{renovate} cabinets and counters and ovens, oh my!

Friends! How has it been over a MONTH since we've talked kitchen remodel? You are long overdue for an update. When we last left off, we were busy painting walls and assembling cabinets. Well, we took some time off in there to go rafting and celebrate our birthdays, but we have made some solid progress.

Look! It's starting to look like a real, live kitchen! We actually changed our plan-of-attack a couple weeks ago. Instead of installing all the cabinets (wall + island) at once, we're going to finish the wall side and then move onto the island. There were some spacing issues, and when it came right down to it, I really want my sink back! 

So at this point, and from this angle, the kitchen pretty much looks exactly like it did before the renovation. But as long as it looks like a kitchen at all, I'm a happy camper.

Let's take a closer look.

Kitchen Cabinets.

The majority of the cabinets are in (!). We chose the Adel cabinets from IKEA and so far I'm loving them. I'm working on a post detailing why we chose IKEA cabinets and the pros and cons that we've learned from installing them, so stay tuned. 

Customizing IKEA cabinets.

The only weird thing about this style (or maybe all IKEA cabinets? I don't know), is they aren't meant to reach the ceiling. Say, what?

Technically, this is finished. I do not love this look. So, we'll be adding moulding, which will be the same moulding we install all around the entire room.

The other customization is the cabinet bases. IKEA provides standard legs, which are then covered to look like a base.

One of the very few requests Chris had for this kitchen would be that the cabinets were a little higher than standard. Friends, he's crazy tall and working at a normal size counter is hard on his back! (And yes, that makes him sound like he's 80. He's not ;) So our cabinets are actually installed on a 5.5 inch base, instead of a 4 (ish) inch base.

Lesson. Learned.

Talk about one step forward, two steps back. When we had the drywallers come, we forgot that we were installing a backsplash. So, we had drywall where the backsplash is going. Which, as I'm sure you know, is a big no. We cut out the drywall and retro-fitted a piece of concrete board.

 Sneak peek at our tile!

We can cook now.

Our oven and stove are installed. And, they work! This is completely exciting for two reasons. First, I haven't had a microwave in 5 years. Not that I use it all that much, but still nice to have. Second, the obvious, I CAN COOK! And yes, they've both been used a number of times. Pretty much just cuz I can :).

Countertop.

It's installed. It's sealed. It's ready for sink installation! :) On the wall side we chose to go with an IKEA oak butcher block (the island will be different ... I know, I'm keeping you in suspense!). I am so in love. It's simple, but I know it'll add so much warm to the kitchen -- especially when paired against our tile backsplash.

Do you guys want to see a really fun "sneak peek" type of photo?

We set the sink in last weekend to make sure that it fits. And, I might have squealed a little. I was pretty frustrated with our {lack of} progress over the end of July/beginning of August, so it's almost a relief to see major things happening again. 

And, on an unrelated note, just in case you were questioning our appliance-buying skills -- our dishwasher won't always be black. We have an insert that will make it look like one of the cabinets :).

Happy friday friends! Hope you all have a great weekend :)