First Thanksgiving in the New Kitchen

Okay, so I reversed the before and after pictures. Heck, the before is really after the upper cabinets have been demoed, anyway.

We've truly enjoyed our new kitchen, and with a big family dinner coming up tomorrow, we're so glad to have our new appliances (two ovens, hooray!) and all the cabinet space and counter space. I have to give kudos to Electrolux, the ovens, refrigerator, and cook top are all working beautifully. We were not as happy with the dishwasher at first, but we've figured out its temperament finally. You have to push the top rack in and then pull it back out no more than a quarter of an inch, otherwise the middle arm gets blocked by a little piece of plastic sticking out of the water access. If that happens, nothing on the top rack on either side gets clean, but if you know the trick, it works fine. I will say that we can't overload this one the way we did our Kenmore Elite, and the tines are bent and therefore make putting anything but plates in the bottom rack something of a challenge, but the fact that it is the quietest dishwasher EVER makes up for a lot. I actually have to put my hand on the front to see if it's really running or not, it's that quiet.

The hybrid cook top is great--if not for the fact that we would be unable to use a lot of our favorite cookware, I'd get a completely induction top the next time. As it is, we have two induction and three radiant "eyes" and they all work great. It's easy to clean up, too. Truecraft's installer, Bill, got everything leveled perfectly (including my LG washer and dryer that was never properly leveled before, thank you Bill) so things don't cook unevenly. The ovens are very nice, and we plan to use the convection settings to make cookies. Lots of cookies.

Kitchen Finished, Final Installment!

Here's my gorgeous cook top. The two on the left are induction and work by magnetism, and they cook as fast as gas and are just as responsive.

Next is a detail of the back splash and the outlet covers, which had to be ordered. We couldn't find plugs that were the right color--almond clashed too badly, so we went with white for contrast, and I think it works pretty well.

They tiled the windowsill over the sink and it looks pretty nice, although it is narrower than it was before. There was no bullnose tile, unfortunately, for the one we chose, but they did a good job of making it look nice and finished.

And of course, I had to put in one more picture of the hutch! We are finished! Hooray!

Thank you to Truecraft Construction of Panama City, Abbey and Sharp Carpet and Tile, and Florida Custom Cabinets!

Kitchen Finished, Part Two.

The drawers are spacious, and as you can see even our largest pots fit nicely.

The pull-out pantries make it so easy to reach everything, and we have two of these big ones and two smaller ones up top, right next to the new fridge.

The laundry room is so wonderful to have, and if I need to, I can close the door and hide all the dirty laundry!

The counter-depth refrigerator actually holds quite a bit, and with the extra fridge we are quite happy with the space. It makes the kitchen feel so much bigger and more open.

The double wall ovens are wonderful, cook so evenly and so well. Our contractor's main handyman, Bill, used to work for Sears as an appliance installer, so he was able to get EVERYTHING in the kitchen perfectly level and balanced, including the washer--for the first time ever!

Kitchen Finished!

Finally, our kitchen is finished and fully functional, and it was well worth the wait. First picture is from the dining room down the new kitchen and into the new laundry area. It's actually very handy to have that extra fridge just a few steps away, so we use it and the cabinets in there frequently.

Next is a picture of the cooking side of the kitchen, showing off the finished back splash. Even with all of Joe's coffee making stuff, there's a ton of counter space for prep work.

Third picture is the clean-up side, with the world's quietest dishwasher (I am very impressed with my Electrolux appliances, I must say). The hidden garbage cans are a blessing, and we really needed both of them, too. They are in the cabinet just to the left of the sink, very handy.

Fourth is the first picture of our new china hutch, which finally came last week. Joe worked all weekend to unpack all of our china and Christmas dishes and crystal. It looks nice, doesn't it? It's a much larger hutch and buffet than the previous one.

Another view of the hutch and new dining room set.

The Back Splash

From the top: This is the design of the back splash, prior to grouting.

Next is a detail of the tiles in the bottom border--the little metallic glass tiles go very well with the metallic ceramic tiles and border, we think.

The next three pictures are views of the tile behind the cook top. All that's left is to get the decorative switch plates up, and this remodel is finally finished! I am truly enjoying using my new pantry and appliances. It's taking us a bit to adjust to the very different interior of our Electrolux dishwasher, but when we get it loaded correctly, it does a great job and it is the QUIETEST dishwasher I have ever had. We actually have trouble hearing if it's on or not when standing right next to it. Really. The double ovens are level and accurate--can't wait to bake a cake in there. I like the counter depth refrigerator, although I'm not sure it would be big enough if we did not have the spare fridge in the laundry room.

More Crown Molding Pictures

This is showing the crown molding (although not in detail, it's really pretty) around the dining room ceiling. It finishes the room off nicely and really makes the ceiling pop.

