hyzen's Profile

I mostly do the laundry for myself, my husband, and kids ages 2 and 4. Our clothes can be done in 2 loads over the weekend, and there's usually 1-3 additional loads of misc. (towels, bedding, rugs, etc.), also done on the weekend. My husband and I typically fold and put the clothes away together while watching a favorite show after the kids are in bed. I have recently started ironing a few things during that time if they look like they need it (some of my work clothes, daughter's dresses, etc.), but I try to take everything out of the dryer promptly and hang it so ironing needs are minimal. I buy nothing for daily use that requires dry cleaning, hand washing, or other fussy treatment. I will hang/lay stuff flat to dry, but that's as far as I go.

The new kitchen looks great!! I agree with the comments that sometimes you can't tell how poorly something functions until you have to live with it every day. When we moved into our house almost 10 years ago now, the previous owners had just put in a new Ikea kitchen. I never liked the looks of it--not my taste and the style clashes with everything else in our 100 year old victorian. Over time and as our family has grown, the functionality problems have become more and more irritating--not enough storage, tons of wasted space in a small kitchen, cheap materials and installation flaws, insufficient seating, etc. On first glance, it looks fine (much like the "before" above), but it is a constant irritation. I wish we had had the conviction to rip the thing out when we moved in. If you can afford to change it, why continue to live with someone else's mistakes like some hair shirt of penance? Salvage what you can, give the usable materials a new home where they might actually work well, and move on. That's what they did here, and I say good for them. The new kitchen is beautiful, and I hope they enjoy it!

I think one reason it looks so wrong is that the teapot is kind of rabbit-shaped, so when you drape the rabbit skin over it it looks like a little rabbit came along, curled up for a nap on the table, and died (and was then skinned, and had his innards removed and replaced with a steaming hot pot of tea). Darjeeling, anyone?

This is beautiful! It is peaceful and charming, and I especially love that feather print.

Love it! But I do have a practical question--is it bothersome to have the refrigerator that close to the wall? I've been trying to figure out how to reconfigure my kitchen, and one option has the fridge up against the wall like that, but I was afraid it would be annoying because the door would hit into the wall when you opened it, and you might not be able to get the door open all the way....? Thanks!

I didn't grow up with benches, but even looking at the picture above it seems inhospitable. It looks like it would provide all the comfort of a bus stop, and it makes my back hurt just thinking about it.

They all look nice, but the only one I'm seriously in love with is the exterior shot. Moke076, I think the black wall in your room looks great, but that the room already feels a bit dark (from the pics anyway), so I'd hesitate to do the whole room black. Part of what makes the accent wall work so well is that you have the big white mantel and door and big mirror to lighten it up. The rest of your furniture/bedding/etc. looks darker, so I don't think you'd get quite the same effect. Also, a word from personal experience--until recently, my dining room was painted a very deep black cherry color. The walls opposite the windows looked nice and rich, but the walls that had windows somehow looked depressingly dark and kind of shadowy/featureless no matter what I did (white curtains, light colored art/accents, etc.). I had a love/hate relationship with it, and finally repainted the whole room Silver Fox by Benjamin Moore, and it feels so much more airy and spacious now. ymmv.

This is not really my style (I lean much more traditional than modern), but even so, I have to say it looks awesome! We built a big built-in bookshelf in our house a few years back, and it wasn't easy, so I especially admire your ability to envision, plan, and beautifully execute this more complicated asymmetrical one.

So envious of the before. If it were mine, I'd fix the ceiling, replace the flooring, refinish the cabinets, replace the countertops, hood, and appliances, and call it a day. Not a small job, but I'd be happy with the cabinetry and general layout. I can see the appeal of opening up that wall to the family room, but what they have now is already so much more livable than my kitchen. Heck, I just wish my kitchen had that much space and storage in it! I'm sure they'll do a great job with the reno--just chalk me up as jealous.

Great list--thanks!