1. No windows. Natural light is great to see by but even worse for clothes than for food. Clothes are meant to last longer.

2. Consistent temperature. The HVAC can do a number in your closet, trapping heat or a/c. Having some way for the air to circulate, especially the a/c which can also be damp, is essential.

3. Humidity control. As stated above, damp isn't a friend for your clothes. Nor is bone dry. 50% humidity is ideal for textiles. Too much damp can weight the fabrics down and cause sagging, as well as promoting growth of mold and mildew. Too much dry and the fibers loose their suppleness. They feel scratchier and wear faster, and the little threads in the cloth can break.

4. Correct storage. Creases aren't good for most cloths. Hanging isn't good for some. A combination of hanging and shelf/drawer storage is ideal. Sweaters do best folded but not stacked. Pants are happier hanging from one end or other (depending on the construction), but can be draped over a rod (hanger or built in) without suffering too much. They do take up more space that way, however. Jackets must be hung, dresses and skirts should be hung unless they're made of a stretchy knit. Scarves and shawls should be draped over a rod or rolled on a tube to prevent creasing. Shoes that aren't worn very often should be in drawers or boxes to keep them from getting dusty and marred.

5. Space efficiency: Eye level is great for choosing clothes, but you can maximize your space better if you double hang and put tops as high as you can conveniently reach them, and either more tops, or skirts/shorts/doubled pants below. Long hanging storage is necessary for dresses and gowns, and best for suits. Suits can also be hung on double rails if the pants are doubled. Drawers/boxes of rarely worn shoes (ones that go with a particular dressy outfit and the like) can go on shelves above the hanging things. Keep a small step stool in the closet to make access easy. Handbags can go on open shelves, but it's nicer to have a door, also to keep out dust. A clear door can remind you to use them. Lazy susans can work as well in corners as in the kitchen. You can have all shelves for shoes and bags, or use a section for pants clips, tie hangers, scarf rolls, etc. Ties do best on tie hangers (bars with little rods for the ties). These only work if they're somewhere that won't be squished. Otherwise they're nightmarish. The inside of a cabinet door with the shelves set back is a good place. Belts work well on pegs, again, placed somewhere they won't get squished.

6. Smalls, undergarments, hosiery, gloves, soft hats, etc., are best in drawers, though work in baskets. It's nice to have a hamper or laundry chute right in the closet. Structured hats are best kept on forms in cabinets. Barring that extravagance, hatboxes are best. They can be stacked/shelved in hard to use corners. Don't forget the labels.

7. Daily wear. Include some storage for the stuff you constantly wear around the house. The hoodie you always put on when you get home. The old running shoes. Or a small wardrobe of sweats, little dresses, or whatever you wear when you're not "dressed". Make it really easy to access with room for house shoes and house sweaters/jackets, including hooks for that which you've taken off and intend to put back on. If you have it all easy to get at and organized these bits are less likely to decorate the rest of the house (if you have sloppy-lazies) and makes it easier to just pop into the closet and put off your good clothes. Also have a "current" spot for better garments that might have been worn slightly but will be worn again before cleaning. This can be a valet, small rack, or hooks, but should have hangers so they can be stored properly so as not to lose their shapes or get wrinkled.

8. Maintenance. I mentioned the hamper, but it's also nice to have a place to put dry cleaning, both going out and coming in, along with a pad to write down what you're sending to the cleaners and to check off as you put the fresh cleaning on proper hangers. Even better would be to have room for an ironing board right in the closet or dressing area, though I've never achieved that. :)

Sorry I don't have any pictures. I have or have had most of the above. My current closet came fitted, but it's not pretty. Just plywood. It works though.

I'm down to:
America's Harvest 197
Lightning Bolt 323 (the most yellow- just in case)
Weston Flax HC-5
Windham Cream HC-6
Antiquity OC-107
Pale Moon OC-108

If I do the hood in yellow maybe I'll choose a lighter shade than the lowers...

What do you think? DH says they all look the same. Another GW member is using hawthorne yellow HC-4, but I was looking at lighter/creamier shades. I wonder if I should go darker?

Pale Moon and Weston Flax are my frontrunners right now...

Here are some pics - I linked the original thread below if you want to see more pics & info.

