Renovation Reveal Re-Do…

April 19, 2015

This past Friday, I had an “open kitchen” (as opposed to an “open house”) of sorts.  A couple of my sisters (Joyce and Sis), two neighbors, three aunts, one cousin…and a partridge in a pear tree…all came to see the results of the renovation.  (Just kidding about the partridge in a pear tree bit.)  I thank all of them for the gifts and for taking time out of their busy day to attend the big shebang.

There was enough space to accommodate everyone easily and I only had to use half of the counter space for refreshments.  I think everyone had a good time and many comments were made about the difference in the size and appearance of the kitchen before renovation, compared to now. 

So, now I’m going to bore you with more pictures of the kitchen.  This time, though, I have all of my stuff in place, along with curtains, a lovely table cloth (a present from Sis), my prep table, and my buffet/sideboard.  In case you haven’t guessed yet, I’m thrilled with the results and I must thank my wonderful husband, Charming, for all the long hours, hard work, and injuries that he suffered while getting this kitchen renovation accomplished.  Gosh, I do love that man!

This is the kitchen, entering from the living room.  The vinyl
flooring has proven to be a winner.  It is a breeze to keep clean.
I just use a Swiffer dust mop with a dry cloth to "sweep" and
switch to a clean cloth along with a bottle of water & vinegar
to damp mop.  That is all that's needed.  (I make my own cloths
from microfiber cloths and Velcro that I purchase from
Walmart...but that's a subject for another blog post.)  

This is the part of the kitchen that used to be a closed-in porch.
It now houses our table, antique buffet/side board, TV, and radio
as well as cabinets that are along the wall to the right of the table.

Here is the wall of cabinets that houses my baking center (on the
right).  It is amazingly quick and easy to whip up a batch of
cookies, muffins, or blackberry cobbler at the baking center and
pop it into the oven.  It's not good for our waistlines, but it is good!

A better view of the buffet/sideboard, along with
the TV that Charming suggested we add.  As you
might imagine, this room gets used more than just about
any room in the house...food, TV, a mountain view
outside our window...could anyone ask for more?

From the middle of the room, looking towards the living room.
I am planning to put two 24-inch shelves on the wall above the
little black and white table, at a later date, but I promise not to
make you read about it when it happens.

From the middle of the room, looking at the sink.  To keep the
renovation costs as low as possible, we kept our old appliances
and will replace them as they die off.  I chose cabinets and counter
space over a dishwasher, partly because I actually like washing
dishes...weirdo that I am.

The curtains are made from "Homespun" black & tan fabric
that I purchased from Joann Fabrics.  The apple tie
backs were made with CraftSmart polymer clay that I purchased
from Michael's craft store.  I made most of the decorative items
myself, including the braided rug, curtains, tie backs,
quilted table runner, and prep table (with a bit of help
from my man, Charming).