Gosh, this getting-a-new-kitchen thing is tricky. The hardest part? Finding lighting. Yes, lighting. The lighting in my present kitchen is decidedly inadequate and patently ugly. So ugly, as a matter of fact, that the electrician threw-up a little in his mouth when he saw it. He poked at things and smirked at things and offered a few suggestions and even said not to be surprised if the heinous canned lights over the sink suddenly “disappeared” and were replaced–his treat. My present kitchen gave the kitchen designer the heebee geebies and now it has given the electrician the heebee geebies. I can’t wait to hear what the plumber has to say.
So, it’s an ugly kitchen. It was ugly the day it was installed. That means it has been ugly for about 18 years. Ain’t my fault. I didn’t pick it. I’m pretty sure it would have been on my ain’t-no-way list. And, yes, I cried when we bought the house 13 years ago and I started putting things away in the cabinets. The shelves were bowed, one of the drawer fronts was hanging on by the prongs of a staple, and the hinges on a couple of the doors on one of the base cabinets were bent. I vowed that I was going to get a new kitchen right away, but life happened in unexpected ways and the kitchen did not materialize. Last year at this time I had come to the conclusion that I would never get a new kitchen. Now the Lord has blessed us with enough money to improve the kitchen and I am so grateful.
It’s not the kitchen I had dreamed up in my head some years ago and I’m okay with that. The past 13 years have taught me some interesting lessons about wants vs. needs, about life and living. Somehow, the elegant, natural cherry wood cabinets that I had pinned in my brain long before Pinterest was even imagined, don’t really fit with where I am right now. Can I just tell you that I am so glad IKEA rolled into town? So, so glad.
I know that the posts have been pretty sparse around here. Forgive me while we tear out the old the kitchen and have the new one installed. Tomorrow (Wednesday) the old cabinets are being taken out. Thursday the electrician comes to work on the wiring. Friday the new floor gets put in. On Tuesday of next week (the day after Memorial Day) the installation of the new cabinets begins. Some time after that is finished, counter tops will be made and installed. At some point, the electrician will finish his installations. Oh, wait…I have to paint before the cabinets are installed. I guess I’ll do that over the weekend. There’s not really much painting required in the kitchen, but we will also be painting the family room and that will require a bit more effort.
Don’t leave me…drop back in now and again because I do have a few things planned…stuff that doesn’t involve actual cooking. There’s one more thing, too. I have it on good authority that there will be an upcoming giveaway. I’m pretty sure the give away will be announced on Tuesday of next week–sort of a celebration for new cabinets. Yep, I’m pretty sure that I will be posting those give away details next Tuesday.
Good luck on the remodel. We want pictures!
Thank you, Tricia. Believe me, there will be lots of pictures!
I wondered what was keeping you so busy. At least it’s good news! What fun!! I would love a new kitchen…actually any kitchen with shelf space would be nice and I would believe I had died and went to Heaven if I just had a pantry of any kind. Take lots of pictures. Can’t wait to see.
Ditto on the pantry. I don’t have room for a pantry, either. So, valuable kitchen real-estate gets taken up for food items and other things that would work really in a pantry :(. I started taking pics yesterday. When I got home from work last night, my husband, daughter, and son in-law had stripped out all of the cabinets. It was a little shocking seeing how much cleaning I need to do. How does dirt get behind and under cabinets? We also found a pipe, half buried along its length in the wall behind the sink area. I have no idea how cabinets were installed around it and whats more, we have no idea regarding the purpose of the pipe. My kitchen really gave me “the creeps” when I saw what hidden things I had been living with all of these years. So much dirt. Thanks heavens I will be able to clean, clean, clean and know that my kitchen is clean top to bottom, literally!
