Let's talk Kitchens !

[Deleted]

What do you love about yours? Hate about yours?

Prefered appliance brands? 

Gas or Electric Stove?  If gas whole unit or cooktop and wall oven? 

Ice maker? No ice maker? 

Countertops? ... Granite, Soapstone, Quartz, Solid Surface... Oh my... 

Upper and lower cabinets? Bought or built in or dyi? 

Island? 

Pantry cupboards or walk in pantry? 

Flooring? 

Lighting? 

Tell me what you have or what you'd like... i need to start finalizing some things. 

[MJ2.0]

My kitchen sucks. Not enough counter space and it's only big enough to comfortably fit a 2 person table.

Basically, I'd like a real kitchen instead of Baby's First Kitchen. But I realize that that will have to wait until I make more money.

[milee]

Countertops that are indestructible - like Quartz - are a necessity for me. After having all of them - laminate, concrete, granite, tile, Corian, quartz - I will never have anything other than something indestructible like Quartz.  It's just too much hassle and stress to worry about staining, scratching or burning the other stuff.  I cook every day and also do projects like canning in the kitchen; the countertops have to be durable without stress.

It's not what I would choose from an aesthetic perspective (ie I think it's kinda ugly), but I love my cork flooring.  It's easy on the feet/back and when I drop a glass (and we don't use plastic so all of our drinkware and most of our cookware is glass), it doesn't break.  I think a non-offgassing alternative like Marmoleum might look better and have similar properties.  The Saltillo in our Phoenix house was nice from the standpoint that it was low maintenance and didn't show every speck of dirt or dog hair, but was hard on the feet and back.  Unless you want to constantly clean or deal with a dirty looking floor, stay away from solid color tile and light grouts.

In Florida an ice maker is a necessity.  Up north it probably depends on the finish level of the house.  

If you look at Consumer Reports, there is no single maker that has a complete line of well performing, reliable appliances.  Not only that, but if you get too focused on being matchy with the appliances, if one breaks you have a single one that really stands out if you have to replace it.  IMHO, get over the old fashioned idea of getting all appliances from one maker.  Instead pick a color or finish and get the best appliance you can with that finish.  Especially if you get hidden or simple handles, it will be fine.

[Anne_in_VA]

Jul 9, 2016 18:01:06 GMT -5 oped said:

What do you love about yours? Hate about yours?

Prefered appliance brands? 

Gas or Electric Stove?  If gas whole unit or cooktop and wall oven? 

Ice maker? No ice maker? 

Countertops? ... Granite, Soapstone, Quartz, Solid Surface... Oh my... 

Upper and lower cabinets? Bought or built in or dyi? 

Island? 

Pantry cupboards or walk in pantry? 

Flooring? 

Lighting? 

Tell me what you have or what you'd like... i need to start finalizing some things. 

My kitchen is too small and when we remodel it in the next couple of years I'm going to take some space from the breakfast area for extra cabinets and put in an island.  I love Samsung appliances.  I've had two and love them! I would prefer gas, but we have electric and I was quoted $4k to bring gas into the kitchen, so it probably won't happen.  No ice maker- hate them as everyone I know who has them has had problems with them.  I plan on getting solid surface countertops.  Not sure which ones yet, but am keeping my eyes open to see what I like.  

SIL will be building the cabinets and I'll have uppers and lowers with the uppers going up to the ceiling, but two sets of uppers, one regular height one and a smaller one above it.   I'll probably have glass doors in the top ones to show off the pretty dishes and glassware that I don't have room for now.

I'll put in a small pantry just for those small appliances that I have nowhere to put now.  

I want recessed lighting throughout the kitchen and breakfast area with pendants over the sink area and island.  I also want lighting in the upper cabinets as well as under cabinet lighting so I have lighting when I work at the counters.

I'm not sure what I'll get for flooring.  I would like some type of wood, but I'm just not sure at this point.  I had wood in my kitchen in a previous home and loved it.  I never had an issue with water as some people say they've had.

[mroped]

I'd love me a really cheap one!
And then I can spend the extra money( ) on some spinning wheels for my truck. Cragar preferably!

