The kitchen demolition has begun

How exciting to see our kitchen being transformed. We have slowly been working away on taking apart the kitchen cabinets that had been custom built by the previous owner. The floor to ceiling cabinets did not fit into our new kitchen vision and they had to go. 

We felt badly throwing out the cabinets thinking that they were solid wood and that we might be able to recycle them. We looked into the option of donating them to Habitat for Humanity but were refused because they are too old. We also thought about putting them up on Craigslist or reusing them in the basement but during the demolition we discovered that they are actually wood veneer with a particle board core. We don’t feel that badly about getting rid of them now.

This past weekend we were able to remove all three of the built-in cabinets from the dining area and carried the huge cabinets out to the driveway. Yes, Misha made me carry them out with him! My back still aches...

Working hard at the demo

We also removed the dropped ceiling and replaced the fluorescent light with a temporary builder's socket. At first, taking apart the cabinets seemed like a daunting task. There were no nails showing and everything was very solid. We started dismantling this puzzle piece by piece with the help of a crow bar and hammer. We were able to remove the cabinets ourselves, saving time and money.

It is amazing to see the kitchen be transformed from a small dark room into an open, light-filled space. We keep looking at it to see what a great sized kitchen we suddenly have. 

Before

In process 

The next step in the demolition will be removing the cabinet above the gas stove and the stove exhaust fan. We will need to get this done before the windows arrive to give the installers enough space to work around the window frame. The kitchen renovation is suddenly starting to feel more real. Exciting!
Mia