Under Construction

I have a pretty nice kitchen, but one thing it has always lacked is a proper pantry. I've had to cram my canned goods and cereal boxes in different cupboards. I've tried to deal with it, but pretty soon I ran out of room and had cans piled up on my counter top...NOT ACCEPTABLE!! So I started thinking of ways to fix the situation and came up with a plan.

I have a very large coat closet that is next to the kitchen (my kitchen is in the front of the house near the entry way). Why do I need such a big coat closet for Arizona weather? I don't wear coats very often...only in the winter, and I have one coat and two hoodies. Why not take some of that room and convert it into a pantry? So that is exactly what I am did! A woman in my ward, Nancy Barton, owns a kitchen and bath remodeling company, so I asked her if my idea was doable. She drew up the plans, we signed the contract, and they were on their way. They started Monday, 28 December, and finished a week and a half later. I was always impressed after coming home from work and seeing their progress AND how clean everything was! Except for torn down walls after day one, or plastic sheets hanging from ceiling to floor after day two, my house was exceptionally clean. No construction dust! Very impressive.

Here are some pictures of the progress. I took pictures every day after I arrived home from work.

Coat Closet Before Project


Evolution of a Closet

For the pantry to have deep enough shelves, they had to extend one wall out three inches. Thus they ripped out one full wall and part of another. You can see where the wall used to be on the cement.


Next, the walls are built and the pantry and new, smaller coat closet take shape. Notice the plastic wall they made to surround the construction site to keep the dust and debris contained.


Next, the walls are plastered with joint compound and the seams and corners are filled in.



Then the doors are put into place, the walls are textured, and the tile is laid.


Finally, the walls get painted, the shelves are built, and the door handles are installed.


Now that the project is finished, I quickly filled the pantry with everything I've been shoving in my cupboards. It fits perfectly. See:


I am really enjoying this pantry. It really seems like it's been here since the beginning. It's so great!