It goes like this - no stove/cooking appliances = take out- yay!
                       -no fridge- there is ice at the gas stations if needed and food is best .            consumed fresh!
                       - no table- grab some 2x10s and a couple 2x4s and voila! Rustic look and very functional
                       - countertops? Why do you need prep surface if there is take out?

Shall I go on?

[Anne_in_VA]

Forgot to add - I will have a slide in range plus a wall oven.  I have a cooktop and a wall oven now and wish I had two ovens when cooking for a crowd.

[MJ2.0]

oped I think your DH is trying to tell you something...

[Anne_in_VA]

Oped-you need to let your DH know how expensive take out is and how much money he'll save by you cooking!😜

[alabamagal]

Layout is important to me. Counter space near the stove is good. I hate the smaller kitchens that have an island stuck in the middle that you have to walk around to get from fridge to stove.

I like having a wall oven. I have only had 2 houses and both had wall ovens. I don't like bending over to get stuff out of range oven. My current house has wall oven plus range oven. The range oven was put in by house flippers and has convection. I have only used it three times in the year and a half I have lived here, and once was when my neighbor borrowed it.

My kitchen has limited cabinet space and no pantry. A lot of food is stored in lower cabinets, which I don't like. If there were more than 2 of us living here it would be a big PITA.

My kitchen does have a sliding door out to the deck. It is great for grilling which we do year round. Also plenty of light in the kitchen. But that is part of reason for limited storage and no space for eat in table.

[Deleted]

Think about what you love and hate about your current kitchen.

I love the amount of countertop space--70 linear feet.  What I hate is that there is a triangular corner anchored by the sink on the left and the stove on the right.  The pots and pans are in the lower cabinets in that triangle.

Sounds good, right?  Every time I try to cook, my husband gets into that triangle for some reason.  He is washing his hands, he is setting the table, he is getting a cup of coffee, he is getting his meds (which are there), or SOMETHING.  I tried rearranging the kitchen a couple of times, but it just doesn't work.  On the surface, this is perfect . . . as long as only one person is trying to cook.  The kitchen is actually huge (28 cabinet doors plus drawers) compared to the rest of the house, but it seems so small when my husband gets into that triangle.

So think about how you use your kitchen and design it around your work flow.  I would put the sink away from the stove in my case.  It wouldn't be as convenient when it came to sticking something you have used into the sink, but another user wouldn't be so solidly in the way.

[sesfw]

What do you love about yours? Hate about yours?
Had a total kitchen redo last October and got rid of BLACK counter-tops.


Prefered appliance brands?
We got KitchenAide stainless ... dish washer, range, microwave, fridge


Gas or Electric Stove? If gas whole unit or cooktop and wall oven?
Our home is electric so we replaced a cooktop and single oven with an electric range/dual oven.  Love it.


Ice maker? No ice maker?
In the desert an ice maker is a must.  Our fridge is a side by side.  I've had bottom freezers before and I lose things in them.  So no 'french door' fridge.


Countertops? ... Granite, Soapstone, Quartz, Solid Surface... Oh my...
Got rid of black granite tile and replaced with a much lighter color granite not/busy pattern


Upper and lower cabinets? Bought or built in or dyi?  Cabinets were built by a local cabinet builder, upper and lower.  No glass doors so I don't have to keep them clean.



Island?
Room too small for an island


Pantry cupboards or walk in pantry?
Walk in pantry off the garage entrance.  Very convenient


Flooring?
In the desert tile is the coolest thing to have.  Keep the pattern simple with an eye on color to hide the drops ....... or you'll be cleaning constantly


Lighting?
LED drop lights from Home Depot.  Looked at a designer shop and what we liked cost $250 each.  At HD bought 8 drop lights and 'chandelier' for $300


Tell me what you have or what you'd like... i need to start finalizing some things.  For the way this home is designed, this is the best we could do.  Total spent was $42K including everything.  We had a general contractor do it and the total down time was less than 4 weeks.  Happy with the results, easy to work in and keep clean.

[mroped]

In kitchen design there is something called "efficiency triangle" that sets out ofcourse some rules on setting the appliances. The most important rule is that the distance between two appliances should not be greater than 8 feet.
Now, I don't cook so I have no idea how inconvenient would be if the distance from the fridge to the sink would be greater than that.

