The Current Obsession

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The kitchen remodel plans have begun and I'm obsessed. From what I can tell, this is a completely normal condition for anyone who is embarking on a project that costs boat loads of money and is relatively permanent.

And it's not just new cabinets. No. In addition to that, we're ripping out a wall to make room for an island, installing hardwood throughout the kitchen, dining room, living room and hallway. We're also building a custom banquette in the dining room with floor-to-ceiling cabinets on either side, replacing the bay window, and resurfacing the fireplace.

Whew! It makes me tired just thinking about it. CRAZY.

This is a drawing of the new space we've designed. It's tough to see, but basically it's an L-shaped kitchen with a square island that includes room for four bar stools. We cut two of the corners off the square island to enhance traffic flow, and, well, because we thought it looked cool. We'll also have three pendant lights hanging above the island, along the the diagonal.

On the other side of the room is the dining area, where we'll be adding the bench seat or "banquette" under the window with floor-to-ceiling cabinets on either side. A small oval or round table will be placed directly in front of the banquette with a few chairs for additional seating.


And this will be our new hardwood floor, which I L.O.V.E!! It's hand-scraped, distressed, wild walnut with a natural finish. Sooo pretty!!

Now we're in the process of selecting the granite for the counters, tile for the back splash, new appliances and custom cabinets.

At this point, we're pretty sure the cabinets in the kitchen and next to the banquette will be a caramel/honey colored wood, similar to the light wood in the floor. The island will be a contrasting wood similar to the dark veins in the wood floor.

We're also selecting the stone for the fireplace, the design of the bay window, and working with numerous contractors to pull it all together.

It's a crazy, maddening, super fun obsession.

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