Portland, Oregon / 9.23.17

I met with my designer Taryn Emerson the other day and it hit me, the remodel is coming soon.  Not only my kitchen, but the attached informal living room, informal dining room, laundry room, cleaning closet, a few things in the formal dining room, and new paint all over up to our third floor.  See previous post for before pictures. My feelings are a mix of excitement, pressure, and fear.

Whenever I feel this sort of anxiety the best thing to do is to take action.  Today I resumed taking down pictures off of walls, clearing out things in cabinets that I don’t use often and putting them in spaces that I have mapped out.  I am trying to move things systematically and with purpose (versus just throwing things in different places).  I don’t want the frustrating task of wondering where I put my flour, oven mitts, olive oil, and kitchen towels.  My goal is to cook and bake during the remodel.  Most of this will be done in my garage.  My culinary goals are lofty and I hoping that I don’t cave and get take-out dinners every night.

Hurdles:

I won’t have a laundry room for two weeks.  I found a nearby Laundromat, the cost, etc.  The last time I went to a Laundromat was about 20 years ago when I lived in NYC.  Oh well, this will make me really appreciate my own laundry room once I have it again.

My laundry sink is the most natural spot to do dishes during the remodel.  Since that will be also ripped apart I am planning to wash dishes in my backyard with a garden hose and two plastic bins.  You know, camping style.  Dishes will be a biggie as I am used to having two dishwashers at my disposal.

Blogging.  I write for sponsors and the deadlines do not go away during my remodel.  I will need to continue creating and photographing food during the remodel.  This could be fun and interesting.

My temporary kitchen space in the garage (warning: unglamorous pictures below):

We bought a garage refrigerator and chest freezer.  The good news is we will absolutely use these after the remodel.  I am using the table as a prep area and countertop that will hold my Breville Smart Oven and KitchenAid mixer.

Traeger Grill perfect as a wood oven and smoker.  I also have a traditional gas grill out on the patio.

Two burner camp stove.  This puts out a surprisingly high amount of good heat!

Dishwasher!  Sadly our laundry room is also being remodeled along with our kitchen. We will not have use of our laundry sink for about two weeks.  I plan to buy two big bus tubs, one for washing and one for rinsing.  I’ve read as long as you use really hot water and a little bleach your dishes will be clean and sanitized.

Send me any comments with your kitchen remodel experiences.  Tips and tricks welcome!