Love it. It is so beautiful and seems like it would still be keeping with the theme of the house. Very fitting.

I love the new layout. It is a very beautiful, functional space. Great job!

Great Job!

What a charming kitchen.

Enjoy!

Katie

Brilliant! Charming, functional, clever, an amazing transformation. Bravo!

LOL, I almost didn't click on your thread because I thought it was the SPAM dress lady, again!

Your kitchen is beautiful, bright and charming! And I like the big pictures--I can see the details more easily. :)

What amazes me, is that it looks like you've expanded the entire footprint! Almost an added-on space!

So clean and pretty. I really want a countertop depth fridge someday. Your's style is great.

You've done an absolutely beautiful job.

Christine

Wow! You turned a pain-in-the-neck kitchen into a really useable space. It's amazing how just deleting the overheads and tiny peninsula opened up the space from small and clautrophobic to small and efficient. I especially like how you added arches to the doorways. It just adds a coziness; cold and utilitarian turns into inviting. I also have to comment on your pulls - they're so right for this era and style of kitchen.

I love your branches and leaves on the dining room wall. Where do you find those pieces of metal art? I see them in pictures and on TV, but I've never seen one in person.

I LOVE this!

It looks much more spacious and light! You must grin ear-to-ear every time you walk in there! It is so sweet!

Congratulations--you did an amazing job! :^)

What a lovely "little black dress." It does everything a kitchen needs to do - function, beauty and makes ya smile. :-)

Ditto: Charming!!!!

Wow! I had to go back and compare the 2 kitchens several times to see that they actually were the same space. You did indeed do an amazing job! It is lovely!

tiny tiny kitchen...

...BIG BIG functionality!

excellent job!

Just beautiful! I can tell your home has lots of charm. I love those arches, and you did such a great job!

Laurie35,

Black dress is a perfect description. This kitchen has
a classic gracefulness that can wear pearls or jeans
or maybe even both. Lovely. Soft warm colors with the
classic white makes this space beautiful. I love what
you did. Excellent work!
The granite is stunning and the cabinetry is lovely too.
A few quick questions...

What color paint did you use?

What is the granite?

I love the red oak floors what was the stain?

A Lovely black dress that would fit anyone!
~boxer

I can't get over how much more spacious it is from the before pics! So light and bright! Great job!

What a delightful little kitchen! You did a splendid job.

Congrats on a wonderful, refreshing, functional, modern space, Laurie. Good work!

Those dealing with a tiny 1950s space, should look hard at this thread. There is a lot to learn here.

It doesn't even look like the same space! You've done a wonderful job. A perfectly charming kitchen. Enjoy cooking up a storm.

What a lovely kitchen and what a change.
Everything is beautiful and so functional.
Congratulations.
Laura

I rarely comment, however, this LBD of a kitchen transformation is spectacular and honest and real. Love it!

Helene

I love your LBD kitchen. I have a LBD kitchen and I am so comfortable with it and I know I'll never tire of it. Yours looks so fresh, clean and light. Perfect choices, looks wonderful.

Charming, airy, and welcoming--congratulations on your beautiful renovation! Enjoy!

I'd also love to know more about your cabs. Thanks so much for sharing!

Gorgeous!!! I Love it!! Simple and elegant. Just beautiful!

And I love how you made the most of your space. (We have a similar layout and got rid of the horrible cramped "U" shape and put cabinetry on the opposite wall like you did. Although our new cabinets and countertops are nowhere near as lovely as yours!)

Where did you get your beautiful cabinets? (Perhaps one day we could upgrade to them. They are so pretty!!) I would love to know the paint color too. (Or maybe you shouldn't tell me - after agonizing over picking a soft, warm green, my 3 samples are arriving tomorrow - DH will kill me if I add another contender!)

Congratulations on your perfect LBD. Enjoy it!!

This is the most impressive transformation that I have seen yet. What a wonderful inner eye you have to imagine what could have been done. Bravo!

I also rarely comment. Your kitchen is one of the best I've seen. It makes a big statement with it's classic beauty. You did everything right.

Wow! Looks great. Love how everything - design & materials - all flow together so effortlessly! Great job!

What a charming space. You certainly had an eye for your remodel and used what you had to the best advantage...no need to add 100's of sq ft. As others have said , there is definitely a lesson to be learned...less is more. Great job. c

I cannot believe that these are the same space. Your new kitchen looks so much more open, airy and spacious. GW has a new kind of kitchen brought to us by Laurie 35 - the LBD.

The cabinet in the corner by the eating area - how deep is that and what do you keep in it. Did you just go into the studs or did you borrow some space for it. I like how it's flush to the wall. A great space saver idea. There are many lessons to be learned here.

Congratulations.

WOW- that is AMAZING! I can't believe that is the same kitchen.

Fantastic Job ! Its so welcoming, light and airy looking.

What a beautiful transformation. They always say good things come in small packages! So what would you say pearl or diamonds with that pretty black dress?

