Kitchen Renovations at the Farm

Whenever I design a new space - I look for inspiration and often find it on the Country Living website. My cabinetry at the farm was honey oak which Martin Towe refinished to a antiqued black finish that I love.

I also love the wooden pot rack over the island. I won't have room for one of those at the farm, but I do love it.

I like the idea of combining the black cabinetry with the vintage glass front cabinet - so much so that I will be removing a section of the cabinetry at the farm and hanging a French inspired camel top glass front cabinet for my china pieces in its place.

This is the section of cabinetry to be removed so that the new cabinet can go in its place. This cabinet is visible from the front entry so I think it will make a nice focal point to pull the eye forward into the house.

This is similar to the type of china cabinet I have in mind for the space. If I cannot find one, I know that Martin can build one for me, but hopefully I can find one to refinish in a light oak color or whitewash.

This will be my color palette for the kitchen at the farm. Black cabinetry, stainless steel appliances, mushroom tinted walls, and slate tile backsplash. The countertops will also be a neutral in a slate tone formica top. I like the durability of the formica top and it can be changed out easily if I ever want to change the appearance of the kitchen a very little cost.My cooktop in in the island so I will need a vent hood, additional lighting and possible a pot rack. The island is approximately 10' in length and about 3' in width. A range vent will break up the space and add another interesting focal point to the kitchen.
This is the shape of vent hood I am thinking of for the island. I would like to fabricate my own design using hammered and etched metal. The ceilings are only 8 feet high so it would not be a large piece to fabricate. I will leave the lights out of the vent hood and place them on either side instead to showcase the hammered and etched metal.

I would also love to have this arts and crafts style clock in my kitchen area. I can fabricate the clock face and Martin can build the clock from Black Walnut. Isnt' is gorgeous?

Chris is a tall guy at 6'2", but the stilts really speed the mudding process up with no ladders or scaffold to deal with and he is so proficient with mudding the walls that they hardly need any sanding at all which is such a plus when you are pushing the schedule to get the renovation complete.
Here's hubby, Dan looking at all of the wires he will have to relocate that were hidden in the soffit - oops I didn't count on that little wrinkle when I insisted they be removed.

There is a pantry in between the cabinets (in the photo above). The door to the pantry is small at only 24" in width. I had considered using a vintage door with a glass window, but 24" is really small and a door that size with a glass window has proven difficult to find. A couple of different options would be a screen door, but again finding a vintage door in 24" will be difficult.

A door like this could be fabricated, but too expensive. So, I may have to settle for a small door with a chalk board like the one below. I like this idea, but would really like to find a door that lets the light from the pantry shine into the kitchen.

The soffits are gone and the sheet rock is up and mudded - this was a time consuming project due to relocating the wiring and moving the can lights toward the middle of the room. I am so happy with the results and like the open feel of the kitchen now that the soffits gone.

A few other ideas I really like and will try to find a place for in the house....

I like the look of the old general store shadow boxes on the wall. I have loads of small items that I have collected over the years and this shadow box cabinet would be perfect to display them.

This kitchen has the feel of the mud room I would like to have in the galley style room between the house and the garage. I have an old vintage sink and the cabinets would be nice to store odds and ends. I also want a crystal chandelier in the space - which I already have on hand. It's a nice dicotomy - a chandelier in a mudroom.

I also love these primitive looking lights over this table. They remind me of galvanized metal funnels - wouldn't they make great lights? Maybe in a bathroom over the sink......