Are We There Yet?

This past week marked the end of Week 5 of Project Kitchen Renovation.  And we're ALMOST there.  ALMOST isn't really any consolation when you've been doing your dishes in the bathtub for 35 days, though.

Because we're getting closer to the end, I don't want to spoil the big reveal with full room pictures at this point, so we'll just do some closeups to tide you over!

First up- the countertops are in!  I worked last week sealing the undersides of the countertops at night after the contractor left for the day.  They stunk up the basement for a few days, but I wanted to make sure that all 6 sides of these beautiful walnut countertops are sealed against the elements as much as possible.  I won't bore you with step by step details on how to seal butcherblock countertops, but here's the link to the best tutorial I found on DIY sealing.  The product I'm using is called Waterlox- I did my research, and found it to be very highly recommended for sealing butcherblock countertops with undermount sinks. 

Umm...amazing, right?

My contractor installed the countertops after the bottoms were sealed, and now I've been working to seal the tops at night to give them ample time to cure before work begins the next morning on other parts of the kitchen.

Sink's in!  Too bad there's still no water hooked up to it.  I got a 10'" deep sink.  Couple that with 2" thick countertops, and one short gal, and you'll probably find me head down, bum up on multiple occasions as I fall into the depths of this beautiful piece of sinkdom.  (Not. Even. A. Word.  Really, though, who cares!?)

Look at all that extra counterspace!!
Think of the smorgasbord of food that can be lined up
in Pinterest worthy shots that will drive everyone mad
with jealousy! (Or not, if you're not into that sort of thing.)

The tile is also in the process of being installed. 

Yes, siree, I asked the contractor to tile behind the entire fridge.
You'll never see it after this picture, but I know it's there.

My open shelves are also starting to get their coats of sealer...look how beautiful they are!!  Quick shoutout to my brother's friend Steve King (yes, that's his real name) for making these beauties for me on super short notice so I could haul them back with me from New York last month.  He's such a gem!

Bottom shelf with one coat of sealer.  Others are still raw walnut.
So pretty!!!

That's all you get, folks.  A few quick snapshots before this project gets wrapped up!!  (And by wrapped up, I mean that my contractor is going on vacation in a few days so the project completion date is getting delayed.  It was supposed to be done before he left.  Sigh.)