Farmhouse Kitchen Update: Freshly Done!

I'm sure by now you thought I'd never show you....and to be truthful there are several minor details that aren't done, but I didn't think it'd make any difference to you if my antique crank phone was back on the wall or the outlet cover in the corner by the dog dish was mounted before I snapped the pictures. I had been waiting for a bright, sunny day to avoid using flash, but alas, the weather in these here parts ain't been cooperatin'.
Shucks.

Warning: this post is the opposite of short.

So here goes! (Remember that you can click on any photo to enlarge.)

We began our 28th year anniversary day tearing apart the old kitchen (on July 18th). You can read more about that whole deal here in a series of posts under the category "kitchen remodel". (If you scroll down to here you can see the kitchen the day we tore it down.)

Finally, the first week of October we got most of the small details taken care of and I can show you the results of all that hard work. I'm very pleased with how it all came out and the thing I love the most is the colors and my dishwasher! I can't tell you how my heart sings when I turn on a load of dirty dishes and when I can put them all away again, all clean, dried, and spotless and I don't have a dish drainer living full time to the right of the sink!

The back splash is a special material (plastic that's durable and scrub-able) that's made to look like an old tin ceiling. I absolutely LOVE it and am so glad I avoided tile. This back splash gives me the "farmhouse" look I wanted and to look at it, you'd think it was the REAL DEAL! And for those who want to know, it's easy to install. You'll need a utility knife, a straight edge, some special double-sided-sticky tape and the trim pieces and corner moldings. It went pretty fast and I'm glad my husband did it, because I would have gotten it crooked, plus me and sticky tape just don't get along too well!

We had trouble finding outlet covers to match, and I happened to find a spray paint that was silver and said "hammered aluminum" and lo and behold, it solved our problems and the covers look like they were made to match. Don't you just love spray paint?

(Here's a close-up. Oh, say can you see that paintbrush mark there that the camera picked up and I'd never seen? I need to go clean that off right now!)

In the window sill are some little salt-glaze mini-crocks ...most everything I have on display in the kitchen is stuff that I already had collected over the years and had on display here before the remodel. It's back, just in different spots!

Here's another thing we found to use the rest of the can of hammered aluminum spray paint: an old one dollar metal stool from a garage sale this spring.

Here's the little microwave cabinet that wouldn't work for our microwave that we instead purposed for my cookbooks! Turns out it's one of my favorite things about the kitchen now that we're done. I never knew that having my (prettier) cookbooks out on display would make me so happy! It's fun to change the cookbooks and the display with the seasons...and to change out favorite sets of nesting bowls: right now it's my favorite soft yellow Hen bowls from Stonewall Kitchens.

Mr. Farmhouse put up synthetic bead board inside, there used to be ugly "faux wood" on the interior of this shelf, and it now looks so much brighter and makes the cookbooks stand out so much better.

Another view...see my little pastry blender I picked up at a garage sale this summer? The table, below, is under consideration right now. It's the one we had, but I'm wondering if for this space, if we should get a round table. I'm not going to worry about it before Christmas, but if we decide to keep this table, it's going to be painted. Too much wood in the kitchen now. Oh, and we decided not to paint any of the old woodwork in the kitchen, because none of it in the rest of the house has been touched by a paintbrush and we think it needs to remain the same as the other 111-year-old trim.

The pantry is another thing I never expected to love so much. You'll remember that I had to decide whether to use this or put my old pie safe back in this corner. Well, turns out that the pantry was the better idea. It holds SO MANY groceries, way more than the pie safe and my sister Anne had told me I'd be glad I used it, and that it was a pricey piece to have purchased and then leave out of the remodel. I'm so glad she talked me into using it. Here's a shot of the inside. Both of the shelves pull out to reveal more shelves behind. No more running to our entryway to retrieve ingredients from the closet there...YAY!

Overhead is a deep and wide cabinet that I keep all my kitchen appliances in; and they all fit! No more going into the basement stairway cabinet to bring up my electric fry pan!

My sister Mary called me one day and said she was at a Ben Franklin and they had the perfect fabric for my kitchen curtains...and she got me this apron fabric in bright blue (she got herself some in yellow!). I already had the red gingham and I made these curtains. I have another piece that I stuck back to make some accessories like place mats and potholders but haven't done those yet. I'm so glad my sister knows what I like and what I NEED! It is the perfect fabric for my kitchen and I love it--thank you, Mary!

"Mom! You're killin' me!"
Tap, tap, tap....you still awake? Just thought I'd check....!
Just in case you're wonderin', that's my crazy kid on the beach in Hawaii.
Not really. She's actually shown in Colorado.
(You're almost halfway through this neverending post, so good job. *Ü*
Is your fanny numb yet?)

The fridge cabinet wouldn't work with our old side-by-side, so we're saving that for when our oldest son moves out, and we got a new, plain-Jane fridge that was the right dimensions, and it's unique in that the front panels of the fridge are curved outward slightly, therefore making it look a little bit retro. I love it because it doesn't have handles to clean, there's just a little notch in each door!

