Southport is so pretty I keep mistaking it for a painting.

So excited! Received the templates today and they are almost exactly what I came up with. So hopefully that means we’ll have counters sooner than 3 weeks!

Our hardwood got the fourth coat of poly today! We have had two coats of satin finish and two coats of semi-gloss. We came to the lake last night so we wouldn't have to deal witht he smell. He sent me pics when he finished, so obviously the floor is still wet. I cannot wait to get home Sunday to see how they look. I'm starting to see the finish line!

@Lynn Lou keeping dust and cat hair out of the varnishing I used to do was a big challenge. At least Bare doesn't contribute. So... How do you like it?

@K L Lol....don't have that problem with Bare!!

I LOVE it!! In certain lights you can see the difference between the dining room and kitchen, but most times you cannot. I knew it wouldn't be identical because existing floors are 16 years old. Most people won't even notice it. The transition to the family room is as good as we expected it to be. We have wider peg and plank hardwood in there, but the header breaks it up nicely. Hubby is excited about the hardwood in the kitchen...early on he was totally against it.

Now I'm waiting patiently for the call that the counters are ready for install! We plan on bringing in the refrigerator and setting the wall oven and microwave tonight. We were missing 24" of LED UCL tape lighting, so the electrician will come back for that at some point this week. Unless I'm brave enough to attempt it myself. I installed several wall plates last night...that is about the only electrical work I feel comfortable doing lol!

This pic shows the transition when most noticeable.

Hahaha...I'm really enjoying the connecters at work with the gel inside. Stick the wires in and clamp down with plyers...easy peasy... But not in a house!!!

I'm so happy about how the wood worked out!

Love your island.... so cool

I see (unless camera lens creates optical illusion) you selected the trendy oversized pendants for island?

@K L Oh if it were only that easy lol! I took a quick look at the tape lighting tonight and thought, eh I'll let him finish this. I also googled how to wire an outlet, but figured I'll leave that to hubby or electrician. Thanks! I'm so happy with the wood too. It's not perfect, but it sure is close. And our house isn't going on the parade of homes anytime soon, so we're good :) I know you were following the powder room too. We have to do some wall patches and paint touch up and then it will be done. I so want to get the sconces, mirror and canvas installed!!!

@HU-125422500 Thanks! This island has caused me much stress lol! The supports for the top for one thing. But also we added 3" filler cabinets on each end to accommodate the electrical outlets. Only to find out they won't fit in there :/ The electrician couldn't wire them with the filler cabinets installed. He maybe could have wired the outlets before the filller cabinets were installed I guess. But we didn't plan for that. So I made the decision to install them as shown, which is fine. We lost 3" of drawer space on the working side and 3" of spice cabinet space on the end, but I'm over it now lol!

@marylut Yes :) I found them early on and fell in love with them. I love the leather strap that adds some warmth. I went back and forth between these and glass pendants. I love the look of glass pendants, but didn't want the upkeep of keeping them clean etc. Hubby wanted all can lights, but I wanted something fun. They'd probably make more of an impact if we had an open concept space, but I just love them :)

Isn’t it so wonderful to fall in love with a kitchen element? I prefer your white pendants to clear glass, internet comments about clear glass globes is that they are like a bare bulb and cause eye glare and eye strain. Have you selected cab hardware? I don’t see any installed yet. Can’t wait to see finished powder room!

lynn, they did a nice job w/the lacing of the old and the new wood. stain/finish is beautiful. do you know what products they used for everything?

@marylut I read so many commnets about the clear glass globes as well. Thought maybe they wouldn't be too bad. I couldn't find any that I really liked. Found a milk glass one that was interesting, but then decided I didn't want to deal with glass at all. There's enough to keep clean in a kitchen lol! This is the hardware I picked. They were all delivered last week. Having my carpenter make a jig for them and hopefully get them installed soon. Wow...the pic is really big lol!! Thanks :) I'm so excited about the powder room!

@Beth H. : They did a great job. We are really happy with how they turned out. Actaully there is no stain. This is just Dura Seal poly in semi-gloss over select white oak. Hubby and I thought for sure we had picked out a stain color 17 years ago. But both guys that were here said nope...it was natural. If we ever redo all of the floors I would have no idea what stain I would want, so I'm glad I didn't have to make that decision right now.

Counters will be installed next Friday....yay!!

One thing that hubby and I are not agreeing on is where to end the backsplash. We both are good with it ending under the hood. But he wants to run it up to ceiling at the window whereas I assumed we would just end it under the cabinets. I've seen pics of both ways and now I don't know which I prefer. Guess maybe it will depend what tile we pick for the backsplash? I'll definitely do some mock ups of both ways once we decide (if we ever decide lol!) on a backsplash.

@Lynn Lou so many people post frustrations with choosing backsplashes! It makes me long for the simple 4" from the Formica days. 🥴 

Do you think going to the ceiling will look as nice as just to the bottom of the upper cabinets? Or do you think going to the ceiling will look weird? Ask hubby if he thinks it would look weird to go just to the upper cabinets. Maybe that will help you both clarify what you don't like about each option. Just explore. I would love to get my hubby's input, especially if he agreed with me! Almost always, he has encouraged me to go the extra step instead of holding back. Maybe that's what your hubby is doing.

