today...

scott put on his plumber hat today and finished up the plumbing supply lines at the kitchen sink. that red shut off goes to the exterior hose bib. there is also a line that goes to the dishwasher through the hole in the cabinet wall.


this is the laundry closet...we dry fit the wood floor today. we wanted to start in a small section to gain a better understanding of the whole wood floor installation process as we will be starting the floors in a few days. since we have concrete subfloors, we selected an engineered flooring product that can be glued down. this is an oak floor with what the manufacturer calls a "chestnut" finish. we will hopefully glue this section tomorrow.



whenever we have a break or move from task to task, we paint a door!


we now have a complete pedestal sink. we need to get a part for the faucet--hopefully tomorrow.


it was a long day today...left the house at 10PM...we keep asking to take a day off, but our boss wont let us!

kitchen appliances!

minor bath update

added the medicine cabinet and wainscotting moulding...
the medicine cabinet wasnt our first choice, but it was the only one that fit (the only one that we could find at lowe's, that is!)

kitchen floor

we finished grouting the kitchen floor today...

the templates were made for the granite countertops...we may see the counters within the week!

bathroom

we were ready to install the pedestal sink today, but when we opened the box containing the sink, it was cracked in half!!! im going to go out on a limb here, but i suspect it broke when it was DROPPED IN OUR DRIVEWAY!

so here is just the pedesdal...


we also changed out the old dirty rusty toilet tank flush lever with this new brushed nickel lever that matches the other bath accessories...this simple change actually makes a huge difference! a little scrubbing bubbles and a new toilet seat and it will be as good as new!

kitchen floor tile

we also finished the installation of the kitchen floor tile. it will look a little different after we grout it tomorrow...those grout lines wont be as prominent.

the granite peeps are coming tomorrow to make templates--so we should have the countertops within the next 2 weeks.

and the appliances are being delivered on wednesday!

like buttah...

so we settled on a very light buttery yellow for the bathroom walls. i think it will show (for the open house) much better that the blue. it also looks great with the gray walls in the hall/living room

Master Bedroom + WIC

the master bedroom carpet was installed today...we chose a berber...the installation was fast, it only took 1 hour

we also installed the shelves and poles in the master bedroom walk in closet

kitchen and bath

here is scott laying out the porcelain floor tiles in the kitchen...it takes a bit of preparation to make sure that everything is square and that the layout works.



here is a photo of the current state of the bathroom...with a layer of plaster to smooth out the wall

kitchen cabinets

so, we purchased the appliances today...they will arrive on wednesday. we got a great deal on a stainless steel counter depth LG refrigerator---it was a $2000 fridge that was on clearance for $1000. nnnniiicce! (thanks sully, for recommending hugo's!)

cabinets

this is the end cabinet that we had to cut apart in order to fit it over the new water main and plumbing. we are going to affix a panel below the shelf to conceal the plumbing (as in the photo on the right).

ooooooo

scott installed the new exterior soffit light at the front entrance!

hated it!!!!

we primed over the dark blue wall paint in the bathroom...this is a photo of the first coat- it will take at least 2 coats of primer to cover that blue. not only was it too dark, it revealed all of the imperfections in the wall (which are many)- so we have also decided to skim coat a layer of plaster over the walls before we re-paint them.



the bathroom was sans-fan, so we had to install one...here it is, and its up and running!

we also installed the bath shower and tub faucets...after we sealed all of the grout.

we still have to seal the corners and around the tub.

oops

i would love to show y'all how the kitchen looks with the newly installed cabinets...but i forgot to bring the camera to the house today!

my bad. i will try to remember tomorrow.

a little shout out to our homies...and mommie

thank you keith for the plastering advice (and demo!)--the ceiling turned out great!

thank you mom for the help with painting!

just paint...brain surgery it aint!

so, we chose a nice neutral Valspar paint color called 'seagull gray' to paint all of the interior walls. we think that the gray will look clean and sharp against the bright white trim and crown moulding. depending on the lighting conditions and time of day, the walls look anywhere from beige to blue...and sometimes gray. we are really pleased with the results. (not easy to see in these photos...)





(those are the kitchen cabinets in the background...we are installing them tomorrow!)


now, for the bathroom, we are breaking a cardinal rule of house flipping--which is to use only neutral and light paint colors. BUT, since there is a lot of white and not so much wall space in the bathroom, we decided to go with a bold blue that matches the blue mosaic tile in the floor. we are still 2nd guessing it, but here it is...a picture of the first coat (we will probably need at least 3 coats for good coverage)

we also think that the blue will look good with the satin nickel accents: faucets, light fixture, and accessories. oh well, no turning back now!

update

we are finally finished with the plaster work...and we are now priming/painting! it is starting to feel less like a construction site and more like a house.

next week we will install the kitchen cabinets and tile floor. we are also hoping to begin the installation of the hardwood floors.

the carpet for the master bedroom will be installed on the 26th.

so much dust!

we dont need no stinkin plumber!

this is the new pvc drain pipe ...that scott installed.


it was easy!

not the walk of fame...

...at the end of a long day of plastering...whoops, that was wet plaster!

plastering and sanding, and plastering and sanding, and plastering and sanding...this has to be the most challenging phase of the whole process...believe it or not. you just dont feel as though you are making much progress.

we probably have 1-2 days left of this phase, then on to painting. we bought a new toy- a paint sprayer- and we cant wait to use it! for one thing, it will mean that the plastering is over.

oh my...

we removed a section of the 1-1/2" diameter galvanized drain pipe that runs from the bathroom sink because we are replacing the trap for the new pedestal sink.

this is a picture of the cross section of that pipe...with 60 years worth of build up. there is barely 1/2" left of passage.








DIS-GUS-TING!

so, if you have old galvanized drain pipes in your house...you might consider having them replaced. well, at least, if your drains are slow, you'll know why.

update

we continue to work on the drywall joints; mudding and sanding...everything is covered in dust (note the plywood floor in this picture)

in addition, we finished the tile in the bathroom (including grout)...we are planning on having the cast iron bathtub refinished.

we have also made progress on the installation of the tile fireplace surround

bathroom tile progress

so the wall tile is now finished and grouted...
we just need to seal the corners.


we will finish and grout the floor tomorrow.