A Review

Wow, it's been a long time since I wrote! I signed on to write a post about straw bale gardening (which I will do), but wanted to take a look at the blog before starting. I'd forgotten how much of last year was the kitchen and not the garden. I only did one garden post all year! I promise to rectify that - but first there's one more kitchen entry to go.

It's hard to believe it's just about exactly a year since the work started. It sometimes feels like it's always been this way. Of course, I still miss the old doorway once in a while, but certainly not enough to wish it back! I still have to paint the back side of that wall...  Wanted to wait until I could have windows open, and, by the time that happened, it was time to be in the garden. I'll get to it. It's exceedingly rare that anyone but us is back there to see it, and the corner is so dim I bet most wouldn't notice it's unpainted. Wish we'd realized how dim it would be before the wall got closed in. I'm sure the electricians could have added a light fixture back there. Well, they could now, too, but I don't want to think about how much it would cost! Certainly simpler when the wall was out. Believe it or not, we're still not quite done. We don't have the crown molding up. It's harder to do than we thought it would be. I'm getting to the point of wanting to just hire someone to come in and get it done, instead of trying to find time ourselves. And we need to put down a bead of caulk along the window. We never did tile behind the stove. I'm not sure if we will or not - haven't talked about it in quite some time. Maybe we'll just keep the tile and leave it for the next homeowners!

We did tile the windowsill, and it looks way better than just paint. I'm quite pleased with it. Imagine my pleasure in discovering I only had to cut tiles for length. The white and black combination here fit the sill perfectly. The space was so small I used a popsicle stick to do the grouting.

I made valances and a toaster cover and like those as well. Joe indulged me in the toaster cover fabric. I wouldn't have asked him to have it in the valances - even I didn't want that - but the small amount here is fun.

We picked up two big rugs late last summer that do a lot to finish the room.

We knew the soapstone would darken with use. We planned on it. But I still am sometimes surprised when I uncover an area that gets little to no use (like under a cutting board) and see just how much darker it is than when it was installed!

And we still love the additional space. It's funny. We actually lost floor space, but the kitchen feels bigger because there's more work space and it's just so much more functional!

I would love to redo the floor. The color doesn't work all that well with everything else, although it's not awful, and it picked up some damage last summer with all the work. When I talked to the plumbers last year about replacing the radiator, we talked about putting in-floor heating in. Wouldn't that be wonderful? The kitchen is so dang cold in the winter - warm floors would be an amazing thing. We could then get rid of the radiator (it is bulky) and put a little bench there for a place to set groceries or to put on shoes. Someday. We haven't missed the door into the back hall at all. We took it down to give us a bit more room with the fridge there and it's no big deal.

We have moved a few things, but for the most part, being thoughtful when we put everything back in served us well. It's so nice to have uncrowded, organized cabinets! I will say the white cabinets make a bit more work. Not really on the doors from handprints - mostly dust accumulating on baseboards, or drips showing much more. And there's more to dust, with the shelves we added. I'm OK with that!