Category Archives: built-in’s

Modern Conveniences

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It’s been a while since I’ve shared an update about our kitchen remodel.  But if you follow me on Instagram, you know that we recently had a little addition to the space.  This baby arrived a few weeks ago and has been a pretty big deal in our lives.

New LG Microwave | Storypiece

The reason for the fanfare is that we didn’t have a microwave…. for four and half years.

It’s not for any noble or environmentally conscious reason; we just didn’t have one.

We used to have one.  When we moved into our home, there was no built-in and so we purchased a cheap counter top microwave.  Our intention was that “someday” we would install one above the stove.

Counter Top Microwave | StorypieceSometimes that “someday” can take awhile.  Eight years later, we were still living with our “temporary solution” when there was a small fire in it.  Thankfully no one was hurt and the fire was contained to the oven itself.  At the time, money was tight and replacing it wasn’t high on the priority list.  So I learned to cook without a microwave.

And we got used to not having a one.  Honestly, it really wasn’t that difficult since I’ve never been a big microwave user.  We mainly used it to heat water and make popcorn. So we bought a kettle and an air popper and we were content.  The only time we even noticed it’s absence was when we would have friends or family over and they needed to warm something.  Well…. then and when we went out of town and I realized I was leaving our housesitters without a modern convenience.

Kitchen Corner - Before | Storypiece

However, someday has finally arrived.  After lots of research, we picked out a microhood and have begun demolition of our kitchen cabinets.

**This is probably a great place to note that while ALL of this was going down, I was at a conference.  This install was actually a three day process with numerous trips to Home Depot that I was in no way involved in.  This is going to look surprisingly easy because for me, it was.  Tyson would tell you otherwise.**

Removing Stove Hood | Storypiece

Part of the delay in tackling this project was that we knew installing a built-in microwave meant that we would have to customize the cabinets.  The upper cabinets that hide the vent tubing for the stove hood are the perfect height for the hood, but too low for a microwave.   We would need to cut and raise the cabinets by five inches.  We didn’t want to do that until we knew we were ready to actually paint the cabinets.

Customized Cabinet | StorypieceThe process included moving the power source up a few inches as well.

Moving An Outlet | Storypiece

**I’m suddenly realizing that with the big hole above my stove, there is no turning back, is there?  Yikes!**

Once the hood was removed and the cabinet cut to the size we needed, Tyson added a support bar across the back.

Support Bar | Storypiece

He also custom cut a new shelf for the cabinet.

Installing A Microwave | Storypiece

To allow for all of the vent tubing, Tyson cut out spaces in the support bar and the shelf for the duct to feed through.  He made sure there was a hole for the power cable to feed up through too.

Duct Work Installation | Storypiece

Then it was just a matter of following the manufacturer’s installation directions.

Microwave Out Of The Box | Storypiece

Once the microwave was installed, he changed out the vent with a transition piece and used duct tape to seal the exhaust system.

Microhood Installed | Storypiece

As for the microwave itself, we went with the LG LMV1683ST.  It’s brushed stainless steel like our other appliances and we came across a killer deal for it online.  It was the most bang for our buck, it’s pretty and it will cook things… all this girl could ever hope for.

Installed Microwave | Storypiece

We still have plans to add a decorative panel across the front where the two cabinet doors were.  The panel will still open to access the exhaust tubing and power source, but for all intensive purposes it will look like decorative molding above the microwave. That’s the next step and I can’t wait!

Are you working on any big projects that are steadily coming along?  Have you ever gotten comfortable living without something that’s pretty common place? Is there an appliance in your home that you could never live without?

 

Project Notes: Secret Storage

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Well, I’m back from itch-fest 2012 and so excited to share our latest update…

I’m always captivated watching a movie where someone sneaks into a high security library or office, searching for important documents that are being stored in some sort of hidden compartment.  Things aren’t always what they seem and I love it!  Once, I had the privilege to visit a friend of a friend’s beach house and when you slid out a particular book, a secret door opened taking you down to a hidden wine cellar. I seriously about died!!

So guess who has some secret storage in their new bookcase?  Shhhh… don’t tell anyone… that’s where we are storing our secret documents AND miiiillllllions. (Okay… that’s a lie… please don’t break into our home!)

