For those in the bay area (San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose) that are embarking on the quest to source ingredients for the Gritty Mix here is what I have come up with.

Let me preface this with, after much, much searching I have found the easiest way to source the ingredients, no matter where you are, is to call the manufacturer directly of the product you are looking for and ask if any retailers in your area carry it. This works much better than randomly calling the garden/landscape/feed/roofing retailers who will often have no idea what you are talking about. Also you have to be willing to devote some time to this and drive a little.

TURFACE MVP:
- Ewing Landscape & Irrigation Supplies (San Francisco)
- 1618 Jerrold Ave, San Francisco, CA 94124-2135, 415-695-9530
- http://www.ewing1.com/general/ews_locationmap.html?branch=86
- Around $13 per 50 pound bag.

CRUSHED GRANITE
- Lyngso Garden Materials
- 19 Seaport Blvd, Redwood City, CA 94063, 650.364.1730
- http://www.lyngsogarden.com/
- What you want is the "1/8" Desert Gold (which is crushed granite).
- Al has verified that this will work in a previous post.
- Notes, this is a bigger landscaping supply store. You have to bag it yourself out of a big pile but it isn't too hard.
- $5 per bag which is about 100 pounds.
- In Al's notes he refers to this as Gran-I-Grit (grower size) or #2 cherrystone.
- For this product you can either go the chicken feed route (feed & grain stores), the roofing gravel route (roofing suppliers) or the lanscape supply route (crushed granite).

UNCOMPOSTED SCREEN PINE OR FIR BARK (1/8" - 1/4")
- In a prevous post of Al's he talked about how Shasta Forest Products was one of the large manufacturers in our area for fir bark. They sell 3 cu ft bags of fir bark in the perfect size "1/8" - 1/4")
- http://shastabark.com/products.htm
- I called Shasta and they told me Nurseymen's Exchange in half moon bay carried the product.
- Nurseymen's Exhange (2651 North Cabrillo Highway, Half Moon Bay, CA 94019, 650-726-6361)
- http://www.bloomrite.com/
- 3' Orchid Bark (1/8" - 1/4") (Mini)
- Note, Nurseymen's Exhange is a massive complex, when you pull in go up a little and to the right and park in the customer parking section. I think this place is for wholesalers but they did sell me.
- 3 cu feet for $15 each.

For all these places I would definitely call ahead and confirm they have the product in stock. Good luck and happy hunting. You _can_ find all these products, it just takes a little bit of time.

I have decided to paint our cabinets white, builder grade honey oak. First I was reading about people who did it in about 10 steps, sanding in between each coat etc and said "forget it, I'll hire someone". But I think hiring someone would cost way more than I first thought.

I read some more and found some who did their cabinets on their own and it seemed pretty easy....used liquid sandpaper/deglosser....didn't sand between each coat etc. The people were happy with the results.

Great, I thought....I can do this. I have painted a fair amount, but not an expert. :)

The after more searches this afternoon, I don't know what to think. Some have said that for a week or more after, the Latex paint was still not completely dry....drips, fingerprints....just not happy.

I am thinking of using SW Pro Classic or BM Satin Impervo.

Can cabinets be painted FAIRLY easily without having to sand between each coat etc??

Best advice from this forum: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0720293613004.html

Scrimp on this, Splurge on that....: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg101324514831.html

Where to splurge and where to save??: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg080040367553.html

Care to share your best kitchen storage ideas?: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0716483024815.html

What do you wish you had done differently?: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0722355328974.html

What do you wish you had done differently? [Part 2]: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0220533912060.html

Now that I have [X], I think I could have lived without it: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0719430319398.html

What 'cons' did you choose to live with?: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0703072225663.html

Things I would NOT recommend or things I dislike!: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0413285931465.html

Things I would NOT recommend or things I dislike! #2: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg061407013201.html

kitchen layout suggestions: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg1022032814279.html

4" Broom Closet from IkeaFans: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg021226537119.html

Rev-A-Shelf Spice Racks for Fillers -- Have you seen these!!!! - Kitchens Forum - GardenWeb [discusses filler pullouts]: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg1020292023561.html

pull-down vs. pull-out faucet: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0309302313055.html

And the current one:

Thread: Scrimp and Splurge - Where'd you hold back, where'd you go nuts?

