Kitchen and Pantry - Finally Finished

We finally finished our Kitchen Update.  YIPPIE!!!

 

 You can see the before from an earlier post here. 

 

Here are some pictures from that post.

 

The cabinets and floors before the paint, flooring, blood, sweat and sore backs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now here my kitchen with the cabinets painted, backsplash made of recycled heat treated pallets.  And now my new laminate floors.  I love them.  We (my hubby and me) installed the floors our selves.

 

 

 

 Now for the backside of the counter with my sink.  It was just a plain counter.  Very plain. 

So then we painted the cabinets and it was still very plain. 

 

 

 

So once we got the floors put down, I started thinking about  "board and batten".  I used lattice boards from Lowes.

 



 

 

 Totally loving the cabinet now. 

 

TOTALLY LOVING MY KITCHEN NOW!!

 

 

 

Now onto the pantry.  I thought I had more pictures of my pantry.  We had CARPET, yes I said CARPET in my pantry.  I guess the builder, ran out of linoleum and just put carpet in the pantry.  We also had the wire shelves.  Totally hated them.  Then I purchased resturant shelves, chrome metal shelves. Totally hated them as well.  So when we took out the shelving to remove the carpet.  I talked my wonderful hubby into wood shelves.  



 

We bought 1x2's for the support braces.  We drilled pilot holes and screwed them into the studs.  Then used 1x12's as the shelving and just screwed them into the support braces.

 

We did not want white shelves, so we just stained the wood.

We also have a return duct work coming into the pantry.  So we constructed a box out of plywood and then added more support braces and shelves.

 

 



 

 

Now for the last project.  I was over at Shanty 2 Chic.  They had a wonderful door Foil and paper organizer.  I was able to put it together with some leftover wood and lattice pieces.

I love it.  Now more room on the shelves.  Sorry no pictures, my hands where horribly covered with stain.

 

 

 

 



New Laminate Flooring

 

Here is a sneak peak at what me and my hubby has been working on lately. 

 

 

We are almost done, I will then post more pictures of what we are doing.  

DIY Kitchen Island

 

 

As the boys get older and want to help out in the kitchen.  I find there is not alot of counter top space left to use.  For several weeks, I scoured the stores and Craigslist trying to find a butcher block or kitchen island cart.  I could not find one that I totally loved and just had to have.

 

One day, I was going through different blogs and Pintrest.  I found a new blog that I just love.  Our Vintage Home Love  I just love Diana's style.  She had a kitchen island that her and her husband made from recycled Barn wood.  I sat there looking at my computer screen.....with my mouth wide open and eyes bugged out.  I was in Love.  L-O-V-E Love.

 

 

 

This is Diana's kitchen island.  Beautiful.

 

 

So then I of course showed John (hubby).  He loved it of course and asked if we could order it.  I said no, no ordering.  We are going to make it.  Then his mouth was wide open and eyes bugged out.

 

But since my mom would kill me if I would came to visit the farm and stole wood off the side of the barn, John and I just made a trip to Lowes.

 

 

 

 This is some of the pine wood we picked up from Lowes.

 

 

 

 

Sorry, I did not get any photos of putting the cart together.  Had to use the help while I had it.

 

 



 

After I stained the lovely cart, we brought it in and installed the bottle cap opener, that I found at Target.   How cute.  Will loves to go to the store and get the glass bottle cokes.  Now he can open them on the

 

Isn't she lovely......Isn't she wonderful.

 

Okay I will stop singing.



Christmas House Tour

This year I wanted to do something difference around the house for our Christmas decorations.  Usually I have a hodge podge of decorations.  I wanted to have more of a theme.

 

A more rustic feel.

 

 

I changed out the normal green Christmas wreath.  I removed all the greenery, then took old muslin curtains and ripped them, then cut into strips.  Then tied them on the wire wreath.  I think it looks really cute.

 

 

For our manger scene, Baby Jesus does not show up till Christmas Day. 

