Plan Your Design, Design to Your Plan - or else...

BEFORE - old built-in on the wall, very reminescent of um, I dunno, 1970s. That'll change.

The built-in is going to get the Art Deco treatment complete with a medallion on top, a fresh coat of black gloss paint and silver deco-style stencils on the door fronts. Plus, they'll be topped off with new silver art deco hardware.

The design is going to segment this large and unusual shaped office into a work area and a work review area. The desk will be centered with the built-in and flanked by some new black crystal lamps and will get two new white guest chairs to lighted the space up. The opposite end of the room will have a padded bench and cool retro orange chair and ottoman where he can chill out and review documents in comfort. Plus, there will be some upscale Art Deco and retro effects about the office to give it a classy yet casual feel.

And here are some of the elements that will make up the space.

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So.... did you ever have something with the best intentions go the worst of directions? Of course you did! I just did, and boy did that suck! I'm working on this law office design which is a mix of Art Deco and Retro with a touch of old school baseball becuase that's what the client loves. Well, his wife came to me and told me she had purchased some artwork that she thought he would love and it would be a surprise for him. Ha, you can say that again. Let's just say he HATED them and did not want them in the space, and wasn't too pleased with me for doing it. Ususally I'll request that 85% of the desgin I plan is exactly what the client gets. But I like to keep about 15% open to interpretation - my interpretation. Because as you design, things come up and you get ideas of what might look and/or work better - so you do it 'on the fly'. Well, that usually works, but this time it backfired - but that was due to an outside influence - aka, the wife. :-)

All ended well, or is ending well. We're back on track and soon I'll have some wonderful photos to show you. In the meantime, here's some of the design and what it's ultimately going to look like. BTW - now looking back on it, I think the art didn't work since they were mafia scenes which is all about thumbing your finger at the law. And he's a, um, lawyer. Yeah, things that make you go, hmmmmmm.

The Tuscan Dream Kitchen is Done!

From a before this:

To a design this:

To a during this:

And finally, to an after this:

That's right - it's done! The final touches were put in today including the swithplate covers and some final undercabinet lighting. I'm proud to say it turned out beautifully! This Truly Tuscan Kitchen is exquisite down to the last detail. To see more after photos, take a peek at my website here.

I hope you've enjoyed the process, I definitely did. Now I'm off to do a law office redesign. Let's see where that one takes me!

The tile is up. Time to grout

We now have tile throughout - or at least, on all the walls. ;-) On Monday, time to grout and time to get the undercabinet lighting to accent the beautiful new tile. Can't wait!

Final touches are the switchplates and then just decorating the area. It's going to be beautiful!

A little travertine here, a little slate there - a pop of sparkly glass. Ohh, la la!

Ok, so the backsplash is FINALLY going up! Also got the new cooktop, dishwasher and sink all hooked up today as well as the icemaker. Tomorrow hoping to finish (fingers crossed) the tile and then let it set over the weekend - grout on Monday and be done! Besides sealing it after a few weeks, oh - and hanging the 2 new doors and 1 drawer that just came in today, um, and trimming out the dishwasher. Is a kitchen ever really done?!

When it's all done, in its fully glory, I'll post some overall shots. Hands are full of paint, but I'm getting very excited!

You're up and you're down, I was and I am.

Yeah! The cooktop medallion is installed. Boo - it's not perfectly centered. Down it goes. Drats! Oh well, I'll do it again tomorrow! Grrrrrrrrr!

Anyway, the countertop is in and looks BEAUTIFUL! More great photos to come tomorrow. I'll start the backsplash and will actually have the CENTERED medallion up in its full glory.

Time to chill for the night!

The cooktop area has some jewelry!

Well, I got here at 9:00am this morning to prepare for the countertop installers - which were supposed to be here at 10am. After a few hours, I got bored, so I decided to tile the cooktop medallion now and let it set. It's gonna be rockin!

It's now 12:20pm and they JUST arrived. Yeah! So now I'm sitting back (ah, relaxing....) and working on my computer as someone else works for a bit. Nice.

My next post will have photos of the new countertop! I selected Ceasarstone Copper Canyon. It's a dark, burnt umber color with black that's going to really complement the light cabinetry. Can't wait!

Good Tools = Great Projects. And Bad Tools Just Suck!

This is my baby. My Bosch jigsaw, the love of my life (in the workshop at least). It allows me to EASILY make curvy cuts - which in my designs, is key!

This POS is my nemesis. The suckiest tool I own, but I keep is as a back-up for just these situations. I think it's an 800-year-old Black and Decker with mice running the motor.

I'm finishing up a kitchen remodel - you've read about it before. And one of the few tools I still have over there is my sweet baby Bosch. Can I tell you how much that has screwed up my day?! I'm starting a custom bench design, it's curved to fit around a round table and mimics the lines of the table. So of course, I need to make curved cuts.

Well, since I had a day off from the kitchen remodel, I decided to start on the bench. I had to make curved cuts with this sucky tool! It went about 1 mm per hour - oh wait, maybe slower. And just basically stinks. My lovely Bosch cuts through Oak like butter. Oh, I miss my Bosch, I'll never be without it this long again...

Well, all this tirade is meant to state this: bad tools do not make bad woodworkers. Bad tools just suck and make life harder. However, if you want to make your life easier as a woodworker, use tools that will help you succeed. We no longer use two rocks to make a fire, do we? Even though it works, it's not the best, most efficient way to get the job done. So, I refreshed my memory in this lesson. I will travel with tools, keep my tools close to me and baby them as they so lovingly deserve.

What sucky tools do you still use even tough you know you should probably upgrade? How much do they piss you off?