Decision-making.

The designing and shopping for this project have been extremely fun, but all the decision-making has been stressful. In the last few weeks, we've made hundreds and hundreds of decisions. In the heat of the moment, each one seems to take on monumental importance.

The builders call us almost daily about something they need a decision on: should this shower inset go here or there? Where do you want wall sconces in this bathroom? Do you have a design for the entranceway closet? We're also making decisions about purchases we'd normally consider for weeks or months (or, in fact, for us, even years!)

Like this one, made in a snap.

(Praying it wasn't a bad decision, Martha!)

This one, agonized over (have to keep reminding myself: it's only a house, for heaven's sake!)

Lots to think about:

So, what the best way to make decisions? Well, Andrew came up with a plan for deciding about lighting. (We had 54 lighting fixtures to choose!)

  Step 1: print up Pinterest pictures.

 (there were 8 pages like this)

 Step 2: get some help cutting them out.

 

Step 3: sort into stacks, according to room.

Step 4: get out floor plans.

Step 5: process of elimination. Yes, no, maybe.

Step 6: scotch-tape to floor plans.

Step 7: enlist visiting Grandparents to babysit.

Step 8: go shopping! Haven't counted, but I think we bought about 25 fixtures today, both vintage and new. Here's a selection.

(for front entranceway. The middle bit is wooden, quite lovely)

(Train lamps for the built-in buffet)

(French hall light for the staircase!)

(couple of sconces, chose the glass on the right)

(hallway nook)

All with the help of this lovely fellow from our favourite East Van store, Antique Market.

After playing with Grandparents, the girls came to help load up.

and a few purchases from Restoration Hardware....

task lights for either side of the kitchen sink.

Three of these, I think.

Downstairs bathroom, and, in a different finish, little wall that leads from dining room to kitchen, if I recall correctly.

"Vintage Barn Pendants" for front porch.

 (We had lots of fun at Restoration Hardware. They're lovely there.)

Big spending day. Yeesh!

We even bought a couple from Etsy, including this one:

(I forget where that one goes; I'm overwhelmed and tired!)

Andrew sent me the list of what's left to buy. Oh well, we got a good start today anyway!

main floor

Front porch 2x sconce (glass only)

Back porch 2x sconces

DS bath flush mount

dining –chandelier(s)

3x bar pendants

kitchen 2x sconces

upper

powder – overhead

bath

overhead

2x sconces

1x pendant

girls room 2x chandeliers (lighting warehouse)

master bed 2x makeup sconces

Ever heard of SNU?

Surrey New and Used. Takes about an hour to get there. If you're looking for a used toilet it's definitely worth it.

We went looking for doors; we weren't lucky, despite the selection.

Radiators.

Lockers.

Bathtubs.

A balm for the eyes. One thing about the drive to Surrey: the view can be sublime (unretouched photo!)

Floors!

Just popped in after taking girls to school and actually gasped when I came up the stairs and saw the floors. What a change!

Finally! A new blog post!

It's been a crazy few days. We're now ensconced in our temporary digs (a new duplex, all tickety-boo -- a nice contrast to chaos), though it feels like we're in limbo. Going straight into our new house would have made leaving our old one easier.

Translation from the phonetic: "boo-hoo housie."

However, we're happy the builders are taking their time to continue doing things the way they've been doing them: attention to detail, consultation at every step, and highly-skilled artisanship.

They're busily working away over there, and things are really coming together.

You're probably tired of hearing about this plastering thing, but this Irish guy really is incredibly skilled. The floor guy was telling me that here in Canada it's a dying skill. There're still a couple of people in Vancouver who can do it, he says, but they're 70 or 80 years old. 

Watching Dennis is like watching an artist paint. 

He works quickly too as the plaster dries fast. He does it in TWO coats! With no sanding. 

Look at these curves! That's all by hand! 

OK, I'll stop about the plastering now.

The hardwood floors upstairs are almost done! The floor guy had us in last night to consult on finish, and, on his advice, we decided to go with the natural colour of the wood: sanded smooth but still "bruised" with age. The dark patina is gone and the wood is surprisingly light! (I'd thought we would go with a slightly grey wash in order to tone down the gold tones of the fir, but he said after a couple of years that would look "dirty" and drive us nuts.) I love these contractors who aren't reticent about sharing their expertise!

The hardwood guy. Hilarious! And good at what he does.

This is what the floors looked like after one pass over.

After two.

My closet! 

(Stole the guest room closet, joined them together to make one bigger closet in this room.)

The view from our front porch. (One day without a porta-potty.)

From their perspective.

Kitchen installed!

While we were moving on Wednesday, the Ikea people installed our new kitchen. They started at 9 and were done by about 2 or 3 when they called us over to consult about placement of knobs and pulls.

But first, two days prior, the black tile floor was laid by excellent fellow, Patrick. Katie is quite the proud homeowner!

Ta-dum!

There were 4 or 5 people to install the kitchen. Above is the east wall. The guy's standing where the little kitchen desk will be. Coat closets to his left, broom closet to his right. Craft table in foreground. 

West wall. Stove and range hood will be going in the middle. Notice the wine rack within easy reach of the bar: good planning, Andrew Jackie.

This guy knew his stuff and was all business. Very efficient!

Sink will go under the window.

On the left, Keith McGill of Tercera. Keeping it all together!

Consulting, listening, advising. He even made a trip to Ikea to pick up 

a couple of missing items!

It looks awesome! I guess we'll have to choose countertops soon!

North wall. Where Katie's sitting is where the fridge will go, pantry cabinets on either side. (Notice the purse? That's where it was when I tried to check into the hotel. Aigh! See "moving day" post.)

Ta-dum! Fifi demonstrates pull-out racks in the broom closet. It's such a luxury to have everything planned in advance just the way you want it! 

Twenty-Hour Marathon: preparing for the kitchen install

One-day marathon wall-finishing turnaround, which started at 6 a.m. and was fully drywalled and plastered by 2 a.m. the following morning, dry and ready for the kitchen fitting at 9 a.m. What a miracle of timing ... and hard work! (Feb. 26th)

That plastering is a thing of beauty, giving our new kitchen a heritage look that will match the rest of the house. Not something we'd planned for or asked for, but which we are so thrilled about.