Kitchen Inspiration

For the past two weeks, Mark and I have been working on renovating our kitchen. Before the project began, we optimistically and naively thought "Oh this will take about a week." Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Here we are, two weeks later, still putting the last pieces together.

Here's an annoying truth: tiling a backsplash can take forever. Especially when you have this "vision" of subway tile reaching to the ceiling. Each row has to dry and set before you can proceed to the next. Otherwise, the whole thing could come sliding down. Once you've finally tiled and grouted the entire thing, you have to allow the grout to set about 48 hours before sealing it. Ugh. My hands are constantly white-flecked with grout and adhesive, speckled as if I have some kind of skin condition.
Once the subway tile backsplash is sealed, we will begin hanging the three shelves. The final steps of the renovation will be hanging a new light fixture and then extending the cabinets to the ceiling.

I. Am. So. Ready. To. Be. Done.

I can't wait to share photos of the finished project. But even more so... I can't wait to have counter top surfaces again and to be able to cook a decent meal in the kitchen without having to dodge stacked bowls or random tools. So, to hold myself over until the Big Reveal, I thought that today I would share some of the Pinterest photos that inspired our kitchen makeover.

From the moment we bought our house, I knew I wanted two things in the kitchen: open shelving and subway tiles. I just love the crisp, classic look of subway tile. You can find it in stately old homes built at the turn of the century and in new, modern buildings. It's simply a timeless look that just doesn't lose it's charm or style.

Another favorite: shabby chic painted chandeliers. I've been scouring our local thrift shops and ReStores but haven't found one that works and is the right size. While I'd love to do a fun DIY and put an old chandelier in the kitchen, I will most likely go with this cutey from Home Depot. It has an old schoolhouse charm that I think will work well in our little galley kitchen. Since this isn't our forever home, I don't feel the need to make every single detail perfect. I'll have my Ultimate Kitchen later in life, maybe in house two or three.

The final kitchen detail that inspired our renovation: two cabinet colors. Those of you who follow along on my Instagram know that we decided to go with Annie Sloan's grey-blue shade Old Violet. I love the way its turning out with our old-rubbed bronze drawer pulls and faucet.

I also love these hanging rods and buckets from IKEA. I probably won't grow herbs in my kitchen (no direct sunlight), but have found them to be a great place to store random kitchen doodads like napkin rings or small utensils.

Stay tuned for our kitchen reveal!

All images via Pinterest.
Image of kitchen in first collage via Primitive & Proper.