Check out this gorgeous 1920’s kitchen makeover with touches of fall!

Hello dear friends, and hello fall! I am so excited to finally be able to share a portion of our newly renovated kitchen in time for the Fall Home Tours featuring 30 talented bloggers! This tour is normally hosted by Marty of A Stroll Thru Life, but this year Linda of It All Started with Paint graciously stepped in to help Marty during an unexpected time of loss. We are so blessed to have Marty joining us tommorrow as the grand finale to this week’s tours, so be sure to visit her blog to check out her beautiful decor and to give her a word of encouragement. *This post contains affiliate links.

 

If you are coming over from Doreen’s beautiful home at Hymns and Verses or if you just happened to stop by today, I am so glad you are visiting! You can find links to each of the other fabulous fall home tours at the end of my post.    

 

A Fall Kitchen-in-Progress

 

I can’t believe it is already mid-September! We have been working on our kitchen renovation since March and at times it seems like we would never reach the end. Everything has finally started coming together over the past couple of weeks, and it looks like we will have a brand new (vintage-cottage style) kitchen completely finished to enjoy this fall!

Before:

Before I share the first reveal photos, let’s take a look at a before photo of the renovated stove and sink area that I am sharing today.

 

This is how the kitchen has looked for the past five years. We made some very basic cosmetic updates when we moved in in 2015 which included painting and distressing the orangy 1980’s cabinets to give them a “country farmhouse” look, and updating the lighting and sink/fixtures. We just decided to live with everything else until we could give the kitchen proper makeover in the future. 

 

 

The “Before-Before” Fall Kitchen Makeover

Our house was built in 1921 but the kitchen had been “updated” over the years which stripped it of it’s historic charm. Here’s how the kitchen looked when we bought the house! This photo was on the realtor website back in 2015. We kept all the cabinets because they were in good shape the light colored faux butcher block laminate countertops were useable for a few years too. 

 

Currently

Here is the first look at the only part of our kitchen that is nearly completed as of this week! I am just loving it! My husband nailed the faux copper DIY range hood, don’t you think? (More about the range hood with a tutorial in a future post.) He also completely transformed the cabinets by extending them to the ceiling, adding gorgeous decorative trim and repainting all the cabinetry and trim a creamy white. As you might be able to tell in this photo, the brick paver herringbone floor (be still my heart!) still needs to be grouted. The grout haze needs to be cleaned off the new tile backsplash (just finished two days ago), and the “made in America” sticker needs to be removed from our new slide in gas range.         

 

 

The new cabinet hardware will be added this week and hopefully soon I will be replacing the pendant light over the sink (if I can ever make up my mind on a new one!) But hey, we have the important things, like pumpkins and gourds! By the way, did you notice my new dark stained “butcher block” countertops? Can you believe they are actually laminate?  Amazing!

 

 

 

I wanted the look of wood or butcher block, but laminate is just so much easier to take care of. I chose a beautiful, new style of realistic faux butcher block called “Old Mill Oak” with a custom edge by Wilsonart. I love the look! The Selwyn Bianco tile is from Home Depot. 

 

 

I only wanted the tile to be installed behind the stove and sink. The remainder of the kitchen backsplash around the room is beadboard (because no legit 1920’s cottage kitchen is complete without beadboard!) I can’t wait to share the whole reveal in a couple of weeks!      

 

 

I chose to keep my existing vintage cast iron sink (a $15 yard sale score) and newer faucet just installed this past Christmas. I love how the tile and charcoal grout looks with the sink and faucet. Oh and aren’t those little pumpkins in the window just the cutest?  I am also loving the little cafe curtains I whipped up using ticking stripe napkins, curtain clips and a tension rod! Easy as pumpkin pie!

 

 

 

I love the idea of having lots of plants around my sunny kitchen window, but I have allergies to certain soils, and it always seems we end up with gnats if I have indoor plants. Over the past few years I have found some excellent faux plants that give me all the plant vibes without the fuss. This faux pothos from Pottery Barn is one of my favorites. I think it looks so cute “planted” in a pretty vintage ironstone bowl with autumnal colors and displayed on my vintage “Old Kentucky Home” scale.  

 

I played around with styling my countertops for fall, but I haven’t really “decorated” my kitchen just yet since it isn’t fully finished. For now I am just enjoying several little fall vignettes.      

 

 

I also gathered up some tasty fall goodies on the counter, but I would normally serve treats and drinks from our island. Our previous island was too big for the center of the kitchen and has been repositioned in a new area to provide extra countertop space. Soon a smaller, custom-built European style work table/island will be put back in the center of the kitchen.

 

 

 

I shared some examples of my dream island in my post, Kitchen Island Inspiration: Euro-Inspired Farmhouse Work Tables and Pastry Tables.    

 

 

 

 

Since our new island isn’t built yet, I am using my new French Bistro Table from World Market as a stand in for an island and one my favorite shabby chairs to create a temporary spot for sipping cider.    

