New Kitchen Shelves

OK, I'm going to just pretend that I didn't hear Diane's whining, because honestly, I think the only pics I've EVER seen of her house are of her bathroom shower curtain or something. So I don't feel the LEAST bit obligated to post pics on HER behalf. (Hear that, Diane? I think you should start your blog now--quid pro quo!)

Below please observe my fabulous new kitchen shelves, made by yours truly. I just bought the brackets at Lowes, and put 1 x 8 boards on them and painted 'em white. The little spice shelf underneath is just a 1 x 3 that I screwed in from the sides of the brackets. I LOVE having my spices out from behind closed doors under my built-in cabinet. Now I can reach them when I'm cooking! Can you see my fresh garlic from the farmers' market too? :) Please excuse my lack of staging. I'm seeing my mojito mix on the counter, and a bag of potatoes, along with my old green dish towels. Whatever. This isn't a magazine. It's my house, right?!

Oh, and P.S. those tomatoes on the windowsill came from my garden!

I built this bench over my radiator, because I couldn't stand looking at the radiator any more! It also reminds me of when I was a kid, and I used to hang out on top of our warm radiators and talk on the phone for HOURS.

I just used a leftover piece of plywood from a cornice project I had done, added the wood legs that my friend Kelly had picked up at a salvage sale, and mounted the back of the plywood board to a 1 x 2 at the back edge of the wall, so the board wouldn't be putting pressure on the radiator when you sit on it. Then of course I had to make a cushion for the whole thing.

And pillows, of course. Kathleen sits here pretty much every morning and eats her breakfast before school. I've strategically left the table out of the photo, because it has been recently requisitioned for my wireless printer, and is collecting paperwork like crazy. Again, this is real life, folks. I need an office. Bad. I'll put that on my list right next to "needs a second bathroom."

My Uppers! (Cabinets, not dentures...lol)

I still need to give them a couple more coats of paint, but aren't they just scrumptious?! I love them.

I got to christen the kitchen last night with Kathleen's birthday dinner party (she's 14 now--where have the years gone?) There were 12 of us all together, and between the kitchen, LR, and DR, we had lots of room, and it was quite comfy. I'm liking my house for entertaining! We did a make-your-own wraps dinner with chicken and steak, and I made guacamole, salsa, spinach-artichoke dip, and a fruit pizza for dessert as Kathleen's "cake" at her request. My uncle brought a delicious butternut squash soup and a salad, my sister brought yummy scallops wrapped in bacon, and I had shrimp coctail out for Kathleen too. It was a smorgasbord and it was all yummy! (Oh, and don't forget the WINE! There was WINE!) We had lots of piano, clarinet, and flute playing, too. I love a house filled with music. It reminds me of my childhood. My father stayed a little while after everyone left, and played the piano while I did some cleanup and talked to his wife. It was just like the old days! He can't read a note of music, but he plays beautifully by ear.

We had a needle felting party here two weeks ago, and there were nine of us in the living room doing our crafting, and we all fit with plenty of room to spare too. *sigh* I just love it here! I love it even more now that BF spent all day yesterday in the yard doing cleanup. I can't believe the amount of leaves he managed to rake up. AND he's been trying to dig trenches to get the pooled water to move somewhere. I bought a swamp. (But I don't mind! It's a pretty swamp!) He also burned the old kitchen in a big ol' bonfire out back. That was pretty funny. Don't worry--he brought the non-burnable stuff to the dump. It's lookin' pretty good out there now (instead of hillbilly-hayday with the old kitchen in the driveway--now if we could just fit the boat into the garage....) I even have tulip and bluebell greenery coming up, and hellebores blooming! Yay spring!

Thanks for all of your very kind comments on my kitchen. I'm very happy with the way it's turning out. Next is a stove hood and some open shelving. I'm in no hurry. I love it just the way it is!

Gettin' There!

This post is for those of you who don't hang out over at Facebook, which is my new hangout these days.  There are only so many places I can be at once, right?  ;)

Kitchen before I moved in:

I just finished laying these peel-n-stick 18" tiles from Lowes last week:

This microwave cart was my grandmother's...I hated to paint over the fabulous Contact paper with mushrooms circa 1972, so...

I had Kathleen do it for me!  Ha!

This was the kitchen before I moved in.  I think the homeowner was giving  a nice fresh coat of dark green paint to that faux tile wainscotting.  Yum!  NOT!

And this is what I've done with the place!  Morning Fog on the walls, white on the newly installed beadboard wainscot paneling, Ikea Lidingo kitchen cabinets, new countertop, a new stove, 

This was the kitchen when I first looked at the house...the tops of the walls were still yellow!

And here it is "after."  My plan is still to paint the hutch a dark raspberry red.  I have the paint.  I just have to sand down what's there, and get on task!  I may have to put some fun paper or fabric behind those shelves.  We'll see.

This corner is such a nice spot to sit in the morning!

...and here it was in the throes of renovation.  Note all the dark stained trim everywhere. 

...and now note all the WHITE painted trim everywhere.  It's amazing how much brighter the kitchen is now.  I love it.

Before:

After:

Tonight my friend Dwight is coming over to hang two upper cabinets for me, that he made out of vintage windows.  I can't wait!!!