No, I don't care that much for take out. I'm just having fun!
In in fact I was the one that strongly recommended/suggested/ liked more a cooking top and wall oven versus a stove. All will be propane.
And the kitchen is her domain, the decision rests entirely with her not me. I'll just have to figure out how to make the money to pay for it(?) if it expands beyond our plans.

[Bonny]

Jul 9, 2016 18:24:20 GMT -5 milee said:

Countertops that are indestructible - like Quartz - are a necessity for me. After having all of them - laminate, concrete, granite, tile, Corian, quartz - I will never have anything other than something indestructible like Quartz.  It's just too much hassle and stress to worry about staining, scratching or burning the other stuff.  I cook every day and also do projects like canning in the kitchen; the countertops have to be durable without stress.

...

If you look at Consumer Reports, there is no single maker that has a complete line of well performing, reliable appliances.  Not only that, but if you get too focused on being matchy with the appliances, if one breaks you have a single one that really stands out if you have to replace it.  IMHO, get over the old fashioned stupid idea of getting all appliances from one maker.  Instead pick a color or finish and get the best appliance you can with that finish.  Especially if you get hidden or simple handles, it will be fine.

What she said!

We remodeled our current kitchen in 2013. I liked the basic layout when we bought 21 years ago and didn't change anything. Original kitchen was built in 1964. Seller had changed out appliances and replaced the old (probably) Formica countertops with laminate and had changed the flooring probably in late 70s early 80s. When we added an addition in 2001 we ran the same tile flooring in both the new breakfast room and the kitchen.

When moved back in 2012 we found that the tenant had scrubbed the laminate with soft scrub which took the finish down to the backer board. Kitchen cabinet was ruined because of a slow leak that hadn't been reported. They had nailed stuff to the cabinet doors.

It gave us the push to do a bigger remodel including taking down a wall between the kitchen and living room. We wanted to do that to let in more light and see a nice view out the living room windows.

The one downside for us of the "open concept" has been the loss of my "quiet space" when DH is cooking. We put in a TV in the cabinet over the over the stove microwave and between the TV, microwave cooking, maybe the exhaust fan blowing it's hard to read with all of that going on. But it's generally only for an hour or so and then when we're done with dinner he'll retreat to his downstairs "man cave" and I've got my quiet space back.

There are always trade-offs!

ETA: Roll-out drawer and shelves are totally worth it!!!

[Lizard Queen]

I'd go quartz countertops all the way, gas cooktop. Wall ovens, maybe one electric, as those are supposed to be better for baking. I'm speaking theoretically here, as my kitchen sucks. I think the U configuration is the absolute worst if you're ever going to have more than 1 person in the kitchen at a time. (I have a U.)

[NancysSummerSip]

Jul 9, 2016 18:01:06 GMT -5 oped said:

What do you love about yours? Hate about yours?

Prefered appliance brands? 

Gas or Electric Stove?  If gas whole unit or cooktop and wall oven? 

Ice maker? No ice maker? 

Countertops? ... Granite, Soapstone, Quartz, Solid Surface... Oh my... 

Upper and lower cabinets? Bought or built in or dyi? 

Island? 

Pantry cupboards or walk in pantry? 

Flooring? 

Lighting? 

Tell me what you have or what you'd like... i need to start finalizing some things. 

I have electric, but grew up with gas. When we redid our kitchen we did explore the possibility of converting. Until we saw what it would cost to install a gas line.

Large appliances are GE/Samsung; dishwasher is new; replaced after eight years. Everything else is original to the renovation. Small appliances are a mix of French (Cuisinart), American (Craftsman) but mostly German (Braun). Flooring is bamboo, lighting is pendant spotlighting from Lowe's, custom cabinets are dark cherry with a mix of glass doors, wood doors and a six-level open industrial shelf on wheels. Counters are Corian, except for my island, which is granite. Backsplashes are black and stainless-steel rectangles and squares. The overall color scheme is black and stainless steel, with accent color of cobalt blue and a lot of small artwork and collected food-themed items scattered around on the walls to add color - old framed ads, restaurant postcards, antique mixing bowls, photos, decorative tiles and of course, my cookbook collection.

