Week 34 - Kitchen!

We reached a milestone this week! The main kitchen went in!

The kitchen was supplied and installed by Garsden & Clarke (in Capalaba, Brisbane). We were really impressed by Susan (the owner), we had already put a lot of thought into the design, and it was a really simple process to translate that to proper plans with them. I'd say that we're generally difficult to impress, so that's a recommendation not given lightly. The job isn't finished yet, but no signs of faltering so far.

Our spokesmodel Michael features in the first photo to give the island bench some scale. We are sadly lacking a butler's pantry, which is becoming the norm for houses like ours. We figured that we will never be able to afford a butler, and we didn't want to eat into our ensuite space to cram it in. The trade off is a 4.5 metre island with seating on the back.

In terms of style, we wanted a classic look (that hopefully we won't regret in 3 years) - so we opted for a 'shaker' profile door. Often I find that shaker kitchens look fussy and old-fashioned, which I think has a lot to do with the size of the shaker panels. I made sure that our panels are all very tall, which modernises the pattern and makes it feel current. Colour-wise it is two-tone (the island is light grey, the main wall is off-white), but it's hard to see in the sunset light.

To avoid it looking too 1860s we used a simple stainless steel handle on the lowers, and the upper cabinets are the 'push and pop out' variety. Our champagne closet (fridge) and other appliances are en-route, and the stone was templated too, so that's probably a week or so away.

My hot kitchen tip is to hide the microwave under the bench. Ours is under the island on the working side, so it can't be seen from the open plan living/dining space. Microwaves are ugly, and the built-in models are really expensive for a microwave. This way we can just plonk a standard microwave in the space, replace it easily if it breaks, and it doesn't spoil the look.

On the other side of the hallway we designed a tall narrow cupboard for appliances like the kettle, toaster and coffee machine. I don't like looking at appliances and cords, so the goal is to keep the benches clear of junk.

The cabinetmakers also installed the mirrors on the bathroom upper cabinets (mirrors are the most important part of any room, naturally), and the shower glass also arrived. Next week we're looking forward to some more lighting, work on the carport and some external bits and pieces.