Here is a link that might be useful: Read Me If You're New To GW Kitchens!

Here is what it looked like in use with all the clutter...(notice cute kitty taking a nap in the dog's bed)

Here is the same thing all naked! Notice the dated brass insert.

So I started off painting the knotty pine (tons of work filling all the knots and gaps... got it as smooth as I could). And painting the brass black was a no-brainer. (the insert is semi-permanent so it stays)

So now the pure ugliness of the F/P really popped! My plan to paint it white disintegrated. That would just go from brick ugly to white ugly. I could now clearly see that the real problem was the lack of a proper mantel. No paint was going to fix that!

THe picture doesn't show it, but the top courses of the fireplace were protruded in a staggered fashion... some sort of brick faux mantel illusion. That always complicated the idea of getting a ready-made wood surround. So I bit the bullet and hired a carpenter and got this:

I was afraid it was too wide and overscale for the room, but it is growing on me and I really love it.

At this point I wanted a tile surround to cover a vertical settling crack in the brick face and a matching hearth to bring the hearth to be the same width as the mantel "legs". Took forever to find a tile that I liked, but the quotes I got to install it were ridiculous, so I decided to leave it like that.

But then recently I remembered my earlier idea of painting the brick. That would at least allow me the opportunity to fill the vertical crack. I was pondering that for awhile trying to picture it. Then I recently got my Ballard catalog in the mail and on Page 16, I saw a beautiful picture of an antique brick wall. I fell in love with it and could picture it on my F/P. So I did some faux magic:

I love it, but I hope it doesn't look too formal. I am trying to make the room more fresh and updated - a la Pottery Barn (is there a style name for that look?)

But there's still one part left. I still have to paint the hearth to match, but I am stuck. It doesn't seem quite right to have the faux antique bricks on the hearth. Does it? Can I just leave it like it is? paint it black? One of the colors from the faux? light? dark?

What do you think? Have I ruined my living room? I suppose some people might like the original BEFORE picture. It does have a warmth to it that I miss a little bit sometimes.

Paint - Ellen Kennon Gustavian Grey
Vanity - Medallion in Knotty Alder wood, Walnut stain
Sink & Toilet - Toto Baldwin/Clayton
Faucets - Husdon Reed
Field Tile - Emser Classica in cream
Accent Tile - Walker Zanger Mizu
Floor - Walker Zanger 'White Cloud' marble, honed.
Countertop - Walker Zanger 'White Cloud' marble, polished.
Wall Sconces - Can't remember!
Fixtures - Kohler Bancroft

I recently made some solid lotion bars, the recipe I used made an incredibly hard bar but I adapted it and it's now become the best seller at a local farmers market that I attend. I wondered if anyone knows of any other similar recipes?

I used:
equal weight measures of:
sweet almond oil
coconut oil
cocoa butter
beeswax

then added Jasmine essential oil (absolute but blended 6% in Jojoba oil)

I didn't do the stages, just shoved it all in a bowl, added the jasmine after it had all melted together & poured it into the soap moulds.

I have been suggesting people keep one by their sink so that when they have washed their hands & dried them, they rub a little on rather than a hand lotion. It is truly amazing stuff and lasts ages... best of all... it's so easy that even a muppet like me can make it!

powder room

Here is the new:

Thanks in advance for your help!

~Des

* Make sure you use a stain made for Ipe. Ipe is a dense material that does not take regular stain well. Make sure the stain contains UV protection for maximum protection. Apply with a stain pad or brush. Make sure you remove excess material after 15 minutes (may show up as shiny pools of liquid)

* Sand with 50 or 60 grit rotary palm sander on any bad spots prior to staining

* If you have lots of plugs, consider using a multimaster to cut plugs before sanding (an excuse to buy a new tool) otherwise a belt sander/palm sander works fine

* If you need to clean up an old finish or want to restore the original color, you need to use a mild stripper followed up by an oxalic acid (sometimes called brightener). Woodrich and Sunbrite sell materials for this that are relatively inexpensive.

