My First Festool Assisted Project

[JuliMor]

The most cabinet doors I've made at one time is eight.  When I came home one day from the hardwood store thinking about how I could use that 1/2 off Honduran mahogany they had stacked on a cart, I thought, "New doors and drawers for the kitchen cabinets!"  That number 8 would balloon to 35 and I knew I would have an awful lot of sanding to do.  [crying]  To add to the workload, I would have to sand down the existing face frames on the cabinets, in place, in the kitchen, that will still have to be used everyday.  But it was January in Chicago.  What else is there to do?  [huh]

Two years ago we started with this

The only thing already demoed is the false beams (one down the middle lengthwise and two the other way) made from rough sawn cedar, which does an amazing job collecting dust and not letting go.  :  Inside the beams I placed fluorescent strips.  That was back in 1988.

Two years ago we removed the ceramic tile countertop and all the plywood supporting it and replaced it with (2) thicknesses of 3/4" ply and installed granite tile over that.  We also added 45s at the four inside corners where the false beams were and installed (6) mini cans with specular reflectors and cove lighting.  And we removed the old wallpaper and repainted. New sink and faucet were also installed.

But none of that could help those old cabinet doors and drawers.  After months of decisions and actual, real work, yesterday I installed the first completed doors

All the cabinet carcases were built from scratch to accommodate the new cooktop/pop-up vent and pull out spice racks above.

The panels were resawed from 8/4 sapele.  I then book-matched and grain-matched wherever I could. The panels on the tall cabinet were from the same slab.

I still have a lot to do:
a) fine tune the door alignment
b) build new drawers (I bought Blum soft-close slides) and make the faces
c) build a new microwave cabinet
d) remove the side panel next to the frig and rework that
e) do something with the window and wood trim surrounding it
f) address the bar nosing on the family room side of the counter
g) buy some 1/4" sapele ply and install it on the exposed sides of the cabinets
h) make up some sapele trim to go above the wall cabinets
g) decide if we want to install a valance above the kitchen sink
h) install stainless steel tiles (Aspect brand) on the backsplash areas
i) cut and install black granite tiles for the cooktop countertop. 

After that's all done that worn out floor will be replaced with maple laminated flooring. 

Then I can relax.  [cool]

(sure)

 

[Rob-GB]

It's coming along nicely Julie  [smile] I like that you thought about matching grain etc on the doors, it is the biggest bonus for bespoke work over mass produced store bought joinery, quality is in the details.  [thumbs up]
Rob.

 

[aptpupil]

Looks great.

 

[skids]

Nice work!!

 

[JuliMor]

Thanks guys!  I need the "atta girls".  My enthusiasm is dying.  I think I'm just overwhelmed by all that I still need to do.

 

[peter halle]

Julie, it looks great.  You have done what many have wanted to do but they didn't.  You are on the home stretch now.  Hang in there, get busy, and keep us up to date  [big grin].

Peter

 

[Sparktrician]

You've done a great job!!!  I really like that you went to the trouble to bookmatch the doors. 

[smile]

 

[Kevin Johnson]

Nice work

 

[Theshipstore]

Atta girl is a minor praise, this is awesome work, I really like the total effect of the whole job.
Nice Work Julie  [thumbs up] [not worthy] [thumbs up]

Sal

 

[barnowl]

WOW!!!

How's that for an "atta girl" ?

8) 8)

 

[jacko9]

Very Nice Julie, I love Honduras Mahogany and that grain matching was expertly accomplished.

Jack

 

[nclemmons]

That is quite a transformation.  REALLY great work.  I really like Sapele.

And by the way, the fact that you have a 'punch list' of things remaining says it will only get shorter as you check them off.

Curious what finish process and materials you used on the cabinets? 

Thanks for sharing.

neil

 

[Wonderwino]

Beautiful!!!  [cool]

 

[Kev]

You're extremely clever making the cupboard doors the same colour as gravy [wink] [big grin]

It's looking really good!

The kitchen is one of those "hub of the house" rooms that makes it a real challenge to tackle when you're living there ... we're considering extending our house to allow for a new kitchen (it all needs a major remodel anyway).

Looking forward to see how you treat the drawer fronts.

