We’re finally closing in on the last leg of the Great Kitchen Rehab.
Cabinets are in. Appliances are in and working. Most of the drawer and cabinet pulls are installed. The protective covers on the tile floor, soapstone counters, and range hood are gone. All that remain are the missing pulls (the hardware order was short), a minor electrical fix on the overhead fan and its controls, final clean-up plus oiling down the soapstone, and painting.
Most of the missing pulls are cup-style, as seen on the left, below. And one detail that wasn’t seen before is the leaded glass panel suspended in front of the transom window. Apologies for the odd lighting – it’s tough to get a photo of a clear window in the late evening.
The backsplash extends across the entire wall below the cabinets on the sink side, and behind the rangetop, under the window and up the other side of the window (a skinny strip) on the other side of the room. The end wall surrounding the door to the dining room is bare.
The soapstone will darken considerably when oiled/waxed.
The painter should start next Monday, possibly earlier if he is available. It’s just the one room, so it shouldn’t take long. The walls are a very pale dove grey, with the now-poplar-color window, door and baseboard trim done in an enamel, one click darker. The ceiling will be white.
After painting we have the next challenge – moving everything back into the kitchen, figuring out where it goes and stowing it all safely away. I’ve already ordered oilcloth to line the pull-out drawers of the pantry, so with luck we’ll avoid those sticky circles under bottles of oil or molasses, that happen no matter how carefully they are wiped down.
The next post on the kitchen rehab will be the last one, with everything done, plus a before and after set to finally banish the ghosts of the vaguely Colonial style cherry veneer that used to be.
What will we cook first in our new kitchen? Hmmm…..
String-Or-Nothing 
Thanks for sharing your new kitchen with us…It looks wonderful and you will enjoy it for many years to come..What a delightful event for you…Evelyn
Long time reader, but first time commenting: store the bottles that always leave nasty spills permanently in a plastic box that lives in the cupboard – a shallow Tupperware container works for me. That way the spills/sticky circles are always contained, the box can easily get popped in the dishwasher every so often, and drawers, shelves, and their linings always stay clean.
Good thought!
How have the soapstone countertops been to live with?
We are finally working to hire a design-build firm for our kitchen / laundry room remodel! And we’re curious about the soapstone, which I love, Donna worries about.
Loving them, but I do note that the corner edges can be fragile. We have some small chips where pots and pans hit at the perfect (wrong) angle. But aside from that, which magnifies the mad-science vibe, I adore them for being impervious to anything that drips, indifferent to hot pots, and easy to keep clean. Not to mention always cool, even in the summer, being a big help with pastries and doughs.
Thank you – very helpful comments.
I love the inclusions in soapstone, the general look, and what it feels like to the touch.