Our Kitchen - Before and After

 BEFORE 

Okay, we're not completely done but I thought I'd show you some before and after pictures.  This is the before.  I really did like the burgandy and I love flowered wallpaper, but the wallpaper was getting really worn out.  The picture hides its flaws!

 AFTER

This is the after. Please excuse the play dough and cookie baking leftovers on the table. The grandaughters have been here all day so that should explain it!  We put up wainscoting panelling on the bottom.  And yes, I know its higher than it ought to be, but practicality won out over what might look better.  It's the bottom half that gets bad so this was an attempt to put off redoing the wallpaper!  The top half we used paintable wallpaper and I was thrilled with how good it came out.  Unless you look close, you can't see the seams except where the walls are a little uneven. Arthur put up the nice crown moulding, and Priscilla decorated it for Christmas so there we are.  Now the other half.

 BEFORE

The before.  This time you need to ignore the redecorating mess on the counter!  This was taken when the other half was almost done.  On the left you can see a couple of new shelves Arthur put up for me.  You know the saying, "A place for everything and everything in its place."?  Well, for years, the important mail, mainly bills, got put on the shelf with the teacups and such.  Now, the basket will hold those important things.  For those of you that know me, I really do try to be organized :) On the close right you can kinda see a picture frame on the wall.  Before we had a marker board up and most everyday Miriam writes a verse on it for everyone to learn.  I found this picture frame, put in some scrapbook paper, and now have a nicer looking markerboard for Miriam.

 AFTER

And the after. Big improvement!  None of our counters were standard size so we made new countertops out of some birch type plywood and birch trim boards around the counters and backsplash.  Notice the big counter in front. Originally Arthur built a large counter as you can see above.  The problem was the cupboards were really deep and so things got shoved in the back and disappeared.  We cut the counter in half lengthwise, and added a couple of new upper cabinets on the back side.  Much nicer and much more organized.  The door in the back of the picture leads to our "big" entryway.  Basically, the guys work clothes, tools and woodstove are in there.  Might not look the greatest but lots of nice heat comes through that door!

And another close up of the counters.  We were a little hesitant but after doing lots of research, it seemed like everyone with wood counters absolutely loved them.  I stained them and added five layers of a food grade varnish. They ended up a little darker than I had planned, but they match the woodwork in the rest of the house perfectly so I'm happy. After days of enduring the smell, we have been using them for over a week and so far, we really like them.  Water seems like no issue even if it sits on it overnight.  We haven't cut on them or put hot pots on them, which you probably wouldn't do anyway unless they were older like our old ones were.  One thing I am enjoying with these counters is we made them to overhang the cupboards by 1 1/2 inches or more.  Before, the sink corner had no overhang at all so anything that fell or dripped off the counter went into the drawers or lower cupboards.  Nice improvement and gave us a little more counter space. Also, we tried to level out the counters, except for one spot, as before they were different heights. I was happy at how nice the handles turned out too.  We have a little left to do but for now, the whole house is glad to have that project done.  If you patiently read this far, thank you for letting me share something I'm really excited about!

Well, its late and I need to go to bed. I'm so glad God gave us sleep to renew us after hard days of work!  Have a great evening everyone!