An island update...

Hi Everyone!  That post title makes it sound like I've been off on some island vacation, don't I wish.  I'm actually referring to my kitchen island.  Here's another sneak peek of the progress.

This base cabinet was rescued from the dump (it never actually went to the dump)  for me by one of my co-workers.  It was a custom built piece and the back of it is 1/4" plywood, which of course had holes in it for the plumbing, so I had to put on a new back piece.  I decided to take some recycled 1x4's, sand them down and cut them to look like wide bead board which I glued and nailed onto the back of the cabinet.  Once I got started with that I knew it had to wrap around the sides, so back out to the wood shop to do more sanding and cutting.  And this is how it looked a few days ago.

Here it is with the first coat of paint on it.  I used Valspar's Forest Thrush.  It's a really deep charcoal gray.  But this of course is only the first coat.  And I'm not going to leave it this way.  I have several more coats of another color planned.  But that's all I'm going to tell you now.  More to come.

And of course my dog Bo just had to get in the picture and see what it was I was doing.

I'm liking it and can't wait to get this done!  More to come, soon!  Thanks for stopping by!

A sneak peek...

Hi Everyone!  I promised a sneak peek of my kitchen island today so that is what I'm going to give you.  I'm not done with it because I've had a lot of distractions lately and I sort of changed directions on it.  I originally thought I would put some bead board on the back of the cabinet but went a different way with it.  I have yet to paint the base but have moved onto the top of it because not having a work surface of any kind is driving me crazy.  I moved out the kitchen table weeks ago.  Actually it's been almost two months.  Did I really get that sidetracked?  I just looked at it and I did the post on April 16th!  Check it out here.

 Originally my plan for the top was to stain it, but then I got to thinking about the farm table top I made for a display table and decided to use that as my inspiration.  I really like how this turned out, so I'm creating that vibe for the island counter top.

 Here's a sneak peek at the counter top.  It has had a dark grey base coat and white top coat.

 Plus I've painted the underside a charcoal gray color so the boards don't warp.

I've started sanding the whole thing to reveal the gray but it's been so hot here and the shop is not air conditioned so I've only been able to do a little at a time.  It finally cooled off some today so maybe tonight after work I can get the sanding done.  I plan to reveal some of the board in places so it looks really worn.  I just don't think I'll add the bolts to it.  I like that look but I don't think it's very practical in the kitchen.  I'll need to seal it before moving it into the kitchen.  Then I can work on painting the cabinet and won't have to worry about the next heat wave coming through.  So stay tuned, more to come on my kitchen island redo.  Thanks for stopping by.

Work in progress...

Hi Everyone!  Happy Saturday!  I thought I'd share with you one of the projects I'm currently working on.  I live in an old farmhouse that has very limited storage.  The kitchen cabinets (I'll show you the entire kitchen when I'm done) are on the south wall and go all the way to the ceiling.  And they aren't your normal kitchen cabinets.  They are totally built in and open inside from one cabinet to the next.  My grandfather and his brother made the cabinets.  I think they put up shelves and then faced them and made doors because the back of the cabinet is the plaster wall which in some places was crumbling when I moved it, so I had to address that first.  But the biggest problem is lack of drawers, there is only one drawer in the entire kitchen!  I've made attempts to correct this with rolling carts that had drawers, but I've never been completely satisfied. 

So I am starting over.  I have removed the kitchen table and am going to install a center island made from a base cabinet that currently has two drawers in it.  And the best part is that it was totally free!  One of my co-workers was on a job site where they were remodeling a break room last year and saved this cabinet from the dumpster, called and asked if I wanted it and delivered it to my shop for me.  He was thinking I could use it for storage and a work surface in the wood shop.  Thank goodness I've been too busy to set it up in the shop because now I think with a little work it will be great in my kitchen!

So here are my before pictures.  I think I need to build a base for it to sit on because it seems a little low.  And it needs a new back to it, I'm thinking homemade bead board.  I'm going to paint it a dark color so it won't show scuff marks because I'm making it so you can sit at it.  The top is going to be 2"x6" boards that I'm going to stain and give it that farm table look.  I'm going to make corbels or brackets of some sort for the top to rest on where it will overhang.  I see it finished in my minds eye, so now I just need to get started.  And I'm going to add a drawer where the sink used to be so I'll have 3 drawers.

As far as the inside of the cabinet, the double doors on the left have two shelves and the door on the right has none.  So my idea is to build pull out drawers so everything is easy to access despite the overhang of the top.  Then all I need to buy are the drawer glides and hardware and bar stools.  Or maybe all make a high bench for the back side out of old barn wood...?  I'll keep you updated on the progress.  I better get to work!  Thanks for stopping by.