Counter-top Decisions, and the Kitchen Plan Refined

Today we got ALL the counter top samples that I had ordered! Amazing! Thanks to Wilson Art and Formica customer service! The small chips were from local retailers Kurtis Kitchens and Baths and European Cabinetry.

I set the samples side-by-side with the various cherry samples I have. (None of which is the quartersawn natural cherry we are going with. I should have just gone online and ordered a door.) I also have a sample of cork flooring so I had that texture to compare.

Design is too large a scale...But I love those greens. The adjoining family room is Benjamin Moore's Potpourri Green after all.

 Solid surface. I like the texture... but it is too stark white.  Jonathan Alder's new designs great, but the colors too intense... except the linen which is too pale.

The warm colors in Daisy were amazing with the wood, but the scale of the design is too big.

 

"Endora" is pink and gold, and I think it would be great in my bath remodel.

"Betty" looks pretty good and we like the teal and orange. The design elements are are better scale.

This solid surface seems 'right' with the cherry.

So...'Betty' laminate, or the solid surface? We are getting a quote on each.

Here is the kitchen.  Sink and stove corner...

 and fridge and pantry on the other wall. And yes, that is a carpeted floor. Horror!

We need a working kitchen that will accommodate our needs as we age.

Here is what we worked out with Jen:

The sink will be where the range used to be. The cooktop is not to code in its current location.

The sink peninsula will become all countertop! What a nice prep area. The view opens to the family room and sliding door to the yard.

The range will go where the fridge used to be...with a venting hood, which we have never had before. 

Again, lots of counter space. And drawers, not shelves. Plus some glass doors for pretty displaying.

The new fridge had to go on the fourth wall, but will be 'built in'. Finally, a closet for my Swifter!

There is still open space for the table and chairs in front of the window area.

I feel some guilt putting so much into this kitchen instead of doing a DIY cool and cheap upcycling of elements. (I don't think I'm cool enough to pull that off!) 

We justify it because it is our 'forever' home. And we lived in provided housing most of our marriage, but for seven years in a Philly rowhouse. 

But mostly because this room is the center, the heart of the house. You have to pass through to get anywhere. I want a room that makes me smile, a room that I feel uplifted in. 

Our Kitchen Remodel Getting Underway!

We have the table.

We are in the final steps of planning the remodeling of our retirement home kitchen. The house was built in the early 1960s and never updated. No dishwasher. Little counter space. Shelves that are not adjustable. Our new refrigerator does not fit in the old place! We have a hutch there now.

The cabinets were made by a local man who did all the houses around here. The Alder Kay logo is still on the sink cabinet. Our contractor Jen once worked with the son of our cabinet maker!

 My brother refinished the cabinets in the 1980s, so they look pretty good.

We will stay with the slab cabinet style already in the house.

Two Januaries ago we fell in love with a ten year old model kitchen in a big box store in Ludington, MI. It was a natural quartersawn cherry. We can't get past wanting those cabinets. Here is a photo from the manufacturer:

We ordered new lighting for over a peninsula counter in spun aluminum:

We are considering different counter tops. I went to manufacturer's website and ordered larger samples. We have samples of natural cherry (not quartersawn) and laminate.

Three samples are Jonathan Alder's new linen look line for Formica. We have a pale blue Boomerang retro print. Some of the other samples I ordered can be seen here. I also love the upcoming retro collection found here but we would have to wait until summer to get them. I keep up on all the Retro news from Retro Renovation run by Pam Kueber, Her focus is on authentic restoration for mid-century homes.

I love the intense green and oranges, but I don't want the eye to go to the counter tops and not the cabinets. Also, the cabinets will change color with age and we must consider they will be richer and more colorful over time. Yesterday we saw 20 year old natural cherry cabinets. Amazing!

We went to European Cabinetry in Roseville, MI to look at laminate samples. The owner heard the name "Jennifer" and took us under wing. He took us to see the Cesarstone, and I have to admit he gave a pretty good sales pitch and I saw some samples I liked. Then he gave us a tour.

Here is their sample kitchen with the in-house hand-carved corbels and an amazing back lit onyx back splash.

 We will not be getting that kitchen.

 The hand carved work is amazing. The artist said it took him a month to carve one.

Back to reality...