Progress Report: Kitchen Tile

I’m happy to report that my kitchen is getting brighter every day!  Over the weekend, I installed most of the white subway tile.  It was going so well, looking so fabulous… (ignore the gaps… they require tricky cuts, so I’m avoiding them.)

Until yesterday when I came to a screeching halt.  I stood back and looked at it in the bright sunlight, and realized that the tiles that I’ve chosen might be TOO white.

I love the Moonlight White paint color that I used on my walls and cabinets (Benjamin Moore OC-125).  My color guru Anne-Marie described it as “a warm white that embraces.”  The tiles are definitely a cool white.  Blurg. 

I decided to take a day off and decide if it’s really a huge problem, or if I’m over reacting. 

Here are my thoughts.  I’m ok with a different shades of white in the room.  Plus, the tiles aren’t grouted yet, which will change the look again, and the big section of tile will have open shelving in front of it.  It’s also hard to visualize the final look without the cabinet doors.  Maybe I should just finish it as is, and hope that it turns out ok. 

HOWEVER… if I decided that I absolutely can not tolerate it, I think I have three options:

1. Carefully remove the tiles one by one so I don’t destroy the plasterboard that we just installed, order new tiles that are the perfect warm shade of white, and start over.  (I ran this option by Jeff… hahaha… it’s NOT going to happen.)

2. Prime, paint, and poly the tiles before I grout.  This option would give me the perfect color, and from the research I did, I think the paint would be durable enough in this application.  (BUT, kind of an extreme option.  And so like me to have to paint something because I don’t quite like it the way it is.)

3. Keep the bright white tiles and re-paint the cabinets a cooler white like Decorator’s White (CC-20) or Ultra White (CC-10).  (This option would be the least amount of work since I haven’t painted my cabinet doors yet.  But I love my Moonlight White, so I’m reluctant to give it up.)

Omg… I hope that I like it once it’s all done!  Reading the above options makes me cringe.

Sigh.  What to do.  Input welcome…

Affordable Art with Style at Home

Original art is one of the best ways to elevate the style factor in your home.  And guess what?  It doesn’t have to cost a fortune. 

Elaine Song, Web Editor for Style at Home, has put together a roundup of fantastic ideas for adding original art to your home on a budget.  The article features creative ideas from ten bloggers (including me!)   

straight on 3

Hop over to see where I found the affordable artwork for my living room.

Thank you Elaine for including me in this great article!

Progress Report: Cabinet Frames and Insides

Well, the kitchen is looking a lot brighter and whiter than it was on Friday!  Cleaning out my cabinets was probably the best/worst part of the process so far.  Best because I was able to de-clutter and donate a whole bunch of stuff that I no longer use.  Worst because, duh, cleaning sucks. 

You know how sometimes you start a job, then it snowballs, and ends up being a much bigger job than you anticipated?  That happened.  Once I had everything out of my cabinets, I realized how truly icky the insides were.  Not only were they kind of dirty, but also they were that sad almond color that goes hand in hand with the infamous ‘oak package’ of the 1980’s.  I really couldn’t imagine having clean white cabinet doors, and sad dingy cabinet insides, so I had to prime and paint the insides as well.  Blurg.  What a pain.  Each shelf was like painting a tiny little room including the ceiling.  But worth the effort.

Before:

After:

    

I also ended up sticking some faux-stainless steel contact paper on the shelf bases.  I was worried that the paint would end up scratching with wear and tear, plus, the stainless paper is slippery and easy to clean. 

The next logical step is prepping and priming the doors.  But I might take a detour and do the tiling next.  I think that tiling is more realistic this week.  I have FOUR boys in the house this week (two of mine + two of my sister’s.)  Or am I crazy to think I can get anything accomplished with four boys around?  

Friday!

Happy Friday everyone!  It’s a long weekend in Canada, and the kids are off school next week, so everyone is extra happy today. 

I’ve been doing a lot of kitchen work this week, and it seems like it’s been going relatively slowly.  Prepping is the worst.  I had to take everything out of my cabinets so that I could sand the frames.  What a MESS!!!  Plus, this is what my dining room looks like as a result:

Have a great weekend!  I’m off to start priming… for real this time!

On my mind

Kitchens.  It’s all I think about right now. 

Well, actually, I originally posted the hilarious ‘adult’ valentine card that one of my kids brought home from preschool yesterday.  But then I kind of felt like I was making fun of another parent, so I took it down. 

Hence, we’re back to kitchens.  Here are a few of my favourites this week:

love this kitchen

designed by Kitchen Lab.

