Absolutely Lovely!

There are so many special details in your space. I LOVE the open shelving across the windows, functionally so great and really looks terrific. I also especially love the lighting over the kitchen table, the wall color, the hardware, and of course your lovely stone. The windows and natural light are spectacular also.

Enjoy your wonderful space and thanks for sharing!

that's a gorgeous kitchen. light and bright and just gorgeous.
may i ask the wall coulor in the ktichen?
thanks for posting !

It is gorgeous! I love your granite and the wires shelves add a little something to the kitchen, a bit of sparkle perhaps? I ordered a very similar chandelier for over our dinette table.

You've done an outstanding job with your space. Simply beautiful. Congratulations!

Wow it turned out beautifully! I too love the shelves in front of the windows. So many great details: pulls, lighting, the granite aprons in front of the sinks. You did a great job. Congrats and enjoy!

Great transformation! It looks beautiful.

I can't stop looking at your beautiful kitchen! Where did you get the pendants over the kitchen table? I'm really digging them!

I think banishing your fridge to a non-prominent position is aesthetically brilliant, and I hope you are finding the extra few steps well worth while on a daily basis. The silver shelves with the aqua bowls are a lovely window treatment. Congrats on everything.

stunning! i love those pendant lights and the outdoor plants. wow! beautiful transformation.

Stunning!
Would you mind posting photos of the frig and built-in pantry area?
Thanks!

hi eks...

I don't know what November Sky looks like...(I will google it, I'm so curious)..but I just love your granite. It looks marbley to me and elegant with your cabinets. I also love the beautiful pots on the shelves. What a great idea! And those pendants...lovely!

KA:)

Wow - I love this space, when I see pictures of kitchens with this colour scheme it always reminds me that I made the right decision in making ours the same. Our shape and size is similar to yours 20' x 10' with a peninsula and they really are efficient aren't they.
The wire racks in front of the windows is a really great use of space - something I would never have thought of doing.
Such calm space, love it.

Love it! You made so many lovely choices! I really like the lighter granite with the white cabinets, and the floor is beautiful too!

Congratulations! Love the combination of your wall color with the pieces on your open shelves, and also your pendants are so pretty!

Beautiful kitchen! Love everything about it. You're killing me with those pendants. I've been searching hi and low for those for my bathroom remodel but can't seem to find them in stock. Could you share where you got them? Also, love the paint color, do you have the name? Thanks!

Here is a link that might be useful: Laura Ashley Pendant

Great job! What a cool idea with the shelves across the window. Can we see a better shot of what looks like glass cabinets across from the range?

I'd like to know the wall color in the kitchen and dining room too. Thanks.

If I didn't know by reading, I wouldn't think it was the same space....BEAUTIFUL!

And those shelves in front of the window......brilliant!

Love it all ! I have almost exactly the same wood hood surround. Great place for artwork etc . I love the shelves in front of the windows and the all the way to the counter top. Very nice. c

I love the pendants!!! Everything else is just gorgeous, too, but I.LOVE.THE.PENDANTS!

Oh, cool!!! It looks fantastic! Came out great! I love the openness around the table with the focus on the windows. Great choice.

Here's a few more details...
In order to use the space wisely, we have a clever cabinet that makes the best use of the wall opposite the counter run. On the other side of the wall is the 1/2 bath for the downstairs (only bathroom on this floor). I designed a cabinet that was shallower than normal but still really functional. It's 16" deep. Top part is glass doors with dishes on shelves. Middle section contains our toaster oven and microwave..yes I know this is controversial but we don't use either often and I like the clean look. Doors slide in when used.

On the side of this cabinet is can cabinet that goes from floor to ceiling and holds all the cans single deep. This cabinet is fabulous..no more digging around for things.
Pics below.
Front view with the doors closed.

Can cabinet open. upper and lower doors were more stable than one big one. Doors line up with the rest of the panel that encloses the cabinet.

Thank you everyone for the kind words. I was aiming for light, bright and airy. Even though the footprint of the space remained the same, it is such an entirely different place to be now.

The metal shelving over the windows is really unusual and everyone thought I was crazy for them but they work really well for us..and the chrome does sparkle. I tried to find them in stainless (to match the stove & faucets) but they were too expensive. chrome works just fine.

We have plugmold under the cabinets to the right & left of the range. We did this remodel mostly ourselves and that darn plugmold was the worst thing we did. My husband said, "NEVER AGAIN" about plugmold.

