We’ve officially passed our one month mark – so far, so good! Here’s the re-cap from last week:
1. After the Benite dried, we applied a coat of SatinThane, a non-toxic polyurethane finish.
The old growth fir soaked up the finish nicely and we decided one coat was plenty.
2. Since the joists will be exposed, we needed to add blocking in between so the drywall will have something to attach to.
But first we added a layer of rigid insulation to help reduce thermal bridging.
3. Kyle also framed in the wall for the new bedroom/flex space! We need to pick up some more lumber for the door header, but the width you see will be the actual opening. There will be a barn door track above (something like this) with two doors that slide to each side. The idea is that the space could be a second bedroom (doors closed) or an extension of the adjacent living room (doors open).
4. Today, Kyle and Dustin started the framing for the vaulted ceiling. So fun to see the space begin to take shape!
And sometimes, living in your house while you remodel it can be beneficial. (Sadly, the fridge is too tall to fit in the basement.) I also have a new found respect for the “work triangle”. Having the fridge, sink and cooking area in different rooms and on different floors does not encourage actual cooking.
5. We’re still trying to find the right countertop material! We’ve amassed a collection of various quartz products and are leaning towards one of the middle options – not too white but not too busy – we like the ones with small flecks of blues and browns that match the cabinet color and island top (the butcher block sample below is lyptus, still deciding on the exact material).
6. Tonight, we laid out and painted the first two sheets of MDO. This will go over the exposed joists and become the finished ceiling.
One more coat and we should be good to go! We’re using the same paint that was used in the mudroom – Benjamin Moore’s Aura in “super white”. We painted our exterior with Aura and used the mudroom/porch as a test for their interior product. We were happy with the color and quality of the paint, but Aura is only low-voc, so we may try out their Natura line (which is zero-VOC) for the rest of the interiors. Has anyone tried out Natura? We’ve used other low and zero VOC paints on past projects – but love the quality and consistency of Benjamin Moore.
But really…painting seems like a long ways away.