We're considering having an apron-front or farmhouse sink in the kitchen. I've heard of the Ikea one below but not sure if it will work with my Lowe's cabinets. Anyone have comments on this sink (or apron front sinks in general)? Are they durable? Any special considerations?
Each day, as I drive up to my house, I notice how 'unnoticable' it is. It
looks like all the other houses on the street (and granted, I love how the
row of red-brick semis makes me feel like I live in a leafy Boston
suburb), but I can't help but wish it had a bit more presence. The
shutters made a bit of a difference and at least I can tell which house is
mine. Once the weather turns warmer, I'll be nagging HandyMan to paint the
window trims and the front door. I also want to change the house numbers
to something more modern.
On our honeymoon, HandyMan and I stayed at the Gran Hotel Domaine Bilbao. Its a stunning place and our room literally overlooked the Guggenheim. One of my favourite things about the hotel were the numbers and lettering found throughout.
On our honeymoon, HandyMan and I stayed at the Gran Hotel Domaine Bilbao. Its a stunning place and our room literally overlooked the Guggenheim. One of my favourite things about the hotel were the numbers and lettering found throughout.
For a font fanatic like me, I was in heaven! Each floor had lettering in a different font. Some were oversized and graphic, others were italicized and scripty. They varied in thickness too, with some floating on the wall, casting interesting shadows. This is the look I want to greet me at my door: sleek, shiny and modern.
I did it. I went right up to her, I shook her hand, I introduced myself. And I talked to Sarah.
I'm sure many of you out there can relate. Have you ever had the chance to meet someone you admire greatly? Your hands get sweaty, you think "I can't talk to her. She'll think I'm a dork". And you wait those long tense moments for the crowd to disappear until you get your brief shining moment. See, I've got history with Sarah. I've loved her since the Room Service days when she worked on cheap makeovers of rental apartments. And now, with Design Inc., everybody knows her name and nary a rental in sight.
Tonight, HandyMan and I went to the Interior Design Show. I was intent on asking Sarah to be in our next Pecha Kucha. And after some not-so-gentle prodding by HandyMan, I made my pitch. "Have you heard of Pecha Kucha?" No, I haven't. What's a Pecha Kucha? "Do you think you could speak at our next one in May?" In between production for the show, and time with the family... I'll have to get back to you. If I begged you, would you do it? Please, please, pretty please?
Okay, so I didn't ask that last question. I was pretty professional. I name dropped (the Mayor, Bruce, and Don were all speakers at the first Pecha Kucha), I stayed calm, and I gave her the 30-second elevator pitch. I'll have to follow up with an email and send her the details. Fingers crossed that the stars will align on this one.
But that doesn't matter. I've got one more thing off The Bucket List. At least I can say I tried. But maybe it wouldn't hurt to send Sarah a copy of our book. You know, to let her know I'm legit and not really the stalker I appeared to be tonight :o\
I'm sure many of you out there can relate. Have you ever had the chance to meet someone you admire greatly? Your hands get sweaty, you think "I can't talk to her. She'll think I'm a dork". And you wait those long tense moments for the crowd to disappear until you get your brief shining moment. See, I've got history with Sarah. I've loved her since the Room Service days when she worked on cheap makeovers of rental apartments. And now, with Design Inc., everybody knows her name and nary a rental in sight.
Tonight, HandyMan and I went to the Interior Design Show. I was intent on asking Sarah to be in our next Pecha Kucha. And after some not-so-gentle prodding by HandyMan, I made my pitch. "Have you heard of Pecha Kucha?" No, I haven't. What's a Pecha Kucha? "Do you think you could speak at our next one in May?" In between production for the show, and time with the family... I'll have to get back to you. If I begged you, would you do it? Please, please, pretty please?
Okay, so I didn't ask that last question. I was pretty professional. I name dropped (the Mayor, Bruce, and Don were all speakers at the first Pecha Kucha), I stayed calm, and I gave her the 30-second elevator pitch. I'll have to follow up with an email and send her the details. Fingers crossed that the stars will align on this one.
But that doesn't matter. I've got one more thing off The Bucket List. At least I can say I tried. But maybe it wouldn't hurt to send Sarah a copy of our book. You know, to let her know I'm legit and not really the stalker I appeared to be tonight :o\
Step 1: Find the cabinetry. Step 2: Everything else. Now that we have figured
out the style and look of the kitchen cabinets, we're on to more fun stuff --
picking out the floor, backsplash, and countertop.
I'm drawn to white kitchens and prefer a classic casual yet warm look.
White subway tile backsplash, carrera marble counters, white ceramic sink - so timeless. But HandyMan has other ideas. He'd prefer something with a bit more pattern and colour, maybe bring in the brown tones from the other rooms in the house. Here's some of what we've found so far to suit both our tastes.
The kitchen backsplash
Our first love was this hexagon tile in a calcutta marble. So beautiful!
The shape is something you'd see more typically used on a vintage bathroom
floor, so we thought using as a backsplash would be a new spin on an old
classic and very unexpected. Unfortunately, the more we looked at it, the
more we realized what a pain in the butt it would be to cut all the tiles
and have them sit straight and flush with the countertops.
Now the mini brick tiles in marble -- awesome!! We found these "Venus Marble Mosaic Tiles in Milky Way" from Olympia Tile
The mini subway tiles were great too, but the travertine ones were a bit
textured and would be difficult to clean. The scale of these was also a
bit small for the space.
Now the mini brick tiles in marble -- awesome!! We found these "Venus Marble Mosaic Tiles in Milky Way" from Olympia Tile
The showroom sample had a bit more pink and yellow than the sample we
took home, so I'm hoping with a whole backsplash of these we'll get a bit
more variation and interest. The shape is pretty unique too, 1 x 2, and I
haven't seen this used much. I think its more interesting than the popular
white subway tiles but still gives the same classic kind of feel. What do
you think??
More to come!
More to come!
We've decided on our cabinetry but I came across
thissite via Baltimore Rowhouse
which features some great kitchen inspiration pics. Be warned -- there are
literally hundreds of photos, with almost every combination of cabinet
species, colour, and tile imaginable! The best part: all sources for materials
are listed!
It's done. We've finally decided on the kitchen cabinetry. We started this kitchen journey not knowing much about how to select kitchen cabinets but our market research proved fruitful. After making a few more trips this weekend to look once again at the Canac, Aya, and Lowe's cabinetry options we have found exactly what we want. But before I tell you about what we selected, I'll tell you which kitchen cabinets we didn't select.
Canac:
The price was right with Canac and the kitchen designer was most helpful. We had heard positive reviews about the quality of their cabinetry so that was not an issue. They did offer a shaker style door... but in the end, it was the stipply textured finish of the thermofoil which knocked out this contender. It wasn't that bad, and as they say "Many will see, but few will notice" but we couldn't bear the thought of looking at and touching these cabinets for the next ten years and just thinking... eww. Maybe we're being finicky about the details but we knew we could find something betterIkea:
After encountering the stipplies, HandyMan and I booted over to Ikea. Even their cabinet finishes felt nicer to the touch. But we couldn't bring ourselves to buy our kitchen at Ikea. I'm sure their quality is great and their product looks great and all, but we were hoping for a more custom, built-in look.Aya and Altima
Both of these custom kitchen manufacturers offered a great product. We just saw an Aya kitchen in Junebug and Frisco's kitchen (which looks absolutely awesome, btw) and knew you would get quality for the money. But was it worth double the price of the Canac cabinets? Hmmm, not so sure.Kitchen Craft at Lowe's
We originally priced a KraftMaid kitchen at Lowe's but soon realized that we really didn't want framed construction. Then we checked out another line offered at the store - the new Imprezza line by Kitchen Craft. Lucky for us, they offered a white thermofoil door in a satin finish (i.e. no stipplies!). And the price? Same as the Canac! Woohee, our prayers were answered.There were a few things we liked about this line:
- no cracking: Because the coating is a thermofoil on mdf, there is no chance for cracking or separating of the finish. With painted wood doors, the wood can expand or contract based on humidity - which means the paint can crack. You'll notice the cracking along the mitred corners, or along the recessed interior seams.
- satin finish: The door feels almost like its laquered. It has a smooth finish, meaning easier cleanup.
- finished front and back: The thermofoil 'wraps' the whole door, giving it a smooth finish front and back. In the past, some thermofoil finishes were only applied to the front of the door, and a laminate was wrapped along the remaining edges and back side. As a result, the laminate would tend to peel when exposed to high heat -- not a good thing when you've got cabinets butting up against your stove!
