Kitchen Dreamin'

In Baton Rouge we had a 75 year old  house, and one of the things I loved was my white kitchen - white cabinets, white counter tops, white kitchen table and chairs. The walls had a slight hue to them - I believe the paint was called brown sugar and came from Walmart (the previous owners picked it, but it was a great barely-there color). Now the kitchen needed some serious renovations - namely new counter tops and floors - but I loved the bright, airy feel that came from all the white.

When we were moving to Dallas and trying to find our new house online, I had all but given up on the idea of a renovated kitchen. We were looking in a neighborhood where the homes were 35 to 50 years old and many needed quite a bit of updating. But then we found our house - with a completely renovated kitchen. It was not at all what I would have chosen - dark stained cabinets, dark floors, modern cabinet pulls and modern lighting. The walls were white, but we decided they needed color. We chose a wasabi colored green (sorry - it's a custom color so I can't provide a name). I love it against the dark stain and stainless steel! We also replaced the cabinet pulls and pendants with more traditional pieces. So while the kitchen is not at all what I would have chosen, in the end I love it.

Here are a few peaks at our kitchen. If it wasn't so messy at the moment, I would provide more.

These are the pendant lights we chose for our bar area. I wish I had a picture to show you of the funky modern lights that were here before - the one word that comes to mind is tacky! And I like and can appreciate modern styles, but these were tacky. You can also catch a glimpse of the dark cabinets and wasabi green walls.

I love our stainless steel hood, and I absolutely cannot take credit for it! It was here before we bought the house. Again, you can see the wall color and also the granite counter tops.

Here you can see (sort of) the cabinet pulls that we added. I like the extra space between our cabinets and ceiling - it gives me a chance to display some of my favorite pottery and glass.

I've had this pot rack since the condo we bought in 2003. I bought it from Ballard Designs. I'm glad I have a space to use it here, and with our lack of good cabinet space, it serves a purpose as well. Here it is showcasing our Rachel Ray pots.

But I also want to share with you a few kitchens that might be similar to what I would design, if I had the space and an unlimited budget! These would fall under the "dream on" variety. Found these on one of our new favorite websites, Houzz.

You will notice that they are ALL white. Another thing that struck me is I kept finding (and loving) white subway tile backsplashes. I'm dying to use white subway tile in our downstairs bathroom whenever we get around to remodeling it, but I would never have thought of using it in a kitchen. Unfortunately it would not go well in our kitchen at all. But that brings me to another point...our kitchen is lacking a backsplash, and I go back and forth - tin squares, glass, tile. What would you choose?

For now, join me while I daydream...

traditional kitchen design

traditional kitchen design by boston kitchen and bath Divine Kitchens LLC

traditional kitchen design by new york kitchen and bath Susan Serra, CKD

traditional kitchen design by new york kitchen and bath Susan Serra, CKD

traditional kitchen design by chicago kitchen and bath Rebekah Zaveloff, KitchenLab & Design in a Bag.com

traditional kitchen design by san francisco general contractor Mueller Nicholls Cabinets and Construction

by Logan's Hammer Building & Renovation

traditional kitchen design by seattle architect Bosworth Hoedemaker

Teaser No. 1

Stay tuned...

These are a few of my favorite things

A short while after we moved into our house three and a half years ago, we hired a contractor to remodel portions of our house. While I still love everything we did to the house, my favorite things tend to be in the small details. Or the comfort. Or the many photographs hanging on our walls. Here are some glimpses.

I recently snagged these Thro pillows from Haute Look for $15 a piece. Thought they would make a nice addition to our dining room's robin's egg blue walls - I've been wanting to add some orange.

One of the best features of our remodel, I think, is the fireplace surround and mantle in the dining room, built by our own contractor, Brent. I knew what I wanted, showed him some examples, and he produced! I found it so funny that he was worried the final product was too big, that we wouldn't be happy. Instead, it was exactly what I wanted.

 
Not only do I love the mantle, but I love things on and around it. The stained glass. The yellow vase with dried purple flowers.The West Elm candles from my friend Erin.

And of course the painting of Mt. Saint Michele, which I commissioned from my friend Ashley Hamm for B's birthday a few years ago. I gave her our photo album from our trip to France in 1998 for a little inspiration. She chose to paint the Abby, which sits at the very top of the Medieval city. I've climbed those steep steps a few times, and the view from the top and a walk around the cloisters is well worth it.

I love a good stack of coffee table books, like here - topped with blue pottery and seashells. (Notice my love of many things coastal? I have a love for pottery too.)

And of course a good book at my bedside (currently Just Let Me Lie Down: Necessary Terms for the Half-Insane Working Mom by Kristin Van Ogtrop). If only I had more time to read...