Here is a link that might be useful: oldhouse1's kitchen

Yellow is wonderful for kitchens. I never had yellow before, and it's most definitely where everyone gravitates.

Cabs are cherry, walls/ceiling are BM Hawthorne Yellow and tile is the same shade:

Here is a link that might be useful: More pictures here

The walls don't look quite this yellow in person, FYI. Still, they're screaming for a lighter, whiter (happier) cream, aren't they?

I don't think I had the flash on here either but the walls look so much more cheerful and almost pink! I think just cause I was up high, pointing toward two lights plus a window?

One or two of you mentioned being curious about how they looked before, so here are pics from before the newest gray paint (only the lowers on that window wall were painted the gray color). Not quite apples to apples though as taken at night without all the lights on. Also the dishwasher door wasn't on yet either:

This one shows uppers in white during the day though the tile wasn't in yet:

Pre-tile and pre-dishwasher and taken even earlier in the day and during Spring:

Ok! Pre-new-countertop (and lamp on old little island just to show reflection of stainless when I was considering stainless for the main countertop) but this gives an idea of the wall of cabs when they were still white (don't know why this is all I could find! Oh and the walls are a light beige-avocado-gray type of color):

Had enough? SURE YOU HAVEN'T! Here's one from before the new lowers and new countertop et al!! Hold your breath...here we go!:

And for the grand finale:

:) :) :) How you likin' that gray NOW, eh? :) :) :)

Dining Area Side:

Kitchen Side (the wall ends just before the hutch):

I thought I needed the usable counter on the kitchen side. This is what it looked like for 5.5 years until we decided we didn't need the counter space after all.

Hi efs - I love my living wall, I will be doing another in my master bath whenever we get around to that project. I planted 4" (and some 6") pre-grown plants in the wall, so it looked pretty full grown from installation. Stores like Home Depot sell this size of tropical plant at really good prices. This wall has 36 felt pockets for 36 plants. I gave more details on a thread from last summer, I've pasted it below. Let me know if you have more questions. It is well worth the effort.

Here is a link that might be useful: Living Wall Thread

I prefer my powder room:

Living wall in my DR:

I haven't finished our LR yet, but this painting is a new addition to our space that I just love. I have to paint and tweak a few things in here still:

(I put raw copper countertops in my whole kitchen and have learned quite a bit about dealing with the metal over the past few years.)

One option: get the sink to the exact state you want it in -- use BarKeeper's Friend to scrub it back down to raw shiny salmon copper, for instance, or all brown with your chemicals of choice -- then lacquer it with a special coating like EverBrite. The lacquer will last a few years or more and might leave you loving your copper again.

I've been waiting for it to be finished to take the final pictures, but I've come to the conclusion that if I wait for all of the "blue tape" issues to be addressed, for the cleaning crew to clean up the construction gravy and/or to borrow someone's wide-angled lens, well, then it will be filled with our stuff. And with baby #3 on the way, well, God knows how long before the boxes will be broken down and we're truly settled.

So, aside from a missing microwave, plastic still on the fridge doors (which are in the middle of their THIRD reinstallation) and general mish mash in the sandwich area - here's as close as we're going to get to photos of a finished kitchen this year : )

Details as follows:
Cabinets - Custom cabinet maker, inset shaker, SW Pearly White, Walnut Stained Trim
Floors - Teak hardwood stained Jacobean (very hard, does not absorb to typical Jacobean dark!)
Range - 48" Thermador Combo
Venthood - Ventaire with 1600 CFM roof-mounted blower
Sink - Franke
Faucet - Brizo
Pot Filler - DRATS I can't remember :)
Hardware Pulls - Amerock Highland Ridge, Polished Nickel
Hardward Knobs - Atlas
Countertops Island - Alabama White Marble 6cm slab
Countertops Perimeter - Caesarstone Pebble 2cm with mitered edge to 6cm
Island Chopping Block - Boos Block Walnut End Grain 4inch
Island Pendant Lights - Restoration Hardware Royal Seamaster (Discontinued)
Refridgerator - Thermador 30" Freedom Column
Freezer - Thermador 30" Freedom Column
Double/Single Oven - GE Profile
Backsplash - 4" Shiplap Wood Paneling whitewashed

I'm sure I'm forgetting lots... heck, I barely know my name. So if anyone has any questions, please let me know. You've all been wonderful, and I sincerely enjoy just knowing that a community of such substantial depth and helpfulness exists. I wish I could invite you all over for coffee!!

