Great job - it was worth the wait! In addition to the close up of the microwave (which I'm interested in), could you do one of the sink? I'm leaning toward low divide, and the Vigo is one I've bookmarked. Haven't seen any pics of it "in use," so it would be very helpful!

BTW, I also like that you kept the brick!

boone_2009, thanks for the pictures of the microwave. It's appreciated.

A really nice transformation Boone. I love the brickwork! Actually, I'm totally in love with your stove area. I wanted to expose a brick wall in my reno but it was in poor shape. Sigh. My eyes are so green when I look at that stove wall. Fantastic job.

Very nice! I agree with other posters; I'm glad you kept the brick. I like how you had the tiles behind the cook top cut to mimic the arch. Nice touch!

Nice job painting your old chandelier! It looks brand new.

I see that you included a cutting board in its old location. We're trying to figure out whether we keep one or not when we remodel. I was ready to get rid of it, even though I use it, because hubby and DS2 *never* clean it off after using it (drives me crazy! Short trip, as hubby would say). Just had to clean strawberry juice off it. Again. But when I told them, they both howled, "We can't get rid of the cutting board!" Trying to work out a compromise, such as "only cut bread directly on it but use a plastic cutting board for everything else." How well that works pre-remodel will determine whether we keep or lose the cutting board.

Thanks for sharing your kitchen with us!

What a great transformation! Amazing difference. Love that brick cooking niche. You have really brought its beauty forward. It looks great with your floor and those wood cabinets. Really flows now. Such a beautiful and functional space you have created! It's such a pleasure to be in your very own chosen surroundings with colors and materials you love. Great job!

KBSpider: I didn't take many "detail"pics before ( such as the trash pull-outs, sink with faucet, some other neat features etc) but I will be sure to take some and post them asap.
Of course, I'll post one of the Vigo. It's a great sink and I actually enjoy cleaning it, lol.

Aries61: I'll post a current pic of the MW as soon as hubby is available to upload them :-)

Mags438: Thank you! Too bad you could not keep your brick :-(. I do love my cooktop area. A neighbor suggested I get rid of the brick but I stuck to my guns...er.. kitchen knives. :-)

lisa_a: You are welcome!
We were lucky with our tiler - the same neighbor mentioned above gave us his name and phone number. He is very patient, meticulous and loves what he does. He tried his best to make that arch shape of the bs /floor tiles match the arch of the surround - I think he did a good job.
Thanks for your kind words about the chandelier :-).
Re. the cutting board, I'm with your hubby and DS2 - it's indispensable to me as I do a lot of vegetarian cooking and am always cutting all sorts of veggies. The new board is much larger than the old one to my delight. I also have a mini-cutting /bread board at the cooktop, just above the drawers on the left of the central bank of pot drawers. See? I forgot to take a pic of that as well! Will post snaps of both boards asap. Maybe you could also incorporate two boards in your kitchen - one for your use only!! ( other to be cleaned by DH and DS2, not you! )

Absolutely lovely. Really love the baking station and wall ovens. And your chandelier looks amazing! Great job and enjoy your gorgeous new kitchen for many many years to come.

Thank you, snookums2 !
Thank you, taggie!
This kitchen really makes me happy! :-)

For KBSpider: three pics of the Vigo sink taken now ( I just cleaned it :-) lol.)
Pic One.

Pic Two.

Pic Three!

For lisa_a : Pics of my two cutting/bread boards :-)
Pic One.

Pic Two
Oh, no, it's turned sideways and I don't know how to fix that:-(. You'll have to turn your head - sorry!!! This is the mini-board in the cooktop area.

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:29

Pic Three!

It was worth the 9 month wait! Add me to the growing list that loves your cooktop area. The crisp white subway tiles are perfect with the brick & accent tiles. I'm glad you posted the MW pic that was taken during the tile install. I hadn't noticed that the bottom row of tiles are vertical- nice touch.
Your wall of glass cabinets & double ovens - very pretty.
You have a truly lovely new kitchen.

Tray divider above double ovens. I made a mistake here and didn't double check the height of the dividers - so I have to use the cabinet above pantry for my larger muffin trays and cookie sheets. I use this space for my everyday vases and smaller cake/pie pans.

romy718: Thanks!! I love the white beveled tile, too! Credit for the idea of the lowest row of tiles being placed vertically goes to an online picture/blog that I found while 'googling' for subway tile patterns. ..now I can't find the url for that blog :-(. I'll look for it .
My glass cabinets are a treasure to me - I display cookbooks, sentimental items along with our everyday china. Since the cabs face the dining nook, it's a cinch to set the table. The first row of drawers beneath the glass cabs house cutlery trays and the rest, linens, serving dishes and candles for the dining table ;-)

Pull out trash cans in cabinet beneath knife drawer .

