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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 18, 2017 11:40:48 GMT
After years of hesitation, I finally broke down to completely change my kitchen, which has been in decline for about 15 years after a partial (Ikea) renovation at that time.
So, here is the basic look before the work started.
s19.postimg.cc/v2z0j9s5v/avant_3.jpg
Naturally, I had to remove everything. All appliances were destined for the trash including toaster oven, coffee maker and microwave.
s19.postimg.cc/4hwhnnscj/cuisine_004.jpg
The devastation began on Monday morning.
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I was wondering how they were going to get the washing machine down the three flights of stairs since they left only one African worker to take everything out. I fled to my upstairs room for most of the day because the sounds coming from the kitchen were too terrible -- wrenching metal, pounding, breaking. I'm glad I had warned my neighbours, but this was a much louder event than I ever expected. As it turned out, the African ripped the washing machine to piece to be able to carry the rubble out. First he turned it upside down, which must have been the largest crashes that I heard. After taking off the bottom, he somehow removed the 50kg weight that is at the bottom of all washing machines for stability. The whole thing looked like Godzilla had been chewing on it.
s19.postimg.cc/4553hjuo3/cuisine_014.jpg
At the end of the day, the room was empty.
s19.postimg.cc/3sdpbbeyb/cuisine_017.jpg
Oops, the wall got ripped out, too, but not quite through to my bedroom. That was a surprise to them and to me when they tried to get the tiles off the wall.
s19.postimg.cc/vshsvlq4j/cuisine_018.jpg
What next? |
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 18, 2017 14:09:55 GMT
It's nice. I like what you've done with it.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 18, 2017 15:07:24 GMT
 , Mark! That really is a complete blank slate now, Kerouac. I'm assuming you've been thinking about this for ages and have a sleek and efficient plan all ready to go. Looking forward to seeing the next stage. |
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Oct 18, 2017 15:22:21 GMT
So exciting....looking forward to the next stage....
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Post by bjd on Oct 18, 2017 15:34:40 GMT
Ah, those huge Parisian kitchens! No wonder in older novels people invited their friends to restaurants. Looking forward to seeing the transformation.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 18, 2017 15:37:12 GMT
He is waiting for you and your Houzz expertise before proceeding, bjd  |
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 18, 2017 16:49:55 GMT
Oh, I just love these people. The wall that they broke had been installed to be able to hide the kitchen cables. They put a new wall in, painted it, and then broke it to put in the new cables. The poor guy who does all of the shit-work is standing around waiting to replaster it when normally he should have been gone an hour and a half ago. They all should have been gone an hour and a half ago!
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Post by mich64 on Oct 18, 2017 17:48:23 GMT
Very interested in watching this progress! It has been a year since we renovated our kitchen and I can still remember the anxiety of the process but I am still so happy we did it.
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 18, 2017 19:54:40 GMT
The kitchen should be the heart of the house. Unfortunately yours looks for now as though its waiting for Dr Christian Barnard to call round.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 21, 2017 6:10:05 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 21, 2017 6:20:07 GMT
Now I'm waiting for all of the kitchen elements to be delivered and then installed the next day. And then my original workers will return for the finishing touches on the paint and flooring. |
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Post by tod2 on Oct 21, 2017 6:37:44 GMT
Things seem to have gone pretty well - minor errors nearly always occur when there is more than two men working on the same project....like replacing the wall and then demolishing it to do something that should have been done ahead.
I like the red floor. It brightens up your special place!
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 21, 2017 7:03:24 GMT
The red floor will help disguise the blood from cutting up the dead bodies. Serial killers normally do it in the bath, but I don't think you have one.
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Post by bjd on Oct 21, 2017 7:46:40 GMT
I'm surprised they painted the wall so soon after plastering. Normally, if they plaster (rather than just use Polyfilla), they should wait about 2 weeks for the plaster to dry completely.
Not sure I would have taken such a bright red (Mark, blood stains turn dark so they will show anyway) but it certainly helps to brighten the place up. I see you had those tomettes underneath. That's what was under the linoleum in my daughter's apartment in Paris too. But after so many years, they are not usually in good condition and they are a pain to keep clean.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 21, 2017 8:01:33 GMT
Yes, we had a debate about that, but I thought about all of the joints between them and how filthy they can get, not to mention when one comes loose.
As for the new floor being too bright, there isn't going to be much left visible once the other things are installed. |
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Post by lagatta on Oct 21, 2017 11:08:29 GMT
I like the bright floor, in such a small space. And it does look easier to clean. Mich, you have cupboards larger than K2's kitchen. Oddly, when I was staying in an ancient apartment in Perugia with just a room (studio - study and bedroom) and a kitchen, the kitchen was relatively large. The building was centuries older than K2's (and yes, I know that K2' building is old for the area of Paris where it is located). The stairwell was all stone - not only the steps but the walls.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 21, 2017 11:55:33 GMT
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 21, 2017 14:00:52 GMT
Certainly improving. But I think you need to organise it a bit better. Some of the doors and draws won't open fully.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 21, 2017 16:24:43 GMT
Wow -- starting to look really good. Nice bright floor. I had commercial/high traffic linoleum in a kitchen and absolutely loved it.
