What I did over winter vacation

Second week of February I took time off from work to install the kitchen.  It just wasn't going to happen in after-work two hour segments in the evening.  Also, I had committed myself to having a Valentine's Day party, so the threat of all those house guests really lit a fire under the bum-bum!

The cabinets took a day to install, as did finishing up the remaining drain line plumbing that hides behind the lazy susan and then goes down the laundry chute.  Fortunately, I was able to reuse pvc pipe from the basement that was removed when first floor laundry drain was reconfigured.  Just an elbow or two and some flex line was all I had to buy.

The butcherblock went in with only *minor* difficulties considering it's all old plaster (not straight/square/plumb) still on the walls.  Being able to install it myself and do the cut out for the sink saved major money over hiring someone to install stone/solid surface.  

Also, when you drop something on wood, it's much less likely to break. 

...Which is a bonus if you're me.

Pre-party dinner. I heartily endorse Freschetta frozen pizza!

Someday, there will be about 12 inches of stone on either side of the stove for hot things. Something like soapstone or slate, nothing shiny. Also on the to-do list is a tiny cabinet for the right of the stove to hide the side (it's a slide-in model) and to provide support for aforementioned countertop.  Some thing curved, with open shelves to hold cookbooks or something decorative. Definitely cobbled together out of scrap wood, like all my projects!

I'm still debating the backsplash.  My criteria right now is that is must be super cheap/free. I'm thinking I'm going to harvest some more wainscoting from the basement and install it in varying height pieces to disguise the fact that the windows don't line up at all.  They're also crooked, because the whole house leans like a drunken sailor.  I pretend it's an endearing quirk.  Behind the stove I'll use the leftover subway tile from the bathroom to create a 30in x 30in square for splash protection.  

But these things are on hold as I finish up the sun porch and final bedroom...