OMG Pilllog, could you get any nicer??? IÂm am so hormonally fried and this little kitchen remodel caused an extra eye lid flap thingy above my eyeÂIÂm not kidding, it was sort of taunting me before and today I had to sort of hold and alter some skin for make-upÂwhatÂs happening? Anyway, enough of my recent deformities, IÂm on brain overload with a few things like the stools and the lack of molding around the little after thought of a nook window area and the window treatments that I do not want to block outside view of. IÂm going to send you my other link with all the picks to sort of give you an idea. Please keep in mind that the real colors are somewhat different. The back splash glass tiles blend the upper cabinets to the lower and also tie in the butcher block that I must keep. The goldeny yellow granite (that goes on counter at two tone area) ties in the upper cabinets with the butcher block and one of the colors in the backsplash and makes them blend. The dark quartzite countertop that will be across the room (at sink and seating area) ties in the cherry lowers beautifully and has some of the backsplash colors and a few little veins of warm cream which sort of goes with the uppers.
ItÂs a real mix!!! However, itÂs me, and I do like it. I also painted a picture awhile back that goes with all these colors and has a teal accent within that I can pull out for doodad accesories.
I like the stool you picked, the one I picked is above what I wanted to spend (I love it) but it maybe too formalÂnot sure. We did a lot of work today and ripped out the sink/seating area, doing things in stages.
Here is the old link: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0812333121468.html?16

Below is pictures of us fooling around with the height of new pendant, doesnÂt have glass in it yet.
http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20progress%20pictures/?action=view¤t=dismantledsnackbar0001.png"; target="_blank">

The backsplash behind slide-in reused stove will have this stainless short backsplash to break up the busy-ness of the glass backsplash tile.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20progress%20pictures/?action=view¤t=Kittchensinkdismantelnewligh006-1.jpg"; target="_blank">

And this is what we were up to today, lowering the upper seating to counter height and ripping out the gross stuff.

Still so many decisions to makeÂwill it end?

Yes! It will end! Really! I still have a few to finalize, but when all the big stuff is installed it feels a lot better.

You had mentioned the possibility of a Parsons style, I think. Unfortunately, a real square Parsons style stool isn't very comfortable, but I think the possibility to do two toned is great. I just happened on this at Overstock.com. I'm concerned the seat might not be yellow enough, but the shape of the seat/back is slightly curved and looks a lot more comfortable than a true Parsons. The price (under $150 for a pair) is silly cheap, so might even be worth reupholstering if the fabric isn't quite right. And I think something along this notion might look great in your space.

Thanks for the tip on what type of ParsonÂs chair to avoid for comfort reasons. IÂm going to put that chair on my list to mull. I have a few saved, some come in a choice of chair finish and ugly fabric options.
Please tell me what you think of these (everyone feel free to join in).
This chair I donÂt love but it is reasonable and comes in fabric and frame choices.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=view&current=tempo.jpg"; target="_blank">

I think this chair comes w/ fabric & frame choices too

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=view&current=arenacounterstool.jpg"; target="_blank">{{!gwi}}

This is a slipcover called "garden" $69 to $79 plus the chair

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=view&current=gardenslipcover79.jpg"; target="_blank">

I would love this chair in a yellow fabric but itÂs pricey & IÂm not sure if it would work in space.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=view&current=CAMELIAcounterstool.jpg"; target="_blank">

The yellow leather chair would be practical for wipe downs, but is it too yellow? Grandinroad has this for $229

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=view&current=detailFamilyTmp.jpg"; target="_blank">

There was another chair I liked that was black with a single round circle on the back. It was cheap so I was thinking of painting it the cabinet colorÂnow I canÂt find it.
Here is the counter the chairs will sit at.

'Mornin'!

From bottom up, the yellow chair looks like it might look good in the space, but again, I'm worried about the shape for comfort. Plus that whole no swivel thing. The leather does make up for it a bit though. :) Not sure I love the lines but it's innoffensive. It's not too wide?

You can reupholster the round backed one. It's very delicate looking, which considering your space issues might be a good thing. Your room isn't so chunky that it requires more. It's interesting without being obtrusive.

