My Kitchen & Eating Area: Past, Present…and FUTURE!!

Hello all! I hope you had a wonderfully relaxing weekend. Mine…was…perfect!

We had gorgeous (although very humid) weather, and after finishing up my last two windows on Saturday, I opened all of the windows in the condo and just enjoyed the clear view and the incredible breeze. There was about an hour yesterday when it got too hot and humid, so we had to close the windows and turn on the air conditioner just to cut the humidity, but other than that, my windows have been wide open. I absolutely LOVE this time of year. And being in Texas, our spring-type weather doesn’t last long, so we have to take advantage of every moment we have. Before we know it, it’ll be in the 90s and 100s, and much too hot for open windows.

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So here’s what I’ve learned about myself: I am the type of person who needs accountability. Have you noticed over the last few weeks, I haven’t had any kitchen/eating room updates for you? Well, the rooms are far from finished. There’s still plenty to do. So I need to get back to it.

The break has been nice, but it’s time for accountability again. I seem to get more done when I announce to all of you that I’m going to get such-and-such done, and then I know that y’all are going to come back here to see my progress on such-and-such. That accountability keeps me on my toes.

So let’s take a look back. This is where I started:

Pretty awful, huh? Well, I’ve gotten a great deal done, and here’s where the project stands (and has stalled) for now:

Like I said, there’s still a ton of things to be done (which is amazing, considering it’s such a tiny space). There are the not-so-fun things, like caulking, painting walls, replacing beige light switches with white ones…

And then there are the fun things–the decorating projects–that I’m really anxious to get on with.

After spending so many hours doing Virtual Room (re)Designs for other people over the last week, I decided to take the last picture of my eating area and do a very quick VR(r)D for myself. Here’s what I came up with…the “vision” for my finished eating area:

1. My baskets need a little color and detail. I’ve seen many people make chalkboard tags for their baskets, so I’m going to make my own version.
2. My glass chandelier still needs to be painted and installed! For some reason, I get overwhelmed when I think about this project (especially the installation). There’s simply no way I can do it by myself.
3. I “borrowed” this hand-painted sign from The Lettered Cottage. This particular sign was painted for Layla and Kevin by the uber-talented Susie Harris. I have admired this sign (and all of Susie’s work) for a few months now, and I hope to make something similar for the wall space above my banquette.
4. Pillows! I need pillows. They’re not difficult to make. I just need to find the time.
5. My chairs still need to be reupholstered. I added the monogram on the back just for fun, but I’m not sure if I’ll actually do that. I just seem to have a thing for monograms lately. Can’t get enough of ’em!!
6. I want to make a hand-painted floorcloth. I’ve been wanting to make one of these for quite some time now, and now I actually have a place to put one.
7. And lastly, I love my new banquette, but I need a little cushy for my tooshie–plus, the cushion will complete the banquette look. Right now, it looks really funny just having the upholstered seat back alone.

So that’s the roadmap. That’s the plan. Wow…and that’s just the eating area! I didn’t even touch on the projects I want to do for the kitchen. Phew!

Now that I’ve shown you the plan and the projects, it’s time to get started! And if, by next Monday, I haven’t shown you any of these finished projects, you have my permission to ask…demand…to see evidence of progress. 🙂

Reminder: During the month of April, Virtual Room (re)Designs are 25% off! Click here for more info. Send an e-mail to addicted2decorating[at]live.com to receive the discounted rate.

I’m linking this post to:

• Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick

• Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch