Kitchen Reno: The Design Process

I'd like to take some time here to tell you about the design process we have gone through over the last few weeks.   It actually started a lot earlier with me daydreaming about the kitchen, thinking about what I liked about the kitchen (not a lot) and what drove me crazy.  Also, I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted my new kitchen to look like and finding inspiration on Pinterest and other blogs.   Things that made me crazy:

• Placement of the fridge.  It was right up against a wall which meant that the fridge side of the appliance wouldn't fully open.  In truth, it annoyed me to no end so it HAD to change. 
• Trash out in the open.  I don't want to see a trash can.  Ever.
• Cookie Sheets.  I bake and need a good vertical storage space for my stuff!  

How I want my kitchen to look: Light & Airy  Check out a few of my "Inspiration Kitchens": Young House Love's kitchen:

And I have to mention the Bower Power Blog kitchen:

With these ideas in mind we started perusing cabinet options at places like Home Depot and Ikea.  And really, it's tough to get a good sense of cost from these places without really sitting down and talking to someone.  Ikea has a ton of options, but there were a few things I though we absolutely needed for our layout and they weren't options there, so Ikea was quickly eliminated.  Home Depot was a contender until I got a recommendation for a local kitchen/bath place.  

I made an appointment there to spend an hour or so with a real kitchen designer, Melissa.  Armed with measurements for our space and a few "must haves" she quickly clicked in a design for our kitchen.  It was amazing.  Our kitchen is a small space, but Melissa's years of experience helped her come up with a functional design that maximized work space, fixed our fridge problem, and included a pantry cabinet.  

We're set on the design now (hardware & counter top are still up in the air), and I couldn't be happier.  I can't say for sure that we wouldn't have been happy with a HD kitchen design (honestly we'd probably end up with something very similar), but I know that Melissa has a degree in interior design, 7 years of experience at this company, and has designed literally HUNDREDS of kitchens.  Throughout the whole process she asked me questions and made suggestions on how to save money, consider different options, and that really helped me feel more confident in the choices we made.  I'm sure that we paid more this way, but worth it in the long run, I think.

Kitchen Reno: Meet the Kitchen

We have lived in this house for about 6 years now and the kitchen has been this one big ugly eyesore. It's a bigger renovation than either of the bathrooms, and yet as ugly as it is, it's been "serviceable" - meaning that we got new appliances and there's basically enough storage for our needs.  Only not really.
Let's take a look at it and talk about the problems - keep in mind that these photos are from our first day in the house.

Stove/oven - We got a new stove about 5 years ago and we really like it - it's black/stainless (not that awesome brown one in the picture).  Pretty much everything else you see here will be removed.  Yeah, we don't really dig the brown hood/vent so we'll probably replace it with a microwave vent.  It will cost us a bit of over-the-stove storage, but we'll make up for it in counter space. Also see that sweet brown plaid backsplash?  Yeah, that's gonna go too.
Sink/dishwasher - We will be replacing the dishwasher - we replaced the brown one shortly after moving in, but it's had a happy life and the interior racks are rusting.  I'll put it on CL and maybe get $20 for it because it does work.  We may be relocating it to the opposite side of the sink though.  In its place we'll have a nice cabinet and/or bank of drawers.  It'll be good.  

Fridge - We will also get a new fridge.  We got a new fridge - a stainless side-by-side and it is only 6 years old so we'll be CL-ing it for sure.  The fridge is great but it's just not working for us.  The position of the fridge next to the wall makes it so that the fridge door doesn't fully open.  It's really annoying, actually.  The best decision we made so far was to relocate the fridge to the other side of the room and to have the cabinets wrap around the corner.  We'll get more cabinet AND counter space.  But we'll need a different fridge.
Back side - To add functional space in our kitchen, we got a butcher-block island/counter from Ikea.  It's really great, but our new kitchen design puts the fridge - a new counter-depth fridge over here.  And we'll have tall pantry cabinets on either side of that.  
Sliding doors - NEW!  The current doors are in rough shape.  The handle falls off, the lock doesn't work, the screens jump the tracks and are all ripped.  The best way to go is to just do a full-on replacement.  
So what's it gonna look like?  We're thinking white cabinets, probably a blue/green tinged composite counter, a dark cork flooring, and some to-be-determined tile backsplash.  We don't have much paint, but that will be a light color that will coordinate with the counters or tile.  Floors are still a question - maybe dark cork?
I'm pretty excited.  We are in the very early stages here, but it's going to be great!    

2012 Wrap-Up - 10 Most Popular Posts!

I like having Christmas behind me.  Not that I don't love the day, but sometimes it seems like such a production that I hardly get to relax and enjoy it.  Maybe that means I've become an adult and maybe it means that I'm a procrastinator and I was finishing up someone's Christmas stocking on the afternoon of the 24th.  Either way I do enjoy that last week of the year when we have no plans or obligations.  No school or work.  It's a good time to think about what we've done over the whole year. Here's a rundown of the most visited posts of the last 12 months!

1.  Lotion Bottle Cellphone Holder!

This one was a first for me - first Pinterest project, first ModPodge project...

2.  Improved Kitchen Storage!

A quick & dirty fix for a most annoying problem - storage of cookie sheets and trays!

3.  Finally!  A Lamp Refurb!!!

This was a most delayed project - and I was so glad to have it done.  

4.  Check out my Can!!

This was a super easy project that I'm sure I'll be repeating.  Seriously, there's something very satisfying about watching glue dry.

5.  It's Curtains for You (or me actually)!!

A post where I confess to having no pretty window treatments in my bedroom after living here for 5 years.

