Let's Talk Remodeling

[Am_I_There_Yet]

We finished picking out stuff for our kitchen remodel and our masterbath upgrade. DH has expensive taste. Now I am working on the financing. Yipee. This whole process has me really freaked out, even more so than when we had the house built.

What did he choose?

Come on... make us all feel better!

 

[shovan]

I have Absolute Black granite in the my hall bath (with a white porcelain undermount sink). Never again. Yes, for the granite, no to the black. It shows e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

We're doing (if we ever get this stupid remodel off the ground) granite in the master too. I'll have it on the vanities, and also the tub decking. The apron will be mosaic tile.

Thanks for pointing out that out about the black! I would have probably picked another difficult color like that. I had put a deep cobalt blue in my kitchen! It cleans easily but as you said it shows everything!


Miss Jasmine, Good luck on your financing! There are a lot worse things than a DH with expensive remodeling taste!!

 

[Miss Jasmine]

What did he choose?

Come on... make us all feel better!

Cherry cabinets with a special glaze, a $500 faucet in the kitchen, and that's just a couple examples. Of course I insisted on quartz countertops, so I can't really talk much. Everything that we were budgeted for we seemed to upgrade, light fixtures, tile for backplash, faucets, etc.

I just got my financing numbers. I can live with them. Phew.

We picked black (with some different colored speckles) for our kitchen counters. ACK. LOL

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Cherry cabinets with a special glaze, a $500 faucet in the kitchen, and that's just a couple examples. Of course I insisted on quartz countertops, so I can't really talk much. Everything that we were budgeted for we seemed to upgrade, light fixtures, tile for backplash, faucets, etc.

I just got my financing numbers. I can live with them. Phew.

We picked black (with some different colored speckles) for our kitchen counters. ACK. LOL

Well, in all honesty, my kitchen granite is a dark, dark green with gold flecks. It might as well be black.

I guess because I'm always cleaning up in there, it's not as noticeable.

So far your choices sound beautiful! Is the glaze black? I love that look on dark cherry!

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Thanks for pointing out that out about the black! I would have probably picked another difficult color like that. I had put a deep cobalt blue in my kitchen! It cleans easily but as you said it shows everything!


Miss Jasmine, Good luck on your financing! There are a lot worse things than a DH with expensive remodeling taste!!

About two houses ago, I just had to have this navy blue cast iron sink in my kitchen. Gawd, I ended up HATING that thing!

I had to wax it with car wax! It looked good until the next time someone used it.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Well, in all honesty, my kitchen granite is a dark, dark green with gold flecks. It might as well be black.

I guess because I'm always cleaning up in there, it's not as noticeable.

So far your choices sound beautiful! Is the glaze black? I love that look on dark cherry!

It's a dark brown glaze, cocoa. Very rich looking! DH is a cleaning fanatic, so I am sure the counter tops won't faze him. This is the countertop for the kitchen: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=5210&colorname=Welshpool Black The bath is this: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=7620&colorname=Ashford
We did Cranberry maple cabinets in the bath.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

It's a dark brown glaze, cocoa. Very rich looking! DH is a cleaning fanatic, so I am sure the counter tops won't faze him. This is the countertop for the kitchen: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=5210&colorname=Welshpool Black The bath is this: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=7620&colorname=Ashford
We did Cranberry maple cabinets in the bath.

Your kitchen counters look a LOT like mine and the one you picked for your restroom, looks a lot like the granite I picked for mine too!


Here is my kitchen granite. From a distance, it looks black:

Here is front-runner for the master bathroom:

 

[shovan]

Miss Jasmine & Are You There Yet, Those are really pretty! Y'all are giving me some good ideas. If I can ever get to the stage of actually picking out stuff!

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

Miss Jasmine & Are You There Yet, Those are really pretty! Y'all are giving me some good ideas. If I can ever get to the stage of actually picking out stuff!

And here I have contractors itching to get started and a husband dragging his feet!

You want my husband for a while? It might take your mind off of the contractor angst. He'll more than make up for it.

 

[shovan]

And here I have contractors itching to get started and a husband dragging his feet!

You want my husband for a while? It might take your mind off of the contractor angst. He'll more than make up for it.

