Hi Everyone, there is a second part to this post, but since part 1 is so short, there’s no anchor link this time. Please scroll to here:
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Or, if you would like to see the progress of the kitchen installation in only two days, please start from the beginning.
Dearest lovely readers.
It has been over three years since I knew I was buying my new home in Boston.
I bought it knowing full well that I had to change the kitchen and the spiral staircase.
What I didn’t know was how long it would take me to make it all happen.
I could’ve given birth to three children in this amount of time, and sometimes, it feels like I have.
On Monday, October 16, 2023, the kitchen cabinets began their journey out of the living room, where they will be permanently installed in my 7 – 10″ x 11′ – 7″ windowless kitchen. Permanently means for as long as I’m living in the apartment. Of course, the hope is that the next person living there will appreciate and preserve all that was done.
However, one day, someone may decide to gut the place.
So, just in case someone rips apart this lovely lady, I left them a note:
Laurel, have you been over to see the work since Monday?
I was there on Monday and had a lengthy meeting with the delightful carpenters Eugene and Brendan.
All of my contractor’s subs have been terrific. I don’t take it for granted.
The guys were still getting everything organized for the kitchen installation when I showed up on Monday, close to noon.
But, they also had a slew of questions for me. We covered a lot of ground. I left around 1:00, and then the guys got to work. Then, they came again today. Everyone starts at 7:00 AM and leaves at 3:00 or 3:30. I imagine they do this to avoid the ultra-heavy rush hour traffic, which would extend their travel time considerably.
I was working on today’s post. This isn’t it.
Finally, I left my rental apartment and arrived at my place at about 5:15 or so. The days are now getting a lot shorter. Sunset today was at 5:59, and it was completely overcast and raining lightly. So, yes, I went over and took some photos, but the lighting conditions were horrible.
The only lighting is a single bright, bare lightbulb in the middle of the kitchen. It’s not flattering light, but it does the job of illuminating the space.
I walked into the entry and couldn’t see much, but after I turned on the lights, this is what I saw as I walked in.
The far-right stud is where the new wall will end.
As expected, about a foot of the fridge cabinet will be visible. Yes, they have cut away part of the door to make room for the new casing. We will also be removing the casing from the kitchen and entry side. I will use whatever we use in the kitchen for the front door. It will only be about four inches wide because that’s all our space for the front door.
Taking it off makes sense because, as it is now, the top of the door casing on the kitchen side will be in the way of our crown moulding.
Okay, please come in and take a look at what the guys have done so far with the kitchen installation.
Of course, the entire sink wall of lower cabinets is missing. However, the kitchen looks so big and spacious.
Above is the range wall with the pantry on the end. The range is arriving tomorrow! It will go where the ladder is.
A close-up of the fake vent.
The only thing slightly amiss is the faux breadboard. It’s totally my fault. I missed it on the drawing. It should end where the drawers and doors end. I spoke to Eugene about this, and it’s not a problem to fill it in and use the router to correct the groove. Then, I can add two little knobs.
This is not the toe kick for this piece.
Above the view from the living room. Naturally, everything will look a lot better after the doors and drawers are installed. Please note the dividing wall will be six inches wider. When the new staircase is in place, if I took another image from this point, we would not be able to see any part of the new staircase.
I’m so happy this is finally happening!
If you’re interested in other topics concerning the renovation, there is a tag cloud in the sidebar, or you can try using the search box.
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Part 2
The next day, just as the guys were finishing up for the day, I went back to check on things.
That was yesterday, and I was shocked to see that everything except the end cabinet, appliance panels, trim, soffit, and crown were in.
So, let’s take a look!
The two little cabinets, as well as the glass cabinet, will have a decorative toe kick. I did not do this on all cabinets because I think it’s too much.
Please be aware that there is only one single lightbulb on. You can see the reflection in the glass. Based on this, I am pretty sure any recessed ceiling lights will be overkill. The bowl chandelier I’m getting will throw the light up and out, which will be wonderful.
Another bonus that you can see is how reflective the glass is. It will reflect the lights from the sconces, undercabinet lighting, and the bowl chandelier.
I also took a photo of the room with the lights off! It was 4:10 when I took this, about an hour and 45 minutes before sunset. The sun was long gone from the windows in the south-facing windows. However, there was still a good amount of light being reflected from about 35 feet away!
A straight-on shot. The dishwasher will go next to the back cabinets. I’ve been living with an 18″ dishwasher in my rental and love it.
There is an unbelievable amount of storage in this kitchen. There are 17 drawers! Then, there’s the back cabinet, the radius cabinet (coming next month.)
And, finally, there’s the wonderful kitchen pantry.
There’s also hidden bonus storage space.
The flanking hood cabinets open up with an easy push. Yes, it’s pretty high up. But, the bottom shelf is accessible without. Note: Trim pieces will be added to the bottom of all three hood cabinets.
While walnut is standard in Crown Point Cabinetry’s custom kitchens, I decided on the clear maple finish. Although I have a friend who did the walnut, and it’s gorgeous!
I’m finishing with a detail shot from the gorgeous glass cabinet in the back.
Here, you can see Crown Point’s superb craftsmanship and possibly a brush stroke here and there from the hand-painted finish.
Laurel, I don’t see any door hinges, and please tell us about the drawers. That’s an interesting trim.
I opted for the European concealed hinges. While it is a somewhat more contemporary look, this is a small kitchen. There will be Cremone Bolts, + knobs, cupboard latches, and cup handles on the four big drawers flanking the range. In addition, there will be fridge and freezer handles. It’s already a lot, and the concealed hinges keep things from getting too busy.
As for the drawer trim style, I debated between the drawer style you see, the one with smaller rails and stiles. (1.25″, I believe). Or, a flat panel like Nancy Keyes did with the beaded inset.
As you know, I adore Nancy’s kitchen. However, when Crown Point did the drawings for my kitchen with a flat drawerfront, it felt like something was missing. There is already, existing, a fair amount of hunky trim. Still, I’m not fond of kitchens where the trim overwhelms the space.
Ultimately, I went with this drawer trim with the beaded inset for all doors and drawers. And, I love the way it turned out! I think it’s not too much or too little.
There have been many times when I’ve found it tough to decide what to choose. Even though I like all of them, there’s usually one that would make me sad not to have. That’s the one!
Well, that’s all for now.
Tomorrow, I’m picking my son Cale up in western Mass and then driving to Stair Galleries in Hudson, NY, to fetch my sconces!!!
Get this.
One of my darling friends volunteered to lend me her car for the weekend! It’s hard to believe, but the last time I was out of Boston was the Crown Point trip Cale, and I took on December 1, 2022!
xo,
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