Transformation Tales: The Kitchen

 

When we toured the house the very first time, the kitchen was the second room we saw. It lies just beyond the tiny nook that became our dining room and is an open space that flows directly from it.

            In truth, we did less to this room than any other, because it had been recently remodeled, and we liked everything that had been done. They say kitchens sell houses, and that was true for us! For me, it was a certain little desk in the corner of the kitchen that made me fall hard and fast for this house.

            Here are some pictures I took when we first took possession of the house. The only thing that had changed from when we toured it was the removal of the kitchen table. The previous owners offered to leave their little round table with four chairs, but we weren’t sure how we wanted to organize this space, so we told them they could go ahead and take the set with them.

            There isn’t an abundance of non-cabinet wall space in this room, but we did paint the little bit of wall space that was there. The original color was a very pleasing blue, but we were trying to make the whole house fit in a very specific color scheme, so we did change the paint color here. We chose Repose Gray, which is a chameleon of a paint color. In this room, it sometimes looks gray, but honestly, it often looks light blue. Regardless, it’s a little lighter than what had been there, and we really like the choice we made.

            We took down the lace curtains, because we didn’t want to block the view. Both those windows look out over our beloved lake, and we want to see all the water without any obstruction! At this point, I don’t think I want to add any curtains here. I am a curtain girl through and through, but neither of these windows make curtain application easy without risking an obstruction of the view. Neither window has much room on either side, so we can’t extend the curtains beyond the glass.

            We did replace the main light fixture in the center of the room. The one that came with the house came down low, and we were pretty sure we wanted something more island-style in the kitchen, rather than table-style, so we knew we would be hitting our heads on a hanging light. We found a fixture at a great price that fit our style and hugged the ceiling, so we made the change.

            As you can see, the appliances that came with the house were all stainless steel and very nice! We really liked them, but we had purchased the refrigerator and stove for our Bluffton house (because it did not come with either appliance already installed) and those appliances are still under warranty. Our stove has my beloved double oven, and Ryan is partial to the refrigerator we chose, so we decided to swap those two appliances with the ones at the Bluffton house. The ones that had been at the lake were sold with the Bluffton house, and the new owners liked them very much!

            We didn’t make any changes to the flooring, cabinets, hardware, backsplash, or faucet, other than cleaning them! We really liked all of it just as it was!

            Now…can we talk about the desk? I know I already gave you a closer tour of it a few weeks ago, but here you can see how it fits in the room at large. The corner of the kitchen has this beautiful little built-in desk that looks right out over the water. The moment I saw it, I knew I could do my best work at that desk. The previous owners graciously left me that little chair, which is actually a piece of history! It came from the former local schoolhouse. It’s HEAVY and solid. I’m so excited to own it!

            We used the wall by the stairs to hang our cool coffee mug shelves that we already owned, and they fit perfectly there.

            The little piece that sits beneath them is new. The one thing we needed in this kitchen was a place to put our trash can. None of the lower cabinets worked for a pull-out trash can, and there isn’t a good, non-prominent piece of floor space to place a tall trash can. I found this little cabinet that has tilt-out lower cabinets that house two cans! We use the top to hold our coffee machines – and we scored a couple of extra drawers, too.

            We looked at dozens (hundreds?) of islands and tables that we might want to use in the center of this room, and in the end, we chose this island. It’s on wheels, so I can move it around as needed for food prep. It has a drop leaf, so I can make it bigger when I need more space, but it can hold a smaller footprint when not in use. It gives me a little extra storage for kitchen supplies, and it brightens up the space!

            And I do love this one wall that gives me space for art. I hung two recipes – one hand-written by Ryan’s mom and one by mine. I added a picture of his grandma and mine with their baked goods. (We happened upon a newspaper feature for each of them, so I framed them.) And we added a couple of coffee-themed art prints that had been gifted to us a few years ago. This mix of the people who shaped us and the things we love together make for a perfect finishing touch to this kitchen.

            We don’t have too many plans for more in this room. I suppose I could surprise myself and figure out a curtain plan after all. I will probably keep tweaking my desk setup until it’s perfect. I might scoot some things around in cabinets if I find my current flow isn’t working the way I like. But I think it’s pretty well set just as it is.

            I love this kitchen. All of our kitchens have been different in layout and functionality, but I have loved each one in a different way. This one is such a cozy room to me. Writing, eating, and coffee are among my top loves, so to get to do each of them in the same room is a sweet gift. We have a little dog bed for Lexi, so if she wants to sleep beside me while I write, she can. And she does love to hang out there throughout the day.