Kitchen Cabinets Are Done!

Before

After

We were supposed to be done with the cabinets over the 4th of July weekend, but when we started hanging the doors we realized that reusing the original hinges were not going to work. They were too loose and worn out, as a result, the doors would come out very crooked. So I went online, and found some hinges that were similar. They were shipped pretty quickly, but unfortunately they shipped us 19 left hinges and 11 right hinges. I called the company and explained the situation. They then agreed to send us four new pairs overnight.

Before

After

Well, they were similar hinges, but not exactly the same. We had to drill new holes on the doors and make a million adjustments! LD did the adjustment work, and hated every second of it!! It was absolutely tedious and not for the faint of heart. But we finally got the last pair of doors hung yesterday after lunch. Most of the doors are not perfectly aligned, but I did not expect perfection from cabinets that were neglected and over 50 years old.

Old Hinges

New Hinges

It was nice enjoying a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper at our breakfast bar this Sunday! We spent the rest of Sunday afternoon installing all the door pulls and magnetic catches. Unfortunately, we had to stop because we ran out of magnets. So I will have to go out and purchase more, but as far as I am concerned we are pretty much done.

Before

After

After

Breakfast Bar

Our next steps are to:

1) tackle the backsplash,

2) replace the light fixture over the refrigerator,

3) install some cabinet lights,

4) paint the window trim around the dining table, and

5) finish the paint touch-ups this coming weekend.

Kitchen Slowly Coming Back Together Again!

We have had a few bumps along the way but our kitchen is getting closer to being complete. The road has being rather bumpy.

Chapter 1:

Our dishwasher's handle broke. We might have been able to order the part and replace it, but since it was over 10 years old we felt that it might be best to just to buy a new one. After a week's wait our dishwasher finally got delivered. We asked Steve (our plumber) to come in and swap out the dishwashers prior to our countertops being installed. The install was a little difficult, but Steve managed all the obstacles that this old house threw his way. After some maneuvering we managed to get it in place without scratching our floors. We ran it through a cycle just to make sure everything worked okay. Everything was going fine until it got to the dry cycle, that is when we got an error message. I got on the phone with the manufacturer right away and they gave me the names of two companies that I could call. I called and a repairman came a couple days later. Well lets just say that I was not very impressed with the guy. The first thing he wanted to do was pull out the dryer without protecting the floor. I asked him to stop while I went and fetched a piece of cardboard. I am not sure what his experience level was, given that the next thing he did was call the manufacture's techline. They told him that he had to replace the lower fan. When I noticed that he was wearing brand new workboots with the tags still attached, I decided to call Lowes and see if they would just replace the whole dishwasher. They agreed to do so, but we would have to wait another whole week for a new one to get delivered. So far the second one is working just fine.

Chapter 2:

Less than a week after our dishwasher broke, our wall oven decided to call it quits too. The weird thing is that a couple of days later it decided to work again. So we are crossing our fingers that it will hold out a bit longer, our budget can certainly not afford to replace all the things that have been breaking down lately.

Chapter 3:

June 12 was supposed to be the big day, we would finally have countertops. Unfortunately, a piece of one of our templates got lost during shipment and they cut one of our countertop pieces a foot and half too short. So they were unable to complete the job. They did rush the production of a new one and they were ready to install this past Monday, but unfortunately LD and I were both pretty busy at work and I could not take the day off until Friday.

Chapter 4:

The installers were here first thing Friday morning, and they got everything done by noon. We had arranged for Steve to come by and reinstall the plumbing, and he showed up but the installers told us that the sink had to sit for at least 24 hours before anything was reconnected. So Steve agreed to come back on Monday. We have been out of a kitchen sink for over two weeks, so a couple more days was not going to kill us.

Chapter 5:

After finally deciding to spray our cabinet doors in the backyard, we got them sprayed this weekend (we were blessed with no rain). I am now brushing the topcoat on the edges, which we did not get very well with the sprayer. As soon as we get the hinges cleaned up, the doors will go back up.

Chapter 6:

Steve came back today to install the garbage disposal and get our new faucet connected. We finally have a working sink! We were so excited about finally being able to cook a decent meal in our kitchen, that we bought some steaks to grill. It was one of the best home cooked meals we have had in several months.