When I photographed the kitchen and den for this post, I didn’t know where to start…this space is amazing from every angle.

So get ready for A LOT of pictures!!!!

A few “befores.”

As you can see, the kitchen wasn’t THAT bad…certainly livable and very workable with a little tweeking. But when I bought this house I did so knowing I was going to make it my own. And I did!

This is how I start at “base neutral.” Take it out…take it ALL out…cabinets, walls, fixtures, carpet…EVERYTHING!

I think this was about the time Brian walked in and about had a stroke! He trusts my “vision” but I had DESTROYED a perfectly fine kitchen!

Sometimes I have to take a space or a piece of furniture to “base neutral” before I can get a clear picture of what I want to do…the “what is” can really clutter your mind!

Eventually I started putting it all back together.

HERE I shared how and why I chose many of the design elements in the kitchen. After 20 years of “tweeking” and having just completed a “mini makeover” on my last kitchen a few months ago I knew what I wanted in this space.

I also had a computer file full of inspiration….HERE is my process for “finding my inspiration,”

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There are so many things I love about this kitchen…where to start.

Let me start with the element the entire kitchen was designed around.

The tile backsplash!

I found it HERE. Now…yes, it is super expensive.But I didn’t need a lot and I firmly believe every room should have at least ONE element that is the foundation for all else. It should be something you absolutely love. As long as you can afford to pay cash for it and not “charge” it, I say go for it!

The minute I saw this tile I know it was going to be the foundation for my entire kitchen design.

The grey Carrera marble accent in the tile coordinated with the grey veined quartz and the stainless steel appliances.

The gold fixtures above the island and brass hardware coordinated well with the gold accents in the tile.

Speaking of island…OH MY GOSH I love this piece. I found the largest piece of quartz I could buy (approximately 65x132) and designed the cabinet bases around that.

I ended up with three awesome storage cabinets on the bar side…

Two great built in shelving units on the ends….

The trash cabinet, drawers, sink and dishwasher on the “work side”…

The drawers…I LOVE the “dish drawers.” I had the cabinet maker make the drawers heavy duty and I used THIS system in the drawers for my dishes….

The bottom drawer has the same system and holds glasses and small plates.

I also had the him make “drawer in drawer” systems for the drawers that would hold all the silverware and cooking utensils…then I built the dividers!

Again, LOVE!

As you can see, the utensils were total chaos without dividers!

You may notice I don’t have a “junk drawer” in the kitchen. Well, that’s because I have tons of drawer storage in my laundry room and have TWO designated junk drawers!!!

Okay, one is actually a “tool” drawer. I keep a hand full of tools in the house so I don’t have to go to the shop every time I need a hammer or screwdriver. (Wait til you see the shop…OH MY!)

Again, I built dividers to keep everything relatively organized!

Building drawer dividers is NOT hard…I showed you how HERE. I used ½” oak on these so they are a tad sturdier!

You may also notice I only have two upper cabinets.

That is because I don’t NEED tons of upper cabinet space because I have an AMAZING walk in pantry.

It even has an electric outlet so I don’t have to clutter my counter tops with the can opener and toaster.

The “cooking space.”

First, it is no secret I love walnut. When I was working with my cabinet maker I made it clear that I wanted the most beautiful walnut he could find for these bases. I showed him this “inspiration photo.”

He did not disappoint.

No stain…just three coats of Waterlox. This product is amazing!!! Super easy to apply and has held up beautifully so far. My experience with oil finishes is even when they do get a little worn and tired looking, a quick wipe with 0000 steel wool and tack cloth and a fresh coat of the oil finish brightens like new!

So much of my “inspiration” for this space came from my last home…floating shelves, reed glass upper doors, under counter lighting and gas cooktop.

The oven is a tad “low” for my tastes but the gas cook top needed a specific clearance beneath it. I love the built in look of the microwave…it is just a counter top microwave sitting in a cutout. The large drawer beneath the microwave holds all my daily cooking pots and pans. All the drawers left of the oven hold utensils, baking sheets, mitts, etc. Plenty of organized space for things you need every day at your fingertips! Again, the pantry is large enough to hold things I don’t need every day…crock pots, large pots, mixing bowls, casserole dishes, etc.

The “breakfast room” is adjacent to the kitchen…I shared it HERE when I shared my laundry room….

One thing in my pantry is super special…a functional piece that has sentimental value. This pull down knife holder was my grandmother’s…then my mothers…and now mine.

Maybe silly to some that such a simple piece can mean so much, but it does!

The den….

A perfect space for just the two of us! I didn’t make HUGE changes in this space.

One change was the built ins. “Back in the day” a big base cabinet with shelving above was all the rage. Probably so you would have a place for your big ole’ honkin’ television.

I wanted plain ole’ built in floor to ceiling shelving. I removed the base cabinet and custom built shelving to fit in the space…presto-bingo…shelving!

There are still a few changes I want to make to this space. Again, reface the fireplace and change out the paddle fan…again, all in due time.

The guest room and exercise room are right off the den. Nothing show worthy at this time…the guest room is almost identical to the guest room in my other house. The exercise room is currently my “wrapping room” and that is REALLY not going to be shared at this time!