Over the weekend Aubrey and I sat down with a calendar and planned out when our kitchen reno could happen. It has been set (kind of) .... June 4th our demo starts. So exciting! For a long time we've known how we want our kitchen to look. It hasn't been that hard because the layout isn't changing very much. But we're taking our time and trying to see if we're missing creative ways to add unique elements, and make a "out of the box" kitchen look custom. Yup. We're likely going with Ikea. It's not 100% as we haven't actually bought the cabinets yet, so still things can change, but for now let's assume it's IKEA.
Here is what our initial design is. [Ignore the huge space between each side of the kitchen, we don't have that big of a walkway!]
[1] Above the sink --- open shelving for cookbooks like we saw done in a Kitchen Cousins episode.
[2] Where our fridge is now we're going to put a pull out pantry beside it and cabinets above.
[3] The biggest change to the space is that we're carrying through the base cabinets into the eat in kitchen. The counter will carry through from the kitchen area to the eat in area - marrying the two spaces. This is where some handy work will be done, and some IKEA hacking.
[4] Our GE Cafe Microwave will go above the stove.
[5] Layout Change: The oven is moving from the end of the counter, to the middle
[6] Flooring: We're continuing the hardwood from the rest of the main floor
[7] The blank wall between the end of the counter and the basement entrance is going to be a wall of tiles [I think]
White cabinets, and tiles & counter top to be determined. More on that later. Anyhow, thought you'd like to see the initial plans!
Update: Ignore the ceiling height in this diagram. Aubrey and I forgot to plunk in that measurement, but we're trying to go for the tallest cabinets possible.
Aubrey and I for a long time really were leaning towards custom cabinetry, and the place we wanted to work with was AyA Kitchens. If we had a bigger budget, we would do it in a heart beat. The service was amazing, and their cabinetry is wonderful. (I've seen it installed and it's perfection) But we're not at a stage where we can afford that level yet. But check them out because I LOVED their service.