Many thanks to our sponsors in this kitchen renovation: KitchenAid Appliances, MasterBrand Cabinets, Polycor, Fireclay Tile, Delta Faucets, Sinkology, & Rejuvenation. All opinions are my own and always will be! Thanks for supporting the content that keeps Jojotastic going.
Ok, I know it might feel like our kitchen renovation is dragging on… that’s probably because it actually IS. It’s April now and we started back in August. So yeah, 9 months… my bff joked that I could have had a baby in this time and she’s not wrong. Trust me, the joke is not lost on us! Anyways, I wanted to share yet another progress report with you guys… and thank you for your encouragement, kind words, and following during this ridiculous remodel journey! You know that I only keep it real with you, so the fact that you’ve been so incredibly supportive through this whole ordeal means the world to both me and Sean.
Our Kitchen Renovation: Progress Report #6
Pretty much everything we’ve been working on has either been fixing issues as a result of our old contractor (yes, still) and prepping everything so that our counters can be installed shortly. Most of the changes are really subtle. You can see a before/after below, but basically we had to add drywall mud to the ceiling and walls. Why, you may ask? Because our old contractor hired a drywaller who didn’t bother to shim the sheets of drywall as he was applying them to our ceiling. All of this means that the line where the ceiling meets the wall was literally WAVY. And it was soooo obvious when you stood in the dining room, looking in.
Our old contractor tried to cover it up with trim, but I continued to be really unhappy with how it looked. It was just… messy and terrible. The view from the dining room is such a ‘key moment’ visually. Even though I could have photoshopped it easily for our reveal photos, I increasingly grew frustrated every time I went into the kitchen. Not to mention that he’d tried to cover up the waviness with trim that I didn’t even like!
So we pulled down the upper cabinets and added more mud until the ceiling was closer to flat. It still isn’t level, but it’s much improved. And, honestly… this is as good as it will get for a 111 year old house without re-doing the drywall all over again.
I’ve also changed my mind about the window! While working with our fabricator, I decided that I didn’t like the current window and how dated it looked. Also, the bottom of it was affecting our ability to have a clean, straight across backsplash. Sarah and I both wanted a clean look, so we’re raising the window to align with the bottom of the cabinets. Time for a new one! You’ll see that soon in a dedicated post. I’m really excited to show you how we adjust the placement of it and the type we chose.
A few other things we’ve made progress on…
We have a backdoor and bathroom door now! The bathroom door was converted to a pocket door, so now we just need to put the hardware in it. Our contractor, Kit, made a beautiful maple wood threshold to tie in our flooring with the new doors. I’m very excited to show you that when it’s installed… because they match the GORGEOUS custom countertop that Sean’s uncle Bill Koss made for us. It’s birdseye maple and just sooo beautiful. I love how it brings some warmth to the overall design.
Also 90% of the electrical work is finished, including the easy installation of our LED panel lights! Sean came up with an awesome hack to reduce dust. Basically, when he uses the drill or saw to cut a hole, one of us holds the shop vac hose close by to suck up the extra dust. It doesn’t catch all of the dust, but given how dusty our house is… every little bit helps.
As you can see from the video, I still have a lot more of the floor to clean up. This has literally nothing to do with the tile or the grout… it’s a matter of the sealant that was used was the incorrect kind. Our floor is covered in cardboard for now to protect it while we keep working, but once that’s up I’ll get going on cleaning it up again.
Usually by this point in the post, I share what is left to do… but honestly, I don’t have it in me right now. There’s still a lot to do, but once our countertops are installed everything will happen really quickly!
In case you missed in, you can read more about our kitchen renovation + these posts might interest you:
- The Before Photos + Our Kitchen Renovation Kick Off
- Our Demo Day Video
- Progress Report #1
- Progress Report #2: Cabinets
- Progress Report #3: Tile
- Progress Report #4: Expectations vs. Reality
- Progress Report #5: New Farmhouse Sink & Running Water
Stay tuned for even more updates to come + be sure to catch our behind the scenes on Instagram. We’re soooo close to finishing this renovation!