Love the lighting, the tile, the black & white scheme, the stools.

orange 

Found on Pinterest from The Lettered Cottage, but I think it’s scanned from Living Etc magazine.

Loving the tile, the lights, the stools, the bookshelves and the colourful chairs.

Well, I better get on with my day.  I decided to paint the cabinets before I tile the backsplash in my kitchen.  I’m prepping today.  Maybe I’ll even prime a little! 

Happy Heart Day!

Today’s post was obviously going to be red.  It’s my favourite color after all.  And really, when it comes to red interiors, nothing compares to David Hicks’ designs from the ‘60’s and ‘70’s.  I never get tired of studying the David Hicks Archive… the styling, the mix of traditional and modern pieces, the art, the geometrics. 

In honour of valentines day, get ready to see a LOT of red… these rooms are smothered in red… and they are all super fabulous!

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Happy Valentines Day!

All images from the David Hicks Archive.

Progress Report: Kitchen Demo

This has been a good kitchen week!

Gone:

- old backsplash

- the bulk head above the sink and peninsula

Still to Go:

- the florescent light fixture (I need to find new fixtures first!)

Some action shots:

I managed to tear down all of the tiles on my own.  As you can see… it damaged the wall.  A lot!!!  So I had to call in my Dad to help me out with replacing drywall and tearing down the bulk head. 

Last week / today:

It’s not as obvious in the photo as it is in person, but removing that bulk head really opened the room up.  It feels so much taller and lighter!

The next step is tile!  I’m excited!

Kitchen Inspiration: Lighting

I’m all set to do the final bits of demo in my kitchen this week!  Woohoo!  The tile is already down (along with big chunks of drywall… oh well.)  Tomorrow the bulk-head is coming down and the new drywall is going up!  Fun times.

I need to get focused on lighting.  I think I might want two of the same fixture in the kitchen to replace my old florescent box, and then something complimentary for above my kitchen table.  I’m leaning toward something industrial-looking like these:

Une pièce à vivre spacieuse : côté salle à manger

Pinned Image

Pinned Image

Pinned Image

But then I get swayed by the 1970’s glam and want something more like this:

Sasha Seymour via H&H

What to do???  I could probably start searching for some cool vintage seventies fixtures, and I bet I’d find something fun.  But if I go for the other style I could get them easily (and inexpensively) from places like IKEA, or West Elm. 

 

photos:

1 - Home of Catherine Le-Van via Marie Claire Maison.

2 - Home of Christine d’Ornano via Spanish Elle Decor.

3 – From the portfolio of Simon Whitbread Photography.

4 - Home of Josephine Persson via Allt i Hemmet.

5 - Home of Sasha Seymour via House & Home.

A Good Deal

I love great deals, but I’m usually more on the impulsive side, and don’t tend to shop around or wait for things to go on sale.  But guess what… today I found this ‘polygon object’ at Indigo reduced to 50%, which came to about $7!  It’s sold out online, but you might be lucky (like me!) and find one in your local store.

ps… I’ve noticed a lot of conversations on free photo editors lately… I’m using Picasa and liking it.  It does all of the basics, and the new version has a few fun effects too.

Have a great weekend everyone!

OK, Kitchen… Let’s DO THIS!

Here’s what I’ve done so far this morning:

I transferred all of the clutter off of my countertops and onto the kitchen table. 

Giving the kitchen a mini-makeover has been on my list for a LONG time, but for some reason I just haven’t done it yet.  Yesterday, when it sunk in that the whole month of January had already flown by, I realized that I need to get myself in gear!  Sometimes you need to just get started and let the details fall into place as you go.

These things are definitely happening:

- The cabinets will be painted white (Benjamin Moore Moonlight White to match the paneling in the adjacent living room.)

- The backsplash will be white subway tile with dark grout, and will go all the way up the wall.

- Open shelves will go in the space where the clock is.

- The florescent light in the center will be replaced.

- The lights above the peninsula will be replaced.

 

These things are yet to be determined:

- Can the bulk head above the window and peninsula come down?  (There used to be a row of cabinets attached to it, which provided loads of storage, but blocked the view of the living room.  They were the first thing to go when we moved in.)  If we can remove the bulk head, the space will feel much taller and more open.  However, we have no idea what the ceiling is like under there.  Needs further investigation.

- When we remove the central florescent light, will we need to install a few pot lights to make it bright enough?

- What type of fun lighting will I choose to replace the florescent?  And will I have to replace the one above the kitchen table as well?

So today’s task… removing the old backsplash!  Hopefully I can get it down without completely destroying the plasterboard behind it.  I have my doubts.  Wish me luck!