 

 

Nook News!!!!

    This bistro table was purchased specifically for our new and improved kitchen corner nook! Back in July I shared a post bidding farewell to the cozy kitchen breakfast nook, but just recently there has been a change of plans…  

 

 

Here is how the nook looked last fall. It was such a fun area to decorate seasonally, but the banquette seating and table were way too crowded once we changed the layouts of our cabinets this summer. In July we ripped it out and had intentions of just putting in a breakfast bar with three bar stools that would face out the existing windows.

 

I was so sad to say goodbye to the nook (and many of my readers commented that they would miss it too!) After living without it for a couple of weeks and realizing I would probably never be satisfied with a breakfast bar, I decided that I just had to have a cozy kitchen nook again somehow!

 

 

With some creativity we came up with an idea for a lighter and brighter nook with new windows and a custom built- in window seat that will fit perfectly. As of today it is still a work in progress, but the seating is on track to be finished by the weekend! The addition of the two new windows has completely transformed our kitchen, making it feel more open and airy. The larger trim around the windows and the beadboard definitely adds some historic character back into the kitchen, and I am loving all the extra glorious sunlight!

 

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I am sure you can imagine how the benches will look all painted white with pretty pillows, and the bistro table fitting perfectly in the middle! My next kitchen update post will probably be titled, “A New Look For The Corner Kitchen Nook!” so be sure to stop back by next week to see how it is coming along!  

 

 

I really love themarble top on this bistro table, but for our island I am choosing a quartz top for easier maintenance. The quartz will be a similar color to the marble, so I think it will contrast nicely with the warm “wood” countertops and complement the tile backsplash as well.  Here are some nice examples of what I have in mind:

 

The Lettered Cottage

 

 I considered getting a new light fixture for over the future island, but in the end I just couldn’t part with my pot rack. A while back Joanna Gaines mentioned that she didn’t care for pot racks, but to me they are timeless and impart classic European cottage kitchen style. I love having a place to display my small collection of vintage copper pots (they are in desperate need of cleaning!) and to dry bundles of fragrant fresh herbs from my garden.  

 

 

 

The herb bundles are within easy reach for cooking and for use in my favorite Fresh and Fragrant Fall Simmer Pot Recipe.      

 

 

The cinnamon donuts are for my husband since he is the only one who can eat them, (the rest of us in the family enjoy gluten free fall treats,) but his donuts do look good!  

 

 

 

Cadia Organic Honeycrisp Apple Juice makes the perfect cider when heated in the crock pot with cinnamon sticks (not an ad, just my true opinion). The cider is traditional fall and winter staple in our kitchen! Right now it is still really hot outside, so the cider will be served iced cold in some pretty copper moscow mules.         

 

 

 

When I moved the cider and donuts off the counter and onto the bistro table,  I came up with this country-primitive-farmhouse style kitchen fall vignette. The old chippy recipe box is one of my favorite yard sale finds from several years ago. I flipped through and found a recipe for pumpkin cookies. I can easily make them a little healthier and allergy-friendly with gluten free flour, vegan butter, and coconut sugar. I think pumpkin cookies will be served up in our new kitchen soon!  

 

 

 

I haven’t done much cooking on my new stove yet, but I have certainly enjoyed  styling some different fall vignettes on the top.      

 

 

In the end I fell in love with this lovely grouping. The dried hydrangeas and squash were free from my garden. I love the lighter fall colors with the pops of copper and amber.

 

 

 

 This Vermont maple syrup won’t last long, but I think the empty bottle will make the cutest vase for displaying little clippings of fall foliage.      

 

 

 

Well, I am not a big fan of selfies, but I did snap this one today to capture how happy I am to nearly be finished with this 5 month long renovation! I have also survived the first three weeks of teaching choir 100% virtually online, so that is something to smile about! I am definitely looking forward to finishing up the kitchen nook this weekend and just relaxing in the corner with some tasty fall cider and a couple of fall decorating magazines.

 

In between teaching, blogging, and the kitchen reno, I haven’t had time to really start decorating the rest of my home for fall, but you can see more of my vintage fall style in my “Embracing Fall Home Tour” from last year.

 

 

 

I hope you have enjoyed seeing our fall kitchen makeover with fall touches (part 1) and that it has peaked your interest to follow along as we finish up all the details and share more of the kitchen over the next few weeks!

 

 

 

 

Now it is time to continue to be inspired by all of the gorgeous fall home tours! Next up is my dear friend Christy of Our Southern Home. I am always swooning over her decor! If you missed any of the other tours so far this week you can catch up via the links below. 

Thanks so much for visiting today, and please stop back by again soon.

Happy fall!

Amber

 

 

*Amazon Affiliate Disclosure: If you purchase a suggested item, I may receive compensation at no additional cost to you. See my full affiliate disclosure policy for details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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