Today I am joining Susan at Between Naps On The Porch
for
Metamorphosis Monday.
Thank you, dear Susan.
Many of you know that we had been having our kitchen painted. That doesn't sound too bad, does it? But when I say painted, I mean painted ... the pantry, all of the molding, the ceiling, the walls and the cabinets. Everything (and I had a lot of everything) had to be moved. Who knew I had so much stuff? I found things in the pantry that I remembered purchasing, but they had been lost in the dark hole.
We closed on our home in 1990, but we had a contract on it in late 1989. The issue was that we had to sell our home in Florida, and we couldn't move until the end of the school year in June 1990.
The lady that owned the house we were purchasing moved out in December 1989. She had friends that needed to rent because their home was being leased for the filming of a movie. They lived in the house we were purchasing for several months.
I saw the house in September 1989, and it was beautifully decorated and meticulous. Then I didn't see it again until we moved in June 1990. I had someone take photos for me because there were so many things I couldn't remember. As you will see, the renters were not meticulous - at all. I was shocked when I saw the photos, but I still knew I liked the house. We knew there were many things we wanted to change, but the big surprise was just how nasty the renters had kept the house.
So please keep in mind that the first three pictures were made before we moved in the house, but I need to show you so you will be able to see the changes.
These first three pictures show
the stained cabinets and molding,
and the red checked wallpaper.
The island was stained the same as the cabinets.
The first thing we did was clean, clean, clean.
And, then we removed the wallpaper.
The walls had not been sized,
and the wallpaper came down in very small strips.
It took forever,
but thank goodness if was gone - forever.
I had purchased wallpaper for the kitchen and breakfast room,
but by the time we finished removing the old,
we were sick of wallpaper.
So, we painted.
There were so many changes we wanted to make in the house,
and we slowly worked on projects throughout.
Here is how the kitchen looked after it was cleaned and the wallpaper removed.
Over the years, we replaced the laminate counters and backsplash
with Corian and ceramic tiles.
Eventually all of the appliances were replaced.
We had slide-out drawers put in the lower cabinets. What a relief to my back.
And, we also painted the island cabinet a bright raspberry,
and early last year we added molding to the island.
Most of the farm animals belonged to my mother,
and I had to slowly wean her from them.
I always wanted to paint the cabinets and the molding,
but my husband was reluctant.
What is it with men and wood?
Then one day last Autumn,
my husband asked me if I still wanted to paint.
Well, you can guess that I didn't think twice about jumping on that project.
I got a price to have glass put in some of the upper cabinet doors,
and chose my paint colors.
But, the holidays were fast approaching,
and we decided to wait until after the first of the year.
The next pictures show the state of the kitchen during the process.
So many steps and what a mess.
But, it was all worth it.
We love our "new" kitchen.
One special knob. I got this inspiration from
Penny at The Comforts of Home.
Thank you for your patience with this long story
and all of the photos.
Happy Valentine's Day.
Help yourself to some chocolate.