We have a tradition, where Baby Jesus is wrapped as a present.  It is left at the top of the stairs on Christmas morning to be discovered by the boys.  The gift says To the Teague Family, Love God.  Even though JP, who just turned 18 and Will, who is 11, they take turns to open the present and setting Baby Jesus in his place in the manger.

 

 

 

 

 

Can you tell that I love Snowmen.  I collect them each year.

 

 

This is my father-in-law's tool box that he made.  He was so wonderful to let me have it.  I sanded, stained, and painted.  Then sanded again. 

Then just added the silk flowers.

 



 

 

 

 

 

Pain and Joy at Christmas time.

I can not believe how time flies.  I was doing so well just after Thanksgiving.  I had my tree up, the house decorated.  List made to get all the shopping done.   Also had started my holiday baking.  Then...

 

 

On a Friday, December 14th about 2:00pm.  I received a phone from Will's school.  He had been tripped on the play ground during recess.  His teacher said he was hurting but nothing seem broken, as he could still move his arm and no swelling had started. 

 

I thought okay, wonderful, as I had 25 people coming to the house for a family gathering that night.  So when I got home I checked his arm, gave him lots of love and tended to the abraision on his arm and hand.  Also with his arm still tender.  I wrapped it with an ace bandage, and went into hosting mode.

 

Fast forward about 10 hours.  I took JP and Will with me to the Hospital I work at.  They were having Cookies and Milk with Santa.  Even though they are older than the children participating in the event.  They still enjoyed seeing the younger children excited to see Santa.

 

Will was still complaining about his arm.  So with us in the hospital, I said lets go get an xray.  Could be a possible hairline fracture.  So to the Emergency Room we went.  They were so wonderful to him and we hit the ER at just the right time.  No one was in the waiting room.  We walked straight back to the room.

 

After the xray, they said no broken bones.  But his pain was in the wrist, they thought something was going on with the growth plate.  If he had a fracture or hairline fracture in his wrist, it would not show up for about a week.  So we came out with a splint and an appointment with an Orthopedist.

 

 

The following Thursday, now out of school for winter break.  We went to see the Orthopedist.  He looked at the xrays from the Hospital and then examined Will's arm and wrist.  William still had pain in his wrist.  So....

 

 

 

William has a cast for Christmas.  Merry Christmas Will.  The doctor said he did not want to take a chance with his growth plate.  So Will has a cast.  When he went into the room to get the cast put on, the wonderful lady asked Will what color do you want.  Will asked " Do you have Camo?"  What 11 year old boy would not want Camo?  The lady replied.  I am sorry, but we do not have Camo.  So Will said what about Carolina Blue. 

 

He gets his cast off on January 10th.  Wow what a crazy time.  He is doing well.  So well that the white part is not white anymore.  It is brown. 

Got to love boys.

Our New Updated Mantle

Who out here in Cyber Land is a private stalker?  I love my DIY websites, and few I just roam through their websites over and over and over.  I love Down To Earth Style.  Holly has such wonderful ideas and tutorials.

Here is her updated mantle. 

Here is our mantle before.

Not very wide.  Only 7 inches.

  

Now here is the after. 

 We used:

(1) 1x12x6 - top

(1) 1x10x6 - bottom

(1) 1x8x6 - front

(2) shelf brackets

Following Holly's instructions: I made a 5 sided box.  I had some extra pieces left over from a previous project to use for the ends. 

Then we placed the box on top of the old mantle and just screwed into the old mantle.

Our new mantle is 12 inches deep.  Thanks to my husband.  I voted for 10 inches, but he won, you know..... Rock, Paper - Scissor.



I am sorry to say that I get so excited starting a project.  That sometimes I forget to stop and take pictures.  But lucky for us  Holly at
  Down to Earth Style has instruction on how to build this mantle.

 Here is our mantle dressed up for Christmas.

Here is Layla, napping infront of the fire place with her Christmas blanket.