It starts with a niggling, or a spark. “what would happen if”. In 43 years I have squeezed every inch out of this small builder house. Yes, I still have a couple spaces that I haven’t touched. One is a small space that will make a huge difference in how this house lives for me. I have been thinking about this tiny space for a couple of years and only now it is becoming clear. Formulating thoughts, tossing things out, changing my mind, and refocusing. This is my process and until it is completely clear in my mind, work won’t begin. I’m hoping for fall. After all we’re still recovering from the powder room!!!
For today’s discussion I thought I would share some previous renovations and see if I would do anything different now. I think this is a valuable conversation, as we you know, we all have to live with our choices for good or ill.
The kitchen is the one room that has undergone the most iterations. From adding molding to the cabinets doors, building the refrigerator wall and the cubby, too wallpaper and paint changes. I have done something to this kitchen every 8-12 years for as long as we’ve lived here. Some just for cosmetic purposes and some to create better function.
The biggest change came in 2009 when I decided it was time for new counter tops, sink and faucet. I would have loved a new kitchen but without spending $$$$$ of dollars I could not determine a better layout. I decided to make what I had better by contacting a local cabinet shop and asking them to make tray drawers for the one lower cabinet I had. This was a wonderful addition to the kitchen.
The countertops caused me the most angst. I was replacing formica and I couldn’t decide what to do. My heart was saying solid surface but my brain was saying Formica. Back in 2009 your choices were Corian which I new was not for me, or granite/marble. My little builder didn’t warrant the expense of going with stone and I of course new this. I also new we would be here a long time and I was tired of making choices because in my mind this was not our forever house. We are in our forever house. As soon as I released that thought, it became clear I had to do this for me. Make my choices. I went with granite and I am so happy I did. It has held up and no I haven’t resealed it in all these years. Yes I need to do that soon. I do still love my granite but if I was selecting now I would go with something more neutral.
The sink and faucet had to accommodate my need to dump paint and chemicals. Back in the day farm sinks were new and very expensive. I would have loved the look but in my tiny kitchen I didn’t need to interrupt the eye flow with a sink. I went with a better deeper under mount stainless steel sink, no worries about what get’s tossed into it. At the time it was the right choice. Is there a farm sink in my future? We’ll see probably not!
The criteria on the faucet was I had to be able to turn it on with my pinky. Hands free faucets were a brand new thing in 2009 and quite expensive. I went with a Moen with the handle on the side. My pinky is often the only finger that is not covered in grease, paint or dirt. This has worked out beautifully and I have loved this faucet every day since.
Several years later I determined I could put drawers into the cubby too. It would make that lower storage much more functional and I was desperate for drawers. Another trip to the cabinet shop and this time I had 3 drawers made, 2 deep ones and one shallow drawer that is “hidden”. The husband and I built the drawer fronts from 2 sides good birch plywood and applied molding. The hidden drawer has silver cloth liners for sterling. Yes this was a huge bonus to our kitchen.
In 2019 our refrigerator died. Buckled the laminate flooring and required some more work in the kitchen. Oh darn!!! I immediately new it was time for my dream fridge a Samsung with French doors and a utility flex drawer. I new it had to be counter depth and that it would fit into our cavity just fine. On delivery day the drivers placed the refrigerator and when I went to open the doors I immediately realized we had a problem. You couldn’t pull out the dishwasher! What! They hadn’t pushed it all the way back because the doors wouldn’t open. The refrigerator wall would have to be rebuilt for 3″ of space to allow the doors to open. Everything came out except the facade on the cubby!
At the time of the refrigerator wall rebuild I got to thinking about the area above the refrigerator and how that just becomes a cavernous wasted space. Back to the cabinet shop again, I had to replace the drawers in the cubby and while they were at it I had them build a pullout tray for over the refrigerator. They thought I was absolutely nuts! I had them build it 10″ in the back tapering to 4″ in the front so nothing can fall out and get lost. I had them put a divider in the middle of it so nothing falls down either. This drawer is huge and heavy and it stores all that stuff that you only need once or twice a year. But when you need it you need it, right. I do need a 3 step step stool to reach it but that’s ok. Yes absolutely I would do that again.
When it came to replacing the flooring I thought I wanted engineered hardwood. After speaking with my flooring specialist of 20 years he suggested LVP. He informed me that he’s using it in very expensive homes as well because it is fool proof. Waterproof, scratch resistant and looks like wood. I don’t want to replace this floor again so I began to entertain it. Yes I would do this again. It feels good underfoot, and it is easy to care for. Surrounded with beautiful home furnishings and good area rugs you don’t notice the difference. We did it in the kitchen, living room, and the 2 offices.
When we gutted our main bath in 2020 we kept the Kohler bath tub. The builder tub had been replaced many years ago and was in perfect condition. For the shower surround I had four criteria. It had to be timeless, had to go to the ceiling, the shower head had to be raised up because I was tired of ducking under it and had to be large with a hand held, and I had to have a niche for shampoo and soap. The niche I felt was a ridiculous amount of money for a styrofoam frame but I am so glad I splurged.
Taking this bathroom into old age….we added a comfort height Kohler toilet that actually has some style and a counter height vanity. The vanity has 4 drawers and a beautiful marble top. We went with Moen for both faucets. The flooring is a porcelain tile that looks like an encaustic tile which I absolutely love. I wanted the floor to make a statement and set the tone. We hired out all the tile work and the plumbing. Although we had tiled before it can be an easy DIY we both felt at this point it was too big of a job for us. There are times for the professionals.
One thing I did change was the knobs on the vanity. These square nobs came with it. I suggest not buying your handles and pulls online until you have physically handled them. You need to see how they feel in your hand. I hated these knobs, both the way they felt and looked. I added champagne brass knobs like I used in the kitchen. This bathroom is a win. I can’t tell you how much pleasure I get going into it every day. Small but mighty. The only thing I wish I had done and didn’t realize until the tile was in was change out the window. The color of the trim is wrong. I’m nervous about changing it now because I don’t want to mess up the tile.
The primary bedroom was a big job. I’m very pleased with the way it turned out. The paint color though perfect for the room is quite cool visually in the winter. I am looking for a quilt that I can use in the winter that will warm it up. The Christmas quilt went a long way in doing that so I know I can fix the problem relatively easy.
So in closing I am happy to say my home has found its full potential. Yes there are always things to do and I’m always thinking of ways to make it better. What I have learned is love the home you’re in. Don’t wait to do things because you may not be in your “forever home”. You never know, you could potentially be creating your forever home. Don’t be afraid and have some fun.
Thanks for stopping
Shelley
