet/office out of the kitchen and put in granite counter tops. I was going to get something traditional in granite, but not my husband. LOL! He loves natural stone, natural wood, and those kinds of things. So we ended up picking out some WILD granite. The picture of the whole granite slab is not good at all but you can see the color variation in it. The close up picture just gives you some idea of the vibrancy and color variation. You get to go to the granite warehouses and pick out the actual slab of granite you want your countertops to be cut from. It's pretty cool! After they measure your countertops, they make a template and then you get to go back to your slab and decide where they will cut the countertops. You get to over lay the template onto the slab and you can see through the template to see when is going to show up on the countertops. I hope our choices look good!

The picture of the tile is for the backsplash and it will be set on the diagonal, like the picture. I'll take some more pics after it is all installed.

[lynne b]

Can't wait to see it all done, it will be beautiful i'm sure!

[gja1000]

Oh and we bought the computer desk today. We got a great deal, saved about 45%. We got a desk, hutch and 4 drawer file cabinet. The desk and hutch were on sale but the file cabinet was not. It had been on sale a couple of weeks ago, so Gary just asked if we could have the sale price on the file cabinet (I would NEVER have done that) and they said, YES! So we got everything on sale!!! Pretty cool.

We are having someone put it together for us. I read online that it was pretty difficult to put together and I know it would just wear Gary out and wear our patience trying to do it together. So we just paid extra to have someone put it together for us and so we don't have to worry about it.

[Tiramisu]

Love your choices.

[gja1000]

Thanks Sandy!

[Janet]

It's all going to be so beautiful Gayle. Sounds like everything is coming together nicely....even the sales...lol.

[judy]

Sounds gorgeous!

[DianaB]

I love the granite!!!! I can't wait to see it all done!!! That's great that you were able to get all of your office stuff on sale!!! How exciting!!!

[Marilyn]

Love your granite, Gayle!! Is that Copper Canyon?? It sure looks like it. That's one of my favorites!!! Your kitchen will be beautiful!!! If you paint your cabinets, you might look at Sherwin Williams softer tan with a dark brown glaze. I forget the color name. It goes well with your granite color. I'll try to post a pic later.

[gja1000]

Thanks so much Marilyn. The granite is golden Bordeaux. We looked at granite till our feet nearly fell off over many days in the blazing heat. We really liked yellow river too, but liked golden Bordeaux the best.

Thanks for the paint recommendation. Would you recommend painting the cabinets or not? Someone else recommended creme brulie (sp?) by Behr. As I mentioned they look a bit worn and dated. But painting them seems so final somehow.

[Tiramisu]

Can't wait to see pictures.

[judy]

You will know more about whether or not to paint the cabinets after everything else is done.

[gja1000]

Judy, you are right. The walls will have to be painted, and that's why I was thinking of having a decorator come in for an hour to tell me if I should paint the cabinets too. Gary does not want them painted but if the decorator says they need it, I think he'll be OK. She also does landscape design and I need some advice what plants to plant in our beds if we ever get out of this drought.

[judy]

Sounds like a very good plan!

I am going to contact our gardener, and get some landscape advice. They will supply and plant, and I will pay for this. Then, they will maintain it all for me.

Should I do it in the summer, fall, or next spring?

[Marilyn]

You are wise to take it slow. Painting isn't final. It can be stripped later, but if you did want to go back to wood finish it would probably be easier to replace the doors and stain than to strip and refinish.

If you would like to see the paint finish I suggested you can go to www.designerhomesbyrexhorst.com. In the photo gallery, check out kitchens, image 15 of 48. That's Sherwin Williams Softer Tan with a Van Dyke Brown glaze. The painter has to use the right technique to get it right. Not too heavy, not to light. We have to supervise them when they begin so that they know how we want it to look. It's beautiful when complete and goes well with a granite that has a lot of motion like yours does.

Have fun!!! Hope this helps. I'll try to post some pics of another house where yOu can see it better.

[judy]

OMG Marilyn! I want Rex to build me my dream home!!! He is an artist extraordinaire! I think I want the home with the columns!

How is Karen?

Gayle, have they begun putting in the counter tops, and so on, yet? I can't wait to see pictures.

[gja1000]

The counter tops are in but the backsplash is not done. I'll post some pictures when I get home. I have a few on my iPad, but I don't know how to post pics from my iPad.

They will put in the backsplash on Monday and Tuesday. Then we'll have our stove installed on Wednesday. The only thing we will have left then is painting.

[judy]

When are you going on vacation?

[gja1000]

No more vacation Judy. My summer school is over this week, then meetings start next week for the fall semester, then the fall semester starts aug. 24th. So, I'm here for the long haul!