And there's my dishwasher (with the stainless steel interior) that I love. The stainless steel is nice because we have well water, and we can avoid the interior looking orange over time because of the water.

I changed the display on the old clock shelf, and here again, I'm noticing some paint that was over brushed on the woodwork, and I need to clean that up, too!

We got a new five burner stove (again, we're saving the old one for Mark when he moves out) that I thought would be handy for canning purposes. I have canned a LOT of tomatoes and salsa since we got the kitchen finished. I like the counter top and am surprised that the dark color shows so little when I'm working in here. Splashes and crumbs just kind of disappear! Jamie got me the tomato red teapot for Christmas a couple years ago, knowing that I eventually wanted to use red in my new kitchen. (Red makes me extremely happy!)

And so do these amazing red-topped canisters, recommended by Ruthie of Sugar Pie Farmhouse...I got them through Amazon.com and couldn't be happier...they hold a ton of sugar, flour, etc. and I always know when I'm getting low and they're right on the counter and convenient for baking!

Also, upon Aunt Ruthie's recommendation, I found me a real old "play" stove (it plugs in and everything!!) to use for my dishcloths near the sink...and I even found a mini iron frying pan at a garage sale for $1 that fits on the top! It makes me happy every time I look at it!

Next to it is another item I've been waiting years for and I found it on sale and with a rebate and that's my bright red Kitchen-aid mixer! Now I know what I've been missin' all my life, girls! It's the most awesome thing!

(Oh, and did you hear the news? The same day I found out I was going to become a nana, Aunt Ruthie told us her daughter and son-in-law are going to have a baby, too!!?)

I found the perfect farmhouse kitchen faucet and it's a thing of great beauty, and sits up nice and high for when I'm washin' up all those cannin' kettles, suits me just fine and I love it! And, I found the absolute deepest stainless steel sink I could find; it's a foot deep! It's something I'm going to enjoy for years and I'm glad I found it.

Goodness, this has been a marathon post, but I'm going to go ahead and give you some photos of all the cute farm-fresh goodness going on over my cabinets...I thought you'd want a look! I can't get enough of farm-fresh colors and am happy to have a place to display the goodies I've picked up here and there, each item tied with memories...who I was with and where I bought it, or what friend or loved one gave it to me.

I am so happy to have my retro-style red clock sandwiched in between my old-style tin signs. The clock is from Wally-world for under $16.

(My old friend the rooster said he'd come back in and live in the new farmhouse kitchen, and I told him I was glad, he spent all summer on the porch waiting to come back inside. My kitchen wouldn't be the same without him! He has a prime spot over the fridge cabinet.)

Oh, and my old-timey covered cake carrier and my robin's egg blue mixing bowl...they all have their own spot to shine!

See that sweet little glass pie plate with the apple and the pear in the center? My friend Shelley brought that over one day, because she thought it would look so cute in my new kitchen...she was right and I love it so much! She found it for a quarter at a garage sale and it's priceless to me! Thanks, Shelley!

This bowl, displayed in front of a garage-sale gingham tin tray, is also from Shelley, she got it at a garage sale. It looks so Mary E., and the colors are so perfect for my kitchen. She is a thoughtful friend who loves garage sales as much as I do. Every time I glance up at these pretty things, I will be reminded of my friend for life.

Here's a little tribute to coffee...with my husband's dad's old coffee grinder and some old coffee cans. I have to go diggin' in the attic to find my father-in-law's old white porcelain coffee pot and matching metal cup. They're trimmed in red, so they'll look perfect here.

Love my little old windmill...

This pair of chickens are really old and were given to me by my mother-in-law...I love them and they'll always have a spot in my kitchen!

This cute chicken came from an antique store for a few dollars, and I can tell he's old, just loved the colors. Behind him is an old dishpan.

I gained a bit of counter space in my new kitchen, and I found this really old, heavy jar in the basement that I'd picked up years ago at a garage sale. I painted the lid robin's egg blue, and it sits on the counter and today it holds snickerdoodles! I'm enjoying all these old things in a brand new way!

Since the microwave didn't have its own little shelf, we went back to using my husband's granny's old "Frezone" ice box. It's perfect anyway, what did I think I needed a special cabinet for? I keep my ugly recipe books in the little shelves behind those adorable doors ... tiny shelves that once held Momo's groceries away down south in Dixieland.

I will get another post together soon and show you some of the new things INSIDE my cabinets that I've enjoyed gathering and putting to use in this space. This post has gotten long enough and if you've made it this far, I'd say you're a good friend!

Hope you've enjoyed this long journey to a new kitchen! I'm so proud of my husband for doing all but the counter top himself, and each day, I try to tell him thank you in a new way, and let him now how much I truly enjoy this wonderful new workspace! The best thing is that we've done it together!

(AND....you've just witnessed the world record for the number of times the words "garage sale" appeared in a blog post. Congratulations!)