I didn’t get around to the house update on Friday, so here is a quick mini update on the kitchen. We got the walls up and the room painted, and the counters are in:
The kitchen might be done in the next week!
by John Cole| 94 Comments
This post is in: John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House"
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Kristine
Coolness! Looking forward to seeing the finished room.
Roger Moore
That looks like the cabinets are in but not the counters. Still looking good, though.
Iowa Old Lady
That looks terrific! I love the clean lines.
Baud
Looking good, John.
Sarah
That looks amazing!
Chat Noir
Very nice. I love the paint color.
schrodinger's cat
Nice, I love the idea of white cabinets but am afraid that they will look dingy in a month or less.
JPL
That is amazing, and I am anxiously awaiting for the finished result.
gogol's wife
@Chat Noir:
Me too.
Olivia
Love it!
SiubhanDuinne
Great work, John! It really looks good.
gene108
I cannot figure out, where the appliances are going. I see where the sink might be and the fridge, but not sure about the stove/oven and dishwasher.
Her Mercy
schrodinger's cat
Gas stove or electric?
schrodinger's cat
@gene108: They are in the field with the Subaru and the mustard.
Mary G
I have Shaker style cabinets too, love the unfussy lines and the blue is very calming. Your remodel is going fast, although I am sure it doesn’t seem so. Congratulations, John.
James E Powell
Compared with the pace of every home improvement project I ever did on my house, you are moving at the speed of sound.
Amir Khalid
Off topic:
The inventor of General Tso’s chicken, a dish I don’t think I’ve ever tried, has passed away in Taiwan at the age of 98. So sayeth Auntie Beeb.
lollipopguild
Pretty soon you may need a white glove inspection-especially your counter tops.
Pogonip
Looks good!
raven
That’s one big ass level.
p.a.
Really nice. White appliances too, or stainless? Are those Harvey windows? Also too, if your kitchen windows face south, you might want to upgrade one to a ‘greenhouse’ window for herbs etc. I wish I had. Other priorities here now.
SiubhanDuinne
@Amir Khalid:
My dad and I used to go to a local Chinese restaurant once a week, where the menu had it is “General Tsu’s Favorite Chicken.” My father always ordered “General Tsu’s Pet Chicken.”
LOL, do you think he and Betty Cracker would have liked each other? :-)
Mary G
@gene108: I am guessing the dishwasher goes in the gap of the bottom cabinets, to the right of the big window where I assume the sink will be. The refrigerator might go in front of the unpainted pillar with plywood to the left, and the stove in the corner behind the stepladder where there are a bunch of boxes now. Just guessing, though!
raven
I have the same ladder too.
SiubhanDuinne
@p.a.:
Please, what are “Harvey Windows”?
Yeah, I could look it up. Would rather ask.
p.a.
@SiubhanDuinne: for the best chix soup, kill your meanest hen…
Suzanne
It’s looking good. One question: any reason you didn’t go for taller upper cabinets so they go to the underside of the ceiling? Or were you planning to put in a soffit?
p.a.
@SiubhanDuinne: a brand. if not national, common in northeast. the ones I’m familiar with (21 + 1 picture window in my house) are all vinyl, double pane low-e. moderately priced. vinyl clad wood generally considered better as replacement windows.
SiubhanDuinne
@p.a.:
Oh yes. I’m sure I’ve told the story here of the rooster at the Michigan farm where I spent most of my childhood summers. My job was to collect eggs every day, and while the hens were broody and gentle, the rooster–about as big as I was–was one mean fuckin sumbitch. I hated him. HATED him.
Well, the day came–I don’t know why, maybe they got a younger cock–to dispatch him. I watched with bloodthirsty glee as the farmer chopped the rooster’s head off, laughed myself silly watching the bird run around the yard headless and dripping gore, and then contributed by holding his feet and dunking him into a pot of boiling water to loosen his pin feathers, and plucking him.
We had him for dinner that night, stewed, with dumplings. He was tough and stringy, but I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a meal quite as much since then. A regular Blood Feast it was, worthy of a Game of Thrones or I, Claudius scene.
SiubhanDuinne
@p.a.:
Thanks. I’m vaguely familiar with the concept, but not the name.
John Cole
@Suzanne: My dad had originally wanted to, but I told him no because I can;t reach over my head as it is and wouldn’t be able to use them for anything. Remember, this has 10′ ceilings.
Baud
@SiubhanDuinne: Remind me never to get on your bad side.
TaMara (HFG)
It all looks great. White cabinets are a breeze to keep clean, good wipe down once a week. Love all the windows and light. Looks like a dream kitchen to work in.
Suzanne
@John Cole: Can you put in a soffit made of the same cabinet material? Otherwise, it’s just going to collect dust. Your cabinet manufacturer should sell matching closure panels and filling strips for cheap. It’ll keep the whole place a lot cleaner.
SiubhanDuinne
@Amir Khalid:
I heard something on NPR about his death, or it might have been one of the BBC programs my local NPR station carries.
There was also this in the New York Times.