- option for soft close: I really wanted this feature. This line doesn't offer just the soft close hardware; instead, you pay a reasonable charge of $75 per drawer to get a better drawer with the soft close, plywood drawer sides, wood grain laminate finish, and dovetail joints. Since drawers will get a lot of wear and tear, I think this is a fair price for a good upgrade
Lessons Learned
Here's a few tips we learned which may help those of who are considering different kitchen cabinet manufacturers:- Visit the big box stores first. Sit with a kitchen designer and do a layout. Most likely they will give you a printout of that layout with an itemized cost list. You can then take that layout (if you're happy with it) to other providers and do a cost comparison.
- Most kitchen manufacturers offer the same basic frame - a white melamine interior. So, what you're really paying for is the cabinet door. Look at the door and touch it. Make sure you like the finish. Know the differences between painted, stained, or thermofoil finishes.
- Know all the problems with your existing kitchen that you want fixed. One issue we had was where to store the KitchenAid stand mixer. We solved it by having one lower base cabinet fitted with a roll-out drawer. We chose one roll-out instead of two because of the height of the mixer.
- Find out the tolerance level. With the Imprezza line, filler pieces go up to three inches. That means for a full bank of cabinets, they could be 'short' of the wall up to six inches. And why is that important? Well, because we aren't moving any of the walls, we can take measurements before demo and order the cabinets right away. This shortens the timeline greatly -- with many kitchen manufacturers, they won't even take measurements until demo has been completed and the new drywall has been put up. With a 4-6 week delivery time, this means that cabinet manufacturing and demo/plumbing/electrical/tiling etc can now happen concurrently and we're without a kitchen for a very short period of time.
Wishing you all a Happy Valentine’s Day. Hope your hearts and homes are filled with love!
(Kohler Eclectic Kitchen Inspiration)
From L to R: Elkay Arezzo Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet; Grohe Ladylux Pro; Tango by THG; Tara Ultra by Dornbracht; Elio by Dornbracht; Aberdeen by Moen; Hansgrohe Stratos HighArc Single-Hole with 2 Spray Pull-Out; Kohler HiRise Two Handle; IQ by Jado; American Standard Culinaire Hi-Flow Pull-Out; Arwa Surf; Blanco Precision
Any ideas on what to look for in a kitchen faucet? I suspect that faucets are like paint -- you get what you pay for so its worth it to spend a little more.
Next item on our kitchen reno hunt is a faucet. I'm not sure really exactly what to look for although there are a few features I'd like:
- single handle lever
- brushed stainless finish
- pull out spray
- maybe a gooseneck style
Here's a few that have caught my eye:
From L to R: Elkay Arezzo Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet; Grohe Ladylux Pro; Tango by THG; Tara Ultra by Dornbracht; Elio by Dornbracht; Aberdeen by Moen; Hansgrohe Stratos HighArc Single-Hole with 2 Spray Pull-Out; Kohler HiRise Two Handle; IQ by Jado; American Standard Culinaire Hi-Flow Pull-Out; Arwa Surf; Blanco Precision
Any ideas on what to look for in a kitchen faucet? I suspect that faucets are like paint -- you get what you pay for so its worth it to spend a little more.
Came across this article via shakhammer.com. Its got a good list of home expense money saving tips... and with the kitchen reno budget ever growing, I need all the help I can get!
Some of my favourite ideas on how to save money on home expenses:
- Unplug appliances you’re not using. Even if an appliance is turned off, it still uses a small amount of energy, if it’s plugged in. This is especially effective if you're going out of town.
- Have an energy audit performed on your home. Many electric companies offer energy audits free. You can call and have someone come out to your house and tell you about changes you could make to make your home more energy efficient.
- Keep your freezer full. It uses less electricity that way. If you have extra space, fill it with plastic water bottles.
- Put a half gallon water jug in your toilet tank.
- Reuse dryer sheets to dust electronics like the TV and computer screen. The anti-static in the dryer sheets will repel dust from your appliances.
