August 2024

Welcome back,  my apologies for how long it took to create this post.  The good news is that much has happened and we’re seeing a light at the end of the tunnel.  Sadly, I got sucked into the vortex of it happening and the blog suffered.

So let’s look at what’s taken place since my last post.  The countertop install was a milestone and included the kitchen, 2 bathrooms, and the laundry room.  We found an oversize piece of quartz we liked and there was enough to do almost all the counters.

Here is an example of the smaller pieces that were installed.  This is the laundry room and includes backsplash.

 

At the other end of the spectrum is the island top being installed.  It actually shrank in size as the project moved ahead,  but it still borders on being a continent rather than an island.

And here is a more finished view of the island that turned into a mini continent.

The countertop on the end of the island is a fun story to tell.  The wood is clear redwood that came out of the sauna that was described in an earlier post.  I repurposed it to make this counter.  The picture above is a test fit before I do the final finish and install.

I was able to find 5 2×4’s that would work for what I wanted with the countertop.  They’re full length and just under 7. ‘ It was very cool to take 40 + year old wood and transform it into something new and different.  Pretty simple project to biscuit join them together which I’ve done on other projects.  I’ve learned much about the resources we have here on the Olympic Peninsula and a wonderful one is Edensaw Woods.  Among their many features is production for all kinds of woodworking projects like mine and their 36” belt sander made quick work of sanding my countertop.  They made it perfectly flat, which will make the final finish with Seafin oil look great.

 

Next up cabinetry we designed and I built.  This is the appliance carport which was just installed

I touched on this project in a earlier post.  Renee was the vision for what it could be and I helped make it a reality.  It too will be another ‘final’ post but here it is just after installation.  It will house all of her cool kitchen appliances on the counter with storage on the shelf above for their accessories.  She wanted them to be seen but look like they have a home so no doors like an appliance garage would have.

I built it using material from our cabinet supplier so it matches the rest of the kitchen and very pleased with how it turned out.  I’m not a cabinet maker but this makes me want to learn to be one.  And note the pot filler on the wall,  there are 2 coffee machines just waiting to be installed for it to fill.

I built another niche for the master bath.

The whole vanity sits proud of the bathroom wall about 5″ allowing the niche to be recessed about 4″.  The hope is that we can have some things on the countertop without leaving it looking cluttered.

 

The showers installs are almost finished.  Both master and guest shower walls are JPEG’s that were downloaded from Shutterstock and printed onto tempered glass.  Elaborate process with very cool results.  Fortunately, about the same cost as tile because of that labor but much easier to maintain.  They’re not quite ready for initial testing and that’s going to be a delicate post I haven’t figured out yet.

 

 

Decking is going down and mostly complete.  The deck framing was where we started this project so my contractor had good access to the east wall which needed to be completely rebuilt.  The framing was randomly covered with sheets of OSB so we could walk on it (carefully) so we had deck access but it wasn’t very pretty.

The decking is Wolfe Serenity and being installed so any movement in the boards is hidden.  This is done by installing a deck board parallel with the deck joists and then installing the deck boards across the joists so they’re close but not touching those pieces.  All the boards will move,  but it doesn’t show when installed this way.  This is a huge improvement from the old days of just laying down rows of decking.  That’s what I know how to do and am very glad I let the pros show me a better way.

Also note that the railings are going in too, they’re stainless steel cable railings from Muzata.  They’re marketed as a DIY project but I deferred to my contractor for the installation and very glad I did.  Similar to the decking install there are a gazillion details that he knows about and I don’t so the finished product will look simple and elegant.  I watched and learned,  it isn’t simple to make it look elegant.

 

This is one of my favorite shots of the house exterior as you are probably aware of if you’ve followed this blog.  The east side of the house capture’s so much of what the big picture is about this project that I keep going back to it.  That includes a deck with a covered area that also gets sun,  and the east wall taking advantage of the view.  Enough said, pretty sure you’ll see it again.

 

So we’re getting close to moving back upstairs from the basement and that can’t come too soon.  It’s wonderful that this can happen pretty quickly since the projects needed to get us upstairs are so focused.  Trim out for Electricity, Plumbing, Appliances and Finish Trim happen much faster than all the infrastructure needed for them to happen.  Days vs weeks or months.  We’re very much looking forward to the move, and sharing it when it does.

 

Thanks for reading – Cheers.