Today, I had to get up at oh-not-so-dark-thirty (8:00) to go to Home Depot for lumber and hardware in preparation for the carpenter’s arrival at 10(ish). She would then have three and a half hours to give Miranda her most needed makeover.

I have complained many times about the evil sliding wardrobe doors. Enough was enough! 😀

They are no more!!!

The Home Depot guys wanted to cut the sheet for me, lacking confidence in my ability to get home safely. I’ve done this before, and over longer distances! 😀

Close up of the doorjamb. She did a really nice job on the scrap of wood!

functional doors!!!!!!

close up of the pulls–you can find similar ones at Home Depot, but to get this colour you have to go to Lee Valley

Soon as the carpenter got to work, I knew I’d made the right choice in hiring someone to do this job for me. It was as fussy a job as I’d expected it would be and she saw things I would have missed.

I got most of the materials at Home Depot this morning but wound up needing just one more piece for the doorjamb. I found something of suitable dimensions, but quite ugly, in Croft’s scrap bin. The carpenter set to work on it with a sander and the results were astonishing! Having the right tools is definitely the first step to a successful renovation project.

Total cost for the wardrobe doors was $186, not counting the handles, which I had on hand from a previous project that didn’t come to fruition. I’ve been hanging on to them for a long time and am glad to finally put them to use! I have lots more of the same style and will be using them for another project. They complement the pulls on the cabinet doors, too.

I decided to put three sets of hinges on each door panel to reduce the chance of them warping and to make it possible to hang things from the inside without worrying too much about weight. While I could have bought brass hinges that would have exactly matched the cabinet hinges, I went for a rubbed bronze finish. I really hate the brassy colour of the hinges and was going to be spray painting them when I paint the cabinets, so I decided to just go with the darker coloured hinges for the wardrobe to save myself that work later on.

I’m going to live without the mirrors for a bit before deciding whether or not to install some on the front of the new doors.

There are a few minor adjustments to make because we were down to the wire; the right-side door sticks a bit because the ceiling sags and does not latch tightly. I suspect that both problems are due to the rig not being exactly level, so I’ll wait before doing the necessary sanding. Otherwise, the doors are perfect and I am beyond ecstatic! Once I get all the cabinetry painted, they’ll blend right in.

Oh, and the new doors weigh approximately a tenth of the old doors. I’ve gained yet more carrying capacity! It’s all been on the same side, so I’m hoping that I might be able to add to my battery bank. I’ll know that once I’ve reweighed Miranda.

I’m still undecided as to whether to leave the dishwasher on the counter or try to find a non-leaking way to install it below the counter.

There’s a service hatch below the stove to get at what I think is the furnace.

(Not a very good pic, I know, but I didn’t think to bring the camera and dock into the house)

That space runs clear from the back of the dinette bench to the plumbing. I could, in theory, run my hoses under there and tie into the water intake and drain. I could then run one of my outlets down and have a really slick, built-in installation.

While I trust my plumbing skills, I am hesitant to do this because I am sure that the RV will have a longer lifespan than will the dishwasher. I’m nervous about breaking into perfectly good plumbing and creating the potential for leaks for an appliance that will probably die before the RV and might not be replaceable.

The other thing is that I am falling in love with the idea of creating a bank of drawers under that counter, some facing into the kitchen and some into the dining area. If I install the dishwasher under the counter, then I can only have drawers facing into the dining area.

I’ve figured out how I would secure the dishwasher on the counter, but the aesthetics of the idea are bugging me (ie. partially blocking the window). I do find that the dishwasher is much easier to load and unload from counter height and that I don’t lose any serious amount of food prep space.

With an equal amount of pros and cons for both solutions, it’s no wonder the decision is so hard to make!