Kitchen Upgrade - Part One Range Hood

We have been kicking around the idea of trying to update our kitchen lately, and finally got started. I like the wood stained cabinets, but with the dark granite countertops & dark tile floor things needed to be lightened up a bit.The plan is to add some light colored accents, while leaving the cabinets stained and glaze everything to tie it together.

The kitchen as it was before any modifications.

 Here is the new range hood framed in with the power pack unit and ductwork.

 The ventilator and light unit above the cooktop.

 Raised panel front and with all of trim and details added.

The completed range hood painted and glazed.

Halloween Activities

I got in from offshore 2 weeks ago, and have not had much time to blog... too much working. Imagine that, I thought 2 weeks off was supposed to be relaxing. Julia and the girls are real into Halloween, so they wanted some yard art. We used an overhead projector, and traced out some templates I found on the internet. I used 3/4" Luann Plywood, primed and painted with exterior black.

The Witch and her pets...

While I was at it, I cut out some pumpkins, and a Jack-o-Lantern

They are also going to do a little party in the Cul-de-Sac, so I made some games for the kids to play.

Ghost Putt-Putt.

Jack-O-Lantern bean bag toss.

All in all, not a bad project. I am sad that I am not going to be home for Halloween, but I look forward to the pictures on Julia's blog.

Dovetails

I started on the drawers for my shop cabinets the other day, and have completed my first dovetail drawer. I looked at numerous jigs, and even thought about doing them by hand. Eventually, I stumbled across a jig at home depot. I picked it up to try out, and if I feel like I need a more expensive jig, atleast I can learn on the cheaper one. The "Dovetailer" is made by General, and could not be much more simple. It is an all in one jig, capable of doing 1/2" half blind or full through dovetails. It is a good beginner jig, from what I have seen, and the $40.00 price tag was not too bad either.

Overall, I am happy with the jig. The only thing that I am not crazy about, is the rounded corners. This is the first jig that I have used, so I don't know if that is standard, but I did not think it was. Actually, if you do half blinds you do not even see the rounded corners though.

Here is the jig in use on my bench, (my bench top clamp system actually came in handy). This jig can be used with a handheld router, or a router table. I would watch the video on youtube, the included instructions are not real clear.

 

I slotted the drawer to have 1/2" plywood bottoms, and it tuned out pretty good.

Here is the first one complete and unfinished.



Family/Poker room

Before we bought the house, the upstairs bonus was being used as an apartment for the previous owners daughter. It was pretty rough looking, and Julia wanted to make it into a family area to watch movies, play games, etc..

 

  Bedroom before...Orange???

 

 

 Before kitchen/living room.

 

 Redone Poker or game room. New paint, lights, table.

 

 This corner actually had to be torn completely out when I found some moist drywall. I had to get on the roof, and install flashing as well (long story).

This room is for watching movies and playing WIE. The space is perfect, and we can play games as a family, or Julia and I can watch a movie once the girls go to bed.

I have yet to use the new poker room, but plan to get a monthly poker game going.

My Shop

The shop when we bought the house...

It was pretty much an outdoor attic space, and storage shed.

 

But I had other plans.

Here is a CAD model of what I wanted to start building...

Yes I am that obsessive.

Framed and bench structure mostly finished.

 Drawer runners complete.

Benchtop on and a coat of primer.

The bench top is 3/4" solid pine panels, with 3/4" MDF underlayment.

 Dry Erase board for notes (mostly between me and Julia).

Along with a pencil tray underneath.

The benchtop clamp system. It is Rockler T-track with hold down clamps.

I spend most of my time in my shop, when I am not working on things around the house, or hanging out with the girls. It is not moving to completion that fast, but is mostly alot of learning as I go...