MartyGr's Profile

There was a picture of a yearbook on FailBlog once: Jed I Knight.

I can't stop grinning, but that poor kid... He even had Luke SKywalkers hairstyle...

Thank you!

You could also try venetian plaster in gray shades. I remember watching my mom do it first time in our hallway, and it turned out great. She went for the Tuscan effect (orange/yellow/muddy application), but picking industrial colors and going for smooth, wet concrete look should give great results.

I agree on practicing before, tho. I did a faux treatment of my bathroom walls and I'm really happy I practiced... behind the kitchen range first! ;)

My pug (pugs are not dogs...) gets everywhere, including our dinning table to eat the outside of a lone burrito left there to cool before moving it to the fridge.

The only place she stays off is a fabric sofa in our office (she spends her whole days in front of the sofa, on a little ottoman, or on a lil chair next to me), but sofa is a no-no from the moment we got it. "BAD DOG" and a few guilt trips seemed to work.

Not a big fan of cleaning, but I implemented "wash as you cook" recently, and I am so proud of myself... The dishes ARE done before the meal leaved the kitchen (maybe except one or two). Then, after dinner it's just plates to the dishwasher and quick wash of the pan/pot that was already soaking in water for 20 minutes. Breeze.

I'll break my post up a little bit:

Cabinets - good suggestion by Kimmie - hardware makes all the difference. I would consider painting my kitchen cabinets white, but I just love the creamy white look. If you like yours - keep them this way.

Backsplash - I tiled mine and love the easy cleanup. I'd also suggest subway style, but maybe in some classic finish - light stone look would work great with the wood. If you don't want to spend too much on the real stuff, porcelain and ceramic tiles look pretty good these days and are easier to maintain.

Walls - my parents have similar color of cabinets and I talked them into olive green. Worked great. I also like wood / soft yellow combination. Not too bright and not with orange undertones. Mustard and honey colors would be my choice.

Counters - if you are decided on the white ones, I would get them first and then try sampling backsplash and wall color around them. I have bright white laminate and quite hate it. It's not the newest one, so maybe that's why it stains so easily, but I'd have to treat it with bleach bath every few days to keep them in a decent shape. Everything from red wine and tomato sauce, to sunny-d and cucumber will leave marks. If you want laminate - go for some neutral color or stone lighter look. If you want to spruce up - maybe it's worth investing in stone counters?

Appliances - I'd get stainless. I know it may be a trend, but stainless just looks better with this type of wood. And if you want to modernize - stainless definitely helps. I think black would look better than white in this kitchen, too, but I'm not against white appliances, especially with while cabinets.

Good luck with your new place!

Just tried sanding the planks - no way I'd get it down to bare wood - so I guess stain is out. I'm also more worried about inhaling with the created dust than paint toxicity... Yes, I do own a mask.

I cannot use laminate over the existing floor, because they don't make stair planks, laminate is quite thick and it's just over my DIY skills.

I do like the BM Black Bean color (or at least the samples/pictures I found on the Internet), but is it a cold or warm brown? Hard to say checking on the computer screen.

Here are some color samples, and I like all 4 at the bottom. Maybe something lighter would be an option, too - "stone", "copley gray". (http://media.benjaminmoore.com/WebServices/prod/PDFS/VinylSidingDollops_final.pdf)

Had to cross out red and navy... They would not match anything else in the house...

Love it! Wish I had a window in my lil kitchen. But to get anywhere close to your results I'd have to gut it out, redo plumbing in half the house and add my dream window. :)

I do think it is smart to consider the resale value when deciding on kitchen or bath renovation. You can do whatever you want with painted surfaces, replacing the floors is typically not a big deal, same back-splashes, etc, but the bones (cabinets) are painful to change.

What I learned about open shelving is don't do it in a tiny kitchen that has issues with ventilation. I removed doors from all upper cabinets last Fall to repaint and reinstall them within a week. They're stuck in the garage since then, because I like the look.

My kitchen has no windows, no vent going outside, so I cannot boil water for my tea without steam getting onto the closest dishes. I need to re-wash all the glass dishes before using them, as they are all covered with a fatty film every time I cook, and I cook often. So I'm putting the doors back, and will keep an open shelf for display only, and maybe cut a couple of other doors for easy access to plates and mugs.

Go for open shelving if your kitchen is well vented, you can install doors without a great hustle, and if they are away from your range.

Ekhm... bigos is not an Easter dish at all. :)

I don't think I ever had bigos with garlic, too. But there are so many modifications to the recipe that basically every family has it's own version. I love it with seared pork and chunky bacon (back fat is just too hard-core for me). Sausage is not my favorite, and I prefer the version without tomatoes or wine. Also, at least for me, the more sour the better, but you may tone it down with fresh cabbage.

You definitely need sourdough bread with it. And don't forget it'll send you running for the toilet if you're not used to eating boiled sauerkraut in large, or any, quantities.