Kitchen Makeover

Two and a half years ago before we moved into the house we took this picture of the kitchen--gorgeous, no?

We had the floors refinished before moving in, and painted the walls within a few weeks.  Michael never really liked the blue we painted because it clashed with the oak cabinets... but I had plans.

Here's a close up before pic of the oak cabinets-- I had some people ask me why I would cover up the "beautiful" oak.... this is why.  So worn out and aged.  And there's already a wood floor, so I definitely wanted contrast.  And I definitely wanted to add hardware.  Michael was awesome at measuring and drilling all the cabinets and drawers for me!

 March 9th I started this major project.  I figured I would do one section of cabinets or drawers at a time and work my way around the kitchen.  With tons of help from Michael and a whole lot of encouragement, we were able to do it a lot faster than I thought was possible.  (It helped that the kids were awesome workers and did their schoolwork and chores without much need of help from me.)

 Works in progress...

Yes, the work area is the dining room.  It made no sense to carry everything anywhere else, plus I could work in the same room as the kids and get a lot done during the day.

We were debating what to do with the island.... then I saw a shiplap island on Pinterest, showed it to Michael and he loved it.  I was so surprised.  I went to Home Depot and bought the supplies, and Michael built it and painted it for me one Saturday.  It is my favorite!!  A few days after these pictures he decided to add some trim to the sides and it looks even more amazing.

 Despite being sick with a crazy respiratory virus for most of April, babysitting 3 adorable nieces for 12 days, having to do some emergency work on the outside of the house (different story for another day), and going to Maui for 2 weeks, we made great progress and I can happily say that.....

 TODAY I FINISHED THE KITCHEN!!!!!!  And it is clean and no longer a construction zone!  And I love love love it!!  Thank you Michael for putting up with my crazy ideas and projects! (And he loves the blue now by the way.  I told you, I had plans.)

 
And just so you can appreciate the before and after pictures side by side.....



P.S. During this project the rest of the house may have been a shambles at times, but we ate a home-cooked meal every night.  Still not sure how we managed that...  pizza would have been easier.