Kitchen Update - Aint No Party Like An Island Party

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Ladies and gentleman, you're invited to the island party!

Location: In My Kitchen

Date and Time: All Day, Everyday 

This kitchen update was (kind of) free, extremely convenient, and very, very functional. The "kind of" free part includes reusing an old piece of furniture we didn't think we would need again.

When we lived in Chicago, we purchased a kitchen island. We wanted to have a non-permanent piece (we were renting) that would give a focal point to our kitchen and provide a space for people to congregate around.

We ended up purchasing the "Threshold Kitchen Island" from Target. It was (and still is) an unbeatable price at $249 plus my wonderful mother's 10% Target discount for having a Target Red card.

On top of the price, we loved the hidden storage. While open-shelving kitchen islands are pretty, this one offers a way to store things out of sight, and the inside drawers even pull out, in case you are putting something heavy on it.

Additionally, the "bar" side of the island can be extended or folded down (it's up in the picture above, and down in the picture below), which gives you the option of having a two person breakfast bar in your kitchen.

When we moved out of our Chicago apartment, we had a little debate over whether or not to keep it. We weren't sure if it would fit with the rest of our mid century furniture, and we didn't envision needing it. But, I assured my husband that, even if it wasn't in a kitchen, it could be a temporary piece in a guest bedroom or office. If you put the bar flap down, it seems a bit like a short dresser.

Little did we know how handy it would turn out to be.

When we bought our new house, we realized it would fit perfectly. Between the simple white cabinets and the butcher block top, it was going to be a perfect or almost-perfect fit for the space, without us having to shell out any cash.

Once the island was set in the middle of the kitchen and our dishes and other appliances were put in place, we transformed this room into a functional work space that allows multiple chefs to be in the kitchen at once. It made a huge difference in the amount of counter space we have to work with.

Another thing I love about this island is that it allows my husband to be sitting/drinkingcoffee/eating at the counter while I am still moving around in the kitchen. This house has a separate kitchen and dining room, so we would have otherwise spent a lot of mornings with me making my breakfast in the kitchen while he is eating or drinking coffee in the dining room.

Instead, we can enjoy the morning coffee/breakfast ritual together, in the same room. Huzzah!

For the sake of comparison, here are some before-and-after shots of the stove and island transformation.

Quick Note: These "before" pictures also leave out the much more fitting stainless steel stove/oven we purchased. If you missed that, you can check it out here.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

• What do you think about the change?
• Do you like kitchens with islands, or do you prefer to keep the space open?
• What do you do with all of your kitchen appliances? Clearly mine are sitting out on the counter, because I use them a lot, but I'm trying to figure out a cleaner way to display them.

Couch-Like Object Thing? Oh, you mean a futon!

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Perhaps you recall a certain tiny Wicker Park apartment. While the Herman Miller Setu Lounge Chairs were undoubtedly fancy, they were also surprisingly unfit for the space. Here's a word to the wise: when you've got hardly any space, (1) don't pick any furniture that swivels, as moving pieces will magically always be in your way, especially when your apartment is crooked (like this one -- the chairs would randomly end up facing the wrong way!) and (2) don't pick furniture with ottomans, as those seemingly tiny pieces of furniture take up precious square footage in a tiny space... and it's easier to trip over things in a small area, too (ow!).

For now, we've opted for a quick fix. The Setu chairs will take up residence in the studio... because, after all, what room in one's house should be fancier than a freaking studio? (Answer: None!) Without the Setu chairs, we have room for a couch-like object. You know, somewhere where you can sit... or lay... or dump a few bags of groceries. The ability to have a multi-functional space was not there with the Setu chairs, so having a futon in their place is actually proving to be quite perfect.

Things that are awesome about this swap:

• Fancy Setu chairs are in a fancier location... where the dog doesn't roam and the clumsy Carly doesn't lounge, drink-in-hand...
• There's technically now a "bed," in the event that a human (friend, sister, brother) dares to lodge in this tiny space for a night...
• While the Setu chairs only provided a solid chair for two people, the futon can fit at least 4 (but it depends on how big everyone is!).
• Futon = under-couch-storage! There's about a foot of room under the futon, so it would be totally feasible to buy a few low and wide crates or bins to shove things in and stash under the couch. 
• Futon = multi-functional! People can sit there. You can even set your drink on it and it doesn't spill -- we've tried it! We have also grown accustomed to coming in and dropping our bags, coats, or groceries there for a moment, while we get our bearings. 
• Great view of the kitchen and TV!
• Furniture no longer swivels right into your body as you walk by.
• No more ottomans to trip over... (unless Justin wants some leg room... see below!).

