House Project 2010: Weeks 12 - 20 (PART ONE)

This post is 8 weeks in the making, so it is lengthy. I'm dividing it into 2 parts since I don't expect people to want to take an hour to read a single post. So, one post today and a second post in the next couple of days.

Life has been busy, but we feel so blessed right now. Feel free to just peruse through the pictures, but if you have time, read the captions as well. The story of our construction has ended up with some interesting facts that might interest you.

***

Looking back, the last thing I wrote about our house project was a post introducing you to The Great Wall of Separation.

I will be forever and always, eternally and endlessly grateful for this wall.

Although it has lacked in keeping out the construction sounds, has eaten up half of my kitchen eating area, and requires a person to scoot around it sideways to reach the laundry room or our current bedroom, it has kept the dust and mess and debris to a bare minimum. This thin divide has allowed me to keep my mental faculties (mostly) intact, and the dust has not been much worse than what it typically is. I chalk this up as miracle #457 in the last 4.5 months. It has been a life saver and I am its loyal fan. Would I go through this whole process again? I would shout a resounding "YES!" if and only if I could bring my plywood partner along with me.

The wall is still standing and should be removed within the next week or so. We still don't know what our new addition feels like in connection to our existing house, because we still haven't been able to access our new square footage through the new dining area/breezeway. I have learned great patience through this process and this is just one more thing for me to wait for and anticipate.

The whole kit and caboodle should be finished within the month. There are still a lot of things to be done, but I'm hoping that I can still follow through with my promise to Kennedy that she can host a Halloween party here. There may not be enough time to load the addition with furniture and decor (our carpet is on back order and we'll be cutting it close), but teenagers don't mind sitting on the floor, right? Kennedy just needs to think of it as one giant dance floor...

8 weeks of construction production has produced the following changes:

BEFORE - Old, weathered, unlovely porch...

AFTER: Every part of the porch was resurfaced. Decorative shakes were used and the columns were made a little heavier.

BEFORE: Stairs up to master bedroom, unpainted walls, untrimmed windows

AFTER:

BEFORE: Fireplace

AFTER: As the rock from our kitchen wall sat outside, Jeff kept insisting that we use it for our fireplace. I kept reminding him that our contractor said the cost of labor would be too expensive. We settled on the fact that we would have to use fabricated (fake) rock which we didn't love but it would have to do. Jeff would then bring up the fact that it was pertinent that we use our Farmington rock - handled by our authentic pioneers - and I would remind him that it wasn't in the budget. This went on for around 2 months. I finally asked our contractor to get us a firm bid. Long story short, it only cost us a few hundred dollars more to have our home's rock used rather than the fakey stuff. Jeff was finally content. The guys who did our finish work beat up an old beam for us to make it look weathered and worn. We love how it turned out.

BEFORE: Lockers for the kids' backpacks, jackets, and such. Notice the built in bench for removing shoes and the cute bottom cubby to put them in.

I had them line the inside and outside with bead board.

AFTER: just waiting for coat hooks

We ended up with a seam in the bead board (on the backside) that couldn't be hidden. We had them build another bench for shoe removal since it is right next to the door that heads out to the courtyard and back yard. Still waiting for this to be caulked and painted.

BEFORE: Our old red kitchen with green counters and those funky mirrors in the corner. WHO PUTS MIRRORS IN A KITCHEN? They were odd and a pain in the neck to clean. When we moved in 11.5 years ago, that was one of the first things I wanted to get rid of. We're kinda slow around here, so 11.5 years later and they finally got the boot.

Jeff removed the mirrors while wearing ski goggles for protection. It was quite a sight to see. I think the final count was 21 years of bad luck.

AFTER: WHITE SUBWAY TILED KITCHEN and chunkier new counter tops (Basalt Slate finish). LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this look and can't believe it's the same kitchen.

It was hard to get a good picture with the flash on (above - hello, shiny tile) but without the flash it looks dark (below - the construction wall in the kitchen keeps it kinda dark). When we have the wall down and our chandelier above our kitchen table, things will brighten up a bit.

The walls in the dining area will soon be painted a cheerful, pale green.

Any suggestions of what to do in the corner behind the sink, or what to do near or around the window?

This area is the only space in my entire house that is decorated and good to go. Everything else is in major disarray or is ready to be transformed into something else. This is the spot where I go to be put into a happy place. It's the only area that is clean and shiny and pretty.

CURRENTLY: Gregson Paint Center - in my kitchen, snuggled up to my bestest friend