I mentioned that I love photographs. While I would like to add more art to my walls (preferably of the original variety), all of the photographs of my children bring me such joy. I see no need to replace them!

I love my wall of photographs in the hallway...

A few of my favorite photos above my vanity (especially that one of our baby girl at the Arboretum)...

The first piece of furniture I bought on my own dime was this antique cabinet, at a city wide garage sale in Austin. My mom found it and brought me to it. I loved the bright green with hints of blue and white paint peeking through, the french door front, the glass knob...and all these years later I still enjoy it and find uses for it (currently housing some of my art pottery collection and law books).

Our house has 5 window seats - 4 upstairs (with dormer windows) and one large window seat in our living room, behind our sofa. This one is by far my favorite - a perfect place for a Saturday afternoon nap, for the boys to read books, for V to watch her older brothers play in the backyard.

And a peek at 2 of the upstairs window seats...

And speaking of upstairs, as a converted attic it includes lots of great architectural features - slanted walls and ceilings, a brick wall, and pockets of storage wherever it would fit. I love the little bookshelves and cabinets - they certainly make great storage for a playroom. When our friend Amy showed us the house, I think the upstairs is what sold us. We are working on moving L & E upstairs where they can each have their own bedroom. Stay tuned for that transformation.

And one of my favorite corners upstairs has these growth charts - reminders to enjoy L, E and V every day because they are only growing taller and more independent.

I could probably show you more, but I think these pictures offer some good insight into what makes our house our home. While it is far from perfect and has a running "to do" list, we love our home and the comfort it provides.

things i heart

this week's post is to showcase things/areas we love about our homes.

 i love so much about this house, it was hard to choose just a few things.  here's what i am come up with.

i'll start in the kitchen.

this red piece was left by the previous owners for me since i basically begged and begged for it.  the first picture is the base and the second is the top detail of the cabinet above it.  i love the chipped paint, the wood top and just the uniqueness about it.  

another thing in my kitchen that is new is a fleur de lis stained glass piece i got in lafayette when we were there for a wedding in may.  i love the simplicity and the reminder when i look out of my kitchen window that home isn't too far away.

this piece is a build in hutch that the previous owners painted a perfect color blue.  i adore it, the beaded board backing and the lighted cabinet for my stemware.  

finally, this little corner vignette is a favorite of mine.  i love the plate i found at red door interiors in baton rouge.  the bowl is from royal standard also in baton rouge.  ( i think i see a theme of fleur de lis here....)

next are a few areas in my great room.  this is a room in the house we rarely use.  first and foremost are the chairs that i bought when we decided to move.  i have gotten SO MANY compliments on these chairs.  and the great news is i bought them at Marshalls for only $199 each.  gotta love a good bargain that brings in compliments.  

i

these candle sticks were purchased at an estate sale.  i love them!  that's all.  

n this great room i went with an overall black and white color scheme.  while in baton rouge a few years ago i picked up some pieces that would add a southern flair to this room.  the wrought iron brackets and fleur de lis mirror on my built in bookshelf are two of my favorites.  

this iron tschotske is something i found at paul michael in canton.  LOVE it so much i got one for my mom too....

we recently purchased a dining room table ( only took us 3 years) to help complete the look of the house.  the dining room was basically being used as a secondary playroom which wasn't great for showings.  here is the dining room now.  i just love the way it looks.  also included is a hand painted medallion above the chandelier.  

in our family room i have started a picture wall.  the idea was to mix in black and white pictures of things i like along with pictures of the kids.  as you can see i haven't really...achieved that yet.  but i get a lot of comments on the canvas picture i had done from a snapshot i took of m&mk in the bath a while back.  

in our half bath we have a corner cabinet that i struggled with setting up.  when target had their displays with furniture from a lot of cultures, i found these mini frames.  stocked up on them and put pictures of lee and myself when we were kids along with one of my mom and another of my dad when they were younger.  this is the bathroom most visitors  use.  also included is a picture of the cabinet in that bathroom.  when i saw that the first time we looked at this house i was in love.

in my master bathroom i have a long black wooden rack to hang towels or wet bathing suits.  i really love it. here is the center medallion.

 i really love our playroom.  the kids get so much joy out of this room, although i think i have probably picked up and reorganized this room no less than 50 times in the three years we have been here.  

one random thing in our house that i love is a bottle opener and a copper cup that we found in boerne, texas years ago.  in our first house this was in the kitchen, but now it is on the wall in the garage next to the beer fridge.  

finally, i would be remiss without the mention of my fabulous pool.  we have so much fun in this 100+ degree texas heat with the pool.  it makes our house perfect for entertaining and the kids have really grown comfortable with the water.