It’s really hard to sew when you have so many things to saw! If you are just joining me, I am in the middle of a kitchen remodel and it’s not easy… especially when you are LIVING in the house WHILE you are remodeling it! I thought I could do a little sewing and then a little sawing, alternating my posts that way, but it’s been all consuming to try and get this finished as soon as we can, so my sewing has had to take the back seat! :o(
I’ve gained more new subscribers and hope you won’t leave even after the kitchen is finished. (I’m guessing you are here for the “home” stuff on my blog lately.)
First let’s start with the “SEW” section of this post. I found something that is old but hopefully NEW to you. These are some pictures from my archives of a Regency dress for Elizabeth, made exactly 9 years ago today… April 17, 2009! I didn’t have a name for it, so you can call it whatever you like! I looked over those “pink” names you all shared a while back, and I’m going with “Cotton Candy Pink!” My photography skills were a bit lacking 9 years ago, but I think you can tell what it looked like, even in the bad pictures!
Now for those of you waiting for the “SAW” part of this post…
We’ve been busy little bees again the last few days. It was wonderful having my sisters here to help and especially give me ideas and encouragement that the “pretty comes after the ugly.” I keep forgetting that, but I should have remembered it from the Sunday School House Kitchen project. It was ugly for a long time and my kitchen seems to be following the same pattern. The “pretty” is coming but not as quickly as I’d like!
Cindy gave my new wall a second coat and it looks really rich and so smooth and pretty now. It’s a good thing she’s flexible… because painting that corner was a bit of a strain!
The paint might be called Agreeable Gray, but it’s not really a gray gray to me… it almost turns to a creamy beige or almost a khaki in the afternoon. Then at night it’s a warm and soothing color. I love the different shades it becomes throughout the day.
I’ll let you have ONE last look at those aqua speckled countertops…
With a few extra hands around, we decided to go ahead and rip out the stove wall section of base cabinets. Those walls hadn’t been disturbed in 126 years and let me tell you, we found a few “critters”… petrified, no less! Ick!
My mom said, “Aren’t you going to keep the hardware on these cabinets?” I told her originally I thought I would sell them all, but they were so corroded and icky, I decided to pass. My hubby told her the screws were almost gummy on some of them… but she decided to give it a try and get some off… When she got them off, and asked what to do with them, my hubby said, put them back on… so she did!
It was nice to see those aqua with gold fleck countertops go out the door! I didn’t cry a single tear!
The lazy susan in the corner was just awful… daisy contact paper was on the 2 round turn tables.
With the space opened up and the floor cleaned up and sanitized, my hubby wanted to scoot the big pantry down the hallway and into the kitchen just to see what it was going to look like on the end. I love it! My pots and pans, crock pots, pressure cooker and huge Savory antique pan are going in there! :o)
I even got up in the middle of the night and took a picture of the kitchen from the living room… *smile*
Once the wall was opened up there was no reason we couldn’t put in my new stove and hook it up. I cooked on it for the first time tonight! It was really nice too! Chicken on the top and sweet potato fries in the oven! :o)
We have decided to move my dishwasher from the stove wall over to the left of the sink. Then I’ll put my 24″ drawers where the dishwasher was.
We worked on the floor too… it has to be smooth with the flooring tucked under the new cabinets. First we had to put down the old tiles we had in the kitchen and then put the vinyl planks on top of them.
My hubby and I got the wire fished through the wall and down to the basement for a new garbage disposal. I’ve never had one! Yippee! The new switch is ready to turn on… just as soon as we buy a disposal…
We have some underlayment we are going to cover up that icky wall with. It was so nasty and probably painted with lead paint. We didn’t want to disturb it, so we are covering it up. That might come tomorrow.
Well, that’s what we’ve been up to… a nurse from St. Louis called today and my hubby has an appointment on Thursday. Maybe things will get moving along now… I think we are both as ready as we’ll ever be…
Thanks for being patient as I get things in order around here.