I picked up something similar at Pier 1 Imports last month, but don't know how they'll hold up over the long haul.

Here is a link that might be useful: Dash & Albert Rugs

Wow it is a LOT brighter in here already. Not exactly a professional job and I might go back over some spots but it was fun and satisfying to take down some of that red.

Thoughts and suggestions welcome. And thank you, again, for the replies in the first thread! I would not have thought to try keeping the brick without them!

Mary

The double stacked organizer for silverware should reduce the clutter

and the pullout for the the spatulas and other big items too...

not to mention the trays and other flat pans...

We debated a lot about a trash compactor and in the end decided that we did not want to compact and keep the trash in the house any longer than is necessary. So went with the double garbage bin...

What do you think?

We have bought stainless steel appliances, but thinking of polished chrome for the faucets just to add a bit of sparkle. Much like jewelery. Would love to have Dornbracht faucets, but too expensive. Any suggestions for faucets and sink is much appreciated.

I am pleased with the appliance garage above the counter and the pull out shelves below at the blind corner. What do you think?

Also the batton strips on the wall, when painted the same color as the wall, and ceiling, sould give some texture to the wall. We where just playing around. What do you think?

Appreciate your comments and suggestions.

Thank you so much for all the help directly and indirectly through the many posts on this forum. You guys are simply amazing!

Below are a few pictures of the kitchen from today....

My cabinet guy showed me this picture of a blue cabinet kitchen he did and I was sold. Within a couple hours we redesigned the whole space. I think I love it, but I thought I liked the other one for months, and I only have today to digest this! Please help, and also suggest a counter top material and color to work in my space.

Here is the layout and elevations of the space:

Here is the photo that started it all

Here are the colors for the cabinets and for the trim


The backsplash Tile and two detail shots, its 6 by 6



Here is the floor tile

What do you all think? Appliances are stainless and the sink is FireClay in white, which is really an off white color. What would you do for counters? Grey? Dark brown (like antique brown granite)?
Gorgous or dark and tacky??? HELP!

Also quite common in Canada are MDF doors, which are cut by computer on giant CNC machines. Our full-custom cabinets are plywood boxes with MDF doors, finished in BM Cloud White.

Solid Maple doors would have been the same price, but we'd have hairline and larger cracks everywhere whenever the humidity changed, which in a 90+ year old house in Toronto is often.

As you can see there is a little detail around the recessed panels, but the outer edge of the doors are squared off. We wanted a 'transitional' look, like so many others these days do. Our house is 90+years old with some original character, so we didn't want anything too contemporary, and my wife likes classic looks (counters are marble).

Added the 'furniture' style baseboard on the pantry wall along with the separated crown molding to accentuate them looking like furniture.

We live in a 1910 house in urban Connecticut, and have been gradually renovating it for the last ten years. We hope to live here another twenty--thirty years or so, next stop would be assisted living vs. skilled nursing! So: nardellos-to-the-wall renovation, amortized over decades.

The original space included a walk-in pantry, originally the ice-box room, and the "telephone closet", which we ripped out when we moved in. The "servant's dining hall" and kitchen had long since been combined into one room. So the "before" space was raw and ugly but functional, and we installed our old Aga range and were happy for a decade. Five years ago we acquired the Subzero when our old fridge gave up the ghost. Maybe I pronounced the old fridge dead while it still had a thready pulse, but I hated it. With this renovation we ordered an Aga Module to append to the old 4-oven gas-fueled Aga range, so that we could turn the latter off in the warmest months. In the winter, we are glad to have a separate heat zone in the kitchen, where we tend to live. The rest of the house is kept just above freezing. The windows and doors were restored, except for one new window that was built to match the old ones.

Steven Marchetti of Peix & Marchetti is our friend and architect. The space was gutted last August, and our excellent builder friend Allen Mathes built around the Aga and the large refrigerator. Allen built a fir "floor" on the ceiling and "strapped" it. The Aga is vented into the old flue and could not be moved -- the range hood could only be vented through one bay between joists to the rear of the house, so we held our breath until the custom Rangecraft hood arrived and was installed and fit like a glove: that's why the ducts are assymetrical. Very Terry Gilliam.

