It's gorgeous! It fits your house so much better than your previous kitchen. I love your clerestory windows in your family room. I like the backsplash, especially the size of the tile.

I hear you on the dark wood floors. Ugh. I'm a slave to them.

Do you mind sharing where you got your shelves? I'm shopping for some for myself...

Hello gorgeous. What an amazing transformation!

I love how open and bright your layout is! You must be thrilled with the end result. I am sure this has already transformed your daily family life so positively (well after you recovered from a renovation with little ones, that is). Enjoy!

WhooHOO, nicely done Amanda!

I adore your Icelandic Blue tile. After our not-so-great experience with ADKO, how did yours work out? From here they are stunning. I like them much better than green for your space, they are cool and very modern in that color, especially when paired with the dark lower cabs and the crisp marble countertops. Yummy!

I agree with the thought of a blue-grey for that back wall. I love that photo that shows the back wall, what a vibrant space with the sloped ceiling and the beams.

Oh, and I have ceiling fan envy too! Sweet!

Enjoy!

Very beautiful redo and your whole house is wonderful, btw. The glass tile is especially nice.

Hi Karin! So glad you saw my post. We actually had no issues with the AKDO, surprisingly. Funny you mention the fan, it felt 80's while we were considering it but it gets so hot in that room.

Drybean - do you mean the shelves in the kitchen? If so, they were the same brand as the cabinets. Or if you mean the shelves in the dining room? Those are the Expedit from IKEA.

Thanks Amanda-sorry, I did mean the floating shelves in kitchen. Those are the thomasville ones, right? Thanks for your help.

Wow- a banner weekend for reveals and I was traveling but ogling and couldn't wait to see them on the computer.
Beautiful kitchen. I think everyone has said that already.
I love the shimmering backsplash - it has enough shimmer without being over the top.
Have fun cooking and looking forward to KIA pictures!

What a beautiful transformation! There are so many things I like: the mix of dark and light cabinets, luminous blue glass BS, cool clerestory windows above the opening to the kitchen, and the dark floating shelves that seem to relate nicely to the dark beams in the adjoining room. The kitchen seems well integrated with the rest of the house now.

drybean, yep!! Thomasville.

Kaysd, my husband insisted on those dark shelves even though I thought they would stick out like a sore thumb. But now that you mention it I think you're right about the beams. Thanks for that!

Wow! Stunning! What a gorgeous change!

Its stunning, congratulations!!
I love your DR light fixture!
Is your microwave just a regular sized one slid into an opening? It looks perfect.
Great Job :)

homebuyer 23 - yep, just a regular sized microwave. we were supposed to buy the kit to make it look more built in, but we never got around to ordering the kit!

What size is that microwave? The kitchen looks fabulous!

Mum2gandb - it's about 24"x14". Thank you!!

Love your kitchen! The accidental blue tiles are luminous - they are my favorite part....I would highlight them by picking up the color on what is now the far green wall. Gorgeous!!

I love contemporary and you have done it very well with your design and all your finishes. Very sleek and clean. Even though your cabinets are dark the space looks light and bright. Congratulation on a job well done

Lovely! Can you tell me where you found your cabinet pulls? Thanks!

I like that deep sink.

If you have good weather, you should invest in a good quality outdoor grill. With two sliding doors, you'll enjoy being able to cook at two places at once.

erinf8 - they are thomasville. i would've probably gotten knobs or something completely different if i had thought about it longer but when we ordered the cabs we found out we got a set of knobs for free and i had to choose them right then and there. they're really nice though - really heavy feeling.

erinf8 - they are thomasville. i would've probably gotten knobs or something completely different if i had thought about it longer but when we ordered the cabs we found out we got a set of knobs for free and i had to choose them right then and there. they're really nice though - really heavy feeling.

I'm fascinated by your layout.

Let us know how it works and if there's anything you'd change.

Mareluce-that is such an interesting choice of words. What fascinates you??

