Joy Johnson 6/13/16 Joy Johnson 6/13/16

Kitchen Reveal

It's been quite the journey to get to the kitchen renovation finish line, but we have made it... and in pretty good time, if I do say so myself! We have been up and running for a couple of weeks now, but just recently scored some awesome deals on new appliances that we had been waiting for. These deals showed up earlier than expected, and what's better, if the prices go down at Best Buy or a competitor in the next 45 days, they'll match it.

I'm not being paid to say this, but I gotta give a little plug to Best Buy. They were incredibly easy to work with and their price match guarantee was super easy. They didn't even raise an eyebrow when we showed them a price almost $200 under what they were charging. Then, at no extra charge, they had our new appliances loaded into our house about 48 hours later. It was amazing!! I just think it's important to acknowledge great customer service that goes beyond what's expected and they certainly proved that to me.

Back to the reveal and the photos... because let's be real, I'm lucky if you're actually reading what I'm typing right now. You're here for the pictures, I know, I know.

If you need a refresher on the progress photos try Progress 1 and Progress 2.

Keep in mind, we still have some pieces to add in terms of decor and a backsplash and so on, but now that we're able to use the space, those things can come along later - bit by bit. And if you're wondering at all where something is from I'm just gonna go ahead and simplify the answer for you: IKEA. The lights, the counters, the handles, the table, the couch... There are some exceptions, but I actually chuckle a little when I look around and am surrounded by IKEA! I am soooo happy we chose them and I'll get more in depth on that in another post.

Okay, okay, now I mean it... PICTURES (click to enlarge):

Joy Johnson 5/26/16 Joy Johnson 5/26/16

Kitchen Progress 2

I'm not sure how exciting and/or interesting this whole renovation may be to some of you, but considering it has been the complete and utter bane of Tom and my existence for the last two months, it's getting covered here quite a bit. I hope you enjoy it, but if not, you can rest easy on the fact that we are nearly done! Trust me, that comes as more of a relief to me than it does to you - hahaha! We have learned so much from this process and there are plenty of snippets of wisdom regarding a DIY renovation that I'll be sharing with you all soon. Seriously. We've learned some really weird things about renovating that no one ever warns you about. So stay tuned for some words of wisdom!

Today though, I thought I'd give you an update on our progress. This will be the last update (most likely) until the final reveal... but that won't come until July because we're waiting to hit the 4th of July sales for our new appliances. We got tempted by the Memorial Day sales, but we know the July round will be better. Not to mention, we've gotten pretty dang good about being patient. Two months without a kitchen sink or oven will do that to you. See? Wisdom.

In my last update, we had successfully managed the demolition, electrical, and were patching up the drywall. You could make out the faint outline of a kitchen, but since then, we have made leaps and bounds. If I'm being honest, where I left off in my last update is about when we started to feel the burn of renovation life. We were tired of it, and it seemed like we hadn't gotten anywhere. But. About a week later, we finally started to feel the down hill speed picking up and have been trucking along ever since.

I tried to group the photos in "fours" of the same angle taken over the last month. Basically what you're seeing in terms of stages are: patched, sanded, painted, and current status. It's truly amazing how important the seemingly little things are in a functioning kitchen. We still have toe-kicks, faucets, outlet and switch covers, more lighting, a backsplash, new appliances, door/drawer handles, finishing touches on the counters, a pantry and fridge cabinet to assemble and install, shelves to place in cabinets, and more. So as close as it might seem, there is still plenty to be done. But heck, I'm just thankful I could actually bake a frozen pizza in a REAL oven last night. Praise Jesus.

Anyways, enjoy the progress photos and see below for links to a few products (lights, paint colors, etc..).