Kitchen Inspiration

Sources: Pot Rack, Clock, Mixer & Glasses, Dishes, Pans, & Casserole Set, Braided Rug, Shelf, Curtains, Baker's Rack, Butcher Block, Canister Set, Dancing Snacks, Inspiration Kitchen paint chips courtesy of Sherwin-Williams Chip-It tool

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about how we wanted to make over our kitchen, both to make it more pleasant to be in, as well as to make the kitchen more functional. Thanks to Anna's tutorial on How to Create a Design Board, I was finally able to put my vision together. I feel a ton more comfortable about it to, because we already have the majority of the items on the board, it's just a matter of putting everything together in a cohesive way and altering a couple of things. For example, we have a baker's rack, but right now it is ivory. It's just a matter of some sanding and a can of spray paint to update the baker's rack and have it match the rest of our kitchen. We have a large empty wall on the kitchen, and I have been collecting some antiques, so now it is just a matter of finding an unfinished shelf so that I can match the finish to the antique butcher block we already have. The goal of the pot rack is to get the pots and pans out of our limited  cabinet space. I only insist that we purchase the new pans first, so that I have something I will be happy to have out on display. Tom is happy because he finally understands why I'm going nuts with the spray paint and sees everything as a cohesive plan. The fact that red is his favorite color helps out a bit too.

What do you think?

When is it Time to Let Go? (Of Wedding Stuff)

Tom and I celebrated our first anniversary a week ago, and if you look around our apartment, it is very clear that we are newlyweds. Maybe a little too clear? The vast majority of the pictures hanging on the wall are wedding pictures, two shelves of my curio cabinet are full of our serving set, flutes, unity candle, and ring bearer pillow. The sailboat that greeted everyone at the reception lives in my dining room, I have one of our candle centerpieces in there as well. We also have artificial starfish, artificial coral, and seashells scattered around, and our tablecloths are sitting in my closet, waiting for me to make something with them.

Even though we live near the ocean, the decor of our place is definitely not going in the beachy/cottage-y direction, so a lot of the stuff from our wedding really feels out of place. At the same time, it's from our wedding, and I'm a bit emotionally attached. Now, I know that there are certain pieces that will be displayed for the long term, such as our wedding portrait and the items in my curio cabinet. This question pertains to the rest of the stuff:

At what point is it time to put away the wedding decor and move on? 

I think this question goes along with another question that Tom and I are trying to figure out the answer to, what exactly is a newlywed? I always thought that a couple was considered to be newlywed during their first year of marriage, but my grandmother seems to think that it is for the first five years.

Is it a subjective thing? Kind of like how a high school student thinks they are an adult, but and adult still views them as a child? If Tom and I have indeed lost our newlywed status by celebrating our first anniversary, then what exactly are we now? I feel as though we are stuck in sort of an awkward phase between being newlyweds and being parents, perhaps this is why we still have most of our wedding stuff hanging around? Part of me says I should just leave everything as is, and once Tom and I become parents, the pictures on the wall will gradually change from pictures of our wedding to pictures of our children. Part of me says the same thing about the seashells and the starfish, that as we purchase furniture and start to decorate each room, the excess wedding stuff will filter itself out and the new will replace it. On the other hand, I cannot help but question how many friends and family visit our apartment and think, "Oh my goodness people, your wedding was over a year ago, get over it!" Any input on my little dilemma would be greatly appreciated.

Updating with Spray Paint

As anyone that may have followed me over from Our Day (In the Making) could figure out, I really enjoy crafts. There is just something awesome about putting a handmade touch on something to come out with a one-of-a-kind item. This is why it may come as a surprise to find out that in my 31 years, I have never used spray paint. When my sister found out, she said she joked that she was embarrassed to know me.

It all started when my mother gave me a wooden spice rack from the 90's that she no longer wanted. Tom and I definitely need a spice rack, but we are trying to update our kitchen, not add more hand-me-downs to the mix. Tom suggested spray painting it black. At first I was skeptical, but we found a nice satin black spray paint and the end result was perfect. I would post pictures, but now I'm in the process of updating all the labels on the individual spice jars, so, more on that later. I was so impressed with the results of the spice rack, that I decided to salvage some of our other wooden kitchen accessories, like the mug tree.

Sadly, I did not take a picture of my mug tree before I painted it, I definitely should have, because I could not find a picture of it on the web. So my "before" picture is the closest image that I could find. Same wood color and overall shape, just slightly different form. My after picture is after a single coat of black satin spray paint and the addition of a cork bottom to prevent slipping.

Before:

Source

And after

It would go without saying that Tom has created a bit of a monster by introducing me to spray paint. I have our "new" paper towel holder drying on the back deck right now. A matched set for the price of a can of spray paint! Yay! 

Apartment Kitchen Make Over

Our kitchen, the day we moved in

Just about a year ago, Tom and I were less than a week away from our wedding. We were also in the middle of moving into our apartment. Over the last 12 months we have definitely transitioned our apartment into our home. Rooms that were once full of boxes are now full of furniture, and we have put rugs on the floors to make everything seem more "homey". You know, about as much as you can do when you are renting. A couple of weeks ago, I had an epiphany of sorts. I realized that I  absolutely hate our kitchen. I know I am sort of stating the obvious by saying this, but our kitchen looks like an apartment kitchen. More specifically, like a college student's apartment kitchen. Do not take this the wrong way, I'm not trying to bash on college students, what I am saying is that I graduated college 8 years ago. (Holy crap, has it really been that long?!?!?!) I'm married now, it's time to have a grown up kitchen.

Up until now, our kitchen was made up of hand-me-downs and stuff that we have individually been hanging onto for a decade or more. I was not blessed with a bridal shower before I married Tom. Due to the fact that I was young and stupid once, my marriage with Tom is my second wedding. In my family, bridal showers are reserved for first time brides, as they should be. I am not bothered by the lack of a bridal shower; however, the amount of ivy kitchen stuff I had left over from my bridal shower to my now-ex does bother me. Out with the old, in with the new. It's time to update our kitchen, well, as much as we can in a rented apartment. My mother-in-law gave us a gorgeous 1950's vintage table before we moved from Kansas City to Maine. Even though the table sits in our dining room with a set of matching reproduction chairs, I opted to use the table as design inspiration for our kitchen. Ideally, we will be in a home of our own in the next couple of years, which means the table will eventually make it into the kitchen.

Source My new dishes! I have a set in red and black

This brings us up to now, we are updating and redecorating our kitchen, on a budget. Our color palette comes directly from the table, red and chrome with a little black thrown in for flavor. Originally, I wanted to go full 50's vintage, but now I think I am going to go for more of a vintage flavor with a modern feel. So far I was able to acquire a vintage chrome canister set, we also have a new set of dishes, bakeware, and knives thanks to sales at shopworldkitchen.com. If you have not heard or visited this site, I would strongly recommend it. They carry brands like Corelle, Pyrex, and Corningware and they are always having sales. We are just waiting for a Revere sale so that we can upgrade our pots and pans. I'm eyeing some other decorations from around the web, and I'm also trying to work some DIY projects in, just to add that personal touch. We are about 1/3 of the way through right now, and I am already so much happier with my kitchen.