Demolition finally started, but before the first hammer went through a wall, my brother, Guicho, and his husband Drake made me a gold hard hat and shovel to mark the occasion! I finally feel like this process has started!
Demo started with pulling up the floors, first surprise in parts of the house there were two layers of flooring that will eventually be evened out, but took the destruction of the floors just a bit longer. After the floors were pulled up (and let me tell you carpet from the 80's is just gross) the plumber started on digging into the foundation to get the plumbing rough in done.
With dust everywhere I feel like progress was being made, but we had a few hiccups with the City of Austin (making appointments and then not showing up) and with additional engineering that had to be done (and worth it) to make sure that everything was going to be okay. Finally demo started on the drywall, and as a happy surprise there was brick under the bookcase and behind the fireplace. The plan for the fireplace is to keep the brick and do a light white wash on it, as it feels a little yellow compared to the outside of the house.
Progress is also being made in acquiring materials, although this has been a challenge with the pandemic. I was able to order all the faucets and bathroom fixtures with a couple of back orders scheduled for November/December. I was also able to purchase an all important doggie door for LuLu.
I have purchased most of the kitchen items including a Hansgrohe faucet, Create Good Sinks sink, and pot filler. I have selected the look of the cabinets which will be a "skinny shaker" with 1/4" trim pictured below with 12" center to center hardware, and I am working on the design of the actual kitchen cabinets and layout.
If you have gotten this far in the blog, please let me know your thoughts. I am planning to have black cabinets below and on the island and white cabinets for the pantry and top cabinets. The thought I am debating is putting black handles on the white cabinets and brushed nickel on the black cabinets and drawers. The other option is to have brushed nickel on all cabinets and drawers...
I have also selected door hardware and framing, although not yet ordered, I am 99.9% sure that this is the look that I am aiming for. All the hardware would be in matte black with the white doors. (Pictured: Door, Doorknobs, and Pocket Door Hardware)
The casing around the windows would be similar to the doors, as pictured below in either white (what I m leaning more towards) or in black. the window frames are black). Also pictured below are wall sconces I am contemplating for the public bathroom that has brushed bronze fixtures, and the entry way light fixture and featured wall detail. Speaking of brushed bronze I have learned the hard way that there is a difference between brushed bronze and brushed brass.... (Pictured: window casing, entry light fixture, and bathroom wall sconces).
I really want the entry way to have a "throw back" to the 1970's when the house was built. I think that the light fixture above, and a slatted wall accent section behind the fireplace (there is a small area of about 1 foot that is not brick and could be slatted wall) and on the right side of the door would give it that mid-century modern look of the 1970's and the neighborhood. Also pictured below, is the progress on my front and back doors, they are awaiting the powder coating paint and they will ship in the next week!
Next steps are electrical rough in and framing.... this will give a better picture of dimensions and actual space!
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I love how you are making the house your own while you pay tribute to it's history. And I love your gold hard hat and shovel!
Wow! You have such a wonderful vision of what your home will look like; I have seen pictures of your previous home; it was absolutely beautiful. I don't expect anything different from this home. Please continue to photograph to see the progress. I'm so excited for you!