It's a big week here at our house -- carpentry has started on both our hallway coat closet and the bed nook for our office/second guest room, we moved wiring for a sconce in the latter space, and our mini-splits are being installed at the end of the week. Also...
Today we had our HVAC ducts cleaned (after we turned heat on for first time last week and my husband went into a massive sneezing fit) and the kitchen appliances were delivered. Despite my best efforts to stagger the work, the duct guys and the delivery guys showed up at the same time, with the carpenters already at work. It was pure mayhem for about an hour with eight men trying to do their jobs without running into each other, and my husband and I moving from room to room with our computers, attempting to get some work done while staying out of everyone's way.
Normally in a renovation, appliance delivery is an exciting event because it means you're close to the end of the project. In our case, it's more of a pain since we haven't even started the kitchen, but because we ordered our appliances on tax-free weekend, we were required to take delivery within a certain window -- I think technically we exceeded the timeframe, but Yale was very reasonable when I twice rescheduled. The appliances are now all stashed in a corner of the kitchen until we're ready for them in the spring, except the fridge, which doesn't require installation.
What makes me most happy this week is the construction of our coat cubby/closet. This is a very controversial addition, since it is essentially recreating the original hallway, and taking away the existing "open plan" of our living/dining/hallway, which was created by a past owner's removal of some walls. My husband, several friends and even my carpenter were not shy in sharing their opinions that it's a crazy idea. But now that it's framework is in, my carpenter has conceded it works and even my husband seems to be coming around.
From my perspective, the closet was necessary to restore the architectural integrity of the original layout, provide distinct living, dining and hallway spaces, and make the corner fireplace that was previously jutting out awkwardly into the abyss feel a bit more appropriate. Not to mention giving us a place to stash coats and boots, which we previously didn't have.
Below is what the space looked like yesterday morning before the carpentry began -- see that big useless gap in the middle?
(I hope you can ignore all the mess -- we have so much we can't unpack until kitchen is done and have to keep shuffling furniture and stuff around as we work in different spaces.)
And here's where we ended the day:
Of course it will look better once drywalled and painted, but I love it even as is. I am now able to fully conceptualize the living, dining and hallway spaces so that I can finish hanging art and plan lighting for all these areas -- the most fun part of renovating, in my opinion :)
I'm definitely also looking forward to getting my office back, since I work best in an organized space. However, that's still a ways out, because after the bed nook gets built we still need the actual bed, which won't be here til early November, and then have to paint everything and refinish the floors before we can move furniture back in. This is the room at the moment, without the closet that used to span the rear wall -- it feels huge to me:
So... the condo is still chaotic but we're making progress. My husband and I are hoping we can get things more or less functional and comfortable before the holidays, so we can relax and enjoy our home for a while before the kitchen reno commences in the spring. As you can imagine, I am sooooo looking forward to a little respite!
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