a project completed

The kitchen is one of my favorite examples of our progress. You can see in the before/after pictures above how it looked when we moved in and how it looks now. When we first moved in we painted the cupboards white and the walls blue. Then, my husband's parents gave us a dishwasher for Christmas (much appreciated!!) and we got a contractor to help us install that, as well as a new countertop, sink & faucet, backsplash, and floor. These changes have made such a difference in the whole feel of the room.

I had fun decorating this space. The color blue on the walls is my all-time favorite color. And my inspiration for the rest of the room was the wooden fish you see hanging on the wall above my pie safe. Not a great picture, but I think you can see that it is colorful and fun. I bought it at an artist's shop on Captiva Island, Fl. With that piece as my inspiration, we decided to go in the direction of fun!...the raspberry countertop, the fish tiles in the backsplash (from MacKenzie-Childs), the fish floorcloth (custom painted). I love it. I know this kind of color is not for everyone, and it might not work in a bigger kitchen, but it works here. I found a great fabric that incorporates the raspberry and blue perfectly in a cute plaid, and had valances made for the windows and an apron curtain for the space below the sink. I painted my pie safe the same raspberry as the counter and had fabric panels made to hang where there used to be tin covering the openings.

I'm very happy with how everything turned out, and even happier that the kitchen is in the 'completed' column of our project list. I'm sure you'd agree that it's motivating to keep going when you see results that you like!