Kitchen plans

We have been working behind the scenes with the very patient Sharon to design the layout for the kitchen cabinets. (Can't count how many variations of this we have done). This is what we have decided upon. At the far right is a cabinet that will act like a hutch for our glasses and dishes. The refrigerator will be a French door model with a bottom freezer and our range hood is a more classic design. (Click on the photo for a larger view)

What is not showing is a center island with a prep sink and eating area. This will come later.

exterior progress

The weather has been cooperating (gorgeous, magnificent weather on Lopez) for a while, so now we are beginning to paint the exterior of the house. We decided to have the posts and knee braces go "natural" and have had them treated with a preservative clear finish. We wanted the warmth of the wood and Ken's woodworking craft to be displayed and not covered up by paint.

This adds some steps to the painting process, but we feel it is worth it.

This should be dry over the weekend, and then they willl be taped off. The windows are all covered and a lot of the primer is on the back of the house. Hopefully the rest of the priming will be finished on Monday.

Good news for the interior-- the long awaited and errant exhaust fans have arrived so the final touches can be put on the rough-in plumbing. The bad news is that the plumber seems to be unavailable and is out of contact. Hopefully that will be resolved soon so we can proceed with the insulation and sheetrock and get moving on the interior finishing.

Back to the vision... Think we are doing pretty well. We are debating about whether or not to keep the outside staircase. Right now it comes off the living room and master suite. Our builder says it reminds him of a fire escape in NYC. Comments welcome. Click to enlarge image.

Back in operation

After some delays- weather, supplies, work, travel, etc. , we are back at work on the house.

The giant pile of dirt from the excavation was spread around the base of the house to level the ground. Additional filler and gravel were brought in to make the driveway even with the entrance of the garage. We needed about 3 feet of fill to do that. (We had our own loading dock there for a while.)

Last week the exterior was power washed to ready it for painting. Colors were picked out and the paint was purchased-- and then it rained ever so slightly, but enough to delay the process. The painters were back for more prep work today and it looks as if we will have clear skies for a while now. The exterior will be getting new look soon.

Yesterday the front "stoop" was poured-- concrete aggregate and it looks great. The entryway is shaping up.

We have looked at the umpteenth version of the kitchen cabinets (with a very patient kitchen designer) and are just about finished with that selection.

We are waiting for the delivery of an exhaust fan system for the interior to complete the rough-in plumbing. Ken is pretty much finished with the interior wiring. Once those two jobs are completed, we can proceed with the insulation and sheetrock-- and then the interior work will begin.