But I would be more than happy to accept your contractors!!

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

But I would be more than happy to accept your contractors!!

But I'd rather give you my husband. Come on... everyone loves firefighters.

 

[bengalbelle]

Galahad, I hope that issue is resolved! Sounds like you have some very petty neighbors. Your addition is going to be gorgeous, I don't understand how they could have a problem with it.

We are getting so frustrated with not being able to find someone to do this work. We have actually been out looking at property & considering building a new house instead of remodeling this one! I know we are probably crazy, right? If we can't deal with a remodel, how would we survive building a new home!

They're building homes like crazy out here. C'mon...it's not that far from New Orleans. You can visit there whenever you want. You did say you really liked Pelican Point

I have an undermount sink with my granite. I love it! You can just sweep all the crumbs directly into the sink.

That's exactly why I want it!

No renovations uh!!! I can tell you are really starting to think of the new house as home! I had the same questions about granite. When we redid our kitchen we put in man-made stone with the seamless sink. I love it! It cleans so easy, no ridges or crevices to trap gunk! But I was thinking of granite with an undermounted sink in the bathroom.

Every house we looked at in our area and price range required extensive remodeling. I don't know how we lucked up and found this one, but I'm thankful we did.

I have Absolute Black granite in the my hall bath (with a white porcelain undermount sink). Never again. Yes, for the granite, no to the black. It shows e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.

We're doing (if we ever get this stupid remodel off the ground) granite in the master too. I'll have it on the vanities, and also the tub decking. The apron will be mosaic tile.

It sounds beautiful, especially the mosaic tile. We had black granite with flecks of brown in our last house but it didn't show everything. I loved that color and would do it again.

It's a dark brown glaze, cocoa. Very rich looking! DH is a cleaning fanatic, so I am sure the counter tops won't faze him. This is the countertop for the kitchen: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=5210&colorname=Welshpool Black The bath is this: http://www.cambriausa.com/colordetail.cfm?color=7620&colorname=Ashford
We did Cranberry maple cabinets in the bath.

Very pretty! I'd love to see after pictures.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

I'll be sure to chronicle our journey. Hopefully it doesn't include me being hauled off to jail in handcuffs from killing DH who is all ready freaking out at the prospect of our kitchen being unusable for a time.

The Appraiser will be out Friday, so trucking along on the money trail.

 

[shovan]

WE ARE SO CONFUSED!!!!! We had two more contractors come out yesterday. Two totally different opinions on the proper way to do a walkin/rollin shower on a concrete slab house! We've had 5 contractors come out. All but the last guy recommended breaking out areas of the slab & pouring new slab sloping towards the drain. This last one felt that tearing it up could damage the integrity of the slab & cause major problems down the road! One of the other contractors mentioned it as a concern, but then felt it could be done. But that is also the guy who turned down the job. This last guy's suggestion was to build up the floor in the whole bathroom about an inch & then slope down towards the drain. It would be easier & much less mess but would involve lots of slopes and would require a really good tile guy for it to look good. This contractor has a good reputation & lots of pictures of thier work, which all looks wonderful. But he has not done many handicap accessible jobs. My DH believes that this guy's concerns about the slab have some validity, but we've had four other contractors come out who recommended breaking it up!

The contractors that have come out so far:
1. Made big promises said anything could be done. Had a total idiot as an assistant! Just did not make us feel confident. Very high bid. (The designer that came out, ended up being the daughter of the owner of this company.)

2. Great ideas, spent 2 hours here, discussing & planning the layout. Did not come back with a bid and didn't return further phone calls. X

3. Had lots of HA building experience, had concerns about the slab, but felt it could be done. Said that it was a complicated, major job. Ended up turning the job down, because it was too complicated & they had so much work right now.X

4. Has had some HA remodeling experience, recommended breaking out slab didn't seem concerned about that at all. Not the easiest man to work with, leans more towards making the bathroom handicap functional & not so much about aesthetics. Will bid.

5. Has lots of remodeling experience but not with HA jobs. Refused to break up the slab at all, recommended building it up. Had very good design & layout ideas. Will bid.

