my old country house

THE KITCHEN – REVISITED

THE KITCHEN IS THE HEART OF OUR HOME.

AND IF IT HAD A SOFA – I venture to say – we could probably live in there. Our kitchen has undergone the biggest transformations of any room in our house – and yet – the original footprint is exactly as it was installed in 1967 – 50 years ago!

Our KITCHEN RENOVATION – went in different stages.

STAGE 1 – 2004 – We painted the cabinets, put in a new vinyl floor, NEW countertops, all new “Fridgidare” appliances, new ceiling, electrical, crown molding, new lighting.

STAGE 2 – 2012 – Replaced all the cabinet doors and drawer fronts, new hardware, Got Better NEW Kitchenaid appliances, new vent , painted the floor, all new lighting , DIY Kitchen Island  –

THE “REVEAL POST OF THE KITCHEN MAKEOVER  IS – TO DATE –  IS MY “MOST READ POST” .

STAGE 3 – 2019 I HOPE! – If we stay here, we will gut renovate the kitchen. Remove the wall between the kitchen and Dining/Room and have an open space – which will have a sofa and I will live there happily ever after!

LETS TALK ABOUT OUR KITCHEN NOW. 

 THE “REVEAL POST” IS TO DATE IS MY “MOST READ POST” .

I INSTALLED THE SUBWAY TILE MYSELF, BORROWING THE TILE CUTTER FROM A FRIEND.

THE 2011-2013 (I did myself over a two-year period)   kitchen renovation is one of those endeavors…like having 3 children under the age of 4…that I am not so sure I could do again…or at least I wonder: “How did I DO THAT!”  BUT SOMEHOW I DID…and it STILL works.

ANYWAY…I thought it would be fun to share it with you, many of who never saw it the first time around! Enjoy!

BEFORE

THIS IS WHAT WE STARTED WITH! BELIEVE IT OR NOT, WE KEPT THE GE DOUBLE OVEN  – IT WAS PRACTICALLY BRAND NEW INSIDE WHEN WE MOVED IN 2004 – IT MADE NO SENSE TO REPLACE IT AND I KINDA LIKE THE KITSCHINESS OF IT. BUT IN 2013 – IT HAD TO GO!n 1967, the kitchen was Built RIGHT in the space, meaning that no two cabinets measure exactly the same…the doors measure all ever so slightly different…BUT On the plus side, every single inch was used and there is little dead space…cause…you gotta find a “plus side”!!!

AFTER

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THE MAYTAG DISHWASHER LASTED A MEER 2 YEARS BEFORE IT BROKE AND THE REPLACEMENT PART WAS GOING TO BE MORE THAN BUYING A NEW FRIDGIDARE….LIVE AND LEARN…SO WE HAVE A FRIDGIDARE NOW. Still running strong!

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Each NEW feature of this room; the countertops, the appliances, the hardware….  represented hours and hours of price matching and figuring out…weighing the cost benefit of this versus that….etc etc…and mostly SAVING money….

THE BIGGEST WAY I SAVED MONEY…. WAS ON THE COUNTERTOPS…

HOW? You ask? “How did you save with Marble?”

I saved because these countertops ARE ACTUALLY NOT MARBLE….

actually I have NICK-named it “FAURBLE”- FAUX MARBLE

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THEY ARE FORMICA! CALACATTA MARBLE IN THE ” AMORE” EDGE From the 180x line

….and instead of costing upwards of $5000 to do my 60 square feet of countertops

…it was $850!!!

That’s $14 a square foot for you MATH whizzes…you can also get them for $30/sq foot installed,

WHY FORMICA?

We decided to MAINTAIN the original footprint. We kept the cabinet bodies and replaced the doors and drawer fronts with an updated look and color. We chose white to keep the 4 walled space…space more open. Electric and Plumbing were handled by professionals.

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There is not a doubt in my mind that we could have saved an extra HUGE chunk of change had I gone with BUDGET hardware, LOW end inexpensive appliances, and an inexpensive knock off faucet. My goal was to GET THE BEST (within reason) FOR LESS!!! l challenge you to find any price LOWER than the ones I found for each of my purchases.

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PINK KITCHENAID MIXER
PINK KITCHENAID MIXER

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THE PENDANTS ARE FROM LOWES.

A FEW DAYS AFTER I ORIGINALLY POSTED OUR KITCHEN, I GOT AN EMAIL FROM FAMILY CIRCLE MAGAZINE. SEEMS THEY FEATURE A “BUDGET KITCHEN” MAKEOVER EACH YEAR AND WE HAD BEEN CHOSEN AS THAT YEARS “BUDGET KITCHEN OF THE YEAR!” .

