posted by: lamb_abbey_orchards on 01.03.2010 at 01:00 pm in Harvest Forum
I'm going to be building a new home next year, which will be a relatively small cottage in the country (1,396 sq ft) built on the edge of an heirloom fruit orchard and large organic garden. The cottage is currently still in the design phase, but nearly complete.
I'm going to be doing a lot of canning and preserving, but know of the headaches and inconveniences of doing a lot of canning in your own kitchen during the hottest months of the year. I want to avoid these inconveniences by adding a small separate "summer canning kitchen" that is close to the main kitchen, but still completely separate from it, allowing me to keep the associated steam and heat and chaos confined to its own space.
I've got a couple of challenges, the primary one being available space. I'm intentionally building a small house because I've spent enough years in a home heating and cleaning a lot of house that just wasn't being used. So I hired an architect who has done a great job keeping holding the reigns and making sure I'm only building as much house as I truly need. The result of this is that I've got a room measuring only 7' x 8' in which to create this seasonal canning kitchen. Fortunately, it's only 5 feet and two doors away from the main kitchen in the house.
I'd really value some input from the canning experts out there in taking this 7' x 8' room and maximizing the capabilities of this new space. I'm new to larger-scale canning and therefore don't know how best to design this space and what exactly I'm going to need.
Foremost, I will be making sure that this space is as well-ventilated as possible, both with a ventilation fan as well as a 12" x 72" dormer window above the workspace that can be opened as needed.
The basic components I believe I'm going to need for this canning kitchen are:
1) A couple of high-output burners that can be used indoors.
2) A utility sink.
3) A prep area (with butcher block)
4) A full counter work space for canning and the subsequent cooling, labeling and packing of what I've canned.
5) As much storage as I can allocate for canning supplies, both in the way of counter space and cupboard space.
6) Waste containers for hauling off organic material to the compost area.
Beyond these, I'm at a loss.
I'd really appreciate some expert advice in how to design and equip this space. One advantage that I've got is that a full kitchen will indeed just be 5 feet away, so I'll be able to use that space as well for things that aren't going to fill the house with heat and steam (dishwasher, refrigerator, extra sink and counter top space, etc.)
I'm envisioning two 8' long counters (24" deep) with a 36" wide aisle between them. A utility sink will be part of one counter, or possible at the opposite end of the room between the counters. I'll also have two high-output burners ( this model specifically ) for accommodating both a 40 quart stock pot and a 40 quart pressure cooker/canner.
Here's where I hit the wall though and need your advice.
Would any of you experts be kind enough to offer me some advice as to how YOU would set up a seasonal canning kitchen given the space constraints I've got to work with?
By the way, here's a part of the floorplan that will give you an overview of the main kitchen and where it will sit relative to the canning kitchen: Thanks in advance for your input!
John
NOTES:
posted by: grainlady on 10.21.2010 at 08:49 am in Cooking Forum
1. I only use FoodSaver bags for foods that will be placed in the freezer for more than a month or two, or what I call long-term storage. A plastic storage container or well-wrapped foods will work fine for short-term storage. I also vacuum-seal cheese purchased in bulk amounts, in the refrigerator.
2. I never vacuum-seal wet food, only frozen or partially-frozen. I quick-freeze (freeze just long enough to be nearly solid) all fresh-cuts of meat on a cookie sheet before bagging for freezer storage. It helps if you dry the excess moisture off meat before you quick-freeze it.
-Some wet food items I'll place directly in the FoodSaver bag/s, placed flat on a cookie sheet with the opening to the side, and quick-freeze it in the bag. Then vacuum-seal the bag when the contents are solid. I make sure I place a wad of plastic wrap over any portion that might poke a hole in the vacuum-sealed bag (such as a sharp bone), before sealing the bag.
-I quick-freeze fruit/vegetables/cooked beans/rice, etc. in a single layer, either on a cookie sheet, or in the open FoodSaver bag (with the bag opening to one side, not on the top). When completely solid I'll vacuum seal them shut maintaining that single layer.
-Single layers work very well because you can tap the bag to loosen the contents after you open it, and remove a portion of the food, and then flatten it again and re-seal. I can also "file" these bags in plastic baskets in the freezer. I write what's in the bags on the end of the package and it's easy to flip through the "file" of food to see what I have/need.
-I'll separate items that are packaged into one bag (quick-frozen chicken parts, chops or small steaks, etc.) with parchment paper so I can remove the amount I need and re-seal the bag without having ALL the meat being fused into one lump - which happens when you freeze wet meat.