* Recommended stain manufactures by members of the Gardenweb forum include:
o Penofin (apply in the afternoon, hot sunny days can be challenging)
o www.woodrich-brand.com similar to TWP Update: Woodrich now sells samples for $10. http://www.woodrich-brand.com/Samlpe_Color_Kit_p/samp1.htm
o TWP (buy the 100 series version vs. 500 series if available) Note: TWP is apparently not recommended by the manufacture for Ipe but some of the Gardenweb pros swear by it
o Messeners UV

Here is a link that might be useful: Ipe Information

Here are some from last evening (thus the Pimms and Manhattan makings on the counter) and this morning.

The kitchen will be photographed in early June. Needless to say, everything will need to be completed by then!

Thanks for all of the kind words from everybody on the other thread. We are still loving the tile every time we see it! Everyone who comes in to the kitchen needs to touch it. It has taken some of the pressure off of the fridge (everyone used to want to touch it when they came in!)

Enjoy these couple of photos.

-Bee

No matter what you do, I would suggest changing the hardware to a stainless steel.

In the mean time have you considered a brown/putty color for the walls? I think that I too would go more neutral. Stay away from yellows since your cabinets have a lot of yellow in the wood.

For example a brown like this picture. I think it would really play up your current kitchen cabinets. I would stick with the same color below and above the chair rail.

Brown- Benjamin Moore Branchport Brown, Benjamin Moore Woodacres, Benjamin Moore Stampede, Sherwin-Williams Cobble Brown, Sherwin-Williams Van Dyke Brown (shown below), Behr Traditional.

I bought all Ikea lagan butcher block beech countertops for our kitchen and love the way they look, however I'm very torn about how to finish them. I've heard Waterlox is a great option but I'm intimidated by how long and smelly the process to do it seems to be, especially now since it's cold and I would have to do it inside. I also can't get it in town...I've heard of Watco? Is this as good? Tung oil? Mineral oil?

I'm trying to find a good sealant that does not have the super strong smells (I get very affected by "chemical/strong" smells) but that will seal it well enough that if it gets wet it won't swell (husband is VERY hard on things and will make a mess of them if he's able). Thank you SO SO much for your input.

If you have them...can you post a picture?

They have oak, beech and birch...any preference?

I am planning on waterloxing whatever BB counters I end up getting, I do not plan on cutting directly on the countertops.

Thank you!

The GF gel has a much nicer look, feel and finish.

And is way easier to work with. I would drive 100 miles to use GF gel over Polyshades.

Your kitchen situation sounds a lot like mine was.
Before:

After:

I have posted a way long 'how to' a bunch of times here. Search engine isn't pulling it up, so with apologies for the repetition here's more than you need to know:

It is a very doable project. You just need time, $50 in supplies, and patience. No skill.

My cabinets were frameless, good condition and good layout. But the finish had gone orange and ugly, with the oak graining too busy for me. Cabinet were 18 years old, very poorly finished oak veneered slab doors. Plain with no crevices. They didn't even take the doors off to finish them!!! No stain or finish was even put on the hinge side edges. Bad workmanship.

I looked into changing out cabinets, but that was way too much money, since my layout was OK. Painting didn't seem right because the doors were plain slabs. I considered new doors but that still meant a lot of money. For a few years I tried to figure a way to add molding toward a mission look, but the rounded door edges made that impossible. Then trolling in a kitchen emporium showroom this last year I noticed dark wood slab doors, kind of like mine, but darker. That was the answer.

First I tried Minwax Polyshades. Dicey product. Hard to brush on neatly, then gummy, then seemed to leave a sticky tacky residue. I did a thread on the Woodworking Forum "Evil Polyshades to the Rescue" which elicited a lot of conflicting "expert" opinions and arguments that one must strip to bare wood. (Thread may still be around as that Forum moves slowly.) Long ago when I was young and stupid I properly stripped acres of woodwork in an old Victorian. Never again! Jennifer-in-Clyde (in the same boat) and I stumbled around on that woodworking thread to get to this method.

SHOPPING LIST:
-electric screwdriver or screw drill bits
-mineral spirits to clean the years of gunk off the cabinet
-miracle cloths (optional)
-fine sandpaper
-box-o-disposable gloves from Walgreen’s or the like
-old socks or rags for wiping on coats
-disposable small plastic bowls or plates, and plastic spoons or forks for stirring/dipping (optional)
-General Finishes water base Espresso stain (pretty thick, but not quite a gel) NOTE: This one may not even be a needed step if the Java gets it dark enough.
-General Finishes Java gel stain (poly based)
-General Finishes clear top coat (poly based)
-old sheets or plastic sheeting or newspaper

Rockler woodworking stores are a good place to find the General Finish products. Or some larger hardware stores. Quart of each was more than enough for my 60 doors and drawer fronts and goes for $12-14 at Rockler. There are smaller sizes if your project is small.

