Kitchen update ...........

So if you are at all curious at my kitchen progress ........... I will give you an update.

Sort of.

Progress ..... not so much.

The garden held on to its produce much later than usual.  I think I have one more round of canning tomatoes.  We brought in everything last weekend .... and the last bucket of tomatoes is ripening.

We still have so much winter squash, I decided to can a little of it. And although we thought the sweet potatoes were a bust .... digging two of the 20 hills yielded quite a pile!

I did can 3 pints of sweet potatoes the other night.  I plan on doing much more as I am not sure we can keep all the squash, potatoes and sweet potatoes without losing some. (Remember both squash and sweet potatoes must be pressure canned!)

So the kitchen remodel has been ... well, languishing.

But we have been making decisions and exploring possibilities.

We had some definite goals when we started this kitchen remodel.

1) Local designer (not a big box store)
2) Quality cabinets ... 3/4" dovetailed drawers, undermount hardware, solid wood cabinets, soft close drawers.
3) Keep what I love
4) Design my kitchen to make my life easier
5) Be thoughtful in my choices and use environmentally conscientious material.

And some of these goals have been accomplished.

1) Local designer ... CR Cabinetry 
2) Quality Cabinets ...Kabinart
3) I am keeping my "Oh so Martha" cabinet and the plate rack that Honey built for me.  Both will be painted to match the new cabinets.  Fortunately, Sherwin Williams has paint that perfectly matches all of Kabinart's painted finishes.

I am also keeping the antique wainscoted pantry but it will be moved into the laundry room.

The current island .... built from an antique bar cooler ... will stay but the pot rack will go and pendant lights will go in its place.  It has a Swanstone solid surface countertop that I will keep for a while but I do hope to change it in the future.

I am also keeping my brass light fixtures.

One of the light fixtures was in my parents' dining room when I was a child.  Like when I was 6!  They did a serious remodel .... moved every room in the house except two bedrooms ... moved every window and door except for the front door.

Well ... I cried when they tried to throw out the light fixture.  So they put it in the basement.  Periodically, they would attempt to throw it out ... and I would cry.  Finally, they said .... when you have your own house, you can hang the light fixture.

So .... I did!!  And I still love it!  ;)  And it is staying!!!


4) I have gone through the layout over and over and over again.  I have walked through the steps ... trying to make sure all the bases are covered.

We have never had a dishwasher and although, we could live without it ..... we are putting in an 18" dishwasher.

We are also installing a potfiller above the stove.  Yea .... this one!  The one that is on my dining room table!

(I have a nest of parts and pieces for the kitchen .... just piling up and accumulating .... waiting for their big moment!)

After buying a 34 quart canner .... I. Can. Not. Wait.  to have this bad boy hanging over my stove!

5) And finally ... this piece of the puzzle.  Whoa!

As Kermit the Frog said .... It's not easy being green! 

But we are looking at two green possibilities for the kitchen.

First ... the floor.  We are making a trip to The Green Building Supply to look at Forbo Marmoleum Click.

Marmoleum is a true linseed oil based linoleum.  Like what was in your great grandmother's house.  Not your mother's ........... that was a vinyl based product.

Linoleum is a green product .... and Click is a DIY product that literally "clicks" together.

Sixteen years ago ... we ripped up old vinyl ... sanded the floor ... and painted the original tongue and groove fir flooring.  The paint has worn just like we wanted it to .......... but the 120 year old floor has too much damage to keep.  And as much as I LOVE wood floors ..... they are not practical when the first room you walk into ... is your kitchen.

I need something that I can scrub when jam is bubbling over the pot!

Hopefully ... we will like the look of "Click" when we put it with the cabinet samples.

And finally .... counter tops.  Yicks!   Green counter tops are not easy ..... I know I want butcherblock/wood top for the baking center.  And I knew that I didn't want granite or stone for the main counter top.

I had decided that laminate would be my choice ........... until I read about this.

Paper counter tops ............... I can't wait to look at these!!!