You can see it a little better on the cabinets, as well as see the vast expanse of counter top we now have and the high faucet on the sink. The double sink is very deep on both sides, so we are loving being able to put big pots under it. The garbage disposal, a top of the line Insinkerator, is incredibly quiet, as is the Electrolux dishwasher.

The last touches will be the back splash, which goes in on Monday. The tile installer says it's going to be spectacular. I can't tell you how nice it was to be able to cook breakfast on my new cook top this morning, or to eat a home cooked dinner tonight. Woonderful! Now if only all of those boxes of dishes and pots and pans would magically unload themselves and wash themselves and put themselves away.....

Crown Moldings and a Working Kitchen!

Finally, a functional kitchen! Here is the new dishwasher, which has been getting a workout today as we are emptying boxes of dishes and washing the newsprint and dust off of them. We ate at our new table on real dishes with real utensils and glasses and home cooked food. It was wonderful.

I baked a small ham in the oven, it worked great.

Notice the crown molding in the laundry room and throughout the kitchen and dining room. It matches the cabinets and really classes the place up.


There's a view from the laundry through the kitchen, looking into the dining room. Much more open, even if it is still a galley kitchen. Without the huge fridge at one end and the enormous laundry closet at the other, it just feels so much more spacious.

Joe's Aunt Shirley gave us these placemats and matching napkins one Christmas, and they go perfectly with the new table. They're extra large, which means you have room for your plate, glass, and tableware on the mat, and room to spare. As the table is not topped with formica, we have to be a bit more careful about not getting water rings and such.

Yet More PIctures

Here's a view of all the counter space we now have on one side of the kitchen....


.....and the other.



And finally, our gorgeous under mount sink. I'm hoping for it to be hooked up (along with the dishwasher) and faucet put in by tomorrow or Wednesday. We're planning a big, home cooked breakfast on Saturday!

New Dining Room Furniture and More!

Here's the wall ovens (the plastic is to protect them until the workers are done in the kitchen). The controls are too cool--the four Electrolux appliances are the Wave Touch ones, where the controls appear when you touch the surface of the panel (top). The bottom oven has a bread proofing feature, among other things.

Second picture is looking through the kitchen at the dining room. Lots more space, even with the wall ovens there.

The other three pictures are of the new dining room set, currently pushed up against one wall so that the granite guys did not scratch anything up. The wood is gorgeous, a warm mango wood, and everything is very well constructed and heavy. Really heavy. The table has an 18 inch leaf, making it 92 inches with the leaf. The china hutch is coming in about three weeks, and when it is on the hutch, little five foot four inch on a good day me can't reach the top by four inches. So we'll have lots of storage. Also noticed the lovely padded leather seats.

Almost There!

This is the counter top for the laundry room cabinet (no sense putting an expensive backsplash there).

Next is a wider view of the whole new laundry.

To the right of the new cook top we have a drawer for knives, one for spices, and one for cutlery (which will house our "good" set of stainless).

To the cook top's left is a drawer for cooking utensils. Organization, yippee!

There's a close up of the range hood (we haven't bothered to clean off all the fingerprints yet, no point with the workmen still coming to do the crown molding, finish the electrical plates, and the back splash, which will be the last thing. We went quite a bit over on the back splash, but I am assured by the tiler that it's going to look gorgeous. Joe designed it, and I have to agree it will be beautiful.

Came Home to a Wonderful Surprise!

I came home today to find that the counter tops, which were supposed to be put in later this week, are in! Not only that, but they put in the cooktop (seen in the first picture) and the sink, although the sink and dishwasher are not yet connected. That will happen soon, and I can finally cook again.

The dishwasher is also Electrolux (as is everything but the range hood) and is stainless steel inside, as you can see in the second picture.

The other three pictures are the new kitchen from several angles, showing the new sink, the ovens and cook top, and the counter depth refrigerator (you can also see the old refrigerator in the laundry room in the last picture). And no, the cabinets are not two different colors, that was just the difference in the unblocked light above and the overhang of the counter tops below.

Cabinets, the Sequel

Here is a picture of the cabinets in the laundry room, with the space for our older fridge. Tons of storage!

I tried to get a good picture of the hardware, which is beautiful and goes nicely with our ceiling lights.

Then there's the inside of one of the cabinets, showing the gorgeous wood and full finish--not a speck of particle board in these beauties!

Next comes the pull-out shelves, which are in every single cabinet except for the drawers. All drawers and pull-outs have that magic touch closing thingy, where they close themselves gently with just a push.

There are our two, not one, but two, count 'em, garbage cans, each holding a big kitchen garbage bag.

The quality of the workmanship is exquisite and the attention to details is excellent. I must highly recommend Florida Custom Cabinets in Panama City, because they have done a wonderful job.

The countertops will be here in about a week, but some of the appliances will be installed this week, so stay tuned!