See you when I can,
Blessings, Jeanne
“Ugly comes before pretty.” I’ll bet your house is rejoicing to have those old walls uncovered and dealt with. That’s pretty amazing ugly, but the pretty that will come next will be amazing too in a whole different way. What brave and hardworking people you are. I’m so glad you have a record of this — otherwise no one who sees your new kitchen will believe you.
Cindy’s walls look beautiful, and I’ll bet your dinner was great. Your new blog followers are getting a lot of inspiration out of this, and I do hope they stay around for all the things you do. This is the real-est reality show on the net.
Elizabeth looks as lovely as always. The pink really makes her blue eyes blue. One day soon you’ll be back to sewing, but right now the sawing needs to come first. Thursday is coming fast, and who knows what will come after that, and when. Prayers and good thought continue. Stay well, and give my best to your sisters, George, and your splendid kitchen workers. And love to you, always.
Every time I come back, there are more pictures and all of them are great. The pantry cabinet is a prize. I want a picture of the Savory antique pan. I agree with everyone that the picture of Cindy painting is the best one, but there are lots of runners-up. Once upon a time, that daisy contact paper was probably the prettiest, freshest pattern and someone loved how it looked. No one who ever owed this kitchen would believe the way it’s going to look soon. You are going to be the happiest woman in Illinois.
Looks like you are making great progress on the kitchen. It’s looking better with every update. Congratulations on your 1st dinner!!
Elizabeth’s pink dress is simply lovely. The bodice is so pretty and highlights her necklace perfectly.
You and George are in my thoughts everyday. I hope that Thursday’s appointment brings you positive news.
Have a good day.
Take care —
So happy to see you here this morning, Jeanne!
I love the dress for Elizabeth! Pink is so sweet on her, and I love how perfectly you made the bodice of the dress, in the close-up! The lace trim is lined up so perfectly, the ribbon necklace adds just the right touch, and the small bouquet adds to the total effect of the outfit.
But I love the way you have Elizabeth’s hair, her pretty blue eyes, and her completely flawless neckline! So many dolls have that “shirred effect” around the neck. You certainly picked a good one to show off the lower cut gowns! And the blue eyes, yes, I’m still on the lookout for a blue eyed doll, and if I ever find one, I’ll have the blue eyed doll I always wanted, but never really looked for! Sounds silly, but I never missed having a blue eyed doll, until I finally felt like I had every doll I wanted, then it dawned on me that I had no blue eyed doll!
It looks like that now you are getting to the “business” part of the kitchen, those two walls where the most activity is done, and yes, while it is ugly now, I can just see how wonderfully thought out it is going to be. Oh, yes, moving the dishwasher was just the thing to do! You found the perfect place for it, and it will be so much more efficient to the left of the sink. And that garbage disposal, well, you will wonder how you managed before you had it! I remember in Home Ec. in high school, we had to “redo” our own kitchens we had at home, you know, make a little 3-d room, put together boxes to stand for the cabinets, appliances, etc. Well, our kitchen was brand new at the time, and I was supposed to be improving it, but wound up just showing our kitchen as it was. We learned how and where to place appliances, how to have a good traffic pattern, etc., and you are doing is exactly what you should be doing in your kitchen! A big, fat A+ is what you and George are getting from me!
Hopefully, Thursday’s phone call will bring some good news! As always, you both are in my prayers! Love to you………
Hi Jeanne:
Glad to see an update on the kitchen. I think I mentioned we gutted ours about 20 years ago now but you are bringing back lots of memories. It seems it will never get done but it looks like that day isn’t too far off. You’ve made amazing progress and it looks great!
Elizabeth’s regency dress is so beautiful. As always, your embellishments make the outfit. Pink does suit her well.
Prayers continue
The lovely Liz never misses a beat in the dolly fashion world. She is delicious in that cotton candy pink.
I think that pic of Cindy says it all. Definitely needs to be included in that new book coming soon, The Kitchen. The gray is growing on me too. I knew it would. Nice to see your mom.
I had to laugh when I saw the lazy susan corner. The flowered daisy printed paper is almost the same as some in the box I just pulled from the garage at husband’s parents old place. Mostly orange and yellow though. Quite in style some years back. š
We too found petrified critters in the wall in the old home when we removed warped paneling before replacing with drywall. In fact, we have a fully intact mummy in a box on the patio. I’ve about tossed it several times, but other person insists that the relic is something he wants to “give” to grandson.