BillinGlendaleCA
@raven: Just need to make sure that “things are on the level”.
raven
@SiubhanDuinne: Seen Eat, Drink, Man, Woman?
SiubhanDuinne
@Baud:
Naaah. Mob Enforcer on the Outside, Squishy Marshmallow on the Inside, that’s me.
CaseyL
Looks great! That surface the giant level is sitting on – is that a half-wall to the living room or dining room? Perfect either way, as people always seem wind up in the kitchen when you have them over – so the more room and visibility, the better!
We’re all invited to the housewarming, right??
SiubhanDuinne
@raven:
No, never have. I’ll add it to the stack if you recommend.
(BTW, your link is borked.)
Baud
@CaseyL: Doubt it. He knows us.
SiubhanDuinne
@CaseyL:
I think that’s a given. And the house will be constantly warmed. If he remodels it, we will come.
lurker dean
very nice. that’s the color and style we’d like if we ever renovate for our 50 year old kitchen. having light and a view through those two huge windows is great.
HermanNewticks
Looks great!
BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: That and he quit drinking.
Mary G
@raven: @SiubhanDuinne: Ang Lee’s Chinese movies are awesome (not to diss his English ones, either) and “Eat, Drink, Man, Woman” is one of the best. It’s about a father and his daughters, so I think you would like it.
raven
@SiubhanDuinne: Worth a look as are most And Lee films.
schrodinger's cat
@CaseyL: We don’t wait for an invitation, we just crash the party!
raven
@Mary G: The Wedding Banquet and Pushing Hands are technically Chinese films I guess? He’s an Illini too!
SiubhanDuinne
@Mary G:
@raven:
Thanks, both. Have added it to my “Must See” list.
Patricia Kayden
House is looking great, John.
Per the thread below, it’s good to hear that the US Army stepped in and stopped DAPL from building under a water source in North Dakota. What a victory for the Water Protectors and regular Americans against corporations.
mainmata
Having done this (what am I saying, we’re still doing it) on a 120 year old Shenandoah Valley farmhouse just 17 miles from your state, I know what you mean. While I learned basic carpentry/masonry from my Dad, we’ve been learning tiling, which is a real pain but we’re now pretty good at it and, of course, “improving” (as they used to say in the 19th century) the overgrown 5 acres of farmland we acquired with the house. After four years of renovation (we’re still doing our day jobs in the DC Metro area), we’re nearly finished with the house. Then comes maintenance starting with keeping those groundhogs from undermining the foundation. Sigh. We’re surrounded by Confederate flags but there are a surprising number of MD migrants that live here and that smile at our Obama bumper sticker.
Mary G
I just assumed he made them in Taiwan, since they were subtitled in English. I didn’t know he was an Illini. The Wedding Banquet is so much fun, even if it might seem a bit outdated these days.
debbie
@Chat Noir:
I do too. On my monitor, it looks periwinklish.
mattH
Most important room in the house.
laura
You are going to be so happy in that kitchen like you cannot imagine yet.
For the first couple of months, when you enter this lovely, personal and functional space, your heart will swell. Even the lowliest of chores will take on a new meaning and be as pleasurable as can be made.
Your dad is quite a guy to bring your ideas into your own, damn home.
Feathers
@John Cole: One trick for the top of the cabinets is to either put paper towels or light towel fabric cut to size on top (weighted down at the corners with washers). You can then either swap out the paper towels or wash the fabric once a year or so, which is much easier than having to keep them dusted. Although Swiffer dusters with long handles and bendy tops have made that job much easier.
p.a.
@SiubhanDuinne: I have added Eat Drink’s ‘Sunday family torture dinner’ (paraphrase) to my lexicon.
James E Powell
@mattH:
I’d argue the bathroom – where every day begins.
satby
It looks just great John. Got a target date for moving in?
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
There is this nice streak running through you that comes out every so often. It makes you seem, well less saintly, if you ever were such a thing.
normal liberal
@Feathers:
Or a telescoping wand and an angled brush for your vacuum cleaner. Also handy for ceiling fixtures like lights and fans.
It looks like a kitchen anyone would be happy to cook in. The blue and white scheme can be carried through so many ways.
Ruckus
@mattH:
Some say second most important.
mai naem mobile
It looks nice. It looks small for you for the way you talk about cooking with the guys etc but it looks functional and we’ll planned out. I personally am too chicken to use non neutral colors in common areas but the blue looks nice.
Gravenstone
@SiubhanDuinne: I am reminded of a local Chinese eatery that has the charming (?) typo in their menu touting a dish with “spicy Human (sic) sauce”. Or maybe they were being literal and it was long pork. *shrug*
Lizzy L
The kitchen looks great. I like the white look. My kitchen cabinets, counter-tops, and one kitchen wall are white; it’s been two and a half years since I moved into this house, and they’re pretty much pristine. I wipe them down constantly, but for me that’s not a hardship, since I live in a small space and I LIKE keeping things clean.
schrodinger's cat
@p.a.: Are you Emily Gilmore?
