Kitchen Tour 2009

Since I've had a few requests, I figure it's time to share the kitchen with you. Mind you, we still have some painting to do, a back splash to decide on, and some other little details(like a door for the fuse box), but when compared to this time last year, we are so so so done! So I'll narrate and you can peek. Then you can see the progress we made by checking out this album with highlights of the process over on flickr.

Entering the kitchen from the dining room. Where the shelves are, between the two window banks, is where the wall use to be that divided the two rooms. Kitchen was on the left and the room on the right was what we called the "un-room". It did nothing but hold extra storage furniture for stuff that didn't fit in the kitchen. After moving into the house in 2001 and rewiring, it also had not power in it, if I recall correctly.

One more view from the dining room into the kitchen. There is a bedroom on the other side of that white door. Currently the girls are sharing it. That was once a porch, which we demolished and had a bedroom and bath put in its place.

Long view of kitchen. My back is in the girl's bedroom doorway. The door you can see leads outside.

Long view from the opposite direction, with my back now against the door to outside. The floating shelves were the last bit of cabinetry to go in. I intended for them to hold a good bit of weight, but when the cabinet maker installed them he expressed concern that they would tilt forward. I loaded them up with cookbooks to test it and they were tilting within minutes. While he proposed having some metal support fabricated, Jim announced that he thought he had an idea and could fix it with rebar. I was concerned, but I'll be darned, those shelves will never sag again!

Pantry and ovens. The pantry was a #1 item on my list. We made a lot of adjustments to everything else on this wall to be able to fit this pantry in, but I am glad I stood firm on my desire for it. I LOVE it!! It came from here.

My inside view is not as pretty as the company's, but you get the idea. I still need more canisters and organization in there, but it is so easy to find thing and use.

The oven and refrigerator wall. In the old kitchen, the refrigerator was recessed into a nook which has now been walled in and the refrigerator pushed forward. Now, the bedroom closet on the other side of the wall can be widened. Another day. When I have forgotten about the dust that demolition causes and all the turmoil that ensues.

Long view of same wall. The desk area on the far left will eventually have a computer at it. I'm also thinking about cork against that wall vs. the back splash (which we haven't even begun to think about). Our cabinets were made by a local cabinet maker who works full time as a fireman and does this on the side. The counter tops and floor came from the Tile Store.

Well, that's about it. It's twice as long, the same width, much prettier to look at and only a year in the making. I do have to stress that Jim did everything himself except for build and install the cabinets, run the gas line and cut and install the counter tops. He did all the demolition, framing, repair work to damaged wood, drywalling, plumbing, wiring, flooring, paint stripping, painting....you name it. His eldest brother did come help over the course of three weekends, once to install the header that took the place of the load bearing wall that we removed, once to help with hanging drywall and once to help lay tile. We are very thankful for his help in those areas, as they were really two person jobs.