Kitchen Renovation: Day 1

The big day has come! We began the kitchen demolition process yesterday, which is basically all we’re responsible for during this whole adventure. We’re very used to DIY-ing everything around here, so it will be very strange to have professionals coming in to install things. Our job included removing the counter tops, cabinets, and appliances (except for the refrigerator, which is a fairly new purchase). We’re also responsible for the finishing work, like painting, spackling, and the backsplash. Justin and Kelsey came over to help yesterday, with the assistance of little Etta, who did nothing more than look cute on the couch and provide distraction for me and Kelsey. Read: Kelsey and I didn’t do anything and Justin and Jason did all the work. But how could you get anything done with this sitting next to you?

The men were able to resist Etta’s cheeks and they killed it (the kitchen, not Etta). We started with emptying all the cabinets and removing the drawers.

The stove came out first, followed by the oven, and then the sink. After the appliances were out, the counter tops (that we painstakingly tiled two years ago) went. And then the giant saw and crow bar came out to rip out the cabinets, which were custom-built to fit the space about a million years ago.

HeMan-ing the oven…

Where the sink used to be…

Cabinets coming out…

One of our biggest pet peeves about this kitchen was the giant built-in next to the ‘fridge that housed the oven. We did make it cooler a couple of years ago by removing the doors and partitions on the upper cabinets to make way for the microwave and cook books, but this monstrosity took up a huge amount of space in our already tight kitchen. Taking it out was more than satisfying. And hey! There was a radiator under there.

So here is what we are left with now. That hideous green was hiding under the cabinets.

Here are the things we found/discovered during this process.

A chimney for what used to be an apparent wood-burning stove. This was boxed in behind our cabinets.

Layers of retro wallpaper behind the cabinets.

And, best of all, an invitation most likely from the 60s reading:

NEW YEARS EVE DANCE
THURMONT AMERICAN LEGION
MUSIC BY “THE TEMPO’S”
9:30–1:30     $3 PER PERSON

And a children’s card reading, “Mr. Tiger stalks his prey, Snapping branches on his way.”

It’s weird coming downstairs and not seeing a kitchen. I am using a plastic cup and paper plate as I write this, which feels very, very wrong. Being that we live in an old house with limited space, we only have the one small bathroom and it is located upstairs. The kitchen, however, is located downstairs. This presents a problem, as we are lacking a sink on the main floor. So we’re resorting to plastic and paper and trying to ignore our eco-guilt for the next two weeks. Sorry, environment. We set up a makeshift kitchen on the three-season porch. It includes the microwave, toaster oven, lots of plates and cups, and cleaning supplies. This is the beginnings of the faux-kitchen.

The cabinets are being delivered tomorrow, and then they apparently have to sit for a few days to adapt to the temperature and humidity in our house, as we don’t want them expanding or contracting once they’re installed. And we’ll be busy painting and cleaning up our mess while our new cabinets chill.