Wednesday, March 21, 2012

A Remodel in Progress

Basically, I feel like a crazy woman, because I don't know what I am doing.  I am a designer wannabe.  This lovely woman at For the Love of a House has amazing taste.  Her kitchen is my inspiration for this remodel.  For the record, she buys and trades antiques for a living.  I wipe noses, and I used to sell drugs (not on the street...in a drug store, a CVS to be exact.)  This is not exactly the resume for the massive project we are undertaking. Thank goodness for all the wonderful blogs, Houzz, and Pinterest. With all the research I have done, I think I have earned a degree.  
I bought this Currey lantern like the one you see here at my favorite store in Charlotte, Traditions Interiors.  It is a substantial lantern at 34 inches tall and 25 inches wide. 
It will be replacing the very traditional brass chandelier that hangs in our dining room.  Because of the simple design of the lantern, it will not block the view of the lake.  Take a closer look at the one we have...
A fire hazard, don't you think?  It flickers and buzzes every time we turn it on.
My son threw a ball...well, this tells the story.
Here you can see the floors and how orange they had become.  These pine floors came out of an old hunting lodge at William Blackstock's plantation in Blackstock, SC.  In some places they were so worn. 
We added some new pine floors in a hallway leading to our bedroom.  They lack the worm holes as in the older floors, but look good and very close with the stain added.
This is where my computer with all my photos sat a month ago.  The bead board ceiling in here and the kitchen came from the hunting lodge, as well. The orange floor and dark ceiling just weren't working together.
Here the floors have been sanded.  We have added more recessed lighting and the fan will come down in the living room.  We have not resolved what to put in its place.  Here is where a real decorator would come in handy!  We face several challenges. 
When we moved here twelve years ago, this entire space was painted a dark red.  Can you even imagine?  It was awful and distracted from the view of the great outdoors.  We lived with it for seven years before painting it Benjamin Moore's Monroe Bisque.
Here are the finished floors with an English walnut stain. 
They turned out beautiful!  No more orange!
Here was the kitchen at Christmastime.  You can't see it, but there is a really ugly ceiling fan above the table.
You can see the fan in the reflection of the window!  It will be replaced with these two hanging lanterns for more light.
Pinned Image
These are Crestwood lanterns from Progress lighting.  If you want to see more examples of lanterns or kitchens with hanging lanterns, check out my pinterest boards, here and here.
Lemon-lime anyone? 
The walls will get a fresh coat of paint in Perfect Greige by Sherwin-Williams.
pendant light
The light fixture over the bar will be replaced with this Landmark Chadwick industrial pendant.
What can I say?  Ahhh....the sink.  The hot water handle was broken off.  The disposal was held together by duct tape.  It was time.
Pinned Image
We are replacing the sink with this two-bowl Shaw apron sink and this Perrin and Rowe faucet as seen here at Decor Pad
In all my photos of the kitchen, I tried to hide these cabinets and knobs.  Brass has its place, but these are dated.  The cabinet doors were hanging and the drawers did not work efficiently.
As you see in my inspiration photo at the top, I wanted the lovely soapstone.  I had my husband sold because it is non-porous and wouldn't show crayon or marker mishaps.  When we went to the showroom, the sales lady said, "I wouldn't use soapstone with young children, because it can chip off."
  Bad sales lady, bad!
And that was the end to my beautiful dream of soapstone.
We found this lovely slab of granite in Silver Silk, which I hope to get in a honed finish.  We tagged it, but a few weeks later, the store changed management, and the slab was gone.  These are the kinds of things that are making me want to check in to the third floor of our hospital (psych unit.)  Back to square one.
We chose this Artic Gray subway tile by Dal-Tile for the backsplash.  It will be honed, as well.  If you look at the Lemon-lime photo, you can see that our cabinets come right up to the casings and molding.  We chose white cabinets in a simple design like the inspiration kitchen above.  This Artic Gray has enough white, gray and hints of brown to tie everything together; or at least I like to think so.
This beautiful hand-knotted rug did not get to stay in my kitchen.  I adored it.  I bargained for it.  I begged for it.  It wasn't practical for the space with three sticky children who spill and drop food and throw basketballs at chandeliers (certainly not at the price tag that came with it.)  But, the muted colors were so perfect!

These types of projects always have a domino effect.  "Well, if we do that, than we need to do that..."  We started planning for this project about a year and a half ago.  The floors were in bad shape.  At Christmas, our refrigerator broke and leaked on these beautiful old floors and added to their advancing demise.  The disposal was broken, but held together with the tape.  And then, I caught the oven on fire.  That's another story.  Let's just say, I will be defending that I actually do have a college degree.

I chose to do a simple kitchen with soft colors for one basic reason.  Rob is not going to change one thing in this kitchen until it breaks again.  Since, I love to decorate, a monochromatic canvas will let me do just that; change the small things and add different colors at different times. 

Everything that was taken out of our house was recycled.  Habitat for Humanity and the Historic Brattonsville took the cabinets, fixtures, and faucets.  Our friend, Jesse Lee, who fishes out here and has been for a hundred years or so, took the appliances to re-wire and use; although, I think the stove was beyond repair.

I tried to pick quality and timeless pieces in the hopes that they will carry us through another 15 years, at which time my babies will be gone.  I can hardly think of it.  Yes, I will enjoy the moments of spilled milk and jelly on the rug...the marks of a family that lives here.


Thank you so much for stopping by! 

And thank you to my faithful readers who contacted me via e-mail to make sure I was okay during this extended absence.  I missed blogging and so missed the kindness that you all have shown me here at Three Pixie Lane.

