Do you see what I see?

 Shelves mounted from the ceiling, or at least not your typical shelf.

My wheels are spinning.

Lessons Learned.

Let me start this post by saying how much I love my kitchen. I feel like an official grown up to have a house where we can entertain. I am so proud of it. It was a lot of work but it was also very rewarding to figure out the endless details.

I have received some emails about our renovation experience and those have spurred me to write a short list of what I would do differently- you know how hindsight works.

The pendants: I selected these from Kichler.

I wanted to add a fancy, industrial vibe to our space and these were the right size and price. However, when you sit under them it feels a bit like you have a spotlight on your face. I do wish the bottom had a filter like these: I did not select these because they are 3" larger than what I have in my kitchen and I did not want the proportion to be too large.

Do you see what I mean?

Next, our spice rack. Here's the back story. We received our cabinets for free. They came from a model home that was being broken down -talk about being in the right place at the right time. Our cabinet guy needed 5" on our lowers so he used this drawer front and built a spice rack. I wish we had only 2 drawers instead of three so we could fit our taller bottles- like olive oil, Pam, vinegars, etc...It's not a big deal, those are in the pantry but I would redo that design.

Last detail: how to disguise the microwave. I hate how much counter space it eats up. We simply ran out of room to incorporate the microwave as a built in, but in kitchen planning this detail would take priority for future designs. If you are renovating your kitchen, I hope this was a helpful post. Best of luck!

Finale.

TaDa! It's time for the before and after reveal. Sit back, enjoy. There was a lot of work, time, stress, sweat and money that went into this kitchen and what a difference it made.

If you have not been to our house before, this is where you would enter from the side porch {we hardly use the front door}

Turn to your left and you stare at the hot water heater in the corner.

Keep circling around you're at the sink...where I was the manual dishwasher.

Keep left and you have the side entry.

I actually loved having that massive trash can, but it didn't get to stay in the new kitchen.

In case one had the urge to iron while cooking there was a built in ironing board to accommodate such a multitasker.

Take a stroll into the dining room:

That wall didn't get to stay either. R.I.P.

drum roll please...

One more before and after shot from the living room into the kitchen/dining room {forgive my mess but see how much natural light we now get!}

Thanks Lindsay for the pics and endless thanks to Micah of Epic Construction for getting this project done.

Wingate Kitchen.

My mom is dreaming of renovating her kitchen. {Good luck Mom! You should see if Nanu or Dale & Bridget will let you and Dad have the guest room for the meantime.}
Since you've asked, I'll start piling together some image ideas for the new digs. Here's a long skinner island that you can use. I love the thick countertops and take note of the pendants. Lighting and backsplash can be the crowning jewels of the kitchen. Don't know where I heard that- but it's pretty true.


I know you are not thinking of a white kitchen- I just like the glass cabinets and that stainless hood- add a ladder for those of us that cannot. Take advantage of those tall ceilings. Note the backsplash going to the ceiling- hello glamour.

I love an apron sink, be it cast iron, granite, concrete or marble. they are all so beautiful.

images here and here

Duplicate.

all images from this post

Surplus.

When I placed a "special order" for our granite countertops, they would not sell me the amount I needed. No, they made me purchase the slab. That will leave us with a surplus of granite that kept me pondering "where will I put this? Does Bibb need it in the garage, should I make a desk? We do not need another vanity in the bathroom."
Finally, the obvious inspiration came to me, we will install the surplus as my backsplash (instead of the intended white subway tile in a herringbone pattern).
The pictures below are from Velvet & Linen. Although our ceiling is not that high and our kitchen is not this massive, there are some elements that I have been duplicating for our kitchen.
Yummy, I can't wait.

Demo.

What did you do with your Tuesday night? Did you watch American Idol and Dancing with the Stars? Perhaps you made a nice dinner and read a book. Not us.

No no, we demolished our kitchen. And what a welcomed, glorious mess! Even though our house is layered with dust, I have to pinch myself to believe this is happening.

Surprisingly, it only took one hour to demolish and one hour to clean up. That saved us $500.00 and as my dad says, "A penny saved is a penny earned." (That mentality is the same format I use to tell Tony about the wonderful sale purchases I make. The jeans were $78.00, but I got them for $9.00- we basically made $69)

Microwave.

The latest detail I am working out for our kitchen is where to place the microwave. I do not want it sitting on our countertop and a traditional placement above the stove will not work for us because the stove cooktop is in the island with a wall.
There are clever ways to hide the microwave now like on a lower built in shelf in a kitchen island or above the fridge like Anne Turner via Cottage Living did here: (I have a feeling Tony would not not go for this placement and I wonder if these people are 7' tall to reach that) I was wondering if we could place the microwave IN our pantry, but that idea was vetoed. Last week I saw this image from Elizabeth Martin which makes me think we can insert ours in the pantry...to be determined Electrician is coming tomorrow!!!

Breakfast Nook

We are about to embark on our kitchen renovation (i.e. gut it and rebuild it) and the details are endless. We have a screened in porch off the side of our home that leads directly to the kitchen. Everyone walks in through this door to enter our house. Only first timers expect to be welcomed at the front door. We are windowing this room in and making this the entrance to the house. This requires expanding the current brick to make the new sun room and the kitchen feel like one room.

I have been in debate about what to use this space for- either a built in desk to serve as a drop station. My thought was, if we sell this might appeal to a buyer as an office. Since we have already have an office set up in one of the rooms, 3 bedrooms, no kiddos in the near future and no plans of picking up and moving anytime soon, I'm going to go with my instinct and opt to add some charm in this space by making breakfast nook area.
Below is an example how the sunroom leading into the kitchen will look with a wider entry. ( I wish we could have an arch, but the mason says it's not possible for our budget.)

I am looking for a salvaged, light piece of furniture for a table. Hopefully a glass top with a rusty iron base.



Ignore that this is a living room and pay attention to the windows and window bench. I am excited about finding fabric for this space in our soon to be breakfast nook.

Images via Country Home and Pure Style Home