Month: June 2018

For more than 8 years, I worked at a Kitchen and Bath Remodel/Design Firm.  As you can probably imagine, I would see many beautiful things and major transformations nearly every day.  Then I would go home and look at “1995” all the other hours of the day and night. Honey oak everywhere, four children leaving their mark on every surface and a poorly designed floor plan were only part of the issues with our home of nearly 20 years.  It was only a matter of time before I needed to make some changes.

The reasons people start a renovation are very different.  Many times it was for something as simple as needing a new faucet, so we may as well get a new sink and then, of course, new countertops too.  I mean, why not, as long as you’re making a mess – just keep going!  My husband will tell you (and has told many others) that it was because of my Christmas gift that year – an orange Kitchenaid mixer.  That may only be partially true.  🙂

This project started as a kitchen remodel for a better layout and quality cabinetry.  What happened next was amazing.  By working with kitchen designers, you get fresh eyes and fresh ideas.  There was a new window and a new door.  There was a new entrance from the garage and a large kitchen island – something that I never would have thought I could fit in that room.  The footprint didn’t change – just the way it was used.

 

The before.

The during.

The vision.

The result.

Thanks to my friends/co-workers, 1995 is but a distant memory and getting to be a fuzzy one already.  Walls were removed to open the space between the dining and living room, a second hallway was better utilized to be part of the laundry room and the powder room and even the entrance from the garage was rearranged for better flow.  All things that I could never have imagined without the help of the place I spent my days.  I gained only 3 feet in my kitchen from the before and after.  Yes, three feet.  It feels like 30.  A new window, more efficient work flow and  custom cabinetry brighten this space three-fold.

And, this was only the beginning.

This is Minnesota and everyone in this family are Viking fans – well, except for my brother-in-law, Simon.  He hails from the land of cheese.

When my baby sister brought “the boy” into the world, four years ago, the competition began.  Would “the boy” wear the purple or the green?  Would there be Viking horns or Cheese heads?  Team Bridgewater or team Rodgers?  This was a whole new kind of border battle!

When I saw this quilt from @CluckCluckSew I knew it was my only way to get a leg up on the competition.  So cute, boyish and subtley clad in purple and gold so as to brainwash encourage the recipient to love this side of the border a little bit more than the other.

Now, I like my brother-in-law and I was feeling a” little” guilty about dissing his team so while it’s a Viking party in the front, there’s some Packer green and gold in the back.

It’s better than nothing, right?

SKOL!