Progress...

Today I put my deposit down and scheduled the installation for my new kitchen countertops. I am going with Granite Transformations, with installation on December 8th! Woohoo!

Although I am sticking with the flooring color I picked several posts ago, I am still waiting on two more quotes as the first one seemed a bit high. Hopefully that will happen later this week.

My new drawers are all painted, and this morning I finished installing the drawer pulls.... in the dark, wearing my headlamp, as we had our first big windstorm of the season last night. The power went off about 8pm and didn't come back on until 10 this morning. Since I have heat that is totally electricity-free, and a campstove to heat water for coffee, this is not a big problem. Except that I only had whole beans....briefly considered grinding them with mortal and pestle... but power came back before I was really desperate. Note to self: Keep a supply of pre-ground coffee beans in the winter!

Another fantasy, shot to hell...

Countertops. Even though I only have 29 SF of countertop, the bid for laminate came in for 64 friggin' SF, because they have to use two 8X4 panels. Man, the prices they have posted are so misleading! Lowes in-store estimate was

And, after waiting a week for it, the bid for my favorite, the Cambria quartz, came in at... (drum roll)....$4400! OMG, in my tiny kitchen! So there must be plenty of people out there who are spending 15-20K just for their kitchen countertops????? Let me tell you, it's not going to happen here. My new front-runner is Granite Transformations at less than half of the quartz price.

The good news is, I got my new drawers and they look great!

Back to Nature

Yesterday I took some time off from obsessing about my kitchen remodel. I took the train down to Edmonds to meet up with Kathy, and we then took the ferry over to the Olympic Peninsula. After a long drive 10-15 miles up winding gravel roads, we hiked the Upper Dungeness River trail. With little elevation gain, this was a pleasant and easy 6.5 mile round trip. It was chilly, and at the top (3100 feet) we found a little bit of snow, just enough to be decorative.

I am always amazed at the size of the Douglas Fir out that way. Yes, that's a tree trunk, not a stone wall.

Details, Details

Ah, remember the good old days when I thought this whole kitchen remodel would cost me under $4000? Flooring for $1000? Well, that was a fantasy. I have about 360 sf of floor, and vinyl, even very good vinyl, is less than $4/sf. BUT.... since you have to buy it, apparently, in 12 foot widths, and eat the waste, the bid came in for close to 500 sf! PLUS, $1.20/SF for installation, and $1.20/ SF for "skim coat" (the stuff they have to put down to keep the texture on my old vinyl from eventually working it's way through to my new vinyl). PLUS... of course my toilet, sink, and stove have to be removed and reinstalled. And the few other heavy items I am reluctant to try to move myself. For this they want another $650! Bringing the total to about $3500, just for the flooring. Sigh. The bid looks to me like they're charging me for 500 sf of skim coat and installation, which seems wrong, so I am questioning that. And thinking possibly I can do the sink and toilet myself.....?

I'm still waiting for the countertop bid.

The chosen ones....

OK, I have made a "final" decision on flooring, countertops, and vendor. Final, that is, unless the quotes come in way above what I'm expecting. Should hear today, I hope.

The flooring will be Mannington Sobella Supreme, color Rajah Red.

The countertops, god willing, will be Cambria quartz, color Chatham

I was all set to go with a laminate (many fewer $$) but when I got to the store and looked at the flooring and the Cambria together, wow, they look like they are made for each other! So, I am definite on the flooring but still sitting on pins and needles waiting to see what the countertops will cost me. I'm planning on living with this stuff for probably the rest of my life (or until I have to move to assisted living....) so it's worth getting something I love, right? Right?????

I am hoping I can reduce the cost of the flooring installation a bit by:

1. Pulling off the baseboards myself. I've done this before, when I painted, so I know I can do this. Also, I will be repainting again anyway once the other stuff gets installed and I can better choose a color.

2. Pulling the bathroom sink. Haven't done this before but it doesn't look too hard.

3. Pulling the toilet --- not sure about this one.

4. Moving all my furniture myself, except possibly the refrigerator and desk.

My new drawers should be installed in the next week or so. When I get my new camera (broke my old one, for the second time this year, by dropping!) I will take some before and after pictures to post.