Minimalist Kitchen Renovation - Update

Since my last kitchen reno post I've decided to become a lot more hands-on in our kitchen renovations.  I've managed to install the baseboards, do some basic carpentry to finish up the cabinets, painted the cabinets and installed new drawer/door pulls.



Kitchen Reno update

 

Learning some basic carpentry skills

 

 

Last week-end I ordered a laminate countertop which should be installed in about a month.  We bought a new kitchen sink and faucet.  The sink and faucet feel like a little splurge, as I had thought I'd reuse the old ones but recently my veggie sprayer broke (yay!) and I managed to rationalize a new sink as well.  Once the countertop is installed we can finish off the backsplash and the trim around the windows.



Having full countertops will be so nice.

A little bonus has been realizing that a wooden buffet that we were given last year will fit perfectly under the kitchen windows to create a window seat.  We tried it out last weekend.  With a couple of layers of quilts and some throw pillows, it became the most coveted seat in the house.  I'm currently deciding what to do about the finish; it is very glossy dark wood.  I need to decide on the look I want for it.

I can finally see some light at the end of this renovation tunnel.

Thank you for visiting My Turquoise Kettle Life today.

May this day be full of happiness,

Sandra

Falling in love with a Fabric

A fabric store is really a visual and tactile feast; when I need to "fill the well", as author Julia Cameron of The Artist's Way explains it, I trot myself over to the fabric store and soak it all up. That's exactly where I was a couple of days ago. I didn't have any intention of buying fabric but they were having a "buy one meter and get two more free" promotion. Well doesn't that make the visit more interesting?

I always begin at the back of the store at the discount wall and work my way to the front. When something catches my eye I begin to visualize what it might become. It is like a huge buffet for the imagination. About half way through the store I found "it", a fabric so beautiful and so perfect that the ideas of where and how I could use it began to gush to the surface of my imagination like a geyser. Within minutes my mind had my entire home upholstered in this beautiful floral Waverly fabric.

Waverly floral fabric

 

I bought my one meter and got two free. I cycled home with the fabric in the basket of my bike so that I could admire it on the way. At home I discovered that I had a half meter of plaid fabric that coordinated quite nicely. Yesterday I recovered the cushions of my wicker furniture.

Here are the before and after photos:

Before:

Before reupholstery

Before: Faded and tired looking.

After:

Newly upholstered in blue Waverly fabric

 

A fresh and summery spot for relaxing

 

I still have one meter left and I've spent the morning draping it over tables, furniture, pillows and windows. Some people have theme music; I think this may become my theme fabric, the fabric of my life. In that case, perhaps I should get a few more meters.....

Thank you for stopping by My Turquoise Kettle Life today.

Wishing you a day brimming with ideas,

Sandra

 

 

Just an Ordinary Day

Pink Spirea
S. King-Allikas

There was nothing out of the ordinary about yesterday.  It was a Tuesday, a day that will soon slip easily into a string of days, undistinguishable from the other ordinary days that weave themselves together into the fabric that becomes my life.  Before that happens though I will be thankful for all of the blessings, I don't want to take them for granted but I so often do.

I so appreciate:

• a phone call to my mom and dad, hearing their voices.
• my sister's wise counsel.
• the sound of my grandchildren's voices in the background of a conversation with my daughter.
• an hour spent puttering in my garden.
• the feel of the wind over my face and arms as I ride my bike.
• the strength of my body as I run.
• my neighbours, a wave, a small chat, a tender word.
• food to cook and my husband to serve it to.
• our local library brimming with books waiting to be read.
• the colour of the night sky and the sound of the wind in the towering trees as I lay between crisp linens and drift safely to sleep.

Thank you God for every ordinary day, I will try to cherish each one.

Thank you for stopping in at My Turquoise Kettle Life today.

May you have a day to cherish,

Sandra