Monday, August 11, 2008

Cabinet capers....















Although the washer and dryer have been in operation for several weeks now... we are still working on cabinetry. We did start the day with a lovely latte ... not going to be all work and no play around here! Mr. BumbleVee is perfecting his skills as a barista as well as a renovator.
I finally have learned to run the washer (it was a simple thing I was doing incorrectly and somehow activating a child safety lock feature.... talk about feeling a bit stoopid....duh... ) .. but, now, I absolutely love it. Both the washer and dryer have some unusual and novel features. Like... if you don't take things out immediately after the cycles are complete... the drum rotates every so often just to keep the clothes from getting excess wrinkles. Washer and dryer.... one time the drum rotates in one direction...and the next ..in the other. Cute... and effective too....

Maybe this is not all that interesting to the gals if they are not into renovating and building as I am... ...so perhaps consider this one to show the hubbies.... we bought a special jig (one made in Canada) at Lee Valley; don't you love that store? They have so many neat things...not just for building...but for gardening.. so I am there each time anybody says he is going in that direcition. And, ohhhh... you should see the selection of door hardware.... I'd like to put about 20 handles and knobs on every door....... or have some with easy change snap ons... so I could use different ones for every day of the week.











Look at this thing! The perfect "jig" to make life easier when making your own cabinets. We used to line up every single drill hole... me making sure the drill is straight from one angle...him trying to check from the other...but this...hahahha...what a lark! Once you get it set on the side pieces... locked into position (it even has a measuring device that helps you do that)...











...then you just move this little metal hole along the rails...stick the drill bit into the metal hole and drill where you want your holes for the shelves ... et voila !... perfect straight holes... perfect distance apart... ... oh, man... the time and effort saved is amazing.










On the edges...of which I have no picture, darn it......we also set it to drill perfectly spaced, perfectly straight holes in which to insert small glued dowel pieces to attach the other sides of the cabinet. They were lots of fun to build this time. Lots of grinning and woohooing happening in the garage... instead of muttering and swearing and wrestling with trying to make sure the brad nailer was shooting in the perfect direction so as not to puncture the sides or edges.
















Told ya it was not all work and no fun....

.....stop for a snack on the patio.... enjoy the sun..... a sip of wine and some cheese and crackers.... and onward to hanging cupboards.















Ohhhh...love 'em.... ........... 21" deep ...and 24" wide. I can go 10 deep with paper towels now when I find them on sale. Perfect for stocking up on sale days.












Two of the largest in position and we now have critical measurements between the two outer panels so we can begin the cabinets for the centre area... which will not be as deep to allow plenty of head room for using the folding/sorting counter that will be under them. Eventually all the electrical and water stuff will be hidden behind the counter and more cabinets ...with opening doors to get to them if need be. All of the cabinetry is screwed into position so that if we have to remove a washer or dryer or do any work... everything is accessible.

7 comments:

Susan said...

Can ya clone him Vee and send one East. Please. You two sure are the perfect pair aren't you ?

The snack on the patio looked especially yummy. Pickles, crackers & cheese. Be still my heart.

Handy ! man ! be stiller my heart. Wink.

Love & hugs from the east coast gang.

Carole Burant said...

You do realize that now you're making me want a complete overhaul on my own laundry room, don't ya??? hehe Oh wow, it looks great and what a great idea to build cabinets like that...that tool to help make the holes straight and perfectly distanced is something I must look into! I'm sure glad it hasn't been all work and that you two have stopped to play:-) Make sure you come by my blog to enter my giveaway!! xoxo

Linda Fleming said...

Wow- what a laundry room! Love that feature of the machines continuing to rotate periodically until you unload them. I hate it when I leave a load in the dryer too long after the dryer shuts off. Your cabinets are fantastic!

MightyMom said...

very cool bee, very cool

Vee said...

You've done a wonderful job with planning the laundry room. I hope that you'll share the finished project with us, too.

Your machines sound great. I'm especially jealous of the dryer feature you described.

Had to haul the carpenter over to see the jig. He says that he used to make them all the time, but yours would crank out hundreds of projects and the wood variety only does a dozen or so before failing. He might be a bit envious, too.

Have a great day, Vee!

Vee said...

I'm back. The man wants to know who the manufacturer is and phone number for receiving a catalog, if possible. He says that his jig was a Micro-fence, which is for a router.

Anonymous said...

Good job! No doubt you have created a perfect environment to perform your laundry tasks :-). The machines are loving their new space.

Hugs ... Maria