Kitchen stools 10/13/2013

What is the purpose of heated tiles in the work area. Beautiful kitchen!!

You will need something that can be removed to wash or dry clean. Get a gorgeous metal rod custom made that looks like a branch. Or just get a beautiful piece of a branch, a real tree twig. Use that as a rod. Make or get a beautiful piece of woven see thru fabric and make a plain curtain with a triple fold hem of about 3". A big square panel of fabric/curtain on each side. Can finger pleat them and tack at 6" intervals. Tack on a thin strip of leather, shoe string size at 6" intervals on the top of the pleat. Tie it to the rod. These will look delicate, be see through, and can be kept pushed back most of the time to the corners of the window. Casual with a kick of rustic in the rod and leather. Branch can be any color. Experiment. Aspen branch? Very thin.

Nice. I would enjoy it as is for now. It is so pretty and clean looking.

Try Roman shades. We have had them for 15 years in our kitchen. They still look fabulous. You will not be sorry.

Woven wood or bamboo are always a good choice. Mount them high so as not to block the light when up....

I would just add that since the window is right above the sink, you'd want something that is cleanable. You're bound to have some splashing from the sink.

Maybe roman shades.... and I would add a bit of color. Neutral colored shade with a stripe, a sort of dark purple would be nice. Red would go great too

Speaking from experience with a window behind the sink. Please save yourself alot of money and hassle by making it wipeable. If you have your window covering down at night and are washing up in the sink you WILL get splashes on it. Its a bugger to get lasagne sauce splashes off a linen roman blind. Just saying.

Washable, roman shades in the space above the window, in a whimsical pattern, would fill the space, bring in color that makes your heart sing AND disguise the occasional splash until you wash them.

Unfortunately, when you run your windows down to the counter you end up constantly cleaning your windows and your curtains due to splashes...you may be neat, but leave it to hubby or the kids to make it look like you washed the car in the sink...so pick something that will survive constant machine washing and drying with little to no ironing!

Hello. I'm Jennifer with BTX (not spamming your post) :-)
Roller shades and pleated shades are ideal for kitchen and bathrooms due to their adverse effects of heat and moisture. Roman shades add warmth; however, I agree with Value Blinds & Shutter's advice (they can get dirty fast and they're not easy to clean).

We had a similar color scheme and the two uppers that flanked the window. I did a fabric covered valance that had a slight arch and used that to some pops of color in the kitchen in a pepper red color. Then we hung a woven blind below and only had it down all the way on very cool nights or when privacy was an issue. Otherwise it hung about six inches below the valance and just added to texture in the room. You kitchen is lovely, lots of sleek and shiny surfaces. Could use a touch of texture for interest.

I've always regretted not getting the window with the blinds between the panes for my north facing kitchen window that is above my sink. If you are due for a new window consider one of those. Blinds/curtains get ssoooo dirty/messy when they are above the sink.

Everyone makes such good points! So here is my rendition of a combonation of all of them...
Anything steardy & washable with a touch of color.
And since texture may pose a problem with washability, use a valance for bringing in the texture.

I love the Roman shade idea (washable or wipeable) or woven blinds that could be opened to reveal the gorgeous windows most of the time. However, a valance above the window could 'house' whatever you choose when open without blocking light and view. I have shutters (you have many traditional touches)...mine are painted white wood, and can be tilted for allowing views or limiting sunlight, and blinds which can be raised for complete openness of tilted like the shutters, for more or less light. Don't know if these are still cool or not.

Careclare... I think they are very cool

love shutters and they would suit your window but would distract from your beautiful diamond pattern on your window. Nice job on your kitchen! My vote would be for roman shades or sheerweave roller blinds. Roman shades will give you lots of fabric options. Sheerweave blinds will allow you to see out during the daytime if you have a good view while blocking glare and giving privacy. They are very easy to clean too.

Hi thick skinned...I am planning on moving to my homeland of Panama in about 10 years. I have been working in the US since I was 16yrs old and cannot wait to enjoy the beautiful and laid back Caribbean!!! I am planning to work with an architecture to compose a home built from Shipping Containers!!!! Good luck with your retirement.

I thought the before was nice but the after is just stunning! I personally love the windows and the beautiful character that they bring to the kitchen. I wouldn't cover them up! They are gorgeous without anything!!

