During this remodel, my primary concern was protecting the cedar beams in the vaulted ceiling. A tedious project but the end results made my hours on the scaffolding worth it.
I knew before my first swing of the sledgehammer that this kitchen ceiling project was going to be brutal. My first summer in the Texas heat, no air conditioning and countless hours spent in the attic.
Things are looking a bit more calm after the insulation and sheetrock was cleaned up. I brought in a structural engineer to authorize the removal of the remainder of that partition wall. Safety first.
I hired drywall contractors to install the sheetrock on the exposed ceiling. As much as I would have liked to do this work myself, I was tapped out after the demo work. Fortunately, these were the best contractors that I have worked with since moving to Austin.
Taking a break from my overalls to sport some Dad-fashion while sanding the base cabinets
Cedar paneling removed from the front wall, book case and the fireplace. The wood paneling seemed to be absorbing so much natural light from this space. I wanted the limestone fireplace to be a stoic figure in this room, my vision was to remove the replace the wood paneling and backfill with matching limestone.
As nasty and time consuming as this popcorn removal was, it turned out to be the most transformative project at Caracara. I love to get my hands dirty and take responsibility for doing the gritty work.
Taking this limestone partition wall down was no small feat. I had to bring in reinforcements, Zero. My 11 year old Welsh Corgi.
I estimated the wall in its entirety weighed 2-tons. I had to carefully remove each stone to preserve the carefully protected slate tile work below. The vision for the kitchen is coming together.
Revealing drywall underneath 40 year old popcorn texture
The glamour shots at the end of a project are wonderful, but moments like this are humbling reminders of the labor required to complete home remodels.
My first time working on a concrete subfloor. Coming from the Northeast where subfloors are predominant, this was an interesting learning experience. Scraping the old laminate floors reveals the concrete subfloor and the construction adhesive that secured the flooring.
My wife and business partner, Olivia, after a few hours spent covering old wall texture.
After the removal of the laminate flooring, I had to grind the adhesive off of the subfloor. This was an important step in the process, ensuring that the new hardwood oak floors were going to adhere properly to the subfloor.
As I mentioned previously, I grew up in the Northeast where hardwood floors are predominately featured in residential homes. I believe in the natural beauty and durability of hardwood flooring. Other materials would have been easier to install but I want my work to stand the test of time.
The previous home owner installed the custom beige/black flooring throughout the kitchen. I admired the attention to detail and made an early decision to preserve the tile floors. This became tricky following the removal of the limestone wall. Using a diamond blade on an angle grinder, I was able to establish clean edges on the tile that was going to be preserved. This gave me a nice template to start my continuation of the tile work completed by the previous owner.
Tapered custom cuts on each tile where needed to complete this angled entrance to the kitchen
I am so pleased with how this tile work came out. When the limestone wall was removed, I found an uneven subfloor which was an obstacle I had not yet faced. After salvaging tile to match the existing, the black boarder ties the old tile to the new work.
Countertop Installation day. Time for tile backsplash.
With the addition of the custom dine-in island, quartz countertops, backsplash and refaced cabinets, I could finally see the finish line on this kitchen remodel.
One of the final steps in this kitchen remodel was recessed lighting installation. I spent more hours in the attic than I care to admit but I am proud of the end result. LED lighting all controlled by wifi dimmer, perfect for day or night.