Kitchen Re-do

Welcome to my kitchen.  While it's still a little off from what I would have choosen had a built my home, it's come a long, long way from where it once was.

My favorite thing about it is probably the wall color.  I hemmed and hawwed over many other paint colors in my house, but this one I always knew.  It's Benjamin Moore Wickham Grey and for me it was love at first site.  

Funny story, though.  When I was buying the paint I asked them to maybe just put in a little more blue because I was worried it wouldn't be much of a color, and the girl looked at me and said, "there's no blue in it..."  I was a little shocked and worried, but stuck to my gut and boy am I glad I did.  I love it!!  It's a pretty pale french blue.

And it plays really well with the Benjamin Moore China White we used on the cabinets.  Kind of a French Country vibe.

Anyway...this is what the place looked like before: 

Sort of cave-like.  And dark...and ugly.  I don't hate stained wood, but something about this stain made it milky...like it was laid on too thick or something.  So it all had to go.  I originally thought it really all would go, but we actually ended up keeping a lot of things... 

One thing I was certain of was getting rid of that awful drop box florescent light!  Ugh.  Couldn't wait to see that thing gone!  We replaced it with four recessed lights, and sometimes I wish I'd been able to talk my husband into the six that I wanted, but once the pendant lights are shining 4 does the job nicely. 

Which brings me to the pendant Tiffany lights we had in here...

Aren't they just lovely??  Someone thought so because they sold pretty well online! haha.

I did make my hubby move one of the pendants over about 6 inches because they were just too close together... 

I got major eye rolls for making him do this, but ...it just needed to be done. 

See?  Look how pretty that ceiling is now!  It came a looong way!! 

When we walked through the house listing off what needed to be changed, I opened the fridge door, which opened up against this corner wall, and realized that because of the handle, the fridge could only open up about a foot wide...how ridiculous!?  So, next on the list was switching places with the fridge and the pantry.  It was a pretty big ordeal especially since we had to replace the crown molding because it didn't work in reverse...

But all's well that ends well, am I right?  And it all works so well now that it's switched around.  I can open both fridge and freezer as wide as they will go.  Perfect.

Surprisingly, once it was all painted and finished, I didn't hate the backsplash so much...and the countertops really popped where they hadn't before.  We also replaced all that tile flooring with laminate wood planks that look like old hardwood flooring.  Gorgeous!  No regrets there.

We also ended up keeping the knobs and pulls and even the hinges and everything looks and works great.

And then it was all about finishing touches.  Most of the items on the top of the cabinets were thrift store finds.  Love that.

These copper molds belonged to my mother, and bring me back to my childhood every time I see them.

I got the grand idea to put sugar and flour in huge canisters like this from a friend of mine.  They are SO much more practical than the tiny canisters that come in a set like the one I got at my wedding.  Those things never hold an entire bag of flour or sugar so it's always been a problem for me, because it's not a real storage solution.  Anyway, these are from Target and I love them. 

The window by the sink is one of my favorite spots.  I love looking out those windows.  They were covered in ugly blinds, which I quickly threw away.  I ended up replacing those with these little tension rods that happen to fit really snug once I took the decorative balls of the ends that met in the middle.  It almost looks custom.  Perfect.  And these flowy little curtains were a wedding gift from long ago.  They work perfectly here.

Lastly, I put this sign up above the doorway connecting this kitchen to the formal front room.  Words to live by...found at Hobby Lobby.

So, there you have it.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Flipping the Deck

This is our deck.

  It was in pretty bad shape when we bought our house and has been on our "To Do List" ever since we moved in.

Obviously the boards were well worn and hadn't been taken care of for quite some time.    

But there were other things too.  Like the railing, or lack thereof.  We had a lot of work on our hands.

The first item of business was to close up the side.  It had been left completely open and critters were becoming a problem for us.  So, my awesome hubby bought some latice and went to work.  Love the way it turned out! 

Then he started flipping the boards.  Literally.  It took hours and hours and hours and HOURS.  But, the underside of those boards was like new. 

There were only a few boards that had to be replaced.  

And after all that hard work, it was so pretty!

Next up was beefing up that railing a little bit.  We'd been looking online and finally found a pattern for how we wanted it to look.

And this is what we came up with.  We are in love!

I just can't get over how different it looks.

This last weekend, we stained the entire thing.  It feels like it took all summer!  

 But we are sure happy with the results. 

Bath Towel Rack

Sorta like a wine rack but for bath towels.  I think these towels look SO cute rolled up and put in these diagonal shelves.  Cute idea!

Cutest Garbage Ever!

Yep, this is a garbage.  Amazing, right!?  I want one!!! 

Apparently, she bought this thing, but I've never seen one for sale anywhere, so I'm thinking I might need to have hubby make one for me at some point.  It looks simple enough.  In fact, you could probably just purchase a cabinet and change the direction the door opens!  Then, just add a stand at the bottom for the garbage can to rest on.  Love this idea! 

Seriously, have you ever seen a cuter garbage!? 

I mean, you can even decorate it!!  I love it!  Visit {Gail's Decorative Touch} for more info and great ideas!

Kitchen Inspiration

Just another collection of beautiful kitchens.

Love that this one has two dishwashers!!  Perfect for a busy kitchen!  It's so light, bright, and airy.

This is definitely one of my most favorite kitchens of all time.  Love the copper countertops, and the wood island.  I also love those copper pots!!  And the pizza oven is awesome.  It's the perfect mix between old world/tuscan style and modern style.

I really like the green in this kitchen.  So fresh!

This one just looks homey.  I'm a big fan of islands in a different color, it adds a lot of character.  I also love the huge window in this kitchen.

This one just seems so family-oriented!  I love the huge island!!  This kitchen is just huge, and I always love a kitchen that opens up in some way to the family room.  Love the dark countertops with the white cabinets, too!

This one just seems like the perfect summer kitchen to me!  I love the huge farmhouse sink, and the pretty white cabinets and countertops just feel so cool.  But, I love how the dark wood floors ground everything.

LOVE this kitchen!!  I love that hunge island/bar.  I think it's very clever of them to use the end of the island as a bookshelf - perfect spot for all those cookbooks.  I also love the creamy color of the cabinets in this kitchen.

Another light and bright kitchen that is grounded with the dark wood flooring and dark countertops.  I love the contrast!!  Love the size of this kitchen, too!  It's huge!!

Here's a great idea - 2 sinks.  Why not!?

Thought this was a cute idea.  I like how the island is exactly opposite the rest of the kitchen.  Dark cabinets and light countertop, vs dark countertops and light cabinets everywhere else.

I love all the pretty open cabinets in this kitchen!  It only seems like it would work if you had a ton of them so you have the space to set everything up so it looks pretty. :)  Love the three cakestands sitting on the counter as well - they're a really cute and functional decoration!

I love the color of the cabinets in this kitchen!  It's a great size, with a lot of great features.  I love the pretty window cabinets next to the fridge!! 

I love the idea of using an apothecary jar to hold garlic cloves.  Cute and functional - the pefect kitchen decoration!  I also love the idea of putting vases full of flowers next to the kitchen sink.  I gotta start doing that - it makes the sink feel so much more inviting. 

This is another one of my very favorite kitchens.  I love the tuscan feel of this one with the tile backsplash and deep wood tones.  It just seems very rich and warm.