Does water splash up to your ceiling? Does spaghetti sauce? It's a kitchen, not a darn sauna.

@K L It’s not that I don’t like it, I just assumed we would end under cabinets (that’s what we were going to do when we considered doing counter material as BS). Someone just posted a pic of their kitchen with it to the ceiling and it does look amazing. She has lights above the window that we do not. This is her pic. So now I’m leaning toward to the ceiling on window wall but still just below the hood? Or maybe to the ceiling there too so it would match the window wall? So many decisions to make! I'll be so happy when this project is done!!

Lol @JAN MOYER! I know the function of a back splash, but I also like it as a decorative element. Some kitchens with them up to the ceiling look amazing. Some kind of, meh.

@Lynn Lou between your two choices it's aesthetic and relationship, not so much a functional choice after you hit the bottoms of the uppers. I suppose there may be a cost issue. I think it's possible that going to the ceiling could look dated at some point if that's ever a concern. I think it's a thing now but isn't sustainable because its not necessary and it costs more, and maybe people are feeling deprived because we all just went through a pandemic. Just thoughts… If you and hubby like the look, go for it! ☺️ Maybe hubby is thinking this is the one room he can get really aggressive with hand washing! 😂

Lol! Maybe that’s his reasoning :)

I’m not overly concerned about something being dated. At some point everything will be dated.

I appreciate your thoughts!!

@Lynn Lou I'm fine with whatever you do. Really it's so pretty now. You did a marvelous job coordinating everything. Any thoughts I have are just to help you get to what you two really want. Can't wait to "see how it's done".

I also like it as decorative. I'm all for taking it up to the ceiling. I did it w/mine too (I have much lower ceilings so in my case, I didn't want to chop up that portion of the wall)

I really like this one w/the sconces. (but I think these pendants are hung a little too high. 36" max, from the countertop, is the proper height)

I had to laugh when I saw this was posted just 4 days ago... Was "someone" reading your post?https://www.houzz.com/magazine/where-to-start-and-stop-your-backsplash-stsetivw-vs~86843211

@K L I really appreciate all of your input! It helps to hear others thoughts when trying to figure out all of this stuff! Too funny! I will have to check out that post. Thanks for sharing it!

@Beth H. : I always love seeing your kitchen! I'm leaning toward doing it to the ceiling for both the window wall and the hood wall. Will have to remove crown and the hood, but not a big deal. I wanted to do sconces above our window too, but I thought it would be too much with the pendants since our kitchen is on the smaller side and not open concept. I agree on those being a bit too high. I have ours at 30" above the counter and figured we could always raise them if need be.

Started putting stuff in our new fridge last night. Going to counter depth is an eye opener! Good thing hubby and I don't eat a lot lol! The freezer has a couple shallow pull out trays so that will be nice. I feel so much gets lost in our current freezer. I'm sure there are tons of things in there that are expired.

yes. when we went to counter depth I was shocked at how big our old samsung really was! you get used it though.

@Lynn Lou I enjoy watching your progress. So inspirational. You are good at this! I really want to "see how it's done" by watching you do. My favorite "Why did the chicken cross the road?" joke is, To show the squirrels how it's done." You chicken...me squirrel. 🥴

@K L Hahaha!! There are plenty of chickens on here that actually know what they are doing lol! I'm just winging it!

Case in point. I just discovered that whatever backsplash we do, it will end right between two existing light switches :/ Early on, I planned on having them relocated, but then for whatever reason I decided they didn't need to be. No idea what I was thinking. There isn't enough wire to move them over much if any now. One is a dual dimmer switch (island pendants and cans) and the other is a rocker switch for the outside can lights. So I want to find one switch than can control all three lights. I could do a 3-rocker switch, but then lose the ability to dim the cans/pendants. Or combine the cans/pendants to one dimmer and use the other dimmer for outside cans. I found a Legrand switch that my electrician thinks he can make work, but not sure I want to spend $90 and find out it won't work and then it can't be returned since it has been installed. And it has been discontinued on Legrand's website, so I'm thinking there's probably a reason for that.

I don't have to decide right away since I still have no idea what backsplash we are doing. But so annoyed I didn't catch this until now :/

lol. there are dimmers you can use. just keep looking.

as for the tile, no biggy. you're just going to have to cut around it.

find a really nice outlet cover that matches the tile. you can have them custom made or colored.

these toggle switches would look very nice in that spot. they come in diff metallic colors.

Etsy has this one

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1442841654/matte-black-with-gold-brass-cross

buster and punch:

these are so classy looking (not at all cheap! but they are cool)

https://www.busterandpunch.com/us/

in place of the rockers, do the toggles. these look really cool.

Etsy has these too

Reclaimed wood?

