It's looking great! I love your office and garbage/recycling organization. Hope the countertop goes well.

Drupper? I just get street addresses or Afrikaanse websites. I am now curious, drupper.

Oh, cross-posting. Cute story. From now on, all DIY projects will be drupper. LOL

Funkycamper, you have to type it drüpper, to get the true definition! lol. copy and paste my spelling.

I can feel your excitement steph, it's contagious! My fingers and toes are crossed for the counter and sink. Hopefully the reclaimed wood guy shapes up. Almost there! So looking forward to your reveal. :)

Sometimes working on a DYI is about as enticing as an STD. So it works for me!

Bahaha! And trust me, do not google images for "drüpper"!

Whining time (It's my kitchen and I'll whine if I want to) My installer just has three tiny things to be finished, but because of the Great Ikea Famine of '15 they are running way behind schedule and playing catch-up and I have been waiting a week and a half for a guy to stop by for half an hour and install/fix things to finish this kitchen. I have one pull left to install and because they didn't follow the plans correctly I have several interior drawers that need to be changed, and so can't use the drawers while I wait. But pay your guys overtime to catch up, please. It's been a month. Install the pull.

And my saviour the woodworking man took our reclaimed wood three weeks ago, said it would take 1-2 weeks. Has not answered several emails. No I did not give a deposit but the guy didn't seem like he couldn't be trusted, he is just a local guy and came for the site visit with his two year old daughter who was adorbs. But dude answer your emails or give me back my wood. I need a countertop, I am typing this on a garbage bag.

People, I want to pay you money to do things you are good at. Show up and I will pay you money. I WILL PAY GOOD CASH MONEY TO GET THIS $%^%& DONE!!!!

OK these are not big problems, I know. Give it a chance, the sink gets installed tomorrow ha!

LOL ahhhh I feel better...

Thanks for posting your undersink recycling! It is great seeing this come together.

Good luck with your counter, IKEA things and sink!

I love how your kitchen is coming along! Thank you for sharing. Are your Ikea cabinet doors the same off-white color as the former Adel White or are they a little whiter? StephaNJ,They look great and I love your hardware.

Thanks susanlynn :-) - The Grimslov off-white is apparently the exact same off-white as the old Adel. I think it reads pretty "white", although there is a small difference between my white appliances. In person, it's the colour of milk.

On a side note the kitchen gods must have heard my prayers because the woodworker guy emailed this morning and said it will be done this weekend! So I could have this kitchen 95% done by Monday. Time to get my painting clothes on.

My KD is ignoring my email but I can't blame her lol - I have gotten super-obsessive and stalker-like at this stage, there must be a name for this syndrome, this hyper-focus on tiny details...kitchenitis.

Stephanj, we are at the same place in our remodel - waiting on the countertops and SINK. Can't wait to have running water again. Once the finances recoup, we will also be planning a deck. Your kitchen is going to be beautiful!

Well yesterday was a fun and stressful day! Long story short: we have running water!

Long story long:

(reclaimed wood guy got back to me and is coming this weekend?)

(Ikea guy is coming to finish on Monday?)

DH booked the plumber to come yesterday afternoon to hook up the sink. We have been without a kitchen sink for five weeks. 3pm on a sunny Friday afternoon and they still hadn't shown up, so DH calls them. THEY GOT THE DATE WRITTEN DOWN WRONG... Well needless to say I was willing to do anything to get a sink that day, so we fired that plumber and DH phoned around and of course got laughed at for wanting a plumber on a sunny Friday afternoon. Finally we got the number of an independent guy, AKA my Knight in Shining Armour, who came with an assistant and got it hooked up and running, not only that did an above average job, switched out some cheaper plastic stuff that came with the sink for his own stock of metal parts etc. It all worked out but by then I was drinking lol.

Oh yah and the countertops look gorgeous. It's funny though, I should be doing a happy dance. I am just numb.

Oh, how pretty!

Once the shock of being (almost) done is over, you are going to love that kitchen!

Don't be numb, be happy!! ;) *clapping*

The counters look great and, oh joy, happy dance on having a working sink. Are those the reclaimed wood counters?

thank guys!

funkycamper - no those are the black laminate. DH hasn't done the metal trim yet. the reclaimed wood goes in the DR part of the project, as a bartop.