-Small portions of cooked ground, shredded, or sliced meat I use in wraps and sandwiches I place in fold-top sandwich bags, lay them flat on a cookie sheet and quick-freeze those before stacking them into a FoodSaver bag, plastic bag and all.
-I portion mashed potatoes with an ice cream scoop and quick-freeze them on a cookie sheet lined with a Silpat (foods easily come off the silicon mat). Then I place them in a FoodSaver bag, in a single layer, and vacuum seal it shut. I only need to make mashed potatoes a few times a year using this method because I make them in large amounts.
-As others have mentioned, quick-freeze food in plastic containers in user-friendly portions, remove it from the containers when solid enough to do so, and vacuum seal the frozen "blocks" in bags. Now I can take out one block of chili for one serving for lunch, or it's enough to top 2 baked potatoes, or top two taco salads. You free up your plastic containers to use again, and you have like-kinds of things together in user-friendly amounts in one bag. I use this method with spaghetti sauce, sloppy Joe mixture, fresh and pre-cooked ground beef purchased in bulk amounts, soup/stew/broth, ground beef stroganoff (meat mixture only - I cook the noodles or rice as needed). Most of these things I place in amounts for one or two servings, or amounts I use in recipes.
-When I make a casserole that freeze well, I'll either divide it into small casserole dishes (meal-for-two), or multiply the recipe to make more than one. Line the dishes with RELEASE aluminum foil and quick-freeze the casserole in the dish. Once frozen, remove from the dish and store in a FoodSaver bag, foil and all. When I want to make the dish I pop the whole thing back into the same dish it came out of. You can also quick-freeze casseroles in foil bakeware, then vacuum-seal in a FoodSaver bag. Freeze and bake in the same foil pan.
3. For dry food storage I use canning jars and vacuum-seal canning lids on the jars using the FoodSaver jar sealer. These are also what I place in long-term storage (longer than a month or two).
-If you want to vacuum-seal flour for storage, you should place it in a jar where it will remain free-flowing, rather than a FoodSaver bag. There is enough moisture in flour that it can smell moldy if you compact it in a FoodSaver bag. This was recommended in the user's manual from my first FoodSaver. Other foods that store best in a jar where they remain free-flowing are: marshmallows, chocolate chips, nuts, anything crispy (including home-dehydrated food) and dried foods that remain sticky (raisins, prunes, apricots...). After I open cans of freeze-dried foods I place them in jars and vacuum-seal them shut.
4. When I move food from my long-term storage area to the pantry I'll replace the vacuum-sealed canning lid with a FoodSaver Universal Lid. I use the Universal Lid on dry foods I keep in my pantry and use frequently. The Universal Lid turns almost any rigid container that has a smooth opening into a canister and is easy to open and reseal. I've had too many FoodSaver canisters crack over the years to justify their price, but I've had great success using the Universal Lids.
-Grainlady
posted by: crazyhouse6 on 09.30.2010 at 06:20 pm in Building a Home Forum
The clean clothes cubbies are each 17' wide x 13 1/2 h x 23 1/2 deep. They are perfect, but I did make sure I could find baskets to fit before finalizing the plans. My baskets are narrower and shorter than most.
I really like the spots for sorting the dirty clothes under the washer and dryer. As mentioned before, I would make them with plenty of room for the drain pan. It's a great set-up.
posted by: sullivansmom on 07.15.2009 at 02:43 pm in Laundry Room Forum
posted by: melaska on 09.11.2011 at 07:47 am in Kitchens Forum
I'll link the thread below...this picture was added as a comment on the thread.
Here is a link that might be useful: Customizable dish storage thread on Houzz
posted by: igloochic on 11.21.2008 at 02:29 am in Organizing the Home Forum
I buy things in advance, so all of those shoe boxes are the next size up. He still has a large dresser for tee shirts, pants, jammies, belts, hats, etc. And the top section is his "future" clothing since I like to buy at sale prices. But the rest is his normal stuff. I like to arrange by it's style (ie sweater vests, suits and coats are on the bottom and button down and casual golf shirts are on the top area).
Eventually the crap on the top shelf will go (stuff for the room as well...batting etc) and be replaced with the baskets. On the deep portion of the closet I have all of his bedding tucked away.
Oh and the lower rods are removable so an adult could take one out and hang longer items (If they wanted to sleep in this monkey room LOL)
posted by: regina_phalange on 03.02.2011 at 01:53 pm in Home Decorating Forum
posted by: live_wire_oak on 08.11.2011 at 01:18 pm in Kitchens Forum
Fact #1. Particle board isn't furniture board and plywood isn't plywood.
