Espresso bar: We did a thing.

Yesterday, after hemming and hawing about the height of the cabinets and overall layout for our built-in espresso bar, we finally agreed our design was good as-is. Then I proceeded to cut a giant hole in our wall.

Sort of like when we built our floating wall and decided to cut into our bedroom floor, there's no going back now. Before there was a giant hole, K had taped the outline to get a feel for everything.

Even before that, we cut that little hole in the wall behind the Pybus artwork to see inside and piece together how it was built. Basically, when the previous owners had the modern addition designed, the builders framed it against what had been the exterior of the house using 2x6 studs. In the new wall there was nothing except some wiring. Duly noted.

When I went to cut into it, I needed to make sure my saw didn't go too deep and hit a cable somewhere. I rigged up a slightly-planed block of 2x4 scrap to get the right depth for the blade to just cut through the 1/2 sheetrock and OSB board. Then attached it to the base of my jig saw with gaffer tape.

It actually held pretty well. I had also hung a piece of plastic sheeting to keep the dust and debris from the demolition to a minimum throughout the house.

I wasn't able to finish the demolition before running out of time yesterday. Basically, I need to take out another 4” and a 2x6 joist on the right. The crux will be the 2x6 joist on the left. I think it may be part of the framing around the big opening that leads between the kitchen and addition. That means it's structural. It's going to take a little more exploring.

The intent is to frame in the espresso bar up against the door trim. With 36" cabinets, that leaves just enough room on the right for the curtains to hang. I'm motivated to get there, but as with any remodel project, it'll take some figuring out as we go. More to come, unless we decide to just leave a giant gaping hole in our dining room wall…