My Kitchen Be GONE!

Hope Williams
by Hope Williams
2 Materials
$1000
12 Months
Medium
First, I want everyone to know that I am not a blogger or writer and I did not sleep at a Holiday Inn last night. Also, when these pics were taken, they were for memory sake, not for a post here on Hometalk. With that cleared up front; When we bought this house, the layout and bones were Perfect! They were exactly what I had been looking for, for almost 4 months! What with all these heavy iron bars on every window, yeah, I said that. It just screamed DREAM HOME at me.
Ahhhh,, one would think this was a dicey area of town, NOT to me though. The kitchen was first on my hit list!
entering from dining room
What I saw was real wood cabinets in fantastic condition, just not enough of them.  Pic is of listing from former owner with permission.
The "Not" view from dining room
Here you see the 1970's back of the cabinets and an L shape countertop.  My goal was to remove these cabinets and relocate them.  Also notice the Pantry the former owners used and just beyond that is the hallway and that is a bedroom door with papers hanging on it.  That was Going away!
Again, listing photo with permission.
Notice all doors are flat faced, for now.
Drop down cabinets over bar and counter removed.
Doorway, GONE! Closed off
Blending in bought cabinets
As I mentioned, not enough cabinets, so we bought another kitchen, like ours from Tallahassee, Fl.  Had doors made to match.
Ready for her makeup!
Having all cabinets in place and new doors, I was ready to put the finishing touches on this kitchen.
Top Row, Done.
Here I added molding, sanded, painted and reinstalled the uppers.
The other side of uppers.
TA DA!!!!
Now she's ready for company!
Stove wall.
Former doorway.
My baking station.  Notice the swing arm curtain rod, it holds all my baking needs> and I Mean all!
Dishwasher side.
NOTE:  I made all light fixtures and curtains for bottom cabinets where I would stand for longer periods of time.
Ahhhhhhhhh.........
This was a feat and a half to say the least.  But oh so worth every cut, blister and every tear for me.
For anyone who wants to know what took so long, Ill share a bit about myself. I am 54, disabled but very capable. But,  I got very sick during this reno.  To the point of not being able to get out of my own way!  Gained 50 lbs, and could not sleep.  Needless to say, it was my thyroid, and it just quit.   We chased it for quite some time and all is well now.  But for those of you out there that think you cant, I'm here to tell you oh yes you can.  It just takes me longer and hurts a lot more than say, 5 years ago. But I own my disabilities, they do not own me. And I will cross that finish line and I have the rest of this house (now sold), and the one we are in now (under construction) to share with you if you'd like me to.  P.S. The weight is long gone too.!
Suggested materials:
  • Countertops   (locally)
  • Flooring   (I dont remember)
Frequently asked questions
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  3 questions
  • Eroque022810 Eroque022810 on Apr 17, 2018

    First,glad to hear your all well. It's also inspiring to hear that you didn't let it stop you because it came out great. So would you say you doubled it in size cause it sure looks like it. It even looks wider?

  • Donnajgreen Donnajgreen on May 14, 2018

    What did you make the plate dividers out of?

  • Kira Kristensen Kira Kristensen on Nov 05, 2018

    How did you do the counter? Is it paint or did you put in a new counter?

Comments
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3 of 47 comments
  • Beth Parsons Beth Parsons on Nov 04, 2018

    I absolutely love your kitchen island!

    • Hope Williams Hope Williams on Nov 05, 2018

      Thank you Beth. It’s a 36” high French provincial dresser.

  • Twyla J Boyer Twyla J Boyer on Jan 13, 2019

    You are an inspiration and the kitchen looks fantastic! Closing off that doorway really enabled you to turn a tiny kitchen that didn't look like it worked well into a cook's paradise.


    I would surely love a peek behind that swing arm curtain rod - or at least a description of what type of storage was behind it. I have a tiny kitchen with a blind corner cabinet and am trying to figure out how to redo it without spending a fortune on cabinets (I lust after a super susan for that corner!) but still having them be functional. I would totally entertain the idea of removing doors and even faces in that corner to be replaced with a swing arm curtain rod if you could give me just a smidge more info....

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