Bold Tile, Sunlight Filled Kitchen
There are two versions of this reveal; this is the better one but it's loaded with pictures. Here's a link to the photoshop version, if that's easier for you:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0307394514459.html?26
Many of you have seen progress pictures along the way and given us so much valuable feedback and advice. With the forum's help, we have an incredibly functional kitchen in which it is great fun to cook and entertain.
Our home was built in the mid 60's and the kitchen used to be on the back side of the house, facing north west (never any sun). Our architect suggested relocating the kitchen to the front of the house, and came up with a very functional new plan, which included moving interior walls and adding a skylight dormer, mud room and pantry. We found a builder to perform the demolition and manage the construction. We built a temporary kitchen in our family room, moved the fridge in there with our camping gas burners on a card table, and started the long process of renovating. In the midst of this exciting and frustrating roller-coaster ride, my mom passed away. She was an amazing cook and would have loved watching the progress and seeing how everything turned out. This reveal is dedicated to her.
Cabinetry quotes for all the new areas (kitchen, island, desk area, bookshelves, pantry, mudroom) ranged from $35,000 to $75,000, uninstalled. Long story short: in order to economize, we went with an online Conestoga reseller (Brian Long/theCabinetJoint), who sold a ready to assemble/RTA cabinet, for around $23,000. This included many custom pieces; 18" deep uppers, custom width upper cabinets, 2 custom depth floor to ceiling bookshelves, and custom drawer widths and heights. While we've been very pleased with the quality and functionality, I wonder what the final effect would have been with different cabinets and/or a different cabinet style. DH and I assembled the cabinets ourselves and our builder's crew hung them. DH installed all the appliances (several, multiple times), built a steel bar support system for the island, and did so very much electrical, plumbing and carpentry work. He is one in a million.
As you look at these pictures, I would welcome finishing suggestions. What did we, as DIY-ers, miss or mangle? What stands out as unfinished to your eye and what could I add to a punchlist for a finish carpenter or DH and me? I won't be offended, but to be totally honest, I am not posting any of the bad pictures :)
When it came time to pick a backsplash, I found I had too much white and disliked how the upper run of cabinets looked. With a ton of help from the forum, I picked a bold tile which draws the eye away from the cabinets. (Special thanks to Hollysprings for reminding me that I liked a lot of contrast in my inspiration pictures and to onedogedie, for introducing me to kj patterson).
Before
The kitchen was small and my countertops were always crowded. Still, I feel the need to acknowledge how many wonderful meals came out of that space.
We bumped out the front of the house 5 feet, replacing the foot print of the old covered porch.
We learned we could replace a structural post which would have been out in the middle, with an LBL beam. (Huge thanks to jeff_from_oakville, live_wire_oak, remodelfla, sjmitch, karen_belle and bmorepanic).
Assembling and installing cabinets. There was no magical truck pulling up outside and crews bringing in beautiful, assembled cabinets....
After
Desk area to the right, fireplace to eventually be replaced with gas:
Bookshelves flanking the desk - houseful, you gave me the idea of using 2 of these, to balance the desk area, and I love how this works. Nothing warms a room like books! We also keep the phone and answering machine here.
Birds'-eye view, skylight dormer:
We love our recycling center and the inset composter:
Custom wood hood built by DH. Upper cabinets are 18" deep.
Recycling center on island and shallow cutting board cabinet:
Tiled fire extinguisher niche. This is located behind the ovens; countertops are 30" and ovens were pulled forward by 6".
Upper cabinet knobs:
Baking Area with 30" countertops: (we keep things out on them and still have room to roll out a pie crust or make biscuits).
Top drawer: (note my new XMAS presents, my pink thermapen and my yellow lemon juice squeezer, thanks to zelmar and Breezygirl!)
Middle drawer:
Bottom drawer:
Next drawer stack over to the left, fun storage:
Bottom drawer:
I like the Rev-A-Shelf pull-outs (DH HATED installing these with a passion) but they are flimsy (wobbly) in comparison to my Blum Blu-Motion drawer glides.
In the upper cabinets, DH has built custom spice racks for us:
We were able to find a caulk which matched our grout. We dealt with a local metal working shop to create our stainless steel surround and custom hood liner:
Pantry:
Linen closet at left, eventually washer and dryer at far end. The base cabinet at the end has a single large pullout; this will be for clothes sorting bins.
Filing cabinets and beverage fridge:
Cabinets: Conestoga RTA Cabinets and Doors, Crystal White, Door CRP-10875, Cordovan stain on island.
Counters: Cambria Torquay
Bar stools: Carrington CourtDirect Mitchell 26" bar stools, with COM and custom stain.
Wall paint: BM Aura Vancouver Day
Tile: kj patterson, Fireclay Debris
Cabinet hardware
Upper Hafele Knob Clear/Polished Chrome - HAF-135-75-420
Lower: RH Bistro Pull
Lights:
Varaluz, Nevada (table)
LBL lighting monorail, Lava II
Undercabinet: Philips powercore profile LED strips
Appliances/Fixtures:
Kohler Karbon faucet
KWC Sin Faucet
48" Capital Culinarian
Solon Inset Composter
Sharp 24" MW Drawer
Hood: Prestige insert with remote blower
Franke Peak SS Sink
Silestone Silgranit Sink, Biscuit
TapMaster
Hafele Food Pedals
Miele Futura Dimension
This post was edited by oldbat2be on Wed, Apr 3, 13 at 13:38
Comments (85)
Mick Mick
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
secondhalf
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Oldbat2be reveal - photobucket pix
Comments (34)Thanks a2 - You probably saw most of these in the original reveal but there were a few new ones. Any progress with Photoshop? I know you are going to have a lot of fun with it. Ginny20 - Thanks!! We've been surprised at how well it turned out. The nicer it gets though, the nicer we want it to be. I'm thinking about redoing a few things here and there.... Angie_DIY - wish you would and wish you were closer so I could come see your kitchen in person. Hi Renee, so glad you like the tile and kitchen. I always smile when I see your name and remember the help you gave me on my hose reel thread. (I really like the ones I ended up getting by the way). How goes your lovely garden? kristi-stl - I'm so sorry I didn't reply earlier. The Island is Cherry with the cordovan stain. What I'd do differently with the door is to have a flat outer edge (ours is raised). Also, the cordovan is pretty red. In hindsight, I was looking for a more traditional, honey cherry color. kateskouros - Thanks for the kind words! While it may not look like it, your gorgeous kitchen was one in my inspiration file. Obviously I am not very good at copying elements:) We are very much enjoying the layout and new space. seosmp - It's 8.75 inches from the wall to the start of the window trim; just about 12 to the actual window glass. The bumpout shelf was an afterthought. I'd wanted one but forgot to specify to our architect. When our builders started framing the window, I remembered. It was a fairly easy adjustment. I question sometimes whether I should have continued the bumpout at countertop height but in our case, the window is visible from the front of the house and I don't think I would have liked seeing objects on the countertop from outside (if that makes sense). I planned originally to have plants on the shelf but it looks a little messy from the outside so usually I leave it clean. I am planning on a Torquay shelf in this space at some point....See MoreHave you painted a bedroom a bold or deep color?
Comments (62)yes. definitely green for the bedroom; white trim; brown/natural accents. Probably a bright/medium yellow toned spring, lime, to acid green--a happy, lively color. Looking around my home, I have many accessories in this color range, as well as being prominent color outside. Definitely not a greyed, pastel, sage, or forest green. @ Tibbrix; I think you're right about that color, I looked at it again. The next deeper on the color chart works better. Will be looking for more natural and wood accents, and possibly a medium brown for the smaller bedrooms....See MorePLEASE HELP me choose which granite for kitchen with no natural light!
