Kitchen Remodel - Post 3...

True to their word, on April 14th, Central Illinois Granite employees arrived first thing in the morning to make the template.  They actually used wood to create an outline of our counter top.  They created this outline in four pieces.  The stand-alone cabinet, the left side of the counter, the middle portion, and the right side of the counter.  And one week later, they returned with the four pieces.  In a few hours, the counter top was leveled, glued, grouted at the seams, cleaned and they were gone.  I could not stop touching the counter after they left.  It exceeded my expectations, it added a sparkle and shine to the kitchen, like the necklace in Pretty Woman did to Julia Roberts.

These are the two employees that created the template and installed the counter top.  They were pleasant, professional and quickly finished.

The seams are invisible.  Even if you know where they are, you have a hard time finding them.  There are only two, one to the left of the sink and one to the right.  We elected to have our back splash come all the way down to the counter, so they did not install any part of a back splash.

This is my beautiful new sink.  Mike told me about a product you can get at a restaurant supply house that will polish brushed nickel sinks.  I'll tell you about that later.

Mike and Pat Davis are doing the prep work for the range hood.  We picked out a beautiful glass and brushed nickel range hood which will provide ventilation and a light over the range.  Our hood is vented through the roof.

Our old ceiling fan and light has been removed in preparation for the new track lighting and the first brush strokes of the new blue paint color were made.  Even though things are moving quickly and we see progress from day to day, it's now April 22nd and we have lots left to do.  We are washing dishes and getting water for coffee in the bathroom.  I have been without a kitchen sink for 11 days now and you never realize how much you miss something until it's gone.  Our kitchen has been moved to the dining room, our coffee maker and microwave are on the dining room table.  We're eating off of plastic, drinking out of plastic and eating out more than we normally do.  I've seen remodels on television that last for months and I feel sorry for those people.  We are very happy with the work that's been done so far and the difference in our kitchen is nothing short of amazing.  We were also thrilled with our choices for material and installation.  But, we're most pleased with Mike and Pat.  Everything they do is meticulous.  And every day they clean everything up and put away all of their tools.  Finding a contractor that you can trust isn't easy these days.  We've heard horror stories from our friends of shoddy workmanship and no recourse.  I admire Donna Davis a lot and I couldn't imagine her marrying someone who was less professional than she was.  Over the course of this remodel, our admiration for Mike and Pat grew; we consider ourselves fortunate to have them do this work.