To keep or not to keep? Half wall separating kitchen fr family room
Classic Comfort
2 years ago
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Bathtubs ... to keep or not to keep, that is the question...
Comments (13)staceyneil -- what a beautiful transformation! Reminds me (radiator and all!) of my old house, where we did the work ourselves (we were younger then) including taking down cracked, mismatched old tile -- to find horsehair lathe beneath it. And jejvtr, thanks for the thoughts (encouragement!) and the links. I found the Jake Fitzjones one especially intriguing ... wondering how tall a person could shower there?? I will say that the existing sink is in very good condition (I wonder if I could sell it?) but I can't stand the metal screw-on support legs on the front, which are rusted, dated, yuck. (I know I can buy replacements of those, but I don't want that look, with exposed drain, etc.) And I tried to replace the faucet when we bought this house a few years ago (drain is missing, handles very hard to turn when wet, etc.) and found it remarkably hard to get something that was vertically mounted (is that the term?) with a 6 inch spread. Is the moisture question (re a window seat) related to having a cushion on there? There is no exhaust fan in this bath (not required because of the window but it certainly would be helpful to have one ... though the windows are old and poorly fitted and on windy days, we DO have ventilation!) AND... this house has radiant heat. In the CEILINGS. Miles of copper tubing, which actually heats remarkably well despite being nearly 50 years old, but which means any remodeling has to be done with great care. You can't just punch a new hole in the ceiling to add a fan. Now to complicate matters more... I DO have the option, at considerably greater expense (which may make it NOT an option!), to expand this bath another five feet behind the sink wall. There is a fully plumbed closet immediately behind it, which was plumbed when the house was built in case someone wanted to make it into a half bath later on. I didn't see much point in an extra half bath since it would be so small (5' x 5' and the same sloped ceiling) but I could see some advantage to expanding the hall bath to incorporate that space (assuming the wall between them is not load-bearing, which I don't know). So that's a "whole other ball of wax" to consider. (Oh, and the dark block in the lower left of the photo is the edge of a fancy (for 1959) built in heater. We never use it, so plan to try to use the electrical connection already there for the heater to mount a heated towel bar. Definitely not an essential item but it seems like it's just begging to be done... don't you think? :) Here's a fuller view of the sink/window:...See MoreKeep kitchen wall white or paint it? (PICS)
Comments (19)You all are so kind to take time out of your busy day to help me. I just love this forum! First off...thank you for the kind words about the cabs and kitchen overall. I so needed that. It's actually kind of crazy how many negative comments I've read about arches in the past 6-8 months, especially on the kitchen forum. I know no one meant it in a bad way...they were just being honest about what they liked/disliked, but it was really starting to discourage me after spending thousands on these cabs to keep hearing how undesirable and outdated the design was. It's just a curved line for gosh sakes. No one considers a coffee table "outdated" just because it has a curved vs straight shape. Why a cabinet door? Anyway: you've made me feel much better, so many thanks for that. Re: paint suggestions. Your feedback was so interesting. Two camps here. The "keep it calm/match a color in BS" group and the "go for the red/orange bold" group. Yet 100% agreement NOT to leave it white. So that answers my #1 question - perfect! Alex9179 thank you big time for that pic of the orange kitchen. Incredibly helpful to see my kitchen colors with the orange wall...had the hardest time picturing that. If I go w/orange, think I may have to find a darker/"spicier" orange due to ultra-white tile floors. That wood floor in pic is gorgeous but same orange with my floor may look too "cartoony". Still a great visual though. So close. LOVE the blue and green...won't fit in my world, but I just love it. Next house! Blfention: please don't apologize for the detail and questions. I definitely welcome it. Re: hallway...not much color yet. Point well taken. Have to do a better job livening that up. I have a curved half-moon two level freestanding bar in one spot (black/black barstools) and a curved half-moon foyer table in entrance, next to DR. Great idea re: curved mirror in DR...the square one is my late father's...some sentimentality there. Have to think about that. New chandy since that pic was shot: now a larger drum shade style with 6-light candelbra and lots of crystals which does offer some distinct softening. Les...thanks for valance suggestions, as well as others who added their thoughts. I just bought these two a couple of months ago when I put the LED UC lighting in...they actually have a very distinctive pinstripe modern texture the camera doesn't show. Maybe I can hang them higher and find a way to pull in some color accents from other rooms for now - then switch for box valance later on which will look better. (The cab company had a matching wood valance, but it was pretty pricey and I already splurged my budget on the upgraded all-plywood and deluxe construction details instead.) Thank you again everyone...it's so wonderful to get objective eyes on this...I'm definitely too close to it all myself to have any fresh thinking....See MoreIdeas for kitchen layout and keeping room ideas.
Comments (11)A few questions to help you figure our your approach: Why do you want to give up the natural light made possible by window? Is it for additional upper storage or are you on a zero lot line? If so, add clerestory windows above the cabinets perhaps if you have high enough ceilings. Curving the island, while nice, will cost more and you still need to be mindful of clearance for door to screened porch. The keeping room seems approximately 16 X 13. It's larger than the the breakfast nook and many would use it for seating/tv space. Do you have convenient private space for family time elsewhere? How much time do you spend at the sink vs the range/cooktop? Based on how you use them, you could flip the two though the sink is in a convenient spot from the breakfast nook. An angled pantry can easily go where the desk is, and if you prefer DO those could go the left of a counterdepth french door or SxS RF. I'd place them next to the relocated pantry and have more open counter near the entrance. If you keep the RF in its current location, agree about the end panel. Not sure why you need a deep cabinet for the micro nor do I like its location in the entrance. I think the kneewall may refer to the counter height bar on the island vs all one level curved counter, but the all in one is not the greatest in your configuration as you don't have enough room for adequate counter in front of the working sink/cooktop space plus seats plus door clearance. This is a case where an outswing door may help if you have enough room on the porch for furniture placement....See MoreWall color suggestions for kitchen / fam. room? Or keep?
Comments (29)I just removed the valances. What do you all think? I'd have to remove the hardware, obviously, or put in new valances of some kind. We will do away with the mini blinds eventually, family room as well, maybe just get a nicer style that looks better and not do valances at all. But it all has to be paid for, and we can't do it all yet, although I love having a goal in mind. The appliances should be replaced as well, although they work just fine so it's hard to buy new just for the look of it. Maybe they'll just give in soon and we don't have the choice! Ha! Unfortunately, so far none of the money-tree seeds that I planted have sprouted, I think they sold me bad seed....See MoreClassic Comfort
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoClassic Comfort
2 years agoTherese N
2 years agolast modified: 2 years agoClassic Comfort
2 years ago
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