SiubhanDuinne
@Gravenstone:
Heh. Didn’t we have a commenter here a few years ago who took his/her nym from the famous cookbook typo “Freshly ground black people” (was supposed to be “Freshly ground black pepper”; I think the publisher had to pull thousands and thousands of copies of bookstore shelves)?
Sab
@Feathers: I have cabinets like that (nowhere near as attractive) and I agree that dust is a problem but I love them for storing large things I only use once a year that would otherwise use up an entire cabinet.
SiubhanDuinne
@Ruckus:
SNORT!!
I don’t even know how to react to that. It’s either a pretty compliment, or the nastiest putdown I’ve ever seen. Either way, chapeaux!
p.a.
@schrodinger’s cat: no. had to google her ?
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
It was meant as a compliment.
You are free to take it any way you desire. Just trying to build up my writing chops. I see that I succeeded.
Gin & Tonic
I mentioned this before, but that seam at the bottom of the cabinet doors, i.e. between the panel and the thicker segment, will collect gunk that is impossible to remove.
Ruckus
@schrodinger’s cat:
I’m going to follow @SiubhanDuinne: and say that could be taken either way, compliment or maybe not so much.
SiubhanDuinne
@Ruckus:
I enjoy hanging out with ambiguity, but I’m also glad to take a compliment wherever I can snag one.
Thanks!
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
Back attcha! chapeaux!
Aleta
@SiubhanDuinne: Seems that the inventor of the Big Mac and the inventor of General Tso’s chicken died near to the same week.
p.a.
@Gin & Tonic: when you replace a toothbrush save the old one. they’re great for cleaning/dusting places like that; especially the rt angles. just don’t confuse them. i drill a hole in my old ones just in case. (i’m not only paranoid, i’m stoopid too. to quote Costanza: i got it all, ladies!)
Mnemosyne
I was walking through my current neighborhood today and realized how many of the house still have at least a few elements of having been Storybook Style houses from the 1920s and 1930s. Some are still pretty pure, while others only retained one or two elements after remodeling.
Now I want one of them. Sigh.
Mnemosyne
@Amir Khalid:
IIRC, General Tso’s Chicken is one of those uniquely American dishes that pretend to be from the old country. Pizza is like that, too, along with chop suey and other “Chinese” dishes.
Aleta
@Mnemosyne: Those look like a smaller one in my neighborhood. Previous owners once told me it was “a Sears Catolog House,” from a mail order kit ordered from Sears in the 20’s-30s.
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
Also.
I didn’t have to collect eggs but my grandmother, who lived in south central LA, had a garden and coop that took up her whole back yard. My grandfather died during the depression so she raised as much of her own food as possible. As a child we would go to Sunday dinner and she would wring a chicken’s neck, do all the rest of the required steps and we’d have fried chicken for dinner. I was around 7 or 8 the first time I saw this. Sixty yrs later it still sticks in my mind as a high/low light of my childhood.
Aleta
@Mnemosyne: There’s a smaller house that resembles those in my neighborhood. The owners told me it’s a ‘Sears Catalog House,’ built from a mail order kit from Sears Catalog in the 20s-30s. I still find that funny.
Mnemosyne
@Aleta:
Those houses were so popular in the ‘teens and twenties that Buster Keaton made a short film featuring one.
I’m not sure why that video doesn’t have any sound, but it seems to be the most complete version, so just turn on some ragtime in your iTunes Player. ?
J R in WV
@Amir Khalid:
When done properly, it’s crispy chicken nuggets in a spicy clear red sauce. Very good, when done well.
Otherwise, it’s soggy chicken bites in too-sweet jelly, terrible stuff.
So there you are.
J R in WV
@Aleta:
Mrs J’s paternal grandparents had a Sears house, delivered by RR to just a few blocks away from where it still stands.
Theirs was two story, 4 rooms on each floor, and the whole lot was either flower garden or vegetable garden. A nice house.
stinger
A nice soft blue with white — looks so clean and fresh. Updated but still in keeping with the overall tenor of the house. Can’t wait to see it with the countertops in!
rikyrah
I love the color. And, I hope that you kept and expanded the bathroom.
NotMax
First impressions:
Around the third time you have take off and scrub the white blades of the ceiling fan, the serious cursing will commence. Also, that fixture doesn’t look (from the photo) as if it will provide a lot of illumination – although it is impossible to tell from the picture whether that’s an LED light. YMMV, as always, but am of the school that there’s no such thing as too much light in a kitchen.
Presume those tiles you got in Pittsburgh intended for a backsplash will still be installed?
grumpy realist
@Feathers: And with the Swiffer brush you can also remove owls from your house! (Go look for the Swiffer brush + owl clip on YouTube.)
Duane
Storybook is the perfect name. Love the turrets, but they look like a maintenance nightmare.
Also,Cashew Chicken, courtesy of Springfield,Missouri.
Jamey
Have you informed Michele Malkin of your choice of countertop surface material?
Jamey
@rikyrah: Once you’ve lived with a walk-in toilet, you’ll never know how you lived without one …