P.S. Please go visit For the Love of a House blog! She is amazing, and I adore every single detail in her house.


I am joining Kim at Savvy Southern Style.
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21 comments :

Lori said...

That is how I found for the love of House, was her kitchen. I love the white island and black counters. I am wanting honed black marble to give the soapstone look too. I have heard it scratches and chips.

Francine Gardner said...

You have some work on your plate. My main "motto " when designing for myself (I just redid a maid's room and bath to use a nurse's room/occasional guestroom) is to keep it simple, organized and focused and not compromise. I would rather wait for the envisioned material or fixture than compromise for a second best which would affect the overall look.
You are on the right path and doing a great job of me. the views from your window are so spectacular and special. Charlotte is one of my favorite cities, i often go for work and love to stop at the antique shops and the store Circa.

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Wow, you are doing a whole kitchen and floor makeover. Lucky you and I love your light fixture choices. That first lantern would be perfect in my master bedroom since I am looking to replace the fan. I can't wait to see this beauty finished and I know you can't too.

Pine Tree Home said...

Such fun times, even though the decision making process can be daunting at times. I laughed at "bad sales lady" because sometimes we just want something so bad.

ImagiMeri said...

Hi Christie,

Wow, what an undertaking, but your results are turning out to be stupendous!!!! You have wondrous taste and style and I wish I lived closer so I could experience this in person. Best of luck in finishing the place.

Hugs,
Meri

Yvonne @ StoneGable said...

Christie, you are an ambitious girl! A kitchen remodel and floors too! I'll be praying you keep your sanity!!!
It will be so beautiful when it is done. Take lots and lots of pictures!
Yvonne

Jemsmom said...

Her kitchen lured me in too and I can't wait to see yours! Everything you have chosen looks so beautiful!

Kelly said...

One thing I can say for sure about you, is you deserve a new kitchen! Yes you do! I like to hear of people who really USE their kitchen and really NEED a new kitchen to get one. You are just that. I get so tired of reading about people that want to make a major expensive change to something that was perfectly fine to begin with. You will enjoy all your new things. I bet it is putting a strain on everyone living with this remodel right now, but just think how awesome it's going to be when it's done! I love your lake view from the back of your home. You're so lucky to have that. Looking forward to seeing everything completed. I like all of your choices so far.

Sue said...

Hi Christie~
We are about to redo our existing floors and add some more hardwood to our downstairs. I am dreading the mess, but looking forward to the finished product. Your space will be lovely and I am looking forward to seeing the results of all of your hard work. You have great taste and a beautiful home.

Unknown said...

looking forward to seeing the finished product- I am sure it will be wonderful!

Stephanie @ The Cozy Old Farmhouse said...

So glad to know everything is okay in your neck of the woods. I was missing your posts and hoping all was well. The kitchen is going to be fabulous, I'm sure. You've picked out some great things and the floors look amazing.

Unknown said...

I'm sure it will be a lot of work, but your choices sound exciting. I'm looking forward to seeing progress.

Jules said...

Remodels are always such a BIG job, but so worth it in the end! (As I have learned from remodeling most of our living room, hallway, & turned our guest bedroom into a nursery.) The only thing our living room lacks is a mantel. (And new flooring that will just have to wait.) Our hallway just lacks a few pieces of molding that should be in place by the end of this week! :) Love what you are doing with your kitchen! Your floors and ideas look amazing! I'm going to have to check out your Pinterest boards. :)

Debra@CommonGround said...

This will be totally amazing! Can't wait to see it all come together! Your view is heavenly!

Anne said...

Lovely, lovely blog ~ I'm a new follower!
Best,
Anne ♥

for the love of a house said...

Christie- I am so very honored to be the inspiration for this space! And, what a fabulous space it is... I love your lake view- to die for!! I think everything you are planning sounds wonderful and I wish you the best of luck with the renovation. Salespeople... ughhh. Usually they don't live with the product themselves, but talk people out of what they want. No children and soapstone?? Soapstone has been used for hundreds of years in the kitchen. They do the same thing with marble- I've heard so many stories of people being talked out of it because of salespeople.
I look forward to seeing the end result!
all my best,
joan

Anita at Cedar Hill said...

That is what you have been up to. Wow. That looks amazing, and I can't wait to see the finished project.

angie said...

Love the plans that are coming together for your new kitchen...beautiful! I wanted to comment on your "fire hazard" chandelier. My kitchen chandelier began doing the same thing. I finally realized it was the gold-lined shades. They reflect the heat of the light causing the sleeves to overheat and scorch. Once I changed the shades back to simply cloth ones, the scorching stopped. Just wanted to pass that along to others. Be careful with the gold-lined shades. They're beautiful but dangerous! Angie

At The Picket Fence said...

Yeah! There you are. :) Wow! How exciting, I love seeing all of the details come together. I know it's a ton of work and can be frustrating, but I can see that the end result is going to be so fabulous! Take care of yourself, and don't overdue it. Keep up updated!

Heather

Christi @ the brown shed said...

I popped over to visit after you left a very sweet comment on my blog... thanks so much!

I look forward to seeing your kitchen come together!

That rug is beautiful! Did you put it somewhere else in the house?

Christi

A New England Life said...

This post makes me yearn for a kitchen make-over. Our cabinets are from 1975. I painted them white about 11 years ago but they look tired. The brass knobs and old white appliances aren't helping anything! Maybe one day we'll have the resources to give it a more updated look.

Hope you are enjoying the fruits of your labor! And the labor of the carpenters ; )

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