Cabinets- custom built, inset. Color- SW8180, almond white
Counters- Antiqued Nordic Black

simoneb- The crystal knobs were inspired by Restoration Hardware 1 1/4 inch crystal knobs, but they were out of stock. I found some that look exactly the same online, but they were the same price so either would do. I will post where I ordered them from. My cabinets are custom wood construction.

pluckymomma- My faucet is Newport Brass, with matching hot water and soap dispenser.

Twogirlsbigtrouble- the Light fixtures are actually from an antiques store, so I think they are one of a kind. However, there are some that look very similar at Circa lighting (for about half the cost as I found out later).

Congratulations and enjoy!

Pluckymomma- My island is 80 X 42 inches. I think my overhang is about 14 inches, but I will double check when I am home.

Thanks everyone- this was a renovation of a galley kitchen from the 50's. We bumped out only 4 feet at the kitchen sink, but it made room for the island and the beautiful new window (which I love, love, love). I was worried that maybe I was making everything too "serene" (ie boring), but I figure I can always add color in later. I will show other pictures after the painting/dust etc. is through.

gglks- the walls and cabinets and trim are all the same color (for now). It is a Duron/Sherwin Williams color, SW8180 Almond White.

We are also, picking out cabinet paint right now as we are going custom cabinet route, and it has been so hard to do. Seeing yours really helped. The paint colors always seem to look whiter on the cabs than they do on the chips so you have to go "darker" than you think you do to get your result. Thanks for sharing the details.

http://www.ventingdirect.com/index.cfm/page/search:browse/categoryID/1 1623

My 70 year old Dad is renovating his kitchen as well! His was a much smaller process, but they are thrilled. I say go for it!

Redroze- I am almost positive that the bottom of the lights are 36 inches down from the ceiling- we have 9 ft Ceilings, so the 27" sounds about right for you, or maybe you can adjust an inch or two if it is too low-

No company coming until Aug 1..sorry to go on, but that’s why I say "crazy"..I am going to need lots of help from all of you.
Carole

Blakely- I was originally leaning towards marble, but I had it in my last kitchen and when I had kids it really took a beating. I wanted a counter I did not have to stress everytime my daughter took something out of the fridge, poured a glass of lemonade, etc. When I saw this at the stone yard, I just loved it. It has been very easy so far, and does not show any fingerprints, etc.

mommyof5- the cabinets next to the hood don't go to the counters, and I think they are 12 inch. As they are inset cabinets, there really is not much room inside. I am not sure what I will keep in there yet :).

lynn2006- the floors are oak and they are stained with dark walnut stain. They actually seem a little darker in person.

karalouise- there is a support beam across the front of the bump out, but nothing major had to be done on our house. Every situation is different though-

Looks like Chrisopher Peacock, but better.

Use it in good health.

-Margie

Peemps- I have a mini-brick marble backsplash planned for the hutch area. It was my compromise to have my marble in the kitchen somewhere!

erikanh- My old marble was polished- which was the main issue with etching, as each etch really stood out, especially glass rings, etc. When the etching got too bad I actually "honed" the marble myself ( took a sander to it, worked for me but not recommended) and it worked much better then. However, I was kind of over it by then and thought that a worry free counter might work better for my family :).

We are just moving into the kitchen this weekend, yeah! I finally finished wiping off all of the dust, cleaning out all of the shelves and drawers. I hope to be trying out everything and I will let you all know how it works.

gglks- I don't mind at all! I have gotten almost all my inspiration and a million questions answered from this forum, so I am just happy I have something to share. I don't know the exact dimensions of the light, but they are pretty big. They are antiques so I will have to measure them and let you know. I too struggled with two or three lights, but now I see that three would have been to busy in my kitchen even with smaller lights.

Absolutely beautiful kitchen and a great inspiration for my redo!

Could you give me the approximate dimensions of the window unit? Which manufacturer?

Do you like having the windows go down to the counter? That's what I'm planning and am a bit worried about breaking a window if anything hits them while washing big pots, etc. I know they'll need to be wiped a lot because of water splashing . . . that doesn't bother me as much as the thought of breaking one . Let me know how they're working : )

Jen, where did you get the stools? Forgive me if you already posted up above. I'll reread the post.

I *love* the nordic black granite. I did seal it with the 511 sealer that has been recommended on this forum, and I have not had one issue with it at all. It looks so unique that I always get questions when anyone sees it, and I really like the way it is not too shiny or too dull.

Judydel, enright- on the window- it is still my favorite part of the kitchen. I am very happy with how it goes all of the way down to the counter. I will say that it works much better because we did a small bump out of the sink area as well, which give you some additional room between the water and the window. Because of that, I only occasionally have to do any additional wiping of the lower windows.

The brand of window we used was Jeld-wen, the premium wood Siteline series. I don't remember the window costing more than what was predicted by our contractor, I will look at the info tonight when I home and give you the actual dimensions and costs.

Pluckymamma, positano- I am really surprised you had issues with the paint color. It was a Duron color but all of the Sherwin-williams stores in my area had no issue reproducing it. Most paint stores can match another brand's color if they have the number. The color was Almond White and was SW8180.

The stools were from Ballard Design, ordered online. They have a 15% off sale going on until Friday if you are interested.

Last of all, no backsplash yet, which is why I have not posted updated pictures. However, I will post a few later today of what I have done to date.

The last two drawers in this hutch wall are actually refrigerator drawers- which work great.

Our flat screen TV is actually hidden behind the large picture over the fireplace- We have really liked it there.

We, also, have a coffered ceiling in our family room. Did you paint the ceiling and your cabinets and trim the same Almond White as you did in the kitchen? Your home is really beautiful and I agree with the above poster, get your kitchen in the finished kitchens blog!

I promise I will post to the finished kitchens, but I am not finished- still waiting on my backsplash!

mommyof5- the light in the breakfast room is an antique.

moegaff- the room dimensions are 18 X 15. (just the kitchen area)

jen, would it be possible that you have a picture of the OTHER side of your island? (You included a picture of the stool-side, and I was wanting/hoping to see the working side.)

Not as pressing, but I'd also love a shot or two of your living room ceiling. It isn't often that you see that kind of trim work (throughout the entire area) where all of it looks so put-together, so integrated with each other. (For the life of me, I can't remember the name of your ceiling...coffered? I know it isn't "trayed"....) How tall are your ceilings? Again, it is so hard to pull off that look with lower ceilings and you did it so well.

Also another picture of the family room that has some of the coffered ceiling included- we really had amazing carpenters who spent a lot of time making it look right. They custom built our mantel as well-

Thanks for any tips!

I just posted a follow up picture for my small marble mini brick backsplash. I managed to sneak a little marble in anyway :)

-Gorilla

If you search on this you can see the info. I hope it helps! I really love the system.

I hope you find one you like-

1: Nine months later, do you still love your countertops? I have absolute black in my master bath, with the traditional shiny finish, and could not possibly deal with that in the kitchen. I read one of your posts that said you had dealt with something similar and gone with the antique finish to avoid that problem. So is it truly an easy-care countertop now, or just not as bad as the shiny black granite?

2: How well do your rugs work in the kitchen?

Thanks -and hope you are enjoying your fabulous kitchen.