Installation Station

This morning - no counters at all!

Finally our counter tops were installed today. Both the bathroom vanity top and the kitchen counters were installed. At one point I had two crews in the house working on separate counters. Both counters are gorgeous, but we do not have a working sink in the house until tomorrow morning. The sinks have adhesives and silicon which have to cure for some time before the plumber can hook them up without doing damage. I can admire them, however.  By the time I come home from work tomorrow everything should be done except for one threshold.

Bringing the big piece of counter inside

I underestimated how good the kitchen counters would look - it's beautiful material and reads quite a bit lighter than the previous charcoal grey/black laminate. Also since the edge does not hang over the front of the cupboards more of the cupboard front is visible, giving it a more open look.

The finished product

 The floor man was here with material for two thresholds (I had told the designer we needed three) but did not have the equipment he needed to make them fit properly; he'll finish the job tomorrow. When the designer came today she said that the floor man had told her we did not need a threshold between the hall and the bathroom, and when the installer and the homeowners say different things she trusts the installers. Grrrrr. From the bathroom side the surface is only off by about a quarter of an inch, but it looks uneven and very unfinished. Also there is a sharp edge which can hurt your foot if you're shuffling along in the middle of the night. She should have listened to me. However, it is not a huge deal and she will order what is needed. The drawer fronts needed to repair the vanity and the material to finish the kick plate are here. Our contractor will make that repair (I was assured by her that I would not be paying to effect those repairs since we had paid for a completely finished vanity).

Installing the bathroom sink

Still on the list are several projects. A new light fixture is needed for the bathroom, probably this weekend so I can hang the mirror back up and paint (I need new mirror clips because one has gone missing). Then I will need to decide on fabric and make a window treatment for the bathroom. Once that is done we will select some kind of inexpensive but striking piece of art for the room, and call it finished. The little mirror that is on the bathroom wall now is going around the corner to the hall, where the scale of the wall suits it better.

The giant ceiling fan needs to come out of our bedroom, to be replaced by a white chandelier which we already own. This requires the services of an electrician because of the way the ceiling fan is wired.

The bathroom counter in place

For the rest of the upstairs, we have four other ceiling light fixtures slated for replacement. They are the big glass and brass units that look somewhat like boobs hanging from the ceiling. It's not an urgent issue, but they are ugly. Maybe new ceiling fixtures will be our Christmas gifts to each other?

Roxy sulking on the porch

The bathroom vanity needs pulls or knobs. We'll go shopping for those at our leisure and I will install myself.

The guest room needs window treatments, which will just be a matter of some measuring and picking up the fabric. We'll be going with something like a ticking stripe, so I feel confident that I can get that an Joan's in Hyannis. I should be able to make them in a day (two if I don't have an uninterrupted day).

Poor Roxy had to spend the whole morning sulking on the front porch in the sun. She wanted to come in and "help" but I was mean to her!