Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
breezygirl_gw

Progress pics and update

breezygirl
12 years ago

Celine asked me to post some progress pics.

Hardwood floors were installed almost two weeks ago, were stained yesterday, and are being polyed today. I was aiming for a warm brown without any red or yellow undertones. Wouldn't you know it...DH is on a business trip so I had to choose the stain alone. I've never done that before! And no, sadly, I didn't even have any friends/relatives available to come help me.

After some concern last night and today about the color not being warm enough, I decided to live with it on the advice of several on my other thread. (Thanks again.) I'm sure it'll be fine once the house is finished.

The kitchen floor looked like this early a.m. before poly went down.

Here's a pic of the second coat of poly being applied this afternoon in the family room. The floor looks warmer here than IRL.

This closer view of the mudroom floor is more yellow than in IRL.

All of my new interior and exterior doors are installed. New doors sure make a difference in a house! My carpenter has completed almost all of the trim work in the bedroom end of the house. When he returns on Monday, he'll start base and crown in the main part of the house where he couldn't work because of the wood floors. I thought I had some pics of doors and trim installed, but I don't.

Cab install is scheduled for mid-next week!! My cab maker is trying to finish the peninsula cabs and build some additional built-ins for the fireplace this week. I'll know a specific install date this weekend.

Marble templating is scheduled for Oct. 10. Still need to pick a top for my island. I'm strongly leaning towards wood, but need to find someplace or a way to do it under my $3K Elmwood Reclaimed Wood quote. This is research project #1.

Lighting choices need to be made. Peninsula pendants can wait, but I should order my island fixtures. I'm getting concerned again about my lighting plan after a few people doubted my choice and placement of those fixtures. Research project #2.

Paint!! ARGH!! I still need to pick paint for the master bedroom and for the entire public end of the house. My excuse of waiting for the floors to be in and stained won't fly any more. :-(

I need to schedule the trim and door painting and to find a new plumber, but I think we're on track to move back in late October. We moved out last Halloween so why not make it an even year? LOL!

Comments (49)

  • Capegirl05
    12 years ago

    Love the floor color, breezy! It is REALLY pretty. The pics of your kids sitting on the floor watching their dad (I am assuming?) sweep is priceless :o)...

  • francoise47
    12 years ago

    Beautiful! Love the floor. Thanks for posting.

  • ecf1216
    12 years ago

    Breezy, it looks amazing! LOVE the floor color!

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Capegirl--That's not their Dad. He's on a business trip in Hawaii without us! The bum...

    Thanks Francoise and E!

  • lisa_a
    12 years ago

    LOVE the pic of your kids sitting and watching. So cute.

    Your floors look great!

  • Mercymygft
    12 years ago

    They look good!! Wait till that final finish goes on... when I saw mine with the final finish, I'm pretty sure I cried they looked so good!

  • trailrunner
    12 years ago

    Sweet! Both the kids and the floor ! c

  • elba1
    12 years ago

    Looks good!
    I have a question - we're getting poly on our floor this weekend (no stain) - was told they sand & poly Fri, then repeat sand & poly on Sat, then again on Sun, and that we can't walk on it until Monday as each coat needs to dry overnight. Wondering how you got all that done in 1 day - staining and 2 coats of poly, and you can already walk & sit on it?! Was it sanded between coats of poly? Thanks

  • erinct
    12 years ago

    Your floors look just like mine in the pictures (weird because the stain color is different) -- and I LOVE them! They will look so great with your cabinets! Good luck with your research projects. You can do it!

    (BTW, our painter is coming tomorrow and we're going to try Gray Owl in our kitchen. I think you used that in one of your rooms, right?!? I'm hoping I don't have to run out tomorrow to get another color -- fingers crossed that it works well!)

  • enduring
    12 years ago

    Beautiful floors. I think they will look fabulous! I am really looking forward to your cabinet install and of course what paint you choose. You are making headway. What a well planned project, you are to be congratulated.

  • Lake_Girl
    12 years ago

    I love the color! No seriously, it's perfect!

