Finally
we get to unwrap the cabinets and see what they look like. Since we have
so many openings in the kitchen (2 windows and 9 doors) we don't have a lot of
room for cabinetry. Thank goodness we have that huge pantry.
Finally
we get to unwrap the cabinets and see what they look like. Since we have
so many openings in the kitchen (2 windows and 9 doors) we don't have a lot of
room for cabinetry. Thank goodness we have that huge pantry.
We only needed to order eight cabinets total. So for this reason and the fact that we can get them at an employee discount we went all out with the cabinetry. They are glazed cherry with an antiqued finish. The doors are inset and the drawers are full extension. The edges have a furniture finish and the exposed ends of the cabinets are finished with a matching panel. I'm sorry I know I'm bragging, but they are truly beautiful. Who wouldn't be proud?
Did you notice the door? We finally that one and the one to the basement finished. The color is a little washed out in this picture, it's more yellow in real life. But that is the color the rest of the trim in the kitchen and pantry will be.
We
didn't plan on having new appliances, but when we sold our house in town that
was one of the deal breakers. So I had to just deal with it and buy a new
stove and refrigerator to match my new black dishwasher :)
I would have loved to have the retro style ones from the Elmira Stove Works, but since the appliances weren't in the budget to begin with that wasn't happening.
Our stove is a Maytag. It's ok. I'm not unhappy or impressed. Same with out dishwasher. The fridge is a Samsun. We are impressed with that. We love the gently rounded top that in our minds at least gives it a kind of retro look. Plus it's a freezer on the bottom style. It is so much more roomier and convenient than our old freezer on the top one in town. Plus the freezer has these nifty drawers that makes the heart of an organizational nut, like me, race.
The cabinetry hardware is just cheap stuff from Menards. I haven't been able to find any that I love. So they will do while I look.
The countertops
were quite the find. I had to have soap stone. I'm a biology major
and I love the look of those old laboratory benches. It just so happened
that where I went to college was remodeling and tearing out all of the old
laboratory tops. We arranged to buy more than enough stone for our project
for $50. Unbelievable compared to the quote from the local stone
fabrication place of $350.
What's great about soap stone is you can cut and finish it with regular woodworking tools. So we could do the installation ourselves. And while the cuts didn't turn out as beautiful as a machine would have done I'm very proud to say it's another thing we did ourselves. Plus we took the tops from the lab bench that I sat at for class. How cool is that!
I wanted a farm house sink, but couldn't find one I liked in our price range. So we made a false front out of the counter top stone and then installed this stainless steel one. The sink we a reject from Home Depot. It was returned because the Kohler printed on the inside was slightly off center. It was 75% off the original price. The faucet is also a Home Depot find. It's one of those that you pull the sprayer out from the faucet. It didn't come in the color I wanted, I wanted something with a black tint to it. However, I fell in love with the look of it and couldn't live with out it.
So here's the finished for now product. We still need to put the trim up on the top and bottom of the uppers and the kick board on the bases. We can now have home cooked meals again, and with the money saved from eating out you should see all sorts of progress now.
The biggest
question with our kitchen design is why don't we have an island. We had
plenty of room for one and we could have afforded to put a pretty nice one in.
Well here's the reason.
This is Tim's grandmother's dining room table. Both of us grew up with tables in the center of our kitchen. It is where the family gathered daily, where homework was done, and guests were entertained. It was such an important fixture in our childhoods that how could we have a house with out the element that brought so many happy memories?
So we are choosing to forgo modern convince and fashion trend for an old happy memory. If you care to discuss it further there's a chair waiting.
I know it's been a few months since we moved in, but I finally got around to taking some pictures of the rooms "lived-in." We've been so busy with the kitchen I didn't have a lot of time to get stuff hung and placed in the rooms where I wanted it (also they've been kinda messy).
Our master bedroom. When the construction is done and money stops being poured into that I plan on getting a head board and side lamps and tables. I love metal beds and am holding out for one of them. I'm still very unsure of what to do for bed side tables. The metal bed gives me almost too many choices. Also Tim's dresser (the one in the first picture under the quilt) needs to be refinished. I also have my eye out for an old chest of drawers so we have more storage space for our unmentionables.
These shots are of the master bath. Curtains are the big issue here. The forest green bed sheet just doesn't do it for me.
I also have my eye out for another chest of drawers for this room. I've got my towels on an old pressed board bookshelf by the toilet now and it looks pretty crappy.
Also I want one of those vanity tables. Not that I ever get "done up" for anything, but it's just one of those silly little girl dreams. I just can't seem to find the right one though.
The
laundry room/closet.
The
picture to the left is of the living room, and the picture to the right is the
mud room.
So for the most part we are still living out of boxes. What a dirty mess!
For my birthday Tim borrowed a friend's plane and took me for a ride over the our house and some other old properties I love.
pre-flight our farm
Tim
stripping the woodwork for his office.