Oooooh my goodness, the time has come: my big kitchen makeover reveal is finally here! Take a good, long look at the “before”… then click on through for all the “after” photos your heart can handle! Warning: angelic choirs may be present; hearing protection suggested.
WHOOMP! There it is. Soak it in for a moment.
Ahhh…
Okay, ready for the run down? Awesome. Let’s go!
We started our kitchen makeover in September, ordering everything we’d need to make it all happen (from the tile to the faucet to the sink, etc.). In October, we kicked off the biggest DIY part of this makeover: painting our kitchen cabinets. (More about this undertaking on Wednesday!) Contrary to popular belief, painting your cabinets is NOT a weekend project. We finally finished them in early November, just in time to start rollin’ in the countertops.
As I mentioned before, we went with Misty Carrera quartz from Caesarstone, which is not only scratch and stain resistant, but completely nonporous, meaning it prevents the growth of mold and other nasty things (YAY). In short, it’s almost 100% maintenance free, unlike most other countertop materials. After dealing with our old laminate, THIS IS A DREAM COME TRUE. (You can read more about why quartz and Caesarstone are so freaking awesome right here.) A big, humongous thanks to Caesarstone for collaborating with us on my sparkly new kitchen!
So. Back to November. We contacted a local Caesarstone fabricator, Bedrock Quartz, to get the ball rolling on our dream countertops. After going over the details, like what kind of edge profile and depth we wanted, demo day finally came (my favorite day in the history of days). Ripping out our old counters and dumpy, half-broken sink was a momentous occasion. It also happened to be right before Thanksgiving… so this happened. Making jello molds (gross) without running water or counters is fun! You should try it some time.
Fast forward to December. The magical* process known as fabrication is finally done and our countertops are ready for install. Let me repeat that — OUR COUNTERTOPS ARE READY. I don’t think I can adequately express how excited I was for this day. Remember my favorite day in the history of days I just talked about? That was a lie. This, INSTALL DAY, is my favorite day in the history of days. Ever. Period. I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that the joy I felt was similar, if not greater than, to what first-time parents experience… except my kitchen just gave birth to giant quartz slabs. Beautiful, perfect, precious quartz slabs.
After our (beautiful, perfect, precious) counters were installed, we finally got our plumbing back up and running… and I finally, finally got to use that farmhouse sink I’d been pining over for the last 5 years. This is just a rough estimate, but I’m willing to bet you could wash at least 20 puppies in that thing. It is ginormous. Ginormous and gorgeous.
We finished up the last leg of our kitchen makeover in January and February after painting all the walls and getting our luscious glass tile installed (the same glass tile that arrived in 7 giant boxes in September…). HAPPY DAY, I cannot believe it, we’re done! Our old, builder-grade eyesore is gone for good and now I can frolic around in a bright, art-filled space content to know that no microorganisms are growing on my non-porous quartz countertops. IT FEELS SO GOOD.
And now for more photos!
Details and an obligatory photo of the pooch:
Looking in, looking out:
So, what do you think Curbliers? Pretty dang close to my inspiration boards, right??
*Re “magical” fabrication process: I had the chance to check out the Bedrock Quartz fabrication facility in the flesh and I’m not lying when I say it’s pure magic! There were lasers and giant robot arms and all the most amazing Caesarstone quartz you could ever lay your eyes on. I’m pretty sure I saw a wood nymph, too.
Source List:
Countertops: Misty Carrera quartz from Caesarstone
Sink: Whitehaven Self-Trimming Apron Front from Kohler
Faucet: Purist Deck-Mount Bridge Faucet from Kohler
Tile: Lush 1×4 Vapor from ModWalls
Window Treatment: Maharam Quatrefoil in Silver from The Shade Store
Wall Paint: Gray Owl by Benjamin Moore
Cabinet Paint: Decorators White by Benjamin Moore
Cabinet Hardware: Liberty Bar Pull from PullsDirect
Rug: Ruthie by Angela Adams
Clock: Bias Clock by Areaware
Art: Live With Art print by Little Jacket, Caretaker of the Desert print by Nick Wroblewski, Untitled drawing by Cheryl Gail Toh, quilted screen print/mixed media (unknown)
Tea Towels: Tikoli, Anthropologie
Robot: My Robot by Seletti
Aaaaaand one more of the dog, because I can’t help myself:
Capree, now that you have lived with your gorgeous new kitchen a couple of years…any regrets with the modwalls tile? We will be installing the same color in our kitchen. So, still love it?
Claudia — I LOVE Modwalls’ tile! It’s seriously some of the best. We moved recently (and left our kitchen behind — Yes, I am still in mourning), but I am planning on installing Modwalls again in our new home.