by rebekah on May 9, 2013
So, we left you last debating about which patterned tile to use on the back wall of our farmhouse kitchen where there are currently French doors – trying to find something that would tie in with the existing 2×4 Ann Sacks mustard color subway tile that we installed 7 years ago…well, after much hemming and hawing we bit the bullet and decided to re-tile the entire kitchen. The old tile just wasn’t working with the new look we are craving!
Now that the hood is finally here and almost installed, we positively LOVE the way it looks. It was so worth all the headache and hassle of caging our 1 year old from getting into the kitchen. But boy is she happy now that she can trash the joint!
This thing was a beast. Thankfully we had family in town for Hannah's first birthday!
This is where we last left the kitchen remodel, and sat staring at it and agonizing for quite a few weeks until we finally made the decision to re-tile the back wall and around the French doors.
So far so good. New BlueStar range is installed, new Prizer hood is due to deliver any day, base cabinets have been re-worked, primed and painted. Wall cabinets to be painted next - I can't tell you how long I've been dying to repaint them. They make me nuts. And I really prefer pulls over knobs so we're changing those too!
I can’t wait to paint the upper cabinets and the bar stools. Besides the aesthetics, the facelift has done tons for our storage as well – we reorganized the pantry, added a drawer to the island, moved the waste bin cabinet to under the coffee center.
What the kitchen used to look like - 30" range, white cabinets. After 7 years, we're looking for a change.
We've been meaning to tile the back wall for 7 years...this facelift is finally motivating us to do it once and for all. Problem is, I can't decide on what tile to use!
Check out the different options our designer Kristy Yarbrough worked up for us to visualize the tile. Clients aren’t the only ones who need a bit of help! We still want our kitchen to feel like the farmhouse kitchen it is…but we’re in need of an update. We need some pattern and contrast to liven it up a bit.
Opt. 1 - Villa Lagoon encaustic concrete tile is what I really want, but not sure the pattern density and scale are going to work.
Opt. 2 - Tabarka Studio hand painted terra cotta tile is one of my go-to favorites. Second thought was to do something graphic, but after seeing this sketch, we're thinking this isn't right.
Opt. 3 - after deciding against the first two options, I thought this tile from Ann Sacks (also Tabarka) would be a great way to pull in the deep blues we though we wanted to add to the kitchen to kick up the contrast a bit. But after seeing this sketch from Kristy, I think it's too feminine and too dense a pattern.
Opt. 4 - So today, we think this is the winner - it's a pattern from Tabarka available exclusively at Ann Sacks. I've loved this pattern for years and it's subtle enough and graphic enough and ties in all the existing colors of the kitchen like the floor and backsplash tile that we're not in the mode to change right now.
by rebekah on April 29, 2013
Ramps!
fresh ramps on our gorgeously cured Bluestar French top!
ramp pesto
planting asparagus
Morels!
dinner 
by rebekah on March 11, 2013
Raw winter salad - Au Cheval
So it was my husband’s birthday and we decided to go out for lunch instead of dinner for the first time in 15 years…This is because we’re trying to sleep-train our 10 month old, who now goes to bed around 7pm. Up until Hannah was 9 months old, she would come to dinner with us and fall asleep in my arms, car seat or stroller. She loved going out to restaurants and we were pretty spoiled. We typically eat between 9 and 10 pm which is ridiculously late, but a habit that seems impossible to break. So no more late dinners out for mom, dad and baby.
- What do you mean I can’t go to lunch with you! I’ve got on a new Duck Dynasty onesie and my new Green Bay Packers sippie cup just for dad’s birthday!
The last time we were at Au Cheval I was 9 months pregnant enjoying the best cheeseburger in town at 10pm at night after a long day at K/BIS – so our visit was long overdue.
No caption needed. Photo from Au Cheval.
Can't think of a better place to spend a rainy February afternoon.
The birthday boy with a beer - that's something new
A little visit to Publican Quality Meats around the corner for some Boudin Noir for dinner. Just what we need after the lunch we had - yikes - a bit on the indulgent side today.