"Particle board" is the crappy 14 pounds per square inch stuff that those "decorator" tables are made from. You know the ones that fall apart when you set a sweating cold drink on them. Furniture board uses similar size wood particles but uses much higher pressures and better glues. The higher pressure does a much better job of locking the wood fibers together, much like the difference between a hank of wool waiting to be spun vs that same wool that has been locked together into fabric by felting. The glues used could contain formaldehyde, or not. Most commercial cabinet companies use low emitting furniture board that is pretty green. Some use zero formaldehyde furniture board, for which you'll pay an up-charge similar to plywood.
As for plywood, well there are a lot of different grades of the stuff on the market. All the way from Chinese imported stuff that's full of voids and formaldehyde (and who knows what other toxic substances!) to high quality Canadian or European no VOC emitting cabinet grade stuff. Most manufactured cabinet companies use the low to no emitting good quality stuff. Most custom guys, well the vast majority of inexpensive "custom" guys don't exactly use the top grade stuff. How bad the plywood is will depend on how cheap your quote is. They have to cut costs somewhere to give you a cheap quote, and the cabinet boxes sound great if they tell you they are "all wood"! Ha! Cheap Chinese plywood is so much better than good quality particle board you know, because it's reeeeel wood!
You have to actually ask about more than just the type of box materials. You have to delve into their quality and sourcing as well.
Fact #2 Cabinets using both furniture board and plywood will both meet the fairly rigorous KCMA standards. These tests simulate years of actual real world usage. (Read up on it if you like.) If both are constructed properly with the appropriate methods for their type then they will look unfashionable to you before they have any structural failures from ordinary wear. KCMA testing has factually shown this to be the truth. Abuse is another story. None will stand up to abuse. The hinges will pull out of both boxes if you use the doors to lean on while you are rummaging through the interior and other abuses. Now, you can overbuild them to your hears content if you have the budget. I think titanium cabinets would be just super!(They'd be fireproof too, Antss!) But you will get no "better wear" returns for the money spent in the real world. You do get one-upsmanship bragging rights, if that kind of thing is important. And, it really IS important to some.
Fact #3 Neither plywood nor furniture board is "real wood" if you want to be absolutely factual. Both are wood by-products. One uses very thin layers of rotary cut veneers glued in cross linked layers while the other uses smaller particles of wood that are compressed into a crosslinked solid. The particle board is actually more wood per square inch than is plywood if you want to get technical about it. It has more wood fibers per square inch than plywood. It's heavier and denser. Which brings us to another trade secret as to why cabinet makers and installer like plywood better other than they can charge you more. It's easier on them to work with because it's lighter. Not because it's so darn superior as they would have you think. The terminology is clearly chosen to make you think YOU are inferior if you don't want to "upgrade".
Fact #4 There are minor , but not truly significant, performance differences.
Plywood is superior to furniture board in it's resistance to deflection. It will hold more weight on a shelf without sagging. That's why you don't see Euro cabinets (which have used furniture board for MANY decades with no problems) larger than 36". If you have plywood shelving, you can span further distances. If you don't have any cabinets larger than 36" or plan on storing your entire cast iron collection on a single shelf then this performance discrepancy should be a non-issue.
The water resistance thing is also a bit of often repeated propaganda. If a flood/leaking faucet/water event occurs, both substances will be affected. Plywood will delaminate and MDF will swell. The degree of affectedness will depend on the amount of time that the material is in contact with the water and if the materials are fully sealed on all surfaces. Shelving and side walls should have the cut sides sealed, and many cab lines don't offer that. Same with the portions of the cabinet that touch the floor of the underside of the base. This is where using a custom maker can work to your advantage. Or, just do it yourself for the sink base and the cabinet adjacent to the DW after they've been delivered. You could use polyurethane or whatever leftover paint you already have on hand. A couple of coats on the exposed ends and then caulk the interior seam where the cabinet floor meets the cabinet walls. I'd do this on plywood or furniture board. I personally have a painted (on all 6 sides) MDF panel in one of our sunroom windows (To be able to put a cat door into it.) We don't have enough overhang on the sunroom and the wind just creates these great sheets of water that run down the window and drown the panel and leak inside from the cat door. It was supposed to be a "temporary" solution, but that temporary solution is at least 15-16 years old now. Exposed to every rainstorm. Zero problems. An I have a plywood bathroom cabinet that had a bit of a leak a year or so ago. It looked fine at the time. It's now showing where the water delaminated it. Mold grew between those delaminated layers. It's DISGUSTING. And we thought it was just fine right after the leak. It didn't have any visible damage.
There is one other area where there is a bit of a performance difference. Plywood will hold screws better than furniture board will. But, that's very misleading. You really don't use screws to assemble furniture board cabinets. Remember what I said about the right hardware for the material? Camlocks, doweling, glues, and just a few screws designed for furniture board are what the right hardware is. If you use the wrong hardware, of course one is "superior" over another.
Yhe absolute truth is that well constructed cabinets of either kind will ling outlast your attempt to create a "timeless" looking kitchen and will become visually dated to a certain era and thus unfashionable. They;ll survive longer than your wanting a white Shaker kitchen will. Poorly constructed cabinets of either type may not even outlast their install before you have problems with them. You simply cannot say that one style is "better" than the other without using a LOT of qualifying statements. I replaced crappy thin plywood cabinets in my kitchen with middle of the road furniture board ones. The ones I have now are certainly better than the ones I had, and are certainly lower in perceived quality than Plain and Fancy ones. The only real long term wear difference that anyone would be able to tell down the road is for the doors, NOT the boxes. That;s where most of the difference in cost between cabinets comes from. P&F just have absolutely lovely finishes. And that's why I went with furniture board boxes in a brand that offered better finished doors than a budget line. (How much do you think KD's make? LOL! We're probably all on a budget for much less than most of our clients!) I only wish I could afford top of the line cabinets. But it would't be for "better" boxes!
posted by: sharb on 12.09.2007 at 11:55 am in Kitchens Forum
Buehl, I love the glass in my pantry door. When planning my kitchen, I told the KD that my pantry would end up messy. Her comment was "It's a pantry, let it look like a pantry".. So, I went with the glass in the door. It is antique glass, so is not perfectly clear. When I turn the light off, you really don't see that much in there.. But, I do like the light on.
I've never heard of the tea bag solution before..
Pegkip, if you are going to put a microwave and toaster in your pantry, I would definitly ventilate. I keep my toaster in my pantry and we use it maybe 2 or 3 times a week, but I notice the smell lingers for a long time after. If my children were still home and it was being used more often, I would have to keep the toaster in the kitchen.
Bayareafrancy, the paint color on the walls of the pantry is Desert Tan by Benjamin Moore. If you look it up on the BM website, it does not look yellow at all, but in person is quite yellow. I used Rich Cream on the kitchen walls and wanted a little more color in the pantry. The rich cream is quite yellow also, which can be a surprise... It doesn't look that yellow on the card. It worked well with my cabinets and I couldn't decide on a contrasting color, but I can see myself changing the wall color in the kitchen in the future when I think of a contrasting color that would look good with the cabinets. It was just too big of a decision for me at the time, so I went "safe". Also, if I change the kitchen color, that means the LR, hall, upstairs, etc., etc., woule be changed too.
I love my pantry and the only thing I would do different, if I could, is make it bigger. But, I can't. I store my large pots and kitchen appliances in there, which take up quite a bit of space.
SharB
posted by: sweetbabyjames5 on 06.05.2011 at 07:44 am in Bathrooms Forum
posted by: staceyneil on 02.02.2011 at 10:11 am in Bathrooms Forum
Thanks for all your support and advice along the way with our latest project... we're ALMOST done but sort of stalled. We just need to add the door threshold and some pretty natural wood shelves above the toilet, but DH has moved on to other woodworking projects, so those little projects have been shoved down the list of priorities. Since it may be months before I get those shelves (and art/decor) up, I thought I'd at least post some pics of the room as it is now. Forgive the crappy lighting: it's snowing hard so there's no natural light :(
Project scope: 1956 bathroom with 1980's/90's tile, vanity, toilet. Tub was original but sadly unsalvageable: the enale was totally wrecked and stained and impossible to clean. Suspected some subfloor issues due to leaks. Budget: $2,500. (final total was a bit under $3,000... so we didn't do too badly :))
The layout was awkward, the door swing used so much of the floor space and only allowed a very small vanity. Since this is the hall/guest bath as well as the primary bath for my teenage daughter, we really needed to maximize storage and vanity space. I drew a new plan which involved moving the doorway to the perpendicular wall. As much as my DH balked at adding additional work, he admitted it was TOTALLY the right thing to do once we finished. The room feels SO much bigger now.
