New Direction

I love a white kitchen. I'm drawn to the photos I see online and the photos listed have been my inspiration kitchens. Kitchens where I've been pulling ideas from.

I really like these glass pendent lights in the first two photos. The second one is probably a little a big for the island, but I'm hoping to find something similar that will work.

BUT we're changing direction and going with a cherry kitchen with dark perimeter counters and the island will be either a butcher block, carrara marble or a light granite. Depends on what I find. The island will be 4'x4', the perfect size to find a remnant piece at a stone fabricator.

The kitchen will have lots of natural light with a big window over the sink and the french doors going out onto the deck, so I'm not worried about it being too dark. I do have a hard time visualizing how a cherry kitchen is going to look in our house, but when it's all done, the house is going to be completely different. No more orange like stain on the floors, trim and doors. The floors will have a more natural stain and the trim/doors will be a shade of white.

I don't think these inspiration kitchens do the true color of the wood justice.



We met with a custom cabinet designer to design the details for the kitchen. He has done a lot of projects with our architect and is actually less than cabinets from a kitchen showroom. This is actually one place where we've been successful in trimming down the budget.

I was really impressed that he included all of the features I was looking for w/o telling him. For example, he included a double trash pullout, big drawers for pots and pans and the cabinet above the fridge is flush.

That one item

I'm looking for that one item that will inspire the other features we put into the house. The one that will help make all the other decisions a little easier because I'll know the style and finish I'm looking for.

For example, I love this light fixture for the dining room. I love the warmth that the golden shade brings and the oil rubbed bronze finish. This is a terrible picture, but
imagine three of these pendants hanging over the kitchen island. Again, golden shade with oil- rubbed bronze finish.

Can I mix and match finishes? I really like the oil-rubbed bronze but not for the whole house and I've read that it's going out of fashion and that brass is coming back in. Eww brass, really?
My thought is to have brushed nickel be the main finish for the house on door knob's, kitchen hardware and bathroom fixtures but for a few pieces or maybe for a bathroom, I'd like to incorporate the oil-rubbed bronze finish in a few places.

This is also my dream vanity from Pottery Barn. I would never pay what they're asking for, but I'll print up a photo and bring it with me while shopping.