  • lavender_lass
    12 years ago

    First things first...the kids are adorable! That's so cute that they're watching the 'floor guy' apply the poly. Very cute :)

    The floors look beautiful! I love the color and it's going to be wonderful, when you get everything finished...hopefully for Halloween.

    Now, I have to ask...what colors are you painting the walls? Don't know about the master bedroom, but for the main living areas, I'm noticing how the kids' clothes look with the floor (at least on my monitor). The blue is nice (although a little on the cool side)...but check out that green and pink combo! That could really work with your floors, if you decide to do something daring...especially with your accessories! LOL

  • coco4444
    12 years ago

    Maybe a silly question... but how fast did your floors dry? I'm curious that the kids are able to sit on it so soon after.
    (The more you know....!)

  • desertsteph
    12 years ago

    "Your floors look great!"

    ditto

    color is very nice.

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks, everyone, for the compliments on the kids and on my floors.

    Elba--Sorry if I confused you. The stain went on yesterday and was walkable with socked feet this a.m. This morning they put on a water-based, satin poly coat. It dried in about 3 hours and was walkable with socked feet. Then they put on the second poly coat. The final sanding, poly, and buffing (whatever order) will happen in a few weeks.

    Erin--Yes, I used Gray Owl in our office. Here's one pic. If you click on it, you'll see a few more shots in my Flickr account. I found that with lots of natural light it looked pastel green near my very gray Carrara chunk in my kitchen. In the office with less light, it looked much more gray. It's a nice color.

    Enduring--Well planned, it wasn't. That's why it's taken more than a year and counting!

    Lavender--I'm not sure about the walls. I had wanted to do a gray or greige and have tried several. Now that the floors are in I can get a much better feel for the space. I may paint the DR and LR, which are somewhat seperated from the kitchen and FR, a different color.

    I was planning on the main colors being gray and white in the kitchen and FR, with hits of greige, orange, and grass green. Who knows if it'll work?! Pink? Not sure if DH would go there...

    Co-co--The poly coats today dried in about 3 hours. I was surprised by the speed.

  • mastiffmom_85
    12 years ago

    Breezy, thanks for the pics of Gray Owl. We are currently living in building-a-house purgatory (I can sympathize with your situation, I have two small kids and a workaholic husband!).

    I'm considering painting my entire downstairs Gray Owl, so it's nice to see it and have your review on it. My island will be calacatta gold, so we shall see what the sample looks like with that since it went green with your carrera.

    Good luck - hang in there!

    ~MM

  • brianadarnell
    12 years ago

    Breezy! You're getting so close! You'll be enjoying your kitchen (and the rest of the house) before you know it! Yay....Looks great so far.

  • lavender_lass
    12 years ago

    I love color, but that soft leaf green would be beautiful! With pink and purple flowers from the garden...along with yellow, orange, blue, white, red. What doesn't go with green? :)

    Neutrals will be nice, too...but do some great pops of color and have some fun. Accessories are so easy to change and think of the holiday decorating potential!

  • dianalo
    12 years ago

    It looks lovely ;) I love your project managers....

  • dilly_ny
    12 years ago

    I love the floors. It's all coming together. October is going to be great for yu and family.

  • TxMarti
    12 years ago

    Your floors are gorgeous! I love the way your kids are watching so intently.

    I'm sure you've said before, but what wood/brand/etc are your floors?

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    12 years ago

    At least your project managers are actually supervising! Get them clipboards.

    : )

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Mastiff--I'll be interested to hear how the Gray Owl looks for you. Calacatta Gold is so different than Carrara. Maybe the warmth in it, as opposed to the gray of mine, will make GO work for you. Good luck with your build.

    Briana--it's so exciting! Thanks for helping me in my excitement! :)

    Lavender--That's the color I had in my head--soft leaf green. It'll relate nicely to the gardens up against the house and deck.

    Dianalo and Dilly--I appreciate the kind words.

