Retrospectrum Meets Modernisation!

[aubrey 0]

haiya. i share the same sentiments. u dont tile it, even if u get rid of the cabinets, u will definitely not leave it bare. but also, what growler says is what my mom thinks. wa i am "kapped" in the centre.

anyway..

A) I will not tell them to do drawers on the left of my spice rack. (Can I install roller shelves like angel81's?)

B) I will ask uncle if can tile that part just to please my mom. if not, i will explain to her.

Reiki

wow good tip, i never knew how. i will give it a shot when i am home.

Next issue: breakfast table

Jason says its no good, spoils easily etc. bottomline: dont do. but i think i shall just go ahead and do!!!

[aubrey 0]

i called the carpentry guy, told him i want those racks that wendy has. i asked him if i need to buy it for him, he said dont need, he will fix it for me according to my size of cabinets. but i have this huge feeling that i may or may not like what i get, since i have to say, not much planning was done with me in mind! my opinion was asked but so what? they kept telling me cannot this cannot that etc. so what is the point of MY input?

i am very vexed now and if the kitchen cabinets dont turn out the way i want them to be, then its not my problem since half the time jason and the carpentry guy is BOSSING me around instead of listening to what i want and if cannot, tell me what can be done in place.

to share my experience. from the time i met uncle till now, i have been asking him about carpentry, and when can i meet jason to discuss. pls, not everyone knows what they want on the first meeting. modifications are bound to happen. with that said, i only met jason when my tiling works was close to finish. and within a 2.5 hour discussion sketches were taken away and works have commenced. i believe that sometimes jason practices selective listening. so when u are discussing with him, be firm, repeat and repeat and repeat till he gets it.

i know that my dates for HO is tight, if so, please let me meet jason way in advance to discuss kitchen. now they tell me my kitchen too small cannot this cannot that. i am so annoyed listening to all that!

Edited May 20, 2009 by aubrey

[Angel81 1]

Hehe, I heard my name!

Ur drawing of ur kitchen looks very much like mine! I think so far the planning sounds good. But hor, I kinda feel that the area for ur pots/pans look pretty small. If I read correctly, only one cabinet space is planned for it right? How would ur mom put those big woks that older folks use? If put sideways, then ur big pots won't be able to go in liao.

Yah, the ss baskets are really useful! I'm loving mine to bits. It's a should-get. Speaking about the ss baskets. It's better to get the dimensions from ur carpenter then buy. Or u can buy first, inform ur carpenter about the size and tell him to do the cabinet size accordingly. The reason for this is that if the cabinet width is too small, then u've wasted $$ buying the racks. If the cabinet width is too big, the carpenter will normally add wood on both sides to fix the tracks to the cabinet sides. This will be a waste of precious space.

Hee, old folks are like that. My FIL wanted another cabinet for a 2nd gas tank too! But heng my hb refused.

One last thing, have u decided where u'll keep ur cooking aids like spatulas, scoops, knifes, veg peelers, mashers, measuring cups, etc? For me, I don't like to mix them with my utensils, so I have a special drawer for them.

Edited May 20, 2009 by Angel81

[nottimonster 0]

We have been using gas cylinders for years. My mum changes the cylinder when it feels light (i.e. when she's able to move it without much effort). She also notes the date when it was last changed and the interval is pretty regular as she cooks fairly regularly. Try moving the new cylinder & compare it to one that's almost empty and you'll be able to tell after a while.

[familyof4 0]

Aubrey, I agree that Jason does selective listening. I walked thru with my carpentry guy and there were missing info!!! Heng, we walked thru...else I foresee some wrongdesigns for my carpentry works! He also made some changes without informing me...it was the carpentry who informed me when we walked thru. This is how important it is to go thru everything with the person who does the relevant for the house, electrician, plumber,carpentry etc.

[Smallboy 0]

Aubrey, I agree that Jason does selective listening. I walked thru with my carpentry guy and there were missing info!!! Heng, we walked thru...else I foresee some wrongdesigns for my carpentry works! He also made some changes without informing me...it was the carpentry who informed me when we walked thru. This is how important it is to go thru everything with the person who does the relevant for the house, electrician, plumber,carpentry etc.

YES. Totally agree.

A word of advice to those with Ah Soon.

When it comes to carpentry, it is good to know what you want or else they will draw/fabricate whatever they think is nice.

And if you need more time to think about what Jason has drawn, ask for time.

Or else, they chop chop go ahead or tell you cannot change liao.

And for working with Jason, MAKE SURE your design is in paper and in FULL details. Then go thru 1 more time with the carpentry guys and the electrical guys etc. Then make sure your latest paper design is also the same one with the carpentry.

I encountered ONCE when the TV console + feature wall design (onpaper) is different from the carpentry guy. Wa.. heng.. saw it and tell him directly.

