We are still waiting on a few finishing touches, but we just about wrapped up with the first half of our kitchen renovation!
The first half of the renovation involved ripping out what was already there and rebuilding it. We started here in case you’re new to this project! We’ve added beams, demoed an entire wall of tile, repaired the drywall and got this space to a blank state before building it back up. We upgraded to Ikea cabinets with tons of functional storage, added a concrete countertop, and a marble backsplash. It’s been an intense couple of weeks, but it’s been so rewarding to bring this space to life!
We couldn’t get the exact dimensions to fit with standard Ikea cabinetry, so we decided to use the odd space to create a skinny cabinet for cookbooks and cutting boards. I have already loved it for the ease of use, as well as how it carries the warmth of the wood through the kitchen.
One of our struggles in this kitchen design was thinking about how it would open up to the living area. It is a wide galley kitchen and very much open concept, so we thought a lot about what kind of division a backsplash would create. We played around with going all the way up with our tile, but decided to keep it at a traditional height to prevent a harsh division between the kitchen and living room. Another reason we kept it low was for the practical reason of wanting to prevent cracking as our house continues to settle. Smaller backsplash = less risk for cracks.
Every project comes with budgetary compromises, and the backsplash was a place where we chose to save. I had been eyeing up a slab backsplash, but couldn’t justify the price. These marble tiles bring in the same texture I love from the natural stone at a significantly lower price. We installed the tile without spacers for a tight fit and very slim grout lines.
On the other hand, the pantry was a splurge for this project. We got custom natural wood (in red oak) fronts from The Cabinet Face for our Ikea cabinets. We added drawers within drawers to maximize storage.
We had a stainless steel sink in our previous kitchen, and I really struggled keeping it clean. We opted for a simple white apron sink paired with a bold brass bridge faucet for this kitchen. I wanted the entire vibe of this kitchen to feel warm and cozy, and simultaneously clean and timeless. I think the sink area does the best job of bringing those adjectives together to create the feeling I was after.
A late addition to our sink was the red oak drip rail. We had an unintentional gap between the sink and the cabinets below, so we added a drip rail. I really love this detail for how intentional it looks as well as how functional it is. Hooray for happy accidents!
Phase 2 officially starts today! Over the weekend we will be replacing the window on the left with a set of three windows that will sit above cabinet height. After that is done, we will be adding cabinets to this side to complete our kitchen renovation!