I will try to get some more pictures of details to post.

On the table...It's a table I have had since the mid 90s. I bought it at a place called Naked Furniture which I think is gone now. I looked through a lot of catalogs to find it. It was one of those places where the furniture came unifnished then I picked the stain. I was into more the reddish wood at the time...really wish it were more brown now.

The pendant lights were a huge fiasco. Many years ago, Pottery Barn had lights like these. They were called Gracie. They were out of my budget at the time so I didn't get them. By the time I had the money, they were discontinued. Several years later, I found an ad in magazine showing the same lights. I kept that ad for years until 2009..then ordered them from GreatChandeliers.com. The lights arrived and looked nothing like the picture on the website. I didn't have all the crystals. Then I got billed twice. I got GreatChandeliers.com to send me enough crystals (it took several tries!) and got my credit card company involved for the duplicate charge then spent probably 3 hours per light making them look like this. The pendant is basically a series of rings that are held with chains. The lights were very elongated so empty space between the rows of crystals. I took out links and used a lot of wire to get them in the right place...and the same. Then put the crystals back on. I had to have the crystals off to rearrange the layers then back on to check them so it took a long time. In the end, I'm very happy with them but I should have just bought the Pottery Barn ones years ago. I didn't know the Laura Ashely line had similar ones. Here is the link for GreatChandeliers.com. I'd order with caution: http://www.spectrumhome3.com/spectrumhomeN/ProductDetail.aspx?ProductID=2508

We also have toe-kick drawers under most of the cabinets. The cabinet to the right of the sink is actually our dishwasher. I had the front panel made to look like drawers. I love how it looks, but it turns out that the panel is a little heavy and the hinges on my KitchenAid DW went out last week. I am thinking about what to do now.

Will try to get pics of the fridge & pantry areas next.

WOW - what a transformation! so much brighter than before. I love your granite, floors and lights. It's great that you have the exact storage needed. Enjoy.

There is a toe-kick panel for under the DW so it is creamy white too...we had it off because were were having problems with the DW hinges...

Wall paint is a custom color I had created. It is Sherwin Williams Cashmere paint in eggshell. If you like, I can copy the formula and post it?

I absolutely love your kitchen! Simple yet elegant. Airy and light and super purdy! All the more fantastic because you pulled all this off while working with a relatively small footprint (a challenge I know well). Two thumbs up on this one. You go!

One of the kitchens I've been waiting to see finished!! A total success...I love it! The little breakfast area has a wonderful feel and I really like your dish/microwave/pantry cabinet. THe whole kitchen looks just beautiful, and the granite is perfect.

As a lover (& soon to be owner) of white kitchens, it is a thrill to look at yours. So airy & light. As others have said, the shelves across the window are brilliant.

I'd love to have the paint formula.

Thanks - Jo Ann

Beautiful kitchen!! Did you like your contractor? Would you be willing to share the name? I too am in the Chicago area, western suburbs. I am also interested in seeing photos of your hardwood floor transition. We want to put hardwood floors in the kitchen to match the rest of the home but are worried that it will be very noticeable. Would appreciate any advice or even the name of your flooring person.

Again, just a stunning kitchen!! I planning for a white painted shaker style cabinet kitchen too!!

Oh my goodness I am totally coveting your multi-purpose pantry cabinet! That is genius!

You have done just a fantastic job! It is so spacious and bright and sophisticated. Really, really gorgeous!

Congrats!

What an amazing transformation! Just love the two sink areas with the shelving!

Beautiful granite, cabinetry, and lighting!

SNAP! I love it! As a fellow horizontal pull person I love the look of it. I also just love how everything just seems to work together. Great job, enjoy!

Beautiful! Love your choice of where to put the prep sink... I can understand how it works so well in your space.

What is your dreamy wall color?

Beautiful kitchen! I love the window shelves and the hood cover is really great. LOVE this kitchen!

Beautiful kitchen and such clever uses of your space! Love the customized cabs!

Eeep, sorry about the trouble with the chandelier order but WOW -- your hard work really paid off. They look amazing!

Thanks for sharing the photos! It looks wonderful. I love your intimate eating area and the lighting you chose.

Enjoy your lovely new space!

Wow, BRAVO to you and your DH. Your new kitchen is beautiful and what a transformation. Add me to the list of those loving your lighting selections. They are YUMMY! And those windows.....SIGH.......gorgeous - I want!!! :)

Congratulations on your wonderful renovation. You did GOOD.