The floor is cork, and here is a picture of unwaxed Jucca soapstone countertop. The cabinetry is custom-made in New Haven, by fantastic Bryan Smallman:

Here are the just-about-finished pictures: there's a little trim to be done yet. We love the kitchen and it works well -- prep sink at the window and the utility sink accessible from both sides of the island are especially handy, because several cooks can work comfortably together and clean-up seems more communal. The Profi faucet is terrific for clean-up, also accessible from both sides because it is side-mounted on the Julien undermount steel sink. Friends off to one side at our old kitchen table seem happy and it they're not, we just pour more bourbon....

We worked with an architect friend, and were influenced by a favorite space, the Yale Center for British Art: the palette and the quiet feeling of the materials were what we tried to emulate, even as almost every material in the museum was switched for something else. Tennessee Golden Oak became vertical grain fir (oak today isn't Louis Kahn's oak), travertine became cork (who wants to stand on stone?), brutalist concrete became soapstone (who wants to worry about sealing concrete). Steel is still steel! The cream Aga that we have had for years dictated the choice of the biscuit fireclay farm sink and the cream ceramic subway tiles.

I have this idea that it's okay to mix a lot of materials if the palette is restrained, or it's fine to mix a lot of colors if the number of materials is restrained, but I'd be interested to see examples of lots of materials AND lots of colors working well. But that's just me.

I'll list materials in a subsequent post. Again, sorry for the many pictures: I get cross-eyed trying to post these things! Let me know what you think. Except maybe you, marcolo ;)
Lynn

Even without the marine edge on the stainless this design is way more effective IMO than standard runnels. I love the way it drains every single drop of water, then just takes an easy wipe to clean.

By the way, DH set the drain dish on the back edge to show how deep the front edge was when we took the pic...the shadows made it hard to photograph otherwise but normally it fits right in the space.

Our original plans for our house were only to replace the carpet with wood and tie into the existing oak flooring that was in areas of the house. The oak ended up being terrible quality, unable to be refinished, and had extensive water damage that wasn�t apparent until the old owners vacated. So the project moved to replacing all flooring in the house to gorgeous wide plank walnut. Then the walnut started going down and the oak cabinets, which I had planned on keeping in the kitchen because they were custom good quality cabinets, looked extremely dated and the countertops were ugly, IMO. We found electrical issues (the house is in an area that codes are routinely broken). Somehow along the line we ended up with a whole house remodel, including 3 � bathrooms and a kitchen. I feel much better knowing what is behind my walls now! We are thrilled with the end product as well. The problems we encountered along the way mainly stemmed from the fact that we did not have a GC over the project and my husband ended up heading up the project. It was time consuming and stressful! Next time we�ll hire a GC, but there better not be a next time because this is our forever house!

The things I changed in the kitchen were mainly just cabinets and finishes. Luckily we had a Wolf wall microwave/oven combo and Wolf gas cooktop purchased within the last year from the seller. I replaced the DW and refrigerator (defective and history of causing water damage�not taking a chance on the walnut) and took the wall oven/microwave out of the corner cabinet to free up some space, which allowed me to replace the old 36" Sub Zero that was 16 years old to the 42" Sub Zero brand new. I also took out the "bar sink" because I didn�t feel like I needed a second sink, and it was in a bad location so if I was going to change the bar sink to a prep sink I�d have to re-plumb and move locations and I just couldn�t handle that at the time. I kept the cooktop in the island mainly because I couldn�t find a better spot for it on the wall without messing up the window corner and wall oven combo. Island cooktops aren�t my favorite, but I�m hoping it�ll grow on me. Other than those things, the layout is the same but I did make the island straight instead of the strange bad Feng Shui crooked island. I can�t imagine standing at an angle to cook on that island cooktop for 16 years. ACK!