FAMILY CIRCLE FALL 2013
FAMILY CIRCLE FALL 2013
FAMILY CIRCLE NOVEMBER OF 2012
FAMILY CIRCLE NOVEMBER OF 2013

IN PREPARATION FOR THE PHOTO SHOOT, I PAINTED THE VINYL FLOORING WITH BENJAMIN MOORE PORCH AND FLOOR PAINT.

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THE PAINTED KITCHEN FLOOR

You can read all about this process – COMPLETE WITH A TUTORIAL HERE

IN MANY OLD HOUSES –  We decided that for time being that our floor still had some years in it and that we should just paint it.KITCHEN ISLAND AND PAINTED VINYL FLOOR

KITCHEN ISLAND AND PAINTED VINYL FLOOR

IT HAS HELD UP BEAUTIFULLY. EVERY 18 MONTHS OR SO, I WILL ROLL ON A FRESH COAT…PAINTING THE FLOOR ADDED CHARACTER AND BREATHED NEW LIFE INTO OUR DINGY FLOOR AND BOUGHT US TIME TO FIGURE OUT OUR NEXT MOVE.

GOSSAMER BLUE ISLAND IN KITCHEN PAINTED MOUNTAIN PEAK WHITE
GOSSAMER BLUE ISLAND IN KITCHEN PAINTED MOUNTAIN PEAK WHITE

VERY RECENTLY I REPLACED THE DIY SCHOOL DESK KITCHEN ISLAND – WITH A MORE OPEN INDUSTRIAL ONE 

YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED IN SOME OF THE PHOTOS ABOVE THAT THE COUNTERTOP EDGE PROFILE CHANGED .

WE ORIGINALLY WANTED THE “AEGEAN EDGE” –

AEGEAN EDGE - FORMICA COUNTER TOPS
AEGEAN EDGE – FORMICA COUNTER TOPS

‘AEGEAN”(ALSO CALLED “PENCIL”) IS A STRAIGHT EDGE THAT DOES NOT WRAP AROUND THE BOTTOM.  THIS EDGE RESEMBLED THE CUTS OF REAL MARBLE THAT I WAS MOST ATTRACTED TO.  TWO MONTHS INTO THE ORDER COMPLETION, WE WERE TOLD AEGEAN WAS UNAVAILABLE.  WE WERE BUMMED.

FORMICA AMORE EDGE
FORMICA AMORE EDGE

SO, WE GOT THE MORE CURVY “AMORE” EDGE NSTEAD. 6 MONTHS AFTER THE KITCHEN WAS COMPLETED, THE FORMICA COMPANY CONTACTED US, WANTING TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT…THEY GRACIOUSLY  REPLACED THE “AMORE EDGE” COUNTERTOPS WITH WHAT WE HAD ORIGINALLY WANTED. AEGEAN! TALK ABOUT GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!

FORMICA MAKES A GREAT PRODUCT, AND FOR MANY, THEY PROVIDE AN ATTRACTIVE AND AFFORDABLE OPTION.   I AM HAPPY TO REPORT THAT NEW TRAINING PROGRAMS HAVE BEEN INSTITUTED IN LOWES AND HOME DEPOTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, MAKING THESE COUNTER TOPS MORE ACCESSIBLE.  IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN FORMICA 180X AND ENCOUNTER  ANY ROAD BLOCKS, FEEL FREE TO EMAIL ME AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO CONNECT YOU WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE!!!!

CUTTING BOARD!
CUTTING BOARD! HARDWARE FROM RESTORATION.
KOHLER STAINLESS VAULT SINK
KOHLER STAINLESS VAULT SINK
FORMICA180XAEGEAN10
HAMPTON SCHOOLHOUSE ELECTRIC HAMPTON PENDANT FIXTURE in polished nickel

I think if you decorate with what you LOVE – even if it is not “the style” then you will be happy. After all – it is YOUR HOME!!!

WHAT KITCHEN “TRENDS” DO YOU LOVE?

WHAT KITCHEN “TRENDS” DO YOU NOT LOVE?

What kind of countertops do you have?

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY!!!

for more on my Budget Kitchen Makeover Visit the following Posts:

1. the-kitchen-makeover-saving-and-splurges-and-lessons-learned

2./yes-you-can-tile-over-tile-take-2/

3./budget-kitchen-deconstructed-part-2/

4.how-to-save-money-on-appliance/

5.painted-vinyl-kitchen-floor/

LesliHouse00811kitchen

5 thoughts on “THE KITCHEN – REVISITED

  1. No wonder it was selected budget kitchen of The year! Awesome job!
    I have a sample of the Formica marble and def want to do this for a budget bathroom reno. Thanks for the tip on the edge profiles.

  2. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your kitchen and always have! I am also a diehard pink lover and every time I see your pastel dishes and other accessories I am green with envy (the good kind). Are they antique? I apologize in advance if you’ve already written about this on the blog. You are definitely an inspiration!!!!! 🙂

  3. I just found the post that explains the history of your beautiful dishes! What a great story!!

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