Our Kitchen Remodel Choices & Update

We have signed off on a kitchen layout, cabinets, counter tops, sink, hood, and flooring. Whew! We are finalizing back splash options. We put down a deposit. And May finds us, one again, packing up! At least this May it is not to move--just relocating a kitchen in prep for demo.

Here is what we decided on doing:

Quarter sawn natural cherry slab cabinets. The quarter sawn wood has a more even grain texture. We really fell in love with these cabinets when we saw a display kitchen in the Ludington, MI Home Depot. It was 10 years old and the color was so pretty. We saw a 20 year old cherry model kitchen at Kurtis Kitchen in Warren. We have never had cherry cabinets before. I look forward to watching their color become richer. The soffits will be out and cabinets will run to the ceiling.

The quarter sawn cherry cabinets

Yes! Wilson Art "Betty" laminate in soft teal and gold and gray on off-white is their 2015 retake on a retro 70s pattern. Jen said it has caused quite a stir with her co-workers. How did I find out about it? Retro Renovation. Thanks, Pam!

We thought we had to decide between an apron front sink or the laminate counter top! But I found Kohler had a sink designed for this issue: the Vault top-mounted stainless steel sink can be used with laminate counter tops. O, the cleverness of me!(To quote Peter Pan.)

We bought a Hansgrohe faucet at Costco.

We loved this Evora cork flooring for its "Canvas" color and 'stone' look. Turned out to be a high quality floor as well. It will be installed in the kitchen and the adjacent family room. The family room is on a cement slab so the insulation quality of cork will be a real plus.

We have ordered a Akdy European stainless steel wall mount hood from Houzz. I don't have a photo. There will be a pot and pan drawer and will feature two 18" glass front cabinets. I will have more counter space than I have ever had around a stove. We preferred counter space over a pantry. That wall ended up looking like this:

Completed Kitchen photo

Instead of how it looks now.

old kitchen

We already have a Samsung convection five burner convection oven and a Whirlpool bottom freezer three door refrigerator. (Bought on sale over the past few years.) We bought a Bosch dishwasher with a third rack. We wanted a quiet one as the family room is open to the kitchen and the bedrooms beyond the doorway into the kitchen seen above.

The refrigerator was moved to a wall where Mom had a hutch. We  built it in with a utility cabinet. A two step ladder is stored in the cabinet.

In process: built in refrigerator

There is still room for a dining area in front of the window wall or centered in the room. We have three table options.

 The $40 1950s tulip red and gray Formica table I found a year ago.

 My childhood 1950s table. (Shown with our retro chairs bought at Target many years ago.)

The Chromcraft 1950s table with crushed ice gray Formica top.

The Chromecraft Table in our kitchen

We loved the retro vibe of this spun aluminum pendant light fixture from Elk Lighting. I bought it from Overstock.com. It will hang over the counter between the kitchen and the family room. In drawing below you can see the half wall into the family room. I love the little open shelf at the end of the cabinet.

Completed kitchen photo

The kitchen has a sink on that peninsula now. It will be moved to the stove wall. Dad's stained glass pendent will go to my brother.

old kitchen photo

We are not installing pot lights. Under counter lighting, a light over the sink, and the lighted hood over the stove will supplement existent outlets. For over the dining area we ordered this Percussion 3-light flush mount polished chrome fixture from Houzz.

We considered a stainless steel sheet behind the stove or metallic look tiles. We loved this tile!

stainless metal tile backsplash

We will get paint samples later and pick up a color from Betty.

I have lots of dishes to choose from.

 The Ben Seibel 1958 Iroquois "Blue Diamond' is a set I love.

 Both of our parents had the Cornelle Harvest Gold butterfly set.

Gary's folks good china. I also have an amber Diana set of Depression era dishes.

This has been a lot of work. It was over a year ago we first talked to someone about a remodel. We looked at a lot of online and print information, visited numerous retailers, and spoke to three contractor/designers. When we saw something we liked I shopped around for the best deal. Prices change constantly, so if we saw a deal we bought it right away. As the flooring is going into the family room we will have to clear it out as well.

In the end we will have finished remodeling two rooms!

Now we have to pack.

Update: I found this great fabric for curtains! I liked the retro look with two tiers. It offers a lot of options for privacy and, as a western window, for when the sun is setting.

