More efficiency area work

Last Monday I went looking for counter top. The piece on the left is in stock, already made, and only $35.00 for the laminate top. We weren't planning on doing anything fancy in the basement kitchen, but I just wasn't liking this already made laminate.

I'll settle for it, but we went to look at some counter top chips. Having it made was only $100.00

When I looked at this I thought of old 60's, 70's houses and those tables with the silver band around them. I like it.

This looks good on white, it is already made, and ready to pick up and put on.

And believe it or not, I've seen a lot of this on HGTV lately on white cabinets.

Blue won, but will Dave like it?

He says If I want it, I can have it, I'm worth it :) He really did say that.

I think they all look fine, but I just want this area to look like it is an old time lake house. The kind you don't see much anymore. The kind they used to have when I was growing up and they'd take old furniture and old stuff that no one wanted anymore, and they'd furnish their lake house with it. I wish I could find some knotty pine for one of the walls.

The wiring is done...what a job. I'm not even going to get into all of the little details, but as I said in the last post, I'm in awe of construction workers.

Then, last Wednesday, Dave asked me to come out to the house to talk about the kitchen area....again. We just were not liking the layout. Remember, the sink had to go on this wall because that's where the plumbing is,

except when Dave saw how cheap this cabinet was made, and how there are no shelves in it, he decided he could run the plumbing along the back wall, and put a hole in the side of the cabinet,

and run the plumbing through the cabinet. Then we could move the sink to this wall, but it has to stay against the wall. I like it better there.

That leaves a little wall space between the cabinet and the fridge.

Standing room only!

Then we moved this little cabinet here, beside the other cabinet.

with the stove in between them. It was ok.

I like this better

I got it last year at a garage sale for $5.00. I can paint it, Dave can make the drawers open easier, it has drawers for my utensils, plus a door for my linens. The stove can go in between this and the sink cabinet. It gives the room a bit of that lake house feel I was talking about. And the vintage type cabinet gives me a bit more counter top. We have a wide shelf we bought at a sale last year that we plan on putting above the stove.

Then on Saturday...I decided to take some stuff to the farm. We're calling this the farm from now on, so as not to be confused with the house we live in. And it was finally dry enough that I could drive right up to the basement door. See this post about driving up to the basement door. After I drove up, we unloaded the car, and took a break. And while we were taking a break, it started raining. We figured it wouldn't hurt to leave the car there for awhile. But when I started driving down the hill...

it was like driving on ice.

And I was heading

straight for this tree.

You can see where my car was sliding on the bottom of the hill. My stomach was in my throat and my heart was pounding. I stopped about two feet before hitting the tree, if that far. Then I backed up, sat there for a couple of minutes and calmed myself down, then drove on home. I think I'm going to stick to walking the stuff through the house.

Yesterday I started insulating the efficiency area. I thought I'd be done insulating in one day but it took a lot longer than I thought it would. I was having problems with the stapler. Turns out I was using the wrong size of staples in the staple gun. And this room has so many things to trim around,

and so many small pieces to cut.

Blogettes, I'm tired, I'm achy, and it's hot, itchy work. You have to wear a mask and a tyvek suit. I have to climb the ladder for the top of the wall and get on the floor for the bottom. I'd rather go somewhere fun, but I want this basement done. So I'm hanging insulation while Dave works. I'm halfway done. We're hanging in there. Dave's tired too.

Cindy

Working in the efficiency area...

See this room...it's going to be our bedroom while we are living in our "efficiency" apartment in the basement. It's wired. And we thought we were finished with this area.

And Sunday we started on the kitchen area of the "efficiency." And every thing that seems like such a small decision, isn't. Such as this outlet box., for example.

If we put it where he's getting ready to put it, then you can't put the fridge there because it'll cover it up...and you can't put the stove there because the back of the stove will cover it up....so the outlet box needs moved...unless we can figure out another place to put an appliances.... and you can't move the appliances to the corners because you can't have them opening into each other. And you wouldn't be able to put the cabinets in with the appliances in the corner because the cabinets wouldn't open....

and you can't move the sink because the plumbing is already in.....it had to be put in last September before they poured the basement floor. See this post

I find it amazing that my husband could figure out where to put the plumbing last September, before the basement floor was poured, so we'd be able to put a sink and shower and tub and toilet in our basement now. I am in awe of construction workers.

So the kitchen counter cannot go here....

We cut out cardboard the size of our current stove, fridge, and kitchen counter to try to get an idea of where to put things....

and after about two hours of moving things around and trying to plan ahead...and Winston getting exhausted from all of this...

We made a trip to Menards to check out cabinet and counter top sizes.

yup-no choice the counter top for the sink has to go here...

and the fridge can go here, but we have to move the outlet box to over the sink. No problem...I know a good electrician...(I'm actually sleeping with him!)

I am not going to have any counter top space....as much as I enjoy cooking. And I think we'll be eating on paper plates a lot. I hardly ever use paper plates. Anyway, we got the kitchen area figured out...not really a great plan but it will have to do.

Then I mentioned....where are we going to put a t.v. OH NO! Forgot about that! So we aren't finished wiring in the bedroom area. We (he) has to wire for the TV NOW before the walls are insulated and the drywall goes up.

Back to the bedroom area. The living area will be between the bedroom and the kitchen area, and we'd like to see the tv from all areas if possible. Not possible. We need a wall to put the tv against and there just isn't one with the windows and doors in the way. However, I got these at a garage sale a couple of weeks ago. I got them so we could use them to have a tiny bit of privacy for our bedroom area in the basement while we are living there.

Dave would rather build a wall, but I don't want a permanent structure there in case we decide to use this room for something else once we get the rest of the house done and move upstairs. So, we are going to use these for a dividing wall between the bedroom and living room area. It's perfect to provide a backdrop for a t.v., which I will be able to see from the kitchen and we will be able to see from the living room. We'll have to hook up a small tv on the other side of this for the bedroom.

Now back to wiring....

and wiring....

and wiring....

and wiring...

And this wire is expensive.

Cindy

Hauling Boxes

Remember

the

Storage

room?

Well, because of all of the mud from all of the rain, I have to take each box and walk it through all of this...you can see the garage door right there in the middle of the picture....see the light? I walk every box through the garage, the mudroom, the foyer,

the living area,

down these stairs...

to the storage area.

And back up the stairs for the next box...Now dammit, I should be skinny.

See outside this door how muddy it is....that's the basement door, inside looking out.

There..that's better. If this weren't muddy, I could pull right up and walk all the boxes right in the basement.

Right through here....to the storage area, and I'd be done.

Just thought I'd share that info, since I have no house updates to share. It got nice out and Dave wants to be outside. He did start on the basement living area Sunday, thanks to my nagging :-) We would like to be moved in by the end of June. A change from our unrealistic May 1 deadline.

Cindy