    Marti8a--I forgot to mention that in this thread. The floors are 3.5" white oak planks. The stain is 75% Jacobean and 25% Coffee Brown. Coffee is a substitute of a different brand for the Dark Walnut I wanted. I basically copied Nini's formula for her gorgeous new floors. :)

  • oldbat2be
    12 years ago

    That is one big space! Love seeing the little honeys ... look forward to seeing your progress. Keep on posting those pictures please :)

  • houseful
    12 years ago

    Beautiful! Can't wait to see more!

    Your kids look so cute. I just LOOOVE the backs of babies' heads! They are so kissable!

  • elba1
    12 years ago

    Ok, thanks. I asked because we can't walk on ours for 3 days, and I saw your cute kids sitting on your floor within what had to be a few hours!

  • bigjim24
    12 years ago

    I love your quality control inspectors :)

    Breezy, I know monitor resolution and IRL typically do not match, but I love your floors. No need to second guess here, they're beautiful. It'll all work together when the finishing details are done and furniture and accessories are in. Hang in there, you're almost at the finish line!!!

  • nini804
    12 years ago

    You did a great job...your kitchen is going to be fabulous!! I think you will love living with this stain color...it is plenty dark to "ground" everything, but I haven't found it to be so dark that every speck of dust shows! You have absolutely precious children! Mine are 8 and 11, so not as cute, but they were also very interested in the construction process. :)

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Mtnrd--I think they learned the supervising stance from me. They've seen me do it enough!

    Oldbat--the house really isn't big at all. The main part of the house is only about 1000 sqft.

    Houseful and Celtin--thank you!

    Elba--are you doing an oil poly perhaps? Or a Swedish finish?

    Nini--I'm so glad to hear that your floors are not so dark tat you notice every spec since I copied yours! Thanks again for posting your stain mix. It was just the right timing for me. I love *your* floors.

    I mightn't have conveyed my excitement enough in this post. After all my "desperate calls for help" threads, it should be clear that I'm so happy with the progress. :)

  • oldhouse1
    12 years ago

    Wow, you must be so excited! Your floor looks beautiful. I know it's been a long haul but it looks as though all your effort will pay off nicely. Just think, your house will be done for Christmas. What a wonderful Christmas this will be for you and your family. Here's to smooth sailing from here on in.

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Oldhouse--you're so sweet. We'll be hosting Thanksgiving so most of it should be done before that. I doubt I'll have a backsplash by then, but no biggie. The master bath won't be done by then either, but we can use the other bathroom. I keep picturing the Christmas tree by the front window, glowing above my new floors!

    I forgot to mention the update on my feline situation. We decided to adopt two kittens and their mom that a tech at our vet's office is fostering. We went to look at the kittens, and fell in love with their sweet mother too. It felt right since we've been missing animals in the house since our special black cat died in July. Halloween is the target adoption date. We'll probably still be moving into the house at that point too!

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    MAJOR UPDATE!!!

    My cab maker called. I was waiting to hear if his painter was finally done with the cabs and if he would be delayed by his daughter's impending baby delivery. Good news! He's coming to install cabs on MONDAY!! I'm practically jumping up and down! Cabs, finally, in my house after a year of construction??! I think that might just feel too real to me. I better call and postpone him. My heart won't be able to take the shock of seeing what will look like a real kitchen starting to form. ;)

  • lavender_lass
    12 years ago

    Congratulations! This calls for wine, or other beverage of your choice, right? :)

  • lisa_a
    12 years ago

    Doing my happy dance for you! Wahoo, breezy, the end is getting nearer and nearer all the time.

  • jmcgowan
    12 years ago

    I've been reading your posts with great interest -- you're doing a fantastic job! The floors look beautiful, and the kiddos even better :-) Adorable!!

    Can't wait to see more photos!

  • sabjimata
    12 years ago

    I love the floor...and the kids!

  • enduring
    12 years ago

    This is good news! Can't wait to see the kitchen transformation.

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thanks Lavender, Lisa, Jmcgowan, Sabjimata, and Enduring!

    I don't know how people sleep in the days before cabinets go in. The anticipation is too much. Oh, I know. Must be the wine Lavender suggested. That would make me sleep.

