The Temporary House

I’ve been looking at kitchen images on the web for at least five years and in magazines virtually forever. One of the best places to look is Houzz where I have some Ideabooks full of my selections from the Houzz posts. You can check them out here:

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/users/evelyn

There is at least one thing in each image that caught my attention. But the picture that best captured the look-and-feel I wanted wasn’t on Houzz. I think I first saw it on the blog “Desire to Inspire.” Here it is:

What I like about it is the color palate, the light wood of the cabinets and floor, the open shelves, both marble and wood counter tops and the fact that the appliances didn’t match. This image drove my selections while I kept in mind the age of the house, the size of the space, the light from the windows, and how I would use the room. It will take two posts to discuss everything.

Floor and Paint—As I mentioned before, the good maple floor was staying even though I would have preferred porcelain tile. A previous post discussed the paint which, now that I have looked at it for several weeks, is even better than I hoped. In late afternoon light it has a bluish tone, on a cloudy day looks grayish, in full sun can look more white. It takes on the hue of the light coming through the windows. Just wonderful.

Cabinets—I have some of the original cabinets from 1925 in the basement, some from a 1960s era remodel in the garage, and, of course the current kitchen cabinets that went in in 1985. This time I am using Shaker style like the 1925 version, but natural maple like the inspiration photo.  The Shaker style can work in a contemporary, transitional, or traditional kitchen. There will be only a few upper cabinets in order to keep the open feel of the room. In the place of some uppers there will be shelves with custom brackets that match the shape of the brackets supporting the living room fireplace mantle.

The natural maple finish is the brightest, most user friendly finish. Paint or dark stains when dinged  or damaged are hard to repair or refinish.  Natural wood is more forgiving and develops a gentle, worn patina.

The cabinets are installed, but the counter tops, pulls, and some trim are not finished. Here is what the cabinets look like now.

 

 

Counter top and sink: I spent way too much time researching counter tops. Thanks to a Christmas gift from my son, the main counter top material is quartzite. Quartzite looks like marble but doesn’t have the porosity and softness of marble. Here is a picture of the slab.

I wanted a stone top because I wanted an under mount, apron front sink. Otherwise laminate would be fine. Surprisingly, I don’t mind the plastic of laminate, but do mind the plastic of Corian-like surfaces.  Quartz, another man-made material is as expensive as granites and other stones. Quartz is nearly indestructible and comes in a wide variety of colors and effects . Marble is relatively cheaper. I chose the 30” Kohler Whitehaven enameled cast iron sink. A small surface will have a butcher block top for rolling out bread and pie dough. That area will also be three inches lower than the other counters: a better height for rolling and mixing.

Appliances—My dishwasher died two days before last Christmas. I didn’t replace it until after the New Year. It’s amazing how you can get by without a dishwasher—even with house guests and holiday entertaining. My garbage disposal died four or five years ago and I have lived without it since. I compost vegetable scraps and besides, the dishwasher manufacturers don’t want you to rinse dishes before loading. The city is about to start collecting compostable kitchen waste soon, so there will be no need for a disposal. My old Dacor range is in good shape and is staying, this time with a proper exhaust hood by Zypher. The new Samsung refrigerator will be counter depth with a smaller capacity than the old GE one that is 28 years old. The Samsung doesn’t have a water or ice dispenser and is white.  I will get a small under counter beverage cooler that will go where the dishwasher used to be in the new mud room/butler’s pantry/bar. That will keep the traffic from the kitchen.

The next post will be about the shiny finishes—faucet, lighting, and cabinet pulls.