Stunning kitchen. You should be very proud of your work so far, but with just a little more time you can have your windows looking amazing. Roman shade is absolutely the way to go on these windows. They will give the drapery feel with the functionality of a blind. Your options for color and pattern are endless here, and we would suggest browsing our houzz as well as our website for inspiration. All of our products are custom-made, designer quality for an affordable price, shipped to your door, and easy to install yourself. We offer free samples of fabrics to compare colors and textures in your home before you buy. We also guarantee the fit and that you like them or you can exchange, no problem.

I feel the windows definitely need coverings of some sort to help finish off the room & soften up the hard textures. I love roman blinds but I also like the idea of a box valance & blind, but really anything that you are drawn to, that will soften the space & add color (drawn from the paints & tile) would be pretty. This link has some ideas. http://store.lynnchalk.com/kitchens/

I would do nothing to the kitchen windows. They are perfect. If you need privacy where the sliders are located I would add a little color, maybe a soft blue with a floor to ceiling panel. Pottery Barn makes a nice heavy cotton or light velvet panel in some very long lengths for not a lot of money.

Love love love this remodel.
May I ask what the dimensions are in the tiled working area?

Practicality aside...my vote is for Roman shades hung at ceiling so when raised they can completely uncover your beautiful window. Keeping them clean would be an issue, however, but one that I might try to work with. I have shutters which I love but they would hide your beautiful windows.

Thanks for all the great comments.
The tile area is 5.5 ft x 10ft - 2 members of our family thanks me everyday for heating the floor!
The light fixture is Kichler Olsay
We have gone ahead with a Hunter Douglas Nantucket blind for the window in the living
room - it's beautiful but very delicate - so far we are leaving the kitchen windows uncovered.

Very nice transformation!

Hunter Douglas nantucket which is in the Silhouette family is a beautiful choice for a livingroom. Gives lots of practical options

What a stunning renovation.

Your kitchen looks wonderful. What is this obsession about covering those lovely windows? You've managed to transform your kitchen into a lovely space. I am certain you can decide wisely & beautifully what to do with your windows.

If you're still looking for help with curtains, post as a Dilemma.

Great job!!

What a beautiful kitchen! amazing work!

I really like those countertops. I could do some serious cooking in there.

Love your new kitchen! Beautiful job!
My layout is very similar to your before photo. We're debating whether to remove the wall between the kitchen & dining room or just redo the existing space. Thanks to your post we now have another option! My question for you is- now that you're a year out would you have done anything differently? Do you miss the upper cabinets? Do you have a photo looking out over the peninsula to the space beyond? (Wondering about seating area). I hope you're still out there & appreciate any assistance you can provide :)

Very nice job. Everything ties in well with the windows!

Hi cpfh
Thanks for the comments!
We are so happy one year later that we did decide to take down the wall. We don't miss the uppers at all. Before we started the reno we did pare down on items that we hadn't used much in the past few years - glasses etc. Some dishes that used to be in the uppers now fit nicely in the lowers drawers (dinner plates beside the dishwasher - easy to put away!)
Good luck :)

Thanks for the photos, shawnabaker! My contractor can't start until after the holidays :/ I'll post a before & after with photos.

Inn Kirkuk. By j &@ n. @

Beautiful!

Gorgeous!

Your reno is amazing. We have exactly the same layout as your before pictures. We have been dying to do a reno similar to yours. Can you give me an idea of the cost?

Hi pmclellan - we ended up spending about 50 thousand (Vancouver, Canada dollars!)
cpfh hope your reno goes smoothly :)
p.s.. still no window coverings on the kitchen windows!

I like the idea of the romans. Just please mount them high above the window so when they're up they aren't covering any glass, but give nice softening and add height.

It's beautiful! What is the color of backsplash tile? Thanks!

Hi - It's been a while now! The tiles were 2 x 11.75 Glass Moda

http://antonio-santos-rmjz.squarespace.com/glass-moda

I brought home samples of 3 different colours - I think the one we picked was Mocha Glossy

What about a tie up balloon curtain? You could hang it above the window so it doesn't cover that pretty glass and let it down when needed. I'm sure there's lots out there that are washable.

Beautiful job Shawn!

Great work!

For your kitchen windows, vertical vinyl blinds would work great and there are numerous color options. They don't absorb and hold kitchen smells and are easily wiped clean if needed -- especially the inevitable film that wants to accumulate on everything if you deep fry often. One wide set of blinds would pull completely out of the way -- half to each side -- to enable the entire window to be visible and/or they let you or choose the amount of light you let in.

Add some sun catchers, too.