 They are lined and hanging on rings.

The 1845 Orson Starr House of Royal Oak, Michigan

I passed by the Starr House hundreds of times growing up. On Mother's Day I finally took a tour!  It is the oldest existent house in Royal Oak, Michigan and is located at 3123 North Main Street.

The Orson Starr family came from New York State in 1831 and built this house in 1845. The Starr family made bells: cow bells, goat bells, bells of all sizes and each was marked with a star. Family occupied the house until the 1960s.

In 1985 the house was designated a historic district and in 1999 it was one of five Michigan sites included in "Save America's Treasures." The house is nicely preserved, undergoing continual restorations, and is nicely furnished with donations.

The black walnut dining table was made for the Asher Bull Parker family in 1839 from a local tree.

The main floor bedroom has an impressive bedroom set. It didn't fit into the house so the very top was removed!(My Grandmother Emma Becker Gochenour told me a story of having the same issue after a move and dealing with the bed the same way!)

 A 1915 (according to the sign) potted tulip appliqué quilt is on the bed.

 A silk pieced quilt is displayed in the bedroom on a chair.

 It was made about 1890 by Mary E Ferguson Briggs, great-granddaughter of the Orson Starr family.

Beautiful white dresses with fancy work.

In the closet I saw this swimsuit!

A third bedroom has a faded Wedding Ring quilt said to date from 1940 and was purchased at Detroit's flagship department store J. L. Hudson--or it may have been made by a Parker family member.

Other dresses on display include this purple dress with lappets

 and this dark 1890s wedding dress.

A sheer beaded blouse from the 1920s is also on display.

A WWI souvenir from France silk and lace trimmed handkerchief.

There are antique dolls throughout the bedrooms including this one with a painted face.

And a metal crib has a Depression era star quilt.

A Bicentennial era needlework celebrates Michigan's heritage: A Native American is overlaid on the state, surrounded by the flags that have flown over this land.

Five Night Stand: A Life Lived With Passon

84-year-old jazz pianist Oliver Pleasant is performing for his last five night stand before retirement. His career started at age 14 in 1935 when he lived in Winona, Mississippi. His career took him to Memphis and riverboats, to Harlem, to New Orleans, to France.  Music was a harsh mistress, demanding awful sacrifices. His wife Francesca and their children lived without his presence. Now his wife is gone and his daughter won't see him. Nostalgia and regret, loneliness and loss, fatigue and pain are left behind when he plays. He is twenty-five again as he calls out tunes by Monk, Basie, King Oliver.

Agnes learned to love jazz sitting side-by-side with her father at the piano. She is twenty-two but is losing control of her hand, is in constant pain, and knows her days are limited. She has come from Winona to NYC hoping a doctor can solve the mystery of her body. Bridges daily tempt her to make her own solution. She has come to the club to see Oliver play his last five night stand.

Also drawn to the club is Frank, who at forty-four is an out of work Memphis journalist writing a free lance story on Oliver's last five night stand. Frank is floundering, uncertain of his career, his wife seeming more distant the harder they try to get pregnant. Will he lose everything?

Oliver "tinkers" on the keys. In an almost organic growth the notes turn into a melody. His hands fly across the keys, stunning even the band into awe. The audience realize they are witnessing something beyond their ken.

On the stairs of Oliver's apartment waits a ten year old boy. He has listened to Oliver's music through the floor boards. He wants to learn to play. He wants music to save him.

The power of music permeates Five Night Stand by Richard J. Alley as it does his character's lives.

Oliver is a wonderful character, imperfect and driven. I enjoyed this book, the characters, and especially the love of music that permeates the pages. The writing near the end gets a little obvious, the authorial voice a little preachy. By then I was too invested in the characters to mind too much.

Oliver tells Pablo to find whatever makes you whole. For Oliver it was his music.

I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

NOTE: Today, May 12, you can purchase this book on Kindle for $3.99 on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Five-Night-Stand-Richard-Alley-ebook/dp/B00NUD0O00/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1431431806&sr=1-1&keywords=five+night+stand

Five Night Stand
by Richard J. Alley
Lake Union Publishing
Publication date May 12, 2015
$14.95 paper back
ISBN: 9781477827741