So after I flew home from my trip, I came home to installed cupboards. The appliances were in boxes in the middle of the floor. The marble was installed, and to our dismay, it was polished and not honed as ordered. The install was very difficult, as the pieces were big and the room was small and getting them in place was a piece of work, so instead of removing them and honing them and re-installing them, we opted for a price reduction. The marble is pretty nice though.

The sink was custom made to fit our size specs.

Drop ceiling has a sexy curve:

The marble installers needed to know what faucet we were going with, so they could drill the hole. Oops! We didn't have one yet. I raced to Taps and selected the best one they had in stock (that I could barely afford). I ended up loving it:

Kitchen Aid induction stove top and convection oven. Nice! Faber oven fan.

Stereo cupboard beside the fireplace. Records below, CD drawer in the middle, bookshelves above:

The cupboard on the left is for coats:

The hardwood floor is being protected:

Drywall, windows, and now floors:

The new front door. Eventually the glass will have a sandblasted film covering. New kitchen windows. We tried to set them at counter height, but that was difficult to get exact. The old fridge is still there! It's now in the place the new fridge will live when it gets here.

The basement hole has been filled and repaired:

New back door and windows installed. They were installed incorrectly, and we had to pay extra to have our contracter re-install them. Also, there was an outlet installed in the middle of one window frame. Argh. No! It is supposed to be a door, so no outlet required. Also, drywalled and not panelled. Try, try again.

After a subfloor was laid on top of the old subfloor, and levelled to the best of the floor installer's abilities, the new quarter-sawn white oak floor was installed. We oiled it with Loba oil to keep the look natural.

Walking the plank to get from the stairs to the hall. The hall will be tiled with natural stone.

Back to the drawing board. The renovation before I left for California --

The hole in the basement floor. Concrete was taken up an a hole dug to the city water line for plumbing the new kitchen. The shovel handle is at floor level, showing how deep the hole is.

The back wall showing the new door/window area insulated for now because it's just chipboard between us and the elements. Also in view -- the fireplace and ducts.

Insulation! and it's purple!

Oh crap! There's a leak in the ceiling! When the new plumbing went in, something was shaken loose. The wall in my studio/sanctuary/place where I go to escape is torn up. There is no escape. 

My equipment is shoved to one side and covered in dust. It remained like that for weeks.

Drywall is begun. The drop ceiling in the hall and kitchen:

Our new electrical panel:

Oh yeah, Merry Christmas. Check out the pile of dirt on the left of this picture from the hole in the basement floor. We actually tried to eat here for the first months of the reno. That's our dining room table covered in plastic.

More San Francisco - this time the market, Japan town, and the SFMoMA:

Back to the Mission, where I stayed:

And then my flight was cancelled, so it was back to the Mission and the market for more!