Is That Sheetrock Dust, Or Has My Brain Finally Exploded?

My kitchen remodel has been mostly finished for a couple of weeks, but I couldn't bring myself to take a picture of the whole thing until I managed to get my kitchen spotlessly clean.

That's when I remembered: my kitchen is never spotlessly clean.  So I just hoisted the random stacks of things to another room and made it look like we're actually, you know, orderly.

I am incredibly relieved this process is over.  A kitchen remodel is a funny thing--it's extremely stressful, but you feel terribly guilty for complaining about.  There's sort of the whole I'm-getting-a-new-kitchen-so-I-should-keep-my-mouth-shut complex.  But the dust!  And the disorder!  And the exposed wires!  It's enough to send a girl over the edge.  I actually called Melanie in the middle of our ordeal to apologize for not being sympathetic enough when she went through hers a few months ago.

Anyway, it's done, and this post will probably provide more detail than you ever wanted to know about the whole thing.  I learned some things--good and bad--and many of you have written to say you're thinking about a kitchen remodel yourselves.  So here we go.

First, this is the only "before" picture I have.  Notice all the dark trim, the chunky fluorescent lighting, and the hanging cabinet that breaks up the room:

Below is the "after".  We took down that cabinet and changed the fluorescent lighting to recessed cans.  I really resisted that lighting change, mainly because it was expensive and I didn't think it would be worth the money.  Hubs insisted, and I'm so glad he did--the new lighting is one of my favorite parts.  And the removed cabinet opens the space so much.  No more bumping our heads when we try to talk to each other!

Below is a shot from the other end of the room.  I think one of the most dramatic (and cheapest) changes we made was painting all that old brown 80's trim (baseboards, door frames, etc.) white.  It really updated things.  Also, you can see our new tile floors, laid at a diagonal (which I love) with medium grout (which I regret.  I wish I'd gone with my initial urge to use black grout.)

Another shot of the eating area, and my handy-dandy buffet and desk.  This is where all the blogging magic mediocrity happens.  Normally that buffet is piled high with lunch money, permission slips, birthday invitations and other suck-the-life-right-out-of-you paperwork.

Below is our eating area, which now feels much more open with the overhead cabinet gone.  I made the curtains; they were such a ridiculously easy bargain I'm going to devote a whole Works-For-Me Wednesday post to them later:

Here is a close-up of the countertop.  It's quartz, and supposedly it's the most durable countertop material known to all of mankind.  Which means it might--MIGHT--stand a chance in this family.  It's much lower maintenance than granite and you can even chop right on it.

I didn't plan to get a stainless steel sink--it still wouldn't be my first choice.  But it came free as part of a special offer with our countertops, and when you're hemorrhaging money remodeling your kitchen, you'll take anything they offer you for free.  The cabinetry is not new; it was the only thing in the kitchen that stayed.  We're actually planning to refinish it this spring but at the moment I am fresh out of elbow grease.

I have wanted a glass-top stove for as long as I can remember.  It is SO easy to clean.  You can get a good look at the backsplash here, too.  It's tumbled marble, done in a subway tile pattern.  Eventually, I'll hang something decorative over the stove, but I cannot--CANNOT--bring myself to make another decision about this kitchen, no matter how small.

That's it.  Overall, I'm pleased at how it turned out.  Mostly, I'm just pleased it's finished.

Comments

[Debbie]

It's absolutely beautiful, dear. Congrats on sticking with it!

[chickadee]

it looks wonderful!! what a difference removing those upper cabinets made. i love it.

[Hope]

I love it! I'm getting some ideas! Thanks!

[chris]

It is fabulous! Amazing how taking down the upper peninsula cabinets opened the whole room up.

[Lucy]

Your kitchen looks amazing! We took out the hanging cabinet in our 80s vintage kitchen when we first moved in. I've always been glad we did! Someday we'll get to the rest of it (refinishing or replacing cabinets, new floor, new counters, more lighting, etc.), but it so much of a hassle. I love your counters! And I love your sink. I wish I had stainless steel - my white sink is chipped and always discolored. Yuck. But your kitchen is lovely. :)

[Gretchen]

I'm tired for you! Looks great and cozy, yet updated. Good for you. Enjoy your "new" digs.

[Meg]

Wow, it's just so very CLEAN!

