And no, not that kind.
The ReStore for Habitat for Humanity I had talked about here. M & I went this morning and checked it out. While I’m sure it’s great for other rehabbers looking for deals- it didn’t really have anything we could use. Most of the stuff there was used- doors, sinks, even toilets (eww)- and they did have a few new things, like cabinet pulls, hinges, ductwork, etc. Nothing really fit with what we’re looking for in regards to the kitchen, upstairs, or even bath.
Meh. Maybe next time….
In other news: My bulbs came yesterday! An hour or two of digging in the dirt, and voila! Hello spring!
Or The New Window Inside our House...
The plumber came today and fixed the shower, so we are now legally compliant to the building codes. What a load off my mind…really…I’ll finally be able to sleep at night now and not have to worry about a SWAT team breaking down my doors.
Anyway, he was able to do it in just a day-he was friendly- and we save a boatload of money. Not much more to say than that.
The only downside is now we have to get moving on getting the new shower walls installed- this weekend if possible…well… because we have a nice new window in the wall between the bathroom and the living room. I know the industrial look is in- but this is not exactly my style. And I can’t say that guests would like the experience either.
Shower Before:
Shower After (she’s beautiful, no?):
Stella peeking through the new window
And the view from the living room…yup, that’s the tub…
Got home from work, and two of my list items that I had been complaining about? Totally complete!
M had a little extra time today, and had taken care of getting the garden-hose plumber booked for this Thursday, getting the DSL internet hooked up to the laptop (finally!), and the dishes in the sink washed! Ok, so the dishes weren’t on my original list- but they had been an unspoken item on my personal to-do list.
Now, the focus is on the kitchen ceiling fan. As you’ll see in the pics attached, it’s kinda unattractive, and clearly hits the open cabinet door. Unfortunately for us, the door needs to be opened occasionally, you know, to get out food and stuff. So, you can see our issue with the fan. So, down it goes- on Saturday to be exact….
On the plumber to schedule a date to complete the work on the bath….
For the weekend to put up the new light… (and yes, I know it’s only Tuesday)
For my fall bulbs to get here so I can get them in the ground before the snow falls…
For the chance to check out the ReStore I just blogged about…
For the DSL line on the new laptop to be hooked up, so I can write like a normal person…
But mostly for a new topic to write an interesting blog post about…but that would involve some kind of progress on any of the above projects!
And Stella’s tired too…though not sure why as she sleeps about 20 hours a day…
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=665930
It’s the perfect place for all my low cost renovation needs- AND it’s for a good cause! What can be better than rock bottom home improvement deals that benefit a great charity like Habitat for Humanity? So why the heck have I never heard of it before yesterday? I feel cheated! Well…maybe not cheated…but honestly, a little bereft of all the renovation deals I could have snagged before now!
Naturally, after I read the article yesterday, I convince M to drive us to the Milwaukee store…and guess what? Yup. Closed. So, we’re planning an excursion for Saturday. I just hope all the great deals aren’t taken- and that this doesn’t become a weekend obsession…
Got a second third opinion on the bathroom- and it was $1800 cheaper than the original quote…
Now, maybe the third plumber is a hack who will ruin our plumbing, forcing us to bathe in the backyard with a hose. And maybe the first plumber will give us the bathroom of our dreams, AND will come back weekly to clean it. That would probably explain the difference in price. Now, I know you get what you pay for, but I think we’re going to take our chances with the garden-hose plumber.
This weekend: Going to look at shower walls & faucets. May (or may not) get the grass mowed. And, if I’m not too tired, get the new kitchen light up. Whee….Good times.
The second opinion we were waiting on for the bathroom fell through last night- no sign of the guy. So, onto a #3- if we can find a reliable #3 out of the 1,000s in the phone book.
Until then, feel free to enjoy a random architecture picture- I never knew (until 5 or 6 years ago) that that Cream City brick (the yellow brick in the picture) was unique to Milwaukee….other cities’ bricks are red because of the iron in their soil.
Feel free to use that little tidbit the next time you’re on Jeopardy.
So while we’re dealing with our bathroom headaches, I’ve been daydreaming about what I’d like to do in the kitchen. I know, I should probably focus on one project at a time, get it done, THEN move on to the next thing, but alas, that doesn’t happen. I like to think about my daydreaming as “research”. Yeah, that sounds good- all the time I spend online looking at other kitchens and kitchen components could be described as research.
Anyway, I saw a great sink at the Kohler website- http://www.us.kohler.com/index2.jsp and can I just say that I love Kohler site? It’s the perfect place to daydream…or research…whatever. And, it’s a semi-local company here in Wisconsin, so it’s perfect to support our local guys.
The sink was intended for kitchen prep, and/or an island, but I think it would be perfect for a small kitchen. Or a kitchen where people don’t cook a ton, and have a dishwasher…guess which one of those categories I fall into?
Also saw this online- strange, but kinda cool design for a VERY small kitchen. The company is somewhere in Europe- I wonder how much it would cost to get it shipped to the US…
http://www.compact-concepts.com/englisch/angebots_formular.php#mini1
The plumber came, and brought a work estimate that would easily pay for the braces of his first-born. Turns out that our current shower/tub set up is illegal under current building code. I just hope the bathroom police don’t come knocking at our door any time soon- I’m not going have the money to bail M out of building-code prison after we’re done with this project…
Our many offenses include:
Our tub has a faucet coming out of the tub, not the wall- Strike One.
There is no overflow valve in the tub- Strike Two.
The tile on the wall was just adhered to the plaster, and not to water resistant drywall- maybe not illegal, but definitely not good- Strike Three.
So, while easy logistically to fix, it’s work and supply expensive.
We’re getting a second opinion to see if the price is in line for the work- and until then, adjusting to standing in ankle-deep water when we shower.
We had been planning on finishing off the bathroom the end of this month- maybe, just maybe- extending it into October…sigh….foolish, foolish homeowners.
Yesterday morning, M came out from his shower and told me the tub wasn’t draining again. The day before it had stopped up- but we have an old fashioned tub (who am I kidding? Everything’s old fashioned) with a “waste” knob that drains the tub. We fiddled with that a bit, and everything was A-OK. Yesterday though, that same little trick didn’t work.
Instead it makes a horrible metal scraping on metal sound, then the unsettling sound of silence. It was kind of like hearing the roar of a steel tyrannosaurus, and then quiet, and knowing it’s about to eat you alive.
So, anyway, the plumber has been called- and should be arriving momentarily- and we figured that as long as we’ll have a living, breathing plumber in the house, we’ll also add on finding how much the shower addition for our tub will cost. We’re just moving the time line up a bit- which doesn’t happen all that often with our home renovation…so yay.
