The Kitchen ... So Far

As promised, here is a tour of our kitchen.  I don't want to call it a 'before and after', because there's definitely more work that we plan to do down the road in this room...so it's more of a 'before and so far'.

The biggest change we've made to the space is the addition of an island.  We both love to cook, so having the extra counter space is helpful...even more helpful is the dishwasher we added in the island.

The kitchen also sort of doubles as an office space, though more often than not, we end up just using the laptop in the Living Room.  That clock over the french door is our great-grandfather clock (it was a gift to Tessa's great-grandfather when he retired in the 1970's).  (Lots more photos after the jump!)

On the left is the bricked in fireplace.  It's hard to imagine that when the house was first built, that fireplace would have kept the place warm.  For us, it's a good spot to hang our Jenna Rose Anatomy of a Bicycle Print (made in Hamilton), our Dear Edna His/Her Apron (also made in Hamilton with a manly-ish fabric on one side and a girl-ish one on the other), and our calendar (you guessed it, made in Hamilton!)

On the right is our stair to nowhere.  It used to be a butler stair to upstairs, but when the house was converted to a two-family many many years ago, they closed up the stair opening.  Now it makes for a great place to store books and small appliances.

Hey look, it's our sink and bay window.  Tessa agonized for months before selecting a fabric for the Roman shades.  In the end, she went with a Joel Dewberry print ordered online from QuiltHome.com.

On the left is our light fixture.  It's a Globe Pendant from West Elm.  We like it...but weren't thrilled about the shadow it casts on the original plaster medallion.  Thankfully we learned our lesson before choosing a light for the Living Room.  On the right is the aforementioned dishwasher.  Now you see it, now you don't!  It's a small space, so we went with an integrated panel front so it would blend in with the cabinets when not in use.

Finally, here are some objects and details that make the space 'home'.  On the top left are a series of Hamilton postcards featuring photos by amazing local photographer, Reg Beaudrey.  These were purchased from Mixed Media - an awesome art shop on James Street North.

In the bottom left photo are our Matryoshka Stacking Doll Measuring Cups.  These were a gift from a friend who purchased them at Zone in Ottawa, but we've since seen them at Lulu and Lavigne on Locke Street in Hamilton.

Finally, on the right is our wall decal chalkboard.  Perfect for shopping lists and reminders.

There you have it - the kitchen so far.  Eventually we hope to replace the rest of the cabinets and the flooring, but that won't happen for a while.  For now, it's a perfectly serviceable sunny little kitchen.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, the colour on the walls is Benjamin Moore's Sea Star, 2123-30.