Kitchen Photos!

So the kitchen probably doesn't look ALL that different from when we moved in, but there's STUFF in the drawers and cabinets.  :)  Trust me!  I have nighttime and daytime photos, and neither of them are really capturing how the kitchen feels.  I think I should have waited until later in the afternoon for the daytime photos because there's just too much light at the window in these, but I did the best I could to share the real deal.  Speaking of, I was super tempted to take the kids' booster seats off the gorgeous counter stools for the sake of pictures, but decided to keep it real.  We do live here afterall, and the blog is kind of named after them!  That said, I confess I hid the sponge under the sink.  I should also mention, the island will only look this immaculate when I'm taking pictures.  It's the same deal as our last house where you walk in and that island is a magnet for random stuff that either doesn't have a home yet or just collects things that are slow to get put away.

I'm not sure the placement of stuff on the counters is permanent, but I'm sort of giving this a test drive for now.  I'm thinking of switching to new cannisters because I could really use a third, and I only have those 2 white ones.  Also, it's a lot of white, especially where the papertowels are!  So some new cannisters could be in my future!  The coffee maker is kind of an eyesore as well, but it provides me with coffee goodness in the mornings, so I've made peace with it (for now).



Some night time photos:

Daytime Photos:

For those of you who discouraged me from making another wooden sign for above the sink, thank you!!  I'm happy with my burlap valances all on their own.  

These were super easy to make, even for me!  It's just natural color burlap, and I lined them with black cotton so they wouldn't be see through, and also to give the burlap a bit more interest.  I just stitched right up 3 sides and then a simple pocket at the top.  The straps are just 1.5" black burlap ribbon (not wired) and are holding the folds in the burlap panels.  I added a little piece of velcro so I can remove and adjust the straps as needed.  I used a couple pins to help arrange the folds that were being fussy.  

Granite Shots:

Some photos of my new goodies!!

In honor of our new kitchen, I got new dishes!!  It was a tough decision but I'm so loving my choice.  The white dishes are handmade and super rustic.  The mint green hand painted bowls and mugs add so much life to the white cabinets!!  Both are from Anthropologie and the result of black friday early bird shopping!  :)

The recycled glassware is my latest addition and I absolutely love them!!  In fact, I'm on the hunt for some chunky recycled glass beer mugs and can't find them anywhere.  Please let me know if you find any!!  They have to be dishwasher safe, and I'd like them to be the same recycled blue-green color, and beefy.  Gone are the days of our delicate Tiffany crystal beer mugs.  We're not a delicate Tiffany crystal kinda family.  

A better view of my dinner plates!  Pictures don't do them justice.

Please take note of the retro-fabulous toaster as I'm fairly confident I bought the last one on this continent in the mint green color!!  I had to search high and low for that pretty lady.  I was so desperate that I would have bought one with UK wiring (Dualit is a UK company) and paid to have it rewired here.  :)  Luckily I found one before having to reach a new low of pigheadedness.  If it weren't such a burden, my issues with seeing an idea through would probably be comical.  

I feel like I should post a photo of the inside of our dishwasher because it's super cool.  It's a Miele dishwasher and my favorite feature is the cutlery tray up top.  We chose it primarily because it's uber quiet, like, except for the occasional water gurgling from the sink, you wouldn't know it's running quiet.  In our last house, even with the family room and kitchen separated by a wall, I found the noise from the dishwasher to be nails on a chalkboard while watching tv!  Plus, we've tried out just putting the dishes right in without rinsing, and it's been a total lifestyle change.  Pans and all!  AMAZING!!!  

The refrigerator is by LG, and it's so nice to have filtered water and ice back!!  There's an LED light that shines into the glass as you fill it with water that I swear makes it taste even more refreshing.  :)  Our range is a 36" gas range by Dacor.  It's not what I thought I would pick at the appliance store, but we kind of bonded, and it's pretty!  You have all seen my posts about the custom range hood.  So glad we didn't settle for the original design!!  This is just what the kitchen needed.  We also have a second wall oven, by KitchenAid, and ta-da!  After 3 weeks in the house, we now have a working microwave.  Thanks Kitchen-Aid.  womp-womp.  Ours had a lemon door sensor.  It hasn't been a huge deal because we happen to know the neighbors have a perfectly functioning microwave next door.  :)

I look forward to posting pictures of the whole great room, but can't do that until I've revealed the dining room, foyer, and living room on their own.  The dining room is just about done, but the living room is struggling a bit and I haven't done a thing in the entry besides let our tools and ladders pile up there!  Maybe we'll get a peek at the dining room tomorrow?  This weekend it's all about the outdoors!  We'll be dressing up mom and dad's exterior tomorrow, and then MAYBE if we get around to it, doing some landscaping in our backyard on Sunday.  Stay tuned!