6.  Getting my Mod Podge on!

I still sorta miss this shirt...

7.  Things are looking UP!

I think this should probably be considered phase 1 of the big-girl-bedroom redo... 

8.  Snowflake Ornament

This was seriously fun.  I may do another ornament next year.  Or I may just post the second one I did already ;)

9.  Halloween Felt Board

The kids really enjoyed it, but it didn't last... Mr. Destruction had it ripped off the wall within 2 days.  Next time I will figure out a more secure way to attach it.

10.  Make It BLUE!

A recent post about repainting the dining room.

So that's it!  The top 10 most popular posts of 2012.  I'm already excited about 2013 :)

A Big Girl's Bedroom - Update 11/8

 

 

Wow, looking back, I can't believe it's been over a month since we last had an update on this space!  We have made a ton of progress, but truth be told, there's still a lot to do in here. 

 

I'll give a quick rundown of what we've done so far and what's left...

 

What's Done:

1. Clear the room
2. Wall repairs
3. Rebuilding the closet
4. Baseboards!
5. Prime & paint
6. New rug
7. Closet build-out
8. Moving in

 

What's Left?

1. Curtains!
2. Art work
3. Play Area
4. Bed - repairs & repaint
5. Dresser refurb 
6. Bookshelf paint job
7. Hang a mirror
8. Finish closet - needs a shelf across the whole thing

Let's take a quick peek at a few pics -

 

 The closet will get a curtain and a shelf.  I'd love to get some new bins/baskets for the closet eventually.  And a basket or something for the bottom of the closet for shoes.

 

 

 

We need to get her bed back in the room and put up curtains.  And I'd LOVE to figure out something to do with all the stuffed animals.  I think we really just need to thin the herd a bit.

 

 

These dressers need some love as does the bookshelf.  And I think we'll do a gallery wall here or maybe find a large-scale wall decal.

There's still a ton to do, and it's seriously cluttered.  I know that I want this room to be "magazine gorgeous" in the end, but I need to remember that it's a room for a Kindergartener and it will definitely reflect her tastes and sense of style (her style being general chaos).

Well, that's pretty much it!  I'm looking forward to sharing the rest of the changes to this room as soon as they happen!

 

A Big Girl's Bedroom - Update 9/10

I must tell you about this past weekend.  We made some MAJOR progress - the kind that's totally visible.  Lately it's been feeling like very slow going in there because drywall is a slow process for us.  Lots of layers of joint compound followed by a ton of sanding.  Sanding joint compound is messy business and on Saturday, Jason took THREE showers.

By Saturday afternoon the walls in the bedroom were patched enough for me to get going on primer, which I did.  You may wonder whether priming was necessary, and in our case I think it was.  We did a lot of the patching with joint compound which doesn't hold paint (trust me, it'll peel off) so I figured with so much of the walls being patched I may as well just prime the whole room.  So I did that while Chris napped, then we all went out to dinner.

Sunday was a new day!  Gorgeous weather, sunny, and cooler than it had been.  I mowed the lawn, did some weeding, then after lunch it was back to work in Sarah's bedroom.  This time I launched in on the paint. And all I can say is WOW!  In just a few hours we said goodbye to the "Turquoise Nightmare" and hello to a calming sky blue.  I went for this color because (a) the girl requested a blue room (b) it goes with something that we're putting in the room (reveal on that one coming in a few weeks!)  and (c) a pale color reflects what little daylight comes in the windows and the light from the ceiling light and really brightens up the space.  No more cave-like feeling in there, it's really refreshing feeling.

Here's the Before - totally turquoise!  What weirdo picked that color???  (((ok, it was totally me, but I'm much wiser now)))

Here's the during - Primer is Pretty

Here's the After - aaaaaaaahhh

And she LOVES it!

I must say that this painting stuff is satisfying but exhausting.  I ended both Saturday and Sunday tired and cranky like a toddler and I slept just as hard.  And I had considered jumping in on the second coat tonight, but I'm just wiped out.  Tomorrow it is! I love that we made some VISIBLE progress!

Coming soon - ceiling finishing touches including patching, painting, and maybe crown molding!!  Also, baseboards and closet stuff.  Oh and rugs, furniture, artwork.... yeah there's still a lot left, but it's all exciting!

TV Review - Sarah's House

Quite simply, Sarah's House is my very favorite design show.  I could watch it all day long.  Designer Sarah Richardson takes on one room at a time in her house (or another house or whatever).  She starts out with some concept - a boy's bedroom, a master bath, craft room, laundry room - and pick fabric, paint, counter, cabinets etc to suit the needs.  The best part of the show is that she not only has fantastic taste, but she explains why she chose something.  It's the explanation that draws me in.

Sarah will explain that she chose a piece of furniture because the lines mimic a pattern in one of the fabrics.  She'll choose fabrics that share a color story and uses them in ways that bring a richness and completeness to a room.  She  talks ab out combining hard and soft surfaces for an inviting feel.  She works with her design side-kick Tommy, who provides a second opinion, plays devils advocate and turns a design lesson into more of a conversation.  Plus I like his glasses.

Just a few warnings, sometimes the budget is through the roof  - like only $15,000 for a laundry room!  Oh the horror :)  But the result is always beautiful.  Also, it's not a DIY show, so it's like she picks paint or wallpaper and BLAM it's done!  None of the sweating, frustration, and swearing of great oaths that happen when I do things like paint or wallpaper.  No worries, maybe someday I'll have a staff to do that for me too!

For more information about Sarah Richardson, check out her website here.

And her show, Sarah's House, can be seen randomly on HGTV.