Friday, August 19, 2011

Kitchen Makeover

I won't go into too much detail, but this was the most stressful biggest project we've taken on. Our little bungalow needed a kitchen remodel the moment we bought it. Reeeeeally wanted it done before Rory was born, but instead we started a year later and a shiny new kitchen was born. Project #3 turned into project #133. It's awesome, worth the wait! With help from fam and friends, Klint knocked it out of the park. It only took me 101 decisions to make, but I think it turned out perfect for what we need and great for resale. Still have lots of "things" to do around the corner, but at least we have a sweet looking room. We love it! Now if only we could add another 500-1000 square feet to our home; we'd stay for a long time.
Yes of course there was a disaster. Dad, the electrician, was helping one weekend. Again, I think he's the bad luck bug, maybe? You see, we decided to swap the gas stove in place of where the fridge called home. Things were moved a bit. Something was wiggled and tinkered in the basement, sparks flew upstairs. Flames were coming out from the kitchen floor. Thankfully Klint and Dad were right there; well, took a bit for them to figure out the extinguisher, but the house did not blow up. Whew. It could have been scary. It was not the electrician's fault, he is a professional. Our house could have blown at any given moment...a piece was missing or something was loose on the stove for years. Whatever it was, I don't remember exactly, thankfully someone was watching over us.

Before and afters. Not the best display of befores, but you get the picture peeps! HUGE transformation.

 Before...
Old Kitchen (less ugly 1990's wall paper and linoleum)
 
Stuff everywhere, no space what-so-ever, cabinets were not even worthy of refacing
  
Pre dining room wall


Sub floor, post double layered linoleum + stove that almost burnt down our home (it's now in our rental but it was properly installed this time)


Pre kitchen wall


After... o.meh.g. The dishwasher alone = happy wife mama chef! I wanted a grey kitchen. Got it, though I realize after looking at my pics I may need to add some color pieces to bring some more life to it.

Wall out, added bar


Stove and hood replace fridge wall


Fridge now where stove originally was

Semi custom cabinets with pullout drawers = life savor
Sub floor was stained ebony to keep some character. Love having wood floors in kitchen. So easy to clean.

Love the black granite composite sink and we centered it with the original window

Anthro cracked-like metal pendant lights

Splurged on the center light. It's impossible to find really nice clear glass fixtures that cost less than a fortune. Really.

 
Quartzite counter tops look similar to concrete = way cheaper
 
Added a raw piece of wood for shelf to throw in a bit of rustic with all the modern mix. Easy access to my books and spices too. Custom corner cabinets would have cost us too much, so we spent $20 on the brackets and it works great.

Much more functional. All for half the price it would have cost a contractor. Double smiles!
 

      cheers

2 comments:

Chassity (Look Linger Love) said...

Absolutely adore your kitchen, fabulous job!

annie@mostlovelythings said...

what a transformation...it looks absolutely beautiful. I especially love the raw wood open shelving...adds a little rustic to the modern clean lines. The floors look amazing!