I don't like the flowery slipcover for your space. I think you have too many colors going to want to introduce pattern (plus there's a goodly amount in your stones). Especially when you have a few dishes and accessories showing, you'll do better with solid color shapes and shadows than tiny flowers and pretty little details. The interplay of all the lines of different colors will make their own patterns. Plus, there's the whole Parsons thing. Parsons chairs, when well made, are very comfortable, but the same simplicity often makes for a really uncomfortable stool. It's obvious you were thinking along the same lines as I was about the dark bottom/light top to go with your two tone kitchen. :) It could look really spiffy if the colors were just right.

I really like the interlocking circle backed one! It's a bit retro. A bit unique. Simple, but with character. I actually think that gold color might work well in your kitchen, let alone the other choices. It's a nice contrast to the lowers/counter but stands on its own rather than trying to match the uppers. It has a little more substance than the round backed one, but none of the heaviness of the Parsons style. I can't tell if it swivels. Swivel is better. ;)

I don't like the first one for your space. It's not quite designed right. There's something odd with the lines. It's probably comfy, though. My friend has these hideous stools that came with his house. The fabric is ugly and stained, and the style is non-existent. It's some kind of '80's powdercoated spiral. But they're the comfiest stools ever, so he's still sitting on them 10 years later. I've tried to explain that he could get them recoated and recovered so they'd look good in his kitchen, but it seems like too much bother to him to put into ugly stools. Perhaps if these stools are super comfy they're the ones to go with anyway (in different, better colors).

Love your honesty Pllog; you are helping me put this stool thing in perspective. I do not think I have found the right one yet. I seem to be mostly drawn to stools with a more squared off seat and simple lines in the leg with the top/backrest area having some simple interest. I think you are right about having a swivel and I need to look into that (wasnÂt looking there before).
About the size, husband and I are having a bit of conflict with how many seats. We have 88" of angled counter seating space total. If I go to a larger stool the counter angle is such a way that three stools would be most comfortable. Husband wants four seatsÂso thatÂs where IÂm at with that. I think it will depend on the stool "love" where the compromise will fall.

The whole point of a fresh pair of eyes is to have someone see the things that aren't so good which aren't catching your eye because your eye is going to the parts that are right. :) Glad to provide some honesty there. :)

I designed my dining room with simple chairs which would be easy to make, but then I got a darker table than I'd planned and the microsuede that I was going to use for the chairs was too light and it took me several years to find chairs and fabric that would suit the table that I impulse bought. You know how they tell you to buy a top with the new pants so you'll have an outfit?

You'll get there.

I get to sit here and look at stools and chairs (which I love to do), and not even bother about my own kitchen. I have these two rolling bucket chairs of the '70's dinette sort, with scarred cream outer shells and weird goldish brown, kind of spongy upholstery, which were abandoned in a foreclosed industrial building in 1990 (given to me by the new owner). If they weren't exceptionally ugly they'd look okay in the kitchen. But I have them. And they're free. And I'd have to dispose of them otherwise. So if the perfect chairs come along I'll buy them. Otherwise, the ugly ones stay as my "something old".

BTW, your discussion of how many chairs may be do to primes vs. bilateral symmetry. I, personally, think three looks better because it's a prime number, part of the Fibonacci series, etc., and I think seating more than three actual people at a counter is at least one too many. Many men (and some women) prefer bilateral symmetry, therefore even numbers, and two sides the same size.

I wanna play! This barstool I found on the link below allows you to choose exact seat height, huge choice of wood finishes, and fabric choices. Don't know if it's your dream stool but it's around $130 and you can customize to what you want.
{{!gwi}}

Here is a link that might be useful: bar stool

Oh goody Remodelfla, glad you are playing. I'm going to have a look now. I was just on a sight that had stools for over $3,000... I kept stroking the screen, such nice lines in a suble way. Now back to reality!
Hey, haven't heard any up-dates on your kitchen since you picked the QS Oak. I love QS oak and can't wait to see, whats the progress?

Remodel, that chair has every thing going for it with all the choices of height, wood, paint and those cool little brass foot rest protectors, what I'm not sure of is the horrizonal slates with all the vertical I have. I'm going to give that some more thought.
I do love this stool (except the pointy arm fronts) Guess how much this lovley is?
http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/?action=view&current=Lyrastool3000.jpg"; target="_blank">{{!gwi}}

The barstool journey is getting closer. I have come to a few realizations.