[dannylion]

My kitchen is sad and ugly and old, but it's big and has an island and plenty of counter space and storage. I plan to redo it within the next year, whenever I get up the energy to pick out the new cabinets and whatnot. I just want something nice and practical. Probably quartz countertops since people buying houses now seem to expect that, and I want those shelves that pull out and the big drawers for pans and stuff instead of shelves. My main peeve about my current cabinets is that anything at the back of the bottom shelves might as well just stay there because my knees no longer allow me to achieve the contortions necessary to access the backs of bottom cabinets.  I'm just going to buy ready-made cabinets since that's what's here now and I figure ready-made cabinets will probably fit fine.  Apparently having glass doors on some or all of the upper cabinets is now a thing.  I don't want to have to keep my cabinets that tidy, so I will have opaque doors on all the cabinets. 

I replaced all the appliances over the past 15 years, and the stove and dishwasher are still serviceable (KitchenAid dishwasher and Frigidaire glass/ceramic-top stove with a convection oven feature which I have probably used a total of 10 times (the regular oven is more predictable and doesn't burn stuff as quickly).   I'll probably replace the stove and dishwasher, though, as they're probably approaching the end of their predictably trouble-free life.  The refrigerator definitely has to go.  I have hated it since about week 2.  It's a Kenmore Elite giant monstrosity with French doors and freezer on the bottom.  Anything on the refrigerator shelves is likely to freeze, especially if it is something that will be ruined by freezing.  No amount of fiddling with the temperature of the fridgerbox or freezer will alter this.  Anything that can tolerate freezing that is placed in a spot previously holding something that was ruined by freezing will not freeze.  The refrigerator is actively evil.  The only part of it I like is the icemaker.  It resides in the freezer, not the door of the fridgerbox, and it dispenses ice cubes into a giant bin/drawer that pulls out easily for access.  The icemaker always has ice cubes in reserve, so when some are removed, within a couple of minutes, replacements are deposited into the bin.  I hope to find a better fridgerbox with a similar icemaking feature but one that does not seek out freezing-sensitive foods in the fridgerbox and ruin them by freezing. 

The one item I will not give up is my Dismaster faucet device.  I have actually already purchased the newest model in anticipation of the upcoming renovations.  There was a Dishmaster faucet in every house my parents owned beginning in the very early 1950s, and I have had one put into ever house I have owned.  The one I have now has ceased to dispense the soap when the soap button is pushed on the brush wand, and I am like someone who has lost the use of her dominant hand and must learn to use the nondominant hand.  My brain is now hard-wired to use a Dishmaster to rinse or wash dishes and now that mine is malfunctioning and I must wash dishes with other tools, it is like a baby giraffe learning to walk.  I need to get someone in to fix this one soon.  Here's what they look like:  Dishmaster Faucets 

The first one on the top row is the newest model, the second one on the top row is the one I have now, and the first one on the second row is the original style (which they apparently still make).  I love them.  Many people who see them and try to use them for the first time manage to spray water all over the kitchen until they get used to pulling out the brush/spray hose and facing it into the sink.  Some of them tell me my faucet is awful and I'm an idiot for owning one because it sprays water all over the kitchen (nothing is ever their fault).  I don't invite those people back because they are stupid and rude.  But I digress. 

I'm just aiming for a good-quality, mid-range renovation.  A fancy gourmet kitchen would be wasted on me. 

[mroped]

Kitchen could go as wide as 14' or so and about 20' deep if she wants.
Space is not an issue!
We specifically designed the house keeping in mind that common areas need to be open and flowing into other areas.
I believe the countertops will have an "L" shape

[Deleted]

Jul 9, 2016 18:34:36 GMT -5 MJ2.0 said:

oped I think your DH is trying to tell you something...

He usually is... 

[Cookies Galore]

I love our brick wall in our kitchen. I don't like the lack of outlets at counter level. I do like having a gas stove again, though I would love to get a gas/electric combo range sometime in the future.

[thyme4change]

My kitchen has an average amount of counter space - but is laid out so perfectly.  I have 40 linear inches between the fridge and the stove - so lots of room to take stuff out and prep it, and get it into the pot/pan.  I have another 36 inches on the other side of the stove - so if 2 of us are prepping, we each have space.  I have a similiar amount of space on each side of the sink - so I can stack dirty dishes on one side, and clean dishes on the other side.  Then I have two other small sections of counters - one on the opposite side of the fridge that is pretty isolated as far as the flow of the kitchen, so I can put the coffee maker and microwave over there.  Then I have space that is on the wall between the sink side and the stove side.  That is used for all sorts of things - laying out ingredients, to dry clean dishes after we have a lot of dishes (like a party) or as additional prep space.  I like the flexibility.

