Farmhouse kitchen renovation

Our little farmhouse has been waiting for us for a while now. We are taking a leap of faith (that our house will sell soon), and beginning renovations. Actually, my Dad already renovated parts of the house. The house is livable now. But we are making some changes that will make it feel like our home.

Starting in the kitchen...
Here is my wish list:

• shabby chic table and chairs (white) with modern fabric on seats
• brushed bronze hardware
• vintage-style lighting
• open shelves (white)
• light gray walls
• hutch for pantry
• stainless steel appliances
• dark wood on floors

Here are a few inspiration kitchens:

1. chameleon-interiors.blogspot.com

2. homedesignfind.com

3. marthastewart.com

4. better homes and gardens website

The first thing I did was pick out the paint color for the walls which is a light grey. And I picked out fabric color for chairs/curtains. It is a fun yellow and white geometric pattern. Then we got stainless steel appliances.

Last week the carpenter ripped out one section of cabinets. Now our "U" shaped kitchen is an "L". All the cabinets and appliances line the wall now. So, we bought the free-standing island below. The picture is terrible. It's about 6 feet long. The wood is a rich rosewood and the top is white marble. We got it at an amazing price from Nadeau furniture store.

For the light fixtures we will have a few can lights over the counter tops and I plan to buy some chunky lamps from Home Goods. Also, I just ordered the fixtures below from Home Depot.

Andy calls the current hardware on the cabinets and drawers "pirate style". They really are interesting. Although I dread the amount of putty, sanding, and drilling it will require, we will replace the old handles with bronze library pulls. (And while we are at it, we have got to paint the inside of the drawers and cabinets.) The floor is currently linoleum. We are replacing it with this laminate flooring from Home Depot (hardwood=too pricey):

And the finale will be adding colorful accessories on the shelves and wall like these. Although I love the shabby chic, all-white kitchens...I have to have bright punches of color!So far, the "U" cabinets have been ripped out, the shelves are almost done, the dishwasher and microwave have been installed, the can lights have been added, and the floors have been leveled. If you have a big imagination you might be able to envision it all. Here is the current look (note the pirate hardware on the cabinets):Our new stove/oven will be under the microwave. That fan (above) will go bye-bye. And the other one (below) will be replaced with the chandelier. See that long wall on the left below? We will have a big hutch that will be used as a pantry. No walk in pantry in a 1950s farmhouse!That big grey stripe on the floor is where the cabinets used to come across the floor. They were floor to ceiling. The kitchen area was TINY and the eat-in are HUGE. Now it is all open. That leveling cement is all over the floor because one of the floor joists was not even and the floor had a ripple like a wave. The carpenter fixed it for us and soon it will be covered and forgotten! You can't tell from these photos, but there are 4 doorways from this kitchen! The only window is the glass door to the right of the frig. The house has been added-on in the back and therefore all the windows became walls for back rooms. The lack of natural light will be a challenge! But other than that problem, everything is going to be lovely when we are done.

Like I said, you have be a visionary to see what it will look like when we are through! We've got a long way to go! But I am so excited. Who knew that we would move to an old farmhouse and I would get to design my dream kitchen??

This month:

• Carpenter will install light fixtures
• Carpenter will install flooring
• The entire house will be re-wired
• Carpenter will install stove/oven range
• Carpenter will move island into kitchen
• I will pick up hutch found at local antique market and paint it (light or turquoise blue)
• I will paint and recover our dining room chairs (white)
• Painter will paint the walls (gray) and the shelving (white)

Next month:

• Kids' bedrooms to be painted and new lighting installed
• Master bedroom painted and new lighting installed
• Renovate bathroom

More updates to come!