Kay's Kitchen

Hi everyone!  I want to share some pictures of my mom's friend Kay's new kitchen.  Kay and my mom are both retired now, but they worked together for over twenty years.  They and their other girlfriends from the office still get together every year to celebrate birthdays and Christmas.

Kay was kind enough to welcome me into her home and let me take some pics of her sparkling, new kitchen.  It really looks like something from a magazine or HGTV.

Kay lives in a 1960's era house, and she is gradually re-doing it, room by room.  I plan to visit her again and take pictures of the rest of her home for another post.  But for now, here is Kay's pretty, white kitchen.

Kay explained that there were no cabinets or counter tops on this wall prior to the re-model.  The space was open and intended to be used as an eating area.  Kay had the contractor add these cabinets with an open shelf for her microwave oven.  All the cabinets are new, custom cabinets.  She had some of the left-over granite made into a cutting board for the counter top.

She requested that the contractor design this curved area for the counter top so that she could put a stool there for eating.  I love this idea!  You can see her hardwood floors in the above picture.

Kay went with a stainless sink and refrigerator in her new kitchen.  I think stainless looks great in an all- white kitchen. 

 

I really LOVE her shiny subway tiles!

Kay had the existing cabinets above her sink replaced with these floating shelves.  She said now she doesn't bump her head on the cabinet doors, and she can display her white dishes.

I love the way her lights throw shadows on the wall above her plates here.  Isn't her green plant cute on the end of the shelf?  Kay said she liked the contrast of the rustic clay pot with the pristine white shelves, back splash and dishes.

I didn't think to write this down, but I believe she said the name/color of her granite is "White Cashmere".  I love the magnetic strip for storing and displaying her knives.

This is such a cute, French art poster.  Kay's son and daughter-in-law are both veterinarians, and they gave her this poster print.  I think it's charming and perfect for the style of her kitchen.

Contemporary track lighting was installed overhead, with brushed nickle mount and trim to blend with her cabinet hardware and faucet.

I used our small point and shoot camera, but I was really pleased with the quality of these pictures.  I think the main reason for that is the combination of track lighting and good natural daylight in her kitchen.  The photos were taken in mid-afternoon.

Kay gets natural light from her window and door, which look onto her back yard.

Kay had a local sheet metal company make the metal back splash for her stove.  She explained that she still has to get her hood and vent fan.  Once that's installed, this piece will look more in proportion to her stove.

Another cute art print from her son and daughter-in-law :)

Kay found this small silver tray at a thrift shop and used it to keep some of  her cooking condiments (and a small silver-framed photo) next to the stove.

A few last photos of the kitchen...

I couldn't resist taking a few pics of Kay's living room -- or I should say, one wall of her living room.  She had a contractor build a new mantel and bookshelves for her fireplace.  He matched the dental molding on the bookcases to that of the mantel.  So classy!!  In my opinion, bookcases or built-in shelves are one of the most wonderful additions we can make to our homes.  Books really make a house a home, and bookshelves are great for displaying other keepsakes and objets d'art, as well. 

I really love the glass doors and doorknobs on these bookcases.  Her flat, tile hearth and white, painted brick fireplace are like the one we had in our 1920's home in Greensboro many years ago.  We didn't have the bookcases on either side, though.  I would have loved those!

Kay found this great bench/ottoman at a thrift shop.  When she looked under the seat, she saw that it carried the label of a fine furniture store in our town that had gone out of business some years ago.

She found the fabric on clearance and had the bench re-upholstered.  It looks great in front of her fireplace, and she said it provides extra seating for visitors and family.  I love the black-painted legs.

Thanks so much, Kay, for inviting us into your home, and sharing your beautiful kitchen and smart design ideas!  I had a great time!

I'll show pictures of the rest of Kay's home in another post.  Thank you for visiting, and I hope you enjoyed the tour.

**Addendum to this post:  I know this kitchen looks so new and clean and immaculate; we could easily wonder if it ever gets used for, you know, actual cooking.  The answer to that question is -- yes.  Kay is giving a dinner party for 13 of her neighbors this coming Saturday evening.  I e-mailed her to ask about the menu.  She wrote: " I plan to serve chicken pie, Honey Baked Ham, lima beans, garden salad with homemade dressing, and sweet potato souffle.  Dessert will include orange crush pound cake and Scotch chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream.  Most everyone is elderly and I know they prefer comfort food.  I will have little spring bouquets on each table."  What lucky neighbors you have, Kay. :)

I'm joining the folks at Potpourri Friday, hosted by Honey at 2805 and the Home Sweet Home party, hosted by Sherry at The Charm of Home.  Won't you please join us? 

Denise

Spring Break

Our son is home on Spring Break.  Yay!  Last year he barely stopped in between two trips that week.  It's nice to have him here!  :)   Unfortunately, we were committed to a three-hour Photoshop class on Monday and Tuesday night (too much).  One class was a make-up, as the instructor has a seriously ill father and had to miss a class a few weeks ago.

It seems that Photoshop Elements offers a lot of creating and editing functions.  In pictures of people, for instance, you can remove "red eyes" and whiten teeth.  And you can bring some contrast back to old black and white or sepia photos that have faded over time; of course you have to scan those into your computer first in order to do this.  You can remove unwanted objects (and people) from your photos.  Interesting.  You can also make greeting cards and photo albums with your pictures.

My husband really wanted us to take this class, and I did learn a few things.  We learned a quick and painless way to watermark our photos.  That was the big thing I wanted to get from the class.  But there is so much to learn, we were only able to touch on topics somewhat briefly in the duration of the class.  It was fairly intense and moved quickly.  I feel like I've been learning a lot of techie things lately to keep my blog updated, and now I'm ready to do some fun and creative things again.

I still love Picasa, and find it so user-friendly for blogging.  I feel like I'll still be using it for most of the things I do.  I need to double check, but I'm pretty sure you can link your photos in Photoshop to Picasa.  I'll let you know on that, for those people who might be interested in learning Photoshop.

In the meantime, I plan to enjoy spending time with our son while he's home.  What have you been up to this week?

Denise