SETUP AND PLANNING:
You will need a place to work and leave wet doors to dry overnight - I set up 2 spaces: garage for sanding/cleaning and basement for staining/sealing. Use newspaper or plastic to protect the surface and floor. Figure out how you will prop doors to dry. Plan blocks of 20-30-minutes for sanding/cleaning bundles of, say, 6 doors at a time. Then just 10-minute sessions to wipe on coats. The coats will need to dry for about 24 hours, so figure that each section of the kitchen will be doorless for 4 or 5 days. Divide the job up into manageable chunks.

PREPARATION:
Take off doors and drawer fronts. Try using screw drill bits on an electric drill if you don't have an electric screwdriver. Remove all the hardware. *Mark alike things so you know what goes back where.* Clean the doors thoroughly. Not with TSP but with something pretty strong and scrub well. There's years of grease there.
Sand LIGHTLY, just a scuffing really. Just enough to break the finish and give it some tooth, no more than a minute a door. A miracle cloth is good for getting most of the dust off. Then wipe well with mineral spirits to clean and get the last of the gunk off.

STAINING:
In order, we're gonna put on:
-General Finishes Espresso water based stain (1 coat) - optional
-General Finishes Java gel stain (couple coats)
-General Finishes Clear urethane gel topcoat in satin (couple coats)

But first put on work clothes, tie up your hair and pop your phone into a baggie nearby (you know it will ring). Glove up.
***First do a trial on the back of a door and check if Java coats alone suffice. If the Java alone is to your liking, just skip the Espresso and return it.

Open and stir up the Espresso stain, then spoon some into a plastic bowl. Close the tin so it doesn't get contaminated. Slide a sock over your hand, grab a gob of Espresso and smear it on. Wipe off the excess. Let it dry well - overnight is good. It will lighten as it dries, but then darken again with any other coat or sealer. A second coat might result in a deeper tone at the end - though it seemed like the second coat was just dissolving the first. YMMV.

Repeat with Java gel. This is thicker and poly based (*not water cleanup!*= messier). Color is a rich dark reddish brown. Wait for the second coat to judge if the color is deep enough for you. I wanted a very deep dark color, like melted dark chocolate. So I went pretty heavy on these layers. I did not sand between coats.
Repeat with clear gel topcoat. This will give you the strength you need in a kitchen.

Do the same process with the cabinet sides, face and toe kick area. Might need to divide that up also, and stagger the work: doors/cabinets/doors/etc.

NOTE: The cloth or socks used for the gels are very flammable! Collect and store them in a bucket of water as you go and then dispose of them all properly.

FINISHING AND REASSEMBLY:
I suggest you put the doors back up after one clear coat, then you can check everything over and darken an area with more Java if needed, followed by a clear coat. When it all looks right, go over it all again with another clear gel coat. Or two. (See my follow up notes below). Install your hardware.
The feel of the finish should be wonderful, really smooth and satiny. Color deep and rich - way nicer than that faded, beat 80's oak color.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Definitely experiment first with the back of a door or drawer front to be sure it is the look you want. Yes, this takes a couple days to coat, dry, recoat, dry, etc but you may discover that the Java alone does the trick and this will save you a LOT of work. Front-end patience is worth it.

This is a pretty easy project to do. Hard to screw it up. The worst is the prep - relative to that, smearing on the coats is cake. I had over 60 pieces (big kitchen) AND island sides and book shelves, etc and I admit I lost steam partway through. Had to push myself through the last of it. But it was worth it. Folks think I got all new cabinets - it looks that good.

