Inspiration for Kitchen Hardware

Our last three flips (1st, 2nd and 3rd) have been pretty darn traditional in terms of the finishes we’ve used – which I love, but I’m itching to try something slightly more edgy.  Not quite modern, but a little bit sleeker with clean lines and un-fussy finishes.

We’re reusing and revamping the existing kitchen cabinetry (shown here), and I keep looking at hardware as a way to give the traditional cabinets a little more oomph.

The images below pretty much sold me on chrome bar pulls for all of the cabinets and drawers.  Aren’t they gorgeous?


I think the sleek hardware will go a long way towards achieving our goal of a home with crisp, clean finishes.  But, of course, there are so many other finishes to consider – counter tops, tile, sinks . . . we’ve chosen all of it and I can’t wait to fill you in!!

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Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

I’m so glad you guys like the way the flip turned out!  It’s so much fun to see all of our hard work pay off – actually, I guess it hasn’t really paid off since we still own it, but you know what I mean.  :)

I thought we’d start this little before and after tour with the kitchen and dining room, since the kitchen was by far the most heinous part of the house when we bought it back in the beginning of June.

Not only was it not my cup of tea (pea green laminate counters, anyone?) but it was hugely lacking in functionality with a distracting and view-blocking range hood and an awkward angled peninsula.

Remember?

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

Well, we tackled those challenges with a switched up floor plan – and here’s how it looks now!

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

In addition to improving functionality, our goal was to lighten and brighten this kitchen and give it a classic feel that will stand the test of time.

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

See what I mean about that crazy range hood?  Not only could you hit your head on it but it was blocking all the natural light from the window (as well as obstructing the sight lines throughout the kitchen).

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

By the way – see those leaded glass panels in the built-in hutch and on either side of the kitchen window?  My mom made those!  She’s the coolest mom ever (and I’m not just saying that so she’ll keep outfitting our flips with awesome panels).

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

As you can see, we moved the fridge over to the other side of the room so that we could fit bar stools at the island.

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

This was our first time using carrera marble counters instead of granite, and I’m totally sold.  Love it!

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

This is where I became a little obsessed with photographing the tile and flowers.  My apologies.

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

We also moved the door a few feet down to the left so that we could have an uninterrupted L-shaped counter rather than having the range shoved in the corner.

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

I will definitely be using this herringbone pattern and gray grout again!  I kinda love it.

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

There’s that crazy peninsula I was telling you about – isn’t it better with it gone?

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

The built-ins look so much better after a coat of dark brown paint and new cabinet fronts (those swoopy details were pretty dated).  And another shout out for my mom’s handiwork!

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Even though it’s not a true “open kitchen,” I think that the connection between the kitchen, dining and family room will work really great for the new family that buys this house.

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

( I wasn’t going to post a photo with all of the previous owner’s stuff in the house but this was the only “before” photo I had going this direction. Please excuse all of the moving day craziness. )

The Flip is For Sale

( Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography )

Before & After: The Kitchen & Dining Room

And that’s it!  This is my dad’s favorite flip that we’ve done so far – what about you?  You can check out our other flips here.

All photographs taken by me, unless indicated as “Courtesy of Lance Hames Photography.”

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The Kitchen Floor Plan

The last time you saw the kitchen at our third flip it looked like this:

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

Take a "Before" Tour of Our Third Flip

But now it actually looks more like this!

The Kitchen Floor Plan

That’s right my friends, that outdated kitchen is gone!!

Hopefully before too long that empty shell of a kitchen will look like this – but in 3D of course.  :)

The Kitchen Floor Plan

Here are the changes to the kitchen floor plan that we’re planning on making:

  1. Move the fridge and water line to the sink wall (it’s currently on the bottom wall that is blank on the floor plan sketch above).
  2. Move the door to the office/formal dining room down to make room for an L-shaped run of countertop.
  3. Get rid of the crazy vent hood, switch out the double oven and electric cooktop for a slide-in gas range, and move the whole shebang to that left-hand wall.  Luckily there were already gas lines so it will be easy to switch from electric to gas!
  4. Make the island a more manageable size – we’re thinking 48 x 32.
  5. Nix the half bath off the kitchen (oh I can’t wait to hear the opinions on that one, ha!) and move that wall in about 2 feet to create a larger dining area.  What remains of the bathroom will become extra space in the laundry room that will be a built-in pantry.

I think that’s it!  I went through some really horrible floor plans before our contractor helped us come up with this option, and I’m really excited about it.  I can’t wait to see how it turns out!

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