Sunday, September 13, 2009

Kitchen Remodel at Heart and Home

Today I'm showing you some pictures of my remodeled kitchen for Metamorphosis Monday. Hope you like them!






When we moved into this house we planned to do some remodeling. What we didn't know was how major our project would become.

The house had been built in the late 70's. It was a big mess when we got it. The family room had been painted pepto bismol pink, with teal green mini blinds on all the windows. One wall in the entry way was dark, dark blue, there was pink and blue wallpaper with ribbons and bows everywhere. All that might have worked in a different house, in a different time - but in this one, in the 21st century - believe me it was not pretty....


We spent a lot of time removing every pattern of wallpaper you can think of from almost every room in the house, quickly replacing cheap, tacky 70's style light fixtures, and painting every wall and most of the oak woodwork and dark doors and cabinets white to give us a fresh, clean palette. Then we lived here for quite a few years without changing anything else, just to get comfortable with the space, and to figure out how we used each room (and to brace ourselves for what was ahead!)


When the right time came, we decided to remodel the kitchen first. These before pictures tell you everything you need to know.

Lovely:




It still had most of the original appliances, some of which barely functioned. My cook top only had 2 working burners. The light on the refrigerator door blinked incessantly, and only one of the double ovens heated up. The metal window frames didn't exactly scream character, either. I won't even mention the chipped tile counter tops with the crumbling grout.....




The cabinets had originally been dark brown, and white paint couldn't disguise the outdated style. Every drawer stuck. Nothing helped improve the lack of storage.








I wish I had a picture of the Spanish style gold, brown, and green tile that covered the floor. It was horrible, but solid. It had been installed to last! On one long wall, there was a door to our outside deck, and nothing else:





Well, I always said I wanted to have a fixer-upper, now I had one and it was time to fix-'er up!! I forged ahead and planned a kitchen that contained every one of my "dream" elements: eat-in area, plenty of storage, baking center, warming drawer, big fridge, country sink, marble counter tops, recycling center, and large wooden windows that took advantage of our view and let in lots of natural light.

I didn't want a lot of doodads, and chose simple, functional, traditional design elements that didn't fight with the ranch style of this house.
It took four men with sledge hammers and crow bars one hour to demolish the old kitchen.

It took as many men six months to remodel this space, the guest bath, master bedroom (see it here), closet, master bath (seen here), and the dining and living room ceilings.

While all the construction was going on we lived mostly in our family room, which thankfully has a wet bar with a tiny working sink. (No doing dishes in the bathtub!) I moved the fridge, trash compactor, microwave, toaster and coffee maker in. I bought a two burner cook top at the drug store, and we used paper plates and kept meals very simple. It really wasn't too bad for awhile. But near the end of the project that room started to feel very small.....

When the dust finally settled this is what we ended up with:


Heart and Home's New Kitchen~





The island is 3 1/2' X 9' and is the work horse of the kitchen. It contains the cook top, disappearing down draft vent, warming drawer, storage drawers and cabinets,recycling center, display shelves, and a second oven on the baking center side of the kitchen, which is here:








Just beyond the baking center there is a new French door that leads to the covered deck. On what had previously been a long, blank wall there is a lovely, large window that looks out on to the deck. Now, from my kitchen I have a beautiful view of the hills, redwood trees, and our neighbor's orchard.





Since my daughters and I love to bake the baking center is in almost daily use. It has it's own sink, lowered marble counters (I'm not tall - it's great when rolling dough), and two pull-out "elevator" shelves: one for my heavy mixer, and one near the door to the deck for the blender - essential for mixing margaritas when we have a party!


The cabinets have wide, pull-out rolling drawers that hold all my baking pans and equipment, and the big, deep, copper fronted drawers on the bottom right contain baking staples like sugar and flour. They are located right next to a pantry (with pull-out drawers) that holds tons of canned and dry goods. I've never had so much storage space in a kitchen, and I use every inch of it!



I know I chose an very unconventional color for the walls! Believe me, many people tried to persuade me to change my mind. But I had a vision of the finished room, and I thought a bold color would work well with all the white everywhere. Now, just about everyone admires the color - the orange brings so much warmth and sunshine to this room. Also, by happy coincidence, it complements my paper mache' tray collection. It's very unique and I really like it. Besides, it's only paint!



The crystal chandelier is from England. I found it in my favorite little junk shop and it sat in a box for about three years until Mr. H&H could finally hang it over the table in our eating area. I love it! I made the valance by patching together pieces from old tablecloths from the 40's with various fabric which I had been collecting.