So this is where we stand right now. No where really. We will await these last two bids. My DH is in the oilfield businesses & is going to try to talk to some engineers about it.

Bengal Belle, We may just very well give up & move out towards your area!

Miss Jasmine, I hope your job starts out much smoother than ours has!

Are You There Yet, While I do like firefighters, I'm ready to offer you big money for your contractors!

 

[Galahad]

I'll be sure to chronicle our journey. Hopefully it doesn't include me being hauled off to jail in handcuffs from killing DH who is all ready freaking out at the prospect of our kitchen being unusable for a time.

The Appraiser will be out Friday, so trucking along on the money trail.

We haven't had a kitchen since January 2nd. We can't use our greatroom, dining room or music room ("living room") at all until the remaining outside walls are removed and the attending mess cleaned up. We are essentially living in our basement and bedrooms. It should be over within another month but it's very, very, unpleasant. A little freaking out is probably understandable.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

We haven't had a kitchen since January 2nd. We can't use our greatroom, dining room or music room ("living room") at all until the remaining outside walls are removed and the attending mess cleaned up. We are essentially living in our basement and bedrooms. It should be over within another month but it's very, very, unpleasant. A little freaking out is probably understandable.

Well it will just be the kitchen and master bath, we will be able to live everywhere else. You don't know his "freaking" out. He's not exactly a roll with the punches kind of guy. Very set in his ways. That is a very good balance to me, but at times, well you know.

 

[shovan]

Hope all of you Remodelers had a Happy Easter!

Saturday, we went scouting for Cabinets & tile for the Bathroom. (The one we hope to do, anyway!) Found a great cabinet company, that sells high-end stuff & does custom work! They had a gorgeous custom Queen Anne style vanity in the showroom. I would love to have it! We have an appt. with them on Friday to see what we can come up with. They also gave us a name of a Remodeling Contractor who does it all but who is especially good with tile work. Hopefully we'll be able to meet with him this week also.

You guys are right, Travertine tile is beautiful! I would really like to go with a honed, tumbled travertine on the floor of the bathroom.

 

[Am_I_There_Yet]

You guys are right, Travertine tile is beautiful! I would really like to go with a honed, tumbled travertine on the floor of the bathroom.

I have a tumbled travertine backsplash in my kitchen. I love it!

I also have travertine floors in the hallway and secondary bathroom. They used the same travertine, along with granite inserts for the shower enclosure.

I have a had a problem with two of the tiles losing their filler. I've heard this can be a common issue with less expensive travertine, so you might want to watch out for that.

The bad thing is, I didn't go the cheap route when I purchased it.

 

[Crankyshank]

Travertine is gorgeous.

Well DH and I spent Easter afternoon in home depot checking out tile, paint, vanities, and whatnot. I picked out the ceramic tile (alabaster) for the floor, shower, and bottom half of the walls. Now I need to pick the paint color - I'm trying to decide between Russian Blue, which is a light but not too light grey-blue, and 3 variations of sage green (dark, medium, and light). It looks like we can re-tile, re-paint, replace the sink & vanity, and repair the floor for under $1000 *knock on wood*

We briefly considered knocking out the hall closet in order to expand the bathroom but found out we can't because the chimney is in the wall between the back of the closet and the bathroom
Oh and by finding this information out, we found an old exhaust pipe to the kitchen that was stuffed with burnt newspaper from 1953 and plugged with plaster that had shrunk. So DH needs to re-cap it

 

[Galahad]

Hi All,

Major stuff (finally) going on this week. Our Solarium part of our project actually has two pieces. A large solarium (26 X 26) with an inset hot tub room and a smaller "bump out" that is expanding the "breakfast nook" area by about 4 feet out and 12 feet across. Well, both of those solariums have been mostly "done" for a couple of weeks but the real complicated part of building the roof extensions and dormers needed to attach the roofs of the solariums to the roof of the house has not been completed. They are doing it this week. Looks like a huge deal. Glad I'm not doing it. Basically they are putting new sections of roof on the house over existing roof to make everything flow right. Pretty cool. I'm counting the days until we can knock out the old "outside" walls that will open the solarium up to the rest of the house. Should be pretty cool.