WoodDance Studio » Kitchen http://wooddance.com Residential Home Improvement, New Canaan, CT Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:20:23 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Finishing details on a custom Ikea kitchen http://wooddance.com/2008/01/19/finishing-details-on-a-custom-ikea-kitchen/ http://wooddance.com/2008/01/19/finishing-details-on-a-custom-ikea-kitchen/#comments Sat, 19 Jan 2008 16:48:31 +0000 admin http://wooddance.com/2008/01/19/finishing-details-on-a-custom-ikea-kitchen/ I’ve completed my installation of the custom Ikea kitchen I started in December. Here are a few more pictures that show some finishing details. I will return to the jobsite for about a 1/2 day to apply a few missing parts when they arrive from Ikea. Other than that, I’ve finished my tasks and it was another job well done.

In the following gallery we can see:

  1. Ikea’s “Filler panel” material applied to the wall creates a wall covering and window casing that ties the cabinets together visually.
  2. The oven cabinet looks fantastic!
  3. As the cabinet installer it is my preference to cut necessary holes for other sub-contractors. A few outlets complete the island before the countertops arrive.
  4. Steel angle-iron was bolted to the side of the sink and stovetop cabinets to support the countertop.
  5. I made a jig for the hardware installation. All handles are centered and 1 1/2″ from edge of door to top of handle.
  6. The toe-kick is all installed.
  7. The toe-kick pieces were tricky to install on the island where the position of the Ikea legs don’t allow for one. (The Ikea legs are set back several inches from the front face of the cabinets but only 1″ from the sides.) I cut the tabs off the Ikea legs and pushed them in, to match the front reveal. In addition, I made all the baseboard out of the Ikea filler panels which are 11/16″ thick. I dadoed a groove in the back of each rip to accept the Ikea mounting hardware. In order to fit clips to the corner legs I cut the groove in one board higher than the other piece, so one clip would fit above the other. In this way I got two clips on one leg. Yay!

There are always so many details that go into a construction project and some projects are more demanding than others. In this case, the homeowner hired an Interior Designer to communicate with their Architect who drew pictures for the Contractor who then hired me to install the parts. Maintaining communication within the entire chain of professionals is paramount to the success of the project and can present a challenge to the process of installation.
I believe it is from years of apprenticeship with Michael C. Hargrove in San Francisco, California that I am able to have the skills, the patience, the fortitude and the abilities to listen, to comprehend and to produce the finished ideal of so much intent. Not only do I maintain the integrity of each professional in the chain but ultimately my work must prove an integrity in my own abilities of construction. Of course it does and that’s how I got this job. The builder and architect on this job provide the highest quality. Their work is awesome fancy and I have thoroughly enjoyed building for them in the past.

I hope this kitchen lasts longer than expected. I have read about Ikea kitchens since starting this project. Ikeafans.com has a poll on how long before problems show but I think only 5 people voted. There are plenty of articles online. There’s a video on YouTube showing someone’s progress as they built their kitchen which oddly enough has the same two walls and single window as the kitchen I just built but the end results are totally different!

]]> http://wooddance.com/2008/01/19/finishing-details-on-a-custom-ikea-kitchen/feed/ 0 Custom installing an Ikea kitchen http://wooddance.com/2007/12/31/custom-installing-an-ikea-kitchen/ http://wooddance.com/2007/12/31/custom-installing-an-ikea-kitchen/#comments Tue, 01 Jan 2008 04:33:52 +0000 admin http://wooddance.com/?p=8 I’ve been hired to install a kitchen comprised of Ikea cabinets, panels and parts.
The biggest challenge seems to be fastening the components in the Architect’s specified arrangement without penetrating any of the finished cabinet or panel faces.

Here’s a gallery of images showing the progress. The blue is protective plastic covering the panel, door and drawer faces. The more I build, the more blue this place becomes!

I am using a combination of Ikea’s 36″ X 96″ Filler Panels, cabinets and deco-strip as material to construct a stove cabinet, built-in sub-zero fridge, microwave cabinet and desk with bookshelf. I will add pictures as I complete the kitchen this week.

Update: Friday Jan. 4th. – I have finished most of the installation. The island is set. The Sub-Zero closet is built. The oven cabinet awaits a reconsideration of the layout of the 3 Gaggenau ovens. Everything looks awesome!

WoodDance Studio 2008

]]> http://wooddance.com/2007/12/31/custom-installing-an-ikea-kitchen/feed/ 1 My first kitchen remodel in New Canaan http://wooddance.com/2001/07/24/my-first-kitchen-remodel-in-new-canaan/ http://wooddance.com/2001/07/24/my-first-kitchen-remodel-in-new-canaan/#comments Tue, 24 Jul 2001 21:15:51 +0000 admin http://wooddance.com/?p=11 Here are some before and after photographs of my first kitchen remodel in New Canaan, CT.
With the help of a cabinet maker in Pennsylvania and fine stone counters, this kitchen turned out beautifully. Check out these gorgeous cherry wood cabinets!

Everything but the sink under the window wall changed in this kitchen, including a new window over the new sink. I eliminated a closet and moved the kitchen entrance over to accommodate the new double ovens. A new Anderson sliding patio door, new casing and trim throughout, even a new oak floor where once was plastic. A complete remodel using existing floor space.

This entry was posted Jan 2008 and is backdated July 2001 when I completed this job. WoodDance.com

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