More kitchen decisions

Well, today Adam is plugging away at the particle board countertops, I think. He's down there working, at any rate, and that's our next project.

We're going to need all the help we can get with the granite tile counters, though, so I've been trolling the internet looking for How-To's and Tips.

I found this Reader's Digest article with a lot of detailed info and pictures. And we've already received some tips from Jennifer at Tiny Old House-- much thanks!!

I'm also working my way through the counters section of the 10k Kitchen Remodel blog. The problem I'm running into here is that we're using 12" square tiles and he used much larger rectangular ones, I think. We're also not bullnosing the edge, but rather will choose wood trim to match the cabinets...

And speaking of cabinets, we're also considering new doors. We currently have the red oak standard stock cabinets you can get at any big box store, with that yellowy finish and raised panel doors. They're just not really my style. And, I would have loved to do dark cherry cabinets, but dark cabs, dark counters and medium to dark floors might be a bit too much, even with our bright yellow walls.

So. When we sanded the upper cabinet bases, we found that they are a nice pinkish color naturally-- the "red" of red oak, I suppose-- so we're choosing to clearcoat. As for doors, I found this company: Advantage Cabinet Doors. At $5.25 a square foot for oak, they are wicked cheap, and they carry the shaker style recessed panel doors that I like. They also come unfinished, so we could use the same thing on them that we use on the base. Anyone out there heard of them or used them before? They're cheap enough that I think I'm willing to give them a shot!

Also, I think we're leaning toward this backsplash from M-Boss:



We just have to decide whether to order it already clearcoated or whether to buy it in the mill finish and go through the coating process ourselves...My understanding is that we'd have to oxidize it fist in lye??? If anyone reading this has done it before, I'd love a recap of your experience, and whether you think it's worth doing it... It's a difference of $6.50 uncoated vs. $11.25 coated per panel, and we need around 10 panels if we just do the backsplash area, another 6 or 8 if we decide to fill in the space behind the stove.

I think the shiny aluminum will be a nice way to bring everything together. It will work with the Silver Mist appliances and reflect the green and gold of the Uba Tuba and yellow of the walls.

I might be getting a little ahead of the game here. We should probably focus on one thing at a time, but sometimes, I just can't help myself!