 

[tallgrass]

Great job. Take pride in your work, just look at how far you have come and push through. There is a saying that a sergeant used to shout at us....cowards don't show up and the weak die along the way......you are not among the weak.  

Great job, you should be proud.

 

[JuliMor]

WOW! What a great thing to wake up to!  Thanks for all the kind words and encouragement.  [smile]

Neil, for the color, I used a formula made from Trans Tint dye concentrate.  It was something like 7 parts brown mahogany, 6 parts red mahogany and 5 parts golden brown.  We probably tried over 20 different formulas.  While we liked the redder tones, they clashed with the wood tone in the family room.  And I wasn't about to tackle stripping that!  I followed that with 3 spray coats of General Finishes EnduroVar, in satin.  I laid down one coat then scuffed that with 400 grit Granat (the foam backed pads).  Then finished with two successive coats sprayed about 3-4 hours apart.

For the drawer fronts, I'm planning on using solid mahogany.  I thought about making up paneled fronts but I like the idea of the solid mahogany breaking up the linear effect created by the sapele grain and bar handles.  All of the drawers will have to be built from scratch (to accommodate the new slides) so I'll be taking the existing drawers and turning them into cabinet pull-outs.

The whole process, less the pictures posted here, can be found at http://www.julimorcreations.com/InProgress/KitCab.htm  The website was an attempt to maybe make a few $$ with woodworking after selling a couple of pieces.  But at the rate I finish projects, only a Buddhist monk would have the patience to wait that long.  [embarassed]

If anyone is still checking in, I have a few questions I need help with.

1. On the edge of the countertop we were thinking of installing either mahogany or sapele and breaking the edges slightly with a 45 cut.  But recently I'm wondering if we should consider some sort of granite edging instead.  I don't know if something like that is even made or it we would have to have a stone company custom make it, but in my minds eye I think it would make the granite tile countertop look more finished.  We would have gone the slab route but it would have broken the bank. Any thoughts?

2. Should we change the window colors and wood trim to match the kitchen or keep it matching the rest of the house?

3. Should there be a valance between the cabinets over the sink, or no?  If yes, how wide?  And should it be profiled or straight?

4. The bar nosing on the chair side of the countertop (2nd pic down), it's made from red oak and the color matches all the wood in the family room.  If we install sapele or mahogany on the kitchen side of the counter face edges, should we make another bar nosing to match, or just leave it?  If we matched it, we would probably have to replace the oak paneling below with sapele paneling.

Thanks in advance for the help and thanks again for the words of encouragement.  I think I what I really need is a vacation.  [cool]

 

[Paul G]

Very nice Julie, glad to read the drawers are still going to be replaced. Was a little puzzled for a moment there before I read the details lol.

 

[Paul G]

RE #4, is nosing the bar side with the black granite of the cook top a possibility? Not sure how it would install or coordinate with the rest of the family room but it's an option from the existing pallete of the kitchen and might mitigate the need to repanel below, assuming you decide to change the nose at all.

 

[rnt80]

Nice job Julie.  Tackling a kitchen is a huge undertaking and from the looks of it (although it may not feel like it now) you're doing a wonderful job.  If it were me I would not edge your countertop with wood.  I don't think you'll be pleased with the long term results since the wood will wear from use and potentially from contact with water, chemicals, food, etc.  If you can find a granite edging that will work I would go that route.  Carry on.

 

[peter halle]

Julie,

I assure you that your thread is being read  [thumbs up].

All the questions you asked are very subjective, but since you asked, my 2 cents worth.

Edging with wood - personally I saw too much of that in the 80's and 90's.  Check with the source of your granite tile.  They probably have the edging pieces you will need.  But sit down when they give you the price.

Trim at window.  Personally I think that the trim shuld remain the same at the rest of the house or room, except in this case.  It will be far more dramatic to change to closer to the cabinets.  Rich color versus washed out.

Valance.  Nope.  You have a very modern kitchen and with the height of the window you would be cutting that off when looking from further away.

Edging on bar.  I think that this will be tough.  My first thought would be to handle it like the rest of the counters, but the width of what you have now would probably entail custom manufacturing.  $$$.  

Peter