Final Kitchen Pics (long winded text)
Thanks to my wonderful husband who made all of this possible. He has always felt that I should have the kitchen of my dreams to cook in. I was the planner and he helped moved the process along so that everything went smoothly. He didn't make a lot of suggestions for the kitchen design but when he did, they were great. I can't thank him enough for making me sit down numerous times to find an inspiration kitchen. Once I found it, it gave me a focus going forward.
Thanks to my cousin who helped to take what I designed and made it beautiful. She gave me the colors, the banquette with its fab cushions and pillows, the backsplash, the beautiful place for my copper and most importantly the courage and encouragement to do what I envisioned.
Thanks to my GC who had the best crew ever and finished exactly when he said he would. His guys were on time, tidy, polite, fun and very hardworking. I consider myself very fortunate to have folks like these doing the work.
Finally, I know everyone else has said this but I want to join inTHANKS to everyone at GW who has been so helpful. You are all the best. When I started reading GW I never imagined that I would design my own kitchen. I was sure that I needed a KD to hold my hand through the process. I learned so much here that it wasn't necessary. I ended up with a kitchen that works perfectly for me which was the point of the process.
I particularly want to thank Elizpiz for her kitchen pics. I'm sure that you see your soapstone sink in my kitchen. Whoever first posted the video of the Kohler Stages sinkÂthanks! It's the best thing that I put in the kitchen. Loves2cook4six I love all the little touches that made your kitchen your own and helped me to add the things that I wanted. Cloud_Swift and Tiskers my island owes many of its parts to the two of you. Arlosmom, you helped to solve my blind corner problem and it works great! There are so many others on GW who have posted photos, who have commented and who helped me through the process. Thanks to you. I'm proud to say that not only did my kitchen come out better than I expected I did it with no change orders! If there is one big thing I learned here it was to plan, plan and plan and I did.
Here are some quick reviews of the appliances and such that I bought.
Kohler Stages 33 sink used only for prep
The best thing ever! It keeps the work space compact and clean. You have everything in one place, cutting boards, water, knife holder and that stainless steel shelf. Squeezing lemon juice into a bowlÂdo it on the stainless shelf. Carving chicken on a cutting boardÂdo it on the shelf. Anything spills you just wash it away. Not only do the cutting boards that they give you fit snugly into the ridges, but so do my old cutting boards and my half sheet pans fit comfortably on top. I have a colander made to fit into a sink that I got at Whole Foods years ago (similar ones are on Amazon). It fits! I can't do this sink justice. Every day it makes my cooking prep easier and more efficient.
Cons: Very minor. I'm not in love with the sink grid that came with it. But that's just personal. Also the prep bowls are too heavy for prep I think, but they're great bowls so I still use them for other stuff.
Soapstone sink:
What can I say. It's a thing of beauty. I sigh every time I see it. And it does its job. I was happy that I had it made with the drain in the right hand corner so that I have more space for pans in the sink and more space under the sink.
Vinnata faucets - Very happy with how they work. Not sure if I should have gotten such a tall one for the soapstone sink. I think it splashes too much. But I've learned to turn the water down a bit so it's a minor issue.
Bluestar 30" RNB
Okay, the Culinarian is coming out in September. Angst, angst, angst. Maybe it's better, who knows? But I gotta say I love my Bluestar. It does everything I ask of it and I love how it looks. I've stir-fried, baked, broiled, steamed, deep-fried and pan fried. If it didn't come out delicious, it's my fault not the range's fault because it did its job. And those orange knobs just make me happy every time I see them! And for those who need to know, the door is just warm, not hot and there is no banging sound and the hinges are fine so far.
Cons: The oven takes longer to heat up than I expected and cooking in it takes a bit longer as well. This is totally offset by the fact that everything is perfectly cooked all around so I am learning to adjust the timing a bit.
Sub-Zero BI-36
I gulped at the price of this one (about $8,000) but after looking at this it fit my criteria for a frig that fit the space more than any other that I found. It's easy to find stuff, it holds a lot, the ice is great and it keeps everything fresh. I'm happy.
Cons: The price, of course. And the door alarm. I wish there was a way to make it take a little longer to chime. If you're cleaning the frig you either have to shut the power off while you're doing it or keep opening and closing the door so the alarm doesn't go off. The first time I cleaned the frig, I shut off the alarm so I wouldn't hear it. After about 15 minutes the frig shut down. It turned out that it does that automatically. I hadn't gotten that far in the manual. Ru roh! You close the door and it powers up again in 15 to 30 minutes but now I've learned how to work around it.
Miele Optima
It cleans everything better than any other dishwasher I have ever had. I like it butÂ
Cons: There is a learning curve to filling it. I'm still not sure if I'm using the best cleaning solution combo. I just haven't had as much time to focus on it. I don't love that I have to open the door to get things dry. (I know, I have not gotten to putting in rinse aid yet. I bought a bunch of Electrasol tabs at Costco and they're not supposed to be used with Rinse Aid. I need to work my way through them first because I hate to waste them.)
But the biggest issue is how sharp the corners are. I noticed that my legs were cut up the first few days I used the dishwasher. Now that I know how sharp they are I'm better at avoiding them. My cabinet guy said that he could file them down for me but it hasn't been an issue lately. Still, if I had little ones around I would be more concerned. Maybe it's just my DW but I thought that I would let you know.
