Kitchen + House Update

Hey y'all! I wanted to check in and give you a quick update on the status of the house and where we are as far as moving in. Here is the updated kitchen to do list:

-Paint
-Remove header above bar
-Remove chandelier and fluorescent lighting
-Add pendants and recessed lighting
-Tile Backsplash
-Replace tile floor with brick floor (!!)
-Repaint kitchen cabinets/new hardware

So, everything is going pretty smoothly as far as the kitchen is concerned. You might have seen on insta my kitchen floor update. Spoiler alert- I am obsessed with the new brick floor!! We do want to put a coat of polyurethane down on it to make it a bit smoother under foot. We also did a basketweave pattern in the mudroom which is around the corner. I am really pleased with our decision to go ahead and tackle this before we move in.

Painting, sheetrock work and electrical have all been handled. We are waiting for the ceiling to be touched up on painting from the sheetrock work before the new lighting gets installed. I know once my pendants get hung it will all come together and I cant wait!

So that leaves two projects to complete the kitchen: tiling backsplash and getting a fresh coat of paint on the kitchen cabinets. We are not in a hurry for the tile, it might be a winter project and I'm fine with that. I am trying to get the cabinets painted before we start unpacking boxes...we will need somewhere for all those dishes to go!

So, where are we as far as a timeline? Well, it changes day by day but we are looking at getting the furniture delivered this weekend. Sidenote: we packed a majority of our boxes in a POD and then the furniture got packed in a moving truck that has been sitting since it got packed. Apparently, that is no big deal because some moving trucks are packed for weeks at a time with cross country moves, so this was no different.  We have a busy November coming up and the harsh reality is that we will be unpacking in between weekend trips, work, preschool, a baby, and the upcoming holidays. I'm not over stressed about it, but ask me again once I see boxes piled high to the ceiling:)

The other work done upstairs I haven't mentioned much about {because it's a little boring} is just the painting of the bedrooms, new wood floor in our bedroom and hall, and new carpet in the other rooms. I can't decide if I want to share our experience with painting our upstairs. It has been nothing short of a disaster and I hate to mention a name with such a frustrating experience. I would love to save someone some of the headache we experienced that was definitely unnecessary! We aren't professionals but good gracious we have done our share of painting and this was a new experience for us!! 

Most of all, I'm really happy that we have had time to get things done in order and done right. We ended up being really rushed with our last house because our house sold and closed so quickly, leaving us no time for work to be done before move in. This time around we have been graciously hosted by my in-laws who have let us take over their upstairs "wing" as we refer to it, which has conveniently happened as their new downstairs addition was completed. Their hospitality {and help with kids!} has been so nice as we get the kinks worked out at the new abode! Thanks for tuning in, I know posting is so sporadic these days but appreciate y'all coming back to read and catch up :)

New Kitchen Plans

The one thing we wanted to make sure we did right was the kitchen in our new house! It actually had great features already, but just needed some updating. I was initially a little concerned over the kitchen when we saw the listing online, but once we saw it in person I was relieved. It was a good size, had marble countertops, good quality existing cabinets and stainless steel appliances that were in great shape. However, my wheels were already spinning on how we could take this kitchen to another level! Go ahead and laugh because I said we didn't have any major renovation work to be done. But, this is really nothing compared to what we did in our last house! By the way, most of the paint colors you will see here are horrible. No offense against the previous owners because they built a beautiful home...but the paint colors...got to go!

Here is our plan in motion:
-Paint
-Remove header above bar
-Remove chandelier and fluorescent lighting
-Add pendants and recessed lighting
-Tile Backsplash
-Replace tile floor with brick floor (!!)
-Repaint kitchen cabinets/new hardware

Here is a shot looking into the kitchen. It is a galley style I guess? It opens up to a dinette {which we have never had before and I am so excited!} and the bar overlooks into the family room with double french doors onto the porch. I only mention those details because the whole area flows really nicely together and it makes a beautiful space I know we will spending most of our time.

We were unsure of how the header above the bar would play out but luck was on our side and nothing was weight bearing- so away went the wall! This is immediately what I saw happening when I stepped foot in the kitchen. It is so cool to see it unfold! Sheetrock work will be completed in the next few days.

starting the removal of header - non weight bearing:

header removed: 

We had a random chandelier hanging off centered in the kitchen, plus a large fluorescent light above the sink. Both of those are being removed and we will have updated lighting. My initial vision called for large satin brass lanterns...really looking forward to seeing those babies installed!

Not happening immediately, but we will eventually do a tile backsplash. Stephen and my brother in law have done plenty of backsplashes that they are old hands at it now. Lucky to have this skill in our back pocket!

So, one thing that wasn't in the initial plan...a new floor! The rest of the downstairs {minus mud room} has beautiful pine floors. The kitchen has a tuscan-ish color tile, which wasn't horrible but not our favorite. We decided to forego a professional painter upstairs {leaving the professionals to paint just downstairs} and left room in our budget for brick floor. I know it will finish off the space really nicely and is exactly what this house calls for. We wanted to go ahead and do it in the mud room as well but are trying to stick to our budget as closely as possible!

We had decided to have the cabinets professionally painted...but, again, decided to forego that. This is something I have done a few times and it just seems silly to spend the money on something I can do myself. I know, time is money. But, again...I hate our budget to be eaten up by things like painting!! Once finished, we are replacing the hardware with satin brass. Can't wait.