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1330683462/reclaimed-wood-switch-plates

make your own w/swarowski. hey, don't knock it!

@Beth H. : Wow! Those are all really cool!

My issue is I'm trying to find three dimmers that will fit in 1-gang box. Or two dimmers and one switch in a 1-gang box. Not finding any such thing. Except for something called a scene controller and don't think that will work in my situation.

So I have to decide between having three stacked switches or use the dual dimmer I have and have the island cans/island pendants on one dimmer and the outside cans on the other dimmer. I'm guessing if I have the pendants on, I would also have the island cans on too. Or do I just switch them all separately. Honestly since they've been installed, I haven't used the dimmers once except to see if they worked lol. So maybe that is my answer!

OR are you saying to leave as is and just have the tile land in the middle?? Excuse my poor mock up skills lol!

I know once I make the decision and everything is complete, I will look back and wonder why I made such a big deal about this! But right now, it's driving me crazy, mostly because I didn't catch it before now.

I have a dual dimmer on mine. lutron, I believe. bottom is the on off, and the slide is the dimmer.

as for the tile, yes, you'd do it like pictured

@Beth H. : Ok thank you for talking me off the ledge! I have the dual dimmer I posted above and single rocker like you have. I will just have the tile around it and be done with it. Thank you!

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@Lynn Lou good luck today with the counter installation!

@K L Oh I wish it was today! But not until tomorrow :/

Ugh.... You're right. I've been mixed up about what day it is all week. I knew your day was Friday, but at various points thought today was Tuesday or Thursday. Some upsetting stuff going on with my son, combined with me overworking. Bumpy road at the moment. I can hardly wait to see your new counters!

Oh @K L Sorry you're dealing with so much right now. Hope it is all resolved soon!

@Lynn Lou thanks for your good wishes. I checked a couple times to be sure.  🥴 And today is now Friday....drumroll....the big day! I am so looking forward to seeing those counters in! My Saturday morning excitement! Seriously, may nothing go wrong. 

You guys talking about your hubbies and them saying you don't live in a museum... I'll share with you that my battle is to keep the clutter from reappearing in a new space after I planned appropriate storage. Also, trying to keep clutter from elsewhere from being stuffed into said great new storage.

We love the Southport and are going to choose it ourselves for our island and countertops. Is it possible that you could post some more pictures of the installed countertops? Also, any insights on how you decided to lay it out on the countertops, I eat, cut and direction of pattern.

Your countertop adds the WOW! What type lower cab did you choose for corner to right of sink?

So do you think every slab of Southport is exactly the same? I assumed each slab would be slightly different based on how it was created.

And forgot to add that your counters look beautiful! Congratulations

With a busy patterned counter and backsplash, I would select a solid color floor tile or linoleum to match a medium tone in the counter material.

@marylut Thanks! I did a regular reach in corner cabinet. I went back and forth about that or the lazy susan or super susan. We have the same reach in type at our lake house and I feel I can fit more in there. We had lazy susan before and stuff was always falling off the back and getting lost forever. The super susan was just stupid expensive and I feel it limits you on heighth of items you can put in there.

@Steve Garelick Thanks! I think they are pretty much the same. All of the ones I've seen have been the same. The one I saw at the warehouse, their online pic and I found pics online of other fabricators with it on display and they were all the same. These are man made slabs, so there is a formula they use to make sure they are the same. There is some resin pooling that might occur, but they say that is normal and to be expected. I haven't noticed any on my counters. Surprisingly I haven't checked out every square inch of them yet lol. There are tiny black dots here and there in random places. Some people have complained about those, but they don't bother me at all.

@felizlady Thanks for your input. Too late though lol. I ended up doing hardwood.

@Lynn Lou lol, kitchens are clutter magnets! Most useful tip I got was to make the storage area right where hubby landed stuff so is as easy for him to put away as to leave it on counter, and unless we use small appliance daily we store it - no more complaints

@Lynn Lou I couldn't wait until tomorrow morning. They are even more beautiful than I imagined! I love them!

gorgeous! I love the wall color w/it. And, I also love how the warm wood floors coodinate.

@marylut LOL and I hate clutter! I have to say even if it was easy for him to put away, he will most likely put it in the wrong place. I had him trained pretty well in the old kitchen, now I have to start over lol!

@K L Thank you! I'm so excited!

@Beth H. : Thank you! I'm sooooo happy we did the wood floors. You were a big part of that...so thank you! Remember early on I thought I wanted tile (and so did hubby). OMG...I can't even imagine it with tile now. I really love the paint color too. It changes throughout the day so it is hard to tell what color it really is lol!

@Steve Garelick Also make sure you see the template beforehand. Most good fabricactors will provide that, but so many people come to this forum disappointed with their layout because they didn't know to ask to see the template before they cut the counters. If they say they can't provide it, then find another fabricator. Good luck!

Good advice, I saw my actual slab and we mapped out the portion to be used for my bathroom counter, then part of the leftover piece for the shower bench. Counter is 10’ so I needed a seam and we worked out how to make that seem disappear into the veining.