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:30

Under sink cabinet - with mat and door shelf.

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:33

Oh, no - pics are turned sideways again, dang. Sorry! If anyone knows how to fix them, please do. Otherwise, I'm so sorry for giving you all neck strain :-(.
I'll try another one - this is a pull-out for my everyday cleaning supplies, to the left of sink cabinet. Very handy!! No more bending to reach under the sink!

Cabinet with two pull-out shelves for my small appliances

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:34

Waaaa ...all my pics are 'wonky"!

Okay, I'll try just one more for tonight and hope it displays correctly.
If you scroll up to Pic 12 of my AFTER kitchen, you'll see our old vertical blinds and horizontal blinds. This pic shows our new plantation shutters, yaay!! They were the final touch and the most recent addition ( early March of this year).

I did not notice the back splash tile difference until the Microwave shot.
That is a nice detail.

What a great looking kitchen. When you mentioned you were going to keep the brick, I thought, oh my well ok it's your kitchen. But it;s fantastic and that coupled with the floor gives the kitchen some great dimension. Love it

I think you jave MY chandelier, lol! Good to know hou can indeed spray paint them. I want to do mine black for now.

What a great kitchen, I can see how it would make you a happy cook! Congrats on finishing!

I am in love! I love the changes that you made. I love how you kept the brick wall and have the Schuler Cherry Pecan drawers there that go so well with the brick. I love the counters with your beautiful quality white cabinets. I love the new appliances. But most of all I love all the organization cabinets and the overall way everyone goes so well together. I also loved how you spray painted your chandelier. You now have a beautiful and functional kitchen to be proud of.

One question about your tile. I need to finish my kitchen and tile goes under cabinets I was told. but now I come across some emergency medical bills and the insurance company is pressuring me to finish the floors and do the cabinets at a later date. So it looks like you installed the new cabinets where the others ones were and did not have the tile under the cabinets. Am I right? Was it difficult to remove the cabinets with the tile in front of the cabinets? Did you have tile under the dishwasher? It would be so ice to get my floors done in my downstairs (4 rooms: 3 wood and the kitchen will be tile replacing the linoleum) and then get the rest of my extensions done before revisiting my kitchen again. I do not want to lose the rest of my floor insurance money. I did not get any money for the cabinets, just the floors from the water damage problem from my water heater. I bought extra tiles in case I ever wanted to put the tiles under the cabinets. I fell in love with these tiles in 2011 when I was going to do the kitchen at year end before my little dog died (so far 3 little dogs have died on me) and then after my busy season, I had surgery. Then the next year the water damage happened. I am ready to do the kitchen but if I wait, the insurance company may not pay me for the floor and I need to get a contract signed and started.

How lovely!
You are right on target with your textures and finishes. Very warm, very clean, very, very nice.

and I also like the chandelier! :) I really love your tile floor. Just as I was hoping you'd kept it, you wrote that you did. Very nice choice.

That was one pretty fast reno, though! July to fall? OMG, you're going to be one of the speed-reno winners.

Good to see you again.

It looks great! I love that you kept the brick niche. It adds a nice touch. Lots of nice handy personal touches too.

Great job. Love the tile and sink you chose. Enjoy!!

Very pretty! You must be tickled pink :)

Beautiful! I am very impressed with the chandelier paint job too! I have the same chandelier, in shiny brass and I'd love to paint it but am not sure how to go about it. Can you tell me, what you did, what paint you used, etc? It looks great!

terri_pacnw: yes, that tile detail made a huge difference - people think I used expensive tile when they were just regular beveled white subways from Lowes! Funny how one small thing like that changes the entire look! Since the tiles are placed so close together and our tiler used epoxy grout, they are very easy to clean compared to our eighties square tiles with wide grout lines.

blfenton: I'm so glad that you no longer think ," Oh, my well,ok, it's your kitchen!', lol. Thanks!!