Congratulations! First impression is WOW, what a beautiful and stylish kitchen. I love the granite, the window shelving and your confidence to make the kitchen uniquely your own. All this and then great use of space and detail. It is a great kitchen.

Love your kitchen, and I agree, the lights, though a hassle, are perfect! I also love the can storage and the cabinet with the pocket doors --- it is genius!

I may have missed it in the above posts, but what is your cabinet color?

I'm also curious to know about your first love granite, because this one is PERFECT! Enjoy the kitchen this holiday season!

Nice kitchen. I like how the lines of the window shelving tie in the lines of your drawer handles.

Add me to the list of those who love your "window treatments".
I also love how you put granite where the fake drawer usually is in front of your sink.
You have a magazine worthy kitchen that looks like it functions beautifully ;)
Your lighting is the cherry on the top!

WOW! It's absolutely beautiful! You must be so pleased. I think you accomplished your goal of light, bright and airy perfectly. Congratulations! :o)

Those are theanimala's pulls! I love them too! They've been at the top of my list.

I echo everyone else's comments on how gorgeous, fabulous, genius, beautiful, wonderful, and fantastic your kitchen is! Congratulations! And thanks for so many pics. Enjoy!

Oh, Congrats!! It's beautiful. I love your clever pantry idea, what a way to use space!

Also love the shelves as everyone else, and the granite in front of the sink. Haven't seen that done before. It's very pretty.

Don't know if I missed it, but if so, do you mind sharing the color of your cabinets?

Another add into "My Kitchen Inspirations"! Absolutely beautiful! Like others have said, the use of the granite in front of the sinks is unusual and gorgeous. I am loving the can pantry/dish/toaster oven cabinet. Very creative!

Love the kitchen. We are redoing our kitchen in a small Chicago kitchen and also moved the fridge to a less than optimal spot but every bit of space is fought for. I love all the windows!!! They make everything so beautiful.

Here's a couple more pictures. First is of the cabinet above the fridge. We made it tray storage on the top because we use a lot of trays to dine outside in the summer. I have a flip up panel below the tray storage area that I use to keep my wok and a few other things. This is sort of a dummy panel in case I ever get a taller fridge.

The pantry cabinet is in the hallway between my kitchen & dining room. I used a narrow Ikea cabinet and then customized the remaining space to hold the Swiffer, brooms etc. In order to get this to work we had to knock the walls in this tiny space. It was a ton of work just to gain 4" but the pantry area now functions beautifully.

A few have asked by cabinet color...it's a custom lacquer match to my the trim color in the rest of my house. The trim color was custom mix I did many years ago. It took several tries to get the lacquer to match but it was worth it. My window trim is painted with the oil trim paint and it matches my cabinet perfectly.

newbie--I am not actually in Chicagoland...I'm in north central Indiana so I'm not sure it would help. The flooring integrated perfectly..you can't tell at all. We had the dining room refinished so the colors match.

Theanimala--yes your pulls were my inspiration. Thank you so much!

I will get the paint color formula and post it later this week.

Again, thank you everyone for the kudos. For all of you still in the remodel process, don't despair. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I thought it would never end, especially since it was mostly a DIY project, but in the end it was well worth the time and struggle. Hang in there!

A few people have wondered about the granite I liked at first. It was called November Sky...it's a lot like Saturnia. There were wonderful swirls of silver mica flecks and it had a lot of depth. It was way over budget and I struggled with lots of "how to pay for the granite I live" thoughts. I finally decided the darker granite was too much of a contrast to my vision and also too expensive so I went granite shopping again and found the Golden Antique that I bought. In the end, I love my granite and I am so glad I kept looking. Bonus--it was 1/3 of the price of the November Sky too.

I try to stay away from the kitchens forum because of posts like this. I love your kitchen so much it makes me want to cry. I love that it's beautiful AND hugely functional. I love those pendants. I love the cabinets, I love the windows and the granite. I love it all and now I want to puke because now I don't love my kitchen at all.

Wonderful job!

What a beautiful kitchen! I'm stunned by all the great storage ideas! Eks, I'll be studying your kitchen for a long time to see how I can incorporate many of your ideas into my kitchen (imitation is the sincerest form of flattery ;)). Like many others, I love your window shelves, bling pendants, storage cabs, granite, paint, floor, prep sink. I guess I should just say I love everything about your kitchen! :) Oh! and thank you so much for including your floor plan!