I have often found myself thinking, when looking at beautiful NEW kitchens in magazines and on blogs….on Instagram and Pinterest…
“Yeah, but how will THIS hold up over time?” so….I thought….what better place to start answering those questions than on my OWN BLOG about my OWN
KITCHEN MAKEOVER….
What changes are still working and what purchases have not held up as well….
LET’S START WITH THE #1 QUESTION I GET:
“DO YOU STILL LIKE YOUR COUNTERTOPS?”
YES!!!!!!
WE STILL LOVE our FORMICA 180X CALACATTA MARBLE counter tops.
They still look fantastic and are mistaken for real marble every time.
We have had the countertops in two different edge profiles …AMORE and AEGEAN (often called PENCIL) If you have ever had formica you know that the laminate lays upon a base of pressed wood. With many edge profiles the laminate wraps AROUND the edge completely and continues on the underside(AMORE) AND others , the laminate stops at the bottom.
When the laminate does NOT wrap around this can allow water to gather under the counter top, especially right by the sink. For this reason, I would choose a WRAP AROUND EDGE . To combat swelling of the wood, we primed and painted the underside of the counter in front of the sink with kitchen paint but still, it has absorbed some moisture.
The cabinets were the first stage of the two-year multi-stage kitchen makeover. After 4 years they do show some wear and tear, especially the cabinet that houses the trash can and the under sink cabinets…On the whole they look great and I would choose them all over again.
We have ALL KitchenAid appliances except we went with a Maytag dishwasher. We have loved our Double Oven and Cooktop. We had to replace our MAYTAG dishwasher and did so with an inexpensive FRIDGIDARE which cost LESS than the NEW PART we needed to FIX the MAYTAG! The other disappointment has been the KITCHENAID REFRIGERATOR
I PAINTED THE vinyl FLOOR with Benjamin Moore Porch and Floor paint.
MY ONLY REGRET IS THAT I DID NOT DO IT SOONER!!!! IT HAS HELD UP GREAT WITH ONE RETOUCH LAST FALL WHEN WE WERE THINKING ABOUT PUTTING THE HOUSE ON THE MARKET.
LOVE them both still but I will say this…the sink does not drain as well as I think it should. I have blamed it on our crooked floors but I have nothing to compare it to. STILL I love the look, it has held up beautifully, I wash my paint brushes and dump paint in it daily and it washes out perfectly!!! I love all the brass that is around these days and might choose a faucet like my friend Suzanne did in here NYC cottage kitchen.
I am REALLY liking the trend of navy and darker bottom cabinets,
….but in THIS KITCHEN, MY OLD COUNTRY HOUSE KITCHEN I would do the EXACT same colors if I were starting from scratch . The room tends toward small, in that there are four walls, and no open floor plan , and the white cabinets keep the room feeling light and open and NOW.
THE KITCHEN ISLAND STILL ROCKS …(AND ROLLS!!!) SOMETIMES I WISH THE TOP WERE A TAD LARGER BUT THEN THAT WOULD CAUSE OTHER ISSUES, SO ALL IN ALL, FOR THAT SPACE…IT WORKS. ONE DAY A WHEEL FELL OFF…BUT POPPED RIGHT BACK ON AND ALL IS STILL ROLLING!!!!!
OVERALL I STILL LOVE MY KITCHEN, YES, I still dream of a GUT RENOVATION but with one child heading to college and another Fall of 2016…I think my money will be (better) spent elsewhere.
XO
I have the same Kohler sink and LOVE it, but also have drainage issues! It almost seems the gasket over the drain makes a seal and I have to break it to let the water through! We have a disposal hooked up to it and am not sure why it does that. I also use it as my paintbrush clean-up sink as well as everything else. It does clean up so great with a little Bar Keepers Friend every so often. Thanks for the review post, love your kitchen!
Thanks Leigh…the GOOD does far outweigh any draining issues, I LOVE this sink…It is so hard to find a sink that is top mount that is cool looking and this one fits the bill!!!! in my humble opinion!
I have the same problem with my Kenmore refrigerator leaking on the floor, although it;s on random days we have to keep a towel there 24/7. Of course it happened as soon as the warranty ran out. A recent google search shows this is a common manufacturer defect with a part we can purchase and repair ourselves or hire Sears to repair. Thanks for the review on your kitchen, I am considering those counter tops and appreciate the info.
You are so very welcome…perhaps we should invent a decorative refrigerator water towel for our floors!!!!!
Hi everybody!
My name is Trung Hieu, i am an engineer. I like high-tech, with the best Counter Depth Refrigerator for my house. Thank for this article, so helpful!
So hindsight 20/20 you would have stuck with the first edge you had on the countertops? I just saw this post today as I was looking it up to show a friend. Previously I had only seen the past posts on your countertop and I was sold on ordering the agean edge in this Formica marble. Like we were ordering today! Now I am thinking we need to change and sacrifice the look I wanted for the practicality of it lasting well! So do I understand you correctly in that you don’t believe painting and trying to seal it on the underside upon install would prevent moisture under there completely?
GREAT QUESTION. I think in the end, I love the look of the aegean more. and if I am totally honest, I think I could have been more pro active EARLIER to protect the underside of about a 2 foot area in front of the sink where we splash water over the edge, especially when we bathe the dirty dogs!. YEPI would still go with aegean. What I wish is that formica would do an aegean edge that wrapped around … but If I had it to do over I would prime that under edge a few times and then apply a porch and floor paint which is intended to get wet and worked over.
Thank you so much! Both my husband and I were so excited to read your reply. 🙂 We did go ahead and decide to pay an extra $300 to have the laminate laid on plywood instead of the particle board. We will still paint the underside for protection. I just wanted to say thanks! Our counters have been ordered and I cannot wait to see them installed. I am second guessing the overhang though. What is your overhang. The counter top installer we are dealing with from the local Home Depot said standard is 1″ and we said ok. Now I’m thinking I should call and see if we can get that bumped to 1.25 or 1.5, but not sure. What are yours?
That sounds awesome! Our over hang is different in different spots because the cabinets where built right into the kitchen 45 years ago. That being said, they average – `1″> Good luck and send pics!
Did you have to have a seam in the corner? If so do you kind posting a picture of it? Your kitchen turned out beautiful!
Did you have to have a seam in the corner? If so do you mind posting a picture of it? Your kitchen turned out beautiful!
When I saw your name I did a double take because my sons name is Tate!!
THIS is the best shot I have.
http://myoldcountryhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/kitchen4.jpg
It really is a non issue and does not stand out. you just need to MAKE SURE that they are installed correctly or one side will rise and make the seam visible. Ours in invisible.