Greenhaven: I got somewhat addicted to spray paint after doing that chandelier so I went ahead and painted the little desk chair red, lol. I also spray-painted our outdoor wrought iron bistro set a sunny yellow :-). Thank you for your compliments! P.S. If you have the identical late eighties chandelier ( I kept it because it 'fits' the house and I do like traditional things), try Oil-Rubbed Bronze in lieu of black ( Rust Oleum Universal Metallic spray paint). You can see pics online if you google it.

CEFreeman: Nice to see you again, too! You helped a lot! Thanks, thanks and thanks! Yep, I should be in the Guiness Book :-) - not just for 'speediest reno" but for " unmatched patience and silent grinding of teeth."

MGMum: Aw, thank you!

Tinker1121: Thanks - I truly enjoy this space now :-). For the tile, simple won out in the end - after visiting so many tile stores and going nuts over patterns and colors.

Errant: Yes...I'm tickled...happy! Thank you!

hpny2: Thank you, I used RustOleum Universal Metallic spray paint - I can't for the life of me remember if I used the Titanium Silver or the Satin Nickel color, darn it. I am pretty sure it was Titanium Silver but hubby says it's SN. I got the idea after browsing online and typing "how to spray paint a brass chandelier" in my Google search box. You get tons of ideas and pictures and blogs as well.
We took down the chandelier, removed the sleeves for the lights, stuffed cotton balls inside the sleeves,duct-taped everything that was not supposed to be painted and . We set up a paint area in our backyard, wore gloves and masks, painted on a still, sunny day and hubby then rigged up a pole contraption so we could hang the chandelier to dry . Took about 2-3 hours from start to finish. Painted the chain and the ceiling cover, too, of course. Hubby hung it back up for me. I chose a color that would match the ss appliances but I also loved the RustOleum Oil Rubbed Bronze.
I didn't prime as this has paint and primer in one. I did lightly sandpaper the chandelier before painting ( and of course, I cleaned it first with a damp cloth so there was no speck of dirt).

lynn2006 : I wanted to answer you last so I could give you the details.
If you scroll up this thread you will come across three pics of the demo, which show our flooring after the cabinets were removed. The tile is intact outside the cabinet .dw areas.
We had no tile under any of the cabinets or even the dishwasher as this floor is relatively new and at the time we out it in, we kept our old cabinets and appliances due to budget considerations. However, when we removed the cabs and dishwasher for this reno, we found only concrete slab ( as you see in the pictures). and that was good. The only place we put in tile under an appliance was beneath the refrigerator ( the old, builder-supplied flooring was vinyl and of course they had put it in under the fridge.)
Our installer thought there was a possibility that some of the tile around the edges of the old cabinets might chip or break when he removed them - but we had extra tile in the garage and he said that if that happened we could do some sort of edging that would not look out of place. Fortunately, he was able to remove all the lower cabs and the dishwasher without damaging any tile! He said it was pretty easy - but he was also very competent and hard-working.
The only wee damage that happened was in the tile between the fridge and the old lower cabinets next to it - and that was easily fixed with adhesive, lol, It hardly shows unless one peers closely at the tile. I'll see if I can find a pic of that damage and post it for you.

So I'd think that you could go ahead and not put tiles under the cabinets as long as you have a solid slab beneath.

I'm so very sad and sorry to hear of your troubles, one after another - especially your surgery and the loss of your 3 little dogs. Must have been so hard to cope with - I hope you are feeling more "yourself" by now and have healed from your surgery. We had water damage too, and I know how that only adds to life's daily hassles.
Good luck, lynn2006!
And thank you !!

For lynn2006:

Here's a pic of how the tile/floor looked under fridge.
On your left, there is a groove in the floor where the fridge cabinet wall was placed - our installer cut a narrow matched piece from our extra floor tile to fit that groove and adhered it firmly. To your right, the concrete slab goes on a diagonal with the tile - that happened when the cabinets were being removed. When the new cabinets were installed, a wee bit of that diagonal was still exposed so the installer did the same trick there. Otherwise, our tile was not damaged anywhere else.

Goshdarnit, the picture is turned again!!*&^%$#@!

This is the side of the upper cabinet to the right of our sink. Since this faces on to our dining nook, I decided to put in a door there, complete with knob, so the cabinet could be accessed by any diner in need of things like snacks, condiments, salt and pepper, sauces etc. It's fun and practical as we don't have to go all the way around or even stretch our bodies across the countertop to get hold of the goodies when we are eating.
Pic of that part open, comes after this.