The other thing I love, love, love is our dishwasher.  I got the most expensive one I could find (at the time) and I don't have to rinse.

Our cabinets were home depot screw together, second from the cheapeast.  I am actually pretty surprised at how well they have held up.  They are now 11 years old, and look pretty good.  My next door neighbor was a contractor and told his wife that they must have been really expensive custom cabinets.  I think they were fighting so maybe he didn't really think that - just needed to say it, but, at least people probably don't notice that they are cheap.  

I don't have an ice maker because I am one of those idiots that has decided tap water doesn't taste good.  Even filtered, ice from makers always taste funny to me.  We buy bags of ice.  {{enter YM flog here}}

[Deleted]

So I'm reading the gas/propane stuff now and maybe I'll stick with electric...  Too many decisions.

[busymom]

I LOVE our kitchen. It's the first place we've lived that actually has enough cabinets. Unfortunately, DH took over one area to store some of his "clean" tools.

We have an electric stove/oven.  Gas heats more evenly, but I didn't want the kids to burn the house down (or set themselves on fire with an open flame), so I made do.  I've learned my electric oven is hotter in the back than the front, so when baking I turn the pan around halfway through. 

We've got a pantry cupboard, which I really like.  But, a walk-in pantry would be really nice.

I would like to upgrade the countertops.  My kids did some minor damage when they were younger.  (DD apparently thought she could use a knife directly on the counter.  Nope.)

[Deleted]

Solid surface if I stay electric? 

[sesfw]

Roll-out drawer and shelves are totally worth it!!!

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

Things I love about my kitchen:  
-large, deep, undermount sink (with a smaller section on the side)
-gas stove top, electric oven( Jenn Air -- works well, cooks evenly--I'm a diehard gas cooking fan
-bottom freezer (I'm short)
-single fridge door -- opens all the way to the side for complete access to the entire fridge)
-the fridge is really, really deep-- holds a ton of food (with all our moves I found many fridges that appeared "big" to actually have pathetically shallow interiors)
-high ceilings with some recessed lighting and some pendants
-wood floors
-tons of natural light
-good size room with a family room as part of the kitchen so I'm not isolated
-work area is along one long wall with a large island centered to the work area
-hidden trash can drawer
-shelf/drawer genies
-deep and wide undercounter drawers
-beautiful bay window over my sink


Things I hate about my kitchen:
-not enough storage for food in the kitchen (only 2 upper cabinets in the work area: one for dishes and glassware and the other for food)
-we made the landing at the top of the cellar stairs into a pantry but it is awkward and inefficient--I dream of re-arranging that landing plus the fridge area plus my first floor full bath into a full bath and a separate butler's pantry
-slide-in stove and oven are in the island.  Not ideal, but because the island is so deep, there is plenty of room for folks to eat/prepare food/do homework, etc. on the other side.  Some narrower islands can get overwhelmed by sinks or stoves installed in them.  I prefer plain islands.
-because of how my ceiling joists run, I cannot install an overhead stove exhaust hood.  The Jenn Air exhaust fan in the stove top is insufficient and pulls the gas flame to the side.
-granite countertops chip plates and break glasses to pieces
-granite countertop edges can chip if hit with enough force or at the right angle
-no AC which makes summer cooking a real drag
-no drawer for recycling bin

ETA:  granite gets cold in the winter if along an outside wall like mine--cools a hot cup of coffee down too fast for my liking

[Deleted]

I LOATHE my kitchen. it has the original fugly ass orange linoleum countertops and pine cabinets. At some point the plan is to rip out the lower cabinets, and the fugly counters, and put baker tables in. DH is unable to grovel around on the floor to dig into them so we're going to put tables with shelves in and put the sink on a separate unit. I just need to find the time to do it and look for the tables. I'm thinking IKEA for everything.