HandyMan and I have had quite a tiring weekend. We are in full renovation planning mode. And in two days, we've been to Canac for an updated estimate, Aya Kitchens for a look at their cabinets, Home Outfitters to search for an end table I saw in Canadian House & Home magazine, Saltillo Tiles to start looking at our tile options, Lowe's to check out its newly opened store, Designer Fabrics to return the fabrics, HandyMan's office to do a CAD drawing of the kitchen, back to Lowe's for a kitchen estimate, and finally Olympia Tile to see more tile. WHEW! And in between, we fit in dinner with friends, a housewarming party, and cooking of a pork roast. I am soooo ready for another weekend :o\
We learned alot of good things and some not so good things during our travels. Most disappointingly, it might be back to the drawing board for our kitchen provider. We were really happy with the Canac quote we received, but upon a second look at their products, I'm not sure if I'm entirely satisfied with the quality. We had chosen a plain shaker style door in white. A true "white" door can't be achieved through painting so many cabinet manufacturers offer only a thermofoil MDF door or the more expensive stained white door (which requires many coats of stain). While I was fine with the thermofoil white door, I didn't quite like the texture. Both HandyMan and I agreed that it reminded us of those bad laminate Ikea cabinets where the laminate would start to peel after a few months revealing the crumbly particleboard underneath. Instead of a nice smooth lacquered finish, the cabinets had a stipply cheap-ish feel. AGH! And we were thisclose to sealing the deal!
So, we traipsed across the city in search of a better alternative. We got a quote from Lowe's which fell about 25% higher than the Canac quote - but it was for a stained white wood door and for what seemed to be better quality. However, it was framed construction cabinets which was not what we wanted. We're waiting for a revised quote using a thermofoil door (which doesn't feel stipply) and frameless construction.
On top of that, we're now reconsidering the quote we got from Altima. It was about 80% higher than Canac -- but once again, offered a painted smooth MDF finish, better construction, soft close drawers, wood veneer interior and whole bunch of other good stuff that makes it worth the 80%, lol.
So where are we at? Here's our options:
- go for the Canac but get doors that don't feel right at a price that is right
- go to Lowe's and get the right doors but wrong cabinet construction at a price that is okay
- go to Lowe's to get the right doors and right cabinets at a price that may be okay
- go to Altima to get the right doors and the best cabinets at a price that is higher than I want to pay
- call the whole thing off
With the amount of work this is taking, I'm slightly inclined to take that last route. But we'll wait and see... I just know our perfect kitchen is out there. Its just going to take a few more weekends to find it.
We learned alot of good things and some not so good things during our travels. Most disappointingly, it might be back to the drawing board for our kitchen provider. We were really happy with the Canac quote we received, but upon a second look at their products, I'm not sure if I'm entirely satisfied with the quality. We had chosen a plain shaker style door in white. A true "white" door can't be achieved through painting so many cabinet manufacturers offer only a thermofoil MDF door or the more expensive stained white door (which requires many coats of stain). While I was fine with the thermofoil white door, I didn't quite like the texture. Both HandyMan and I agreed that it reminded us of those bad laminate Ikea cabinets where the laminate would start to peel after a few months revealing the crumbly particleboard underneath. Instead of a nice smooth lacquered finish, the cabinets had a stipply cheap-ish feel. AGH! And we were thisclose to sealing the deal!
So, we traipsed across the city in search of a better alternative. We got a quote from Lowe's which fell about 25% higher than the Canac quote - but it was for a stained white wood door and for what seemed to be better quality. However, it was framed construction cabinets which was not what we wanted. We're waiting for a revised quote using a thermofoil door (which doesn't feel stipply) and frameless construction.
On top of that, we're now reconsidering the quote we got from Altima. It was about 80% higher than Canac -- but once again, offered a painted smooth MDF finish, better construction, soft close drawers, wood veneer interior and whole bunch of other good stuff that makes it worth the 80%, lol.
So where are we at? Here's our options:
- go for the Canac but get doors that don't feel right at a price that is right
- go to Lowe's and get the right doors but wrong cabinet construction at a price that is okay
- go to Lowe's to get the right doors and right cabinets at a price that may be okay
- go to Altima to get the right doors and the best cabinets at a price that is higher than I want to pay
- call the whole thing off
With the amount of work this is taking, I'm slightly inclined to take that last route. But we'll wait and see... I just know our perfect kitchen is out there. Its just going to take a few more weekends to find it.