OLD BATHROOM and layout:
Some photos from during the renovation... which was planned to take 4 weekends and ended up taking about 6 or 7..... DD sledge-hammering the old tile down lots of rot in the subfloor Self-leveling-compound poured over the radiant floor heat cables in the floor The shower area waterproofed with Hydroban (LOVE LOVE LOVE that stuff!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
NEW BATHROOM and layout plan:
DETAILS: Since our budget was soooo tight, and we wanted to use quality materials and get a unique, custom bathroom, we had to get creative!!!
Tile: I had a small amount (it was mostly random pieces and offcuts) of very $$$ calacatta marble mosaic tiles left over from a previous project that I knew I wanted to use. The other materials were chosen around that starting point. I designed niches to use that tile in, as accent, based on the quantity I had. I used inexpensive white marble baseboard pieces from Home Depot for the shelves.
For the rest of the tile, I needed to use super-cheap stuff (the entire room is tiled to chair-rail height), but I didn't want it to look cheap or ubiquitous. I would have used subways, but DD emphatically vetoed them. It's her bathroom, and we let her have a LOT of design input. Since we have other areas in the house that use square tile in a running-bond pattern, I decided to use 4x4s, which are the cheapest anyway, but in a running bond rather than stacked pattern. After bringing home samples of the big-box cheapies, I decided to "splurge" (20 cents more per tile, I think, it was about $2.35 per sf after sales and discounts)) on Lowes next-step-up American Olean Ice White, which has a slight rippled surface that catches the light and adds a layer of interest that the flat, cheaper Gloss White doesn't have.
For the floor, we used American Olean 12 x 18 Pietra Bianco, a limestone-look ceramic tile that I'm surprisingly happy with :) Underneath the tile is radiant-heat cable, so the floor is wonderfully cozy and warm.
Floor grout is Latapoxy epoxy. Wall/shower grout is Tec Accucolor XT, a super-modified grout that supposed to be a lot more stain-resistant (PITA to work with, though!)
Hardware: DD wanted girly, vintage-looking stuff, a big departure from DH and my modern aesthetic. We narrowed down the style range, then I started watching eBay for deals. We scored about $750 worth of valves and faucets and stuff for about $275. Vanity faucet: Moen Monticello Shower faucet valve, trim, tub spout: Moen Monticello with Thermostatic valve Shower head: Grohe Relexa Ultra on slide bar (LOVE!) (after working with a bunch of faucets recently, I can say that the Moen monticello stuff is pretty cruddy compared to the Grohe RElexa, Kohler Purist, and HansGrohe stuff I've used recently.) Towel bars and tissue holder are Ginger Hotelier. Curved shower rod is the Crescent Rod. I tried some expandable ones they had locally, but this one (ordered on line for the same price) is SO much sturdier and nicer-looking. It also makes the shower space much larger.
Toilet: Toto Carolina that we got at a yard sale for $150 including the Washlet seat (which we removed). We were driving down the street and DD -who professes to HATE anything renovation-related- said, "Hey, look, Mom... isn;t that one of those skirted toilets you like?" SCORE.
Tub: American Standard Princeton ~$300 at Lowes. yeah, we chipped it right away by dropping a tool on it while installing the faucets; luckily there's a repair kit that actually does a pretty amazing job :) We used the American Standard "Deep Soak" drain, which adds a couple inches water depth for baths. I wanted DD to use her OWN bathtub rather than my new one in the master bath :)
Vanity: an old dresser. We bought it on Craigslist for $40, and DH reworked the drawers to fit the plumbing. He also added modern drawer slides so that they work easily. We bought fabulous vintage glass knobs on eBay (if you're looking for vintage knobs, check out this seller: billybobbosen.) I painted it BM Dove Wing. We totally went over budget on the vanity top. I'd intended to bet a remnant of granite... but of course couldn't find one DD and I liked. Then we found this little slab of Vermont White quartzite in the "exotics" bone pile at a local yard. It was over budget but we loved it. Then, of course, we decided that rather than a plain square front, it had to be cut to fit the curvy front of the dresser... which added about $100. So the vanity top was our biggest expense at $480.
Medicine cabinet: A salvaged cabinet we got at the local Habitat for Humanity REStore about 2 years ago. We framed it into the wall (where the old door used to be), painted it, and I tiled the little shelf area with my calacatta mosaic accent tiles and marble baseboard pieces from Home Depot.
Lighting: Pottery Barn wall fixture from eBay Ikea ceiling fixture (like $8 each and rated for bathrooms!) Fan/showerlight combo is a recessed, can-style fixture by Broan/NuTone. It's AWESOME. Quiet, unobtrusive.
