I decided to reformat this web site so it wasn't one huge page. I've broken it up and you can start from the beginning & walk through all the progress updates by clicking the links from left to right. The most current update will be here on the main page.

Update 12/18/2008:

Yes, been a long time since last pics and I know a lot of you have been wondering....truth be told we've been using the kitchen for better part of last 2 months, but the final bartops really took a long time. A few weeks to shape / prep, a week to finish, 3 weeks to wait for the finish to cure, 1 week to rub-out and another week to install (time not effort). Because quite frankly, as you'll see from the pics, it just doesn't look done until the bar-tops were installed.

We're not finished - we have two custom lights which we need to get done, Michelle's desk needs to go through same 6 week process, drywall has some patching in dining room, but it's very usable.

Below is our new stove area - the pot filler faucet is really nice. The Blue-Star range rocks! It is as good as all the reviews which brought me to get this. We're very happy!

The two cabinets on either side are pull-outs for sauces. They're right where we need them.

Spice pull-out to the left & utensil pull-out to the right (not shown)

The new sink area. Pullout trash is on the left

Towel pull-out to the right

Michelle wanted vertical silverware drawers - pretty cool!

The new fridge. It has a trim kit to make it look like a built-in, but it isn't ;-)

Can storage holds a lot!

Below if freezer area

Part of the pantry area:

Lazy susan recycler / dog food holder:

The new ovens. The Adventium on top rocks. It's a combo micro / convection. Very nice! The bottom oven is a convection only.

Coffee sink area.

Update 9/20/2008:

It's been 1 1/2 months since the last update - shows what happens when you go back to work and can't work 8hrs a day anymore. Things go a lot more slowly. Working at work, then coming home and getting in 2-3 hours is really draining.  This was definitely a lot to chew off and do. So, cabinets are 95% done (two more to do ), installed, and trim is installed. Granite is now installed.

The plan had been to have the finish guy come in and finish the cabinets this week, but he bailed at the last minute, so we're now searching for another person to do the finish. Once we get the finish on the carcasses, we were going to get the appliances installed and start using the kitchen. Now we need to wait another 1-2 weeks.

Here's what's left to do:

Install Pantry shelf unit (already built)
Build and install two 6" cabs left/right of the stove for sauce / bottle pull-outs
Put finish (stain, etc) what's current installed
Build all drawers
Build shelf units for upper cabinets
Put finish on all drawers, drawer fronts, upper cabinet doors
Install all drawers, drawer fronts and cabinet doors
Install all pulls on drawers / doors
Install back-splash tile
Install all outlets / switches
Install custom lights above bar, dining room and kitchen nook area
Install 5 undercabinet lights
Install pot-filler faucet above stove
Install kitchen sink faucet, drain, garbage disposal
Install prep sink faucet, drain, garbage disposal
Finish tile where we closed off stairs
Build under-stair 60" pull-out to store table leaves
Build gas-stove nook, install gas-stove
Build desk base cabinets
Install Bar & Desk wood slabs
Install insulation in garage ceiling
Drywall garage, stair (closed out area), and numerous patches
Paint

You can jump to the new pictures here, or just scroll down. I've moved the "progress" pics up front, so these first few pictures show the transformation.

Here's the current shot. The base & crown molding are installed, granite is in. Stove is just temporary to get the granite sized right. It isn't installed yet. The bar cabs in front, particularly the left one was a real challenge. It is 7 1/2 feet long, two 45 degree corners and a 8" chase built in the top for plumbing & wiring. Next up I have some 3" thick slabs of wood I need to put on for the bar top (live edge no less) and attaching them is going to be a challenge - this cabinet needed to be stout.

This is the kitchen sink. That cabinet was a good 4 day effort. It's one huge 55" by 51" corner cabinet. I did it all as one cabinet b/c the sink actually encroaches in on the two side cabinets to either side. You can see the dishwasher in it's space (but not hooked up obviously).

Here's the oven area. I got most of the drawer slides installed - these are 30" deep cabinets and I didn't want to be fighting it after the granite was installed.

Here's a different shot of the stove, taken behind the bar area

This is the prep sink area back in the pantry. The plans the designer had created came up with an extra 6" we didn't have, so when I went to build these base cabinets, I cut them back to 22" to give us a bit more walking area between fridge and the prep sink.

Below is the double oven to the left of the prep sink

This is to the right of the oven...We'll be installing the corner shelf unit (a huge cabinet in the shape of an "L") today.

This is the can storage...It doesn't look like much, but it's 8' tall by 5' wide, with 45 degree edges on both sides, which was really hard to build. It'll look better once all the shelves are in (11 of them)

here is the space for the fridge. It's directly across from the prep sink. The can storage cabinet is the right side of this. When I built the broom closet, which is the left wall of the fridge bay, the top opening was supposed to line up, but when we went to install it, I found that overhang on top came down 1" in the front (I had measured in the back), so to compensate, we cut down the toe kicks, now the top cabinets don't line up :-(