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:32

Oh Lord, same problem! Sorry, all! I hop eat least you get an idea of what it is I am talking about! The cabinet is above the Silestone counter ( peninsula) and facing the diners at the table in the nook.

This post was edited by boone_2009 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 18:31

Finally!!!

I have to thank *more* people who helped me greatly in every post of mine. CEFreeman, I didn't know I'd left you out in my first list above,,,sorry :(

So! Thank you very much to :

Robinle. CEFreeman. May_flowers, Kitten1313, Holly-kay, mudhouse, musicteacher, beeps, beekeeperswife; nineteenoeight, CKGM, BlackChamois, Laurainlincoln, Renosarefun, Kksmama. Bookworm4321l, Lavender_lass, Localeater. Snookums2, Sreedesq, XochitlFilms, Thedork, Deedless, EAM44, Sayde, Kompy, may_flowers, Steph2000, Raee, Teachertile, LoPay, GauchoGordo1993, Madeline616, Shuffles, Mamasheshe, nyse2502, Jodi_in_so_calif, Annkh, willtv, GreenDesigns, Trebuchet, Barthelemy, Elphaba, Kirkhall, TripHeath ,eleena, buehl, colin3, onedogedie, jxbrown, jellytoast, Majra, marcy96, maire-cate, sombreuil_ mongrel, Angie_DIY, Fori, Brickeyee, Oceangirl67, liriodendron

And a great big thank you to all the posters who helped me on this thread whose link is below - wow, you really saved me!!

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg081529067426.html( flush mount or reveal mount)

Because of ALL of you, I now have the kitchen of my dreams :-). You have all been so kind and generous.

My DS helped turn some of the pics above, back around, so thanks to him, too! Now none of you will have to suffer from neck strain!

Thanks for the additional pics of the sink, Boone! I also liked getting a peek into some of your cabs - I will probably steal some of your ideas! :) Congrats again on a wonderful space - enjoy!

You're welcome, KBSpider!
Steal away!! :-)
I forgot to mention that I also added a cabinet with two pull-out shelves on the *dining* side of the peninsula just beneath the cabinet you see in the last picture ( back of the dishwasher). I use this for my gardening tools so I can slip out the back door and enjoy cutting flowers or pruning :-).

You'll see simulated panels decorating that side of the peninsula in Pic 2 of the new kitchen ( after the demo pics) - there are 3 of them and then the 4th is this cabinet that looks like a panel too, except for the knob!

Here's a pic of that cabinet I mentioned above. The toaster oven is on top shelf ( courtesy of hubby).Gardening tools on bottom shelf.

Great redo! Wonderful that you kept the floor and brick. Thanks for showing all the drawers open. Good ideas there!

Thank you..and you're welcome, missymoo!

Off to bed - goodnight!

Boone2009, Thank you for answering my questions in detail. I really appreciate it. I love your kitchen. You have really helped me.

Boone
Great job! I am visiting DM and looking at it from my cell phone but want to see it on a computer screen to see the details!
More comments when home

lynn2006 - Of course! No problem at all! It's the least I could do after all the help I received on this forum ;-).
I'm so glad I helped and I hope and pray good times are ahead for you from now on.

a2gemini: nice to see you again! Thanks - for the compliment.. but more for the help you gave me :-)

That brick is so cool. When I saw your before pictures, I thought "what a shame to get rid of that brick." Glad to see you kept it. The whole thing is super fresh and bright!

edb2n: another brick lover - cool!!! Thanks for your words !

I hope you don't mind, but I was on IkeaFans and someone had a kitchen that reminded me of yours and she is planning a remodel and asked for suggestions, so I linked your reveal over there. :)

boone_2009 - Your kitchen looks lovely and it distinguishes itself from "form" by the level of "function" it has.

You appear to have put in a lot of time and thought to detail (love the knife drawers, the on door storage, the ROTs etc etc).

Thanks for sharing the details and I wish you and your family lots of happiness in your new kitchen.

Oops, sorry for the very delayed response, MGMum and gemcap :-(. Thank you for your kind comments .

MGMum: Of course I don't mind, I'm tickled white! ;-)

gemcap: Thanks for your warm wishes, really appreciate it! Yes, we are truly enjoying our kitchen - a year later. Clean-up's the best part - so easy and such a pleasure! Yes, I did put in a great deal of thought into this kitchen and researched a great deal, too. Thanks for intuiting that! ;-)