Now the finish will not be as durable as factory finish - go at it with a Brillo pad and you WILL abrade it. But it has held up pretty well. And after a year of pretty heavy use, I had just a few nicks, easily repaired.
(6/08 Add: I'm now (18 months later) seeing some wear near the pulls on the most used cabinets. Will add color with Java if it bugs me.)
(9/09 Add: Never did bother to touch up those couple spots. Bugging me a bit more, and I will get to it soon. It is the drinking glass cabinet and the snack cabinet, LOL. And the garbage pull-out. The rest still looks perfect. Lesson: Use an extra coat or 2 of gel on the way frequently used cabinets.)
(12/09 Add: I did finally touch up the spots that were worn. Used just Java to get the color right, then a bunch of top coats. Looks perfect again.)

I added smashing hardware, raised my pass-through, resurfaced the Corian (also simple but messy and tedious) and replaced the DW and sink. It looks gorgeous to me and I really enjoy the space - how it sits all quiet, clean and serene, then gets all crazy with the food and folks du jour. I couldn't be happier, especially that I didn't have to work another year just to pay for the update!!

Link to cabinets in progress: http://photobucket.com/albums/b45/celticm00n/kitchen%20cosmetic%20update%20project/kitchen%20during/

Link to almost finished cabinet pix: http://s16.photobucket.com/albums/b45/celticm00n/kitchen%20cosmetic%20update%20project/finished%20bit%20by%20bit/?start=20

Good luck with your project!! And let me know if you try it and how it turns out.

Here is a link that might be useful: more before during and after pix

Details
Cabinets - custom. Painted using Cabinet Coat colored in White Dove by BM
Floors - red oak stained medium brown
Countertops - Absolute black granite on the perimeter, Monte Bello granite on the island
Backsplash - Walker Zanger Newport Seaweed subway
Door hardware - ORB cup pulls on the drawers, and ORB egg shaped knobs on the doors
Faucet - Kohler Vinnata...the smaller one (I can't remember the dimensions, but I believe its about 2" shorter than the large one)
Lighting - the 2 lights over the island are mini-chandeliers I got from Lighting Universe online
Fridge - Jenn Air counter depth
Range - 6 burner Viking
Oven - 30" GE Profile
Microwave - LG
Dishwasher - Asko

Thanks to everyone who shared their information. Overall, we are very pleased with it. There are a few things I'd do differently but they are pretty minor. If it wasn't for this site, I'm not sure it would have turned out as nice as it did.

susanilz5- I used a brick tinting kit made by a company called Dyebrick (www.dyebrick.com). The kit consists of a pigment powder, carrier solution and fixing agents (three in a kit). There are about a half dozen or so different shades to pick from. There is also a way to get different shades out of each kit by playing with the fixing agent.

The stain is the consistency of water. You a brush to paint it on the brick, but since its so thin, it takes a little practice. I took care to avoid the grout, but it was impossible to be perfect with it. We just took a screwdriver when we were done and scratched the stained grout off and then scuffed the scratched grout with a wire brush so it wasn't obviously scratched.

If you have really pitted or 'holey' brick, it is more difficult to stain it. Mine is pretty flat and it was still time consuming.

I used two full kits of Old World Red and not even a quarter of the brown. I was going to buy the kits directly from the company, but checked ebay just to see and lucked out there. Someone had bought a bunch and had some leftover.

It truly does look like the brick was always that color and totally natural.

The cabinets are Wellborn White thermofoil laminate cabinets. We peeled the laminate off it came off in sheets and underneath was the orange mdf. We then sanded, primed with behr premium primer and painted with American Tradition Jekyll Club Veranda Ivory. The island is American Tradition Safari Brown. I drew the legs and our handyman cut them out for me.

The walls are SW flowerpot

The backsplash was a shiny white plain tile and I thought I could remove it without destroying the drywall..I was wrong...I now know how to replace drywall. The tile is Daltile's Splitface mosaic in Sienna Classico. I installed the tile by myself and I'm really happy with it. I saved about $400 by ordering it from thefloooringmarket.com. The tile behind the stove is hanging on top of the tile. It is made of resin and was on clearance at Fred's Super Dollar Store for $12.

Here's a close up of the tile and the granite is Santa Rita. We hired someone to install the granite.

The Hardware I got on ebay for $1 a cup pull and .50 a knob. It's Liberty Antique Brass from a company called Cripes Distributing. The pulls were made to stand off the cabinets but I made the holes bigger to make the pulls flush. The outlets as you can see in the upclose pictures are in a standard place...I worried about then but bought natural wood outlet covers at home depot and you really don't notice them.

