It is beautiful and full of happy memories from the start! Thanks for sharing.

carole

Beautiful! I'm sure your Dad is smiling.

Just beautiful! Congratulations -- wonderful, tasteful choices you made. So sorry about the loss of your father. You should be proud of your lovely kitchen.

You have created a beautiful space. I am sorry for your loss. As noted above, I, too, bet your Dad is smiling.

Cohesive, lovely details. Enjoy your kitchen!

wow that's wonderful!! I'm sure you'll always feel your dad's presence.

Let me ask - what color are your cabinets (are they glazed white/antiqued or pure white?)

What a transformation! You'll be able to tell many wonderful tales about your dad while enjoying meals with your family in friends in your great new space.

Your new kitchen is absolutely gorgeous! I love everything about it. It's warm and inviting with a great practical layout. I'll bet your father is smiling down on you every morning. too!

Just a beautiful space. Your story reminded me not to be so ticked at my 83yo dad for some of the choices he has made lately. He is still here.

Oh that's so, so pretty. I'm sure your Dad would be very proud of you for doing such a wonderful job.

It turned out so beautiful...
such a wonderful gift from your Dad.
Enjoy!

Gorgeous. You did a wonderful job. I love all of your choices.

I am so sorry for the loss of your father. So hard to lose a parent, even as an adult.

Your kitchen is lovely and I think it's also a lovely tribute to your dad. What could be more appropriate than something you use and enjoy every day to take care of your family as he did you?! I'd love such a memorial myself.

I think it's a graceful and gracious space. Quite a change from the "before" but, personally, I'd miss those green walls. I liked that color a lot too.

It is really sooo warm and inviting!! We can make the most beautiful settings, but we can't replace the special spirit our loved ones bring to the table! Just bring all those memories with you to this new setting and honor your father by building more for your family! I love the openness of it and the island will be a place for lots of chatting and baking! :)

Tara

awwww you guys are are so sweet and your comments re my dad bring tears to my eyes (I'm a cryer!). As we boomers age, so many of are losing or have lost our parents and so the torch passes on as it should, to the next generation. I still miss him every day but time does heal and I can now think of him most of the time without sadness. cotehele, don't feel bad because I can relate- that last year he was alive but sick I was angry at him because I felt he wasn't making the most of the time he had left- I came to realize, he was just ready. He was 82, he had lived for for 36 years without my mom, the love of his life, he had never remarried and well, he was just ready. I had to learn to accept that though it was hard.

buffettgirl, the color is called Designer White with Van Dyke brown glaze. It is a pretty white white but the carmel color of the glaze really warmed it up. There are SO MANY whites to choose from- mind boggling...we ordered several example doors before this one and once we saw it, we knew right away. Opening things up truly changed the way we live and interact with each other. Everyone DOES gather round the island and catch up...just what I always wanted.PLUS cant wait to bake xmas cookies this year- we have so much room! My daughter is now 15 but it's still a tradition. We missed it last year with the remodel so we've been planning for a couple months now. I have 1/2 a cupboard dedicated to cookie decorations :-)

Its a wonderful kitchen. You will make lots of memories for your daughter to remember. Great place to tell her all about your dad.

Absolutely beautiful! Looks like you've got great storage, too.

It's beautiful! And I'm going to agree with another poster who said that your dad is probably smiling upon it from heaven. He's probably sitting down to dinner with you every night in it - you just don't know it!

DonnaR/CA

Kgsmom, pat yourself on the back, you did a great job. It's no wonder everyone wants to gather around the island!

Enjoy the baking session with your daughter. Mine is also 15 and I think we're going to miss the traditions this year :-(

What a lovely kitchen and a lovely story about your dad.

Congrats and enjoy!

thanks again all. Is this site just the best or what?

I have to add that my dad did have a bit of the devil in him (probably why I loved him so much!) and I have no doubt that he IS looking down and smiling but I'd bet money he's also thinking "what the hell did she need a VIKING for??" :-)

absolutely beautiful kitchen.

Wow, wow, wow!! I know my taste is the total opposite of your kitchen, but I really love it! It calls out to be visited and used and seems so welcoming--great job!

Your dad would be proud (and I'll bet that even though he might bust on you a bit about the Viking, he'd be secretly thrilled that you were able to get one and will be pleased as punch to watch you using it from up above)!

Well, well, Girlfriend, thatÂs a really wonderful space you created. Yes, do talk to your Dad when you trot in there in the mornings  I hope those few moments when you mentally "connect" with him are joyful because your new kitchen is his gift. And when you talk to your daughter about him there in your new space, itÂs a bit like adding to his legacy. IÂm sorry for your loss, but I know you know he shares the happiness his "gift" brings to you.

ThatÂs one gorgeous range hood. Mmm, all those creamy cabinets are oh-so beautiful. I canÂt get over how much storage space youÂve got  lots of obvious good planning went into it. I love your sink and window (and chandelier!). Oh, and your front door is GORGEOUS!

