Renovating the Heart of the Home

Floor to ceiling Pantry

Garden Motif Kitchen Tiles

My Island dining table
( right :wall removed between kitchen and dining rooms )

Craftsman style Island light

My "wabi-sabi" copper sink with a big dent

Craftsman Style Cherry Cabinets

My kitchen island is two maple cabinets attached together
and topped with a slab of granite

I'm not showing the before photos of my kitchen because its not something I want to remember. Kitchens are the biggest drawback in old houses because they aren't usually up to date as was the case in mine. For many years I endured the cheap pine cabinets, vinyl tile floor, dropped ceiling, old appliances, no dishwasher, and little space for a table until the time was ripe for a complete overhaul.

We removed the wall between the kitchen and dining room, the dropped ceiling and tile from the floor. Underneath the tile we found the original strip maple floor in good condition and had it refinished. To gain more space we covered over a window that was never used and installed cabinets and countertops. A continuous line of cabinets and a floor-to-ceiling pantry was installed and every inch of wall space put to use.

The copper sink arrived with a big dent in it but I couldn't delay it's installation so I just accepted it , dings and all. This new philosophy, dubbed " wabi-sabi ", is the exact opposite of feng shui. It's the "if it ain't broke don't fix it " life isn't perfect kinda attitude that I like .

It took me 3 months to design my new kitchen. I think it fits in with the craftsman style of my old house and at the same time it has all the bells and whistles.

The only thing that's not new is the cream-color fridge that doesn't fit in to my color scheme but it was too new to discard. I don't like stainless steel and so I'm holding out for a copper one that's suppose to be on the market soon.