If ya'll have any other questions let me know...I would love to help--Everyone here is so very supportive. Good luck to everyone!

http://www.doityourself.com/paint/paintkitchencabinets

http://owcl.blogspot.com/2006/05/cottage-kitchen-cabinet-makeover.html

this is detailed instructions for above.
What steps were involved in painting and "antiquing"
your kitchen cabinets?
A The first step was to clean the cabinets thoroughly with a
spray on degreaser. I sprayed my cabinets and let sit for a
bit before wiping off and repeated this step a couple of times.
I was amazed at how much dirt and grease dripped from my
cabinetry! It's important that as much of this grime as
possible is removed so that the paint can stick well.

After cleaning, I sanded thoroughly and then wiped my
cabinetry down so that no sanding dust remained.

A note about painting:
All the paint that I used was Latex (water based).

I used a good quality brush for all
of my painting. If hand brushing isn't your thing, you may
want to look into a a good quality sprayer. I've never used
one and hear that some people love them and some hate
them.

Also, it is very, very, VERY important that you let each coat of
paint dry and cure thoroughly between recoats. If you don't,
the fresh layer of paint could reactivate the last layer,
resulting in an awful, paint peeling and bubbling nightmare. I
painted my cabinets in the heat and humidity of summer and
sometimes had to let nearly a week pass between coats
because the paint was taking forever to dry and then cure. It
was well worth the wait time, though.

Next, a couple of coats of a good quality primer, inside and
out. You'll want to use a good "bonding" primer.

Then I added an off-white basecoat, inside and out.
(American Tradition: Homestead Resort Parlor Taupe, Satin
Finish).

After the basecoat, I applied four or 5 coats of red (Waverly:
Cherry, satin finish) The interior was left off white, though
the shelves were painted red for interest.

I distressed the edges by sanding lightly down to the off
white basecoat.

Next I brushed on a dark brown glaze ("Raw Umber"
translucent color glaze from Lowes) then wiped it off, allowing
the glaze to settle into crevices.

The next step was to very gently and sparingly drybrush on
a couple of colors here and there. I chose a bluish shade and
sage green. This gives a "layered paint" effect.

Note- the next step is NOT recommended and was
experimental on my part- proceed at your own risk:) The
result was fine but it was frustrating to try and achieve just
the right sheen - and with LOTS of elbow grease. I would
instead ask a professional about the right kind of protective
finish to use, if any. I do happen to know that the Minwax
brand clearcoat Satin finish produces a HIGH gloss shine, so
unless you are going for that look, avoid!

-Lastly, for added protection, I added a thin coat of Johnson's
wax paste, let it set, then buffed it all out leaving a soft
sheen. This step will need to be repeated every few months
or so.

A year later and the paint finish is holding up great! No
chipping or peeling to speak of!
After getting a quote for $7500 to reface, I'm digging through my 'how to paint yourself' files that I saved!

Good luck!

Trish

Planning a kitchen for a new construction and want to see what all you creative people came up with.

Lets see those islands!! The more pics, the better!!

Hope I'm not putting too many pictures!

Quick description (feel free to contact me if you have questions)
-Soapstone: Julia
-Cabinets: Custom, inset/flush shaker style with single bead (waiting to see if we get some issues resolved before I recommend the cabinet maker)
-Bookcase and desk tops: walnut
-Sharp microwave oven drawer (love it!)
-GE fridge
-Shaw 30 inch apron sink
-Wolf range top
-Thermador double ovens
-Vent-a-hood hood
-Dal tile
-potfiller: Newport Brass
-hot/cold faucet Newport Brass
-Main faucet: Mico
-Door to garage: one panel painted with chalkboard paint...fun! The kids love this and it's fun to put messages to guests, each other, holiday wishes, etc.
-Pull out baskets (love these...I keep bread in one and potatoes, onions, etc. in the other)
-Wine shelf--love it!
-Bar stools from Sturbridge Yankee Workshop (love these and they were so reasonable!)
-What would I do differently? More than 12 inch overhang on seating area of island (maybe 14-16 inch). And I might skip the bead board in the backs of the bookshelfs and glass cabs.

Happy kitchen designing to all! Thank you again!