Kitchen Reveal Part One: Banquette Eating Area & Beverage Centre
Today I’m sharing part one of the reveal of our grey and white kitchen renovation which includes the bar beverage center and small eating area with a bench banquette.
Taking on a major kitchen renovation is not for the faint of heart. It definitely leaves you living in a state of chaos and disorganization for a big chunk of time. Now that all the dust has settled, we are loving the beautiful, functional, family-friendly and entertaining-ready kitchen we now have, and we can say it was all worth it. It’s like childbirth; you start to forget how painful it was after you fall in love with that sweet little baby…
This Friday is my parent’s 50th anniversary and we are excited to enjoy this space with a group of close family and friends. After having the kitchen “out of service” for so long, I’m really excited to put it to use for such a special occasion. Today I’m sharing part one of our kitchen reveal: the addition of a bar and beverage centre, eating nook, and office cabinet; I plan to share the reveal of the main kitchen area very soon!
If you’ve been following along at all, you may remember that I shared all the “before” pictures, our construction details, and plans for this renovation in this post. Basically, the layout changes are as you can see below in the floorpan:
The area that I’m sharing today is that part labeled above as “new eating nook and bar area”. Originally, the previous owners had their dining room in this space. The door you see to the left in the picture leads to the living room or down the stairs/hall.
We opened up the wall between the top of the stairs; I shared the complete before tour as well as all the construction progress and details in this post.
Opening up the wall left us with a space that we actually used as a temporary kitchen while we worked on the construction of the main kitchen area.
Here is how it looked as you walked up the stairs – looking directly through into the main part of the kitchen which is the back of the house…
I’m so glad that we opened this wall up, even though it was a bit of work to relocate some wiring etc. Now, as you walk up the stairs you are no longer greeted by a 30″ wide french door leading into a closed off eating area and kitchen.
Instead, it’s a wide open space with a walk through bar/beverage centre and small eating nook that leads directly to the main part of the kitchen (which I’ll share the reveal of tomorrow!).
Bit of a difference, right?!
Opening up the wall has let so much more light flow through from front to back. We also brightened it up by attacking every surface with white paint, installing off-white floor tiles and using bright white subway backsplash tile. We chose gray cabinetry (Ikea Grimslov Gray) with white solid surface marble style countertops (Dekton Olimpo by Cosentino), and brand new beautiful stainless steel appliances (from the Frigidaire Gallery Line).
The warm tones in the lighting, hardware, and faucets (all from build.com) are a perfect contrast to all the cooler finishes in the space. Add in some natural warm wood and baskets, and I love the mix. What do you think?
All sources are also linked at the bottom of this post.
I had originally wanted to order this gorgeous gold pendant light to use on the island and over the sink, as well, but I realized that it would be too solid in that area because of the island vent hood fan that we needed to install over the cooktop. But I love how it looks over our little eating nook table!
My husband’s favourite area is this little beverage bar/serving centre that we created on what was otherwise an odd wall without much purpose. Since we were opening up the wall between the main kitchen and dining room (at the back of the house), we didn’t want to dedicate another room to just eating/dining. Yet, it seemed strange to make this room part of the main kitchen layout, since there is a beam running across between the two parts of the space.
So… we decided to create a bar/beverage/serving centre along this wall. It’s the perfect spot for serving drinks when we are entertaining, and my boy’s love the under counter beverage fridge. I’m planning to turn it into a coffee bar as well in the near future. The Brewery Sign is from Urban Barn – I got in on clearance last winter and waited all year to hang it.
Amerock Cabinetry Hardware from Build.com
Cosentino Dekton Stonika XGloss Collection in Olimpo
Delta Trinsic Bar Faucet from Build.com
Frigidaire Gallery Beverage Centre Refrigerator
Across from the bar/beverage centre, we created a cute little eating nook with a built in banquette that we made using upper fridge cabinetry from Ikea. I’ve dreamed of having a little nook with a tulip table, and it’s a great spot for sitting while we are entertaining – because you know the party always ends up in the kitchen.
I was also excited to create a little feature wall with wallpaper. This is called Brushstrokes, and I ordered it from Wayfair. I found the art at HomeSense for less than $70, and the pillows are from HomeSense as well. I had the upholstered bench cushion sewn at a local furniture shop.