That's all I can think of right now. I think once we have the natural wood shelves up over the toilet, with DD's shell collection and a plant on them, it will give a little but of softness/naturalness which the room needs. It's a little TOO "elegant" right now :)
posted by: mick2 on 06.17.2011 at 03:22 pm in Kitchens Forum
posted by: trailrunner on 03.15.2011 at 10:04 pm in Smaller Homes Forum
Here is a link that might be useful: sanalite cutting boards
posted by: moccasinlanding on 04.01.2011 at 05:04 pm in Smaller Homes Forum
Not cheap, but who says you cannot make one for yourself?
Anyway, I put the link below, you can design your own frame if you know the model nummber of your tv.
Somebody mentioned this a while back, thought I'd put it in the hopper for folks to explore the options.
Here is a link that might be useful: Frame My TV
posted by: buehl on 11.04.2008 at 10:52 pm in Kitchens Forum
Here are the pics....
Come visit my pantry...
The door opens...
The left side...
The left side has 15" deep shelves and holds, top-to-bottom, cereals, snacks & drinks, gluten-free foods, cookbooks & appliance manuals, two bins--one for yams & one for white potatoes, and toaster oven & coffeemaker on the floor. (Small appliance shelf now holds cookbooks. Toaster Oven & coffee maker are now on the floor.)
The right side...
The right side has 12" deep shelves and holds, top-to-bottom, paper towels, baking/cooking supplies (next 3 shelves), small appliances, more baking supplies. The floor has a stool & paper plates & plastic cups. My extra oven racks are leaning against the far right wall. Eventually, we will be mounting our broom & dustpan there. (Don't know where the extra oven racks will go.)
posted by: beekeeperswife on 02.01.2011 at 03:28 pm in Kitchens Forum
So, just keep it simple, "We would like the cabinets that are installed to be the cabinets we ordered originally". Then nothing. They might come back with "well the factory says it will take 6 weeks". Then just repeat your original statement. They are counting on you to be the weakest link and cave in.
You need to be the "Strong Silent Type"
Good luck.
posted by: ponydoc on 03.01.2009 at 02:44 pm in Building a Home Forum
Took these this am- before coming to my office. We had a sick child over night so bedding on the washer, otherwise this is pretty standard for how it looks..... and why we love it! It keeps all this stuff out of the rest of the house!
Our clutter room:
From the kitchen
To the left - toward the front of the house.
We still have to finish the lockers in the mudroom area. We are also thinking of adding more cabinetry in the area in which the kid's little coat rack sits.
The doors from the mud room exit to the side porch ( toward our main barn), the garage and the back porch. There is also a door to the front porch from the front of the room. COmes in hand to acsess the fridge when you are chillin' on the front porch!
We love this room and cannot imagine how we lived without it!!
PD
posted by: rmkitchen on 03.31.2011 at 01:49 am in Kitchens Forum
So I think of myself as pretty with-it and 'round here I am "cutting edge" in terms of our home / garden decor (and my clothing too). And you know what I just painted our newly built / installed cabs & shelves surrounded the fireplace? I painted them the color of sunshine shot through a stick of French plus gras butter. Yellow! I love you, yellow. The trim throughout our house is also yellow, albeit a much subtler strain, like buttermilk. I think it's BM Calming Cream. I think. It is rich and luscious and scrumptious. The cabs are P&L creme -- it's dreamy and makes me happy just knowing this shot of sunshine exists in my home, even if le vrai soleil is unable to do it for me.
And ... the pumpkin knobs on all the new doors are brass; our ceiling chandelier is called antique gold (or something), but baby, it's brass-ish. And it is r-i-g-h-t. Oh! And the four petite sconces we had put in have brass bases (black shades). It's pleasing to the eye, easy to the eye, soothing to the eye.
Thank you for sharing these pictures. I lOVED seeing them!
posted by: kisaacs on 04.30.2008 at 04:52 pm in Kitchens Forum
I've had them for about 2 years 3 months. The maple is very hard and hasn't scratched or dented at all. We have a waterlox finish (we used the marine finish, I think, so that we wouldn't have any problems). We also did an undermount sink, so we've got the end grain exposed to water a lot with no problems at all. It's gotten a little less glossy than it was when we first put it in, but that's from normal wear and cleaning, and we actually like that it's more matte. The finish can be lightly sanded and refreshed with another coat of waterlox, but we haven't done that yet. The waterlox is pretty stinky and takes 12-24 hours to dry, so I'm not sure if/when we'll do that. But it can be done, so that's nice to know.
