Our new house is finished! My white kitchen...
Hi Gardenweb friends!
You all have been so kind and I have learned so much from this site! I have been off-line the past month as we have been moving in to our new custom home. I joined GW this past winter, after our plans had been finalized by our architect...but I have incorporated so much from here into my finishes! We have a kitchen that is open to our breakfast room and family room, with a small butler's pantry between the kitchen and formal dining. I call the layout a "broken L with an island because I thought the architect was very cleaver to make the "corner" a little office space that also has the door to the pantry in it. This way, there is no "dead corner" in the kitchen. Maybe some people just starting could use this idea! :)
Anyway, here are the details:
Appliances: all KitchenAid, except for the Sharp MW drawer
in the island. Range is 36" dual fuel, with a
griddle.
Cabinets: Mid-Continent, maple painted white, with soft
close drawers and doors. We chose all wood
construction.
Perimeter counters: Honed Carerra marble
Island top: Dark walnut, with a mineral oil finish
Floors: 5" wide white oak, stained 75% jacobean, 24% dark
walnut.
Lighting: Pendants, Quiozel, I think. Breakfast chandy is
Overstock.com!
Things I love so far: 1. Soft close!! Love!! Although we have it on all the drawers in the house, we only did the doors on the kitchen and butler's pantry cabs. Wish we had done it everywhere.
2. KA dishwasher and range...both of these have been wonderful so far, DW is so quiet and cleans really well. Range and oven are very easy to use and have nice, consistant heat. Plus, I think very pretty! :)
3. MW drawer...so awesome, love it to pieces!
4. Under cab lights...never had these before, we have them on a dimmer, they are wonderful.
5. Walnut top...everyone who visits swoons over it...it is a wonderful, warm surface.
Things I DON'T love:
1. Fridge! Counter-depth french door is awful! We had to buy an auxiliary fridge for the garage, and I am contemplating adding a fridge drawer to the island.
2. The distance from the range wall to the island seems a scooch too big, I think it is 48". I could have moved the island a few inches closer to the range.
I will do a seperate post about my experience with honed vs. polished marble (I have polished in the master bath.) There are pros and cons to each, I have found.
Anyway, Nini's kitchen!
Comments (112)
nini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agolaurielou177
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
We're finally done choosing our finishes for the new house! Pics!
Comments (10)rufinorox- They are actually Whirlpool appliances! I would have preferred Kitchen Aid or Frigidaire, but the builder (it's a new build) doesn't offer. Thanks! jsweenc- I figured out that I am fine choosing as things go along. Choosing floors, having those down, choosing what comes next, having that in.... But all at once on small samples kicked my butt!!! But, we're happy! Thanks!...See MoreUpdating 90's kitchen in our new home
Comments (15)Thank you for all of your comments and compliments... You have reminded me not to rush into changing things. The house has alot of trim work throughout, including on the dining room ceiling, dining room walls, living room, windows, entry/foyer, doorways, etc...In those areas, all the trim has been painted white, but it appears to be the same style and type as what's in the kitchen/family room. I guess I was thinking that the rest of the trim work should be white too. But, I see now that it doesn't have to match and will leave a bit of character to the family room! The wood for the built-ins do appear to be an upgrade over the kitchen cabinets. As much as I love the look of all white trim, the family room has such a warm feeling, as is, so I will probably just keep any furniture in the room light for contrast and accent with color. I will definitely not rush to change to quickly! Some of our main reasons for choosing the new home is because it was custom built, is loaded with trim work and moldings and is in an older neighborhood with lots of large trees and yards. Of course, there is also plenty of shiny brass in all of the bathrooms, door handles and foyer lighting that we will be busy replacing. And, the landscaping needs some updating from the overly manicured large bushes surrounding the front entryway of the home. I may have trouble with interior design/decor, but I am in my element with landscaping and yard work! I appreciate all the comments about the kitchen...My husband and I have done a lot of work ourselves in our current home. He does most of our home repairs too; he hates hiring out! Life has gotten extremely hectic these days, so we have less time for DIY work like the time it would take to do paint the cabinets. But, I think we can easily handle the backsplash and modifying the cabinets with beadboard on the sides, but will find someone for counters/sink and help with whatever we do to the cabinets. It sounds like if we have to hire someone to paint the cabinets, it might put us way over our current budget. While I still love my inspiration kitchen photo, I may entertain the idea of darkening the stain/refacing the existing cabinets, possibly painting the center island as one of you mentioned and updating the counters, sink and adding backsplash and other details. This would buy us time (and save us money), until we can afford to get the wood floors we want and the painting of the cabinets the way GreenDay detailed. I appreciate all the advice....See MoreNew white finish or white painted kitchen cabinets
Comments (4)Sure, diymom79. Finish the hearsay... If they slap paint on them without proper preparation. It's a no brainer. You get what you put into them. This topic has also been beaten to death and is actually ongoing (again) in another current thread. I've got both painted and unpainted and neither is better than the other, based upon my usage and the quality of 1) my cabinets and 2) my painted jobs....See MoreOur new site finished white oak floors are a mess. Please help.
Comments (5)Dish out is common on plain sawn oak, if, you do not have the right equipment, sandpaper and sanding sequence. More softwood is removed than hardwood, creating the undulation. A resanding is needed with a hard plating sanding driver, multi-head, power drive or trio to remedy the issue. Scuffing - will depend on the quality of the product and their process. Did they split the finishing process - sand and applied a couple of coats and returned at later date to finalize the project - contamination? Was there a stain applied - insufficient dry time? Did they, thin the product to save some money? What brand and product line did they use? Something happen to affect the performance of the product. Dragging a light cardboard box shouldn't cause too much damage, unless the scuffs are caused by staples. What was in the box - tv, toys, clothes?...See Moreabbeys
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agocindyann
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLiz
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoTxMarti
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoclooney161
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
gr8daygw
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agohouseful
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoneesie
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoTracyO
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agobellajourney
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agocjc123
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Susan
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoirishcreamgirl
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agojg1126
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agomarquest
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agojtkaybean
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agonini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoatd_oc
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agowesttoeast
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agodermnp
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agonini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
susanlynn2012
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMIssyV
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agosusanlynn2012
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agotaggie
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agonini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMIssyV
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agomichoumonster
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agonini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoNataliaB
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago64reno64
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agomichoumonster
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agohollypeawdc
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Arapaho-Rd
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMichelleDT
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLake_Girl
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agonini804
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoatd_oc
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Debbi Branka
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago2LittleFishies
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agosuziesuesue
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agojlee2012
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofirstmmo
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agomalorin83
8 years ago
Gina Crandall
5 years ago
Zalco/bring back Sophie!
5 years agoCarla Semancik
4 years agoAmber
2 years ago
mtnrdredux_gw