We have a nifty raised and sloped ceiling in here that looks really great at night. Lots of mysterious shadows!





I love the great big country sink, and the curved-neck fixtures from Italy that give me plenty of space for big pots and pans during clean up.





I re-used the hutch from the dining room in the tiny little house we had before. I bought it 26 years ago. It replaces traditional wall-hung storage cabinets: the top half holds all my casual plates and dishes, and the bottom half holds linens and baskets and extras. Now I need to find one I like for the dining room - my "good" china, and a lot of really great things are still packed away since the remodel. I have no place to put them. Someday I will find the perfect piece.....




In order to accommodate all of the new features, we had to build a "pop-out" area. The space is only 8' x 5' but feels much larger. It's like a big bay window, and provides a lovely view to the winter creek that runs below us, and the beautiful redwood trees that surround our property. (The pop-out is downstairs, too -see my great big tub
here.) We usually have our casual meals here during the week,especially when it gets too chilly to sit outside on the deck. (See a fall tablescape here)




Someday I may have benches with storage beneath them built-in for this area, but for now our metal table and chairs with the rush seats work fine in the space. I leave the windows wide open almost every day. I love it when the ocean breezes flow through.






I know I'm fortunate to live in this house and have this spacious new kitchen, and I don't take it for granted. I'm very happy with the way it turned out - I love how it looks! I have just the right amount of space, the style suits me, and everything works the way it's supposed to. Eventually the rest of the wood trim around the windows and doors will get painted white. That's a project I just can't seem to get started! Someday I'd like to add a subway tile back splash, and possibly a nice pot rack that doesn't detract from our wonderful view to hang over the island, if I ever find one I like.


But what I'd love most to add is something automatic that cleans up after me when I cook -without complaining -- then this room would be perfect!!





























Posted for Metamorphosis Monday, and the lovely Susan at BNOTP. Thanks so much, Susan!

Thank you, everyone for coming to visit today. Stop by again, soon!

Until next time

XO
Heidi

27 comments:

Sedona @ MyDivineDelights said...

Oh! Your kitchen is a total dream! I love the baking center!! Well, I love it all! Thanks for sharing!!

Blondie's Journal said...

Heidi,

Your dream kitchen is now MY dream kitchen!! Oh gosh, what don't I love about it??!! The baking center is fabulous and I don't even bake!! The wall color is something I never would have chosen but it works and it is wonderful...I love hearing your stories of what the 70's kitchen looked like and how you planned out every feature you wanted. That was SO smart.

We went through a kitchen remodel of six months too. Cooking meals in the microwave and doing dishes in the bathroom sink (it was sort of fun, like a better version of camping! lol!)

In closing I want to say I adore your old hutch. If you get something similar to it for your dining room, let me know. I have been searching high and low for a bit of a English/Country style hutch.

Fantastic job, Heidi. I am going to come back to spend more time looking at all the great features. Thanks for sharing your beautiful new kitchen!!

xoxo
Janie

Peg said...

Heidi, your new kitchen is soooo very pretty! It was worth the wait, wasn't it? My favorite things are the huge island and the bright paint color. What a warm, welcoming room you have created! The vintage curtains are so clever. I wish I had room for a big cupboard like you have; I like using a piece of furniture rather than kitchen cabinets for your china. I know you are very proud of your finished project and you certainly should be!

Cindy (Applestone Cottage) said...

Hi Heidi,
I love your kitchen remodel! It's so gorgeous, I never thought I would like an orange kitchen but it really works! The color appears almost apricot. The cupboards, the flooring, your beautiful hutch, love it all! I would like that kitchen clean-up fairy too! Cindy

Shanty 2 Chic said...

Oh wow! It's beautiful! Love your cabinets!!
~Whitney

Tennille said...

Okay so your kitchen is now my dream kitchen!! It is awesome!!!

Glenda/MidSouth said...

Wow! I am impressed! Your kitchen looks great!

Shanty 2 Chic said...

So pretty! I love your island!!!!!! ~Ashley

Marla said...

+
Your kitchen is absolutely beautiful. I love what you did with your valence, at first I thought maybe you used vintage hankerchiefs, but I love that it is old tablecloths and the striped ticking material at the top brings it all together. I also love the bright orangy color that you painted with, it really makes all the cabinets and wood workk stand out. Good job on everything, can I come for dinner? Marla

Julie said...

Wow it turned out so wonderful...Love the color...I am having a new give a-way do hope you stop over...
xoxo
Julie

Fifi Flowers said...

LOVELY kitchen... so BRIGHT and CHEERY!

