Kitchen Updates + Inspiration
Our kitchen has undergone some transformations since we last chatted. It's far from finished but I'm loving the changes already. I'm not going to pretend like its my ultimate dream kitchen; that would involve walls of windows, space for two islands, banquet seating, and 12 ft. ceilings. But the updates we've made are a lovely improvement from what we had and when it's finished I know I'm going to love it.
The kitchen above is my current inspiration photo. The whole room feels fresh and up-to date but has a classic feel and lots of traditional elements. It's a great mix of functional with stylish. Love.
Alright, let's take a look at my kitchen now. Womp Womp Womp. Our cabinets have already been painted repose gray (they are still BM Classic Gray in the photos below) so they look much more like the cabinets in the inspiration kitchen. We'd like to get them refaced to eliminate the visible hinges that drive us both crazy so we're looking into a few options for that. Does anyone have any experience with this? Advice or comments? Shelving, lighting, appliances, textiles, and wall color still need to be finalized. Whew. I'm getting overwhelmed just thinking about it.
As you can see, we removed the upper cabinets and took the subway tile all the way up to the ceiling. Open shelving and a glass cabinet are coming but the finish on the shelves is yet to be determined. A while back we moved the fridge to the opposite wall and we'll have a pantry built in around it to gain back some of the cabinet space we just lost.
We're also gaining a pantry in the laundry room/mudroom. As much as I love the idea of a mudroom, we just don't use ours. Our house has a lot of doors to the outside and that is literally the only way we never use. Like never. Not even to take out the trash. It just makes more sense to store dishes and bulk foods than boots and coats and bags we barely wear.
The countertops are a white granite. This was probably the only design decision we've disagreed on so far. I desperately wanted white marble or even a white quartz because 1. it's virtually impossible to look at pinterest or instagram these days without lusting after an all-white kitchen and 2. Y'all know I'm drawn to light and airy all white spaces. But, ultimately he who cooks in our house gets to pick and he would only discuss granite. And if our cook a'int happy a'int nobody happy. It's also pretty hard to destroy this or have it look dirty so I'm not mad at that.
We've since had the lantern removed and plan to replace it with two pendants. We're still debating the island situation; have something built or buy something ready made. Either way I want two hanging lights over top to make a big statement. Or not? I go back and forth between two gold lanterns or just glass orbs. I'm going with glass over the kitchen sink. Should they match?
Another big decision is the material for the floating shelves. Repose Gray to match the cabinets or a light wood are my top choices. Matthew wants stainless steel. Again, he's the cook of the house so I tend to want to keep him as happy as possible with this space :) I'm tempted to let him go with stainless around the range hood (yet to be installed) similar to the image below and do thick wood shelves on the small corner of the other wall.
M wants stainless steel for the dishwasher because he loves a more commercial look but I love the idea of a hidden panel front like you see below for a warmer, inviting and less utilitarian space. Can you tell he likes to cook and I like to hang out and drink wine/eat cheese plates in the kitchen?!
Inspiration kitchen
So much left to be done but I feel like we finally have a vision. I'll try to hop on instastories so you can see all the details and help me decide!
Get the Look