I'm a laminate lover. No wonder I like them. The metal trim is going to really pop against the black. Very cool.

I can't wait to see photos of it AND your awesome bartop.

And I have to give a shout out to one of the FEW who also like double sinks. I'm with ya, wouldn't consider anything else. Enjoy that baby. ;)

Double AND top-mount Beth09!!! :-) Love it!

You go girl. :)

Looking great! We've done a renovation (not remodel) in our kitchen. It went pretty quickly until we got to the end and we've had a few hold ups that we're waiting on. And waiting, and waiting, etc...

I was really anti-drawer inside drawer when I first saw it. It sounded bizarre and dumb. But then low and behold, we ran into a problem. Our new cooktop is from a different company and other issues with the wall created a bunch of problems (loooong story). Spoke to Ikea and the solution they provided was drawer inside drawer. There was a part of me that wanted to come up with a reason why it wouldn't work as a solution because drawer inside drawer is gimmicky. But they were right. It does work.

We got the full carousel corner but I think there is less lost space usage. We have put magazine holders on either side of the cabinet for muffin trays. (I hate baking and don't need to access muffin trays often. Seemed like a good spot for them.)

I never looked at the Akurum system. I've only known the Sektion system. When looking up Ikea kitchens, I've noticed a lot of Ikea fans having a lot to say about the change. But not "remembering" the old system, I don't know what they're talking about.

Ikea has always been close by. I've lived in UK, Germany, Cyprus, Spain, US and Canada. Currently Toronto. There are three Ikea's in the GTA and one a little further out in Burlington. When they ran short on doors, I drove to a different location in the GTA and picked them up there instead. It works quite nicely for me. That said, I don't own much Ikea. I've always been put off by the size of the stores and the amount of time it takes to get through the place and they're not so easy to get to by transit. I don't like to drive. It's just when it came to other stores selling kitchens, I was completely 'underwhelmed' by their websites. None of them were upfront with me in the way that Ikea was. I loved how Ikea gave me quick, straight answers and prices right online. That is what I want! Upfront pricing and answers. It just feels so honest. The other places want to sit down and talk it out. No. **** no. If it hadn't been for the online ap, I doubt I would have gotten around to doing the kitchen. I would have gotten frustrated, given up, replaced the doors and appliances, sold the house and bought a place with a new kitchen that wasn't exactly what I wanted but close enough.

When I read about designers promising to find customers discounts, it says to me that their suppliers are ripping off customers who don't use designers. If you have one price for customers and another price for customers who come to you from contractors and architects and designers, I'm instantly put off. I don't want to use businesses that operate this way. I don't want to hand them my money. It strikes me as dishonest. It should be the same price for everyone.

I love how my kitchen has come along and I haven't handed money to any companies that are jerking people around with different price structures depending on which person is asking for a quote. Upfront pricing all the way.

Looks great! I have the same cabinets and I used laminate counters too, WilsonArt Black Alicante. It's supposed to resemble soapstone. I have the single Domsjo sink though.

Hi stephanj - we're going to get our Sektion cabs in the next week. Do you have a reveal post? Any more impressions after using the cabs? Thanks!

Been thinking about you and wondering if you've just gotten lost in all the wonderful newness of your kitchen! ;)

Stephanj, I happened on this thread this morning before signing in to Ikea to, again, struggle with their planning program. Half way through, I figured out that you must live close by, relatively. The mention of "Island", the use of both Imperial and metric in a post told me you were Canadian, and the name Cloverdale Paints clinched it. We live in Victoria.

First, your kitchen looks fantastic, I think of it as modern retro and very cool. I so appreciate your detailed post where you gave measurements. Nowhere on the IKEA site could I find the inner drawer dimensions and it has clinched it for me in terms of drawer style. I love the look of the even three drawer split but my kitchen organizing calls for some taller drawers, so I am going with the three different sized drawers in a stack.