There are a few things I would change if I had unlimited funds like making the kitchen 5 feet wider. :) I also might have chosen different floors except I'm not sure what because half is on concrete and half plywood subfloor and everyone said this really hard bamboo was the only thing that would work for both. I might have taken away the cabinets facing the family room (on the back of the peninsula) because the countertop is kind of gigantic on the peninsula but I really do love having the storage space there so I'm not even sure about that.

For starters, the most unique thing about your layout + the situation of your house, is that while either in cleanup mode at the island or prepping on the peninsula, you have great views.

That's my favorite place for a microwave or toaster oven - to the right and up from the fridge or in a microwave drawer 1 step away from the fridge.
Because: I cook ~ every other day, but someone grabs a plate and re-heats things from the fridge or freezer in either the toaster oven or microwave maybe 5 - 10x / day depending on how many people are home.

Not a layout comment, but:

- I love that color of blue in your backsplash. I could swim in it.

- I love that you have open shelving that provides an opportunity for art in your kitchen.

If I ever move I'm going to add open shelving and have an outlet run behind it so that I can put a photo viewer. I just got a Nix photo viewer 8.5" with a motion sensor from Amazon, and I'd love to put it in the kitchen on a shelf like that. Electrician said he could run an outlet behind a shelf in the living room next time he's over in Congratulations on a gorgeous space!

Aww thanks for the kind words! An outlet behind the shelves is genius!

I love your kitchen! Such a bright, open space. When I saw your before pictures, I thought it was a nice space, and didn't need much, but your after pictures are so awesome. Not even in the same league with the first. I know you are thrilled with the result, I would be too.

Really beautiful! Love the backsplash and the whole space has a wonderful feel to it! Enjoy : )

What a great kitchen! Love the layout and all the storage--you must be in seventh heaven when you cook and bake in there! Love the BS--perfect compliment to your cabs and counter.

I'm considering the 36-inch Thermador rangetop. So glad to hear you're happy with it. Are you happy with your hood? What cfm is it? Is it easy to clean? Did you need make-up air? Any advice on shopping for a hood would be appreciated!

flwrs: I am really happy with the hood! It's a Vent-A-Hood Professional Series PRH18 and the blower is 600 CFM. So far that has been plenty. I'm not sure about cleaning since we just got it but it doesn't have any filters to clean so I think that should make it fairly easy? We had the toughest time figuring out how to buy a hood,too, but after a million hours of googling, I knew I wanted vent a hood, because I didn't want to deal with any separate hood/blower units, which narrowed it down a lot. My husband wanted this style (professional/wall mounted) so there wasn't a ton of choice after that.

Thanks Amanda! The appliance store I've visited to look at rangetops also carries Vent-A-Hood, so I'll have to check it out next time I'm up that way. It's good to know you find 600 cfm more than adequate because if we go above 600, we have to have MUA and I don't think we can squeeze that into the budget.

So Beautiful!!! congrats!! we share the same taste, clearly. right down to the blue tile :) your marble is so fantastic! fantastic job overall. I LOVE seeing more contemporary kitchens on here. fun fun!!

Wow!!
You guys did a great job. Really gives me hope!!!
I was going to do a microwave with a trim kit but eveything is getting so pricey. I see that you just put yours on an open shelf. Can you tell me which microwave you went with? Model # too?? Size?
Looks great!!
Thanks!!

It is just gorgeous! So light and fresh and crisp. I just love every bit of it - and your tile is such a star. I even covet your dish rack (have almost ordered that SO many times ;) enjoy your beautiful new space - thanks for sharing!

bump

Beautiful renovation! I love everything, esp the shiny glass backsplash (Lovely color!) and your floor! Cool windows along the ceiling!! What kind of house is this? Does it have a flat, slanted roof? Congratulations and enjoy!!!

Eeee! that is gorgeous! I love it! And totally up my style alley too. I only hope ours comes out half as nice as yours. Love how you opened it up.

And the snackers are adorable. ;)

Also, what color grout did you use for your backsplash?

Oh, WOW!!! That is beautiful and special on so many levels! Ditto what everyone above said! Could you tell us more about your dining room chandelier? I love so many things about this kitchen (and contemporary isn't even my style). What size is your island? I think my layout might be similar to yours (although a little smaller), and I'm also debating on whether or not to put that extra bank of cabinets under the peninsula. Now that you've lived with it for a little while, would you do it again? I could really use the storage!

