drywall continued

I can't believe Craig still acts surprised and says things like "I dusted the TV yesterday - Look at this now!  Dust is for the birds!"  

Inspections have been passed and the walls are just about covered.  Next, we'll be in the mudding phase, but here's the current:

We're hoping to start on the cabinets in the next week!  

a few steps closer to a kitchen

Work is in full swing. We are officially on someone else's schedule now that we've ordered the countertops and I have a feeling they're going to want to place them on top of actual, built and installed cabinets as opposed to the ones we currently have:

This is what cabinets from Ikea look like when you bring them home. It's probably not surprising that we have to put them together ourselves, considering the fact that even if you buy a swedish meatball at Ikea it'll come with assembly instructions. Unless you have a large vehicle, you'll want someone to help (thanks, Matt).

As far as work that's going on:

Framing - we're finally (completely) finished and covering all that hard work with drywall is proving to be rewarding.

Electrical - there are now 10 lights, 5 switches and 8 outlets in the room.  About the lights - remember the previous post about recessed lighting? We ended up adding more, small recessed lights that follow the path of the countertops. They have a brushed stainless steel finish to match the appliances and their installation was about the same as the previous ones.

We wanted to have some pendants hanging over the 'pass through' area, but the way the soffit had to be built prevented this. There are a few small pendants hanging the opposite corner which you can see here (along with some of our beautiful sheetrock):

Sheetrock - we're still in the initial parts of this phase. Along with what you can see in the above pictures, here is a bit more showing the process:

We had to cover some of the opening to the stairwell. The exposed brick is still visible from the kitchen and living room. We wanted to keep it open, but there was no where else to put a refrigerator (not to mention the 92" cabinet that will be in the space also). The outlet up by the ceiling will be in a small open area above the cabinetry - we figured it would be a good idea just in case we wanted to add lights up there... it may also be used to supply power to yet another strand of Christmas lights in Craig's dreams of creating a wonderland in our home.

There is still much to do before the countertop folks come out for measurements, including plumbing, gas lines, a few electrical changes, finishing the sheetrock, fixing some weak spots in the floor, oh sweet Jesus - we should probably get to work.

vote

Have you voted yet? We stood in line this morning - only took about 30 minutes. I actually sort of loved the wait. It's a perfect opportunity to look around and see the faces in your community. Everyone standing with incredibly purposeful, proud, focused expressions. Despite the walkable, friendly neighborhood that we love - the crowd surprised me, in a really good way.

I also want to point out the fact that I am 28 years old and this will be the first election I've voted in where my choice for President will likely win. Realizing this unfortunate tidbit, I began to wonder just how many people are in these shoes. Is my math right? Not a single (devoted) donkey out there who is less than 29 has voted a President into office?

At the risk of nurturing the notion of division in our country - I'm really glad it looks like there will be change.

ceiling fan... in the living area?

Do you all have thoughts on this?  I understand the utility.  Completely.  Although, Craig and I differ in opinion and I figured a pulse of the web might help.  Firstly, Craig gets pretty hot... literally (let alone, metaphorically - heyyy); secondly, a fan can move lethal dog-fart quickly out of the room; and lastly, I have a deep hatred for fans that are loud enough to warrant a volume increase to the current entertainment device (i.e. every fan not attached to the ceiling).  I need some affirmation that it's not a terrible idea.  The 'future' living room is the middle of the three rooms on the first floor (rowhouses are not only a row of houses side-by-side; typically the interior rooms are also row-like).  A fan will most certainly be a fantastic way to keep air moving in the window'less middle, but I wonder what interior design-lovin', like-minded folks might think?

Does a ceiling fan really kill a room?

Is placing a ceiling fan anywhere other than the porch of a Georgian plantation sinful?  

I feel like the first thing "designers" do upon a home makeover of extreme proportion is rip out the ceiling fans.  Our plans are not really contingent upon the opinion of [insert ear plugs now] Ty Pennington, but I do wonder what your thoughts might be?