Movin' Right Along

Today we made an unplanned stop by the apartment to drop something off that our architects need tomorrow. And boy, are we happy we did! We were really excited and surprised to see some initial framing being done. The demolition seems to be pretty much done at this point, and as you can see above, they have removed the remainder of the wall in the guest bathroom. This extra space will allow room for our soaking tub. If you come to visit us once this is all done, we promise to let you take a bath in there if you would like. We'll even throw in the rubber ducky!



Lew + Crew started framing the floating closet in the master bedroom (otherwise known as Steve's Closet), and they also framed the wall that divides the living room and the office. The pictures of that are above. We're a little thrown off by how the space now feels, but trust that this is just because it's all new.

Video Update

While we were surveying the apartment yesterday, Steven took a video of the progress we saw. If you're interested in seeing it too, you can view it here.

Demolition Derby, Week 2

This evening we went back to The Apartment to check out the two days worth of progress from Monday and today. What we found was some smaller, more detailed work had been done. The soffet in the main room that was between the wall and ceiling had been removed, which really opens up the room in a happily surprising way. Also in the main room, we finally decided to take measurements of the entryway closet to make sure it will fit both our bikes (VERY important). And, hurray hurray, it does. Just barely.



The other exciting development that we found waiting for us, was a hole in our guest bathroom wall. I know this doesn't sound like much (and sort looks like a hobbit pathway), but it's how we'll be able to fit in our larger bathtub. LET'S HEAR IT FOR BUBBLE BATHS! The pink toilet you see there is just hanging out for now. Unless of course, you'd like it. It's free for the taking as long as you can come and get it.

Details, Details

It looks like things are going well with demolition. Thursday we met with our architects at The Apartment to review the status of the electrical risers and such now that a significant portion of things are exposed. There is just one semi-major decision to be made about moving some wires and what architectural details surround it. Essentially, it comes down to this:

Do we want a closet in this particular area... or a nook? Since we're on opposite sides of the fence on this one (Steven votes for the decorative nook, whereas Lara votes for the ever-practical closet), we're going to have the contractor build out the framing for this area and then decide. We both promise to keep an open mind until then.

A happy detail that we were able to resolve is that we can indeed have wall-mounted faucets in our bathrooms. We weren't sure if we had enough space inside the wall for this, but now we know that we do. This means it will be easier to keep the sink ledges clean. We hope.

Finally, on another decorative note, we also picked up two beautiful vintage holophane lamp shades (see picture above) from our friend Lisa. We are grateful to her for them and will be re-paying her with many home cooked meals and wine. Thank you, Lisa!

...and GO!!!

So today we could barely contain our excitement in going down to The Apartment to see what progress Day One of demolition would bring us. And BOY OH BOY were we NOT disappointed! We pondered yesterday where Lew + Crew would begin, but really, it was a war zone. They began EVERYWHERE! Pictures really don't do this justice, so in addition to these few, we also took a video. However, it was a bit lengthy and we realize that not everyone is quite so into our renovation as we are. So, in the future, once we've mastered the video technique—and length—we'll post those as well.

Video

We bought a Kodak Zi8 in hopes to share some video of the renovation with everyone. Hope this works. . .

Get Ready, Get Set...

Now that we have the final go-ahead (FINALLY) to start construction, our contractor (remember Lew?) took Friday to bring in all his materials so that he can get a fresh start on Monday. Of course, we'll be coming back to the apartment again on Monday to see what has been done. We're taking bets on what gets demolitioned first:

What gets knocked down first?
	wood flooring
	tile flooring
	dividing walls
	bathroom cabinetry
	kitchen cabinetry
pollcode.com free polls

Cue the Wrecking Ball!!

Below is the start of the email we FINALLY received today (note there was no attachment but OH WELL):

"This e-mail is to confirm that your alteration application has been approved. Attached is a copy of the executed agreement and related documents."

This means that Lew + crew come in tomorrow to prep for demolition. We hope this takes less time than more, although we've been told to plan for two weeks. We already have our GE fridge and wine fridge ready to be delivered, so the sooner demolition ends the sooner the goodies can arrive. Hopefully we'll have demolition pictures for you soon.

On a related note: In preparing for the demolition, we gave notice to our neighbors. The two who were home seem very nice. We look forward to getting to know them. AND one who we didn't even get to meet left us this nice note:

Dear Co-op

We have done everything you have requested. We have submitted all of the required papers, including adhering to your last minute requests. Our plumber and electrician have listed you additional insured. Our GC completed and passed his lead paint certification. As of Friday, we have expeditiously responded to and completed everything. After all this, you continue to be non-responsive and slow. We were hoping to start today, or at least hear back from you today. However, our managing agent forgot to mention that she is out of the office. No bother though, we actually enjoy paying mortgage for an empty apartment. Really, it looks so nice and barren right now, why would we want to ruin it? I mean, just look at that lovely pink master bathroom, really?

Meet Lew

Last night we met with our architects and our contractor. We had never met with our contractor before, so we were excited to meet him for the first time. And of course, the very fact that we were meeting him meant that we were (er, are) very, very close to starting the renovation. We walked through the apartment with our contractor, who's name is Lew. He seemed very nice and thoughtful. We reviewed certain specifics and brought up some points, but this was basically a meet and greet. I wish we had taken a picture of him to show you, but I think that really would have made for an awkward encounter. Maybe next time.

Speaking of pictures, we just purchased a pocket video camera so that we can take videos of our renovation in progress and post them here for you to see. In the meantime, you can check what we got—the Kodak Zi8. So far we've only charged it, so we can't give you a review of it just yet. Maybe next time.

Before

In anticipation of finally starting our renovation, we're posting some before photos of the apartment. We're hoping to start demolition this week, but we've hit yet another snag with the co-op. We need to add the co-op as "additional insured" on the insurance certificates of our electrician and plumber—on top of the additional insurance that our general contractor carries. We have discovered that this is a rare request from a co-op. Unfortunately it is also a request that is once again delaying our start. Let's hope for smooth sailing once the demolition starts.