The original cut-out in the wall is really deep so that it can hold a large screen TV. Remember back in the day when you needed a big space to hold a behemoth TV with all it’s tubes and casing?  They required such a huge space.  But now we’ll be using the area for a flat screen computer monitor… we don’t even have to store a monster hard-drive. We have a ton of room just begging to become a hidden compartment.  Yay!

The plan was to put a shelf in for storage and have space for speakers and whatever else we might need to store in the studio, but don’t need to gain access to often.  Last week, we got the shelf installed and were ready to create a screen to hide the area.

Originally we were thinking about putting in a door, but decided a fabric screen would work better for the speakers.  The screen will go just in front of the wood frame here:

I picked up two tension rods and a yard of black, opaque, polyester fabric to create the screen.

I measured the opening 34″ wide (edge to edge) and determined I would want to cut the fabric 35″ across allowing for a .5″ hem on each side.

I then measured the length which is 29.5″ tall.  I have a little flexibility in the height since I’ll need to leave a gap at the bottom for cords to connect between the power outlet, speakers and computer.

I cut the fabric 32.5″ long so that there is a 1.5″ of extra fabric to fold over on each end, creating a pocket for the tension rod to slide into.  To figure out that magic number, I wrapped a tape measure around the rod to measure how much fabric I would need with a .25″ seam; much like you would when measuring and cutting fabric for piping.

Once both pockets were stitched, I inserted the tension rod and adjusted them to the width we needed.

Then my Hot Assistant climbed onto the book case to finish installing everything.

Thank you, Hot Assistant.

With the screen in place, the space looks like this.  Ta-da!

Oooohhh…. aaaahhhh…. it’s a black screen.  Okay… this may be the most anticlimactic reveal ever.  But that’s exactly the point!  You’re not suppose to see it there.

One rod hangs at the top and the other is at the bottom.  When we need to gain access to the storage area, the bottom rod can easily be moved to the top, folding the fabric in half. Of course, I could’ve taken a photo to demonstrate that, but I clearly needed to make this a little challenging for anyone every needing to break-in to the secret storage.

And once everything is in place, you definitely don’t see anything behind the monitor. The fact that the whole built-in is black helps too.

I’m thrilled to be in the home stretch of this project and have one last item to share before I give it a rest.  It wasn’t my intention to share SO much about the studio when I started this blog, but for better or worse, it’s helped keep me focused on one project at a time.  And the last project is a doozy. (Who say’s doozy?!)

Peg & Shelving Installation

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This week we are finishing some of the smaller details on the bookcase and getting ready to completely load it.  There are two shelves that had to be painted and installed before we could wrap things up.  They’ll go here:

I painted the shelves when I did the counter, so the next step was installing them.

However, Home Depot doesn’t carry black shelf pegs and white ones were standing out like sore thumbs.  So it was time to get my spray paint on.

This isn’t our first time spraying small items and Tyson already had this “paint station” set-up in the garage for such an occasion.  It’s a stretched out wire clothes hanger that hooks on a nail when it’s needed.  It’s highly technical.

To prep the pegs to hang and spray, I laid out a strip of tape and added them to it by the interior post.

Then I was able to fold the tape over leaving just the areas I wanted painted exposed.

It was hung on the wire and I got ready to spray.  Tyson thought they looked like teeth. Not for long…

Tip #1 -  Always count your parts before you paint.  For some reason I had an odd number hanging here.  And then I found a peg in the deep part of my pocket.  They’re tiny little suckers.

Tip #2 -  Make sure you have all the supplies before starting.  As I went to spray these guys with paint we had in storage, wouldn’t you know, the can was clogged.  And we had no paint thinner on hand to clean the tip.  I REALLY didn’t want to make ANOTHER trip to Home Depot.  (Did I mention it would’ve been my 5th trip this week?)

We did have chalkboard paint and high gloss sealant, so I improvised with that.

After posting about the importance of using the correct paint for the job, you would think that I would be more of a stickler about this.  However, we just needed the pegs black and once they’re installed they won’t be bumped and moved so I cheated.  And it totally worked!