  • susanlynn2012
    12 years ago

    breezygirl, I love your new floors! 3.5" width is what I had wanted for my floors but the BR-111 engineered wood only came in 3.25 or the 5" wide planks and the 3.25" had shorter boards. I really love white oak so much and if I did not have to have engineered wood in my house, I may have gone with stained white oak. Thanks for sharing. The floors are beautiful!

  • babushka_cat
    12 years ago

    great news about cab install commencing on monday - can't wait to see the progress pics!!!

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Lynn and Babushka--thanks!

    I'll post pics on Monday as soon as I can! Cab maker texted today to say his daughter had her baby so now I *know* I won't be postponed for that.

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    ANOTHER UPDATE

    My kitchen is being measured for my marble templating in the morning!! We had this scheduled for last Wednesday, but had to postpone as DH forgot to bring the rangetop home from work. This was a bonus because it gave us more time to think about the pantry wall/fridge issue. I owe some responses back on that thread and another now that we've made some decisions. I'll do that later in the day.

    Hooray for more progress!

  • kiki_thinking
    12 years ago

    Hi! Looks wonderful! Where did you purchase your white oak? I'm just about to buy 2 rooms of 5" unfinished white oak hardwood. Do you remember what grade yours is? Also, what brands/ratios of stain colors you used?

    Are you happy with the floor color now?

  • kiki_thinking
    12 years ago

    Hi! Looks wonderful! Where did you purchase your white oak? I'm just about to buy 2 rooms of 5" unfinished white oak hardwood. Do you remember what grade yours is? Also, what brands/ratios of stain colors you used?

    Are you happy with the floor color now?

  • kiki_thinking
    12 years ago

    Hi! Looks wonderful! Where did you purchase your white oak? I'm just about to buy 2 rooms of 5" unfinished white oak hardwood. Do you remember what grade yours is? Also, what brands/ratios of stain colors you used?

    Are you happy with the floor color now?

  • lisa_a
    12 years ago

    kiki, you probably won't get an answer from breezy for a day or two or more. She's moving into her house this week, experiencing problems and doesn't have 'net access.

    Weird how your message posted 3 times....

  • kiki_thinking
    12 years ago

    Thanks for the response. The only thing I can figure out is that I sent it and then immediately switched from 3G to wifi then back to 3G because wifi ws so slow. So maybe it wasn't done sending? Then I turned the computer on and tried to go back to a prior page nd maybe re-sent it again. I'm not impatient, just a dodo on some days! Sorry!

    Sorry she's having troubles! Hope things smooth out for her!

  • celineike
    12 years ago

    Oh Im so behind!!!!! thank you for posting these! the floor looks great and im sure it warmed right up with the poly coat.
    are there more pics?? 'cause i think your marble is even in now !!!
    oh woe's me! Im so outta the loop! :D
    it's amazing how life carries on once your kithcen is done and working!
    I may not get here often enough anymore, but Im stayin'!
    I cant wait to see more pics! good luck with your move in - enjoy!
    enjoy!
    enjoy!
    xox
    Celine

  • breezygirl
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Hi Kiki. Thanks for the compliment. My oak was purchased through my hardwood installers. I think it's character grade, but my brain is fried today. It isn't the extra expensive grade, just standard. The stain is 50% Jacobean and 50% Coffee Brown which is similar to Dark Walnut. I am happy with the color. It's darkish, but not too dark. It looks great with the kitchen, too.

    Lisa--DH brought home his laptop and air card so I have a few minutes of forum time!

    Celine--What?!? Life goes on??? ;) I think you saw my other pics after the marble went in. Here are a couple. Don't know why the hood photographs dark from straight on.

    We moved back in on Sunday. So many things both major and minor need to be finished yet. There are issues with the final floor finishing, trim and door painting, appliance installs, electrical work..... At least I now have a working sink in the kitchen and toilet in the bathroom.

Sponsored
Longhouse Architects
Average rating: 5 out of 5 stars4 Reviews
Loudoun County's Prominent Architecture Firm Creating Cohesive Designs