I am also doing a new kitchen…I say “I” like I am actually pounding the nails. um no. but I am a great superviser/planner! I am getting a new kitchen , actually a whole new mainfloor…because of the nasty, mean flood of 2011…all we had left was 2×4’s and rafters..BUT things are getting fun now! We have new electrical, new plumbing, new walls and the new walls are getting a fun, new paint! Next week new flooring..then the cabinets…I picked out quarter-sawn oak in English Walnut. I am very excited…Here is why I am writing: I am putting IN recessed (can) lights and you are taking them OUT!! Can (haha) I ask why you no longer like them? soon after cabinets will be the baseboard and casing, appliances, bathroom fixtures..it’s overwhelming when it is a whole house.oops I almost forgot doors, window treatments…the list is long! Just deciding on paint was quite an ordeal! I was used to redoing one room at a time over the years as time and money permitted and life happened…girls moved downstairs, girls moved to college, first girl married, second girl got a real job in a real ciy, real far away…anyway tell me your light story, please. As time permits. 🙂 How’s your boy liking North Dakota?
Hi Marla Rae. It’s good to hear from you. I had no idea that your house had been involved in flooding. What a nightmare! I hope that you were able to at least get out your important photos and other treasures before the flood hit. We have “built” a couple of houses and I know a little of hose over-whelming it can be to have to make so many decisions. Picking paint colors is the hardest part of all.
Anyway, about the canned lights–We are actually adding canned lights. There are only two right now and they are over the kitchen sink area. They are aesthetically ugly and will be replaced with better looking, improved canned lights. There will be an additional 6 canned lights added to the perimeter of the kitchen. We will also have under-cabinet lighting and are using LED lighting for that. I need to also find an island light and some pendant lighting. That’s where I am running into difficulty. I have found that pendants either don’t offer enough light or leave too much light bulb exposed. Since pendants are supposed to hang 30-40 inches above the work space, it can be really blinding if too much of the light bulb is exposed or can be seen from my angle. Because of my height the light bulbs will be shining down into my eyes. It’s sort of hard to explain…I just need to find the perfectly shaped pendants and island light that will provide maximum lighting with a shade that conceals enough of the light bulb so that I won’t be staring at a bare bulb. To complicate matters, someone at work yesterday told me that they hate their canned lights because of the glare from the lights. The first thing that my co-worker said was, “Have you ever looked up at a canned light? They are blinding!” Oh great. I’m still going with them, though, because I really think I’ll need them. They’ll update the look of the kitchen in some very positive ways.
Speaking of window treatments, I have been working on those as well. I know that I want blinds and that they are going to have to be practical for the kitchen. AKA standing up to kitchen splatters and have the ability to be cleaned. For some reason I am having a mental block about curtains or valances. I think that I am going to have to wait until I can actually see what the kitchen is going to look like before I can make a good choice.
As for my son, he is doing fairly well. He works long, long hours, often as much as 80 hours per week. But, it’s a good experience for him. He has met people at church who are being very kind to him. They invite him over for Sunday dinner and offer him some good home/family-style comfort and moral support.
I wish you the very best on your home. When is the projected completion date?
well talk about a slow reply?! I thought about you often and came bck today to learn that you have running water! Yahoo, yay, yippee skippee!! That is wonderful! We hope to be in the end of July. 🙂 We are living in a FEMA trailer in our yard so I am not going to give that up until the house is DONE…with things put away and ready for us. Our youngest daughter is home from Rochester,MN this week to help..she always gives us energy!! I put a red pendant light above where my sink will be and the rest cans in the kitchen dining and living rooms…which is all kind of one large area after changing our floor plan a bit by not replacing a wall between the living and dining. I love it! I put a chandelier in our bedroom which I also love…my hubby groaned a bit but allowed it! 🙂 I have made valances for the grandkids room (toy room) and the bathroom. we will also put blinds on those windows. Lace curtains and a lace valance on double rods in the living room..we have lots of antiques so lace goes well with them. I love some of the modern prints but they just dont look good with the old stuff. It is coming along quickly now that school is oiut for summer! (my hubby is a teacher/coach/athletic director at a middle school so he has the summer off!) Thnaks for the answer about your lights! I am anxious to see more pictures of your kitchen!
I’m so excited for you! Can’t wait to see the progress!!
Thank you, Stella B! Have you gotten all settled in to your new kitchen?!