Tulip Table
Modern Dining Chairs
I made the vase using a dollar store find and some Rust-Oleum Gilded Brass Spraypaint. See the DIY in this post.
Beside the eating nook, there was enough room for an extra/overflow pantry and a family command centre/office cabinet. We use that bit of countertop for charging our devices, and having closed doors on the cabinetry means that all our paperwork and odds and ends can stay out of sight.
Cosentino Dekton Stonika XGloss Collection in Olimpo
I made that acrylic “pour” at an art class I took last fall; one day I’d love to share a DIY for it – such a fun project! The gold leaf plant pot is another DIY that I shared here.
Tomorrow I’ll be back to share the rest of our kitchen reveal; here is a little glimpse…
Gold Pendants over island and sink
Well, pretty big change, right?
I’m excited to show you the rest really soon! Here are the sources we used for this renovation…
Kitchen Renovation Sources:
Cabinetry: Ikea Grimslov Grey Sektion Series
Countertops: Cosentino Dekton Stonika XGloss Collection in Olimpo
Tile: Off-White Matte Porcelain Tile in 12×24 size (purchased from a local tile store)
Dishwasher: Frigidaire Gallery 24” Built-In Dishwasher
Refrigerator: Frigidaire Gallery 21.8 Cu. Ft. Counter-Depth 4-Door French Door Refrigerator
Double Wall Ovens: Frigidaire Gallery 30” Double Electric Wall Oven
Hood/Vent Fan: Frigidaire Gallery 42” Island Hood
Cooktop: Frigidaire Gallery 36” Gas Cooktop
Microwave: Frigidaire Gallery 2.2 Cu. Ft. Built-In Microwave
Bar Fridge: Frigidaire Gallery 5.3 Cu. Ft. Built-In Beverage Center
Bar Sink Faucet: Delta Trinsic Single Handle Bar Faucet with Swivel Spout
Main Sink Faucet: Delta Trinsic Pull-Down Kitchen Faucet with On/Off Touch Activation and Magnetic Docking Spray Head
Apron Front Farmhouse Sink: Single Basin Farmhouse Sink with Smooth Apron Front
Wall Tile: 3×6 Beveled Subway Rectangular Wall Tile
Wall Scones: Bellevue Single Light 18″ Tall Wall Sconce in Natural Brass
Island/Sink Pendants: Bellevue 8″ Single Pendant in Natural Brass
Eating Nook Pendant: Bellevue Single Light 11″ Wide Pendant in Natural Brass
Cabinet Pulls: Amerock Blackrock 6 1/4 ” Cabinet Pull in Golden Champagne
Cabinet Knobs: Amerock Blackrock Square Cabinet Knob in Golden Champagne
Bar Stools: Alexa 26″ Swivel Bar Stools
Tulip Table: Julien Artificial Marble Dining Table
Wallpaper: Gaudet Brushstrokes in Seafoam
Long Kitchen Runner: Mistanta Charleena Light Blue Runner Rug
Hi
I love the beverage center. Would you mind sharing the widths of the cabinets?
Thanks!
Hello,
The tall cabinets on either side are 15″ width and depth, and the center cabinets are 18″ (sink), 24″ fridge, 18″ cabinet. Hope that helps!
Krista
LOVE LOVE LOVE!! Could you elaborate on what the IKEA uppers are sitting on in order to make the bench seating? I’ve wanted to do something similar and what you’ve done looks like a great option!
Spectacular!
Oh my goodness! So gorgeous!! Love that seating area and wallpaper!
Just love it and I can’t wait to see the post on the DIY acrylic. That is so cool, reminds me of the ocean.
WHAT A SUCCESSFUL TRANSFORMATION. Light, Bright and totally utilizing space for entertaining, homework, or just a coffee klatsch! Love all your windows and I know you will love your cabinets, we are in our third year with our IKEA cabinets and couldn’t be happier!
Hi Sandi – that is good to hear! Our last kitchen were shaker style with wood boxes and we really did like them, but I must say the Ikea cabinets are so well designed with all the little hidden drawers and pullouts and things We love them so far!
Wow you’re an amazing designer wish I could see more of the kitchen as well.
Hi Delene – thank you!! I’m going to share the rest of it on Monday!!
Congratulations! Oh so beautiful! I love your analogy of home renovations and child birth. It’s so worth it!
It is… you just have to remember that during those long “birth” pains 😉