We do use cutting boards, so no cutting on the counter. We do not baby it in any way. We are messy cooks and often leave stuff on it overnight. We only wipe it down with soap and water. We have never dried it after washing it down - just let it evaporate. We treat it just like we would any other counter and it's been great.
It's a highlight of our kitchen.
Hope that helps a little!
Kristen
posted by: mtnrdredux on 03.30.2011 at 06:11 pm in Kitchens Forum
It is now for sale, (comes with a house). I have referenced it in answering some questions, esp about wood countertops. My agent took photos and created a floorplan so I thought i'd post.
Here are the items used and my opinions of them.
Floor - hardwood, existing. Love it.
Counters - cherry on one side, granite on the other. Both were great but I never liked granite and was talked into it. Sore spot with me.
Backsplash - beadboard on one side, tile on the other, both held up well, tile looks a little dated to me ... vaguely Tuscan
Hardware - traditional glass. Appliance pulls with and without artichoke finials, cant recall who made them
Appliances - Viking electric wall oven (hated the noise of the fan), Viking six burner gas range (loved it except for ignition problem on one burner, which i stopped using), Akso - d/w, cleaned well and very quiet, cheapo plastic strip on controls wore through in a year), Subzero - like it but bottom freezer too small. I also had 2 subzero refrigerator drawers, which i loved.
Cabinets - Rutt. Loved my pull out pantries flanking the fridge. Cabinet finish still looks like new (and I have 8,9 and 11 y o). Very good quality.
Lighting - i know everyone hates ceiling fans but I like them. The small chandelier was ABC carpet and home. I have undercounter lighting and love it. I love putting a buffet out on the cherry counter with the lights dimmed a bit. The size of the recessed lights dates the reno a bit.
Faucets - nickel by Harrington Brass, bridge faucet and potfiller. Fine
Range hood - some dutch company? Abka? I cant recall.
Furniture - when it was new, there were 2 highchairs and a booster seat around my cherry Stickley table. We used it every day. It doesnt look new but it looks great.Do not fear wood! Outside of the shot is a comfy toile sofa (on the wall opposite the fridge. I love a sofa in the kitchen. I also have a wooden console style table on the interior wall. Above the sofa, three oil still lifes ( i need a photo!
Layout - I did it myself and I really liked it. Everyone wanted the fridge in the galley, but when you opened the door you blocked traffic. So I moved the fridge around to the table area. I put fridge drawers right across from the sink and range, for fresh veggies, fruits, meats, ie things that still needed to be prepped and or cooked. The closet opposite the steps was part pantry (mainly appliances and such). My one mistake - huge pull out trash next to the fridge was convenient to table and fridge but not to prep area. I thought id use undersink garbage but that was a pita.
posted by: MongoCT on 12.05.2005 at 09:48 pm in Woodworking Forum
Captions are under each picture.
The front of the bed. She calls it the "Mousehole Bed". The lighter rectangle in the middle of the front that contains the opening is removable.
Painted up with the kids inside.
Raised panels on the back wall, along with two wall sconces.
Bookshelves at the foot of the bed.
A reading niche with bookshelves on each side at the head of the bed. The exposed wire on the right side of the niche has since been run behind the woodwork, it's a low voltage wire to dim the reading lights above.
The ceiling inside the bed is a beadboard-type that I made from scraps. The shelf and the shelf support above the opening are the waste cutoffs from when I cut the arched ribs to back the arched beadboard ceiling.
posted by: macv on 03.26.2010 at 09:25 am in Building a Home Forum
posted by: sandn on 05.01.2011 at 07:20 pm in Kitchens Forum
posted by: kitchennovice44 on 05.04.2011 at 10:01 am in Kitchens Forum
- In general, when choosing tile sizes, when is it better to go larger vs smaller? What effect is created w/one vs other? - How should flooring shape BS choices? - Should BS usually pull from or match something in counter? -What BS designs work better for smaller kitchens? Larger?
- And my favorite: what do you think is the #1 most common mistake people make choosing a BS that ends up disappointing them later? (That alone would be invaluable advice!)
Or feel free to add ANY practical tip you'd like to share.
I know much is subjective, but just seeking a few common-sense "rules" during the process to help avoid amateurish results or disappointment. Thanks for any words of wisdom!
