New House Kitchen Design

One of the rooms I'm most excited about in our new house is our kitchen! I'm actually going with a similar vibe to our previous kitchen because I loved it so much. (In fact, I'm 99% sure I'm going to do the same Silestone Snowy Ibiza Quartz countertops!) and a subway tile backsplash (although I may do all white grout). The major difference in styling is that in our old house we went with oil rubbed bronze fixtures and hardware, and in this house we're  going with satin nickel. As I mentioned before, I'm going for a less traditional, more light/bright feel and I think the lighter fixtures complement that vibe.

In terms of the details, I picked out these beautiful Harmon Pendants from Restoration Hardware to go above the island. They just arrived... I can't stop looking at them! They will be the gem of the room! I also ordered these beautiful Riviera Counterstools  from Serena and Lily. They were the first thing I bought for the new house and I feel like set the fun blue/white vibe I'm going for! Love them. (In fact, the whole house is going to have a LOT of Serena and Lily details! The store is my current obsession!) We're also doing the Kohler Whitehaven farmhouse sink and the Moen Noell Kitchen Faucet (We had a similar Moen faucet in our old house and it was the best). We're also going with Kitchenaid appliances. So excited! It's truly better than Christmas!

The catch is that we are doing these details AFTER we get ownership of the house. The upgrades from the builder were just not 100% what I wanted, and quite frankly, they charged a freaking arm and a leg for them! So, we really only upgraded the cabinets with the builder.  We are doing the backsplash, sink, countertops, and light fixtures as upgrades once we move in. It's kind of a pain, but I want it to PERFECT and so I have no doubt it will be worth the hassle and the wait to get it exactly the way I want! Plus it feels good to pay for these things with cash rather than roll them into the mortgage and be paying interest on them. (I know, I'm a nerd). Anyway, what do you think?

I literally fall asleep dreaming about this kitchen, lol. :) 

Quartz Countertops

We finally have new countertops! Now that we have them, I am kicking myself for waiting so darn long. I was really struggling with the decision to get marble or something more durable.. eventually practically won out and we went with the Silestone Quartz "Stony Ibiza." I could not be happier with how they turned out! (But some day I will have my marble... some day!)

The pictures don't even do justice to how beautiful they are and what a difference they make in the room. To be fair, in every other picture you've seen of my kitchen the counters look better in the picture than they did in real life. They were pretty beat up!

I also repainted the cabinets and Evan re-drywalled the island (it was super wonky and uneven plaster).

I feel like this change has made me fall in love with this house all over again!

The white and gray baskets on the left hand side of the kitchen next to the mixer hold bottle parts, pacifiers, and kid utensils! Essential to have handy, but I hate looking at them. These baskets have helped hide the clutter!

The island here is the biggest change. I love, love, love it!

We decided to do a 2-inch angle on the corners of the island to prevent any hard bumps! I love the look too.

I'm kind of thinking of re-styling the kitchen... the curtains and the rug and the stools, in particular. We'll see!

New Kitchen Drapes

I am in full out nesting mode! I am cleaning, rearranging, organizing, and decorating like a mad woman. (Only another month and a half or so until this baby boy is due to arrive!) Most recently, this has involved switching out the brown cafe curtains that were in my kitchen for the Pottery Barn Rayna Drapes I had in the third floor bedroom. I am LOVING the impact! It is so much lighter and brighter and makes the room look taller. One of those things you look back on and say "why didn't I do this sooner?"

What do you think?

A Kitchen Refresh

A few weeks ago, I decided to take EVERYTHING out of my kitchen and do a deep clean. To  scrub the deep dark corners and know that every surface had been wiped clean was just beyond refreshing! Additionally, seeing the kitchen completely empty, and then putting things back together again was also a lot of fun and helped me eliminate a lot of the clutter on my counters that had just sort of started to accumulate. 

If you haven't done this lately, I highly recommend doing it. It is therapeutic. 

Doesn't it look heavenly? (Now imagine it with a new sink and marble counters! Ahhh!!)