[tskeeter]

Jul 9, 2016 19:12:12 GMT -5 Bonny said:

Jul 9, 2016 18:24:20 GMT -5 milee said:

Countertops that are indestructible - like Quartz - are a necessity for me. After having all of them - laminate, concrete, granite, tile, Corian, quartz - I will never have anything other than something indestructible like Quartz.  It's just too much hassle and stress to worry about staining, scratching or burning the other stuff.  I cook every day and also do projects like canning in the kitchen; the countertops have to be durable without stress.

...

If you look at Consumer Reports, there is no single maker that has a complete line of well performing, reliable appliances.  Not only that, but if you get too focused on being matchy with the appliances, if one breaks you have a single one that really stands out if you have to replace it.  IMHO, get over the old fashioned stupid idea of getting all appliances from one maker.  Instead pick a color or finish and get the best appliance you can with that finish.  Especially if you get hidden or simple handles, it will be fine.

What she said!

We remodeled our current kitchen in 2013. I liked the basic layout when we bought 21 years ago and didn't change anything. Original kitchen was built in 1964. Seller had changed out appliances and replaced the old (probably) Formica countertops with laminate and had changed the flooring probably in late 70s early 80s. When we added an addition in 2001 we ran the same tile flooring in both the new breakfast room and the kitchen.

When moved back in 2012 we found that the tenant had scrubbed the laminate with soft scrub which took the finish down to the backer board. Kitchen cabinet was ruined because of a slow leak that hadn't been reported. They had nailed stuff to the cabinet doors.

It gave us the push to do a bigger remodel including taking down a wall between the kitchen and living room. We wanted to do that to let in more light and see a nice view out the living room windows.

The one downside for us of the "open concept" has been the loss of my "quiet space" when DH is cooking. We put in a TV in the cabinet over the over the stove microwave and between the TV, microwave cooking, maybe the exhaust fan blowing it's hard to read with all of that going on. But it's generally only for an hour or so and then when we're done with dinner he'll retreat to his downstairs "man cave" and I've got my quiet space back.

There are always trade-offs!

ETA: Roll-out drawer and shelves are totally worth it!!!

Ditto to Bonny's endorsement of roll outs in the lower cabinets.  Beats the heck out of getting down on your hand and knees to get at stuff in the back of the bottom shelf.  Also eliminates having to unload and reload  half the cupboard to get at something in the back.  Just pull out the shelf, grab what you want and go.

One of the first things I did after we moved in to this house was to replace the lower cabinet shelves with pull outs.  Ten years ago the pull outs cost $400 and I did the installation.

[debthaven]

We had a total redo using Ikea cabinets. The triangle was perfect so we kept the same footprint.

We now have roll-out drawers (lower cabinets), pull-out shelves (lower corner cabinets) and lazy Susan shelves (upper corner cabinets). They really are life-changing!

What I like less about the redo are the butcher block counters. They look lovely but they are relatively fragile compared to the tile we had before. If money hadn't been an issue we would have gone with quartz. We solved the problem by keeping a giant oak Ikea cutting board permanently placed on part of the counter (it's the same wood so it doesn't look like it's a cutting board).

I'm with Milee on the appliances. We replaced only the stove because it was broken. We kept all our other appliances. They're all white, and we will replace them as we need to, like we always have.

And we have a red glass backsplash that looks fantastic. And the contractor built-in a small niche for a stepping stool (under the counter), with a small shelf (over the counter) for trays.

[Deleted]

We've been in our new-to-us house for a year now.  Changes we made to the kitchen included ripping out the wallpaper and painting it, and installing a gas cooktop instead of the electric range.

Stuff we love:  it's big and roomy, has lots of natural light, and is attractive.

Stuff we're neutral about:  appliances are a mix of black and stainless steel (we don't really get excited about that), countertops are something that looks like marble but feels like hard plastic (Corian, maybe?); what was important to us is that you can put hot pans on it and it won't melt.  Floor is 12 X 12 plastic tiles, also a marbled design.  Easy to clean, doesn't scratch.  We could replace countertops or flooring but I'm in no hurry.  We've had to replace the whole HVAC system since we moved in (original 20-year old system) and that's enough for now.

