Upstate NY Kitchen | ORC | Week 2

Let's do a deep dive into the kitchen!

I want to use as many recycled pieces as possible in this project and the kitchen has many opportunities. I am going to show you my moodboard and then I will go into detail telling you where I found each piece and why I chose it.

The Sink

The first piece I am going to talk about is the soapstone sink! I looked for months for the perfect sink. I knew I wanted something old, it might have been a farmhouse sink or a stainless steel one. - beat up from years of restaurant use... but one day my facebook marketplace search took me all the way to Vershire Vermont, which by the way is 4.5 hours away from me. It stopped my scroll hardcore:

I knew it was love from the minute I laid eyes on it! The seller lived in a farmhouse from the 1800's and this sink had been in there when he bought the house. My house was built in 1890 so it was a perfect match to bring in some historical charm to the kitchen. I wanted our kitchen to feel lived in and romantic. A place where you would feel at home and warm. I turned to pinterest to make sure that my sink vision was going to work and I found two rooms that I absolutely fell in love with, though my kitchen will not look like these spaces, I thought they were a perfect inspiration.

Image credit: Two on left John Derian Madame Figaro and right is Architectural Digest photographing Jim Joseph and Scott Frankel's Historic House.

A week later (after a snowstorm delayed us once) my husband headed out in his parents' pick up truck to Vermont. He pulled up to a remote farmhouse that had snow covered sprawling fields and a big barn! When he knocked on the door a sleepy face greeted him...the soapstone sink owner had thought we were coming the next day! The two of them had to dig out a path to the barn and deadlift the 400lbs sink over a snowbank and into the pick up truck. They parted ways and my husband drove the 4.5 hours home with our new sink baby!

The sink came with gorgeous custom base cabinets too, which I painted Schoolhouse White by Farrow and Ball. They were already painted but the paint job was scratched up so I primed first.

Lighting

I knew I wanted statement lighting above the sink and the stove, so I kept my eye out until one day these clay Rejuvenation pendant lights popped up! They were only $30 each and in great condition, they usually go for over $500. Since we are not doing upper cabinets these big beauties will be perfect!

The Stove

Finding a second hand stove was both easy yet difficult. There are so many on Facebook marketplace but I had a list of things I need mine to be:

-CLEAN

-electric

-attractive

-white

-no dents

I found three stoves over two months of hardcore searching that fit these requirements, two of them sold to other people before I could get to them - both were vintage beauties too. Finally I found the one! It was an hour away and the previous owner kindly helped my husband bring it out to the truck but they accidentally broke the front door window in the process. The homeowner luckily was doing a big renovation and it was going to be replaced anyway so he said not to worry about it.

The Closet

There is a door to the kitchen that leads to the back yard/ parking area so I wanted to include a place to hang coats. I was looking under the wardrobe search term on FBMP and I found a gorgeous primitive closet that was in someone's attic before they renovated it. I'm so happy people save things like this instead of throwing it away, this piece just oozes history.

The Fridge and Freezer

I have always loved the look of no upper cabinets but you know what gets in the way of your line of sight? The fridge! Unless you have the budget for a beauty like a smeg or you have the patience to do touch ups to a painted fridge (like I have in my barn). I ended up hitting the jackpot and found an under counter Sub Zero freezer for $100 and an undercounter U Line fridge for $150! They both were panel ready so it was easy for me to prime and paint them the same Schoolhouse white as the cabinets, but I will share their finished look later.

Other Finds

I also found an island that was from Ireland, a settee for a dining nook, and a vintage shoe maker's shelf to put plates and glasses on.

I will be buying some new things, for example I really have my heart set on a brass bistro table from CB2.The floor tile is new and from Home Depot. I will be adding beadboard around the kitchen counters.

Loose ends:

-I have to figure out a cabinet to put in the corner by the stove but I have to wait until the stove and sink are in place for exact measurements.

-I need to find a cute runner.

-decide if I want a pegboard or a shelf above the beadboard.

-a lot of other things like styling and things I am forgetting too.

So that's the big update of the week! Are you ready to see a little preview of the space? The first photo is of the old cabinets and fridge etc. and the second shows the space as a blank slate! I am so excited!

Be sure to check to the other participants! A huge thank you to the One Room Challenge and Apartment Therapy for hosting!

I hope you have a great week! Ginny