My barstool area gets used a lot, I have three grown men in the house (includes two college sons) that are not easy on the furniture. My bar stools will have to last years. IÂm best off getting something that will last & blend with a few styles and come in a choice of finish and fabrics. I Will have to spend more than I originally wanted. I do like the more squared seats with swivel.

So, what do you think of this collection by Johnston Casuals (the goldtone chair above is a Johnston) that come in lots of finish options? They are more than I wanted to spend but are not hideous, maybe able to find on another site a bit cheaper.

Do you see a stool you think will work???

http://www.johnstoncasuals.com/product_display.php?id=3

Pllog are you there??? First, I'm so embarrassed to keep bothering everyone and you about my stupid stools but these have got to last me years and I'm just having a hard time of it because if I go too stylin matbe I will get sick of it. I respect your honesty and straight talk so which of these do you think? I have narrowed it down to Johnston Casuals because they have the Chablis finish I like (the golden tone metal finish on the circle stool). All the picks would be ordered with the Chablis finish and probably the suede dove mahogany fabric.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=viewät=arenacounterstool.jpg"; target="_blank">

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=viewät=5219_lg.jpg"; target="_blank">

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=viewät=7119_lg.jpg"; target="_blank">

This is granite guy finishing up�but a view of area.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/kitchen%20picks/?action=viewät=capolaboro004.jpg"; target="_blank">

Bump, still hoping to get input on the above 3 stools and someone will take pity on me for being creatively brain dead due to age and the physical labor involved with this diy.

I'm back! I like the first one for style but not sure if they back would be too busy. What about these in different color frame from the same site?

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.johnstoncasuals.com/item_display.php?prodid=311

I'm here! Big day--missed your earlier bump. I'm glad to give you some fresh eyes honesty. (It's so much easier to see when one isn't poring over details like finish, materials, price, etc.)

The chablis finish should look great with your other finishes. It picks up the warmth of the wood, but because it's a "neutral" color (i.e., gold metalic, also known as shiny beige) it doesn't have the one more color effect that orange would, for instance.

The one with the circles is a bit retro. I like the geometry of it: Circles on the back, square seat and back (modified for comfort), linear legs, circle stretcher.

Just in isolation (not thinking about the rest of the kitchen), I don't like the other two as well. The one with the white seat reminds me of some very naughty limericks about bow-legged women. I also don't like the shape of the back, and the overall proportions are odd. Plus, the back looks uncomfortable to sit against, if you have any loungers.

The base of the bottom one is great, in a Jetsons kind of way, but the seat is a little off, and the back is entirely off. It's squat and office chairish and weirdly angled. With a proportional back that actually went with the seat, and tied into the branching, curves and circles styling of the base, and it might be fab. But it's not.

I really do think the circles one is fab. It seems so strange to me that such a well designed piece and such odd ones come from the same place.

The one Gwen linked is nicely designed and kind of cool. It's made to look like an old fashioned seat at the ball park. The low back is properly shaped and scaled to go with the seat, and the arms, stretchers and legs all have a similar kind of curve, giving it some design unity.

I'm glad you stuck with it and will have something to sit on!

Thank you plllog and gwentm! Ok hereâÂÂs what IâÂÂm thinking, although in the past I was doubtful about mixing horizontal lines on a stool with the vertical lines of the uppers, that spectator chair is growing on me. It is unassuming but stylish, looks roomy and comfortable for my petite challenged neighbors whom I want to be cozy when they come over. The Chablis golden tone will give it a little pizzazz and it wonâÂÂt clash with the furnishings of the open plan family room.

Now for the stools I really like pllogâ¦IâÂÂm thinking of buying the circle stools that also come in dining chairs (not sure of finish yet), I need dining chairs. I bought the piece below on sale with an oval matching table a while back. I keep my china and such in there although itâÂÂs located at entry between game room and dining room. My dining room is also small and tall like the kitchen. I did not like the chairs that came with it. The armed upholstered chairs I have are high quality and do not match, I do not like matchy but they donâÂÂt match in a bad way. Even if my long used delightful upholsterer wouldnâÂÂt have recently retiredâ¦still no hope of getting them to work. I have given up on trying finding a good finish dining chair that is well made in my price range. I think the circle chairs will be perfect! My poor husband is going to flip a lid so I will wait a bit before I spring dining chairs on him.