I will never speak ill of WalMart again. On second thought, I'm bound to break that vow the moment I begin waiting in line there... so I'll amend it to this: I will never speak ill of online futon shopping with WalMart again. That better? I suppose it would help if I told you that we paid just over $200 for this at WalMart. 

That means that I won't feel as bad when I break it. :-/

Hanging Pot Racks (Probably The Best Deal I'll Get All Year...)

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Tiny kitchens are the worst. After a hilarious episode of House Hunters in Minneapolis, I've now re-coined the term "One Butt Kitchen." You know what I'm talking about... those kitchens that are obviously meant for only one butt at a time. Well, that's what we're got to work with. 

On top of being a "One Butt Kitchen," cabinet space was slim pickin's. We installed a spice rack, shelving, and a hanging rack for coffee mugs under a cabinet... but were still stumped as to how to free up space and make the small space we did have more functional. 

One of the biggest "pain points," so to speak, was the pot-and-pan storage. The under-the-counter cabinet situation involved one large but totally not functional space. This lead to piles of pots and pans and the one you wanted was always squeezed between all the others. Everything was a lot of work... and noise...

...until I found an amazing deal. I ordered this Innova Classicor Wrought Iron Oval Pot Rack (yes, that's its full name. Sort of like Prince Edward VanHalen Lichtenstein the Third) for under 40 bucks.

We installed it by putting in four hook screws, then hanging the fixture from a large chain.

Before & After:

And of course, I had to grab a shot from underneath. I feel like I should be cooing like a little baby, staring up at my pretty little big mobile.

The light we had initially hung over the stove is now somewhat displaced. It's currently hanging along with a rarely used pot... just in case we decide we still want it and want to hang it more "chic"-ly from the rack. Any suggestions? :)

 

Making Over The Tiniest Kitchen In The World

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Perhaps you recall when we gave Justin's Wicker Park apartment an overhaul... At the time, we did nothing to the kitchen. We were stumped, to say the least. There was no storage. Hardly any shelving. No place for spices or pots and pans. 

Before:

The cabinets you DO see are filled with cups and plates... and the cabinets underneath the sink have no shelving or layering. Just one big space under there. So that means your food would be next to your under-the-sink garbage bin and cleaning supplies. Yuck? I think so!

Progress:

To deal with the shelving and storage problem, we decided to add some storage of our own. We added a bright red spice rack, which helped alleviate some of the kitchen stress... and, for a bit of fun, we smacked up a piece of art that mimics the bright red.  

  

We also added a few shelves above the sink, which we picked up at an antique store in Holland, Michigan. The industrial-looking silver shelves can hold a few odds and ends, like coffee grounds, paper towels, and an awesome non-aerosol olive oil spritzer.

Adding a super cheap (thanks, online shopping!) under-the-counter mug rack also freed up some space in the cabinets (while also helping play off of that mustard yellow color). I grabbed it online for 11 bucks and it arrived within two days. Semi-instant gratification? Thanks, internet (I mean Al Gore).

So, using a thrifted spice rack, antique silver shelves, and a cheapo under-cabinet organizer, we had freed up lots of space and organized as much as we thought we could. Yet, there was still a big problem. The new most obnoxious thing (because as soon as you eliminate one nuisance, another one pops up to take its place) was the clambering noise of pots and pans.

Every single time I wanted to cook, I had to wrestle (yes, wrestle) the appropriate pot or pan from an under-the-sink cabinet. Not only did I have to "get low" (sure, I'm only 23, but getting down on your hands and knees to cook is just obnoxious), but, inevitably, that the pan I wanted would always be stuck in between all of the others. Right in the middle. The most inaccessible place. It's Murphy's law... or perhaps his first cousin. Anyway, piles were spilled. Pots knocked other things over. Nothing was organized. And my brain was screaming.

And then I had a dream. Wouldn't it be splendid if, instead of being stacked 10 pots high, the pots and pans were hanging? It came just like a dream to me. To have pots and pans hanging from above, easily plucked like grabbing an apple from a tree?! It must be the kitchen version of the Garden of Eden! Can it exist?

Oh, that's right. Such a thing does exist! It's called a pot rack! For $39.42!

Come back tomorrow to see how it looks :)