Saturday, April 27, 2013

Kitchen Progress

Today was a big day in our kitchen!    Here's what it looked like this morning:


Craig got out the sawsall and began to cut the opening.


Then he put up the scaffolding, and spent the rest of the day installing our new kitchen window.


The view from inside is amazing! The kitchen is full of natural light now, and it looks so much bigger. It's really exciting!



While Craig was working on the window, I was busy meeting with the cabinet maker and going to Brainerd to buy appliances.


 Here are some samples of wood - The big one in the back is for the cabinets. The smaller darker piece in front of it will be the center island. Both are made out of knotty alder.
We're still trying to decide on laminate for the countertop. We have decided to go with a laminate countertop to save some money, but we may price out granite for the island.

I had to drive into Brainerd to purchase and order the appliances because it's the closest city to our home. This was my third trip to Brainerd in a week! (Brainerd is about a 45 minute drive.) Craig and I went twice to go to different stores and gather information and prices and take a look at the appliances.  Then we would come home and go online to read reviews and more information about each brand. As you look at the pictures below, if you want to know more about these appliances just click on the pictures. We purchased them all at Sears in Baxter - the owner there was very helpful, as was the salesman who spent over an hour with us one night this week as we asked a million questions.

I have decided to get a Frigidaire single wall convection oven. After talking to three salesmen at three different stores, I chose this stainless oven because it's a true convection oven, I like the look of it, and I liked what I heard about the Frigidaire company. (And the price was good too!) Everyone I talked to recommended the convection feature. It's supposed to cook faster and more evenly.


 Craig and I fell in love with this Samsung refrigerator. The freezer has it's own cooling element which is unique to Samsung. We learned that most refrigerators circulate the air from freezer to fridge compartment and back. We also liked the handles, and the fact that it has the new stainless platinum finish which doesn't show as many fingerprints. And then there's the bottom freezer. which is a feature I've wanted for over 6 years.

The cooktop will be located in our island. We looked for one that had the controls on the side instead of in the middle. I also wanted one that had at least one burner that could be used with different size pans. And we wanted one that wasn't clear, glossy black because we heard that it would show every fingerprint and speck of dust. This GE model seems to fit our wish list. 


So the appliances are ordered! Delivery date is set for June 3rd. The only thing we haven't picked out yet is a Microwave - but we can do that any time. we are going to get a countertop model. There will be a shelf for it above the wall oven.

It's really exciting to see our dreams becoming reality. The next step is to meet with a kitchen designer to decide on the kitchen cabinet layout - how many drawers, shelves, etc. Then we will have to make a final decision on the countertop, and start deciding on the flooring. More decisions follow such as lighting, cabinet knobs or drawer pulls, etc.  There's more work to do too. Staining the window and trimming it out; changing the electric for the wall oven and microwave; emptying and moving out the old cabinets; etc.  One decision at a time, one task at a time. We're going to enjoy each step of this process. Especially now that I can look out the new kitchen window!




1 comment:

Carrie said...

I love the appliances, and the window looks fantastic! I am so excited to see it all come together! :)