So, this stool in the golden tone Chablis

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=view&current=JC9829-26.jpg"; target="_blank">

And this Chair in IâÂÂm not sure what finish for the Dining room.

http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=view&current=JC8611.jpg"; target="_blank">

Oh, that chair (in chablis) does have an affinity for your credenza, doesn't it?

I'd check further into the Spectator's petite-challenged-worthiness, however, if that's important to you. Sometimes armless is better in that case. I don't think the horizontals on this one fight with the verticals in the kitchen. Rather, because they're wide, and there's only a couple of them, they sort of pick up the shape of your panels and just present them with a little contrast by turning them 90ð.

If the Spectator doesn't work out, I think the circles stool is different enough from the chair that you could do that without being too matchy matchy what-room-are-we-in-ish.

I really like your latest choices. As a petite person, I don't think the arms on the chair would bother me - they might even be a help to get up and down off the chair.

Jiminy Crickets I am boring myself with this chair/stool thing, that's it, I'm ordering the circle stools in the warm Chablis finish right now and getting this over with. I know I love them but hope Im not getting too flash. But maybe I should get just a little flash because its just a little kitchen but "it" wants just as much attention as the big guys.
So, I'm off to buy my kitchen some jewelery and I promise to stop being a seat butt chair pain.

Stools are trouble - I really like the circle stool - I think it is a great choice for your kitchen. The color is warm, not flashy (at least in the photo.) It is different and interesting but echos more traditional styles. It is slim and the "transparaent" pattern will be a nice accent in the kitchen. My new island has stools from my old kitchen and even thought they are not what I will have long term (nice x-back but they are not great quality and the stain is off), the frame of the x back, like the circles adds nice, but different lines to the kitchen as an accent but because you can see through them are more subtle than other stools.

I have found your stool discussions very helpful as I have been navigating the decision myself.

Thanks Sparkelkitty, sheesh this diy kitchen is adding up overall but I bit the bullet and ordered. I am sick of spending money but know the kitchen stools get more use than the sofa so hopefully I spent well.
I'm so glad that's over with and I can stop bothering people lol.
I was getting desperate and was about to order one of these.
http://s1004.photobucket.com/albums/af170/jterrilynn/ideas/?action=view&current=05crawlupwallchair-thumb-430x363-1.jpg"; target="_blank">

Congratulations on the decision!!

You think your kitchen doesn't have flash with that stone? I think the stools are going to look excellent with the stone. Play with it rather than bowing before it. And why shouldn't your kitchen have a little jewelry?

So...what's next on the list?

Hahaha funny you should ask...that would be...what can I do with the windows in the after thought of a nook area. I don't want window treatments backyard is secluded. I'm sure I'm not finished bothering everyone completley. I'll be baaaaaack!
Thank you pllog and gwen and sparkel and all!

What should you do with the windows? Besides give them a good scrub when the kitchen is done? It doesn't sound like you need to do anything!

If you're looking for a way to cover them without a "treatment" I can recommend cell shades. Get a color that blends in with the trimwork, and when they're up, they kind of disappear. When they're down they're quite opaque but let in light unless you get a really dark color. They aren't "decorative" but they aren't ugly.

Jterrilynn, Good Luck. Post the pictures when you get the stools.

Gwen, I will put a finished kitchen post up when I'm all done and the stools come. I'm kinda excited now that I finally made a decision and wish I didn't have to wait so long for delivery. All my neighbors have heard me complain about no countertops for so long they are looking forward to my kitchen party when the stools arrive.
Thank you for all your help Gwen, and I mean that!

Pllog, know what's so cool about my flashy stone? From a distance it just looks sort of dark cloudy neutral until you get on top of it or very close. When near all the dimension and movement shows up as well as little color surprises, love that!
I think I have a subtle idea for window to make the color flow better, I'll show you when I'm done.