Comments (54)@salonva preliminary picture of the new countertops and sink!!! I'm really enjoying the new countertops. The fabricator is coming to do a second layer of sealant on the countertops too. We really love how this color looks. We worked on replacing 1/2 of the hinges yesterday with invisible ones- I'm hoping the rest will be done by the end of the week and that we may be able to paint the cabinets this coming weekend (at least the uppers!!) With that in mind, after seeing the countertops installed and envisioning the pure white cabinets, I'm thinking a white backsplash will look too sterile. I think once we have the cabinets painted I will do a separate post asking for new backsplash tile recommendations! but I figured I would share how the new countertops came out, The river white really looks nice!...See MoreBlending Old Kitchen Tile Kitchen Updates -What colour Base cabinets
Comments (27)Finally our kitchen journey is finished. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, designs and advice. Every comment was reviewed, considered and in many cases incorporated, even when the advice was not to include an element that would not serve the aesthetics or budget for our project. Much appreciated to all. I especially appreciate the time and effort of the professionals in the thread who helped without compensation. Their expertise was invaluable and gave us the econfidence to make choices that helped to push us to the finish line. I wanted to share our final pictures and some of the learnings from the process. 1. Budget is a guideline. Our guideline was 10k, a significant sum for a face lift and sufficient for a basic reface in my area, repainting cabinets, sink and countertop. It didn't allow for all of my wishlist (e.g. extending cabinets, custom rangehood, waterfall countertops, extra large sink and antique brass fittings). Those items required extra budget and some serious negotiation and shopping excursions to support. All in we spend 14K and that included extra cost fo unplanned updates (rewiring for undercabinet lighting, range vent, plumber to replace old plumbing). We also paid twice as much for our counters than we expected. $2700 grew to $5500 but still very reasonable considering our configuration. It meant that my island depth had to be reduced which still bugs me a little but ultimately works better for our floorplan. 2. Sometimes you just can't get a deal on price. I was desperate to find a backsplash that would be timelines, add texture but not break the budget. We were going to go with quartz to match the counters but that was a budget buster. We decided on subway tile but had made spanish tiles that matched out counters exactly. We found the perfect tile but it was 45% higher than our budget so we searched high and low, for weeks but never found an alternative option. We went with that option and have not regretted it for a second, it has an old world feel that works with the rest of our transitional home. 3. Somes reusing something better serves the overall project The floors in our kitchen were my biggest concern. "Lipstick on a pig" came to mind everytime we discussed, picking a cabinet colour, quartz countertops and tiles. We had to find a way to incorporate the existing flooring with a new bright kitchen. I needed to refresh our tile to a standard that would not detract from the new cabinets. This was a journey. We finally decided the biggest impact was to regrout the floor reducing the impact of the patter and lightening the floor overall. I think this labour intensive, cheap exercise ($50 in materials) was our biggest bang for our buck and the most satisfying update to our kitchen. 4. Having a plan will save you heartache and reduce regrettable spends. We poured over thousands of pictures, asked hundred of questions and discussed the project with as many experience people to have a solid picture of what we were trying to achieve. This helped us to know where to spend our dollars effectively. We researched all of the people we worked with and understood the work that would need to be done and we only hired people who understood our vision. 5. Be realistic You can't have everything, everything won't be perfect and sometimes concessions will have to be made unless you have unlimited time, resources and an army of tradesmen who can do anything you can imagine. I learned that the real fun is in the problem solving and thinking outside of the box. It took 6 1/2 months but it was more than we had hoped to achieve within our budget. Project: Update our builder kitchen, making it brighter, in line with the rest of the work we had done on the main floor and reusing as much of the original kitch as we could. 17'X 19' floorplan remained the same. It was dark, crowded outdated and just worn out from 17 years of use. The cabinet had a 10" dust collecting gap, the counters were laminate and in need of repair and we didn't have backsplash. We focused on light, bright updates that were not overtly trendy or specific to 2023 but rather aligned with the transitional design that we have been incorporating throughout the house. We also replaced the lighting to create unobstructed views within the room and out to the backyard. Perfect spot for morning coffee, chatty dinners at the end of the day or a hand of crazy eights with the kids. Is our kitchen magazine perfect? No but neither is the rest of the house but it is beginning to be perfect for us. :-)...See Morewags848
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agogwlolo
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoolivertwistkitchen
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Bunny
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agosixtyohno
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
fouramblues
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
enduring
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agolabbie
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agolabbie
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoThanks dretutz, GenerosiTea, sas95, ilene-84, hobokenkitchen, gsciencechick, dee850, olivesmom
Springroz - we started planning mid 2010, started demo around Mother's Day 2011 and were finally ready for countertops in early December 2011. So... lived out of a temporary kitchen for almost 6 months.
Trailrunner, you're the best, thanks. Knowing you, anything that makes you smile, probably makes you cook, too :) (Keep posting those pictures and recipes, I love them).
Thanks ck_squared. Good luck with your remodel.
tea4all - I too love the pantry tile. Actually, love everything I've seen from Fireclay! I've added a few more pictures in the main thread too (lovely to be able to edit).
legallin, thanks!! We'll be watching for your posts :)
localeater - if you're ever in the area, definitely stop in, it's rarely dull here! Too funny about obi-wan (would that be OBWK?). Here's another shot of the star and cross tile; this is an 18" space. Fireclay, malt, debris series. I will probably either decoupage these outlets or redo them (plugmold at top since these outlets are rarely used). Another lesson learned too late...
annsch - I am planning on redoing the sink window trim (fairly easy) and am still searching for the right integrated refrigerator. I love the warmth in this one but actually really like the darkness (contrast) of the black I currently have. Maybe one day....
[
[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/red-aga-traditional-kitchen-boston-phvw-vp~458887)
[Traditional Kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Boston Kitchen And Bath K.Marshall Design Inc.