Miele Speed Oven
I bought this as a regular oven and it's been fine so far. I haven't really used it much since I've played more with the Bluestar. It heats quickly and I can use my half sheet pans on the guides (since it only comes with one rack I didn't have to spend money to buy more).
Cons: Like the Miele dishwasher there is more of a learning curve. Miele describes the various functions but doesn't give a lot of help in knowing how to change a recipe to work with their combined micro/oven system. There aren't a lot of recipes on their website. Several of the few that are specifically for the speed oven serve 15 people! We are usually two. I may venture into combination cooking sometime in the future but I'd rather spend my time finding new, fun recipes to cook for now.
Futuro Futuro Galaxy Hood
The thing that gave me the most headaches on GW was reading about hoods. I tried to understand CFM's and air flow and my brain exploded. So I picked one that others liked and had success with and that looked good in my kitchen. I've never had a working hood before this so I don't know how well it works compared to others but I think that it's fine. My husband used to open all of the windows when I cooked certain dishes before and now he says that he can't smell anything bad. After I cook there is no lingering smell, even after stir-fry. There is some grease after cooking but I've never understood how much grease the hood is supposed to pick up. There isn't a lot directly directly under the hood or behind the cooktop although I do find spots on the BS stainless steel ledge on the front. If something is going to spatter really a lot then I just use a spatter screen. Then there's the dog test. It does seem that my dog spends much less time licking the floor than she used to after I cook so I guess that there is less grease. She only licks the floor in front of the BS and not behind it so the grease isn't going there now although that could be because the counter is deeper, but it doesn't get greasy so I think that the hood is doing its job. If you don't have a dog for testing, a husband or child will work;) Also, there is a sound when the hood is on the higher levels but it doesn't bother either my husband or me. YMMV
Here's a taste of the new kitchen then there's a link if you want more. I've put descriptions in Flickr under some to try and be helpful. I found that looking at other folks' pictures really helped me. If you do slideshow, the pics are clearer.
We also did one other big project at the same time with the same contractor. Our deck was rotten and needed to be replaced. So here are the outside photos for those of you who are interested.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42398147@N05/sets/72157622977297897/
To those who have finished your kitchens, enjoy. To those beginning, enjoy. To those who wonder if there is a life after Appliances and Kitchens on GW. I can say that there isÂit's called Bathrooms.
Comments (33)
tontam
13 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
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Comments (26)Marthavila - I think that is the nicest thing anyone ever said about any kitchen. Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Dianalo and Boylanite2 - the stove is my pride and joy. This is what started the whole reno, although for a long time the Blue Star was the forerunner. Of course the hood had to follow. I have to say, I went through so many versions of tiles and marble, and backsplash patterns, and of course, I have been influenced by the white subway tile versions, until I realized that mine was not a white subway tile kitchen, no matter how much I may like the subway tile look, and then I just stumbled upon this tile at some closeout place and it turned out perfect. Andi - Travertine Mart was great to work with. Their pricing, with delivery, was so much lower than anyone local that it took everyone out of the running, and the quality is great. I have looked at lesser tiles locally that cost at least 4 times as much, and that's after you add their shipping costs. I would recommend getting liftgate delivery from them, as it's a minimal surcharge and the truck comes with a forklift to unload everything. This stuff is HEAVY and the pavers are almost twice as thick as my tiles. My tile color is country classic, which is a mix of ivory, noche and what they call blue, which is really a version of gray, in the brushed and chiseled version. It needed to be filled unlike the outdoor pavers. If you use an enhancing sealer, the color comes out brighter and the variation is more noticeable, but I wanted the floor to be the backdrop, so we just used a regular sealer that does not enhance the color. I would highly recommend them shipping costs notwithstanding. I'm already toying with the idea of using the pavers outside, although, budget constraints aside, it may be too cold here in the winter for travertine. Sayde - thank you for the kind words and for all your support throughout this process. We are all looking forward to your "unveiling"....See Moreeastbaymom
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13 years agolast modified: 9 years agoelizpiz- The island and the base cabs where the soapstone sink is are painted a subtle green which sometimes seems almost grey. To make the transition to the white frig panels and to make the area under the speed oven seem more furniture-like, we painted the drawers the same green as the cabs and the background the same white as the frig and the uppers. I wanted to make the little drawer under the speed oven special and had planned on making it the sole drawer painted orange. Unfortunately, I didn't get my knobs in time to match so I made that the only drawer with a different piece of hardware.
Also, you are seeing the library where the cookbooks are. I'll have my husband take more of a close-up so you can see the books. I'm a sick, sick puppy. And no I probably can't get rid of anything but I'd be happy to have you take a look.
newbieremodeler - The cabs are custom. I based the sizes on what I needed to put there. I'm attaching my plan to give you an idea. I not only mixed slab and inset but some cabs are framed and some are frameless. The cooking side of the island is frameless and the side with the doors are framed. My cabinet maker did not love me.
a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/42398147@N05/4604516040/"; title="0001dR by Carem2, on Flickr">
Pretty obsessive, huh?
louisianapurchase
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13 years agolast modified: 9 years agobmorepanic - Here's the pic of what's behind the hinged door on the island. I needed a spot for the condiments we always use, trivets, restaurant to-go menus and goodies for the dog. I hope that this answers your question.
For some reason I can't get rid of part of the HTML for pictures without losing the picture itself. Sorry.
a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/42398147@N05/4870629281/"; title="IMG_2288 by Carem2, on Flickr">
elizpiz
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Cindy Rodriguez
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