The only thing I'd say that we don't like is one corner where DH and I always end up together- it's the section between the sink and the stove, so it's a very logical food prep space.  There's an island nearby, though, so one of us generally moves.  The big, shiny Electrolux refrigerator also has a nasty little design flaw; when the icemaker tray gets too full, ice cubes fall down into the back of the freezer drawer on the bottom and if you don't clear them out the door won't close tightly.  We nearly lost a large amount of meat from a recent Costco trip (it was thawing) before we figured that out.  Electrolux "Customer service" was useless. 

Below is one side of the kitchen, after removing the blue plaid (!) wallpaper but before painting.

And here's the other side, after painting.

[Peace Of Mind]

Jul 9, 2016 18:01:06 GMT -5 oped said:

What do you love about yours? Hate about yours? I love my kitchen layout (perfect triangle with no island in the way) with 2 openings - one on both sides of the kitchen, 42" maple spice cabinets (not too light not too dark) with French twist handles (you HAVE to get jewelry for your door/cabinets - they really make the kitchen nicer) with under mount lighting, crown molding, 12 ft. ceilings with crown molding, canned lights and an additional pendant lights over the bar area, granite counter tops, tumbled marble tile back splash with little metal designs in some of them, how it opens into the family room and breakfast area and is very close to the patio so I don't need an outdoor kitchen, but also has easy access to our formal dining room and living room but a wall keeps it out of sight while entertaining, faces the 8 ft. double sliders where I can see outside to the patio, pond, as well as the family room giant window that and 2 in the back of the FR that looks out to the backyard/garden, etc., has plenty of counter space in the important areas like the stove and sink area and a separate little area next to the refrigerator with DH's coffee stuff so he's not under foot (although he still manages to be), and has 2 separate pantries (not walk ins).


What I hate:  Cats under foot when I'm in there - every. single. time.  DH in the way when I'm trying to time all my dishes and have to move quick, and needing to get new appliances before they die.  I dread the entire process but need to do that.   

Prefered appliance brands?  GE, Samsung, Kenmore (but probably not these days on the Kenmore but in the past they were good).  I need to replace mine soon as they are 12 years old this month.  I currently have white (but the sun turned the handles yellow in some places) and will probably get Stainless this time.  I've seen my kitchen with Stainless and it looks fantastic but dread getting them because I'm so anal about finger prints/smudges. 

Gas or Electric Stove? Electric.   If gas whole unit or cooktop and wall oven?  Would not want gas in my home.  Afraid it would blow my house up. 

Ice maker? No ice maker? Ice Maker in Florida is as important as a/c and oxygen. 

Countertops? ... Granite, Soapstone, Quartz, Solid Surface... Oh my... Granite!  Quartz was my second choice but lost because I love shiny and I liked the color choices of Granite better. 

Upper and lower cabinets? Bought or built in or dyi? Upper and lower  - Upper :  42" cabinets are a must along with crown molding.  I didn't upgrade the cabinets but probably will one day when I have nothing better to do - doors only.  I never close the blinds and the sun bleaches them and they aren't the highest grade but some people think they are. 

Island? I've had the giant kitchen with the giant island and I'm just not a fan.  I'm too spastic and move quickly and constantly ran into it and going around it was exhausting.  I prefer normal size kitchens.  Not too large and not too small.  Just cleaning the counters took an hour when I had the giant one!  But a bar is a must.  Mine is where the sink is so I can chat with DH and guests while I'm washing stuff.

Pantry cupboards or walk in pantry? 2 separate pantry cupboards.  Don't love or hate walk ins but feel they are wasted space.  I like the 2 separate ones because I have "categories" and I know where everything is without going through deep/wide shelves to find stuff.

Flooring? Tile.  Always tile for me.

Lighting? Canned lights in the ceilings, Pendants over the bar, and under mount lighting under all the cabinets.  I don't know  how I lived without under mount lighting all the years prior but I won't ever again!

Tell me what you have or what you'd like... i need to start finalizing some things. I thought I just did! 

ETA:  I just remembered more stuff - huge deep under mount double sink, quiet garbage disposal (stainless) and a high arched faucet so you can put large/high pots under it easily to fill or wash, separate sprayer and soap thingy.  The faucet has to be with one handle that I can bump up and down easily with all hand/wrist/arm parts when my hands are full. 

Laundry room is right next to it from the garage for easy transport of groceries, etc. and I can cycle laundry while right there but they are separate rooms. 

Please see bolded answers above.