Renovations Stage 6

Kitchen

I've been tinkering with plans for years and the time had finally come. First I got through Christmas 2003, then I had the usual health crash, then in February my turn came up for the pain management course I'd registered for in the depths of 2003. I learnt heaps at the course - strategies for just about everything - but the main thing was that I had to keep moving. All that moving takes time!

No matter how I tinkered, I couldn't get the kitchen plans to work, despite the snazzy design software Dac gave me for my birthday. I finally employed a kitchen designer, and the new kitchen has ended up very close to her design. I'd been hoping to have a shoulder-height wall between the kitchen and the loungeroom, but it wasn't to be - as Jo observed, the problem was lack of wall space, given that I needed to have things up high.

In June I went ahead and had the existing wall between the kitchen and loungeroom demolished, so I could think about what to do with the new space. Eventually I settled on a plan and got quotes. The firm I chose came up with further helpful ideas (which is why I chose them) and the date was set - 21 September.

The new kitchen is very beautiful, but some things haven't turned out as I wanted, notably the position of the sink, which is much further "down" the kitchen than I had intended. Without the bench space I'd planned at that end of the kitchen, it's very difficult for two people to work in there at the same time. How such a change could have been made without my realising until the benchtop was installed was an unpleasant lesson in life.

The firm has all sorts of disclaimers in its contract so that it can't be held strictly to the plans, and disclaimers on the plans stating that software limitations may mean things turn out differently. I went over the plans and details to such an extent that it attracted sardonic comment, and still things went wrong - because the firm stopped listening. In retrospect, as Helen said, it might have been better to start with an occupational therapist's report. The kitchen man was obdurate, and after several close rereadings of the contract, I don't see any alternative to getting used to the new status quo, although I will be refusing to pay any additional charges that arise from the firm's mistakes.

I'm very much enjoying all the new appliances and storage space, and even without the painting and flooring that still needs to be organised, I'm finding the room very pleasant to be in.

Monday 21 September

Loungeroom Pantry in a bookshelf Starting to remove the old kitchen
Everything from the kitchen had to be moved into the loungeroom before work could start. Getting it back into the kitchen is taking much longer. We'd been managing with a pantry in a bookshelf ever since the wall came down. Apparently it was an easy kitchen to "uninstall". Horrid to see all the hidden dirt exposed!
Dismantled kitchen, ready for the skip All gone! New loungeroom wall
Dismantled kitchen ready for the skip, which was bunged on the nature strip rather than close to the house, for no apparent reason. Urban Services recently sent me a threatening letter about it and I had to ring the contractors and demand it be collected! The kitchen stayed bare longer than expected, when the firm discovered that they'd been sent the wrong dishwasher. They told me to check all appliances delivered here, but didn't take their own advice. I thought I was upset about this till the saga of the sink happened. Halfway through gyprocking the new wall on the loungeroom side. I helped my friendly builder with this during the initial lull in the kitchen installation.

Tuesday 22 September

Little Puss investigates the dresser Puzzle investigates
Little Puss investigates. The dresser countertop and bulkhead hadn't been made in the wood finish (another gap in the specs) so I'm waiting to see if extra charges are proposed. Puzzle investigates the cupboard under the sink. The cats found the renovations more disruptive than we did - there were lots of brawls.
Dining room end Kitchen window corner Kitchen window corner
The dining room dresser. Next to it, space for the dishwasher, which was eventually delivered on Wednesday. This cupboard looks completely different from the plans and I initially thought it was wrong. Next to that, the appliance cupboard, and right up against that (to my surprise) the hole for a sink with a left-hand draining board, despite my notifying the firm weeks ago that I'd bought a sink with a right-hand draining board. The sum total of the bench space, and the lazy susan. The bench top is a swirly green laminate with touches of pink. The handles are satin chrome. You can fit a whole hand behind them, which is good. Back wall of the kitchen, showing the corner pantry and the new griller and oven

Just about finished now

Dining room Kitchen window Kitchen window corner End wall and new wall
Dishdrawers finally installed. Cutlery drawers. Start of the sink. 1.5 bowls, water filter, mixer tap with pull-out hose. Pull-out bins with unsuitably low handle (surely they should have picked this up, in the circumstances). Through the window you can see our crabapple on one of its few days of blossom. Tiles (which looked the same colour as the cupboard doors in the shop!), cooktop, rangehood. New microwave (smaller than the old one, except inside!). Old fridge in its recess.

Missing screw covers have been applied to the dresser; an extra handle has been fitted to the top of the pull-out bins; the electrician still needs to adjusts the position of the door-operated light switch in the pantry so that the door will close. I have to arrange painting - as the house needs painting inside and out, that'll be another epic - and flooring, but I'll feel that the kitchen is finished when I receive the final 15% of the bill and sort out any outrages.

Unexpected bonuses

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Page created 02 October 2004; last updated 10 February 2012