Kitchen Reno – Progress Update #3

The kitchen reno has been moving slowly lately. After our holiday guests left, we had to wait on our permits to get approved. Emmett was pretty much stuck and waiting around until the city gave us the go-ahead. Despite the waiting, things have changed A LOT since my last update… click through to see what’s going on now!

In case you missed the first two updates, find them here: Kitchen Update #1 // Kitchen Update #2

Since we’ll be installing brand new appliances (yay!!!), our outdated electrical setup wouldn’t be able to handle everything without being a major fire hazard. We bit the bullet and forked over some serious cash for new electrical upgrades, and lots of insulation to make our home safe and efficient. It’s funny… this part of the process is Emmett’s favorite. It’s all about the time consuming work that you CAN’T see or won’t even notice, but is 100% necessary. Is it pretty and exciting? Not in the slightest, but it’s absolutely imperative. He’s all about doing things the right way- from the ground up.

This part of the reno also involves lots of waiting. After pulling permits, we had to schedule the inspection. You never know how those are going to go, or what the inspector will make you upgrade or change. Our home and it’s ‘original’ quirks often cause problems- or at least there are things that aren’t up to Emmett’s standards. For weeks, he was so nervous about the first inspection. I’m happy to say, the inspection went great and we’re now able to move onto the second phase (whew)!

Speaking of permits and inspections, I’ve had some people reach out on Instagram and ask about Emmett’s day job. Contrary to popular belief, he’s not a contractor. His real job is accounting, believe it or not. Ha! I have been encouraging him to test to get his contractor’s license… he does all of the work anyway, so it’s kind of crazy that he’s not able to pull our own permits. Every state, city, and township is different, but we try to do things by the books and permits are necessary sometimes.

Alright- back to the kitchen… the biggest thing you’ll notice in this update is the drywall. Emmett began framing new walls and hanging drywall (which looks amazing), but the majority of the work happened behind the drywall. Obviously he spent A LOT of time and money bringing our electrical up to code. It was super outdated and hadn’t been touched since the 50’s.

As far as my reno duties are concerned, I finalized our plans, door style, stain color, and paint color, along with the custom cabinetry features and I’m happy to say the millwork and cabinetry is now in production. Ahhhhh!!!! That’s super exciting news! It feels like this is actually happening, and although we don’t yet see the light at the end of the tunnel, we’re making progress.

I also had to create a new lighting plan. We added hookups for recessed can lights, a sconce above the sink, a chandelier above the dining table, under cabinet lighting, and added all new switch locations. It’s little things like this that make a big difference in functionality. Of course everything will be on a dimmer, because that’s how Emmett rolls. I’m totally ok with that though! The switches are much more intuitive now and better positioned throughout the room.

Other things I need to accomplish this week? I need to choose tile, order hardware, and buy one last light fixture…. three very important decisions that will greatly impact the aesthetic of our kitchen. If you’re wondering what I’m leaning toward- I have NO idea. I’m way behind on designing my own stuff and need to get with it. It’s hard to come back after a holiday or long break, isn’t it? I allowed myself some much needed time off, but now it’s time to get back in the groove. Anyone else feeling that way?

You’ll also notice more demo. We’ve been without a sink since Christmas Eve and we’re pretty much solely eating carryout (not great the for New Year resolutions, argh). What can you do within a sink or oven? Here’s to hoping I don’t gain a hundred pounds. Haha! I’ll take all the cleaning and eating tips you have. Living during a reno is a totally different ballgame. We renovated our previous kitchen while living in a different location, and it was cake compared to this!

That’s pretty much it for now… here’s to knocking this project out in 2018 (maybe even January / February if we’re lucky)! I can’t wait to show you the fun stuff and dive further into the process.