Granite or Quartz Countertop?

We drove to Orlando stone yards to look at quartz countertops, but we really couldn't see much because the big slabs are turned in to protect them from damage. That was disappointing. Everywhere we go, the stone companies seem annoyed by quartz and insist that it really isn't more durable than granite, and that everything I've read on the internet is put out by the quartz companies to sell their product. I'm so confused. I think granite is beautiful, and I can find it a lot cheaper than quartz. How do I know what is true?

Later that day...

Conrad called me and said that after examining our chocolate brown Diamond cabinets (and probably talking with the manufacturer), Lowe's agreed to order our cabinets in black at no extra charge to us. The kitchen project is moving forward again! I am so relieved. I may get a working kitchen yet this year!

I've also decided to start considering granite countertops. My friends with granite love it; my friends with quartz love it. So we'll see what we end up with. It will be a surprise (to me).

Kitchen Saga Continues

Since the Diamond "chocolate brown" cabinets were lighter than the sample (one also had a chip right on the front), Lowe's picked them up this morning. I don't know where we go from here. "Someone" from Lowe's is going to look at them and decide whether the sample and our cabinets match. I guess Lowe's isn't happy about taking them back, but in my opinion, it's all on the cabinet company. If we knew then what we know now, we would never have ordered Diamond. "All wood upgrade" means all the end panels are still particle board. Conrad is disgusted that the cabinets are stapled together. Our house is in chaos for who knows how much longer, and I'm teaching piano lessons everyday and we're starting homeschool soon. We're eating on the couch and I guess we'll be doing school on the couch too, since our table is holding kitchen items. I am somewhere between angry and depressed. The families that come for piano lessons are also getting a lesson in kitchen remodels.

Kitchen Remodel

The Lowes installer came over yesterday to look at the kitchen and check each box to make sure our order was complete. We love our cabinets (Whiskey Black Maple) and the glass pattern. But when he opened the box of "chocolate brown" my heart sank. They looked like a dark stain. Pretty--I actually have a couple pieces of furniture that color-- but not what I wanted, which was black. I was so disappointed. Conrad saw that, although we paid for the all-wood upgrade, the end panels are particle board! Their catalog states the upgrade is all-wood. He called the Diamond company and they weren't helpful. They simply don't make end panels in wood. Conrad was livid and ready to send it all back. Those end panels will be next to our dishwasher! Our Lowes rep promised to come over that evening to resolve this right away. She brought the samples with her, and we could see that our chocolate brown cabinet looked much different than the sample, although the cabinet company had assured us that the cabinets and sample are the same color. She promised to take all the chocolate cabinets back and re-order them in black, rush order. She also said that the installer would make our end panels out of wood, because Diamond would not (I still think that is bizarre). Conrad and I were both happy. She really went above and beyond to make us happy, and completely restored my faith in her.

Anniversary and Kitchen

Today is Thursday, so we're far enough into the week for me to safely say, "This week has been so much better than last week"! I feel normal now that I'm on Benadryl. I thought I caught Jacob's cold too, but after a couple Advil yesterday, felt great.

Monday, Jacob was fooling around with a friend and broke his front tooth. I was very upset. Tuesday, our dentist did a beautiful job repairing it. You'd never know, and Jacob looks like Jacob again.

Yesterday, Wednesday, was our 14th anniversary on the 14th! About 30 boxes of kitchen cabinets were delivered and now tower in our family room. Conrad said, "Happy anniversary!" The installer is taking a look at the kitchen next week, and will schedule installation after that.

We still haven't ordered counters. The numbers from Lowes just don't add up. I don't trust them anymore, because the prices keep going up, and they can't explain why. For instance, I wanted a couple of black cabinets. When we were ready to order, Lowes showed us a chocolate door. I had to prove to them from the manufacturer's book that they really do sell actual black cabinets. After hunting around, the black door was found. Oh, guess what? The black costs more than the brown. That makes no sense to me, black paint versus brown paint, but I went with the cheaper brown. Whatever. Not happy. I repeatedly asked for a turned leg (or two) for under the bar, and after ordering the cabinets, I got home and called to verify if it was ordered in black. Not only was it not ordered in black, but a fluted instead of turned leg was ordered. Wrong leg, wrong color. Of course the leg I wanted was $80 more, making it well over $300 for one leg. I decided to find the leg and paint myself and save $200. It was apparently too late to change the leg order (even though over the next two week I got subsequent e-mails from the company stating that they were starting work on our cabinets). Lowes are supposed to give us a refund. I'm curious to see if that happens, or if I have to pay some sort of restocking fee. We ordered the cabinets without getting a line item pricing, and I'm kicking myself for being so stupid. Lowes does pricing "points" instead of actual figures. I feel like we overpaid and trust is gone. Onto the countertop.

Here at home, Conrad has made great progress in the kitchen. Last week was all about the electricals and moving the phone. Now he's down to sanding where he puttied the new sheetrock together, and painting (although it will all eventually be covered by cabinets and backsplash).

For our anniversary, we had dinner at our favorite restaurant, Thai Paradise, while the boys gorged themselves on takeout pizza. Thai Paradise spoils me for every other restaurant. I got my usual, spicy green curry, and Conrad decided to branch out and try the spicy drunken noodles. He was thoughtful and ordered vegetarian so I could try some. It was delicious! It tasted like teriyaki. When he got the bill, Conrad said, "You're a cheap date!" I was being funny and responded, "And I'm easy too." But Conrad with his hearing problem said, "What?" I said it a little louder (but not really funny anymore), and he said "What?" so I yelled, "I SAID I'M EASY!" and then realized everyone heard me. So much for being funny. I'm going to start carrying pen and paper to communicate with him.

July 2010

Conrad is currently happy in his retirement because he's wrapped up in a project--renovating the kitchen. It seems complicated to me, because we're not just replacing the cabinets--that would be easy. He's changing everything about the kitchen. There's a lot of details to consider. He's moving the stove to a different wall, so he had to consider the proper outlet for that; he's moving the vent, all the light switches, putting in new overhead lights, under cabinet lights, outlets, moving the phone and dishwasher. He's been sawing and hacking away at the cabinets and walls every day (except Sabbath). We had short cabinets attached to drywall boxes, and he removed the boxes so our taller cabinets will fit, and had to sheetrock the areas. After covering our house with drywall dust mixed with whoknowswhat, he hung plastic all around the kitchen, which helped a lot. He's been removing the popcorn ceiling. I am allergic to something and developed a head to toe rash, then swelling, and all my joints ache. I finally got smart and took Benadryl and feel much better--still have fat sausage feet, so it hurts to walk-- but it was quite a miserable week stuck at home! I am impressed with Conrad's energy and organization. He has been so methodical! I feel useless and am looking forward to being able to use the kitchen again. The whole house is a mess, because everything that was in the kitchen is spread everywhere. Our cabinets are being delivered on our 14th anniversary, and we don't know where we're going to put them. After the kitchen cabinets are put in, Conrad will be putting in a tile backsplash and cork flooring. We still haven't ordered countertop. The counter I like is quartz and is $70/sf. I'm now considering cheaper countertop, because we've spent so much on cabinets, new appliances, lights, and haven't bought backsplash or floor. The prices at Lowes are outrageous.

Conrad has been taking Jacob and some friends to band camp every morning. It's been a wonderful opportunity for Jacob! I teach piano lessons during band camp on Monday and Tuesday, and I was going to take them Wednesday, but was too miserable to do much of anything because of this annoying allergy. I was just a useless, swollen, achy, painful lump. I look forward to a better week!