Supermom - here is our Microwave: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sharp-2.0-cu.-ft.-Microwave-1200Watts-Stainless-Steel-R530EST/10660462

I wanted a kit but I never got around to ordering it. The only issue I have is since it's sitting on the "shelf" and not in the middle of the cabinet there's a big empty space above it that I think looks funny.

Hello - Thanks for all the compliments! It's kindof Eichler style. Built in 1975 - definitely a money pit. :) The roof in the back is flat and in the front it's slanted towards the street.

Miffy bunny, the grout is like a light beige, practically white. i can get the name for you. I wanted a medium grey but sent my husband to HD and that's what he came back with. :)

Legallin - The chandalier is called Bling by Robert Abbey. It's an imitation of a MUCH pricier one called Pear Ochre. It was still fairly pricey though and definitely one of our "splurges". The island is 84" wide with standard 24" deep base cabs but we had the counter top cut a bit wider to give extra room behind the faucet. So it's about 27". If you need the storage DEFINITELY go with those extra cabs under the peninsula. I really love them - we put our millions of wine glasses there and other things that we rarely use. I'm not sure where else I'd put that stuff. The peninsula IS really wide, is my only problem. Like - when we are sitting at the counter I wish the person standing on the other end was a bit closer. But again, I needed the storage so I wouldn't change it.

And seriously thank you for such kind words! I still feel like I question many of my choices (and style, even, although I didn't have many options with our weird 70's house) so it's so helpful to hear positive feedback!

Love, love, love everything about your kitchen and family/dining room remodel!!! Amazing!

Amanda: I absolutely love an amazing transformation. The opening up of the space plus your good choices make this a stand-out remodel!

I am huge fan of the clean look and the MCM that your house has hints of. What does the outside look like? Is it Eichler-ish? I think you made some very smart choices with the blue tile, the dark cabinets and the open shelves.

I don't mind the green at all, but maybe because you were thinking that your tile would be more greenish you are feeling it doesn't relate? Perhaps a wall that has some slight hints of blue would feel more cohesive? There is so much of the grayish-taupe because of your light-filled giant walls, that I find the accent wall a refreshing and fun pop of color. I'd stick with an accent wall, but maybe repaint it something that you feel ties in with the kitchen a bit better.

I too lusted after the Ochre chandelier and ended with a Robert Abbey one :) Actually Ochre has lots of very cool pricey stuff!!

I think the CB2 Vapor stools would be awesome with your peninsula! Love your place--just SUPER beautiful!!

@firsthouse - yep the outside is Eichlerish. We're just starting to think about what to do to it because it is....UGLY. It's awful. The way it's built on a hill the garage is really tall and the floor that we live on seems teeny in comparison because of the pitched roof, making the wall on the front side only 7.5". We actually worked with an architect for curb appeal ideas and he didn't come up with anything great.

You probably know it already but ....
GOOD JOB! That's a very comfy and nice kitchen. Love :)
Everything fits in nicely and complements each other...

I absolutely love your tile! I'm thinking about doing something similar, but my kitchen designer is trying to steer me away from glass tiles. She thinks they are hard to keep looking clean. She'd prefer I go with something with a matte finish.

I just love the way they look. So ... in your experience so far, how bad is the cleaning? Do you worry about windex (or other glass cleaner) getting on your countertops?

Thanks for any insight you can provide.

Lisa71 in my experience the glass tiles are so easy to keep clean! I'm actually more worried about the grout but we are ok so far.

I think mid century moderns are so cool! Well done! i can respect the outside ;)

i likr your family room too

I think mid century moderns are so cool! Well done! i can respect the outside ;)

i likr your family room too

Thank you amandasplit. I'm feeling better about the glass. I still have to decide on a color, but I'll need to go to a tile store to get some samples for that.

I have one more questions - did you raise your ceiling in the kitchen area? If so, how much?

Thanks!