Like my TV console, I SPECIFICALLY told Jason I want the grain of the wood to be run in a horizontal way. WA.... came up it was vertical. Sianz....... I complain to Uncle directly. Then he kind of said we didnt' communicate. Actually I knew this will happen so I SAID to run the woodgrain this way.

So lesson learnt, be very FIRM with what you want! And insist till it is done your way.

Edited May 20, 2009 by Smallboy

[aubrey 0]

i called jason to rant to him about the fact that i am stressed! i am somewhat a perfectionist and a control freak rolled into one.

just sharing what happened, when i met up with the carpentry guy and jason, the kitchen was drawn by the carpentry guy (i call him ah meh, i believe its same as Amax etc). the tv console and 2 wardrobes were drawn by jason on the spot and i dont think design wise, it can go wrong. its really the kitchen.

now i only have 1 set of drawer. after ranting to jason, he said no worries, tho it may be pull out where the cabinets are, he will find the correct track for me to use the steel basket that is what angel has. ok fine i shall let it be.

how did u guys manage to walk thru with regards to carpentry? i am also partially angry with myself for not checking enough, but the time contraint is really pressing on me hence i partly switched off.

the only saving grace is that when i called jason in my semi distressed state and semi unhappy voice (i tried to sound ok) he was still quite nice and cheery. kudos to him for that. today he will be meeting me to go over the power points. i must drill it into him now! hahaha!

honestly i dislike the idea that my communication has to run past so many ppl. sometimes the flow is: me -> jason -> carpenter and back again. he told me to just directly speak to the carpenter but it doesnt really help! i cant visualize! and jason also said he doesnt know cos he cant see it done! (a bit scary here!!)

got to cross my fingers and toes and maybe even eyes that all will be in good order. i have already took 3 days worth of leave from 27 - 29 to move back and to QC.

PS: must i tell the carpenter that i want to undermount my kitchen sink??

PPS: Will try to quickly sketch up the revised design and post it up.

[blue_diamond 0]

i called jason to rant to him about the fact that i am stressed! i am somewhat a perfectionist and a control freak rolled into one.

just sharing what happened, when i met up with the carpentry guy and jason, the kitchen was drawn by the carpentry guy (i call him ah meh, i believe its same as Amax etc). the tv console and 2 wardrobes were drawn by jason on the spot and i dont think design wise, it can go wrong. its really the kitchen.

now i only have 1 set of drawer. after ranting to jason, he said no worries, tho it may be pull out where the cabinets are, he will find the correct track for me to use the steel basket that is what angel has. ok fine i shall let it be.

how did u guys manage to walk thru with regards to carpentry? i am also partially angry with myself for not checking enough, but the time contraint is really pressing on me hence i partly switched off.

the only saving grace is that when i called jason in my semi distressed state and semi unhappy voice (i tried to sound ok) he was still quite nice and cheery. kudos to him for that. today he will be meeting me to go over the power points. i must drill it into him now! hahaha!

honestly i dislike the idea that my communication has to run past so many ppl. sometimes the flow is: me -> jason -> carpenter and back again. he told me to just directly speak to the carpenter but it doesnt really help! i cant visualize! and jason also said he doesnt know cos he cant see it done! (a bit scary here!!)

got to cross my fingers and toes and maybe even eyes that all will be in good order. i have already took 3 days worth of leave from 27 - 29 to move back and to QC.

PS: must i tell the carpenter that i want to undermount my kitchen sink??

PPS: Will try to quickly sketch up the revised design and post it up.

Oh gosh...hope everything will turn up well....hopefully for my house.. i will be more prepared.

Just speak to jason about yr concern. Hope everything will turn out fine...

[aubrey 0]

Hehe, I heard my name!

Ur drawing of ur kitchen looks very much like mine! I think so far the planning sounds good. But hor, I kinda feel that the area for ur pots/pans look pretty small. If I read correctly, only one cabinet space is planned for it right? How would ur mom put those big woks that older folks use? If put sideways, then ur big pots won't be able to go in liao.

Yah, the ss baskets are really useful! I'm loving mine to bits. It's a should-get. Speaking about the ss baskets. It's better to get the dimensions from ur carpenter then buy. Or u can buy first, inform ur carpenter about the size and tell him to do the cabinet size accordingly. The reason for this is that if the cabinet width is too small, then u've wasted $$ buying the racks. If the cabinet width is too big, the carpenter will normally add wood on both sides to fix the tracks to the cabinet sides. This will be a waste of precious space.

Hee, old folks are like that. My FIL wanted another cabinet for a 2nd gas tank too! But heng my hb refused.