(My apologies to all if this thread already exists on GW: perhaps link us newbies to it? I found many specific BS postings when searching, but not one thread with overall "how to choose" BS advice.)
posted by: cloud_swift on 04.14.2011 at 10:13 pm in Kitchens Forum
Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.findstone.com/daniel2.htm
posted by: budmen on 03.17.2010 at 12:53 pm in Appliances Forum
I plan on doing more a little. My fridge is in a corner, so when I get around to cutting out the drywall and inserting the wool, I'll do it not only on the back wall, but also on the side wall for extra sound absorption.
I also plan on cutting out a few inches of the back part of the tile floor where the back fridge rollers sit and replacing it with a firm rubber mat or similar material of equal thickness (I want the tile and rubber to be at the same height). That way the back rollers will sit on the rubber and absorb vibrations from the compressor when it kicks into high gear. This is another little detail manufacturers ignore, using cheap hard plastic rollers which have no vibration absorption.
Sine I'm remodeling the entire kitchen, I also plan on placing a cabinet on top of the fridge, therefore I should be able to place a sheet of wool under the cabinet (which if done right will be completely hidden from view) to absorb what sound comes up from the fridge.
The remaining exposed side from the counter up to the cabinets will be closed up with a panel. For the panel side, there won't be much of a gap between the fridge and panel (need to allow air flow), so I plan on lining the panel with a thin sheet of felt or similar material to absorb at least some of the sound.
Note you should NOT place anything on the fridge wall directly, since the walls need to conduct heat out, this is why you need to leave a gap which is usually .5" to 1" for air flow.
My other option was to sound proof the fridge itself, but to do that I'd have to modify the fridge compartment where the compressor sits, and that likely would void the warranty. I'd also have to insert a fan in the modified enclosure to cool the compressor by blowing out hot air (the F&P uses a passive heat exchange system, which means the enclosure is not actually enclosed, but full of air vents which allow sound to leak out), or I could install a passive heat sink around the compressor that extends out side of the enclosure - but this is way too complicated for me!
posted by: budmen on 03.16.2010 at 06:33 pm in Appliances Forum
I bought a Fisher & Paykel, which runs at least 50% of the time. The constant running of the compressor counter intuitively helps with the energy efficiency due to the use of a low power motor that needs to work much longer than a high powered motor, but uses much less energy in the long run.
The almost constant running of the compressor was driving me insane, so I did a lot of research and found out that certain things make the noise worse, such as tile floors (that I have), if the fridge is placed inside a fridge cabinet or not (mine is pushed back against a bare wall in a corner). I then looked into possible sound proofing and sound absorption solutions. In the end, I settled on sound absorption rather than attempting to sound proof (I can explain why if anyone is interested - this post is too long already).
Instead of throwing out the noisy fridge and forking out $5,000+ on a Liebherr, I spent only $40 on a roll of mineral wool sound absorbing material. In my case I bought a product called "Roxul Safe n Sound" at Home Depot. I'm sure you can buy a similar product at most building supply stores. The important thing is that you buy mineral wool (aka rock wool), because not only is it fire proof which is very important, but it's also an excellent sound absorber (not to be confused with a "sound proofer" which serves a different function, or with thermal insulation such as fiberglass insulation which is not designed to be an effective sound absorber).
I placed two side by side 3 inch thick sheets along the back side wall from the floor up (you should cut out the drywall and press it in between the exposed studs - but before doing all that work, test it out first by stapling the sheets directly to the drywall).
The sheets covered most of the height and all the width of the back side of the fridge. This part absorbed at least 50% of the noise that was bouncing off the back side drywall and tile floor into the kitchen.
I also cut a thin 1/2 inch (or so) sheet of mineral wool that fit snugly underneath the fridge (I just raised the fridge up a little and slid it under, then lowered the fridge). That part reduced virtually all the remaining noise.
Note: You MUST allow for proper air circulation around the refrigerator - see your manual for installation and clearance instructions.
The only sound I now hear is the internal fan when it circulates the cold air (no big deal). For comparison, the compressor noise used to drown out the fan noise almost completely. I can only hear the compressor when it kicks into high gear (the F&P has two speeds, the high speed is infrequent), and even that is not much noise anymore.
What a relief!!!
I'm still very much upset that manufacturers pay so little attention to sound issues with their refrigerators. There is no reason why a quiet fridge cannot be inexpensively made that is also energy efficient. The F&P for example has NO sound proofing at all - ZERO!, yet they make the claim that their refrigerators are very quiet.
BTW, I found out that some refrigerators come with an optional sound reduction "kit" or "package" (this means spending more $$$ of course, but may be worth it).
posted by: lisadlu on 04.24.2011 at 04:59 pm in Kitchens Forum
