I’ve been meaning to do a little kitchen tour on the blog for a few weeks. I always like to get a peek into other kitchens (via blogs and pinterest) as a source of inspiration.   After a good cleaning this morning, I figured there was no better time to snap some pictures and show you around my favorite room (until that closet is finished…).

I’ll start with a little flashback. This is what the kitchen looked like when we started working on the house last spring:

Minus a lot of wallpaper and a change of flooring later….

Let’s start by the sink.

The most misused space in the entire kitchen is above the fridge. Two perfectly usable cabinets that go unused because they’re blocked by the tv (unfortunately that can’t be changed). I try to make the most of the other cabinets and have rearranged many times in the past few months, trying to make the best of the space. Coffee doesn’t typically go with dishes, but it’s above the coffee maker which makes sense to me. J

Next… the sink.

I spend the majority of my time in the kitchen by the sink, prepping food or cleaning up. I love that there’s a big, (usually) sunny window, and the herbs seems to enjoy it as well.

Moving on to the countertop/stove area:

Probably the next busiest spot in the kitchen. Here’s where I channel Ina Garten (did I mention I’m going to see her tomorrow night?!) and the food comes together. Too bad my canisters aren’t full for their close-up.

Opposite the sink & countertop area is the table, hallway with pantry and basement doors, and the china cupboard:

The china cupboard has been the part of the kitchen I’ve struggled with the most. It’s still not finished as you can tell from the half-painted shelves. It was originally the color of the beige trim with stained wooden shelves. The whole look was a bit dark for my liking, and when I painted the trim and outside white, it seemed fitting to paint the shelves white also. I stopped mid-job because I wasn’t sure that I liked the outcome. I’m still not crazy about the dated mirrors, but the white shelves are slowly growing on me so now I’m waiting for warmer weather to finish painting them outside.

Most of the china cupboard is filled with dishes, glasses and extra serving dishes. I’m hoping my china collection will grow to more than one place setting one day, and maybe it will become a real china cupboard. The closed off cabinet to the left holds the vacuum and other cleaning supplies, while the right side holds yet more serving dishes, small appliances and cookbooks. The drawers underneath are mostly blocked by the table, but are convenient for linen and kitchen towel storage, random crafty items and gift wrap, and finally all of the dog supplies and food.

Finishing up our tour of the kitchen brings us back to the door and fridge area:

You may recognize the desk/dresser that I moved in from an upstairs bedroom. It’s still useful for storing keys, mail and other odds & ends. The windowsill is home to my passionfruit plant.   No fruit, but it’s nice to look at. J

What is your favorite room?