One last thing, have u decided where u'll keep ur cooking aids like spatulas, scoops, knifes, veg peelers, mashers, measuring cups, etc? For me, I don't like to mix them with my utensils, so I have a special drawer for them.

hi angel!! no choice leh.. jason says my kitchen area is small. so i have to plan otherwise for pots and pans. my mom has a relatively big wok, but we use that often so i think we shall just place it on the stove at all times and just stow the smaller items away. i plan to utilise the space above the fridge to put all her slow cooker, grinder, pot+pans up there. this time i will pack her kitchen! mom is not too good at packing. at least if i pack i will know where the items are since her memory is not like before.

jason told me he will get me the baskets and find the right tracks for me. i hope he can!! since i have that annoying drop within the wall, i just gotta make do. i will grill him about it later when he comes to speak to me.

Note to all: I will be hogging Jason and perhaps Uncle in person tonight!!

after conferring with jason, he said that where the 3 drawers are, the top is for placing cutlery. perhaps we will mount railings to hang those holders like what u see in ikea if we have no other alternative. i dont like it cos i want a clean clutter free kitchen so i will see how it goes. got to be domineering now.

[aubrey 0]

nottimonster

thanks for the tip! i normally do not touch the cylinders and i dont know how it works since most of the time my mom is home before me and she will start cooking. i will try it out and test around to see how it goes. maybe i can consult the delivery man when he next comes.

blue_diamond

ya this is a 101 foolproof guide to a smooth renovation with uncle ah soon. hahaha! hope that after reading, all those who are looking to reno know what to expect and not just let their ID/contractor boss them around. as rondy rightly said, its my money, my house. i shld tell them what i want not the other way around.

[pinkpetter 0]

WAH HOGGER! NOT FAIR! lol :rolleyes: Hope you have good luck talking to them today...

Like i was telling the rest.. when you go through the points with Jason today... draw them on the wall on the spot. Then he cannot dispute already cos it's on the wall. I wrote S/S for single points, D/S for double, SVC for tv... something like that la

As for cabinets...

Jason was not the one who did my cabinets so I guess I have less trouble there. My mom also didn't want the racks and holders cos she like to put her stuff any old how. No one knows where all the stuff are except her. So my cabinets were a lot easier to plan and with Uncle Soon I wasn't worried. He drew out the plan on the wall next to the kitchen... got his worker to copy it on paper and sent it to the carpenter after I took a look at it.

[aubrey 0]

hahah pet, talking about that, i went to write on masking tape and stuck it where i want my powerpoints! i forgot how to write "cha tou" (switch in chinese) so i wrote "x tou" all over. i told the china worker about it and he laughed at me. he even wrote the correct word in chinese for me on 1 of the tape after i left for work!

wa for all the drama, i think i must hog them now before i become like ivy and zou hou ru mo! sorry no HYPY on this com.

[pinkpetter 0]

hahah pet, talking about that, i went to write on masking tape and stuck it where i want my powerpoints! i forgot how to write "cha tou" (switch in chinese) so i wrote "x tou" all over. i told the china worker about it and he laughed at me. he even wrote the correct word in chinese for me on 1 of the tape after i left for work!

wa for all the drama, i think i must hog them now before i become like ivy and zou hou ru mo! sorry no HYPY on this com.

hahahha that time I wanted to write toilet I dunno how to write in chinese too. In the end I used my HP to find. lol our chinese might just improve after this

[mrspiglet 2]

pinkpetter: same here! i was struggling with the chinese i wanted to write and when gongkia saw it he wondered how come i so lihai know how to write! he was laughing all the way when i told him i check with the hp's hanyu pinyin.

aubrey: agree that its frustrating when Jason goes on n goes and wastes time to yak away instead of putting more effort in concentrating. Hope ur HO is smooth smooth! Anyway, must must must rembr to tell the carpenter u wan undermount sink!

[Angel81 1]

hi angel!! no choice leh.. jason says my kitchen area is small. so i have to plan otherwise for pots and pans. my mom has a relatively big wok, but we use that often so i think we shall just place it on the stove at all times and just stow the smaller items away. i plan to utilise the space above the fridge to put all her slow cooker, grinder, pot+pans up there. this time i will pack her kitchen! mom is not too good at packing. at least if i pack i will know where the items are since her memory is not like before.

jason told me he will get me the baskets and find the right tracks for me. i hope he can!! since i have that annoying drop within the wall, i just gotta make do. i will grill him about it later when he comes to speak to me.

Note to all: I will be hogging Jason and perhaps Uncle in person tonight!!

after conferring with jason, he said that where the 3 drawers are, the top is for placing cutlery. perhaps we will mount railings to hang those holders like what u see in ikea if we have no other alternative. i dont like it cos i want a clean clutter free kitchen so i will see how it goes. got to be domineering now.

Hmm, how about exchanging ur cleaning liquids storage with ur pots & pans storage? I think cleaning liquids should be able to fit into one cabinet, and the large space under the sink will be under-utilized. At least the area under the sink will be bigger and should be able to keep ur mom's wok to keep the kitchen clutter free.

Hehe, gd that Jason is getting the baskets for u. He'll sure get one tat fits properly into ur cabinets.