We’re still trying to decide between a 36″ or a 48″ range for the kitchen. We’re not big cooks so I don’t see a reason for the larger size, although I do agree with Julie that it would look great in our kitchen. Big $$ difference between the two as well, this decision won’t be an easy one.
GC sent an email that they’ll be framing next week “come hell or high water” – love the attitude!!!
So Julie wanted me to meet her today at Traditions in Tile to see what she picked out. Initially I wasn’t too excited about it but I have to say that her and Heather did an excellent job!!! And… have I mentioned that she was under budget? Excellent all of the way around!!
As for the check, well our GC called this morning wanting to know when he could pick up his check. Wish that he communicated like this on a normal basis. He was at my office within an hour – still couldn’t give me an estimate on when they would pour the foundation or when framing would begin.
Julie and I as well as the designer are getting a little closer on the kitchen layout as well as the bathroom colors. Actually I have no interest in the “color scheme” but the efficiency of the kitchen is of interest. I like efficiency and cheap while Julie likes pretty and more pretty ($$). Luckily we’ve been able to easily compromise and actually we’ve been pretty much on the same page with most things. Plus it’s been fun working and making decisions with Julie. I was totally expecting this to be the typical husband and wife battle ground area. I’m somewhat laughing thinking that maybe this is so easy because the construction part has been a migraine.
Good news, our revised plans were submitted to the city today (a day later than we were told) so hopefully this holdup won’t last too long. Still trying to get use to the residential construction world, it seems as if it’s more of a “it’ll get done when it gets done” mentality, a little different from what Julie and I are used to.
Get this, we were informed today that we’re already $2,000 over budget on cabinetry. We haven’t even picked out our cabinets nor have we added any additional linear feet. GC said that we will have to get creative on the kitchen cabinets; meaning get cheaper cabinets or we have to come out-of-pocket to get the quality of cabinets which were originally budgeted.
How could this happen? Oh, it seems our GC forgot to include the cabinetry in what is to be an office. But those were in the original drawings and we’ve talked about them 100 times and you even stated in an email that you included them? And didn’t we just talk about surprises? A big reason why I wish we had gone over the plans and budget in more detail a week ago instead of being rushed through it. Of course I asked him to double-check everything again to make sure that there are no additional surprises.
I just wonder if this extra expense should be our responsibility? I’m thinking no and Hell No!
Today Julie was tasked with meeting our designer at Traditions in Tile in Buckhead for a preliminary look at all of the various tile choices and hopefully decide on a few options. The two of them ended up spending the majority of the afternoon with a girl named Heather who Julie loved. Amazingly Julie not only narrowed her choices, she actually decided on what she wanted!! She was so excited showing me her selections that you couldn’t help but share in her enthusiasm . Great selections and what’s even better is that she came in under budget!! Fantastic Job and I love seeing her get so excited about the house as it’s been challenging lately with the various challenges. Tile Box – checked!!!
We sent our revisions of the kitchen layout back to our designer; we nixed the farm sink and moved the sink, refrigerator as well as the range around a little. Julie likes the original plan, as does our designer (she thinks it will look good in pictures) and while I’ll quickly admit that I have no idea or experience in designing a kitchen it’s just that the current plan doesn’t make sense to me or seem practical when considering two young boys in the mix. I probably need to remain quiet on this… I wonder if there are any new kitchen mags or kitchen design sites? (I’m joking… sort of).
The grading was completed on the expansion portion of the house yesterday so I went by to view what will soon be covered in concrete. Not quite sure… but I think we have a problem, still have some diggin to do. The plans call for an 8′ finished ceiling in the basement, however I’m 6′ and I’m able to reach the top of the floor on the main level of the existing house. I know this can’t be correct as we’ll need to account for the joist, foundation, sub-floor, etc… Also the carport is smaller than what we discussed. I sent an email to our GC just to alert him to what I’ve discovered.
On another note, while Julie has enjoyed deciding on finishes, colors, etc… I’m starting to scare myself. I’m now a subscriber to Better Homes & Garden‘s website and bought a copy of the latest Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles and Renovation Style. Thankfully we were left with a lot of wood that needs to be split – think that I need to go and split some in the near future for a reality check.
Pics of the grading process, you can see that Max had a blast and felt very much at home:
We received the first draft of our kitchen layout today. Pretty impressive but I have a few questions with regards to the refrigerator door opening up into a doorway as well as the kitchen sink being under a “window” that is nonexistent. Never thought that I would, but I actually bought the most recent copy of Kitchen and Bath Ideas on the way home from work, hope this isn’t a prelude as to what’s to come of me.
Morningside Renovation 