When we moved into this house, there were some awesome bits and pieces we loved, but it was like an unfinished puzzle. There were beautiful light fixtures, fans and paint colors in some places but others were just stark white, with brass fixtures and weird flooring. It was like someone has started on some great ideas, but wasn't around long enough to fill it all in. Our kitchen was one place that had a lot going for it. Great dark cherry cabernet cabinets, stainless steel appliances, a high end, huge sink with great modern antique fixtures. . . mixed with white roll out linoleum floor, white walls, a very ugly kitchen pendulum light, and the kicker, royal blue formica countertops.
Every time i would show someone the house they would see those countertops glowing in the bland kitchen and say, "woah, those are some countertops." Within the first week we were there, we did our best to sort of camouflage the blue. We knew, after just buying a house, countertops were not in our budget so we looked for a color scheme that wouldn't enhance the blue, or make it stand out more, but just blend it to an unnoticeable state.
We put in new flooring. {15x15 self-stick tile, installed on the diagonal}
Painted the walls a pewter color. Added a few rusty orange accents around the room for a complimentary addition.
Then added a tan backsplash.
We actually were really impressed with ourselves, and those countertops just blended in (enough) for us. Until lately. We started to wonder if we were ever going to do something about the blue. We tried to put our penny-pinching heads together and looked into cement countertops, painting the countertops, Ikea countertops. But it all came up the same. Not quite good enough for the kitchen parts that were there and higher quality. It wasn't like painting a countertop in a tiny galley kitchen with old cabinets and mismatched appliances, this kitchen was a finished piece, something that could actually be a good selling point if ever we needed to resell, and all it was missing was granite. I mean, lets be honest, no one is going to jump up and down to see a house listing that says "formica-painted-to-look-like granite countertops". We needed to finish the job someone started before us and make this a great little gourmet kitchen. So seth did his looking around, and found a beyond awesome deal through work, and now. . . we have granite. Are you ready to see these after photos?? Here ya go. . .
I just love the neutrality of it all!
I really don't want to put anything back on the countertops, my dining room table is a disaster, i just love the minimal look of these sturdy stone counters. (Except for my brownies, that i of course always stick on a pedestal dish when they are done baking, haha--okay, you caught me, i just did it for the photo, i thought it would look better than a half-eaten pan of brownies on the stove.)
It was not cheap, nor easy (there was a lot of travel to find the right granite, and we pulled our old counters off ourselves to save some $$) but nothing is cheap when it comes to countertops it was a steal of a deal that no home or kitchen center could have touched, and far less laborious for us than cement or paint. I feel like this new countertop has been a bit like a pregnancy. At first we were just really excited. Then after a bit, we were a little nervous about all the permanency of it, and if we could handle it, and about the time it was totally overdue, and we were wondering if it would ever happen, we were very sure we were ready. . . and couldn't wait for it them to finally be in our home. We brought our backsplash down 6 inches, which, let me just say, saved us about $300.
And it really gives our countertops more space to not have the lip of countertop going up the wall. So finally our kitchen is complete. . . almost. . . we still have that ugly brass light dangling above our kitchen table. It can't be long now before it gets the axe!
