I'm Blue, Da Ba Dee Da Ba Dah: One Room Challenge, Week 6

Hey all!

We’re officially in week SIX of the ORC and our kitchen and breakfast nook are getting so close to being complete! A lot happened this week, so let’s break it down:

Counters Are Feather FINISHED

We finally, finally, FINALLY finished our counters this week! After completing the last of the sanding, we put on three coats of this sealer and this food-safe wax.

If we were to ever do this again, I think we’d be a lot more prepared for the amount of Ardex we were going to need, the mess it would create, and also the amount of time this was going to take. All told, this project took us about three weeks and two and a half bags of Ardex. It only cost us around $200 in materials, which is AMAZING! However, after completing this project, we had to spend a fairly significant amount of time getting concrete dust out of every single nook and cranny of our house. This project was majorly difficult and majorly messy, and the counters are definitely not “perfect” — but that’s DIY life, and we love them all the same!

Faucet Install

Barkley also installed the gold faucet this week, which was super exciting (partially because I love the faucet and partially because I love the ability to use our kitchen sink again.) It’s a truly great faucet — we love the Shield Spray function and the pull out sprayer. We ended up ordering a soap dispenser to go with it and will install that as soon as it arrives.

Floor Paint Update

I mentioned at the beginning of the ORC that I was going to try to paint our kitchen floors charcoal gray, for a slate look. The paint I’m planning on using is Rust-Oleum Interior Floor Coat — it has great reviews for durability and looks beautiful.

What’s the downside, right? Well... it’s REALLY hard to come by. The only place I’ve been able to find it is Home Depot online, and it’s perpetually sold out, especially in the matte finish. I put myself on the waiting list for it at the very beginning of the ORC, and a couple weeks ago I got the news that it was back in stock! I dropped everything (literally, I did this covered in concrete dust) and ordered on the spot. It was supposed to arrive early next week, just in time to finish the floors by the end of the ORC.

Then the worst happened—I got an email this week, days and days after placing my order, saying that the product was actually out of stock and if it didn’t come back by December(?!) it would be canceled. I was (and am, truthfully) pretty frustrated, but there’s not a whole lot to be done—so moral of the story, I may or may not be able to have my floors done by the time of the big reveal. As unfortunate as it is, I recognize that this kind of thing happens with projects—and ultimately, the kitchen will still be transformed.

Cabinets

Speaking of a transformation, and on a happier note—we got our cabinets painted this week! If you remember, we selected Behr's Ultra Pure White for the upper cabinets and PPG's Blue Fjord for the lower cabinets a few weeks ago, and then spent several weeks sanding down cabinet doors, boxes, and drawers. We completed that mid-week, prepped and primed Saturday, and got the painting done today! We’re OBSESSED with the outcome—it’s completely changed the look of the kitchen. I’m leaving the full impact with the final reveal, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to never leave my kitchen again after this.

Wow! That was a lot. This week we have some minor projects to complete for finishing touches—hardware, backsplash, hemming curtains, making throw pillow covers, and trim. Plenty still to do—but the light has officially appeared at the end of the tunnel. Our drop dead date to have this completed is November 24, so cross your fingers for us that we can get this done!

Much love,

Claire