The backsplash tile guy called today and said he has to go out of town and will be back Tuesday evening, so that means he can't start till Wednesday. That's OK, but we were waiting to hook up the new sink in the kitchen until he was finished, but I can't go another 5 days without a kitchen sink. So, Gary will hook it up tomorrow. I'm going to delay the stove installation until Friday, there's no sense having it installed Wednesday since the tile guy will have to move it out to work on Wednesday. I don't mind not having a stove, but no water in the kitchen gets old fast!

Here are a few pics I took of the new counters. Please excuse the backsplash area, it looks horrible after they tore out the old formica that was all the way up to the cabinets.

[judy]

What gorgeous graphite! Your kitchen is going to be so amazing! I love the island too!

You will be done at the end of the week!!! Great!!

[Janet]

You are going to have a very beautiful kitchen Gayle. You'll want to cook all the time... :)

[gja1000]

You are going to have a very beautiful kitchen Gayle. You'll want to cook all the time... :)

LOL LOL LOL LOL :yelrotflmao::sidesplit: No Janet, I won't want to cook all the time. I don't think there is ANYTHING that would make me want to cook all the time. In fact, I'll probably want to cook LESS so that I don't mess it up! :D

[Janet]

You do know I was kidding right? Now I'm laughing so hard my sides hurt!!!!!

[gja1000]

You do know I was kidding right? Now I'm laughing so hard my sides hurt!!!!!

NO! I THOUGHT YOU WERE SERIOUS!!! :eek: I was thinking, "Janet, you must have lost your mind"! LOL LOL LOL!!!!!!

[Janet]

Oh how funny!!!!! LOLOL .....ROFLMBO!!!

[gja1000]

OK, yesterday Gary decides to hook up the new sink faucet and pipes under the sink so that we will have kitchen water. He got it all done and we had a leak in one of the drain pipes. The old Gary would have just taken everything apart and tried again to fix it. But the Gary with all these darned health problems was so frustrated, I said let's just call a plumber. I thought he might be offended, but he wasn't so we did. When the plumber got here today, he said the $165 faucet we had purchased at Lowes, was a "piece of crap". He said this particular brand (Moens) is usually very good but this faucet was not good. So I took it back and he actually went with me and we opened the boxes of every faucet I liked and he picked the best one. I thought that was really nice. They are putting it in now, as we speak.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the tile guy shows up tomorrow to do the backsplash. I can hardly wait to get all this work DONE!

[JJJ]

Your kitchen is going to look beautiful Gayle.

I think it was a very smart idea just to let the plumber take care of that little problem.

My kitchen looks very plain next to yours.

[gja1000]

Your kitchen is going to look beautiful Gayle.

I think it was a very smart idea just to let the plumber take care of that little problem.

My kitchen looks very plain next to yours.

My kitchen in my old house was built in 1981 and I lived there 25 years and never did anything to update it. I'm really not much of a kitchen person. I was completely happy with my little 1980's kitchen.

This kitchen in the new house though, was a mishmash of white cabinets, oak cabinets, dark brown/black counter tops and gray counter tops. I was going to replace the gray counter tops with the brown/black but the more I looked at it, the more I didn't like the brown/black tops. I had some extra money, so I thought why not put in granite counter tops, since they would add value to the house, whereas the formica counter tops would not. I didn't expect we would pick such WILD granite, but Gary loved it and since he spends all day, every day here at the house, I thought, "Well, why not get something he would enjoy". I never in my wildest dreams thought I would ever have a kitchen this nice. Now, I'll be afraid to use it! :D

[Marilyn]

Gayle, I love your granite!!! It is beautiful!!!! Can't wait to see the room all finished!!

[gja1000]

OK, we still don't have the stove in but here are some pictures I took this evening. I'll try to take some more of the whole room after the stove is in place.

[Janet]

Your kitchen is really looking nice Gayle...can't wait to see it all finished. I do have to say you have really good taste.

[judy]

It is so beautiful, Gayle! Gary was right to want the fancy granite! The tile is perfect too! I'm so happy for you that your kitchen is so gorgeous!

Are you getting light switches that match the tile? (I am very into light switch plates.)

I hope the stove gets installed today!!!!

[gja1000]

Thanks ya'll! Judy, I was just thinking about getting new switch plates. I'm going to put up the old ones for now, but I am going to be shopping for some new ones that fit the decor. The ones I have are beige and so they will look OK, but I think some others might look better.

We called about the stove installation and we are still on the schedule for today, unfortunately, we don't know what time. :o Gary is stir crazy since he has been trapped in the house all week. So I sent him out to get a hair cut and maybe he will feel a little better. I have some things to do out and about, but they can wait. I just hate being trapped in the house all day.