I love walls like this - it makes me want to live here.
by rebekah on March 10, 2013
What a great day to move a 600 pound range into a house with a gravel driveway and patio!
I used to be an over-achiever… I still am, but I’ve tempered my excessive optimism with a bit of reality by making a list of 10 things I want to accomplish over the weekend and knowing that I may only finish 2. I’m getting less anxious about this each passing day. (My husband is laughing in the background)
So that said – this little weekend warrior remodel to make the kitchen ready for our new BlueStar range has taken a bit longer than planned. I haven’t been able to keep up with documenting our adventures because my husband, Nick, is busy installing the range, painting the cabinets, etc. and I’m beyond occupied with our 10 month old baby, Hannah, who is crawling up a storm and into everything she shouldn’t be.
Baby-proofing coincided nicely with the kitchen facelift and an unhappy Hannah doesn't understand why she can't be in the kitchen.
Here's a stainless steel model of the RNB French Top, but with 190 colors to chose from, we opted for RAL7026 Granitgrau with brass accent trim.
Our gorgeous new BlueStar range! I can't believe we have 2 ovens!!
So after working all afternoon to get the range installed. We then followed the instructions and seasoned our French Top. Watch the transformation as the heat travels across the surface.
Phases of seasoning a French Top. Are you serious? This is art.
And this is what our French Top looks like after a few days of cooking. This may not be for everyone, but we think the patina of use is beautiful.
So after seasoning, we didn’t get to test drive until breakfast, starting with bacon and Julia Child’s recipe for scrambled eggs, (I think they’re the best I’ve made yet). Then we moved on to dinner, roast chicken, Brussels sprouts, etc. and then the next night – homemade pizza. The kitchen is far from done, but that isn’t keeping us from cooking! Stay tuned as we work to get this kitchen facelift done before spring is here and we have to move outside to the yard and garden projects.
First day cooking - this is fun!
Second day cooking - best pizza we've made yet! The crust was delicious!
by rebekah on February 3, 2013
We’re so excited to announce our new role as design ambassadors for BlueStar. We’ve decided to embark on mini-remodel of our Michigan farmhouse kitchen (featured on Houzz) in order to make room for our 48″ BlueStar range! Check out the inspiration for our kitchen update on our Pinterest board. We’re so ready for a new range – the one we have is a 30″ that we bought off a jobsite ages ago. We do most of our entertaining in Michigan as opposed to Chicago, where we tend to work late and make quick meals. As a kitchen designer that lives in the city, we’ve never had room for more than one oven – so having 2 ovens is going to be pretty cool, not to mention the French top, which we’ve never had the chance to cook on before.
We can’t wait to really cook on this baby, but for now, I’m just excited about the design part. We’ve been dying to spruce up the kitchen – it needs to drama and contrast and we never really finished it when we moved in.
The cool thing about BlueStar is that they offer 190 different colors – picking one was not easy, but we finally opted for RAL7026 Granitgrau, with antique brass accents. I love gray and brass together! Our Prizer hood will be the same dark gray with stainless straps. As a designer, having all these amazing colors to choose from is amazing – but it’s harder to choose than you might think!
In order to make room for the range we’re moving our roll out waste bin to across the kitchen under the coffee center niche, and adding a 10″ cabinet in its place. We’re adding tray dividers to the top shelf of the pantry to make up for storage that we’re losing. We also have to cut down the countertop pieces a bit – but that’s not as scary as it sounds since we have a farm sink, the pieces are all separate, so we’ll just throw the two small ones in the car and have them cut down in Chicago by our countertop guy.
I’ve been wanting to do something with the back wall forever – it’s always felt unfinished. So we thought about tile and then wallpaper, we’re still not 100% on this but here are the 2 options we’re considering.
Mixed Folk Wallpaper by Louise Body
Tile pattern in deep navy and white
We’re going to keep the main backsplash wall tile for now, but we’re going to paint the cabinets, swap out some hardware and paint the barstools Farrow and Ball’s Hague Blue, one of our favorite colors. I haven’t been crazy about the lights since we first renovated – I thought it was a good solution to get some uplight and downlight and since we couldn’t center them over the island due to the off-centered location…it seemed like a good idea at the time. I’m completely sick of them and Nick wants more task lighting. So we may be re-working that as well, by capping one of the junction boxes and putting in a double downlight pendant in the other one.