One option for the guest bedroom... sleep and awake... a palette of
watery blues and vibrant oranges.
Clockwise from top left: Devin CA97/25358 and Aberdeen 5094/22814 fabrics from Designer Fabric Outlet, paper suitcases from Paper Source, owl tree prints from etsy seller yumiyumi, Pottery Barn milk glass lamps, Ikea Hensvik bookcase, Jonathan Adler Woven Printed Sheet Set, Andrea Rund rug from Ikea, Jonathan Adler lacquer nesting cubes.
The fabric samples I mentioned in my previous post need to be returned to Designer Fabrics this weekend. I think we've pretty much picked the silk needed for the dining room curtains. So what did we do with the other 10 samples? Well, yes, we've started working on things for another room in the house (and if you've been paying attention, that makes it 4 rooms we're making plans on... kitchen, dining room, deck, and this bedroom... all in play, not much accomplished, lol).
We're using the fabric in the guest bedroom. It's a fair sized room, about 10x13. So far, we've done nothing with it except remove the horrid shag blue carpet and the dated wallpaper border. Oh, and we had to harvest a few floorboards from the bedroom to fix the floor downstairs in the living room, plus we tried out a few test patches of floor stain. No matter, we're covering it all in carpet anyways.. but the next homeowners may be peeved to find the stain patches and the big piece of plywood where the wood was cut out. Oops ;o\
The room will function as a guestroom and possibly eventually a nursery (yes, Dianne, I've mentioned it again, lol!). Any fabrics we pick will stay so they'll have to work under both schemes. For inspiration, I once again looked to my favourite designer Sarah Richardson who did this for her own nursery. The palatte isn't typical for a nursery, not too cutesy or cuddly. And how fun is that giraffe lamp! So with that in mind, here are the contenders.
Pretty awesome don't you think? We've played with them a bit, mixed and matched and come up with a few interesting combinations. Have a look at some of our favourites:
I'm partial to the first and last combos, though the yellowy fabric in the first pic is $61/yard so it might be out of the running. Then again, we don't need much of it. Here's the window in the bedroom. Our plans are to remove the existing shelving and place 3-foot tall Ikea cabinets on either side of the window. Then we'll build out a bench seat over the rad. It'll be deeper then the cabinets and we'll put a cushion on top. I've always loved the look of window benches. I realize it'll probably be more decorative than functional since the window hangs so low, but it'll be pretty none the less.
We're close to defining the look but not there yet. I'll put together some inspiration boards with the fabric and maybe, finally, we can decide a palette and can choose a paint colour. I'm so tired of looking at the unfinished walls :o\
We're using the fabric in the guest bedroom. It's a fair sized room, about 10x13. So far, we've done nothing with it except remove the horrid shag blue carpet and the dated wallpaper border. Oh, and we had to harvest a few floorboards from the bedroom to fix the floor downstairs in the living room, plus we tried out a few test patches of floor stain. No matter, we're covering it all in carpet anyways.. but the next homeowners may be peeved to find the stain patches and the big piece of plywood where the wood was cut out. Oops ;o\
The room will function as a guestroom and possibly eventually a nursery (yes, Dianne, I've mentioned it again, lol!). Any fabrics we pick will stay so they'll have to work under both schemes. For inspiration, I once again looked to my favourite designer Sarah Richardson who did this for her own nursery. The palatte isn't typical for a nursery, not too cutesy or cuddly. And how fun is that giraffe lamp! So with that in mind, here are the contenders.
Pretty awesome don't you think? We've played with them a bit, mixed and matched and come up with a few interesting combinations. Have a look at some of our favourites:
I'm partial to the first and last combos, though the yellowy fabric in the first pic is $61/yard so it might be out of the running. Then again, we don't need much of it. Here's the window in the bedroom. Our plans are to remove the existing shelving and place 3-foot tall Ikea cabinets on either side of the window. Then we'll build out a bench seat over the rad. It'll be deeper then the cabinets and we'll put a cushion on top. I've always loved the look of window benches. I realize it'll probably be more decorative than functional since the window hangs so low, but it'll be pretty none the less.
We're close to defining the look but not there yet. I'll put together some inspiration boards with the fabric and maybe, finally, we can decide a palette and can choose a paint colour. I'm so tired of looking at the unfinished walls :o\