I'm sure your Dad would be very pleased that his bequest brought you your dream kitchen. I'm sure he would want you to have the best. It's fabulous, so luxurious! There's a place for everything in there too, even a stacking washer/dryer! Love the mini-chandelier over the sink. Everything is just as gorgeous as it can be.

Just one question: what are you doing with my sofa?! LOL!
{{!gwi}}

hey lily1342- what are you dong with MY couch?? :-) that is a very pretty room by the way.

we did do A LOT of planning. Because I was losing my china cabinet and all the closets on the backside of the kitchen in the hall I was really worried I wouldn't have a place for all the stuff they all held. I'm such a nerd- Once we had the first drawing I built a spreadsheet and assigned each drawer and cabinet to something to make sure I had accounted for everything. Have to say, it really helped by showing me where I had holes in the design. Then I went back to my builder to tweak the design.

oofasis, glad U like the hood. I was REALLY nervous about how much I would like it because I only saw a drawing in the catalog before we ordered it. When it arrived with the cabinets I was so relieved..

and cspinto, I forget to say earlier if you're local to No CA, you can come bake with US :-)

Beautiful kitchen, congratulations. But forget baking, can I come over for some of that wine? You seem to have plenty to go around!:)

Robin

well, who says we cant drink WHILE we bake??

Seriously, I KNOW...we do love our wine but DH is the guilty one there...I always hesitate to ask him to make a Costco run for me for fear of the wine department :-) PLUS we're only about an hour from the Napa Valley- DANGEROUS! We're SO looking forward to next year when DD is 16 and she can be our designated driver :-)

Wow- that is soooo pretty. Great choices! Love your colors, too.

Everything is so beautiful! enjoy

How do you like your W&D and what brand are they? I am looking for stackables and especially like that the dryer controls are on the bottom, something I have not seen before.

Oh... that can't be my sofa. There's no big brown stain on the left arm. Yours is in much better condition!

Echoing tucgran here, I'd also like to know more about your stackable W&D. Someday I'd like to not have to go down to the basement to do laundry. Your stackables look full-size but also space-saving.

Beautiful kitchen! It has become one of my inspiration pictures. I especially love the punch of red in the sign over your sink. Would you share with me what it says? (I love signs as decoration.)

Also--I think your washer/dryer look great. Would you share the dimensions of the closet you have it in? I think I have a closet I could do the same with, but I'm looking for a rough idea of the space I should have.

Thanks.

I LOVE this W/D! they are LG and absolutely ENORMOUS. I cant even reach to the back of the dryer - I have to get tongs to reach wayward socks :-) I was going to buy another LG model but right before delivery, I saw this one that allowed you to move the control panel on the dryer to the bottom and had to have it. I'm only 4'10" (comments please??) and had been worried about reaching the controls. This one is perfect. B4 remodel, w/d used to be in the hall on the other side of the kitchen in a closet but we took that space for the kitchen. The other option we considered was putting it in the garage but our garage is not attached and we don't have water in there so that would have been costly and a hassle on cold mornings :-) I actually love having right there as I just take out the load, set it on the island, fold and then carry to back of the house.

The cabinet measures 34 1/2" deep x 36" wide and the doors go into the sides to get completely out of the way.

oh and lily1342...you just cant see the stain on mine...they are on the seat where DH sits :-)

It is so inviting and beautiful!! If I ever get to build a house from scratch, I want a kitchen like yours!!

Funny, I also re-did my kitchen with my inheritance $ from my Dad, who has been gone a year and a half. I also think of my Dad while in my kitchen! Just know your Dad is in Heaven with your Mom and they are happy!!

MY DH is like yours, I send him to Sam's Club and he will come home with more wine and not the food I sent him for!

Thanks for sharing your story & have fun baking!!

misstheatre, I forget to add, my sign says " The only time eat diet food, is while you're waiting for the steak to cook" Julia Childs
;-)

Love Julia's thought. My sentiments exactly!!! Thank you.

Wood Mode Kitchen Cabinets .. First cabinets installed in 1972, cabinets looked as good as the day they were installed .. Sept 2007 updated cabinets with Wood Mode Brookhaven Cabinets .. couldn't be more pleased with quality & selection ,, installation done by Estern Kitchens in Broomall, Pa .. would recommend these people to anyone as they have quality people .. worked started on 9/17 & completed on 10/17, took this long due to the Granite counter top which takes 2 weeks after the template is made

Hey,
Congrats on your lovely kitchen :) I bet the part where you explain how it makes how you live in your house better is what is making Dad really smile at you from above. Not only is your kitchen pretty, but to be able to change how your family uses your space for the better, means you got the whole package with your remodel.
The look of your kitchen is timeless and should make a wonderful center of your home for many years to come.

BTW - I got the LG Tromm stackables too and love them. For nayone interested, you have to be careful to specify that is the set you want, because only 1 LG model washer and dryer stack with the swappable controls. I am 5'5" but having the controls in the middle will mean my sons will be able to pitch in as they grow and I don't have to reach up as far. Ours are side by side at the moment with the controls on top, but once the kitchen is done, they will move upstairs and stack. I sure can't wait to title a thread like yours!!