So all in all – we’ve got quite a bit of work ahead of us. Stay tuned for updates on the remodel and hopefully many yummy meals to come.
by rebekah on January 21, 2013
Browse Home Office Products on Houzz- For Example:
by rebekah on January 5, 2013
I’m starting this year well-slept, relaxed, and grateful… and if I have any say in the matter, I’d like this to continue as a theme throughout 2013. Of course I had to get sick during my time off in order to let myself relax a little…but you do what you have to do. Speaking of doing, there are tons of things on my to-do list that I’d like to accomplish this year. But I hate dieting, and I’m not much for resolutions either. So I’ll take this brief moment to reflect on one hell of a year. The title of my post, for those of you who didn’t pick it up, is an homage to Duck Dynasty – definitely not a show anyone who knows me would expect to be in my repertoire, but it’s freaking hilarious.
Since I doubt the well-slept and relaxed part will stick around long, I’ll get back to gratitude. The old burnt coach house is done, the fire is behind us and we’re settled in. I don’t feel like I’m crashing at someone else’s house anymore…it feels like we finally live here. We had a baby – a scary thing to do when you’re self employed. But everything turned out just fine and she’s no longer a baby, she’s Hannah, and she’s adorable and wonderful and I can’t believe she’s ours. I am grateful for my loving and supportive (albeit a bit crazy) family, loving and equally crazy and wonderful friends, a 15 year old golden retriever who still thinks he’s a puppy, a thriving business with terrific projects and clients. For the first time in years I don’t feel like we’re starting out the year with a crisis or life-altering project. You almost forget what normal feels like.
We’ve spent the last 7 or so years in France during Christmas with Nick’s family, and while we were sad not to continue the tradition this year, it was wonderful spending the holidays close to home. We’ve spent the last week doing projects around the house - cleaning out closets, cleaning out drawers and organizing the kitchen and basement. And it feels wonderful. The reason I’ve tagged this post under Designer Confessions, is because we have a serious case of the shoemaker’s-kids-have-no-shoes around here. I spend my life organizing, beautifying, and finishing other peoples homes and often leave my own untouched for years. I’m determined to start this year out right. It’s like the feeling of starting a new school year with a clean, crisp notebook, and I haven’t felt this since high school. I know it’s cliche, but organization is not underrated.
Best wishes for a happy and healthy new year!
xo
Rebekah, Nick, Hannah and Darley
by rebekah on November 26, 2012
Browse Lighting on Houzz- For Example:
by rebekah on November 26, 2012
Sorry, couldn’t help myself! It’s Hannah’s first Thanksgiving and she’s like our own personal Travelocity gnome. So much fun taking pictures when you have such a willing prop!
This is the 2nd time I’ve gotten to host Thanksgiving – for 35 of 38 years it’s been at my mom’s house in Columbus, Ohio. But this year we were all dispersed a bit at our respective spouses so it got mixed up a bit this year.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Mainly because it’s about being with those we love, being grateful, and food! It’s not about presents or the stress of decorating, but I love setting the table and making it feel like it’s a special occasion. This year it was a little weird to have 60 degree weather allowing us to sit outside with a fire so it didn’t really feel like Thanksgiving until we sat down for dinner.
We had a no major melt-downs this year, and no major fights – probably because both my siblings were with their respective spouse’s families for the actual night of . We had lots of laughs, and only one guilt-trip because there wasn’t enough room for my mom and step-dad’s 2 crazy dogs. A complete double order of pumpkin pie was dumped down the sink only to find out we hadn’t screwed up the recipe after all (retribution for said dogs not being allowed to come?) and I suffered complete rejection of my favorite dish that my Aunt Babe made every year, oyster pie (which I like to mix up the bite with my Bubbee’s sweet potatoes). All in all it was wonderful, and I hope yours was too!
by rebekah on November 23, 2012
Browse Outdoor Products on Houzz- For Example:
