Take 5

Five days until we move in, but 3 days until inspection to get the certificate of occupancy.  Stuff is flying now.

Paint

The painter worked all weekend priming and painting the 1st floor ceiling.  Today the real fun began - color!  Our first floor colors are inspired by Restoration Hardware, but executed by Valspar.  Contrary to how it may sound, we did not choose the colors based on the names.

The fireplace is painted in Chocolate.  The walls are not painted yet, but will be Latte, see picture below.

More Chocolate in the den.

And more Chocolate in the powder room.  There is a sample board of metallic paint - but not sure that's worth $400 to us.  $40 maybe, $400 no.

Latte in the hallways and stairwell. Seriously, no tasting my walls.

Plumbing

Work on all-things-water continues.  The fridge and dishwasher went in as well as many of the plumbing fixtures.  The tub continues, but that one is going to take a little time.

Backsplash crisis officially averted, the master faucets are in!  Might I remind you, these puppies cost $627 new.    We just spent our allowance based on Home Depot standards.  

Free toilet!  A barely used Kohler Welworth from Anoka.  Super clean and super free.

The Kohler Simplice - same as the one we installed at the house we are moving out of.  We love it, glad we ended up with 2 of them!

Shower door installed!  Tricky to actually photograph...

Grading

Rain would make the biggest mess right now. Although, this is a big improvement from the gravel pile  we had before.  

Perfectly ground coffee for a lawn - it's like my dreams have come true. (It's actually dirt.) 

Slope is now in the right direction.  Time to dig it up and do some landscaping!

N I N E D A Y S L E F T . . .

Tonight was the first night all week that we didn't spend at Home Depot - so many loose ends needing to be tied.  Exhausting.

Light, dazzling light

The electrician has been working in the paint-free zone (the second floor) getting lights installed. It's amazing how simply covering a light bulb seems to finish a room.

Lucy's shiny, girlie light.  Even more fabulous than I thought.  This is the Bel Air Metalic Ceiling Light from Lowes.  

This Portfolio Flush Mount from Lowes was the only decent looking fixture that we found that took a 100W traditional bulb.  AND it was only $25!  Score!

Garage power!

Electric has been run to the garage and now lights have been installed.  

We totally cheaped out on the garage lighting.  Thanks to $5 jelly jar outdoor lights.    Yup, they provide light.  

Oh no!  We built on a fault line!!!  Crap.

Plumbing power!

Also in the paint free zone, the plumber is plumbing away.  Things are coming together, pieces here and there.  

The first piece of the master shower is in place.  

This Kohler Kelston faucet was scored on Craigslist for $50.

Finally ready for plumbing!  The backsplash was installed now that it is thinned down and sinks installed.  

Bleach, soffits and magic markers

Plumbing update
We now know which celebrities to thank for the delightful bathroom fixtures.  The condo was owned by Dwane Casey (coach) then later rented to Al Jefferson (player), both of Minnesota Timberwolves fame.  While these names mean nothing to me, based on the reactions I have gotten, I believe I will bleach the tub with much gusto.  I will also lie to myself that the tub only served as the beer cooler during the NBA parties often held at the condo.

Soffit trouble
Smooth, painted soffit was always the plan especially since we will have 3 foot overhangs staring down at us.  Unfortunately through a misunderstanding, we only budgeted for aluminum soffit.  We thought long and hard over the budget increase and ended up sticking with the aluminum option.  Oh, smooth soffits, the dream of you will be missed.

A sense of the size and visibility of the soffits.

Cabinet meeting
We met with Brad, the cabinet guy today.  We stood in the kitchen as he drew out the cabinet plan with marker on the floor.  It was surreal!  With a few rejiggers of Brad's draft, we are looking forward to an incredibly coherent kitchen plan.

Looking good in the kitchen.

A trip upstairs

We had the chance to see the upstairs since it was framed.  Things are coming along great!  

My closet is so big,  I can't reach both sides at the same time. 

Lucy's room has a small walk-in closet complete with a window!  Gonna need a shade on that.