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Post by patricklondon on Oct 22, 2017 7:34:10 GMT
I sympathise - I had mine done a couple of years ago. Happy with the result, but it was a week where I had to vanish early and come back late - which at least made the progress day-to-day very visible (and they were tremendous about clearing up mess every day). One can never have too many power sockets in a kitchen. My blog | My photos | My video clips My Librivox | "too literate to be spam" |
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Post by lugg on Oct 22, 2017 9:49:51 GMT
This reminded me I need to do something with mine and also reminded me why I keep putting it off. Looking forward to seeing the end result.
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Post by tod2 on Oct 22, 2017 13:42:08 GMT
Kerouac - Are you eating out....a lot!
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Post by lagatta on Oct 22, 2017 14:17:47 GMT
Or takeaway?
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 22, 2017 15:57:40 GMT
I just stopped eating.
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Post by lugg on Oct 22, 2017 19:37:16 GMT
Ha ha - The new kitchen diet......now there is a definitely a reason for me to get mine done
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 24, 2017 19:32:08 GMT
So, yesterday the assembler/installer arrived at 08:00. He was a very pleasant and personable Polish man who came to France 22 years ago. That takes us back to 1995, so it was well before Poland joined the EU in 2004. That's as good as making him French, compared to what some people call the "Polish plumber" invaders who streamed into the EU the moment they joined the European club since salaries are so much higher in the West. He said he had two sons, ages 21 and 24, so one of them must have been born in Poland and the other one in France. He mentioned them because they are the ones who assist him in using his computer and the internet. Anyway, he clearly was totally qualified for the job. This is what he did yesterday. s19.postimg.cc/5t1kyxgqb/005.jpgs19.postimg.cc/6vbrhhmoz/006.jpgs19.postimg.cc/53ismknwj/007.jpgs19.postimg.cc/yiogvlflf/008.jpgs19.postimg.cc/we43uhyj7/009.jpgThis morning he finished up and even installed a new LED lighting panel for the ceiling that I bought yesterday since my previous light was in the way of some of the cupboards. Putting things back in the cupboard, I quickly discovered that the kitchen did not get any bigger and in that department turned into an example of the famous Thai expression " same same but different." Well, I am certainly happy to have a bigger refrigerator now and to have a washing machine again, so I'm pretty sure that I will happily adapt to it. s19.postimg.cc/418m41zyb/010.jpgs19.postimg.cc/vbtxbziar/011.jpgs19.postimg.cc/6vbrhip9v/012.jpgThe other workers still need to return to do a few things which they promised, and I'll see the guy in charge tomorrow. One of the main things missing (because I thought it was included and it wasn't) is the back panel behind the stove. I will almost certainly shell out for one that extends the entire length of the counter all the way to the sink. I have already decided that I want a big panel and not tiles, because tiles get cruddy in the seams over time. |
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 24, 2017 21:12:26 GMT
Looking sleek that is. Pretty damn good.
A couple of questions - did you do the design. If so, how? Or did some one come in and do the measuring etc. Did you go to a kitchen store to select the doors/worktop/sink/tap etc?
Just one thing though, is the very bottom of the cupboards open or is there a recessed panel that stops dropped food and stuff going underneath?
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 24, 2017 21:40:52 GMT
I went to a kitchen store and let the salesman select everything. I brought photos of my kitchen and an Excel diagram of the layout. This was sort of ridiculous because there is not a single straight wall in my flat and not a single corner is at a 90° angle. But the salesperson got on his computer and designed everything over the next two hours and then printed out the view from various angles. For example, this is one of the images he created. s19.postimg.cc/l9jqn4q8j/img080.jpgI allowed him to choose all of the appliances because he knew what would fit. Siemens induction top, Bosch oven, Thomson washing machine and something called VestFrost for the refrigerator. It saved me from looking at the 50 models of everything in the store and dithering over them with all of the various widths and heights. He knew my budget and chose things that corresponded to it. I signed the contract and paid 33% then and there. The following week, a measurer came to my flat with his laser thing and measured everything in the kitchen to see if the project would actually fit. (This is probably a big problem for people who come in with a vegue sketch not to scale.) Our only disagreement the first day was that he wanted to put the washing machine next to the sink, and I said no because I don't trust the drainpipe that snakes three quarters of the way around the room, and anyway there was already a tap and drainpipe where the old washing machine was. So he let me have the washing machine where I wanted it, so kind of him. Then I had another appointment at the store where the project was confirmed and adjusted. "This cabinet will be shorter, this will be bigger" etc. And the price went down slightly because the cabinets were a bit smaller overall. And then everything was made to the exact measurements of my place, which is why I signed the contract at the end of June and had to wait until October for it to be installed. Yes, there is a baseboard under all of the cupboards. All in all, I am very satisfied with the result. These last 9 days seemed as though they would never end, but I am pretty sure that the project went super fast compared to a lot of people. |
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 24, 2017 22:05:21 GMT
Looks wonderful and efficient. Love that tomato-red floor with the "executive" gray counter top and the crisp white appliances.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 24, 2017 22:10:58 GMT
The upper cupboards are not as deep as the previous upper ones, which were as deep as the lower ones. So I have lost about 30% the upper space, but I'm sure it is good for me.
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