After doing a ton of research on plumbers, we finally decided to go with Fran Taylor Plumbing, a recommendation from a friend. I called their number and talked to a real receptionist in a real office and the final price for all of our work was $700 (compared to the $1400 quote we received last week). The work was done on Wednesday so Andrew stayed home while the plumbers gave us water after six long weeks without it!
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| A sink with water - such a luxury! |
We were beyond happy to finally have a functional kitchen again but I think Timmy, our baby alley cat was the happiest. When I got home Thursday night, he was so excited to show me the new sink that he spent most of the night jumping in and out of it.
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| Timmy only drinks running water #streetsmart |
I have been doing a ton of research on backsplash so I ordered a few samples. They are finally in and I think I have settled on a white backsplash. It's a lot of white but every time I see a picture of it, I think it looks really beautiful. I especially love the white Arabesque tiles.
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| This kitchen made me change my mind |
The biggest factor in selecting the tile for the backsplash is the price. I have to keep reminding myself that we won't be in this house forever and a cheaper tile will still be beautiful. Below are the samples I ordered. The white is from Lowe's and $7/sq ft and the blue is from Wholesaler's USA and $20/sq ft.
I have one more sample from Wayfair, the Retro Beacon Porcelain Glazed Mosaic tile, due to be delivered early this week, so I will be making my final decision by the end of the week!
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| Wayfair Retro Beacon Porcelain Glazed Mosaic Tile |
I was convinced I wasn't doing a white backsplash last weekend and anxious to paint the kitchen white, but I am realizing we need color on the wall (#wasteofpaint). My mom is all about the white backsplash as well, so she is helping me pick a new wall color. Our first choice pick is Benjamin Moore Leisure Green, but I will be buying samples and testing them out before painting the whole kitchen...again.
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| Example of Leisure Green from Pinterest |
I only had one night at home before heading to Chicago Friday morning for a visit with my Aunt Susan and my friend Emily's bachelorette party. I haven't been to Chicago in about three years and my sister hasn't been in about ten years, so I convinced her to come too.
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| Off to Chicago! |
My aunt lives in Highland Park, about 45 minutes north of the city, so we stayed with her in her adorable house on Friday night. The last time I visited I wasn't even thinking about buying a house, so it was inspirational visiting this weekend with house decor on my mind.
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| Comfortable living room |
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| Dining room |
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| The infamous dressing room |
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| First floor half bath |
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| Second floor full bath |
On Saturday my sister and I were up early to take the train from Highland Park downtown for brunch. We met the group at Fig and Olive, which was super cute and trendy. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling well so I didn't do an awesome job at taking pictures, but I definitely recommend Fig and Olive. After brunch we headed back to Emily's apartment to get ready for the night!
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| Tag team straightening the bride's hair |
The bridal shower and first part of the bachelorette party was held at our friend Seema's new house, and both she and the maid of honor put so much thought and creativity into making the shower fun and personal.
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| Quite a spread! |
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| Hand made signs |
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| The beautiful bride |
After opening presents we moved onto part two of the evening - a class of HJs and BJs from a local sex shop (a surprise for everyone). In order to save us all from embarrassment, I will not post any pictures, but you can only imagine what that was like!
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| What we saw when we walked downstairs |
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| My toy... alcohol necessary |
After a very exciting class, we headed to Giuliana and Bill Rancic's restaurant, RPM, for dinner. It was so so so good!! Our 5 course meal was served to us family style and it was exactly what we needed after drinking so much champagne.
Dinner ended late so afterwards we were escorted to Three Dots and a Dash for the final dancing/drinking portion of the evening. Unfortunately, I was feeling pretty terrible and it was 2:30am to my body so I snuck out and went home to sleep.
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| The infamous "Treasure Chest" |
On Sunday morning I headed to the airport for my plane back to Philadelphia. I am definitely looking forward to a weekend at home this weekend and to make my final kitchen decisions!
Six weeks without plumbing? I'm surprised you guys lasted that long! As for second opinions, it's a good idea to look for a one if you don't feel comfortable with the pricing. Investments like these should be taken seriously, and a lot of thinking should be made before you make any decision. Take care!
ReplyDeleteLaverne Knight @ Midland Mechanical