Things I love about our kitchen, and don't

Here's some of the things that I really am glad that we were able to include in the kitchen (and some that we weren't), just fyi in case anyone is embarking an a kitchen re-do!

Love, love, love the big single basin deep sink (The cutting board is covering almost half of it.) I love that I can push scraps down the disposal (for now, until with get our worm box going for composting) and paper into the garbage right below...no dumping out a strainer!!

I also really like that we were able to work out an oil pullout right next to the stove top and cutting board and pan storage on the other side (Thanks KimSue!)


Michael loves the potfiller. I forget about it half the time, but now that I'm getting used to it, I suspect I'll wonder how I lived without it. Michael uses the griddle every weekend to make pancakes. I have yet to try out the grill option! Love having gas again - what a difference in control. I like having the storage for pots and pans right under the cooktop. Had that in Sonoma and duplicated it. I didn't bother splurging for the pull out drawer b/c I had doubts on whether it would wear well under the weight of our really heavy pots and pans. I'd be curious to hear what people that have that think.

We went back and forth about the pendant lights over the island. I'm second guessing our choice. I went for something more traditional since we were "reusing" our more transitional living room furniture. I kind of wish I would have kept with the initial feel of the design and wouldn't have rushed into getting something up to have lights in place. Bummer!

I wish that we would have had more room for an appliance garage so that I could keep my kitchaid mixer out at the ready. But I don't have any regrets because I really don't know where we could have put it. I found it more important to have a spot for our toaster oven and coffee maker since we use those on a daily basis. I would have loved to have a built in coffee maker, but that went out the door when we needed to replace the siding. Oh, and I really like that we were able to have some super deep uppers on the frig/oven wall. Great for big platters and such. I also like having the extra glass/dish storage by pulling the uppers down to the counter on both sides of the cooktop and it prevents that wall from looking cluttered since I am looking at it all of the time. And even though we had to squish the pantry down to 12 inch depth - it's still working out fine and I'm surprised at how much fits. It's Chloe's favorite thing to empty out. Noah loves the little corner bench and often sits up there to wait for company or Dad to come home. We have a little pendant to install and I found a table. Now I just need to budget for it! I also want to get some cushions made for it. I'm so glad that my talented friend Stephanie helped me on the detailing of the columns around the island. They really seem to integrate well with the cabinetry and rest of the room. She was so right to inform me that they could really look like an afterthought without some contemplation. Thanks Stephanie!

We're still looking for knobs and pulls for the cabinets. I'm gun shy about just putting things up because I feel like I rushed ahead with the lighting, so if anyone has any suggestions let me know!