Living/Working Environment

Lets start by a short trip back to the not so distant past:

Here is the original kitchen...windowless, cramped, dark, cave like, and frankly very uninviting. Top all that off with carpet and you've got a very unappealing cookers

kitchen. ohh and one more thing, currently the kitchen lacks the following: Oven, working range, Working sink, microwave, and most of all light. good news: we do have a dishwasher and refrigerator that the PO (Previous Owner) left, although it is also missing shelves and drawers...so its basically a poor man's kegerator!

Please Read on for more >>>>>

Throughout the past few weeks developments on the kitchen have started to take shape. Starting with the flooring removal (obviously). Ever since touring the property the first time, I've had thoughts on inviting the kitchen to join the rest of the house as a functioning living area. Dawn and I spend a fair amount of time in the kitchen doing, well, cooking. I've always had thoughts of the kitchen as a separate living area. A place where people can enjoy beverages while others cook, a place to sit an talk without the interruption of a TV, and just as it's been said before, the kitchen is the heart of the home. I mean let's face it, we'll most likely be spending most of our time at home in the kitchen area, obviously when were not sleeping, swimming, or working on the other areas of the house.

With this in mind something has to change. The kitchen is totally secluded and cut off from everything else. It's time to open it up!
Paneling is removed and the bones are exposed.

The floors come up!	The bench has been removed.
No more bench.	The light shows!!!
View from the other side.	Look at the light!!

I'm totally saving the bench on the other side, don't worry!

Look at all the light flooding the once dark kitchen! The beautiful Mahogany cabinets are finally shining! OPENNESS IS GREATFULL!!!

More bones...terrabley assembled!	Detail of the floors in scraping process.
Bones removed!	The kitchen unites with the living spaces!
Spacious!	look at the view!

That brings us up to date...for the most part. The wall has been removed to expose all the potential that the kitchen exhibits! Mahogany cabinets glisten, light is welcomed, and the view to living area is inspirational!

Now comes the fun part: Planning!

I've been sketching and drawing for weeks to replace a barrier to what was removed. The wall will be replaced with a large open island. I'm planning the following:

Overhead View

North View

South View

In words:

Large kitchen island with seating on south side.

The cabinets will be built using the original plans to match the existing cabinets built with mahogany (I'll find a source for the same type wood ideas given on savewright.org already).

The refrigerator will be relocated to the right and be built into a box to hide the rear.

Matching cabinets will be build under island location and include area for hidden garbage.

A new oven will be placed in existing location to keep cabinets, Electric cooktop will be replaced with high-end gas cooktop.

Upper cabinet doors above cooktop will be salvaged and un-obtrusive range hood added.

Eventually I'll remove the existing counters and create my own concrete counters in the coming months.

So there you have it, like it or not. I believe that this is going to revive the house to a casual cooking/living area and eliminate the only odd space in the house.

Please, please, please offer any ideas, concerns, or criticism as we're still in the design stages...meaning things are sure to change. Off to hunt for appliances!