Country Wings in Phoenix said...

Oh Heidi, My Gosh honey, you have the most beautiful designed kitchen I have ever seen. Everything is just perfect for cooking. What a wonderful job you did in choosing each piece and the location for each item. I love everything, but ofcourse that island is my hearts' desire. OMG the colors and the tile are just perfect. Fit for a Queen, Queen Heidi and her Princesses. Thanks for sharing sweetie. Country hugs, Sherry

Suzanne said...

Oh my gosh, your kitchen is GORGEOUS!!!!!!! Thank you for sharing all of the pictures. Guess what...my kitchen is orange, too. (And the dining room, great room and foyer.) Yep, I know...crazy! But when the sun is shining in it is soooo cozy...like a sunset in Tuscany:-)
Love your blog...will follow when I can. Something isn't working right now but I'll be back:-)

Julia @ Hooked on Houses said...

What an amazing kitchen remodel, Heidi! I love it. It's so warm and cheery now. I also really like the hutch that you used in there. Perfect!

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

What a fabulous remodel. YOur kitchen is stunning. I love all of the ovens too. It is so nice to be able to have more than one thing going at a time. Your cabinet and counter choices are perfect. I really love it all. I like the orange paint. I painted mine Chocolate Brown and I got the same complaints before I did it. Like yours, now everyone raves about the color. Thanks for sharing. Hugs, Marty

nannykim at SPINDLE COTTAGE said...

Well, the first think that hit me was the color and of course I love it. I love punches of color!! It turned out beautifully! I know what you mean about old fixtures...this house was built in the 40's and the stove and oven were from the 50's. I really wanted to keep them because of the vintage aspect. However we couldn't get parts for the stove top and one of the burners wouldn't work (and when cooking a big meal it was frustrating esp because it was a large burner). The spring on the oven door broke and I had to use a spoon to wedge in the outer part of the door to keep it shut. So we eventually replaced them. But I decided to keep the old cubboards...I just like the old feel. I do envy you your big sink! My kitchen is so small you take 2 steps in any direction and that is that! But oddly enough I love it. Everything is handy--ie 2 steps from stove to frig. One step from stove to sink. I use an old enamel table as my work space and it is just 2 steps from that to everything. The biggest thing I miss is a pantry!!! WOW--I have had to put things in other areas...that is a big downside...ah well. Anyways, your kitchen is a happy one!

nannykim at spindle cottage said...

oops I meant "thhing" not think and cupboards not cubboards!

nannykim said...

I give up

Its So Very Cheri said...

Oh -- it is stunning. You guys did a fabulous job.
I hope you will come by for a visit as well. I have a fun party on Mondays and another on Wed that just started up.

Cheri
Its So Very Cheri

Kelee said...

Heidi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FABULOUS-FABULOUS-FABULOUS!!!!!!

I love it...amazing job! Love the cabinets-walls--niches--island-beadboard.... ALL of it!!!!!!!!!!!!

You win the award of the week! Gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

love, kelee

Mary said...

Your kitchen is beautiful, Heidi! I love the beadboard and the bright yellow paint...it is so cheerful and just oozes country charm. You did a fantastic job, and now you can reap the blessings of home all the more. Your kitchen truly fits your blog title so well.

Blessings to you!
Mary

caren said...

Absolutely beautiful!!!!!

Ceekay-THINKIN of HOME said...

Heidi, I had to come see your orange kitchen. It is absolutely lovely! I love the orange!!! I had an orange kitchen once...not as beautiful as yours, but it fit in the 70's! Thanks for telling me about your kitchen.

Ashley @ AshleysBusy said...

Wow. Seriously. Your kitchen is perfect. That island!!! So many features, it must be so much fun to cook in there :) Love the sink, the floors, the drawer pulls.

Gypsy Heart said...

Heidi, your kitchen is incredible!! Can I come and live with you? :-) The baking center and extra ovens, a place for all your baking pans and ingredients...I could go on & on...is truly a dream come true. The color is so bright and cheerful! I can only imagine having the windows open and ocean breezes wafting in. I can't wait to see more of your gorgeous home.

xoxo

Anonymous said...

I just came via Julia....Love your bathroom make-over...your kitchen is GREAT too....

What is the brand name of your faucet ??? I am in the market for a new one and love yours !!!

Kathy :)
jokaj@comcast.net

Pinky said...

This is gorgeous! I love everything you did! It is obvious you planned it out very well and carefully! I am jealous....BUT, if I ever get to remodel my kitchen, yours will be my inspiration! XO, Pinky