In a few days we should see the kitchen put back together before it gets ripped up with new floor and eventually, working on the kitchen doors.

We really are so excited about this house and appreciate your comments and excitement as well!

New House Progress: Kitchen Cabinets Sneak Peak!

I can hardly contain my excitement over my refinished kitchen cabinet doors. This has been a seemingly really long work in progress, but an extremely cost efficient (cheap!!!) way of getting the doors we wanted. As long as you have access to a few tools and some spare time you are good to go. I am excited to share the process soon. If it helps one person achieve a better kitchen I am thrilled!

I have one QUICK question and I would love some weigh in on this topic:

Our upper cabinets are older and require a visible cabinet door hinge. I am trying to decide if I should just paint the old hinges the same color as the cabinets, merely for the purpose of concealing the look of the hinges; OR use brand new hinges in satin nickel that would match our new cabinet hardware. I like the idea of not seeing "hinges" everywhere but then again I don't want to see paint peeling and chipping on hinges in a few months. What do you think is best?

These two kitchens have visible nickel hinges and I don't mind them one bit.

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And here is a beautiful kitchen with what looks to be painted hinges...

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That's all for now y'all! And I might add, after staring at the interior of our cabinets....filled with pots, pans, cups, glasses and who knows what, I am not opting for open shelving anytime soon. At least not more than one really neat and defined shelf. That's just me. :)

I'm Dreaming of a White Kitchen

Just popping in to tell y'all what I've really been up to this past week. Stephen and I decided to paint our kitchen a few weeks ago. As in, the few weeks before Christmas.

Go sell crazy somewhere else. We're all stocked up here!

Kidding. Maybe. It was quite a task to take on though. I might mention Weeks was cutting a tooth and chewing on all of his bottles, we made a last minute trip to see Santa, and all three of us were battling colds. Mine was three weeks long. Stephen and I are still married!

Stephen and I took the task of sanding/priming/sanding/painting/painting the frames and drawers of the cabinets and we hired a professional to spray the cabinet doors. We get them back this weekend- just in the nick of time for my sanity and Christmas! 

But just in case you want to see whats really hiding in our cabinets... here's one shot of a corner in our kitchen. Just imagine that with a pretty painted cabinet door with a shiny new knob on it. The little boxes on the right are where spice drawers hide all of our knick knacks, not spices oddly enough. I haven't decided on what pulls/knobs for those yet since there are so many of them. I'm thinking I will wait and decide after all of the other hardware is in place. Thoughts?

Anyway, I know y'all can't get the gist of my major love here, but it's true and it's real and I have a white kitchen. Something I've always wanted!

Stay tuned, I want to share some Christmas photos around the house, and also- I would love to hear your favorite Christmas Eve meal, dish or cocktail! We are hosting this year and I'm pulling something together at the last minute. As if there was another time for it!

XO.

Kitchen Plans: The Unexpected

If you've been following this blog for a while you've caught on that things happen slow around here. Every room in our house seems to be on the top of the list- I can't focus on just one! I'm still toying with what I really want to do with our bedroom. The living room needs a few upgrades. The guest bedroom is about half finished. The kitchen. Oh the kitchen. I desperately want one of those beautiful, basking in white kitchens with clean countertops and shiny back splash! Several weekends ago we inched our way towards my ideal kitchen. We bought new pendant lights {baby steps y'all} for our bar and Stephen installed them on the very same day. Big things happenin'.

Our appliances are all new with the house, so it makes perfect no sense to replace {even though I would love for a hood and gas stove and pot filler!}. We have granite countertops, and while I wouldn't mind starting fresh in that category I am keeping in mind this is a makeover, not a renovation. I want the cabinets to be a glossy white and to have back splash. Well, we were in luck because Stephen's brother happens to work for a tile company and he came and installed subways, as mentioned here. Once we got on the tile train, Stephen jumped on board to paint the kitchen cabinets. {Who are you and what did you do with my husband?} He also installed a new faucet {his idea as well?!} and we are tweaking the lighting. I swear this came out of nowhere, even though I've been daydreaming about this white kitchen ever since I said we had to have wood cabinets. I was planning a wedding and building a house at the same time, so I was a little preoccupied!

Then I saw this photo on pinterest and it put things in perspective. Yes, I want all the glory of a pretty kitchen but the hands that will make it dirty and fill it with love are what makes the kitchen the center of a household. So forget the perfect, magazine quality photos for now. This is the new dream. And a good one! I will absolutely be incorporating a chalkboard along the ends of one of our counters for Weeks to draw and play nearby while we cook for years to come! What a great idea!!

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This is really shaping up to be a fun project and I'll be posting updates along the way. Well, let's call it fun until Stephen is griping about painting in a few weeks ;)

My Subway Tile Obsession

I think any tile adds so much to a space, but there is something so clean and chic about subway tile that I love. Here are some of my favorite spaces- mostly kitchens- with my beloved tile. If you follow me on pinterest you might have noticed I've been pinning away on kitchens. Well, EXCITING news y'all...we are getting subways installed in our house this week, courtesy of Stephen's brother. I can't wait to share!  

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In addition to the tile, we are working on a few other upgrades. I'm so pumped!

Have a great Monday!