I Got Me A Man

Bob really does rock my socks.

He's been working on our kitchen for about a month and it's coming along quite beautifully. We got through the 'non-expensive' part and I think we need to hold for a bit before we start buying some seriously expensive pieces.

I know we're buying a 36" dual fuel (means gas burners with an electric oven) from IKEA - if you are out looking, dual fuel stainless steel 36" ovens are 3400 bucks and up. We actually tripped over $8000 dollar ones. Unless it does the grocery shopping, prep work and THEN cooks a turkey, I'm not parting with that kind of cash. The IKEA one is 2000 dollars and looks and has the same door style and everything as the very expensive ones. It has a small IKEA thing on the door but Dude, I'm not one of those people who has to have VIKING on her appliances. (The right hand picture is a Dacor and although the knobs look different the door style is the same (I went and saw one first hand) - this oven in 7 grand. I joked with Bob we could probably buy the 'name' thingie as a part and glue it to the Ikea door. Then I was killing myself laughing imagining it sliding off the first time we used it because of the heat)

So, hey, I'll take my 'cheap' stove cause I'm cheap. No shame in that!

More expensive pieces?

The doors for the kitchen - 5 grand.
Hardwood floor - 1 grand
Tile back splash - a grand
Dishwasher - ugh
Fridge - 2 grand
Freezer - 800

There was something else but I can't remember. Here's hoping I can keep Bob from breaking the bank!

We're going to have a wood working shop do a quote for the doors to see if we can do any better.

So pictures are about to commence. From beginning to now.

Okay, we think the previous owners did change the kitchen - they put that huge bay window in which really is nice cause it looks into the yard. They had 5 kids so I could see the need for an eat-in kitchen but OMG, how she prepped anything in here blows my mind.

I literally used the counter top beside the stove top (you'll see a bag behind the chair closest to the peninsula) for everything and prepping on a 16" wide space of counter is just hard. I never used the counter in the back there.


Here's a better view. See the clutter on the back counter top? Pretty much always like that because it's the only counter top on the kitchen.

The door led into a laundry room but I moved that upstairs and it will now be a walk in pantry with an area with a huge sink for doing pots and pans.

On the left wall here you can see there is a wall of cupboards with a wall oven and a place for the microwave. Beside that is a desk. I don't need desk in the kitchen! But there it was. Ugh. More wasted space for me.

Now Comes the Fun Part!!

This is now the new pantry wall. It's all pantry baby!!

You're right, I have a pantry through that door but I wanted these to look like a huge piece of furniture. Now, through my ideas and Bob's interpretation this is what I have.

I was going to do glass doors on the uppers on this side of the fridge but I'm not sure now because the other side of the kitchen is becoming *quite* the focal point!

I'm with-holding judgment until all the doors are on. Little worried this will turn out to be too heavy.

You also just see the tip of the place where the island will go.




Here you can see how Bob took that peninsula out and now we have a wall on the right hand side of the kitchen. There will be no upper cupboards put on that wall.

The old uppers are still in place as is the dishwasher.

Also, that isn't the entire length of the island right now.

Here we are tonight. Bob put up the fancy hood after putting up all new drywall and putting those uppers up on that one wall.

The plan is that I will have a back splash tile that will take up the one wall with the stove and hood.

Also, you can't see the island here but it's longer now. Our kitchen isn't monstrous so having an island can feel claustrophobic if it's all doors. So I had Bob put in 4 inch cabinets (he had to cut down cabinets to create them) and I'll put glass doors on the one side. I could only have small cabinets on the one side because I have a pot and pan drawer on the other and soon, a dishwasher.

Obviously I took this picture at night as the lighting is not looking all that great. I have a problem if the sun is shining also! I can't win.

Things to be done?

Hardwood floors will go through the kitchen. Doors obviously but we haven't decided completely. These are IKEA boxes (Bob has put in many kitchens and he is floored by the quality of Ikea's boxes) so you would think doors by Ikea but I'm not completely sold.

At this time the cupboards will be white because I plan on having a dark-ish wood floor. I never liked white kitchens but lately I like the clean lines of them. I think you can make them look classic if you don't go with trends.

In our last house we did use Ikea doors because they had a door that looked like cherry and they were perfect. A kitchen for 2500 bucks? Sweet! They stopped carrying the door and when we asked why they told us the manufacturer couldn't make the doors for the same cost anymore and Ikea has a limit.

We'll see what kind of quote we'll get for maple doors stained cherry and then sprayed white.

This kitchen is now HUGE for us and I have so many places to prep things!

I may just have to cook in it.