The more I look at your kitchen renovation pictures, the more your kitchen looks exactly like ours that we are renovating - same exact layout! I have a question - what did you guys decide to do about your oven/stove/microwave/hood? We are so undecided about whether to get one of those oven/stove combo-units where the stove is, hanging the microwave over the stove, or replace them separately and put in a cool new hood in place of the cabinet over the stove. Just curious what you guys are doing since your kitchen looks exactly like ours! We're also going to be refacing the existing cabinets with new doors and paint - it is neat to see your progress and see what we have in store for us!
Here's a photo of our kitchen so you can see where all the appliances are located.
Great questions, Deana! The oven, stove, microwave, dishwasher topic has been one of our biggest topics of discussion. When the renovation originally began we had ZERO intentions of changing anything in the kitchen. It only took a couple of hours after knocking down that first wall until we were asking ourselves, "What if the cabinets were a different color?, What if we had new cabinets made?, Do we have enough money for new appliances?" We still are not 100% sure about some of the appliances, but I'll tell you our plan so far. I'll give you the "practical plan" and the "wishful thinking plan". The oven/microwave area has been a challenge because the area it's currently in can only occupy a 24" unit. We've had trouble finding units this small because no one really makes them anymore (because our house was built in 1958). This oven by GE seems to be the best match for our practical budget. (Our fridge is stainless steel so we'd like for all our other appliances to match.) And we'll probably store the microwave on a shelf above the wall oven. If the sky was the limit, I'd actually look into making the opening larger and buying something like this 30" GE Profile microwave/oven combo. We've also considered a double oven wall unit but I can't ever see myself using 2 ovens at the same time. I found this one to be reasonably priced.
Again, if our money tree would bloom, we'd actually remove the cabinet space that's currently under the stove and put in a stove/double oven. But for now, we'll leave the stovetop alone. It's connected to a gas line and I've never had any problems with it. We currently have a vent hood by NuTone that the previous owners installed. It's in great working condition so it won't be replaced either.
We hadn't really planned on replacing the dishwasher...until tonight! (Brian began priming our cabinets with a spray gun tonight so we thought it'd be wise to remove the dishwasher.) The copper line was welded to the dishwasher and the only way to move it, was to cut the line. We cut off the main water line and when Brian cut the copper line, water went everywhere! All we have to do is replace the copper line and it'll be fine, but it's also a great excuse for a new dishwasher! Brian suggested it and there's no way I could turn that offer down! I'm completely obsessed with a company called Big Chill. They make custom, RETRO fridges and dishwashers (and soon stoves) that are pure eye candy. If I can convince Brian, we'll be saying hello to this guy. I really want the white color.
Deana, I hope this answered your questions. I'll try to keep you posted on any final decisions and of course will post photos ASAP. Please keep me posted on your progress too and send photos!
