June 10, 2015

Our Kitchen Additions

You’d think being in the kitchen/bath field with our company APF, Inc. for the last thirteen years would make our kitchen re-model a piece of cake.  Preferably red velvet with cream cheese icing.  Sorry, I’m hungry and trying to kick sugar.  Not a good combo for me.  AKA as my hubby might say… avoid me at any and all costs until I give up on day three and sugar binge.  And while I am rambling I have decided I am tired of saying “my hubby” so from now on I will call him Mark since that’s his name.  Lol!  Anyways, knowing too much about kitchens, having too much access to products and having about fifty dream kitchens in my head at all times has equated to one reeeaaalllly long, drawn out remodel.

Let’s first re-visit what we started with…

I admit, our kitchen was not the end of the world.  I guess for us it was comparable to working for Apple and still using a Blackberry.  Our kitchen was very pretty, very functional and I personally could’ve lived with simply painting the cabinets and updating the countertops and backsplash.  Because let’s be honest, when you see Santa Cecilia granite and 4×4 travertine tile every day all day for thirteen years, it begins to look a little blah for us.  Mark however, was not particularly happy with the construction/materials of our original cabinetry and was adamant about re-placing them.  Can’t say I minded too much!

Once we are completely finished with our kitchen, I will do a full, detailed blog post but until then, here’s a quick peek at the start of the construction…

And then “After” (prior to about thirty other projects)

As you can see, our vent hood is a huge focal point in the kitchen.  It is front and center and I wanted something really custom looking.  Mark actually somehow just “had” this vent hood laying around at our shop so I decided to re-purpose it a bit.  A coat of Benjamin Moore’s Thundercloud Gray and voila!

Although it turned out really beautiful, it was still missing that pizzazz that I had envisioned.  It was still looking a little boxy and boring to me.  Remember… an interior designer plus design blogger plus kitchen/bath company owner equals one dangerous combination.  So, I grabbed two of these raw, rubberwood corbels that we carry in our showroom and took them home one day.  I sprayed them Thundercloud Gray as well and then they sat on our countertop for about three months while I patiently awaited the day Mark had time to tackle this particular project.  Seeing as though this was project #4,555,888 for him, three months was pretty dang impressive!

Acanthus Wood Corbel- 3-3/8″ x 7-3/4″ x 13″

www.apolishedfinish.com

AFTER

SHOP OUR KITCHEN:

Cabinets and Countertops- A Polished Finish

Appliances- Howard Payne

Cabinet Hardware and Island- A Polished Finish

Island Custom Color by Sherwin Williams (Brittany’s Blue):

CCE Color Cast          OZ       32       64      128

 L1 Blue                        —        43         1          1

Y3 Deep Gold                —         8          1          —

Plates- Anthropologie

XOXO, Brittany Hayes