Saturday, August 6, 2011

A Summer of Ease




Hi all. I hope you have been having a wonderful summer.

 I can't believe that  over a month has gone by since my last post and there is less than one month of summer left. Nothing has been happening with our renovations which has been just fine with me. For the first time in 5 years I have been able to just relax about doing nothing .You see in the past when I didn't feel well I didn't  even relax well, I just spend time stressing about all the things that weren't  getting done.  


This is our kitchen with cream glazed, stained cabinets and Santa Cecelia granite counters, my very first that I ever designed before I became a kitchen designer. It was 8 years ago and I admit that I did not have a vision for the entire home.

  

  
As first time home owners we were so proud and thrilled with how it turned out back then, especially compared
to what we had when we started





 This wonderful kitchen by the incredible Brian Gluckstein was my 
inspiration. I so wanted those marble counters but was talked out of it
and I regret it to this very day. Too bad no one ever suggested quartz back then to me and I never knew such a thing existed.
I would not have had to compromise on my light counters like I did.




So I really think with the improvements in my health  I have my fingers crossed that I will  have enough energy to paint the cabinets white (Todd won't have anything to do with it) and I finally found a picture that shows how they will look with our 
darker granite counters. I just adore the fresh crisp look of a white kitchen and perhaps
I won't feel so tired of the darker counters once the cabinets are white.



I've been dreaming about doing this for a couple of years now and so I had 
previously created a computer rendering of our space in white to convince Todd how much nicer it would look. The walls will
not be darker as you see here but will either be white or an off white and I have been 
watching kijiji for a white cast iron sink to replace the black one which I will sell. The challenge will be finding the same size sink to fit our granite cutout.






Speaking of light counters check this out. If you are on a tight budget for your kitchen and are choosing laminate counters you simply must see the new ones like this incredible one called Travertine Silver in the FX series by Formica. 



Just look at how beautifully it mimics stone and how random the pattern is.
I have used it in 2 white kitchens so far and I think it seriously rivals Corian which is 4 to 5 times more money. 



Although we haven't done anything all summer Todd is gearing up to renovate our living room before the winter. I feel hopeful that I can help too which makes me feel good. We used to be such a team before I got sick. We had to empty our dining room and move our  living room in there which is a little smaller but it will be cozy for the winter with the fireplace to sit next to.






I hope you have a great weekend.

Sandra










3 comments:

Claudia said...

Hello,

Happy Summer! We are started our vacation yesterday...taking a little break while everyone is relaxing. This is our first summer no renovations at our house too. It's nice to not have anyone all day at our house. I remember when we did our kitchen. We were living in one room for almost a year. That was hard. I love white cabinets so that will be fun....it always brings a smile to my face when I come down the stairs to our kitchen. Can't wait to see what you do with your living room. Your house is gorgeous.
Take care and hope to blog more often.
Claudia

Sarah said...

I found your post while searching for Formica Travertine Silver. Thank you so much for the photos of the "slab" and your recommendation. I haven't been able to find any photos of real kitchens with it installed. Do you happen to have pictures of the two kitchens you mentioned? I would love to see more of this FX series, and the Travertine in particular.

Serendipitous Home said...

Hi Sarah,
If your checking in here I left you a reply on your latest blog post.

Sandra