Hi deedles, we're very happy how the cutting board nook turned out. I'd been concerned it might clash with the quartz but it's fine.
cawaps - the old house did have a lot of charm but the new one is so much more functional.
a2gemini - thanks for remembering the lights (and for your help in finding them). They're Troy Old Town, love love love them. We put 3 up flanking the garage doors and an add'l two on a 10' fence post (didn't like the gooseneck option they offered for a lamp post).
Hi NATEBEAR, uppers are 18" deep. Great for storing big platters. (I haven't added vertical dividers yet, eventually).
More later - must feed little ones and then off to hockey.
This post was edited by oldbat2be on Sun, Dec 30, 12 at 12:33
oldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoonedogedie - Regarding the SS surround, we just wanted a really large space around the cooktop which didn't need to be babied. I really like the SS as a countertop material.
motherof3sons - I loved the story of your mother playing bridge until 3 hours before your birth. We have a 100 acre woods behind us; it tickles me that I can still get lost.
taggie - haven't posted in the 'does your kitchen match your dog' thread, that might be fun to resurrect! (I don't think I had a backsplash when that came out). Thanks for your kind words.
secondhalf - doing the bump-out did transform the house. Neat to hear you did it too. At this point, no-one is particularly respectful, but things are holding up well (just lots of dings on the toe boards). The counter tops take lots of abuse without any staining or etching. Our dog is a long haired shepherd.
Autumn4, divastyle, GWlolo, wags848, fouramblues - thanks!!
olivertwist - I use the compost bin all the time, love the convenience. The trash can is 16" deep and is lower than the bottom of the bin. I originally had 3 tilt outs over these bins but after some thought we retrofitted a 12" drawer on the left most one. DH used 2 part epoxy to secure to right side of sink. He also built a shelf at the back of the cabinet to hold the detergent for the neverMT.
Here's from the side, looking towards the front of the cabinet:
linelle - too funny, I had a lot of fun sending that card out:)
sixtyohno - I too very much worried about the backsplash. In person, I am very pleased with the color. It's hard to photograph and I'm not so crazy about how it looks with my LED lighting (too yellowish). That, fortunately, we can eventually try to correct.
enduring - You can use the USB port to charge an ipod, ipad or other device. Handy at times but I don't encourage the family to use this as their regular charging station(s).
labbie - glad you like the bookshelves. I used to have shelves with bookends which were always falling over. I measured my deepest cookbooks to figure out the right depth.
annkathryn
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofirstmmo
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
a2gemini
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoiroll_gw
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMizLizzie
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Pipdog
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoangie_diy
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoppbenn
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agowi-sailorgirl
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agocaitlinmagner
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoEATREALFOOD
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoJfay
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisaSE
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMizLizzie
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
Debbi Branka
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoJFay, LisaSE, you are right on track,the sink/fridge wall irks me. Definitely a future thread!
MizLizzie, the composter is one of my favorite things in the kitchen. It's an inset composter:
Deb52899, thanks! The pink thermapen is a great new gadget, linked below. Works beautifully! (search for pricing, this is just default amazon)
Here is a link that might be useful: Amazon thermapen
MizLizzie
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoTxMarti
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoBelatedly, thanks marti8a, MizLizzie. I had a request for an update so here goes....
We have moved away from the sink wall redesign for the time being and are working on the pantry (dry goods storage portion).
We're slowly making progress on vertical storage. We bought two sets of the Omega Tra-Sta organizers but DH says that he could have easily made these himself. Here's the upper oven cabinets (love this space now):
And in the pantry corner cabinet, which is fairly deep, we maximized space by measuring what we wanted to store and mounting the vertical slats to the required measurements.
I'm not sure what we'll do with the upper portion of this cabinet, perhaps keep for tall vases (um, when I get around to buying any...). I'm currently trying to figure out the best place to keep heavy serving bowls.
localeater
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agorikerk
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoHi localeater - shoot me an email next time you are planning to be in the area, would love to have you stop in for a look and a bite.
rikerk - Yes, the SS surround runs behind the rangetop, and we also have another surround around the hood sump/capture area.
Rough dimensions are 34" from front to back, 10" on both sides, and 9.5" in the back.
This shows a little of the inside of the hood.
carsonheim
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooldbat2be
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Holly- Kay
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLara
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agosteph2000
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMags438
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoHolly- Kay
10 years agolast modified: 9 years agoalicewhite354
8 years agooldbat2be
8 years agowellil
7 years agoenduring
7 years ago
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