[Jane]

I love the medium grout! The rest is awesome too!

[Amy @ By His Grace]

Great remodel! I know how proud you must feel!

[Vickie]

I love, love the cabinet being removed. Our kitchen is very similar with a cabinet over the snack bar. We have toyed with taking it down and then adding recessed lighting. I can tell you that I have a porcelain sink now and I HATE it! It is so hard to keep clean and things stain it terribly. I have told my husband I want a stainless steel sink for Christmas.

I can't tell but it appears you changed out your knobs and such? I love the way the black shows up. I think your cabinets look great they way they are. It is a great balance between the light floor, quartz, and backsplash.

It looks well worth the dust and headaches it created. Thanks for sharing the pictures with us.

[Cindy]

COngrats! It's gorgeous! I have the same canisters and the dishes that go with them. (Although my canisters are all different conscolors.) I love them! I also keep thinking about buying that poster with the umbrella person on it. Good taste you have! ;)

[Natalie @ Like I Was Saying]

I feel your pain. I remodeled my kitchen a few years ago and during the process was left with NO kitchen for about 6 weeks. With two toddlers and nothing but a microwave, paper plates and a whole lot of dust, it was an experience I won't soon forget. And you're right...you hate to complain but doing a kitchen is the definition of 'no pain, no gain.'

[Tiff@Three Peas in a Pod]

we have that same flourescent lighting our kitchen but only two bulbs work. LOL so half of our kitchen is in the dark! I love the after!! We need to remodel our kitchen too. Just don't have it in us to do it after we totally painted the entire house and refinished the original hard woods (91 yrs old). Whew!! It's a lot of work but worth it in the end!

[whymommy]

Love it, love it, love it! Your before reminds me of our "before" with the hanging cabinets and lighting. I lurve our can lighting ... you will too!

Congrats on getting the hard parts DONE!

[Stephanie]

Love the choices you've made! I'm all about the use of red as a decorative accent. Makes me miss my old kitchen with it's lovely burnt orangey-red walls. My hubby said it was too intense, but looking at yours, I'm thinking I might go back to those colors for accent instead. Thanks for the inspiration!

[Ashley]

It turned out very nice! Taking that cabnit out really made a difference. The new floors and lighting are a big improvment too.

[heather]

beautimous!

[AbsolutelyBananasa]

It looks amazing! And i have that same umbrella picture... clearly we both are women of excellent taste! ;)

[Nic]

Oh how lovely! It looks like a showroom kitchen! And I mean that in a good way.

[Melanie]

Wow! Love the Kitchen! Great job!

[daring one]

When I first read this, I got confused and thought the before picture was the after picture and I thought to myself, "WHY DID SHE DO THAT?"

[Kerith Collins]

wow...that is nice...now i have some pics to show my hubby what my dream kitchen will look like some day...sit back and relax...you and your kitchen deserve it.

[Lisa]

Lovely! I wouldn't waste the time/energy to refinish the cabinets--they look great!

How DO you keep that stove clean? I love the way mine cooks, but have gunk and crud built up on it. I tried the razor blade thing, the special scrub stuff and liquid BarKeepers Friend [last is the best I've found]
What's your secret? How about a WFMW devoted to keeping this kind of stove clean?!! lol

[carrie]

What a beautiful kitchen! I have the same Eiffel Tower clock--it was a college graduation present several years ago.

[Adria]

I love this! It really is beautiful and it's giving me some ideas of what to do with mine. When I win the lottery, of course.

[Mary]

Congrats on your kitchen. I have a suggestion about the cabinets. They look nice in the pics. If you want to spruce them up, get some Bri Wax in a color you like at a wookworker store (Woodcraft is the one we get it at) and rub it on with a cloth, then take an electric drill and put a buffing pad on it and shine the cabinets on the outside and the doors. They look brand new. We did that about 20 years ago to get our house ready to sell. It sold in 30 days. The cabinets were darker than yours and they looked beautiful. By the way, my husband and I are 72 and have been building our house for 20 years. We are in the home stretch and should have the last of the inside done this winter. We have 2 kitchens! Our downstairs kitchen (the original one) is now my canning kitchen and my fancy one is upstairs on the main floor. We finished the canning kitchen this past summer.

[Mary]

OOps. I should have previewed my comment. Woodworker stores.