The Remodel - Beginning & Before
A couple days ago we signed a contract with DNG Builder, Inc. to remodel our house. It’s a big job, pretty much the whole house. It includes:
Tear down the wall between our family and living room
Turn the living room into a dining room
Re-do everything in the kitchen (counters, appliances, etc.) and make the area where our table sits now a part of the kitchen, pretty much doubling its size
New floors for the kitchen, family room, and (new) dining room.
Buff/resand/refinish the wood floors in the bedrooms and hallway
Upgrade (repaint, new sinks, shower, bath, and storage, etc.) in both bathrooms.
My heart was racing when we signed the contract. I’m quite nervous about it!
What brought this on? Well, we have been talking about doing at least the kitchen for years and years. Now we are selling our rental here in San Jose and purchasing a house in Lynden which we’ll rent first, then move into for our retirement. Our realtor is a neighbor. He lives at the end of our street and his house is the same layout as ours. He and his wife did the kitchen/living/dining room remodel and when we saw it, we really liked it. We decided to get a quote from the same contractor he worked with. Then we decided to do it.
We’ll be living here in the house while the work is going on, and everything in the house will need to be stored in the garage to clear the spaces. That’s one thing that makes me nervous — going through and packing everything and putting it in the garage. The construction guys will move the stuff, but we’ll need to pack things. It’s a good way to downsize, but scary.
I’ve been asking people for advice. My friend Sherri just remodeled her kitchen and gave me some advice:
Look at model kitchens and bathrooms to help figure out what you like.
See how the models make you feel. If you don’t love it, don’t do it.
Don’t be afraid to speak up if you realize you don’t like something. “Even if they’re putting up tiles and you realize you don’t like them after all, say so!” You don’t want to live with something you don’t like.
She got an induction stovetop and loves it.
She has some great storage features in her cupboards so that everything is easy to get to and all the space is useable.
Another friend gave me a kind of warning:
“I don’t think anything has strained our marriage as much as the remodels.”
Oh oh! She said you both get frustrated and there’s also decision fatigue. I told Randy about this to try to prepare us both to give each other grace and be patient. Another thing I’m worried about.
The work starts Monday, February 8th, so I took the before photos below, and hope to blog the experience. Doug, our contractor, thinks the job should be done by mid-April. I have a feeling I’ll be telling myself a lot that by May it should all be over. Tearing down the wall is the first thing they’ll do, so we’re starting with a literal bang! Eek.
Typically, I don’t have strong emotions or opinions about interior design. I am quite an opinionated person in general, but not so much about that. I’ve asked a friend to go with me to some places with model kitchens and bathrooms to help me with figuring out what I like. We plan to start with Ikea next Tuesday. Our contractor told us about a place that has lots of model bathrooms so I’ll find out what that is, too. I think I’ll also start some Pinterest boards. Knowing me, once I start seeing things I probably will become opinionated. :)
