The Conclusion of a REALLY BIG Summer Project

I know that summer is really just beginning (although with this new Pandemic Lifestyle, who really knows what month/day/hour it is anymore?), but my kitchen/dining room remodel is complete, and I'm celebrating!

When we bought this house we knew the kitchen needed help - we didn't realize just how critical that would be until we were moved in and experienced the kitchen after sundown.  DANG, it was dark.  And cramped.  And every day I used it, I hated it more.  So the project began about 2 months after quarantine, and was completed by a team of 2 guys.  I can't speak highly enough about their skills and their professionalism.  They showed up every day on time, told me what was going to get done, and explained what happened if there were problems.  They had a few mishaps - for example, they gouged the new flooring when they were moving the stove in - but they told me about it and fixed it at no additional cost.  As with all home improvement projects, there were a few unexpected costs, but they were fair and honest (like repainting the back door, and removing some ugly louvered doors down to the basement rec room space).

Not sure if anyone is really following the whole saga anymore, but here are a few pics of my new kitchen/dining space.

Here's the kitchen end of the room - don't mind the dishes in the sink!  (We had mini meatloaves last night, and it is faster to wash the muffin pan by hand after that rather than put it in the dishwasher.)

My favorite thing in the kitchen is the little "breakfast nook."

It really is beautifully light - just my camera overcompensating for the window in this shot...

The dining room.

I know, there are many shades of wood there!  The table was one my dad refinished for me years ago, and I don't want to get rid of it just yet.  The chairs that came with it were small and really beaten up - they were painted an off-white, but were really kind of nasty.   My daughter and I tried sanding them, only to find MORE layers of hastily applied paint.  It was a very frustrating process.  And then I saw these 4, in a lovely "berry red" shade, on sale on the Wayfair webpage...so here they are.  And the little stand in the corner was something I got at an auction years ago.  It isn't as light as the table, but it isn't as red as the chairs.  Hmm, maybe I need to refinish that??

And yes, just to keep this post stitching-related, there IS a piece of needlework there...on top of that little 4-drawer stand...

...I "framed" the little Mani di Donna piece in a rustic shallow box that I found at a thrift store some time ago.  The pitcher and bowl were from a student potter at the college I used to work at, and the doily was one my grandmother had (made?  I'm not sure).  What can I say, my decorating style will probably always be "Eclectic Clutter."  :)