The Reveal

We picked up our countertops and backsplash tile about a week and a half ago, and we got started the next day. We had to install a base underneath the countertops first to raise them off the cabinets a bit.  

 We also had to glue the countertop joints together--not an easy process, which you would gather if you could inspect the countertops. But overall, it went pretty well. 

Next up: tile backsplash. We bought tiles that were on mesh (THANK HEAVEN), otherwise this would have been kind of awful. As it turned out, it went fairly smoothly. Brandon had to cut a bunch of tiny tiles for the outer edges of the backsplash, which he was a good sport about.

My sister Emily was nice to come help us out with the thin set/tile laying process. 

The next day, Brandon and I put in the grout.

We had tenants moving in Saturday, but we wanted to get the most complete shot we could before belongings and food were put inside. So late Friday night, here's what the kitchen looked like.

 There are still a couple things to get done (missing kick plates, caulking, etc), but it felt good to be done with all of the big stuff!

Not terribly shabby for our first renovation! Yeah, there are numerous things I would change--the paint color and the appliances, among other things. But remember what it looked like before??

That wall doesn't even exist now.  

I'm SO SO SO SO happy it's over, as fulfilling as it is to see it all done.

At a snail's pace

The excitement of renovation has officially worn off--like three weeks ago.
I'm sure that some day, this renovation will be but a distant memory. I wish that day were today, but, alas, it is not.
We brought in some guys to adjust the vent situation we have in the kitchen. We had torn out a pantry and were left with a large intake bulging out of the wall and taking up more space than necessary. This would not do. (Actually, I would've been fine to leave it and keep the $350 we paid to have it moved, but Brandon isn't as lazy or cheap as I am). Here is the nice fellow after just having finished moving the vent up and back toward the wall.

Right after he left, we started the tiling process. And boy, what a process it was. The hard labor of tearing up the linoleum flooring was nearly matched by the effort it took to tile it. But it wasn't nearly as exciting, as it didn't include a blowtorch.

We laid the thin-set and tiles section by section.

Brandon cut the tiles outside in the dark, with the temperature in the teens.

 Note the ceramic-colored icicles hanging off the tile-cutter.

Lots of time was spent in this tub cleaning thin-set and grout off of tiling instruments.

There she is...tiled and almost ready to be grouted. Getting the tile edges to lay flat up against each other on an uneven floor was tough. We did pretty well overall, though.

Grouting was the most tiring work. We finished in it one night, though we didn't get home til 1:30. I had blisters after about 10 minutes. It takes a lot of force to get that grout how it's supposed to be.

 So happy. And so tired.

Once the tile was grouted and sealed, we were anxious to start putting in the cabinets. It's a bit of an awkward layout to work with, but I think the cabinet space will be really nice for the tenants. The upstairs kitchen has barely any space, so we wanted to be sure we didn't make that mistake downstairs.
Installing cabinets translated to many, many trips to the hardware store, lots of measuring, lots of stud-finding (which we've decided is done most reliably by knocking on the walls to hear pitch changes as opposed to using a stud finder), lots of levelers, and lots of shims.

We also had to find a way to redirect the air from a vent that was going to get lost in a corner amidst the cabinetry. We constructed our own redirect out of some plywood, Liquid Nails, and caulk.

It may not look like much, but we were pretty proud of it.

As of now, we're waiting to install countertops, lay the kitchen backsplash, paint a little more, install a door, and install windows. 

Brandon has been working like a machine--getting his real estate business up and running, doing real estate courses, working maintenance at 70 apartments (don't even get me started), renovating our duplex, and going to school. Someday life will be less hectic :)