Appliances:
DW: Bosch
Wine Fridge: Sub Zero
42" refrigerator: Sub Zero
Cooktop, wall oven/convection microwave: Wolf
Countertops: Soapstone
Sink: 36" Shaw Original single bowl, white
Faucet: Kohler Simplice in stainless
Perimeter Cabinets: Canyon Creek Cabinets out of Seattle, maple painted color-matched BM Cloud White with a liquorice glaze
Island Cabinets: Canyon Creek rustic alder taupe stain with liquorice glaze
Hardware: Top Knobs Aspen cup pulls, handles and knobs in medium bronze
Floors: Wide plank walnut consistent with entire house
Rugs: Dash and Albert Montana Stripe
Kitchen table: Antique store find stripped and refinished by a local craftsman
Kitchen chairs: Borkholder Windsor chairs bought unfinished and finished to match the table by local craftsman (not finished yet, so not shown)
Island counterstools: Palacek
Pendants: Hudson Valley Randolph
Chandelier: Hudson Valley Menlo Park
Paint color: BM matte in Bleeker Beige

As part of a full renovation our kitchen island got a nice beefy top made of black walnut. Even though everyone thought I was nut, I said I wanted to use part of it as a cutting board. After all, it's a kitchen, not a museum. With that in mind, I had to come up with a food-safe finish for it. What I chose, based on advice here, was nothing more than a hand-rubbed application of mineral oil and bees wax.

I'm happy to report that it's been over a year and everything's gone great. First, the island looks great. Everyone comments on it the moment they see it.

Second, using it as a cutting board has worked out quite well. The wood is more than hard enough to stand up to my knives. Not having to get out a cutting board, and then keep all my chopped whatever on the cutting board as I work... it makes life so much easier. For those who told me I needed to do something akin to butcher-block -- making the island top out of end-grain... well, you were incorrect. End-grain would have been harder no doubt but the walnut is more than hard enough. And worst case? I break out a power sander and 1/64" of an inch later my island would be in immaculate condition.

No doubt, the knife leaves marks in the wood. But the wood is "busy" enough that you can only see them if you go looking for them and your eye is within 12" or so of the counter (photos below).

Oh, for those worried about food safety, I still don't get raw meat on the counter (though I think it would be fine as long as I cleaned up with soap and water afterwards). And we don't chop anything "stinky" like garlic or onion though we do work with other aromatics like rosemary and thyme. 15 months later and the counter has no odor of any kind.

Third, the finish. I was worried about this but in the end it's been fine. I melted some furniture-grade beeswax on the stove, added mineral oil (about 2 parts oil to 1 part wax) and let is solidify into a semi-hard paste. I rub it in, let it stand (sometimes for a few minutes, sometimes overnight), and then I buff it out.

At first I was doing this every few weeks but now I only do it every 2 months or so. I could probably stand to do it a bit more often in the quadrant I use as a cutting board, but, well, you know, life gets in the way.

For the first 6 months or so if you left a wet glass on the counter for more than a few hours we were getting drink rings. I had to lightly sand those out and rewax. But now we seem to have a deep enough coating that we haven't had a drink ring -- or any mark of any kind -- for over 6 months.

How do I clean it? A soapy sponge. Simple as that.

Ready for photos? Ok, here's the island as whole:

Take a good look at the image above. Can you see where I've prepared over 100 meals? You know -- the section where I've sliced up thousands of peppers and cucumbers and apples and peaches and melons and tomatoes and potatoes and celery and carrots and parsnips, etc, etc?

Okay, the "cutting board" area is the left side of the island, from the bottom of the photo to the sink. That 25% of the island is the designated "cutting board" section.

Yes, the board closest to the left of the photo has a lot of lines in it, but those aren't knife marks, that's "tiger-striping" in the wood -- I chose that board for there on purpose in case I needed camouflage for knife marks.

Ok, ready for a close-up of the knife marks? This photo was taken from about 8 inches away:

...looks like a cutting board, doesn't it? ;-)

So what problems do I have? Well, we have a lot of friends and cook a lot of meals together, People like to help. Once they get past the "What??! I can cut right on the counter???!?" moment I have two problems.

First, it's hard to keep them in the designated 25% that I use as a cutting board. Yes, the knife marks are subtle enough that they could probably work anywhere but I still haven't let go.

Second, these same people occasionally use a bread knife that can take some comparatively pretty big chunks out of the top. This has only happened once or twice, and with a coat of wax the marks pretty much disappear. But still, it's stressful.

Bottom line? I strongly encourage people to explore using an island top as cutting board. Second, a food-safe finish is easy! Third, I love my new kitchen. :-)