I was also very interested in your opinion of the corner cabinet pull outs which were on my shopping list. While I hate to waste space, I hate inefficiency more and may well take your suggestion of a blank corner in return for another stack of drawers. I have seen other corner cab solutions but none that really thrill me.

i also appreciated the photo of the under sink cabinet - it makes a very long pullout! Someone else posted about using the same box and installing two side by side pullout drawers, so I am considering that. And the reminder about plinths and end cover boards - probably thing I would not have thought of.

We are actually planning on hauling the boxed kitchen to Mexico where we are building a home, so I need to get the details right as I will be a long way from a store!

looking forward to seeing the final pictures. Thanks again for all the great info.

Carol

Carol, I don't mean to detract from this lovely kitchen of StephanJ's kitchen but I have a couple of comments on your post. I have installed a run of Ikea Laxarby recently. Total DIY. First time. Sounds like yours will be a DIY too.

First, the idea to use one large box and put 2 side by side drawers in there under the sink won't work, as far as I am aware, without major remodel. The drawers need a box side on each side to fasten to. That is my thought. You might be able to put 2 boxes together and make a "U" cut out of the center area for the sink and plumbing, while still maintaining the integrity of the box and the metal straps that hold the sides together, so they don't spread.

Second, the end cover boards that cover a box that has an exposed side are also used as filler strips. Here is my detail of the filler strips. I used a cut end panel board to fit, a 2x4 length to function as a backer to the filler strip, and a method of fastening the filler strip to the 2x4. I happened to use velcro, lol.

See the screw within one of the predrilled holes for the shelf pins? It is 3 holes up from the bottom hing. That is the screw that holds the 2x4 between the end cabinet and the wall:

This is the 2x4 in place:

This is my velcro method of attaching the end panel cut to fit. the upper set of velcro still has the plastic peel strips on the sticky back of the velcro. My finger points to a sticky back. The 2 sides of the velcro are hooked together at this stage:

Then I slapped them on, lol. I did pull it apart to raise the panel a smidgen and it worked fine when I reconnected the panel:

I also used velcro to apply the crown at the top because there was no way I could get a screw driver up at the top to fasten the crown. It seems to be just fine:

The crown for the bottom was screwed into the bottom of the boxes. It is a stupid method. But the the way I wanted the crown mounted (it can be turned several ways for the reveal you want) that is what they had you do. So my screw heads don't screw in flush. My plan is to take out each screw, one by one, and counter sink a hole so the screw head will be just below the surface of the crown surface. Then I will use a crayon type filler to mask the holes. That is my plan, but it is not done yet:

Finally, there are metal straps that provide support for the box, so they don't spread apart. Stone counter may not set on them appropriately. I am doing my own soapstone counter top. I did not get info at the time when I bought the cabinets on mounting a counter. I just assumed the tops were smooth. But they are not. There is a angle bracket type piece that is bought separate. I was not told about this so don't have them. Its called a "Fixa" or something like that. They mount onto the sides of the box and lift the counter slightly above the straps. Otherwise someone suggested to fill the box sides with a layer of formica, front to back, to raise to the level of the straps.

I don't think I will use the "Fixa" (?), and instead place an underlayment of 1/2 plywood on top of my cabinets then lay my soapstone on top of that. The over hang will disguise the ply edge and I will either paint or stain the edge before installation.

steph, you have not responded to several posts now, I do hope everything is ok.

Enduring, thanks for the photos, I never would have thought of Velcro. The under sink idea actually came from this website. IKEA used to supply a part so that you could attach two pull outs within one cabinet. Scroll through this link for photos: http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2999950/can-i-hack-a-trash-pull-out-from-an-ikea-15-inch-depth-cabinet-base

Yes that looks great. The pictures near the end of the thread that bbtrix post are very good. This is great.

stephanj Your kitchen looks great! We are planning to use Sektion as well. I want under cabinet lighting but not sure I love the 2700/3000 color temperature. We are going with cool lighting for the kitchen ceiling lights.

@stephanj Would you be gracious enough to give us an update?

Question to dukegirl:

The new IKEA upper cabinets are 15" deep, and undercabinet range hood top part is 12" deep.
How come your cabinets don't stick out 3"? How did you solve the problem?

Thanks.

Hi! Our installers cut a piece of wood and stained it to match the cabinets to act as a filler behind the hood vent. I've attached a couple photos.