Wow! That's the same room? Amazing what a more functional layout can do. The natural light and warm tones of your finishes make me want to cook in there too. Amazing work! Be proud...not apologetic!

a decorator i know said that when you design it should be like a black dress, simple and elegant. you 've achieved it. too bad you can't wear your kitchen out on a saturday night!

What a beautiful transformation! Your kitchen reminds me a little of mine, which will be renovated this winter. May I ask what size your sink base cabinet is as well as the base cabinetry to the right of the sink.
Love your LBD!

Awesome! This is my kind of kitchen.

Oh, my gosh, no way is that the same space! What an incredible transformation. Your kitchen really is a LBD - it's pretty and functional. Well done!

I love your kitchen! Can you share the hardware you used?

Thanks everyone. I really appreciate your kind words. I had moments during the process of WWGWD -- or What Would GardenWeb Do? Regardless of what decision that I came to, GW made me think things through and decide why I wanted what I wanted.

In response to questions:

The cabinets were custom built. They are painted maple.

I think that the cabinet under the sink is 32 inches and the one to its right is 10 inches.

The cabinet next to the seating area used to be a closet. It was formerly used for the brooms, garbage, cleaning supplies, etc. It is currently used for the brooms, garbage, cleaning supplies, etc. Now, however, it is designed for that purpose.

The paint is Sherwin Williams. It is Alabaster on the cabinets and trim. The walls are Antique Marble.

The granite is St. Cecelia Light.

The pulls are generic. I got them at a store called the Brass Handle, but they had no name or manufacturer associated with them. I have since seen similar-looking pulls at Target, although I didn't check to see whether they were of similar quality. I didn't want to know.

The floor is 1 1/2 inch red oak. It isn't stained. It has three coats of poly on it. I refinished the rest of the main floor at the same time. The transition is virtually seamless.

The wall art is from Pier One.

I'm really happy with my kitchen. I spend a lot of time in it now, where I never used to. Thanks for letting me share my LBD with you and for your help during the process.

Laurie35, I have a question for you. I really like the way the angled cabinets improve the flow, but how practical do you find them? What do you use them for?

Laurie, I love your kitchen...It seems like it belongs there more than your old kitchen did. I also love your built-ins by the table. Was there a set of built-ins there previously or did you carve that space out of the back of closet etc?

writersblock, a friend of mine also has an angled cabinet, and she has her kids' sports bottles and lunch boxes in it. Easy access and not too deep.

Now that's one sharp "black dress!" Talk about less being more --you've hit this one out of the ballpark. Congratulations!

Your kitchen is beautiful! It looks very much like I hope ours will look when we are finished, and in fact you have me rethinking a couple of decisions, haha (like not boxing in our fridge). It's lovely and looks very functional, and I think this says it all:
Maybe as important, I've cooked more in this kitchen during the last 3 months than I did in the last 3 years combined.
Re. your hardware looking like something you saw at Target -- I wouldn't be concerned if I were you; I recently bought some hardware for a piece of furniture there and I am happy with its quality. It's a nice weight and it looks good installed and it works, and that's all I needed.

Writersblock, I like the angled cabinets. I suppose that if I had more space, I would have opted for non-angled cabinets, but these worked better in my space. In the top one in the corner by the sink, I store some of the larger appliances, like the slow cooker, etc., on the lower shelves, and some of the bigger serving dishes that I don't use often on the higher shelves. In one of the angled lower cabinets near the range, I store smaller appliances, like the toaster, the vacuum sealer, etc. In the other, I store vases. The two upper angled cabinets in this area are very small and glass-fronted. I could probably use them for things like wine glasses, but I use them purely for decorative items.

Colorfast, the built-in next to the table is where there used to be a closet.

Thanks again everyone for your comments.

Thanks very much, Laurie. Yours must be better designed than the ones I've seen in store displays--those would never hold anything as big as a slow cooker.

And thanks to colorfast, too.

Oops, sorry. That was me. Conchita is a neighbor and she was using my computer earlier, when we were looking at listings. Didn't notice she was still logged in here.

Laurie, your kitchen is a stunning transformation. It is perfection, in terms of function and design. Congratulations and enjoy it with pride!

For the better part of a year when we were building I logged onto this forum daily. Now I check in once & a while to see what's happening and had to comment on this kitchen.

Laurie, you are living in my dream home. I've always loved bungalows and actually prefer tiny spaces to large ones. I love the cozy nature of a smaller home and, as contradictory as it sounds, I think they're easier to keep neat & clutter-free - at least for me. Knowing there's limited space is incentive to be very selective in what comes in.

I love what you've done with this kitchen. Congratulations & Enjoy!

I love your kitchen!!! I wish I had seen it earlier! A quick question for you... are the subway tiles a regular glaze or matte?

What a nice space to enjoy!

Highrock, the subway tiles are matte.

I love all of it- simply perfect! Adore your granite and backsplash:)