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juliawells

Kitchen Update—Looking for Opinions!

juliawells
last year

Having designed my home about 12 years ago, with my husband building it nearly 11 years ago, my style has changed quite a bit, to where I now need less visual clutter and distraction, softer, more tonal finishes. Modern Farmhouse, with nordic influences is my heart’s desire! Unfortunately I can’t afford to redo my whole home, but I’m beginning to feel like my kitchen needs some immediate attention, giving us the biggest visual bang for our buck. I’m curious to hear the opinions of others regarding what features/finishes may be dating my kitchen, even down to changing some of the layout. We are a family of four, with two teenagers. Here are some issues and insights on the current layout:

1/ Not enough space between refrigerator and island, which is a high-traffic zone
2/ Window (w/ ocean view) on far-left wall is too low to accommodate cabinets
3/ Hate my soapstone counters (seems to be low-grade, not the beautiful black/greenish, veined style I wanted; but rather a more honed-granite look that chips and scratches very easily!)
4/ Dark portions of cabinetry (BM’s 2129-20 Soot) are harder to care for—shows every speck of dust, water marks, etc; and the lacquer is chipped in some areas, at the base of the island, down to the wood finish
5/ Dislike having my sink (and occasionally dirty dishes) visible when eating at the island
6/ Prefer to just have one eating area, as current layout and number of chairs seems visually ‘busy’
7/ I’m inheriting an oak china cabinet from my parents that will go below the heat pump (mini fridge is only there temporarily)
8/ Tired of my range hood
9/ As appliances die, I intend to replace with white (having already started with the dishwasher)
10/ Slight preference to round dining tables vs rectangular, but also like counter/bar height
11/ Island was made slightly higher to decrease bending at dishwasher and sink
12/ Laminate flooring may not have been laid under the entirety of the island, which has plumbing and electrical
13/ Island does not allow seating for four (hard to see from picture, but what was I thinking?!?)
14/ Kitchen and dining is completely open to the living room and staircase, which has Cerused-oak treads using the same lacquer as our cabinets with wrought-iron look spindles
15/ Interior doors are nearly black (BM’s 2129-10 Midnight Dream)

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