50 Shades of BLUE

My long awaited kitchen chandelier arrived and was hung a week or so ago.  It isn't turquoise, per se, but it isn't exactly a light Carolina blue that I was hoping would blend with lots of blue & white china like my original inspiration board shows:

And uploading this picture just reminded me of another snafu...these Chiavari bar stools arrived and looked wayyyy too plastic!  Word of advice -- don't get hyper like me and order resin -- order wood!  Well, when FedEx quoted me $600+ to send them back I decided to have Robert Corprew lacquer them black for me.  In hindsight, black is probably better anyways, there is plenty of white in that kitchen! :)  Can't wait to see them this Friday.

The chandelier also had a bent arm.  Still working with Greenfront to figure out what Currey is going to do to fix it. :)  I really do love the light and think it is a great statement, but it hasn't been the easiest part of this renovation project.

I'm thinking I'll just add in some Majolica and various shades of blue glasses (Anthropologie) to have it all blend.

What do you think?

Cannot believe we are moving this Friday.  This! Friday!  Ahhh....off to pack more boxes while watching women's gymnastics.

XO,

Whit

PS- I'm still fuming slightly....someone stole a pair of our painted shutters out of the garage.  How strange and rude is that?!  

I spy...

Finally had time to go through a magazine stack as tall as a small child last night and LOOK what I saw peering back at me...

Love this light and the statement it makes in every color.  See it in my kitchen mock up here.

XO,

Whit

Our kitchen makeover

So maybe I should have showed you pictures of the work we've been doing in our little kitchen BEFORE posting ones that were created by some of the best designers & have graced the pages of Veranda.  Oh well, too late!  It does contain some of the elements I love about a kitchen -- a crystal chandelier and creamy cabinets.

The BEFORE (this was shortly after we were married...it was actually worse prior to that!)

The AFTER

The cabinets were painted and glazed on Christmas Eve!  I love how much lighter it makes the kitchen.

Olive spotting!!

The DETAILS

Chandelier was a great deal from Antiques at Five Points and a Christmas present from my sweet parents.  I love the acorn at the bottom to represent the "city of oaks."  The entire store is very reasonable.

The kitchen table and chairs came from Asheville and were DIRT cheap (less than $300 for the 4 chairs and table after Jean did her sweet talking and they are in great condition).  I'm recovering them soon to spruce them up a bit, but the fabric is ok short-term.

The detail on the back of the chairs is similar to some Oscar de la Renta created.

I fell in love with Rachel's terrarium she had on her island and my thoughtful mother-in-law purchased me one for Christmas. 

Conversation piece -- on the Showcase of Kitchen's one of the designers said, "it's important for every kitchen to have something fascinating and unique -- a conversation piece."  Ours is this unusual metal for-sale sign that I snagged up and had my father-in-law hang once Josh purchased the house.  I plan to take it with me whenever we move as a little momento from our first house.

All hardware came from Anthropologie.  Robert Corprew and his crew painted the cabinets, but he said, "Whitney, my guys did a good job, but it is the hardware that really makes all the difference."  I think he's right and I'm glad I ended up deciding to invest a little more there.

The pulls

The knobs

Owl knobs -- I decided to mix these in after finding them and thinking they looked like Herend.  I have 2 over the sink and 2 over the stove.  I get more compliments on these than anything else in the room!

The next two projects in here are having curtains made (I have the fabric) and getting the chairs recovered (I have the fabric there too)...

XO,

Whit

Kitchen Tour

On Friday Jean, Donna (one of Jean's best friends) and I spent the afternoon going on the Junior League's Showcase of Kitchens.  I absolutely fell in love with the self-proclaimed "prissy" kitchen (sadly, they didn't allow photography).  It was a beautiful French provencial style and had a gorgeous marble backsplash, crystal chandelier and a light pink ceiling (which sounds terrible, but it was charming).

Here are some kitchen pictures I've been collecting:

I love the crispness and elegance of a predominantly white (or cream) kitchen.

Desire to Inspire kitchen

Betty Lou Phillips kitchen

Simply Seleta kitchen

Traditional Home kitchen

Urban Grace kitchen

Veranda kitchen

I also love a chandelier in a kitchen.

Traditional Home kitchen

Country Living kitchen

Domino Magazine kitchen

English kitchen

Traditional Home kitchen (I also love the black & white marble floor!)

Traditional Home kitchen

Pendents over an island are another big trend that can update your kitchen.

Atlanta Homes magazine

Christopher Peacock kitchen

Elizabeth Dinkel kitchen

Jennifer Dyer kitchen

Thornton Designs kitchen

Tish Key ID kitchen

Tish Key ID kitchen

Kitchens that would be fabulous at a mountain or lake house

Atlanta Homes magazine

Decor Pad kitchen

Veranda kitchen

Another item that I want to figure out how to incorporate into my next house is interesting (and comfortable!) seating.  I adore the benches built in around the table for dinners that linger.

Atlanta Homes magazine

Celerie Kemble Palm Beach kitchen

Tobi Fairley kitchen

Tobi Fairley kitchen

And a few other glamourous kitchens

Betty Lou Phillips (love the range and stove!)

Jennifer Lopez's kitchen - Veranda

Jennifer Lopez's kitchen again -- another fancy black & gold stove

I'll post pictures later this week of my kitchen renovation project and pics from Julia and Reilly's engagement party in Richmond.  Such a fun weekend!!

XO,

Whit