We were able to hang the shelves with pegs that perfectly blend in with the rest of the bookcase.

The first shelf is in and will eventually have glass doors in front of it.

The second shelf is also in, but I have more to share with you about this spot next week.

We have done some custom work that is either brilliant or totally weird.  I’ll let you decide.

Painting 101

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In the midst of my family news that I shared with you here, that same week I was also getting an education on Paint.

The short story is that through a series of events and several trips to hardware stores around the Portland area, I discovered that I got some bad advice on the paint that we used on Tyson’s office bookcase.

Remember this 12 ft. wide, 7 ft. tall guy that I just finished painting?

Yeah… it started to chip as we were moving things on it.  And I wanted to cry.  Seriously… there was an actual moment when I was standing in an aisle between paint rollers and tarps, on the phone with Tyson trying to not burst into tears after dealing with a rude sales associate who told me no matter what I did (priming, sanding, oil base, sealant), they would ALL chip.  It wasn’t very encouraging.  Especially since this was the same store I had received the original paint recommendation from.

But I’m stubborn.

So I went home, took a deep breath and did what I should’ve done from the beginning… read and read about paint.

There is so much great information online, but it can definitely become overload.  I quickly realized I wanted to hear from individuals with real life experience; who have used products that have held up and they were satisfied with the results.  So I started digging through my favorite blogs.

My criteria was simple: I needed a highly durable paint with an ultra smooth finish.  After much discussion, Tyson and I had decided that we would install a melamine counter top and paint it black to match the rest of the bookcase. Durability was going to be key.

Surprisingly, not everyone includes what they use for their projects on their blogs.  Some had used the Glidden paint that was originally recommended to me.  This is great for walls, but didn’t have the durability we were needing.  Young House Love said that they used Benjamin Moore Advance Paint for their desk and kitchen with amazing results.  I started there.

After a few more trips around town, I found Pacific Paint in Tigard which carries the Benjamin Moore paint.  They were a fantastic resource and I learned even more from them.

1. The right primer is important.  The primer I mentioned here is a great stain blocker, but since I wasn’t worried about the wood underneath (we were working with white melamine) the guys recommended a primer that would lay down smooth.  This Pratt & Lambert primer was truly flawless.  Easy to work with and awesome coverage.

2. High durability comes with a price. The paint and primer I used runs about $15 to $20 more per gallon than other brands like Behr and Glidden.  However, it is so worth it when you save on applying numerous coats and repainting/touching up chipped paint.

3. It’s as easy as 1 – 2 – 3.

Step 1: Prime.  Wait 4 hours.  Lightly Sand (220 Grit).

Step 2: Paint.  Wait 16 hours. (Yes, 16 hours.  It takes that long to fully dry and self-level.) Again, Lightly Sand (220 Grit).

Sorry, no in-between photos.

Step 3: Paint Final Coat.

That’s it!!

Being patient was the hardest part.  That and not over brushing.

4. Don’t Over Brush.  The guys had warned me to apply the paint and then avoid going back over the paint to smooth out any paint strokes.  The paint needs to be able to do it’s thing and self-level.  You mess it up by going back over it.  (I might know a little about that first hand, but luckily it was minimal.)

The results were EXACTLY what we were looking for.

5. Call in the experts.  I love Pacific Paint and now consider them my “Go-To” guys. When I arrived in the store, they listened to what my project needs were and directed me to products that would help me successfully accomplish it.  Before I left the store, they made sure I knew what I was doing and how to apply the paint to get the best results.  I know that if I have any questions on projects in the future, I can call on them and get reliable advice.  If you are planning on doing a lot of DIY projects, it’s so worth finding knowledgeable people who can really help you get the results you want.

 

I can’t even tell you how happy and relieved I am with the new paint.  The paint label said to wait about 5 days from final coat for it to fully cure.  We waited about a week before we started really using the counter and climbing on it.  Told you it HAD TO be durable.  More on that to come.  And it’s all holding up beautifully!  Not a single scratch…  Yay!!

PS. Pacific Paint and the paint brands mentioned above have no idea that I’m singing their praises.  There was no compensation involved… just wanted to share my huge appreciation!