OH! OH! The installation people just called and they will be here between 11:00 and 1:00. WHOO HOOO!!! I want Gary to be here when they install it - he knows better than me if everything is done right. He'll be back from his haircut soon and then we can get the rest of our errands done after the installation. We have to find baseboard to match the baseboard that was probably put in back in 1987. The good thing is the baseboard that needs to be replaced is in the kitchen and there isn't any other baseboard in the kitchen, so if we ended up having to put in a different style than the rest of the house, no one would even notice.

[gja1000]

OK, here's a few pictures

[gja1000]

Here's one more pic and then here is a pic of the corner where we took the office desk out. We still have to take those cabinets down and put them up in the garage. Then we need to replace the baseboard and get the holes in the wall filled and the whole room painted.

[gja1000]

oops, the corner area pic didn't load, I'll try again

[Janet]

It looks really nice Gayle and everything matches so nice. You will really enjoy having a new kitchen.

[Tiramisu]

Neat so neat.

[gja1000]

OK, so I cooked dinner in the new kitchen tonight - it's about time. We have eaten out almost every meal since we tore up the kitchen last week. It really tasted great. Actually Gary did most of the cooking, he cooked steaks. I made baked potatoes and then I grilled some okra. Maybe tomorrow I'll cook a meal in the kitchen! Nah! :D

[judy]

YAY!!! Pictures, pictures, pictures, please!!!

[gja1000]

Hey Judy, I posted pictures earlier in this thread!

[judy]

Saw them....it is really beautiful, Gayle!!

Enjoy your new kitchen!!!

[Marilyn]

Gayle, very pretty!!! I really like the change!!! Your cabinets go very well with the granite as they are. I wouldn't hurry to paint unless you just want to lighten things up. I'll try to attach a few pictures of the Parade of Homes kitchen this year with the Softer Tan and Van dyke Brown glaze. We won Best Kitchen, Best Bath and People's Choice.

6737 67386739

[Marilyn]

Well, the pictures were there on the preview. I'll have to try again.

[gja1000]

Thanks Marilyn, no, I don't think I necessarily need to lighten up the kitchen. I think I'll leave them the way they are. I might get someone to "refresh" them, but I'm not going to paint right now. I hope you can get the pictures up, I'd love to see the paint.

[DianaB]

How exciting to get to use your "new" kitchen!!!! I saw the pictures and it looks so pretty!!!!

[gja1000]

Thanks Diana. Today we are trying to figure out what color to paint the walls. ARRGGGHHH!!!! Here's some deliberations

[Janet]

Well I'm certainly not going to be any help with the paint colors because I like all of them. The horizontal tan is my least favorite. I think it would make everything run together too much. You have a very nice kitchen.

[gja1000]

Yes Janet, you are right, the horizontal beige would be too much of a good thing! LOL! I'm going to look at one different color in the morning. Maybe it will be THE ONE!

[Tiramisu]

I'd like to see a lighter sand color to let the tile and granite standout in all their beauty.

[gja1000]

Yep, I plan to get a lighter sandy color and see what it looks like.

[judy]

I like the color you posted on fb. The best color will pop out at you when you put it on the wall.

[DianaB]

I agree about the darker yellow.....it matches with the tile too well and would make it all blend together. I'm not crazy about the greens either but I'm sure with pictures and decorations would look ok. I like the lighter yellow the best but I also think that a light sand color might look the best. However.......you've done such a good job so far that I think you'll pick just the right color anyway!!!!

[gja1000]

Well I "think" we have decided on the green - I know, some of you like the beige better. But we decided after much looking and deliberations, that the beiges blend "too well" with the tile on the floor and we wanted a contrast. Gary really likes the green, and I'm not a decorator-type person, I don't really care too much, so it will probably be the green - unless we change our minds again! LOL! :D

We decided to paint the island a different color, and that will be a rusty red, like you see in the granite. I posted pics on the what did you do today thread, but I'll post them here too.

Of course, now that I "think" we've decided, we probably HAVEN'T!

[Tiramisu]

That will be so nice. Good choice.

[Janet]

I think it will be really nice when it's all done Gayle. You really have good taste.

[judy]

Go for it! I find green so relaxing. If you want to tie the green in with the other colors, you can always look for knick knacks that have the green and some of the granite colors or tile colors.

Pottery things usually have good combinations of colors.

[DianaB]

I'm sure it will look nice when you get it done. I'm not a big fan of the color green........that's because I lived in a trailer house where everything was avacado green!!!!! I do like the color for the island!!! You have such good taste and I'm sure it will all be beautiful when you're done!!!!