Well, actually, for me, the excitement is in the planning. Yesterday was a big day in the Merillat Good Life Kitchen remodel process.

We rose early and drove up to Redford, Michigan to visit Brian Dawe at Great Lakes Granite and Marble. Our mission was to choose our slab of granite as well as our sink and faucet finish.

Great Lakes is a fascinating place! We learned a little bit about how granite is mined, how slabs are cut, saw them moving them about their warehouse. This is one of those places that you could spend an interesting day learning about an industry most people don’t come into contact with. But, alas, the cameras were rolling, so we had to move along.

Paul Molnar, of Hanson, Inc. is the photographer capturing our remodel.

Dave McCormick of Hanson, Inc., shooting video outside Great Lakes Granite and Marble where we chose our granite slab for our countertops.

Before I go on, allow me to introduce our new friends, Paul Molnar and Dave McCormick, from Hanson, Inc. Paul takes the still photos and Dave is the videographer. I honestly don’t know what Merillat has planned for all this footage, but think they should have enough to create a documentary entitled “Transforming the Kitchen: One Family’s Journey.”

Later that day…we again met Paul and Dave, along with our designer, Amy Wuest, from KSI Kitchens and Bath. We met at Pro Source in Maumee, Ohio, where Dee Russel guided us in choosing our flooring and backsplash tile.

The floor is a beautiful engineered wood. The backsplash tile is porcelain with glass and marble accents. We’re actually the first ones in town to see these beautiful glass tiles. They had just received the sample earlier that day. We’re cutting edge, baby!

granite countertop

sample of our new floor

Backsplash tile and accents

"stunning" cabinets

Of course all of this complements the focus of the kitchen which is the “stunning” cabinetry provided by Merillat!

I found the artwork at Bed, Bath and Beyond and will choose a paint color from that to tie everything together.

We have a meeting on Monday at Appliance Center, also in Maumee, where we will work with Chuck V. (there are two Chucks and our Chuck is the self-proclaimed “good Chuck”) to choose our appliances. After that, it’s time to crunch the numbers, double check we’re all on the same page and sign off on the official order.

Construction should begin shortly after Labor Day.