Seeing those old whitish upright boards behind the counters made me immediately picture an old pump in the sink of the farmhouse, but I don’t think your kitchen was in that location originally? Your new pantry closet is perfect. You will love it. And moving the dishwasher was the best thing we ever did in our much smaller than yours kitchen. So happy you are getting a disposal too. We try not to purposely put anything in it, but it is so handy for prepping. You’ll never remember when you didn’t have one.
I kept looking for the stove photo. Maybe next time. Enjoying both your dolly fashions and the kitchen. Impatiently waiting the next episode.
Thoughts will be with you both on Thursday.
Oh Jeanne, you are on a roll… everything looks great and the position of your drawers and the dishwasher make perfect sense. The large cupboard is so neat. I bet you can’t wait to put your pans in it. Storage is everything in any room. I love the grey color too. It is beautiful. Such a soft color. Love the picture of Cindy painting.
Oh, you are gonna love this kitchen. I can’t get over how magazine worthy it is!! Great job done by all of you.
Glad you heard from the nurse. It’s good to get things on the move so that George can recuperate and get to feeling better. He remains in my prayers. Blessings.
I am enjoying your remodel posts. I’m also following to see how your husband is doing. It’s funny, I know more about how your family is doing than my own!
I like the pink dress on Elizabeth, but no surprise I like it, as you always make such lovely regency-style dresses.
The kitchen is progressing nicely! Iām glad you included the night time shot from the living room as I was able to see the subtle difference in the paint color in the different light. I would love to have that lazy Susan, without the contact paper of course! I think it would be so handy. Maybe you will be able to keep it or something like it.
I will be praying things go well on Thursday. The waiting is the hardest.
The dress is beautiful and the lace is used in such a clever way. Took a while to figure out it wasn’t some kind of tucks. The necklace is such a lovely touch.
I had the same thing done with the dishwasher in my kitchen. I had a wastebasket cabinet put in next to the turntable where the dishwasher had been . It’s so convenient to the sink. I use the garbage disposal sparingly also but it’s nice to have. Everything is turning out beautiful. You’ll be soooo happy.
Glad George will be having the pre-op. It won’t be long now and recuperation can start.
Glad to see your post today, Jeanne, and oh, my, what a lot of news you had to share! No grass grows under foot in your family, literally or figuratively! Even your momma is keeping busy, which leaves no time for worry. I’m loving all the pictures. You could not have shown us anything lovelier than Elizabeth’s newly christened, “Cotton Candy Pink” ensemble. It is such a charming confection from my favorite era, and the bodice is a creative masterpiece. Perfectly pretty!
I can certainly understand that you have gained some new subscribers, Jeanne! Your pictures show a detailed DIY project, and each photo shows a little more of your remarkable kitchen transformation. Just think of it as “pretty in progress!” How encouraging. My favorite photo today is the last one, the nighttime view in the glow of a single light. It reminds me of the anonymous quote, “Hope is the beautiful place between the way things are and the way things are yet to be.” Wishing you blessings in all things, Jeanne!
So nice to see a springlike doll dress in the midst of the completely bizarre weather we are having around here. It been a weird mix of warm and really, really cold. Friday I was wearing short sleeve to clear out some of the branches in the yard. Today it was back to a winter coat and we had snow flurries off and on all day. I am soooo tired of the cold weather.
You kitchen is really coming along Cindy is certainly a great helper, lying on the counter to paint. So great that you have many willing hands to get the job finished.
Glad to hear that things are beginning to move for George so he will soon be on the way to recovery. Continued prayers for him.
Such a treat to see “Cotton Candy Pink” tonight! Also the update on the kitchen remodel–it’s really coming along nicely.
My second cataract surgery is tomorrow morning, bright and early–we have to check in at 7a.m. I am really Not a “bright and early” person, At. All., but we have no choice in this!!
Prayers continue for George and you, and for Thursday’s appointment.