A Couple of Before & Afters

I took this photo after I removed the wet, smelly carpet in the laundry room. You can still see the rotted floor I found. Luckily by then I had met Stanley and he managed to get in, replace the floor, and the plumbing before the washer & dryer arrived.

The recent Black Friday sales meant I could get floating shelves at a ridiculously low price (I know, there was sexier stuff out there,  but I needed shelves). There will be a new floor and moulding next summer when we do the kitchen, but there is improvement.

As I said, the kitchen will be tackled next summer after the spring Lobster Fishing season. In the meantime, I really wanted a work surface that wasn’t designed for a leprechaun.

My plan was to use a desk carcass, add a base and then attach the bun feet I found. This is the desk upside down waiting for the primer coat.

Jamie seemed to think if I was in the kitchen I should be feeding her. She was not a big help.

OK so one primer coat, one coat of Benjamin Moore Aura, 6 bun feet, and 10 top coats of polycrylic later I have a kitchen island.

I did some mild distressing so it looks like it has a bit of age – but just a bit. I wasn’t aiming for a post-apocalyptic island.

The work surface is a wonderfully comfortable 36 inches off the ground and is big enough for me to do what I want.

I thought about trying to install actual drawers in this thing and decided that was beyond me. Instead I got more metal shelves and some expandable bamboo cutlery organizers. I use them for spices and tools and they work great.

It’ll look much better when the walls are painted, the cupboards and sinks replaced, and the floor is redone. In the meantime I don’t feel like I’m crouching every time I go to make a sandwich. Yay!