Thank you, dukegirl,

So your're saying your hood is installed 2.75" off the wall (the cabinet is 14.75" deep)?

Yes.

Great, thank you very much

I was told that the strip behind the vent hoods installed in deeper upper cabinets had to be wrapped with metal to meet code so that is what my cabinetmaker did.

Actually I thought the same thing about wrapping the strip with metal, just to be safe.

But as far I as know the code requires to have min 30" from top of the stove to combustible material (or hood). So in dukegirl's case I think there is at least 30" between "combustible" wood strip and the stove.

Whatever it was, it passed inspection here in MA!

My sincerest apologies, guys! I dropped off the face of the earth there! My mother passed away from cancer, and so the kitchen...well you know, priorities. But so sorry not to respond to you guys!

I owe you an update! Sorry for any questions I didn't answer! Please forgive me :-)

Here are my thoughts almost 2 years later:

-The grimslov cabinets are wearing very well - I clean them mostly with vinegar water, they clean up very well.

-All the drawers and doors are still working perfectly, had a prof'l installer so that helps! They feel very strong

-my filing cabinet rocks

-the drawer within a drawer thing has been great for storage. I hate a bit that ikea drawers are sloped, it makes it hard to use other interior organizers.

-black tow kicks - genius. If they were white they would already be disgusting

- I HATE that corner lower pull out - although for my space it was the only solution. It is pretty strong but truth be told I am kinda waiting for it to break someday. Also the sides aren't very high and stuff falls off all the time behind it and we have to get our back scratcher (it's long) to dig them out. But there was no alternative, bending down into cupboards would have been worse. But I think if I had done deep drawers there and left the corner blank I would have been just as happy.

Where there it is - Other than that I would do everything over again! Side note - my laminate countertops are already showing signs of wear. I give them 10 years.

More pictures to follow!

Diningroom - We custom-ordered those curved corner shelves. I think my designer thought we were smoking something lol, but I love them. Did a central plate shelf - hack idea - that plate rail is actually one of those kitchen wall organizer things turned on its side - we get a lot of earthquakes in Victoria so it's practical. Omigosh the cabinet lighting was expensive but I ADORE IT. On a cosy winter evening it's so elegant.

The wooden top on the sideboard got done - we ended up clearcoating it. Its a little warped but I tell myself that's part of the charm lol.

So sorry for you loss. Glad to have you post! My DH LOVES our under cabinet LED lighting too, but I never told him the cost, lol.

DH's file cabinet drawers are still working wonderfully too.

That 15" deep run fits nicely there. I almost did that opening area for my run, but needed the cabinet space more. I wanted it to be a little desk area. Very nice.

My counter still isn't completed. Just soapstone partially fabricated sitting on perfectly scribed 1/4" plywood.

A few views overall. Omigosh I hate the dishrack it looks cute but it sucks, you have been warned :-P Did different pulls in the kitchen vs the diningroom. The best thing was to go in person and hold the pulls in my hand before I ordered them, hand feel is so important when you are using something everyday.

Never ended up putting the metal edging on the countertops - we loved them as-is.

That marmoleum floor is the BEST. scratched buff out, it cleans up so easily. It's the first thing people notice when they come in the room.

Last but not least the finishing touches. The tile was expensive but because I minimized it to one feature wall it was a affordable. It gave the kitchen the "wow" it needed. And I never could decide on window dressing, so I ordered these little flags from etsy, they make me smile.

OK there you go. I will try and check back this time in case anybody has questions. How did Lavender Lass's kitchen turn out, anyone know?

Currently doing our bathroom reno because of a leak, sigh it never ends.

All the best to you guys! Steph

PS -

dukegirl - LOVE the tile.

carolscasa- would love to see your kitchen and how it turned out!

enduring - Thank you!

Still waiting for countertop!!?!! I love soapstone though it will be worth it. You are earning your screenname :-)

lol, no, the counter top is on the cabinet run. Its waiting from me to finish it. It's not sanded out, nor is it seamed. It's just laying there. I'm the worlds biggest procrastinator.

lol I hear ya. Only half the baseboards in our house are attached.