Ok folks, here's the whole kitchen, before and after.
We took out the wall and door that is behind the hutch in the first picture. The door led into the utility room which we weren't using. It had another door to get inside, from the outside, so we just kept this door closed. This was so cramped, two of us could barely get around each other in here. It was a dream for years and years to open this space up and now it is a reality. I love it. The area that the hutch and chopping block table next to it, is about 3' deep.
This next picture is looking into the kitchen from the doorway to the screened porch. This is our main entry. We're weird I know. But we rarely have company, and the front door is actually in my library/craft space but we decided to not use that door at all since we need the space for living.
The top cabinets are original to the house, 1950. There had been a bottom cabinet with sink, all in one piece, but it was horrible, so we took it out. Recently we picked up two filing cabinets that the neighbors across the street put out for the trash men to take, and we said hey wait a minute, we can use these under the kitchen counter for storage. We had already had this idea, so got our tape measure to see if the two would work and they did. You can see the one, and we put oak looking contact paper on the front of drawers to make them look better. The smaller filing cabinet is behind the curtain next to the stove.
I have other pictures of these further on down the post.
The little bottles on the left side of picture are essential oils, which I use for health remedies and well-being.
This is looking back into the scullery area, which by the way is according to definitions, the area off the kitchen, where storage and clean up are done. DH had worked in the scullery when he was first in the Navy many, many years ago, and I started calling this space 'the scullery' while we were building it. I love the quaint name. Dishes are drying on the counter.
The refrigerator is in a nitch, with a roll-out shelf above it. The nitch is into the pump-house area behind the house. The little long cabinet on the refrigerator wall was found across the street, when renters moved out. This was while we were working on this space. Then there is a wire shelf unit next to that for storage, then a side light. The little cabinet under the counter was found further on down our street another time when we were on our way somewhere, so we grabbed it. It is so much fun saving things from the landfill. The sink we bought from a salvage place. DH built a shelf up around the top to put 'stuff', ya know, my kitch.
Now, this is looking at the other side from the hallway.
The metal cabinet next to the counter back in the scullery, with a porcelain top was found many, many years ago. Next to that is a drawer the neighbors across the street threw out when they were remodeling, we just heat stripped it partially to go with the hutch, which is also another found piece, from a neighborhood that was old, and being torn down for the airport. We happened to have another porcelain top that we used on top of the drawer, which is where my bread machine sits.
The bookshelp next to the hutch was another found item. We put the top portion of the chopping block table next to it, on top, to hold more 'books'. You can see that I have a lot of them, over 300 cookbooks alone, then there is gardening, herbs and natural healing, and crafts.
Here is the bread machine shelf. DH made the spice cabinet for me in the Navy's hobby shop when we were living in Rota, Spain while was stationed there. The wood is African mahogony.
This is looking toward the door.
Another bookshelf crammed to the hilt. ;-)
Now, here is the top part of the hutch, since I couldn't get it all in one picture, the bottom half is the next picture. The top two knobs are resined black eye peas in one, and corn in the other, the bottom doors are sunflower seeds and some sort of leaves, like parsley, in the other. The alabaster grape cluster on top is from Italy. We got these while living in Spain. They are attached to a real grape vine. They have been stained and glazed though, as alabaster is white. We were going to heat strip this cabinet all the way to wood, but we saw all these colors on it and decided to partially stip it leaving the colors to show through. I love it.
Inside we have some ruby ware that was my great grandmother's, and other pieces we collected for next to nothing from the flea market and yard sales through the years. The bride and groom is the wedding cake topper from DH's parent's wedding.
This next picture is under the scullery sink. The two shelf deal on wheels is made from two 10" x 40" porcelained drop leaves from an old table we used to have. We can roll this out for taking care of plumbing if we have to. There is a shelf attached to the back wall that meets up with the top shelf of this piece.
This is a lazy suzan that DH made to fit the corner space.
A great thing to have.
This is the pull out shelf over the refrigerator. Another great thing.
Except I have to watch it if I leave it hanging out there that I don't smack my head, like I've done a couple of times. Ouch.
Here is the smaller filing cabinet.
The bottom holds supplies, and the top drawer has casserole dishes in it.
Here's the larger filing cabinet. The top drawer holds lids. DH took a dishwashing rack, cut it in half and put them in the two sections of the drawer to hold them all. It works great!
I will end this kitchen/scullery tale with the following two pictures. Pizza dough is making in the bread machine, and I've got to get up and cook some Italian sausage and make the sauce.
Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL
