90% Complete Kitchen

The kitchen is officially done for the time being. This project has spanned the time since we purchased the house roughly six months ago. Here’s a breakdown of the miscellaneous tasks that have been finished.

Kitchen: Before

First, we tore out the laminate flooring and opted for wood, keeping consistent with the rest of the house. The cabinets were then painted, switching from a pale green to navy. We replaced the appliances and donated the old ones to Habitat Restore. That was a fiasco in and of itself, with both the stove and refrigerator coming damaged the first time around. We’ve swapped the lighting for a variety of old, found at Habitat Restore, and new, purchased online at West Elm. Several cabinet doors had to be made, as the space under the sink only had a curtain. Spacers were added to hide gaps that were created when the appliances changed, and a shelf was installed for our spices. The formica countertops were traded for corian, and the sink and faucet were upgraded at the same time. Finally, the backsplash was put in over the last two weeks.

Kitchen: After

We love our updated kitchen!

I love the mix of old and new, with the original aluminum cabinets from 1950 and unique chandelier blended with updated stainless steel appliances and fixtures. It’s more colorful and and feels much more welcoming. Although I don’t claim to be a cook, I think this will inspire me to dust off the cookbooks and try my hand at some new recipes.

Inspriation for a kitchen bench from the latest issue of Lonny

The remaining section that is incomplete is my beloved idea of building a corner bench to create an eat-in nook. We have the perfect space for it, but there are several constraints. For now, we’re very happy with the results!