The countertop/cabinet combo in #473 looks very nice. I am a fan of no nonsense plain stained cabinet doors like those. Lighter color quartz definitely takes the heaviness out and goes well with both paint and stain. I bet @collage1’s countertop looks great.
Just a thought… Can you start your KA dishwasher by closing the door after pressing the start button? This is how ours works: press the start button, and if the door is shut within 3 seconds of that, the DW will start. Many top of the door controlled DW have that feature.
I have a sort of decorating question. Have a 30 year old loveseat the kids think I should get rid of. Tuxedo style, arms same height as back, with back pillows. Re-covered, over time. Problem, it’s 30 y.o. D1 had it for 2 years, is ready to trash it.
But it’s always been sooo comfy. Fall asleep comfy. Do I let go, the time has come, it’s done its service, thank it a la Marie Kondo? Or have it stripped and rebuilt?
Rebuilt, all new stuffing, means fussing over the right quality (comfiness) cushions. The coils likely need work, too. More $ than IKEA, but less than some high end piece. And I’d bet, never same as the memories.
Let it go?
ps, not Craigslist. Not Salvation Army. No giveaway.
It most likely never occurred to the installers that this would be an issue, and for most people it wouldn’t be unless you were sitting on the floor. There are lots of out-of-sight, out-of-mind things like that in a house. For example, chances are good that the top of the molding over your door frames was never painted, because you’d have to be 7 feet tall to see it. The bottom surface of the granite overhang on my island is not polished. No one has ever noticed.
I think suggestions to paint it or veneer it are spot on.
I just went today to check on our new town home as the counter tops were installed this week. In the kitchen we have Cambria quartz, and I know they put in real Cambria as underneath the island, Cambia is written all over the unfinished side! While that does not bother me at all, I think if I had plywood, I would want it painted or stained to match the cabinets.
@snowball - you will love the low maintenance of Cambria. I am in love with mine! Soap and water
that’s all. No stains from veggies at all! What color did you get? We got Berwyn. Every morning I come down to the kitchen it sparkles at me. it looks like this:
We have New Quay, and while it is still under plastic with dust everywhere, I can not see the sparkles yet. I do get to see it in the sample I have at home and am very excited. When we were picking the unit we wanted, and the finishes were all decided, I truly picked this unit for the counter top The others were granite, and I just loved the way the quartz looked and the ease of clean up. I must have told my husband 100 times, “remember in the new house, soap and water only; don’t you dare spay any cleaner on them!”
I think our colors are similar as they are both waterstone. https://www.cambriausa.com/Designs/design-palette/New-Quay/
The one thing we did change in the home was to make our island with waterfall, so I have quartz down the side also. That part is not in yet until they put the floors in, but we are getting excited. As the mail level is one long room with dining, kitchen and family room, we felt the waterfall in the model made the rooms come together better, so we splurged!
I am thinking about redoing the master bath shower with quartz walls. We have granite tiles in there, and I really hate the look. But the that will be phase 2 of our remodel. We are tired of living in a war zone!
@lookingforward: Frankly, your description of that couch sounds like it’s very much in style today. I’d seriously consider salvaging it by having it recovered.
If you really like the piece and think that it can be brought back up to its former comfy state, go for it. Especially if the bones are good. They don’t make sofa frames as they used to!
We had a small upholstered swivel rocker. I couldn’t find anything the same size that was similar. In the end I bit the bullet and had it reupholstered. They did a great job, it was like a new chair - and it cost at least as much if not more than a new chair! Still it was totally worth it. I think a comfortable couch is worth it.
Thanks for letting me share this struggle. Part of me was hoping you’d tell me to let go, lighten my load. But I do love it. The bones are good. The rest needs a total overhaul and I’ll need to fuss over the cushion softness.
This decision comes when we’re paring down. Victorian pieces in the attic and some others can go to auction, things the girls have confirmed they won’t want. Other pieces need to go back to his side, like the ggm’s hope chest, made by her father.
So it seemed easy to tell myself to unload a loveseat. After VH’s post, I called an upholsterer and told D1 not to arrange the bulk trash pick up
We’ll see. If the upholsterer finds reasons it’s not viable, ok.
@lookingforward - I wish I had done that with several pieces. I replaced the small sofa and chair in my bedroom and I’ve never been happy with what I bought. I should have recovered my old stuff.
We have done a decent job keeping up with the inside of the house. We built this house 20 years ago and because H is a contractor everything was done right. The outside of the house could use a painting and I think that will be the next big project. Due to the style of the house we will probably just paint it the color it already is so that helps with decisions.
What is in terrible shape is our yard. We have over 2 acres and we haven’t spent enough on decent gardeners to keep it in shape. Between drought, gophers,dogs, coastal fog and clay soil our landscaping has become non existent. We are slowly moving forward on some of the outdoor issues. We have managed to get all the trip irrigation fixed and sprinklers back working. Replaced some bender board that had deteriorated, this time using a synthetic product that should last. Still so much to do. I think we should focus on a small area at the entry and around the house and get that area looking decent.
My H and I walked the property and identified several areas along the perimeter that have become overgrown due to last winters rain. We will have those areas trimmed back. My H commented that he can see why people downsize. The next day we had a guy out who coordinates a lot of our outside work. We have a friend who told us his neighbor spends $2000 a month on her gardeners. The yard is beautiful. We spend $400 and it shows. My neighbor cross the street have been working on the yard of their house since they bought it a few years ago. They have had someone working in the yard 5 days a week for over 2 years. I can’t imagine what they are spending.
Friend has an acre, some of it shaded by old trees. Yes, her solution was to landscape a perimeter around the house, maybe 20’ out. Makes sense. It’s edged, so a defined area and the rest is au naturel.
@lookingforward: I recently recovered a 30-year-old sofa (camelback – not really in demand these days) but I already owned it, it’s very sturdy, and it will last another 30 years – easily. I also had recovered my great grandmother’s rocking chair that must have been last recovered at least a hundred years ago. And next, I have a loveseat that needs recovering, that I bought for my second apartment in – oh, 1973 or so. It’s already been recovered once, but except for the fabric, it’s in great shape.
That’s to take place after New Year’s. We’ve spent enough this year!
OMG, I hate plumbing projects. Watching Mr taking out a stuck cartridge is like watching him diffusing a ticking bomb. One wrong move, and it will be a complete disaster. Hopefully, the disaster has been averted this time… If anyone needs expert advice on install/removal and repair of Moen faucets, I will be happy to help!
OK, @BunsenBurner: I’ll take you up on your offer. Answer me this.
We have a fancy-schmancy Moen faucet that consistently loosens so it wobbles when we turn it on and off. My wonderful contractor has gotten under the sink with his magic plumber’s wrench and tightened this probably eight or so times during the four and a half years we’ve had it. The contractor’s latest idea is to put a rubber gasket between the screw and the bottom of the countertop that it attaches to. How can we fix it so it never loosens again?
You’re welcome to come to CT to see this problem in person.
The beach house is nice, but my goodness I’d get tired of having every room the same. I can’t wait for white marble kitchen counters to stop being in fashion.
it looks like this:
