Finished Kitchen and Bathroom Images

Previous Kitchen:

New Kitchen:

New Master Bathroom:

Swanson Residence - Addition & Remodel

The tub and all plumbing fixtures have been installed in the master bathroom. Yes, it's fully functional! The TV has not yet been installed and we're also waiting on the backsplash around the tub deck. The backsplash will be solid stone to match the tub deck and will be 6" high. Pouring in light from above is the remote control skylight. This thing is awesome. It provides ventilation as well as light throughout the entire bathroom. From closed to fully open takes about 30 seconds.

The kitchen tile was installed today. The images show the running bond stone netted tile in place, but not grouted. The installers will be back tomorrow to finish everything up. Check out the glass mosaic above the Monogram burner!

Exterior stucco has had the final application applied. Over time the colors will appear a bit darker and eventually will match the existing.











Remaining items to complete include carpet, landscaping, fence, the deck stairs and then moving in all the furniture.

Doors and Cabinetry

Every day we're getting a little bit closer to completion. All interior doors are on site and have been stained. These are single panel, solid maple doors that will look and feel great for a long, long time. Interior trim on the first floor has been either primed for enameling or stripped to accept staining. Most of the baseboard will be enameled, while the window trim will be stained to match the new cabinetry. The end result will provide consistency throughout. Our hope is that the flow will be natural and the addition will feel as if it's always been part of the house.

The cabinetry has been stained and the countertops have been set. Plumbing to the sink and dishwasher has been connected. Appliances are due to be installed this week! Once these are in we'll nearly have a fully functioning kitchen.

Painting, carpeting, other flooring, electrical fixtures, plumbing fixtures and just a few other details remain. Hopefully the majority of the work will be wrapped up by the 4th of July holiday. Good luck everyone!

Stucco and Flooring

Everything is coming together for the interior finishes and exterior stucco. The new wood floors were stained and the existing wood floors were sanded and refinished throughout the first floor to match. Three part baseboard moulding has been installed in the addition and repaired in the existing. The baseboard will be enameled white. All the kitchen cabinetry is installed including crown moulding. A few tweaks with the upper cabinets are necessary, but other than that we are ready for the stain.

The base coat of stucco should be wrapped up today. It takes about two weeks for the initial coat to dry. If any cracking occurs this will be patched before the final textured coat is applied with color to match existing. The current dark gray color will lighten as the moisture evaporates.




The stacked dining room images are before (top) and after (bottom) and show the new arched openings and widened stairs.



The new bathroom tile upstairs is currently being installed with great attention to detail. Each 3 x 6 piece of beveled carrera field tile is carefully installed by hand with 1/8" grout joints and equal end modules.
Ceiling tile is 12 x 12 as well as the top 1/3 of the wall tiles. The carrera marble has a wide variation of color in the stone. Some quarries produce a carrera that is only white and gray, but this tile has yellows, cremes and softer whites. It has a wonderful warm quality to it and will look excellent with the cabinetry.

Cabinetry and Floors

The kitchen and bathroom cabinetry was installed at the end of last week along with the new wood floors on the main level. The cabinets look great! They will be stained this week and the doors and drawers will be hung with soft closing hardware.
The kitchen has a much different feel now that the cabinets and hood have been installed. It's safe to say that cooking will be an absolute joy in this new space!

The color of the new wood floor will be selected early this week. Once the selection is made all the existing floors on the main level will be refinished to provide continuity throughout. Baseboards, window trim and door trim will also be refinished or replaced for consistency.

All doors have been hung and are awaiting either stain or paint. Most doors and windows have been trimmed, but a few still remain. Baseboard is complete in the main bedroom upstairs and the rest of the rooms will follow. The stair railing and banister has been installed, which gives shape to the family room upstairs.

Natural light pours through the south facing windows and sun tunnels to brighten the house. There won't be too many days when artificial lighting is needed. Surface mounted fixtures and pendants have not yet been installed, but all recessed lighting is operational.

Stucco and exterior details are next!

Sheet Rock

The sheet rock is nearly installed, mudded and taped. Now we can really get a feel for the size of the interior spaces. Of course, the finish materials will make a big difference as far as the quality of light and overall experience is concerned.

I'm glad we got a lot of pictures of the framing before all the sheet rock went up. My friend Taylor recently pointed out major benefits of knowing the location of ducts, plumbing, electrical runs and chases in the walls. This is an advantage for any future remodels or simple additions/alterations when joining with the existing conditions.

The master bedroom ceiling is complete. With the sheet rock in place the alignment of doors and openings becomes more evident. The decision to drop the height of the ceiling here proved to be a good one after seeing the additional horizontal space created.

Concrete & Framing

The shingles are on and the roof is sealed! This view from the street side of the house reveals almost no trace of the new addition. The biggest change is actually the removal of the 50' pine tree that formerly towered over the house. Without the tree an abundance of natural light will enter the living room.

The concrete was poured today in the mudroom and basement. Tomorrow the garage slab will be complete. Framing is finished except for a few adjustments here and there. The framing inspection takes place today so we're hoping for the best.

The arch from the dining room into the hallway was an important point of conversation today. It was decided that getting 3" more by revising the framing was worth the effort. This is a pretty high traffic area for the first floor so it will be great to have space for two people through the opening at once. All of the arches were cut by laying a full scale template over the OSB. This way we can be sure the profiles have similar angles and shape as they change in size.
New windows have been installed throughout the addition. The kitchen had two windows replaced for consistancy. When moving throughout the interior you can get an accurate feel for the amount of natural light that will enter the house. Stucco preparation and calculations are next up for the exterior.

Thankfully we were able to get the new stairs completed without having to push into the bathroom hallway or break the ceiling plane of the kitchen. They are lit very well with the natural light from the second floor sun tunnels. The extra width will also be much more comfortable for lots of traffic.

Nik, from St. Croix Electric is nearly finished with the electrical rough in. Tom, Keith and Stuart from Thornton & Associates Construction are completing the framing today. Thank you to all these guys for excellent work so far!