Lilywood Kitchen Reveal

It all started with a little laundry room. “What?” you say! What does a kitchen have to do with a laundry room?!! Well, if you recall, last year we remodeled the laundry room in my dear friends’ home which you can check out HERE. Once we completed that project, they said we would probably do the kitchen “in a few years”.

Well…1 year later and POOF! Wave that magic wand and we now have a completely new kitchen and living room to enjoy!

Once you get the bug…you GET THE BUG!

This pandemic has changed our plans. It has rerouted all our lives. No one is traveling like they use to. No one is going out to dinners like we use to. We are all spending more time in our homes and realize it really doesn’t function as well as it could for our families. We are paying more attention the flow of our spaces and the little things that bugged you but you left it behind to go to the office are now REALLY BUGGING YOU now that your home IS your office!

After finishing that laundry room and loving the new configuration, we started talking to our cabinet maker and getting on his demanding schedule. Because what my clients decided was it was time. This kitchen was ready for an overhaul.

Before

Pictured here is the original kitchen from when the home was built back in 1999. Granite tile countertops, a desk in the kitchen area, and the cooktop in the island. This cooktop was really was the biggest concern of the homeowners and why the remodel happened faster than we first anticipated. The appliances (except the massive fridge) were original from 20+ years ago. The fear of them failing and having to replace them before we knew what the new configuration was going to look like would have been a waste of money. Fear always helps moves things along. 😉

Next Steps

We quickly got on our cabinet contractor’s radar to get drawings made and a timeline in place. The homeowner was a huge help in project managing everything, even earned himself the nickname, “Contractor Steve”. We like it. It’s very official. Warning: he’s really pricy to sub out though. 🙂

Here it IS!!!

Here it is in all it’s freshness!!! Once drawings were finalized, all the products were chosen. Thermador range, dual microwave and oven on wall, built-in paneled fridge in a new more accessible location, and lots and lots of cabinets for storage and countertops to prep and display and work.

The cabinets are adorned with antique bronze Rejuvenation cabinet hardware, and we chose a coordinating faucet, water dispenser and air switch from California Faucets.

Light fixtures from Circa Lighting in an antique brass finish were also chosen for kitchen island as well as adjoining family room which you will see in a post to come!

Other Details

To open up the space and make the visual space feel bigger, we kept the kitchen window wall free of cabinets and instead chose to install open shelves, hardware also from Rejuvenation. I love how these display and functional shelves turned out with the collected silver pieces and functional items like a cookie jar or a teapot.

One of the things I am most pleased about is having a special place to display the precious ceramic bowls made by the homeowner’s sister. They were formerly sitting in a cabinet, not getting used or remembered before the remodel. And now, we have found the perfect place for them to sit to be on display OR possibly used!!! And what better place for them to reside than in this beautiful kitchen?

We decided on an apron sink to add to the interest in an all-white kitchen, and went with a mixed white tile backsplash. (More to come on that detail in a bit 😉 )

Oh Noooo’s Along the Way

Every remodel has hiccups. Every remodel! It is how you deal with the hiccups as they occur. Remember that sink I was just talking about? It was ordered off Amazon and arrived fairly quickly. It was left in the box in the garage till the cabinets were installed. Contractor Steve pulled it out of the box and put it in the cut-out hole in the cabinetry specifically for the sink and it was TOO SMALL!!!! The sink was TOO SMALL!!!! Panic–by the homeowner and by the cabinet guy! They got out the tape measure and sure enough, the sink was in fact smaller than the size listed on the order. Contractor Steve called around and found one in stock at a local building supply store and was able to get it the next day to install. WHEW!

Tip: always open the box, pull out your shipments and inspect the content when they arrive at your doorstep.

Ironically, we probably would have still pulled it out of the box, looked at it for damage and color, and then put it back. Who would think to measure the darn thing! I even think the box said the “ordered” size…but I might be wrong. it would be 3” smaller than what we ordered?!

Another hiccup was with the tile. We loved the texture and finish of these square tiles. It felt like it could be in a 100+ year old home. It had depth and movement and a beautiful patina. We ordered a sample and matched everything to that sample: countertops, cabinet color (BM White Dove), hardware, etc. We loved it! Contractor Steve ordered the proper square footage, with my recommendation of adding 15% and the tile arrived. Over a girls weekend away, he started knocking out the bar wall (which we will reveal shortly) and I get a call. “Melissa, I don’t know what’s going on but, in this box, there seems to be 3 different color tiles. I’ve checked all the boxes and they all seem to be a random mix of 3 different colors.” He sent a picture and yep. Sure enough, there looked to be a white, a cream and a soft gray.

To make a long story short, we liked the mix of the white and the cream. It adds an element of interest and adds to the “old world” “handmade” look. But not the gray. It just looked dirty and their home does not have gray accents. So, one by one, Contractor Steve pulled the gray ones off the almost set backsplash, he then laid them out on the dining room table before bringing them into the kitchen to finish the backsplash. We had to order a couple more boxes but, in the end, it looks absolutely fabulous!

We later learned that this tile by Z Collection is based on a technique called Zellige which has a variation in color tones and accentuates the natural imperfections of a handmade product. Good to know! 😉

Bar Area

Between the kitchen and the dining room, we also remodeled the bar in the coordinating finishes. Added a beverage fridge and kept the prep sink which was the only sink working while we waited for that custom faucet from CalFaucets to arrive.

What a beauty this kitchen is now. It is bright, it is efficient, and the homeowners chose every detail from start to finish. There is something so rewarding about that statement. When you put thought into a space, and even your own hard work (Did I mention Contractor Steve did all the tiling himself?!!! So good!) I think you appreciate it that much more!

If you are thinking about making a few changes to your home, give me a buzz! No job is too small. Just this week I did a text consult on flooring choices. I’m here to help in any way possible!

Here’s to beautiful happy homes!

Xo,

Melissa

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