bathroom before/after

Our little bathroom is so spiffed up, it feels like it must be someone else's house!

Since we don't have a "master mega suite", this little bathroom is not only the bathroom that we use daily, but also the place that visitors use when we have friends or family over.

So I am really happy that is a spot that gives us space to keep all of our personal items put away.  So guests don't have to stare at our toothbrushes when they wash their hands!

I do need to work on getting something up on the walls and pick out some new coordinating towels.  That will eventually happen.

The placement of the toilet and shower flip-flopped, and better use of the space allows for a larger shower and more countertop.

Where the throne previously sat, we now have a beautiful tiled shower with glass wall and door.

And the sink stayed in approximately the same place, with additional cabinets and countertop.  We used the same old medicine cabinet but had it painted to match the cabinets.  I looked and looked at new medicine cabinets, but couldn't find anything that would work as well for us as the old one.  New lighting was added.  And a new fan with light, and that fan is so quiet you barely know it's running!

So that pretty much sums it all up!

kitchen before/after

The remodel/makeover/renovation is nearly finished in the kitchen.  I have some before and after pictures to share, showing the changes.

The kitchen is a long "galley" layout, and we left some things right where they were before, especially along the window wall on the left in these first two pictures.  

The pictures below show how one little corner has changed.  The tall cabinet on the left was the cleaning supplies.  The little appliance garage, while a good idea, only had enough room to hold 2 electric appliances.  Now the broom closet section has expanded, and the right side has widely spaced shelves that hold all of the appliances that we need.

Down below, you will see an area that has a big improvement.  In the old kitchen, the cabinets ended at the refrigerator.  Now, we have a whole new section of cabinets, both top and bottom.  It is so nice to make better use of that blank space.  Now we have ample room for all of our "good" dishes, glasses, serving pieces, etc.

And finally, probably the biggest change in the scenery.  We removed the upper cabinets and soffit,  and created an island.  And don't you love that new contemporary range hood?  Actually, we have had a long wait for that piece to arrive, but it is now scheduled to be installed this week (I hope)!

The back side of that island was formerly a carpeted hallway.  Now, it is a bank of narrow cabinets with wood flooring.

 We are thrilled with the outcome and very happy with the craftsmanship that made this a kitchen that will last a long, long time!

Our general contractor was Ross Tretsvan of Norway Builders.

He lined up the right guys, worked out solutions, tried to keep things running smoothly, and helped us through every step of the project.

Tomorrow is the bathroom reveal!

And now I'm going to make some breakfast in my lovely kitchen!

a little bit of quilting

I have been seriously lacking time to quilt on my longarm, but I hope to kick that habit soon!  Right now I am using a poinsettia pantogram on this Christmas quilt--

The quilt blocks were all made by members of my quilt group, the Ham Lake Piecemakers.  At Christmas time, we take up the challenge to use one or two chosen fabrics to create a block.  Then we have a drawing to pick the winner(s).  Our friend, Thora Lee, won this group of blocks.  She has moved away from the area, but still comes back here occasionally so I hope that this can all get done and be ready for her soon.

One big reason why my quilting time has become minimal is the fact that I have been involved with the kitchen and bath renovation at home.  Some days it just isn't conducive to creative work, and other days I just have to be out of the house.  To have our cabinetry all painted, the 2 rooms had to be completely taped off and sealed up.  The fumes were very strong, and we stayed 3 nights with Ben and Brita.  Here are some pictures of how much has been accomplished--

tile floor in the bathroom looks wonderful

counter tops and sink installation looks fantastic

shower is coming together, still some grout left to do on the dark sections

and the wood flooring is now completely done

I really love to see the craftsmanship that goes into all of this.  I regret that I was not at home when the counter tops were done, because I would really like to see that process.  We chose to use a laminate product, meticulously installed by our friend, Dana Lewis.  He can undermount sinks from a certain manufacturer, and the join is flawless!  And now the faucets and drains are in working order, so we can start using them.  Oh, the things we take for granted!

abnormalcy

Well, what little normalcy I had in my makeshift kitchen is now gone!

Here's the corner that housed my Grandma's old buffet and dining room table.

 Today we had to remove all the furniture from the dining room/living room so those original wood floors can be sanded and refinished along with the new.

Here's the kitchen on the right and the bathroom that is under construction is that dark doorway on the left.  The hallway running to the bathroom is all new wood, the kitchen floor was changed to wood several years ago.  So now it is all getting the same treatment.

Sheet rock taping was done today, and big fans are running all night to get it dried.

Messy stuff!

Here's a corner where the original wood is sanded down but still not sanded right next to the wall.  I like all of that light wood!  I hope we can get a really light stain on it.

Now here's a picture from another kitchen, in Sioux Falls, around 1983.  Brita was always a good helper, and that day we were making cut-out cookies.  Brita stood on a chair and the rolling pin got away from her!  There she dangled, not sure what to do next!  She doesn't have that problem anymore, but someday one of her little boys might find himself in a similar predicament!

I don't do this very often, but tonight I took a picture of my dinner!  We were eating at Perkins', and ordered their special stir fry chicken with strawberries.  I have never thought about adding strawberries to stir fry, but it was delicious!

Looks awfully healthy, don't you think?